Halloween/Samhain plans

This year I’ve decided against a formal ritual and opt for a social gathering instead. In Maryland, specifically our town, we have trick or treaters around the time we’d have ritual anyway, so I felt we’d simply enjoy the night as a party with a mix of friends and family as well.

Hurricane Sandy also might impact the holiday, potentially ruining the door to door begging for candy as well. I want a party, regardless, even if the power goes out. We’ll manage with candles to share stories, play games, and just enjoy the special day.

Some common activities;

Divination- Due to the Veil between the world of mortals and that of spirits, using Tarot, Runes, Ouija, and other form of fortune-telling are traditionally practiced.

Gathering rain (if raining)- We’re expecting rain due to Hurricane Sandy, so this should offer interesting properties for ritual water.

The Dumb Supper- Traditionally, this is a meal set out for those who passed on before us. You eat in complete silence, honoring their presence to the meal.

Celebrate the coming year. Consider lighting a candle and sharing stories of the deceased, and talk of things passing from the old year to the new year. (October 31st is the Celtic New Year).

Source: marthastewart.com via Sharon on Pinterest

 

What are your favorite Samhain traditions? Post in comments.

WordPress Tags: samhain, hurricane sandy, moon and shadow, ritual, divinationn, spells

The Celtic New Year

Halloween/Samhain is the New Year, according to the Celtic calendar.

I remember teaching my son in homeschool about months and weeks when he was little, and how fascinating it was to discover the number of calendars we’ve had throughout history.

We measure a year by the earth rotating around the sun once. This is approximately 265 days, but its not exact. Even months, which stem from the moon phases, are 28 days but the months are 30-31 days (or 29 if it’s a Leap Year).

There were other calanders as well;

Hebrew Calendar

Julian Calendar

Among others.

You can also find differing numbers of a ‘week’ was, such as the 10-day of France in 1793. Or the Russian five day week, then a six day week, in 1929.

The Celtic Year started and ended on October 31st. I found after a number of years that whatever goals you set in the Celtic Year tends to work better. You basically accomplish all your goals by October 31st, giving you breathing room to enjoy the holiday celebrations, and the winter months, instead of pushing yourself to complete goals as you would in our usual January 31st New Year.

Having said that; consider what goals you hope to accomplish for the coming year. What seeds/goals do you hope to see will come to harvest? What steps will you take to accomplish them?

Plan now so on Samhain night, light a candle for each goal you want to come to pass. Visualize how to reach your goal, make it solid in your mind, and when you feel ready, blow out the candle to release the energy to the Universe.

Samhain is also a traditional time to start a Book of Shadows. I will be posting challenging and assignments, if you wish to use them.

Technorati Tags: samhain,celtic year,time,halloween,wiccan,pagan,goals,wishes,spell,ritual

The Devil’s Holiday

I as surprised to find a Christian friend of mine admitted to thinking Halloween as ‘the devil’s holiday’. I had to push aside offense, being I’m sure her church teaches her this, so I simply added a quick comment to her blog post with a concise history of Halloween.

Halloween, known as Samhain tous, originally a Celtic holiday, celebrating a ‘day of the dead’ to honor those who passed from this world to the next. Its also the ‘New Year’, to the old calendar, to which the day belongs neither to the old year or to the new year. The Veil between the worlds of mortals and the those who are mortal is also thinnest, therefore allowing for communing with spirits.

Its not necessarily a somber occasion, being we see Death as part of the great cycle of Life, Death, and Rebirth, and we don’t fear the dead.

We do not pray over candy to curse it.

We don’t summon devils.

We don’t cast nasty spells on others.

We don’t kidnap children or animals to perform nasty rituals.

We don’t cackle…ok, well maybe some cackle.

But please, learn about what you’re talking about before complaining about ‘the devil’s holiday’.

Technorati Tags: halloween,witch,satanist,devil,pagan,wicca,celtic,samhain

Halloween Traditions

Sorry for missing the Wednesday Witch. I had a scare with the computer where it refused to start up. Its fixed now, but took up most of the day I normally type up the blog post.

Sorry for that.

For Friday Fun, I thought it would be nice to post some decorating ideas and traditions you might wish to incorporate into your holiday.

Glow-in-the-dark-spider-balls: I think this technique could also work with using cheesecloth and glue to form a ghost and painting in a glow-in-the-dark paint.

Make your own window webs. Another great idea to find glow-in-the-dark puffy paint to add to windows. Not just spider webs.

 

This idea came from a game to bowl for ghosts, but I liked the idea to decorate the downstairs bathroom.

If you covered them with orange tissue paper, you could turn them into little jack-o-lanterns as well.

Using crepe paper, you could not do just windows but also your porch or doorways. I like the look of this, and crepe paper is pretty cheap at the dollar store.

These would look interesting if you mixed orange crepe with them as well.

Feel free to post your own decorating ideas for Halloween.

The Pagan New Year

We now enter the Celtic New Year, leaving behind the old year, and embracing all the possibilities of the New.

Whatever regrets you have for the passing year, throw them away and make a new path. This is a time for beginnings and planning for the plantings in the spring.

What goals will you plan? What crops will you sow?

What things will you do next year differently?

Its important to recognize that if you continually have the same goals every year, and you’re not finding fruition, then you must change your ways to see a different effect.

Change can be a good thing, even if it feels like the world is tearing apart. Once cleared, you now have room for growth.

Changes must occur on the inside if you expect change on the outside. Look to your weaknesses that hold you back, what obstacles you’ve placed in your way? Do you hold onto fear, anger, and regret? Learn to let go to allow for that place to fill with courage, forgiveness, and satisfaction.

This is a new day.

