Happy Halloween. From a true witch.





While it is a little bit of a risk coming out of the "broom closet" as a witch, I am trusting that the few people who read this blog know me and have open minds enough to understand what that means. AND, I think you may be interested in the broader meaning of witches and Halloween from a real witch on this day...





Witch actually is from the Saxon word wicca. It actually means “Wise One.” In the old days, witches were very connected to the earth—they were the local herbalists, midwives, and healers. But when the Christians were trying to convert the pagans, they needed to take away the power from these spiritual healers and therefore made caricatures of them as green and warty and they made their healing pots seem like scary cauldrons.

Halloween is called Samhain (Saw-Wane) in the pagan world. People celebrate when a baby is born, when someone has a birthday, when someone gets married. But how do we remember or celebrate the people who have died who have been important to us. Samhain is the time to remember those who have died and for us to celebrate their lives.

Many of us believe that the spirits of people who we loved but who have died are still with us. And that they love us and want us to be happy. Samhain is when we celebrate them and ask them to come back and visit us. Because this is the beginning of the dark time of the year (turned clocks back last night, right?), the change of this seasons is when the veils between the dead and the living are the thinnest.

Samhain has been celebrated in some form or another for almost 3000 years. It was thought to have first started with the Druids in 700B.C. But most earth based religions (from the Native Americans, to the Nords, to the Celts) have celebrated some kind of celebration of their ancestors who have passed on. And they all happen around this time of year.

At our house, we have a Samhain Altar. It has pictures and items from the people (and animals that have died. From photos to quilts to shells to our dog's collar, we look forward to pulling them out and telling stories about all of them. With our altar, we encourage spirits of those who love us to come back and visit us. So we leave out food for them. My grandfather loved Lima Beans and tried to make me eat them every time I was there. So we leave out beans for him. For me, it is important to teach my kids to celebrate our ancestors. It is who we are.


So, what about the different items you know about Halloween--how did they become what they are now?

Jack-O-Lantern--Back in the old days, they were worried about bad spirits coming back as well. So they would paint their gourds to scare them away, like a scarecrow in a garden.

Costumes--They would wear scary costumes to keep those scary spirits away as well. Ghosts, scary witch and goblins. Still the most common costumes today.

The Name Halloween--When the Catholic Church started taking over the lands of the people who celebrated Samhain, they didn’t like their holidays, especially ones that included any talk of magic or dead people. But it was really hard for the people not to celebrate this holiday because it was so important to who they are. So the church created a different holiday, called All Saint’s Day (or All Hallows Day—which means holy) where they would celebrate all of the Saints of the church. So the people celebrated All Hallows Day on November 1st. But on the evening before, they celebrated Hallow’s Eve—or what turned into Halloween. They couldn’t keep the people from celebrating this important night.

Pranks--The Druids had a very hard life. They had a lot of rules and things to do. But during Samhain (from Oct 31 to Nov. 2) they let loose. They did crazy stuff. Men dressed like women, and women dressed as men, farmers gates would be unhinged and left in ditches, people’s horses were moved to different fields, etc.

Trick Or Treat--There are two theories about this. The first is that it came out of the pranks—everyone dressing up and going around their neighborhood. But the more commonly known one is the precursor of the Good Samaritain Legend. People back then (and many now) believed in fairies. Fairies were always good and they liked it when people were good to each other. So sometimes they would disguise themselves as beggars and go door to door asking for leftover food. Those who gave them food were rewarded (with a treat). Those who didn’t take care of those less fortunate, often got some kind of unpleasant trick. So we dress up to be like the fairies. And go door to door to see if they will give us a Trick or a Treat.

Full Moon--Many pagans celebrate their spirituality each month on the full moon. We think that is when there is an extra amount of “power” to make wishes. We know that the full moon affects the ocean tides. We know that more babies are born on the full moon than any other day of the month. And we know that women’s cycles will get attuned to the moon if left unregulated by medication. So, since it is the time of power for the witch, it is a natural symbol for Halloween.

So, for me, Halloween or Samhain is special to me because:

• It is a time to celebrate the spiritual beginning of the new year.


• It is a time to confront our personal and cultural attitudes towards death and those who have passed on before us.


• It is the time to lift the veil between the worlds to gain spiritual insight about the pasts and futures.


• It is a time to deepen our connection to the cycles of the seasons, to the generations that have come before us and those that will follow, and to the Gods and Goddesses we worship.


• It is a time to let our inner children out to play, to pass on our childhood traditions to our children and to share the fun with our friends and neighbors of all faiths.

Happy Halloween and Happy Samhain to all of you.