Today 's post is very special , it is about Halloween !
Halloween is one of the oldest pagan festivals in the world and is now celebrated by millions of people in hundreds of countries .
Much of the history of the origin of Halloween did not come through written record and some information is still subject to debate.
But it is believed that Halloween originated in the British Isles along with the pagan Celtic celebration of Samhain .
It was believed that the spirits of the dead were raised and mingled with the living on Samhain . The Celts left food at their doors to encourage good spirits and wore masks to ward off evil .
Some historians believe the Romans who invaded England added some of their own traditions for the celebration of Samhain , such as celebrating the end of the harvest and honoring the dead , others say that in fact the Romans never conquered the Celts (Ireland and Scotland) and therefore there was no mixture of cultures , and that the Celts celebrated the end of harvest and honored their dead .
Many centuries later , the Roman Catholic Church , in a bid to end pagan holidays such as Halloween ( and Christmas , which had been the pagan Roman Saturnalia ) established the 1st of November as the Day of All saints to honor all the saints who do not have their own holy day .
This attempt to divert attention from the pagan celebration of Samhain did not work . The celebrations on the eve of All Saints continued to grow and change. During the massive Irish immigration to America in 1840 , Halloween found its way to the United States , where he continued to flourish !
It is also believed that the Christian practice of celebrating the night before a holiday such as Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve , etc. came from Jewish traditions and Jewish holidays as days begin the night before .
The name Halloween comes from " All Hallows ' Evening " , or " All Hallows " , the eve of All Hallows' Day
" Hallow " is an Old English word for " holy person " , and All Hallows ' Day is simply another name for All Saints ' Day which eventually became shortened to " Hallowe'en " and then to "Halloween ."
Samhain & Celts
The Celts lived hundreds of years ago in what is now Ireland , Scotland, England , Wales and Northern France . The Celtic people , around 800 BC, usually had sheep and cattle herds . When the weather cooled they brought their animals to the mountain pastures . Life changed dramatically between summer and winter for the Celts because in the winter months they were all within or close to home , fixing things , sewing , spending time together, and generally avoiding leaving home ; fared home freeze to death , would be sick , or be killed and eaten by hungry animals .
The change of season from abundance ( summer ) , growth and life to dark season ( winter) , scarcity and death was the meaning behind the holiday.
Then , the final harvest of the year was marked by a celebration called Samhain (pronounced sow- en ) , and was also the old Celtic New Year . Samhain , which means " end of summer " , was usually around the end of October, when the weather began to get cold in Ireland and Scotland .
The Celts believed that the transitions , the times when things change from one state to another , had magical properties .
Samhain marked what was for them the most important turning points of the year ( spring is the other ) , a change in time as well as a change in life. The Celts also believed that this magical moment created an opening for the dead . They believed that the world of the living and the dead were closer in time to Samhain , and that the spirits of the dead were released to travel once again among the living , in part because at Samhain the souls of those who had died during the year traveled to the other world .
People gathered to sacrifice animals , fruits and vegetables . They also lit bonfires in honor of the dead , to help them on their journey to the other world , and to keep them away from life . That day , all kinds of beings were underway : ghosts , fairies and demons . Many of the Samhain festival activities were related to those beliefs . Many of these practices then evolved for Halloween today .
On October 31 , after the crops were all harvested and stored to endure the winter ahead , the fires in the houses were cleared , then the Druids ( Celtic priests ) were at the top of the hill in the dark oak forest , lit bonfires and sacrificed animals to thank the gods for the harvest and appease the gods of the coming winter .
The next morning , the Druid priests would make a hot ember of fires to each family , which led to hot coals for their home and made their own fire to start cooking . People put the embers in hollowed-out turnips to be able to carry them home. The fireplace and fire were very important to the Celtsto keep the houses warm and free from evil spirits .
The festival lasted three days and many people paraded in costumes made of skins and heads of their animals representing various gods of nature .
Witches
One legend tells that in an All Hallows Eve , a priest was walking along a road when he saw the fires burning . He saw people dancing around the campfire with fantasies and torches in their hands. With the moon as a backdrop for the fireworks , people seemed to be flying in the air . The man ran to the village to say that witches were flying and evil was happening . Perhaps that time has started the myth that witches fly on broomsticks on Halloween .
