All
Hallow's Eve
by
Mike Nichols
Halloween.
Sly does it. Tiptoe catspaws. Slide and creep.
But why? What for? How? Who? When! Where did it all begin?
'You don't know, do you?' asks Carapace Clavicle Moundshroud climbing out
under the pile of leaves under the Halloween Tree. 'You don't REALLY know!'
--Ray
Bradbury
from 'The Halloween Tree'
Samhain. All Hallows. All
Hallow's Eve. Hallow E'en. Halloween. The most magical night of the year.
Exactly opposite Beltane on the wheel of the year, Halloween is Beltane's dark
twin. A night of glowing jack-o-lanterns, bobbing for apples, tricks or treats,
and dressing in costume. A night of ghost stories and seances, tarot card
readings and scrying with mirrors. A night of power, when the veil that
separates our world from the Otherworld is at its thinnest. A 'spirit night', as
they say in Wales.
All Hallow's Eve is the eve
of All Hallow's Day (November 1st). And for once, even popular tradition
remembers that the Eve is more important than the Day itself, the traditional
celebration focusing on October 31st, beginning at sundown. And this seems only
fitting for the great Celtic New Year's festival. Not that the holiday was
Celtic only. In fact, it is startling how many ancient and unconnected cultures
(the Egyptians and pre-Spanish Mexicans, for example) celebrated this as a
festival of the dead. But the majority of our modern traditions can be traced to
the British Isles.
The Celts called it Samhain,
which means 'summer's end', according to their ancient two-fold division of the
year, when summer ran from Beltane to Samhain and winter ran from Samhain to
Beltane. (Some modern Covens echo this structure by letting the High Priest
'rule' the Coven beginning on Samhain, with rulership returned to the High
Priestess at Beltane.) According to the later four-fold division of the year,
Samhain is seen as 'autumn's end' and the beginning of winter. Samhain is
pronounced (depending on where you're from) as 'sow-in' (in Ireland), or 'sow-een'
(in Wales), or 'sav-en' (in Scotland), or (inevitably) 'sam-hane' (in the U.S.,
where we don't speak Gaelic).
Not only is Samhain the end
of autumn; it is also, more importantly, the end of the old year and the
beginning of the new. Celtic New Year's Eve, when the new year begins with the
onset of the dark phase of the year, just as the new day begins at sundown.
There are many representations of Celtic gods with two faces, and it surely must
have been one of them who held sway over Samhain. Like his Greek counterpart
Janus, he would straddle the theshold, one face turned toward the past in
commemoration of those who died during the last year, and one face gazing
hopefully toward the future, mystic eyes attempting to pierce the veil and
divine what the coming year holds. These two themes, celebrating the dead and
divining the future, are inexorably intertwined in Samhain, as they are likely
to be in any New Year's celebration.
As a feast of the dead, it
was believed the dead could, if they wished, return to the land of the living
for this one night, to celebrate with their family, tribe, or clan. And so the
great burial mounds of Ireland (sidh mounds) were opened up, with lighted
torches lining the walls, so the dead could find their way. Extra places were
set at the table and food set out for any who had died that year. And there are
many stories that tell of Irish heroes making raids on the Underworld while the
gates of faery stood open, though all must return to their appointed places by
cock-crow.
As a feast of divination,
this was the night par excellance for peering into the future. The reason for
this has to do with the Celtic view of time. In a culture that uses a linear
concept of time, like our modern one, New Year's Eve is simply a milestone on a
very long road that stretches in a straight line from birth to death. Thus, the
New Year's festival is a part of time. The ancient Celtic view of time, however,
is cyclical. And in this framework, New Year's Eve represents a point outside of
time, when the the natural order of the universe disolves back into primordial
chaos, preparatory to re-establishing itself in a new order. Thus, Samhain is a
night that exists outside of time and hence it may be used to view any other
point in time. At no other holiday is a tarot card reading, crystal reading, or
tea-leaf reading so likely to succeed.
The Christian religion, with
its emphasis on the 'historical' Christ and his act of redemption 2000 years
ago, is forced into a linear view of time, where 'seeing the future' is an
illogical proposition. In fact, from the Christian perspective, any attempt to
do so is seen as inherently evil. This did not keep the medieval Church from
co-opting Samhain's other motif, commemoration of the dead. To the Church,
however, it could never be a feast for all the dead, but only the blessed dead,
all those hallowed (made holy) by obedience to God - thus, All Hallow's, or
Hallowmas, later All Saints and All Souls.
