What do you do on Halloween

[chris1203]

Hello,

I am planning to write a few online articles about Halloween (which is coming up, believe it or not!) and was wondering if any of you would like to share your Haloween beliefs/rituals/traditions with me for these articles. Basically, I am looking for how the Judeo Christian view of "witches" differs from how this art is actually practiced and lived. Your identities will be private, of course, as they are on this forum. You can either respond to this thread with your thoughts, or PM me and we'll go from there. Also, I may want to quote some of you so please tell me if you refuse to be quoted. Thank you.

Chris

[cheddarsox]

I'm a natural pantheist, and don't practice witchcraft. I don't celebrate Halloween except in a secular sense...jack o lantern and hand out candy to the neighborhood kids when they knock on the door.

One of the reasons I don't do Halloween is that it falls on the first day of a big three day feast, the Days of the Dead which I do observe, in a very intense way.

The Days of the Dead is a three day time period that allows us to honor and remember our own dead loved ones, as well as confront our own mortality. We spend many weeks preparing art, offerings, etc before hand. We create an offering place where we place photos and the names of our deceased loved ones, and candles, traditional decorations and offerings of food and drink. We also burn copal incense. We gather with family and friends to feast and recall the dead, we visit cemeteries, write poetry about death/mortality, and enjoy lots of humorous and colorful folk art.

It's a very special time for us.

Many people get confused because skeletons and skulls are a large part of the decorations, and think it is a spooky holiday but that is not true. It is a reverent and joyful holiday, though of course, we get a little sad remembering those that we miss.

Days of the Dead is NOT halloween, or Mexican Halloween, or any other holiday that occurs at the same time, they are each their own thing with their own history and emphasis.

I know you did ask about Halloween, but I wanted you to understand that there are other important feasts going on around that time, that other pagans will be celebrating, and that not all pagans are witches, and Halloween isn't the main pagan holiday of the year.

[Rick]

What do you do on Halloween?

I eat the candy that I buy to hand out to the neighborhood kids... :smile:

[Glowy]

It is my favorite day of the year. I am very traditional. I still dress up, even to just hand out treats. I am the favorite person to take all the kids as well. I go all out- I make a huge spread of food- I have hand carved jack o lanterns and goards all over. I have extra hats and masks for guests * your soul won't be taken by the dead in my house lol* I pass out candy and chat with my neighbors. I always invite them in for snacks as football is on. Half of the party is in watching football * we T&T on Sunday's here... lame the other half is outside passing candy to the kids.


If I have my son's cousins.... we make taffy apples and smores. We tell old stories and watch movies as well. They are aware as to why we dress up.

[Louisvillian]

Depends. I'd like to find time to do a real ritual, but I'm more content doing what I've always done on Halloween- laying back and just chilling out.
I usually help out with scaring kids at my Aunt's house, then later in the evening, I try to catch History Channel's special on Halloween history and stuff. Definitely try to catch AMC for some classic horror flicks.
And, of course, eat all the leftover candy.

Last year, I went to a Halloween party a few days before. And I helped out with Halloween In The Halls, a little school thing where we decorate the school hallways and dress up in costumes while we pass out candy.
This year, I'm going to an anime convention, SugoiCon up at Fort Mitchell (which was on Nov.15-17 last year), over the weekend after Halloween. So, I might have to hit the hay earlier than usual on Halloween.

[~Elise~]

Samhain and Halloween are two different holidays...one is secular and is for the kids...see Rick's answer for what we do on Halloween.

As for Samhain...it is a fluctating observance. It falls between Mabon and Yule, so the date differs every year...but it usually anywhere between Nov 2 and 5. This year it is on the 5th, so we'll hold our celebration on the 7th since it's the closest weekend.
We hold ritual, then feast, commune with the dead, etc.

Elise

[chris1203]

I know you did ask about Halloween, but I wanted you to understand that there are other important feasts going on around that time, that other pagans will be celebrating, and that not all pagans are witches, and Halloween isn't the main pagan holiday of the year.

