What is Samhain?

As we are working our way through October, Halloween is getting closer and closer. Nowadays, Halloween is a very Westernized holiday, with people throwing parties left right and center and children going trick or treating. 

Halloween actually derives from a Pagan festival called Samhain. In the Pagan calender, it marks the 'Feast of the Dead' and has been celebrated (in Britain) for hundreds of years. In Pagan Celtic traditions, it was the time of the year when links between this world and the 'Otherworld' were at their thinnest. When spirits of the dead could be amongst the living. When Christians took on this festival, they named it 'All Hallows' Eve', however, it still held the main elements of remembering and honouring the dead. 

For modern Pagans who celebrate Samhain, it is a time to honour and show respect for their dead; to invite loved one's spirits to join at the celebratory feast and to formally welcome children who have been born in the past year into the community. Pagans also use Samhain as a time to reflect on significant changes in their lives. It's a time of coming to terms with the past and looking forwards to the future. 

The Ancient Druids who celebrated Samhain thought that the presence of spirits would help their priests to make predictions about the future. To celebrate, they built huge, sacred bonfires and bought harvest foods and sacrificed animals to share at a communal celebration feast. During their celebrations, the Druids/Celts would wear costumes, generally made from animal heads and skins. I like to think that wearing costumes on Halloween nowadays is probably thinly linked to this ancient tradition.

For a bit more information on each holiday, click here.