Samhain

To my solo practitioners and magic wheedlers Welcome!

Today I am going to be doing something a little irregular, but instead of doing my usual, about authenticity and authority or talking about criticism which I have some much more to expand but for this week this article will be about the holidays specifically Samhain, and not Halloween.

Why I wanted to do this topic is because very few people know the story about what exactly Samhain is and why it's so important.

Samhain which is celebrated on the first day of November, was most wildly celebrated by ancient Celts.as a festival marking the beginning of winter. Some even believe that the definition of Samhain means summers end but that for the mainland in Europe that believed that. The meaning of Samhain might be related instead to the name for an assembly for a great assembly. They were held at this time especially every seven years for the selection of high kings, for important appointments, for laws and feasting on the last of the grains, and barley, and oats.

The Story like many pantheons believes in the turning of the seasons, as Samhain being between an equinox and a solstice, it is one of four cross-quarter festivals. Every year on the first frost after the full moon in October, families allowed their hearth fires to burn out. At this time, they brought back herd animals from grazing and completed gathering the harvest. After Fires died, they gathered with the rest of their tribe to observe the druid priests relighting the community sacred fire using friction. The priests induced friction with a wheel and spindle: the wheel, representing the sun, turned from east to west and lit a spark. At this time, they made prayers and offerings or sacrifices related to their needs. The Crom-cruach came out: this was an emblem of the sun, and scholars are uncertain whether it represented a Pagan god or symbolized an aspect of nature embodied in a stone pillar.

The Villagers left offerings of food at the edge of their village for wandering spirits and fay folk. There was also a sacrifice of a black sheep, a black sow, or cattle. In the end, every person returned home with brand lit from the sacred fire, which they used to relight their own hearth and then light bonfires to set torches at the edge of their fields. These ancients considered it a sin to relight the hearth fire any other way.

to the ancient celts, Samhain marked the completion of the harvest and called them to put their energy into preparing for the coming winter. It also betokened a day when their ancestors would come to visit, followed across the veil by all sorts of creatures both good and bad that moved freely in the mortal world on Samhain night. Since faeries were often unfriendly, celts dressed as animals or as other fearsome creatures as a way to prevent kidnapping by faeries and later by witches

As we get nearer to Samhain festivities, here are some things you can do both "in the broom closet" and "out of the broom closet" but I will leave that up to you

1) Reflection: As the holiday comes reflecting back on the year and making note of the spell work and interactions you have had is very crucial. when facing this last year and having to deal with nonsense about

2) Dress for Samhain: So another thing you can do while in the broom closet is wear colors of Samhain. So wearing orange, brown and black, even if it means wearing orange socks.

3) Eat and be merry: now another thing that you can do kind of celebrates and gather together and have a huge feast, and if you want to step it up a notch and celebrate by making meat or roasts, eating root vegetables, any kind of dark bread, and nuts and berries. also if you are old enough drink ciders, wine, and maybe mead. during this time people would gather together and celebrate a good year harvest so celebrate the times when you had to rely on physically harvesting and maybe celebrate by praising where we came from.

4) Guiding the spirits: Now this seems like something you can do out of the broom closet but hear me out. when spirits are trying to find their way back using candles in the windows can help guide spirits back before the veil closes.

5) Sabbat Divination/ Yearly Divinations: Now this is also bordering on whether you can do this in or out of the broom closet but let me explain. this could be at a time that you are not around others and use a pendulum, tarot cards, or anything weight on a stick and see how the year or the next 2 to 3 months maybe. and because it is the end of the year doing yearly divination and just ask the surrounding spirits about the year to come/

and Out of the broom

1) Protection Wreaths: Now this also can be on in the broom closet but I figured if you are going to do spell work you can do this over here in our of the broom closet. But making a wreath by using leaves, cinnamon, cloves, herbs, and etc. but if doing spell work

2) Alter Decoration: Now at this point this is a half and half thing you can do this literally in the broom or out but the serious note is that when it comes to this time of year making a alter for the year or just for Samhain. one thing to note is that your alter is about what you want and airing some caution, about what you put on it but ill let you figure that out.

3) Ancestors Work: with this you could get away with for in the broom closet practitioners, but like "Dia de Los Muertos" you can put your ancestor both ones you know or ones so far removed from your recently dead you can put a picture and a candle next to it a picture of them or by actually contacting them.

4) Offerings: like this one before both in and out of the broom closet seekers can maybe do this more on the out of the broom closet ones can. but when having dinner you can leave a place and food from the recently deceased or so far removed ancestor or even a piece of food at the alters.

5) Cauldrons: And last but not least cauldron, now I know what you are thinking wow getting all stereotypical witch, but working with the dark goddess or the crone energy is best when with a cauldron. and cauldrons are also used for rebirth which is what Samhain is about, just as an item to symbolize the changing of the seasons. And even if you don't have a cast-iron cauldron using a bowl that has symbols on it and working magic into it works perfectly too.

Now before I leave you to celebrate Samhain I do want to thank both the books and youtube channels I watch that went into this and I also want to pay my respects to my sources that I used today.

First I want to thank the book called this name in which I was inspired by called "The Celtic Spirit" by Caitlin Mathews you really did inspire me to write this.

Secondly, I want to thank "Samhain" by Llwellyn's Sabbat Essentials the story about what you read in the middle section was mostly copied from the book, and for that I thank you.

and Lastly The one Youtuber I watch for her Sabbat correspondents "Hearthwitch" I always look forward to seeing her videos.

And with that, I bid you ado and hope you all have a wonderful Samhain.

And Happy New Year