Thank you for clarifying this. I have heard of the Day of the Dead, but did not know much about it. I think I will do some research and then may ask you some questions about your practice, if you don't mind. You also mentioned it not being a Mexican Holiday, but I think I've only heard of the Day of the Dead in relation to a Mexican holiday. If there is a difference, as you say, i think an article noting the differences and explaining the details of the Day of the Dead would be interesting.

[Rudas Starblaze]

i lite my back yard on fire. :thumbsup:
but atleast i dont have to decorate my house, its creepy 24/7/365. :weirdsmil

[chris1203]

Samhain and Halloween are two different holidays...one is secular and is for the kids...see Rick's answer for what we do on Halloween.
As for Samhain...it is a fluctating observance. It falls between Mabon and Yule, so the date differs every year...but it usually anywhere between Nov 2 and 5. This year it is on the 5th, so we'll hold our celebration on the 7th since it's the closest weekend.
We hold ritual, then feast, commune with the dead, etc.

Wow, Elise...I just showed my ignorence here. I'm sorry, everything that I have ever read links Halloween with Samhain as if it were the same holiday. I guess I should have worded my thread, "What do you do on Samhain," huh?

[Shanti]

For us Samhain doesn't have anything to do with the dead or thinning veils.
For us, its a very lively time of the year.
Its the harvest.
Its time for thanks for the nourishment all of nature has provided for everything, including the plants and animals.
It a preparing for the winter rest.
Its time to dance around the fire with the nature spirits that have helped to keep the circle of life revolving and will continue to do so.

Its a time to mark another stage of the changing of the seasons.

[Louisvillian]

everything that I have ever read links Halloween with Samhain as if it were the same holiday. I guess I should have worded my thread, "What do you do on Samhain," huh?
Well, Halloween is based on Samhain, and has borrowed many elements from it. But it has also taken on its own form, grown up into its own holiday. It's mainly, now, a secular and fun holiday.
I celebrate Samhain on the same day as Halloween, of course, for both historical reasons and because it's, well, easier and less cluttered. So, I do the same thing on Samhain as I do on Halloween, because it's the same date on the calendar, for me.

Yes, I'm lazy. So what? :hehehehe:

[Anam Sa Dorchadas]

Well I finally get to take my mask off. :lol:

[cheddarsox]

Thank you for clarifying this. I have heard of the Day of the Dead, but did not know much about it. I think I will do some research and then may ask you some questions about your practice, if you don't mind. You also mentioned it not being a Mexican Holiday, but I think I've only heard of the Day of the Dead in relation to a Mexican holiday. If there is a difference, as you say, i think an article noting the differences and explaining the details of the Day of the Dead would be interesting.

I think you misread, I said the Days of the Dead are NOT Mexican Halloween, they are a Mexican holiday (though not limited to Mexico). Sometimes people think that the Days of the Dead are just the Mexican version on Halloween, just a difference in custom rather than a difference in history or understanding, and it's more complex than that.

Days of the Dead are most definitely a Mexican holiday...and some other Latin American countries, and others who through heritage, culture or luck have cause to share in this lovely holiday.

[Garm]

Hide

No really

It's a time of adverse magicks, I don't want to find myself stepping into some body else's cross fire

I have done enough conflict based sorcery to make myself a real shit magnet for similar energy

[cheddarsox]

My understanding, if one is specifically speaking of Halloween, as opposed to the various holy days in various cultures that in some way address death at that time of year...Halloween is a Catholic holiday, the day before all Hallow's day, or all saints day...a feast day for Catholics and a holy day of obligation in the USA.

As cultures migrated and mixed, some customs from one's version of the death holy day got picked up by another, but they are still distinct days with their own meanings, customs, and histories.

If the OP is specifically studying Halloween...I doubt most pagans do anything other than the usual for it, but if you start getting into the celebrations of the dead, that Halloween has become a secular version of...that's when things start getting really interesting...on a spiritual level.

