Samhain

The Festival of Samhain marks the ending and beginning of the Celtic Year. Samhain (pronounced "Sow-in") comes from the Irish Gaelic and means "Summers End". There is a great deal of distortion as to the true meaning of the Holiday, fostered in large part by religious propaganda perpetuated by overly superstitious fundamentalists.

Sometimes one will hear of an "Evil God" named "Samhain", but such a deity never existed anywhere in Celtic lands or Europe for that matter. It was a literary fiction masquerading as scholarship from the early nineteenth century. Fables of Druids leaving "Jack-o-lanterns" at the homes of families who have helped procure a sacrifice for "Samhain" (or Satan) are likewise scurrilous at best.

Samhain can be viewed a number of ways. Firstly, it was an important agricultural observance, when the final harvest was taken and the folk were now dependent on stored food, hunting and slaughtering of animals for survival. Herds were culled to eliminate the weak and unnecessary and ensure that the limited amount of food would go around for the next six months. In this aspect, Samhain is a holiday of Plenty and feasting, laying in a layer of fat before the winter, and gathering together for safety and protection.

The harvest being over, the seeds for the next years crops are planted. They'll lie dormant until Oimelc (Feb. 1st) when they will begin to sprout. By Beltain (May 1st) they will have shown growth, and it is this time of year that is concerned with the fertility of the coming crops. Those same crops will be harvested by Samhain, and the cycle begins anew.

Samhain is also a time when the veil separating our world, the mortal realm, and the world of the Gods and spirits becomes thin. Likewise, the separation between past, present and future becomes blurred, allowing for glimpses not only into the realm of the ever Young, but of things which have not yet come to pass. Divination has been historically popular at Samhain, from the Irish myths; to children casting nuts into a fire and kenning their future sweetheart by the way they pop and burn.

Samhain, as the beginning and ending of the yearly cycle, can be viewed as any other "New Years" celebration; and is the time when we connect with the vital forces of nature and make ourselves ready for the long descent into winter. It is a time to reflect on that which we've brought into our lives, and that which we need for the times to come.

Connecting with our roots and examining the directions we need to grow. We feast with the ancestors and ensure the continuing vitality of our people, be it ourselves, our family or the community in which we dwell.