There are so many types of
divination that are traditional to Hallowstide, it is possible to mention only a
few. Girls were told to place hazel nuts along the front of the firegrate, each
one to symbolize one of her suiters. She could then divine her future husband by
chanting, 'If you love me, pop and fly; if you hate me, burn and die.' Several
methods used the apple, that most popular of Halloween fruits. You should slice
an apple through the equator (to reveal the five-pointed star within) and then
eat it by candlelight before a mirror.
Your future spouse will then
appear over your shoulder. Or, peel an apple, making sure the peeling comes off
in one long strand, reciting, 'I pare this apple round and round again; / My
sweetheart's name to flourish on the plain: / I fling the unbroken paring o'er
my head, / My sweetheart's letter on the ground to read.' Or, you might set a
snail to crawl through the ashes of your hearth. The considerate little creature
will then spell out the initial letter as it moves.
Perhaps the most famous icon
of the holiday is the jack-o-lantern. Various authorities attribute it to either
Scottish or Irish origin. However, it seems clear that it was used as a lantern
by people who traveled the road this night, the scary face to frighten away
spirits or faeries who might otherwise lead one astray. Set on porches and in
windows, they cast the same spell of protection over the household. (The
American pumpkin seems to have forever superseded the European gourd as the
jack-o-lantern of choice.) Bobbing for apples may well represent the remnants of
a Pagan 'baptism' rite called a 'seining', according to some writers. The
water-filled tub is a latter-day Cauldron of Regeneration, into which the
novice's head is immersed. The fact that the participant in this folk game was
usually blindfolded with hands tied behind the back also puts one in mind of a
traditional Craft initiation ceremony.
The custom of dressing in
costume and 'trick-or-treating' is of Celtic origin with survivals particularly
strong in Scotland. However, there are some important differences from the
modern version. In the first place, the custom was not relegated to children,
but was actively indulged in by adults as well. Also, the 'treat' which was
required was often one of spirits (the liquid variety). This has recently been
revived by college students who go 'trick-or-drinking'. And in ancient times,
the roving bands would sing seasonal carols from house to house, making the
tradition very similar to Yuletide wassailing. In fact, the custom known as
'caroling', now connected exclusively with mid-winter, was once practiced at all
the major holidays. Finally, in Scotland at least, the tradition of dressing in
costume consisted almost exclusively of cross-dressing (i.e., men dressing as
women, and women as men). It seems as though ancient societies provided an
oportunity for people to 'try on' the role of the opposite gender for one night
of the year. (Although in Scotland, this is admittedly less dramatic - but more
confusing - since men were in the habit of wearing skirt-like kilts anyway. Oh
well...)
To Witches, Halloween is one
of the four High Holidays, or Greater Sabbats, or cross-quarter days. Because it
is the most important holiday of the year, it is sometimes called 'THE Great
Sabbat.' It is an ironic fact that the newer, self-created Covens tend to use
the older name of the holiday, Samhain, which they have discovered through
modern research. While the older hereditary and traditional Covens often use the
newer name, Halloween, which has been handed down through oral tradition within
their Coven. (This is often holds true for the names of the other holidays, as
well. One may often get an indication of a Coven's antiquity by noting what
names it uses for the holidays.)
With such an important
holiday, Witches often hold two distinct celebrations. First, a large Halloween
party for non-Craft friends, often held on the previous weekend. And second, a
Coven ritual held on Halloween night itself, late enough so as not to be
interrupted by trick-or-treaters. If the rituals are performed properly, there
is often the feeling of invisible friends taking part in the rites. Another date
which may be utilized in planning celebrations is the actual cross-quarter day,
or Old Halloween, or Halloween O.S. (Old Style). This occurs when the sun has
reached 15 degrees Scorpio, an astrological 'power point' symbolized by the
Eagle. The celebration would begin at sunset. Interestingly, this date (Old
Halloween) was also appropriated by the Church as the holiday of Martinmas.
Document Copyright © 1986,
2000 by Mike Nichols
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