It may seem like nit picking...but to me it's not, to bother about the specific names of the holidays and their customs. It's a rich heritage, and when we share, that's great, but it's cool to know where and why a custom exists.

Halloween is an old Catholic feast day, religiously, and a day for kids to dress up spooky, young women to dress as sluts and guys to dress in drag, to get a lot of candy and watch horror movies and for a day get familiar with our dark side, secularly.

All good fun and psychologically interesting, but if we are talking spirituality...I prefer we stay real clear about terminology, beliefs, etc. One, because I like to learn (helps me appreciate where others are coming from) and two, because I don't like people just mashing my traditions in with others like they are all the same thing.

But, if some pagans celebrate Halloween in unique and wonderful ways, I want to hear about that too!

[cheddarsox]

Hide

No really

It's a time of adverse magicks, I don't want to find myself stepping into some body else's cross fire

I have done enough conflict based sorcery to make myself a real shit magnet for similar energy

as long as you promise to come back out when it's over! We like our Garm.:smoochypo

[Garm]

as long as you promise to come back out when it's over! We like our Garm.:smoochypo/

[Garm]

As to how Halloween actually came to be in our time,

it did not start off as a celebration to venerate the dead.

There was a belief among the Irish peasantry that one night of the year the spirits of the departed had license to possess any one they chose. They would seek out the most attractive people they could find probably because if you haven't worn the physical raiment for a while the first thing you are going to want to do is get lucky. So hence the hideous costumes to serve as a deterrent.

Now on all Saints Day there was a traditional type of bread to be served and not all the Peasants could afford it. The landlords and other wealthy would hand these breads out at the door so they could have a laugh at the superstitious peasants.

Such was the point of origin of our current rituals.

[chris1203]

If the OP is specifically studying Halloween...I doubt most pagans do anything other than the usual for it, but if you start getting into the celebrations of the dead, that Halloween has become a secular version of...that's when things start getting really interesting...on a spiritual level.

Good point. so can you be specific about how you celebrate the dead in the pagan tradition? I guess what I'm asking is this...though I know that all pagans do not practice witchcraft, per se, I think the way most non-pagans view Halloween is through "witchy" eyes. It may be because of Hollywood "B" movies, but I think the general public tends to associate Halloween with a coven of witches meeting in the woods and performing rituals and casting spells (that is, when they stop to think of the possible meaning BEHIND trick-or-treating.) I'm just trying to figure out what the real stories, of real people, are as opposed to the public's conception of them.

By the way...if you're wondering about my interest in this (beyond that of a writer) the answer is that I am "into" anything supernatural and I am also a little of everything, if that makes sense. I am not religious, but I am spiritual. I guess you could call me a Christian, in a sense, but with definite pagan beliefs. I'm not sure if I believe in a personified God anymore, but more of Universal God force. I believe in magic, and the power of the mind, and good and bad karma. See...a little of everything, lol.

[chris1203]

Are you serious, Garm?

[chris1203]

It's a time of adverse magicks, I don't want to find myself stepping into some body else's cross fire

I have done enough conflict based sorcery to make myself a real shit magnet for similar energy

Duh, sorry Garm. I neglected to quote you when I asked "are you serious?" lol

[~Elise~]

Wow, Elise...I just showed my ignorence here. I'm sorry, everything that I have ever read links Halloween with Samhain as if it were the same holiday. I guess I should have worded my thread, "What do you do on Samhain," huh?

Don't feel bad...a lot of pagans/witches celebrate Halloween/Samhain as one and the same.

I chose not to a long time ago. It also has the advantage that our members with children don't have to choose which event to do-or rush their kids through trick or treating.

http://www.archaeoastronomy.com/countdowns.shtml

That is a link to the actual dates of the sabbats...there are several we don't celebrate when others do...like Beltane...it is another fluctuating date and we don't use the May 1 date. in fact...Sabbats are solar celebrations, so all the dates fluctuate. Not everyone uses those dates. Some stick to fixed dates...nothing wrong with that...just not our groups choice.

