Eve of Bealtaine | Beltane
The Celtic Festival of Bealtaine/Beltane which marks the beginning of summer in the ancient Celtic calendar is a Cross Quarter Day, half way between the Spring Equinox and the Summer Solstice. While the Bealtaine Festival is now associated with 1st May, the actual astronomical date is a number of days later. The festival was marked with the lighting of great bonfires that would mark a time of…
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I got some time to do some studies on the go.
Ballpoint pen only, no undo and no regrets! (In fact I have many regrets, but that's what studies are for, right?)
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The History of Halloween: From Ancient Origins to Modern Celebrations
Since it’s early July, it’s time to start thinking about everyone’s favorite holiday! Halloween, celebrated annually on October 31st, is a holiday rich with history, cultural significance, and a variety of traditions. Its origins trace back thousands of years to ancient festivals, and its evolution has been influenced by various cultures and religions. This article explores the history of…
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Escape Halloween: A Guide to a Spooky Adventure
Halloween, the spookiest time of the year, is fast approaching. While many people embrace the tradition of dressing up in costumes and going trick-or-treating, some seek a different kind of thrill. If you’re looking to escape the typical Halloween festivities and embark on an adventure of a lifetime, you’ve come to the right place. In this article, we’ll explore unique ways to escape Halloween…
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Yesterday I had some time to do some studies on the go.
Ballpoint pen only, no undo and no regrets! (In fact I have many regrets, but that's what studies are for, right?)
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Important Facts about Samhain from an Irish Celtic Reconstructionist
Pronunciation
SOW-in or SOW-een ~NOT~ Sam-han, Sam-win etc.
Dates
Most reconstructionists celebrate Samhain on Oct 31-Nov 1, however some may choose to celebrate on Gregorian Nov 13-14 as this would match the Julian dates of Oct 31-Nov 1. Some also believe that it was a three day festival spanning Oct 31- Nov 2 on which Nov 2 is specifically devoted to ancestral veneration, but there is no specific evidence of this, only possible extrapolation from more modern practices.
Following the Celtic method of days beginning at sunset, regardless of the specific dates you choose to celebrate on your festivities should begin at sunset and end at sunset.
Importance in the Mythos
Ná Morrighan has a strong connection to this time of year thanks to the story of Cath Dédenach Maige Tuired (The Last Battle of Mag Tuired) in which she is found depicted as the ‘Washing Woman’ (sometimes washing herself in the river and other times washing the bloodied armor of the soldiers that would die that day), on the eve of the battle which is also Samhain. The Dagda approaches her and couples with her (creating the ‘Bed of the Couples’ along the bank of river and granting Dagda her blessing in the battle to come). This encounter seems to over emphasize the liminality of the encounter by taking place during the changing of the year and with the couple each standing with ‘one foot on either bank’ of the river.
She and her sisters (Badb and Macha) then use various forms of magic to rain destruction on their enemies (in the form of fire and blood). After the day is won Morrighan speaks a prophecy that describes what is taken by some to be the end of days and others to be the events which will later lead to the Ulster Cycle.
Beneath the peaceful heavens lies the land.
It rests beneath the bowl of the bright sky.
The land lies, itself a dish, a cup of honeyed strength, there, for the taking, offering strength to each
There it lies, the splendour of the land.
The land is like a mead worth the brewing, worth the drinking.
It stores for us the gifts of summer even in winter.
It protects and armours us, a spear upon a shield
Here we can make for ourselves strong places, the fist holding the shield
Here we can build safe places, our spear-bristling enclosures.
This is where we will turn the earth. This is where we will stay.
And here will our children live to the third of three generations
Here there will be a forest point of field fences
The horn counting of many cows
And the encircling of many fields
There will be sheltering trees
So fodderful of beech mast that the trees themselves will be weary with the weight.
In this land will come abundance bringing:
Wealth for our children
Every boy a warrior,
Every watch dog, warrior-fierce
The wood of every tree, spear-worthy
The fire from every stone a molten spear-stream
Every stone a firm foundation
Every field full of cows
Every cow calf-fertile
Our land shall be rich with banks in birdsong
Grey deer before Spring
And fruitful Autumns
The plain shall be thronged from the hills to the shore.
Full and fertile.
And as time runs its sharp and shadowy journey, this shall be true.
This shall be the story of the land and its people
We shall have peace beneath the heavens.
Forever
(based on the translation by Isolde Carmody)
It is also mentioned in Echtra Cormaic that on this festival every seven years the high king would host a feast, it was at this time new laws could be enacted. (but it seems that individual Tuathas or possibly kings of the individual providence may have done this for their territories at Lughnasadh).
It seems to be a time considered especially susceptible to (or of) great change as it is the time which the Tuatha de Danann win victory over the Formorians and take control of Ireland, the invasion of Ulster takes place at this time in Táin bo Cúailnge, in Aislinge Óengusa Óengus and his bride-to-be are changed from bird to human and eventually he claims kingship of Brú na Bóinne at this time of year.
Celebration Traditions
Samhain is the beginning of the “dark half” of the year and is widely regarded as the Insular Celtic equivalent of the New Year. The “dark half” of the year was a time for story telling, in fact in this half of the year after dark is considered the only acceptable time to tell stories from the mythological and Ulster cycle (the Fenian cycle being assumed to be no older than the 12th century based on linguistic dating). Traditionally anything that had not been harvested or gathered by the time of this festival was to be left, as it now belonged to the Fae (in some areas specifically the Púca).
This was also an important time for warding off ill luck in the coming year. Large bonfires would be built and as the cattle were driven back into the community from the pastures they would be walked between these bonfires as a method of purification (the reverse custom of Bealtaine where the livestock were walked between the fires on their way out to the summer pastures). Assumed ritualistic slaughter of some of the herd would follow (though this perhaps had the more practical purpose of thinning the herd before the winter and creating enough food for the feasting). In some areas the ashes from these fires would be worn, thrown or spread as a further way to ward off evil.
Homes would be ritualistically protected from the Aos Sí (Fae or ‘Spirits’) through methods such as offerings of food (generally leaving some of the feasting outside for them), carving turnips with scary faces to warn them off (we now tend to do this with gourds), and smoke cleansing the home (in Scottish saining) traditionally with juniper, but perhaps rowan or birch might be an acceptable alternative. It is likely these would be part of the components used in Samhain bonfires as well, for the same reason.
Lastly based on later traditions as well as links in the mythology this is a time where divination practices or those with the ‘second sight’ were regarded to be especially potent.
Art Credit @morpheus-ravenna
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