During ancient Celtic festivals, Samhain (pronounced Sow-in), was the night before their New Year which fell on November 1st.
Celtics believed that on New Year's Eve, the line between the living and the spirit world was at its weakest and the ghosts of the dead could return to earth. They would dress up in animal heads and skins and celebrate around a bonfire. To honor the Celtic deities, they would burn crops and animals as sacrifices. After their celebration, they would relight their hearths with fire from the bonfire to protect them for the coming winter.
In the middle ages, Trick-or-Treating began when people would dress like ghosts, demons, etc. and perform for food or drink. This custom was known as mumming.
Later, Pope Gregory III moved a previously dedicated day to the Christian martyrs to November 1 to celebrate all saints and martyrs. All-Saints-Day, to Hallow's Eve, to Halloween!
By the 9th century, Christianity had all but replaced earlier Celtic traditions and it was believed the church creating church-sanctioned holidays.
People would visit houses of wealthier families to receive 'soul cakes' in exchange for promising to pray for the souls of the family's dead relatives. This was known as 'souling.'
This evolved throughout the ages until about the 1930s when trick-or-treating is believed to have become a community tradition, mostly to stop vandalism that seemed to happen this night.
Information courtesy of history.com
Samhain is celebrated by Witch's on the night of October 31st and is also known as the Witch's New Year. It celebrates the cycle of life, death, and rebirth. It can be used to celebrate the end of the harvest and the beginning of winter. Some witches will honor the God and Goddess' persons of the Crone and the Horned God.
As Samhain approaches, stay tuned for Witch rituals to celebrate and honor the night.
Thanks for reading!!
~The Wiccan Witch
Comments