Halloween . . . The Veil Between The Worlds

Samhain (SAW-wan), or as it is commonly known, Halloween, is celebrated on October 31. For many Pagans, it is the beginning of a new year: the God has died, and nature dies with him; the Goddess, as a Crone, is in power, controlling the world as it enters this phase of death and decay. but pagans also anticipate the rebirth of the God at Yule (December 21) and the return of the sun as a powerful force in the world.

Autumn is in full swing. The leaves have fallen from the trees. Children jump thoughtlessly into the neat, colorful piles their parents have just raked up. The nights are colder, people are starting to wear jackets when they have someplace to go. The stores are stocked with huge pumpkins, every kind of costume and Halloween make-up imaginable, and row after row of candy. The kids are excited; trying to decide what they will dress up as this year, and parents are wondering how on earth they are going to be able to sacrifice another bedsheet for just this one special night. Is Halloween just a night of fun, a night for pretending to be someone you are not, a night for gorging yourself on sticky sweet candy? Is that all Halloween is about?

For centuries, Halloween has been known as a time when the veil between the living world and the world of the dead becomes the thinnest. It is a time when the dead can enter this world and take part in the celebrations that the living are holding. In many ancient cultures, and even modern Pagan and Wiccan practices, people set out food for their friends and loved ones who had died to nourish them on their journey form their own world and into ours. Some people would set a plate outside, others would actually set a place at the table with a plate of food for the dead. This is where the modern day practice of Trick-or-Treating comes from.

Another ancient practice that has held over to modern times is the Jack-O-Lantern. On this day, when the dead return to the world of the living, the living would light a candle and place it in a window to guide the spirits of their friends and loved ones home. They would also carve scary faces onto pumpkins and place a candle inside to ward off evil spirits who have also returned. This custom is still carried out today in the form of Jack-O-Lanterns burning on porches on Halloween, only now most people don't understand why they do it.

Samhain is a time for remembering the people that have left your life. Do not despair over their death, realize that they have moved on to a better place, no matter what your religious beliefs are. Think of all the good memories you have of those people, not of the way you feel without them. This is a good time to come to terms with death. Remind yourself that death is a part of life, but a part that we have no control over. Death is a natural occurrence that everyone will experience, we should learn to accept it, and maybe even to not be afraid of it.