Hallowmas
All Souls Day , November 2 , is commemorated with Catholic masses and festivities in honor of the dead . The living pray to liberate those who are in purgatory that is the place in the afterlife between the land of the living and the other worlds where souls are purified before proceeding to heaven . Through prayer and good works, the living members of the church can help their friends and family dead .
It was on Halloween in 1517 that Martin Luther began trying to reform the Catholic Church . This reform ended in the formation of the Protestant Church , which did not believe in saints ( the Roman Catholic sense of specific individuals ) .
No saints , there would be All Hallow 's Eve , Halloween , and there would be no parties , so in Britain when the conspiracy to blow up the English Parliament and dismiss King James I, was discovered in 1605 , a great solution to solve two problems at one time was planned .
The celebrations that people were accustomed moved to November 5 giving rise to Guy Fawkes Day . Guy Fawkes was not very smart because he was accused of being complicit in the Catholic plot to blow up the English Parliament , which at the time was Protestant . Thus, even though , technically , the celebration is to commemorate the failure of the plot , was also Halloween . Bonfires were lit across the country . People carried lanterns carved from turnips and children were asking for " a penny for the Guy " ( they would use the coins to buy more wood for the fire that Guy Fawkes would be burned alive because of the conspiracy ) .
Realizing that he could not completely get rid of the supernatural aspects of the celebrations , the Catholic Church began to characterize the spirits as evil forces associated with the devil. It was from there that Halloween began associating with witches and demons .
Trick or Treat ?
In Celtic times until the medieval ages , it was believed that fairies could be seen on the eve of Samhain . The fairies were not necessarily bad or good ..... they were mischievous ! They liked to reward good deeds practiced but did not tolerate being cheated , then to see who practiced good deeds , on Samhain , the fairies disguised in beggars and went door to door begging. Those who gave them food received rewards , those who didn't were punished.
In medieval times , a popular practice in the Day of the Dead was to make " soul cakes " , simple desserts like bread with a topping of currant . In a custom called " souling , " children go from door to door begging to make cakes and pastries , as at present . For each cake or candy a child wins , he or she would have to say a prayer for the dead relatives of the person who gave the cake / candy . These prayers would help the relatives find their way out of purgatory and into heaven .
Dress up as ghosts came from ancient Celtic tradition of residents disguising themselves as demons and spirits . The Celts believed that disguising themselves to look like the spirits that were wandering the earth that night could avoid seeing the real spirits wandering the streets, since they were all dressed similarly .
Halloween in the U.S.
In the new world ( USA ) , the colonists were all Protestants and Halloween was technically a Catholic holiday , moreover , there was a time when the Catholic holidays were forbidden to be celebrated , including Christmas.
After the American Revolution , the majority of the people of the country was farmers who began to celebrate their harvests and set up a holiday named Autumn Play Party , celebrating the autumn. People gathered and told stories of ghosts , danced and sang and made feasts and bonfires . Children staged a show at the school parading fantasies autumn .
After the Industrial Revolution, most Americans lived in cities and had no need for such meetings . By the end of the Civil War , only bishops and Catholics celebrated All Saints Day and Halloween , and the two religions were less than 5 % of the population as adherents. Anxious not to leave a part of their tradition disappears, the two religions began an aggressive campaign to put these two holidays on all public calendars.
In the late 1800s there was a movement in the United States to make Halloween into a holiday more to unite the community and neighborhood , than to celebrate the supernatural . Thereafter Halloween parties for both children and adults became frequent . In the first year , the Day of All Saints and Halloween appeared on the calendar , newspapers and magazines have made great reports about it . Suddenly , everyone knew about Halloween and began to celebrate it with bonfires and masks .
The first official celebration of Halloween in the United States occurred in Anoka , Minnesota , in 1921 . In the 1920s and 30s Halloween became a secular holiday , but focused on community, celebrated with parades and parties in town squares. In 1950 because of the vandalism , Halloween had to be kept under control and became a party only for kids. Gifts and sweets were given to ensure that there would be no loss of homes . These Halloween traditions became the second largest commercial holiday in the country with billions of dollars spent on candy every year .
I love Halloween and its magic !
Today there's no post about The Journey , next week it'll be back to normal .
Kisses and good weekend !