Technorati Tags: november,celtic new year,samhain,pagan,wicca,goddess

Halloween: The Cauldron

Amid the pagan religions, the cauldron serves many purposes from symbolic, ritualistic, to practical purposes. Its an ancient symbol of the witch, often seen where she stood stirring her potions, but this originated in times where all manner of superstition and lies arose from the Inquisition.

Cauldrons come in many shapes and sizes, with or without legs, and with and without covers. Some include handles, while others stand on legs. Some might have both. They are generally cast iron, but sometimes are found ceramic or copper, and some care should be done to keep the cauldron in good shape.

Should you buy a cast iron cauldron, like cast iron pans, you’ll need to season it.

For a New Piece:
1. Wash the piece in hot, soapy water. Rinse thoroughly and dry completely
right away (Do Not Air Dry, standing water will rust).
2. Apply a thin coating of a vegetable shortening, vegetable oil, or lard
with a soft cloth or paper towel.
3. Put the piece into a 225 degree oven for 30 minutes. Remove and wipe it
out any large pools of grease.
4. Place the piece UPSIDE DOWN in a 350 degree oven for an hour with a foil
covered baking sheet on the lower rack to catch any further drips.
5. Turn the oven off, but do not open. Allow the piece to cool (several hours).
6. To clean after cooking, boil hot water in it. Let it soak for several
minutes and clean with hot water and a plastic scrub brush. Do not use soap or
dishwashing detergent. Dry completely right away.
7. Reheat the piece and apply just enough grease to wet the surface before storing.
Wipe dry. Never store cookware with lid on; cast iron cookware needs air circulation. From Facebook- Pagan Campus….

You can often find the larger cauldrons often have only two legs. This is not a mistake. The idea is to set the cauldron on a fire, propped by the other two legs to stabilize the contents.

As with many containers such as goblets and bowls, the cauldron represents the womb or the Divine Feminine. Generally, its a cast iron container used to hold anything from potions, foods, and even fire. Some cauldrons might be used as incense burners, while others are used for scrying (divination by staring into flames, water, or a black mirror).

Cost varies for cauldrons. I found mine at a Renaissance Faire for $15 twenty years ago, but you find all sorts of sized, shapes, and prices online.

Here you can find one at Amazon.com: Cauldron 32 Oz

Personally, I prefer using bowls for most of my ritual needs. Cast iron will rust if you use standing water, and burning items in a cauldron also makes it dirty. Even candles leave wax, incense leaves ash residue. I’m lazy and don’t want to put in that much care for a single ritual item.

In practical terms, most pagans do not use a cauldron to brew potions. They prefer a regular pot or pan. Some might have cast iron pots for this purpose, but I’m content with stainless steel myself.

Cauldrons uses:

• Boil brews or potions
• Holds water with flowers or floating candles
• Sand to hold incense
• Burn a ritual fire in it.
• Burn candles in it

Any other uses? Post in your comments.

Technorati Tags: cauldron,halloween,witch,potion,brew,goddess,wicca,pagan,samhain

Halloween: Day of the Dead

As previously posted, Samhain (Halloween) marks the end of the Celtic year and begins a new year. The day itself belongs neither to the past year or the new, and its believed the Veil between the worlds are thinnest at this time.

Its said ghosts and spirits walk amongst us.

Some traditions of this holiday include;

A Dumb Supper. Its not dumb as in stupid but being silent. You set the table and make the favorite foods of the dearly departed, and eat the meal in silence. This honors the spirit. For myself, and my talkative family, I think that would drive my ancestors insane.

Lighting candles for those who passed on. Each candle should represent the person and you speak their name, welcoming into your home (or circle). For those who do no have anyone who passed on, some people will honor symbolic deaths such as a divorce or end of a job. Some also remember pets or honor their ancestors.

This is also a good time to meditate and ask the spirits for guidance. Sit in stillness or use divining methods to receive answers to your questions.

I’ve also joined in rituals where you openly spoke about your loved ones who passed on. It was a great time remembering them fondly and keeping them alive by sharing stories of them.

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Halloween: The Celtic New Year

Halloween, known to pagans as Samhain, marks the end of the Celtic calendar. Its also the third harvest of the solar year, where whatever remaining crops are harvested, and herds culled before the winter months.

All the preparations for winter should be completed by October 31st, the goals you’ve set for the year reach their end.

I certainly find that using the Celtic year, rather than the Roman calendar (as we use now), makes more sense with setting goals. It leaves the hard work finished by autumn, and the winter can be a time of reflection and planning for the coming year. There’s the added plus of enjoying the holiday seasons without the pressure of goal-setting, such as dieting. (Which always ends up on my resolution list).

The goals I’ve set for this year were not what you’d call bountiful. I had a few unexpected successes such as I suddenly developed the willpower to stop biting my fingernails. I also earned some extra money with my blogs via Amazon’s Kindle site, and I’m better off now than I was a year ago.

I’ve learned that I must stop wallowing in depression, to take stock that many of my misfortunes are being created by me in the first place, and to forge ahead, despite the odds. I also found new friends along the way, and learned a valuable lesson of success is not just luck but being prepared for opportunities once they present themselves.

Not bad for just one year.

Here’s some tips:

Write down all your successes, not just the goals you’ve set. Even unplanned successes are well worth celebrating.

Don’t focus on the goals that didn’t come to fruition. Re-assess the effort you put in, and try again the next year.

Consider what obstacles stand in your way. What sort of ‘weeds’ choke out the good things you hope to grow in your life? These can take the form of people, jobs, or bad habits.

Ask yourself why you wanted the goal. Does it improve your life?

I hope everyone finds the positive in their Samhain night.

Technorati Tags: samhain,halloween,witch,cauldron,goals,celtic,new year