Samhain's Greetings!

Halloween is really a kind of oddball holiday. Goodness knows that it has long been out of favor among the fundamentalist Christian and some other religions. Of course, it’s been a favorite of candy-loving trick-or-treaters, as well as adults who love to play dress up. Any excuse to party, you know! And then there is the love of all things haunted and scary.

Those are fine reasons to celebrate All Hallows’ Eve. Like most other kids, I looked forward to the dressing up and the subsequent sugar rush. And I’ve always been a fan of Dracula, Frankenstein, and the classic Vincent Price Poe dramatizations that we watched each year in school. (I’m kinda hit or miss on modern horror offerings. Blood and gore don’t really do it for me unless there’s genuine suspense and psychological depth to the story. But that’s just me; if you’re a slasher fan, more power to ya!)

The more interesting aspect to me is the spiritual one. (Go figure, right?) I remember hearing about All Hallows’ Eve when I was young, but I either didn’t catch any of the finer points or didn’t remember them. It’s really quite fascinating. November 1 has been celebrated as All Saints’ Day for centuries. On one hand it was apparently a kind of catchall for saints who didn’t have their own feast days. (Although looking at the liturgical calendar, it’s hard to imagine that any were missed!) In some far-flung reaches of Catholicism, the night before was used to honor all of the dearly departed. Certain regions would celebrate local figures, perhaps, and families would honor their own. This strikes a particular chord for me. There are recently departed family members and friends whose absence has left a noticeable hole in my life. I’m sure everyone can relate to this. What could be better than to take specific time – a quiet moment, a time of reflection, a raised glass – to honor these dear ones?

Along these lines, the Celts in particular saw this time of year, Samhain (pronounced SAH-win or SOW-in), as a liminal or thin time. In other words, the veil or wall that separates the mundane physical world from the spiritual is either lifted or at least easily crossed. So at this time we can better contact the supernatural, the divine, or maybe even the spirits of our departed loved ones. I’m having visions of Yoda telling Luke Skywalker, “You must feel the Force around you; here, between you, me, the tree, the rock, everywhere, yes. Even between the land and the ship . . . through the Force, things you will see. Other places. The future, the past. Old friends long gone.”

Samhain also marked the beginning of the dark half of the year for the ancients. You can imagine as the days grew shorter and colder and all the crops died in the fields that it was a scary time. But they understood the circular nature of life. In order to be productive and alive in the spring, there is a needed time of dormancy. So the Celts and others came to respect and even welcome this time after harvest.

So among all the Halloween revelry – the candy, the scary movies, the parties, the dressing up as Donald Trump or Han Solo – take some time to reflect. To honor departed loved ones. To seek God, or the Force, or the Greater Good. If nothing else, perhaps it will make the dark and cold time of year easier to face.