SGC Admin: From our inbox to you… From About.com Paganism/Wicca… On Samhain (Halloween) Traditions & Customs
Samhain Traditions & Customs
Samhain is coming up on October 31 for our northern hemisphere readers, and this is the season of the witches’ new year! Let’s take a few minutes to look at the traditions behind modern Samhain celebrations, a brief history, and some of the many questions that Pagans today have about reconciling the spiritual celebration of Samhain with the more secular aspects of Halloween.
If you’re one of our southern hemisphere readers, Beltane is right around the corner – be sure to scroll down to the link with Beltane customs and traditions!
Samhain is known by most folks as Halloween, but for many modern Pagans it’s considered a Sabbat to honor the ancestors who came before us, marking the dark time of the year. It’s a good time to contact the spirit world with a seance, because it’s the time when the veil between this world and the next is at its thinnest. Let’s look at the history behind the season.
Here at About Paganism, we get a lot of extra reader mail this time of year. Here are some of our most popular topics, regarding how we as Pagans can interact with the non-Pagans in our lives during the Samhain season.
Interested in learning about some of the traditions behind the celebrations of the late harvest? Find out why Samhain is important, learn why black cats are considered unlucky, how trick-or-treating became so popular and more!
June 21 is Litha, the summer solstice, for our northern hemisphere readers. The gardens are blooming, and summer is in full swing. Fire up the barbeque, turn on the sprinkler, and enjoy the celebrations of Midsummer! This Sabbat honors the longest day of the year. Take advantage of the extra hours of daylight and spend as much time as you can outdoors.
If you’re one of our readers below the equator, it’s Yule, the winter solstice, and the longest night of the year. Be sure to scroll down for info on how you can celebrate the return of the sun.
No matter which of these you may be celebrating this weekend, may your solstice be a magical and blessed one.
Depending on your individual spiritual path, there are many different ways you can celebrate Litha, but the focus is nearly always on celebrating the power of the sun. It’s the time of year when the crops are growing heartily and the earth has warmed up. we can spend long sunny afternoons enjoying the outdoors, and getting back to nature under the long daylight hours.
Here are a few rituals you may want to think about trying — and remember, any of them can be adapted for either a solitary practitioner or a small group, with just a little planning ahead.
Interested in learning about some of the history behind Litha? Here’s some background on Midsummer celebrations – learn who the gods and goddesses of summer are, how they’ve been honored throughout the centuries, and about the magic of stone circles!
As Litha approaches, you can decorate your home (and keep your kids entertained) with a number of easy craft projects. Celebrate the sun’s energy with an elemental garden, a fiery incense blend, and a magic staff to use in ritual!
No Pagan celebration is complete without a meal to go along with it. For Litha, celebrate with foods that honor the fire and energy of the sun. Enjoy light summery snack wraps, some fiery grilled salmon, spicy and sweet candied ginger, and more.
For people of nearly any religious background, the time of the winter solstice is a time when we gather with family and loved ones. For Pagans and Wiccans, it’s often celebrated as Yule, but there are literally dozens of ways you can enjoy the season.
At Lammas, also called Lughnasadh, the hot days of August are upon us, much of the earth is dry and parched, but we still know that the bright reds and yellows of the harvest season are just around the corner. Apples are beginning to ripen in the trees, our summer vegetables have been picked, corn is tall and green, waiting for us to come gather the bounty of the crop fields. Now is the time to begin reaping what we have sown, and gathering up the first harvests of grain, wheat, oats, and more.
This holiday can be celebrated either as a way to honour the god Lugh, or as a celebration of the harvest.
Celebrating Grain in Ancient Cultures:
Grain has held a place of importance in civilization back nearly to the beginning of time. Grain became associated with the cycle of death and rebirth. The Sumerian god Tammuz was slain and his lover Ishtar grieved so heartily that nature stopped producing. Ishtar mourned Tammuz, and followed him to the Underworld to bring him back, similar to the story of Demeter and Persephone.
In Greek legend, the grain god was Adonis. Two goddesses, Aphrodite and Persephone, battled for his love. To end the fighting, Zeus ordered Adonis to spend six months with Persephone in the Underworld, and the rest withAphrodite.
A Feast of Bread:
In early Ireland, it was a bad idea to harvest your grain any time before Lammas — it meant that the previous year’s harvest had run out early, and that was a serious failing in agricultural communities. However, on August 1, the first sheafs of grain were cut by the farmer, and by nightfall his wife had made the first loaves of bread of the season.
The word Lammas derives from the Old English phrase hlaf-maesse, which translates to loaf mass. In early Christian times, the first loaves of the season were blessed by the Church.
