On Samhain, the old King dies and the Crone Goddess mourns his passing for the next six weeks. The sun is at its lowest point on the horizon as measured by the ancient standing stones in Britain and Ireland; the reason that the Celts chose this sabbat rather than Yule as the end of the year. Samhain divides the year in half, winter and summer. It is the day on which the new year and winter begin together. It is a time of beginnings and endings.
It is the last of the three harvest festivals, the harvest of meat. It is also the day we honor the dead. On this night, the veil between the worlds is thinnest. The doors of the sidhe-mounds are open and neither human nor faery need any magickal passwords to come and go. Our ancestors, the blessed dead, are more accessible, more approachable. Samhain is a day to commune with the dead and a celebration of the eternal cycle of reincarnation.
ALTAR:
Altar candles should be orange, representing the magic of fire and the remaining fire in autumn leaves; black, to absorb light and keep you warm for the coming winter; white, to send out energy; silver and gold, representing the moon and sun. Decorate with autumn leaves and flowers, gourds, squashes, corn. As this is the meat harvest, you may also include an animal talon, horn or feather.
HERBS:
Rosemary, for remembrance of our ancestors; mullein seeds, to project abundance for the new year; mugwort, to aid in divination. At Samhain, witches give one another acorns as gifts. During the Burning Times, giving someone an acord was a secret way of telling him or her that you were a witch. Acorns are fruits of the oak, a sacred tree to the Celts. They are symbols of protection, fertility, growth and friendship.
At Samhain, cast spells to keep negative things from your past (evil, harm, greed, corruption, betrayal) out of your future. Cast spells to contact the dead and receive ancient knowledge.
ACTIVITIES:
Make resolutions, write them on a piece of paper and burn them in the flame of a black candle. Bury an apple or pomegranate in teh garden as food for spirits passing by on their way to rebirth or the Summerlands. Do divinations for the coming year. Make a besom to protect and purify your sacred space. Make a magick wand from a branch of oak, holly, ash, rowan, birch, hazel, elm, hawthorne or willow. This is a traditional time to make candles for the coming year.
