(Merry meet, merry part, and merry meet again, on this, the night when the veil is thinnest. video added and
– promoted by kestrel9000)
Samhain (pronounced Sow-in or Sahm-hayn), known most popularly as Halloween, marks the end of the third and final harvest, is a day to commune with and remember the dead, and is a celebration of the eternal cycle of reincarnation.
Samhain is the most coveted Sabbat by many Pagan traditions.
A little background on Pagan holidays. The Sun marks the year at four clear points called the Quarter Days – in the Northern Hemisphere. These days: Winter Solstice, Spring Equinox, Summer Solstice, and Autumnal Equinox. The Celts divided the year in to eight by inserting the four Cross Quarter Days at October 31st (Samhain), February 1st (Imbolc), May 1st (Beltane) and August 1st (Lughnasad). These points are roughly half the number of days between the Solstices and the Equinoxes. Each of these days is considered a sabbat. A sabbat is a holy days among Celtic Pagans.
Pagans believe in both a Goddess and a God. The focus of most pagans is on the Goddess and she was found in trinity in the Celtic world. As a Virgin, we first see her at Imbolc as Bride. She has a Mother aspect, both Beltane and Lughnasad – times of fertility and harvest. It is here at Samhain that we meet the Goddess in Her third aspect, one that causes the most problems for many of us: the Crone.
It is a magical interval when the earthly laws of time and space are suspended, and the Thin Veil between the worlds is lifted for believers. Communicating with our ancestors and departed loved ones is easier at this time. As those that went before us journey through this world on their way to the Summerlands we can communicate at this time. It is a time to study and honor the Mother and the Father, symbolized by the Crone and her aged Consort.
In the European traditions, Samhain is the night when the old God dies, and the Crone Goddess mourns him deeply for the next six weeks until Yule. Part of the image of the witch and her cauldron comes from the Celtic belief that all dead souls return to her cauldron of life, death, and rebirth to await reincarnation.
There is another, aspect of the Crone: the wise old woman. Our Grandmothers (and Grandfathers) carry the wisdom of our people. We have seen the Native American respect for wise elders. We need to respect those older women, the Clan Mothers, those that helped choose the Chiefs among the ancients. All of the Celts had a council of elder women who chose their kings and war leaders. Some of us were blessed with knowing the wise ones that preceded us. I was blessed to know 3 of my 4 grandparents. I was also blessed to learn from the wisdom of my mother-in-law and her sisters. We need to redevelop ways of incorporating Crone energy in to our lives. A time to honor the wisdom of our elders not just at this time of remembrance but all through the year.
This a special time for Pagans. It is believed on this night the separation between the physical and spiritual realities and the veil of communication is thinnest. It is a time for dimensional openings and workings, it is a somber holiday, one of dark clothes and thoughts for the dead. It is a time to remember our own ancestors and those special people who have died. Pagans believe it is a time of endings of relationships and bad situations. It is the time when one can see the glimmer of hope in the future.
As a Pagan I will wear black, formal attire for Samhain and take time to remember those that went before and touched my life. I will light candles and share a special ceremony in my home with my partner. A time to remember, a time to let go of the past, and a time to embrace the future.
As we light candles for the Sabbat – please add names to this our remembrance of those that went before.
These I remember:
My Paternal Grandparents
My Maternal Grandmother
My Uncle – that was like a father to me
My Step-Son
My First In-Laws
My Husband’s Mother and her Sisters
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Posting this early…so we may each add to it for Samhain. I will be very busy for most of the day…but want to share this special day here.
Blessed be ~ those present and those that went before
it’s been a lucky year here in some ways personally. But…
An untold number of dead in these stupid wars, all of whom had lives and hopes and a world in them.
All the people who starved to death or died of preventable crap for want of a few dollars, all of whom had lives and hopes and a world in them.
All the victims of violence and ignorance, all of whom had lives, and hopes, and a world in them.
What is remembered, lives.
My mother
My two brothers
My sister
My grandmothers
My grandfathers
My two great Aunts that I lived with in the summer on the ranch
My two great Uncles
My mother’s only brother
The children of war in my time
My friends
and neighborhood streets and sidewalks filled with kids in costumes. I remember before all the crazy stories about razers and poison, when some of the old people still gave out homemade treats like candied apples and popcorn balls, after they invited into their home when you knocked on their door. I remember cheap, homemade costumes and pillowcases for candy bags.
I’m glad that the pagan roots of Halloween are now more known and acknowledged. I like this diary of remembrance. The ones I remember now are all my grandparents I knew growing up, two uncles, one cousin and several friends. I will light a candle for each one tonight. This diary has inspired me.
my grandparents
my dog sammy and his cat, murphy
my cousin frankie
hoppy
my friend tony
Mama
Gramma & Grampa
Mr. Legare
Ms. Sara
Mema & Papa
Aunties G, Tootsum, Jeannie
Uncles Jay, Tom, Roy, Billy
by adding them to this roll-call:
My grandmothers, all of them
My grandfathers, all of them
My mother
My father
My sister
My daughter
My grandson
My friends
I will wear dark clothes and light the candles and provide food.
I will remember them and honor them and know that I will be taking my own place among them as time unfolds.
Blessed Be.
Great Grandmother Cecilia
Grandmother Rose
Grandfather Samuel
Grandmother Sarah
Grandfather Milton
Mother Leatrice
Father Bernard
Aunt Joan
My best animal/childen Valentino, Tat and Pushpin
and all of the people of the world who sought to live a peaceful life surrounded by their loved ones and were denied this opportunity by man.
is wise yet reviled, it is wisdom relegated to the powerful female. The proud tradition of the female in history who has been burned drowned and silenced makes me proud to be a crone, witch, whatever you chose to call the female voice that has forever stood proud against the weird macho shit that just keeps coming on.
thank you for this.
My Grandparents
My Parents
My Husband’s Father
My Uncle Sidney
My Aunt Katie
My Friend Barry
My Friend David
My Dear Friend Laurie Burke-Shields who left us this year much too soon
And all the other sweet spirits who have wandered in and out of my life and this one.
in it’s original form, we have the day of the dead, my favorite the Mexican, day of the dead. I love the skeletons not scary but here and yet gone. My heritage from growing up in California.
As a Celt both sides, although I do not know too much of them, I thank my ancestors who painted them selves blue (my mothers description)and fought fiercely women and men against the Romans. May my granddaughters and those who come after, do the same and keep this spirit of the crone alive.
Here’s a vide to celebrate the spirit…sort of!
My great-grandmother, Jennie Bowlegs
My grandmother, Ziny Bowlegs
My grandmother’s sister, Hotochee Bowlegs
My mother, Echo Lange