Honoring Lugh, the Skillful God:
In some Wiccan and modern Pagan traditions, Lammas is also a day of honoring Lugh, the Celtic craftsman god. He is a god of many skills, and was honoured in various aspects by societies both in the British Isles and in Europe. Lughnasadh (pronounced Loo-NAS-ah) is still celebrated in many parts of the world today. Lugh’s influence appears in the names of several European towns.
Celebrating Lammas Today:
Honouring the Past
In our modern world, it’s often easy to forget the trials and tribulations our ancestors had to endure. For us, if we need a loaf of bread, we simply drive over to the local grocery store and buy a few bags of pre-packaged bread. If we run out, it’s no big deal, we just go and get more. When our ancestors lived, hundreds and thousands of years ago, the harvesting and processing of grain was crucial. If crops were left in the fields too long, or the bread not baked in time, families could starve. Taking care of one’s crops meant the difference between life and death.
By celebrating Lammas as a harvest holiday, we honour our ancestors and the hard work they must have had to do in order to survive. This is a good time to give thanks for the abundance we have in our lives, and to be grateful for the food on our tables.
Lammas is a time of transformation, of rebirth and new beginnings.
Many times in discussion of modern Paganism, it’s easy for us to overlook a valuable source of information – the past. Some of our not-so-distant ancestors practised various forms of folk magic, and we can learn a lot from those old remedies, charms, and stories. In fact, in many parts of the world, what is often dismissed as superstition is in fact a perfectly valid system of folklore-based practical magic. Today, let’s look at some of the most popular types of folk magic. We’ll talk about animal legend and folklore, weather magic, simple protection rituals, and more.
Animal Folk Magic
In many modern Pagan traditions, animal symbolism — and even actual animals — are incorporated into magical belief and practice. Let’s look at some of the ways people have welcomed animals into their magical practice throughout the ages, as well as specific animals and their folklore and legends. Read Full Article Search Related Topics: animal magic folklore
Weather Magic and Lore
In many magical traditions, weather magic is a popular focus of workings. The term “weather magic” can be used to mean anything from divination and forecasting to actual control of the weather itself. When you consider that many of today’s folk magic customs are rooted in our agricultural past, it makes sense that an ability to foretell or change weather patterns might be considered a valuable skill. After all, if your family’s livelihood and life depended on the success of your crops, weather magic would be a handy thing to know. Read Full Article Search Related Topics: weather magic folklore
Protection Magic
Some of the most popular folk magic in the world relates to the protection of things (or people) that have value to you. In many magical traditions, workings can be done to ensure protection of home, property, and loved ones. There are a number of simple ways you can do protection workings. Read Full Article Search Related Topics: magical theory folklore
Graveyard Dirt in Magical Workings
Have you seen a ritual or spell calling for the use of graveyard dirt? While it might seem a bit odd, graveyard dirt is used in many magical traditions for a variety of workings. Learn about why you might want to use some, and how to properly obtain it. Read Full Article Search Related Topics: hoodoo graveyard dirt magical theory
SGC Admin: From our inbox to you…. Please view the following on the Summer Solstice…
The Summer Solstice arrives on June 21 2013, this is the longest day of the year… (the most daylight hours) … This day has long been celebrated by Pagans and Wiccans… It’s a joyous occasion filled with light and love… :)
It’s Litha for our Northern Hemisphere readers, which means our days are long and bright, we’re celebrating the power and energy of the sun, and enjoying the warmth that makes our gardens bloom. The longest day of the year, Litha is a great time to get outdoors and reconnect with the natural world.
If you’re one of our readers below the equator, you’re observing the Yule sabbat – for you, the nights are long and dark right now, but the return of the sun is right around the corner. Be sure to check the sidebar on the right for some Yule ideas.
No matter which of these you may be celebrating this week, I wish all of you a joyful and magical Sabbat!
Depending on your individual spiritual path, there are many different ways you can celebrate Litha, but the focus is nearly always on celebrating the power of the sun. It’s the time of year when the crops are growing heartily and the earth has warmed up. we can spend long sunny afternoons enjoying the outdoors, and getting back to nature under the long daylight hours. Here are a few rituals you may want to think about trying — and remember, any of them can be adapted for either a solitary practitioner or a small group, with just a little planning ahead. Read Full Article
Interested in learning about some of the history behind Litha? Here’s some background on Midsummer celebrations – learn who the gods and goddesses of summer are, how they’ve been honored throughout the centuries, and about the magic of stone circles! Read Full Article
Litha is the celebration of the summer solstice – and what’s a Sabbat without food? Take advantage of the summer crops of fruit and vegetables, and prepare a delicious feast for your Midsummer gatherings. Read Full Article
The summer solstice has been celebrated by countless societies over time – from the ancient Celts and Saxons to modern-day Pagans. Read about some of the different ways our ancestors honored this important agricultural marker. Read Full Article
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