All Hallows’ Eve

by Mike Nichols

“Halloween. Sly does it. Tiptoe catspaw. Slide and creep. But why? What for? How? Who? When? Where did it all begin? ‘You don’t know, do you?’ asks Carapace Clavicle Moundshroud, climbing out from under the pile of leaves beneath the Halloween Tree. ‘You don’t REALLY know!’”
— Ray Bradbury, from The Halloween Tree

Samhain. All Hallows. All Hallows’ Eve. Hallowe’en. Halloween.
The most magical night of the year.

Exactly opposite Beltane on the Wheel of the Year, Halloween is Beltane’s dark twin: a night of glowing jack-o’-lanterns, bobbing for apples, tricks or treats, and dressing in costume. A night of ghost stories and séances, tarot card readings, and scrying with mirrors. A night of power, when the veil that separates our world from the Otherworld is at its thinnest — a “spirit night,” as they say in Wales.

All Hallows’ Eve is the eve of All Hallows’ Day, celebrated on November 1st. And for once, even popular tradition remembers that the Eve is more important than the Day itself, with the traditional celebration focusing on October 31st, beginning at sundown. This seems only fitting for the great Celtic New Year’s festival.

Not that the holiday was Celtic only. In fact, it is striking how many ancient and unconnected cultures — the Egyptians and pre-Spanish Mexicans, for example — celebrated this season as a festival of the dead. Still, the majority of our modern traditions can be traced to the British Isles.

The Celts called it Samhain, which means “summer’s end,” according to their ancient twofold division of the year, when summer ran from Beltane to Samhain and winter ran from Samhain to Beltane. Some modern Covens echo this structure by allowing the High Priest to “rule” the Coven beginning on Samhain, with rulership returned to the High Priestess at Beltane. According to the later fourfold division of the year, Samhain is seen as autumn’s end and the beginning of winter.

Samhain is pronounced, depending on where you are from, as sow-in in Ireland, sow-een in Wales, sav-en in Scotland, or — inevitably — sam-hane in the United States, where Gaelic is rarely spoken correctly.

Not only is Samhain the end of autumn, but more importantly, it is also the end of the old year and the beginning of the new. It is Celtic New Year’s Eve, when the new year begins with the onset of the dark half of the year, just as the new day begins at sundown.

There are many representations of Celtic gods with two faces, and it surely must have been one of them who held sway over Samhain. Like his Greek counterpart Janus, he would straddle the threshold: one face turned toward the past in remembrance of those who died during the last year, and one face gazing toward the future, mystic eyes attempting to pierce the veil and divine what the coming year holds. These two themes — honoring the dead and divining the future — are deeply intertwined in Samhain, as they are likely to be in any New Year celebration.

As a feast of the dead, it was believed that the dead could, if they wished, return to the land of the living for this one night to celebrate with their family, tribe, or clan. The great burial mounds of Ireland, the sidhe mounds, were opened, with lighted torches lining the walls so the dead could find their way. Extra places were set at the table, and food was left out for any who had died that year. There are also many stories of Irish heroes making raids upon the Underworld while the gates of Faery stood open, though all had to return to their appointed places by cockcrow.

As a feast of divination, this was the night par excellence for peering into the future. The reason has to do with the Celtic view of time. In a culture that uses a linear understanding of time, like our modern one, New Year’s Eve is simply a milestone on a very long road stretching in a straight line from birth to death. In that sense, the New Year festival is merely a part of time.

The ancient Celtic understanding of time, however, was cyclical. Within this framework, New Year’s Eve represents a point outside of time, when the natural order of the universe dissolves back into primordial chaos before re-establishing itself in a new form. Thus, Samhain becomes a night that exists outside of time, and therefore may be used to view any other point in time. At no other holiday is a tarot reading, crystal reading, or tea-leaf reading considered more likely to succeed.

The Christian religion, with its emphasis on the historical Christ and his act of redemption two thousand years ago, is grounded in a linear view of time, where “seeing the future” becomes an illogical proposition. From the Christian perspective, any attempt to do so was often seen as inherently evil. This did not, however, prevent the medieval Church from adopting Samhain’s other great motif: the commemoration of the dead.

To the Church, however, it could never become a feast for all the dead, but only for the blessed dead — those hallowed, or made holy, through obedience to God. Thus came All Hallows, or Hallowmas, later evolving into All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day.

There are so many forms of divination associated with Hallowtide that only a few can be mentioned here. Girls were told to place hazelnuts along the front of the fire grate, each one representing one of her suitors. She could then divine her future husband by chanting:

“If you love me, pop and fly;
If you hate me, burn and die.”

Several methods used the apple, that most beloved of Halloween fruits. One custom advised slicing an apple through the equator to reveal the five-pointed star hidden within, then eating it by candlelight before a mirror. Your future spouse, it was said, would appear over your shoulder.

Another custom involved peeling an apple, making sure the peel came off in one long strand, while reciting:

“I pare this apple round and round again;
My sweetheart’s name to flourish on the plain:
I fling the unbroken paring o’er my head,
My sweetheart’s letter on the ground to read.”

Or you might set a snail to crawl through the ashes of your hearth. The considerate little creature would then spell out the initial letter as it moved.

Perhaps the most famous icon of the holiday is the jack-o’-lantern. Various authorities attribute it to either Scottish or Irish origin. However, it seems clear that it was used as a lantern by those who traveled the roads on this night, the frightening face meant to ward off spirits or faeries who might otherwise lead one astray. Set on porches and in windows, jack-o’-lanterns cast the same protective spell over the household. The American pumpkin seems to have forever replaced the European gourd as the lantern of choice.

Bobbing for apples may represent the remnants of a Pagan baptismal rite known as a seining, according to some writers. The water-filled tub becomes a latter-day Cauldron of Regeneration, into which the novice’s head is immersed. The fact that participants in this folk game were often blindfolded, with their hands tied behind their backs, also brings to mind a traditional Craft initiation ceremony.

The custom of dressing in costume and going “trick-or-treating” is of Celtic origin, with especially strong survivals in Scotland. However, there are some important differences from the modern version. First, the custom was not limited to children, but was actively enjoyed by adults as well. Second, the “treat” requested was often a drink of spirits — the liquid kind. This has, in recent years, been humorously revived by college students who go “trick-or-drinking.”

In ancient times, these roving bands would also sing seasonal songs from house to house, making the tradition resemble Yuletide wassailing. In fact, the custom now known as “caroling,” which is today almost entirely associated with midwinter, was once practiced at all the major holidays.

Finally, in Scotland at least, the tradition of dressing in costume often consisted largely of cross-dressing — men dressing as women, and women dressing as men. It seems that ancient societies offered an opportunity for people to “try on” the role of the opposite gender for one night of the year. In Scotland, admittedly, this may have been somewhat less dramatic — though perhaps more confusing — since men were already in the habit of wearing skirt-like kilts anyway. Oh well.

To Witches, Halloween is one of the four High Holidays, or Greater Sabbats, also known as the cross-quarter days. Because it is the most important holiday of the year, it is sometimes called the Great Sabbat.

It is an ironic fact that newer, self-created Covens tend to use the older name of the holiday, Samhain, which they have rediscovered through modern research, while older hereditary and traditional Covens often use the newer name, Halloween, which has been passed down through oral tradition within the Coven. This often holds true for the names of the other holidays as well. One may often gain some indication of a Coven’s antiquity by noting which holiday names it uses.

With such an important festival, Witches often hold two separate celebrations. The first is a large Halloween party for non-Craft friends, often held on the previous weekend. The second is a Coven ritual held on Halloween night itself, late enough that it will not be interrupted by trick-or-treaters. If the rituals are performed properly, there is often a strong sense of invisible friends taking part in the rites.

Another date that may be used in planning celebrations is the actual cross-quarter day, sometimes called Old Halloween or Halloween O.S. (Old Style). This occurs when the sun reaches 15 degrees Scorpio, an astrological power point symbolized by the Eagle. In the year 1988, this date fell on November 6th at 10:55 p.m. CST, with the celebration beginning at sunset. Interestingly, this date — Old Halloween — was also appropriated by the Church as the feast of Martinmas.

Of all the Witchcraft holidays, Halloween is the only one that still retains anything close to widespread popular celebration. Even though it is typically relegated to children and the young at heart, and observed only as an evening affair, many of its customs remain firmly rooted in Paganism.

Interestingly, some schools have attempted to abolish Halloween parties on the grounds that they violate the separation of church and state. Speaking as a Pagan, I would be saddened by the success of such efforts. Yet, as a supporter of religion-free public education, I fear I must concede the point.

Nonetheless, it seems only right that there should be one night of the year when our minds are turned toward the supernatural — a night when both Pagans and non-Pagans may ponder the mysteries of the Otherworld and its inhabitants.

And if you are one of them, may all your jack-o’-lanterns burn bright on this All Hallows’ Eve.