Elise

[chris1203]

I think you misread, I said the Days of the Dead are NOT Mexican Halloween, they are a Mexican holiday (though not limited to Mexico). Sometimes people think that the Days of the Dead are just the Mexican version on Halloween, just a difference in custom rather than a difference in history or understanding, and it's more complex than that.

Oh, I see. So you're saying that Days of the Dead is definitely not another term for Halloween in Mexico, and that it has its own, separate origins. Sorry I misread and thank you for clarifying this and, of course, I'm still going to research Days of the Dead because now you've piqued my curiosity!

[BlackLili]

Good point. so can you be specific about how you celebrate the dead in the pagan tradition? I guess what I'm asking is this...though I know that all pagans do not practice witchcraft, per se, I think the way most non-pagans view Halloween is through "witchy" eyes. It may be because of Hollywood "B" movies, but I think the general public tends to associate Halloween with a coven of witches meeting in the woods and performing rituals and casting spells (that is, when they stop to think of the possible meaning BEHIND trick-or-treating.) I'm just trying to figure out what the real stories, of real people, are as opposed to the public's conception of them.

By the way...if you're wondering about my interest in this (beyond that of a writer) the answer is that I am "into" anything supernatural and I am also a little of everything, if that makes sense. I am not religious, but I am spiritual. I guess you could call me a Christian, in a sense, but with definite pagan beliefs. I'm not sure if I believe in a personified God anymore, but more of Universal God force. I believe in magic, and the power of the mind, and good and bad karma. See...a little of everything, lol.
The kind of traditions you're thinking of here actually got their start in the middle ages and the renaissance. During the time of the Inquisition especially - the Christian church often defined these "black masses" and gatherings in the woods, and described them to their followers to frighten and warn them against such actions. Eventually in some areas, life began to imitate art, as it were, and these gatherings actually began to be held in the manner the Church exactly feared.

Other secret gatherings in the woods are referred to at equinoxes, the first of May ("May Day" or Beltaine to some,) and midsummer solstice as well. Virtually anywhere that Rome conquered they eventually absorbed the local tribes and traditions, including their religions and gods. Inhabitants of the conquered peoples, if they didn't want to subsume their faith to Rome's Church, had to practice largely in secret. As time passed and the Catholic Church became the richest organization (some would say Empire at one time,) it became more important to rid their territory of non-believers, hence the Inquisition.

This is vastly simplified, but you see how one group's fear turned into propaganda, which then turned into reality, fuelling and validating the fears of the first group, and so on.

Of course, the most elaborate "black masses" of all were held by the French aristocracy during the decadent period of Louis XVI, in the mid-to-late eighteenth century and into the ninteenth century. Many were held by the infamous Marquis de Sade, and the indulgences provided at this type of soiree ranged from the profane to the infernal. However, the Marquis and all of France were all still dedicatedly Catholic (at least in name), and therefore we could not attribute these fantasies honestly to the Pagans of that time or any other.

Great question though - its one of the reasons I got my degree, coincidentally.

[Louisvillian]

Not everyone uses those dates. Some stick to fixed dates...nothing wrong with that...just not our groups choice.
It's more of a personal choice, really. Or group, if that's what you're into.
I, personally, alternate between the 1st or 21st, in the month they occur in. Samhain is the only exception, because of convenience of it being right next to Halloween, and the incredibly similar customs and associations, since Halloween in the English-speaking world owes its parentage to Samhain. So, I celebrate it on October 31st rather than November 1st.

[~Elise~]

It's more of a personal choice, really. Or group, if that's what you're into.
I, personally, alternate between the 1st or 21st, in the month they occur in. Samhain is the only exception, because of convenience of it being right next to Halloween, and the incredibly similar customs and associations, since Halloween in the English-speaking world owes its parentage to Samhain. So, I celebrate it on October 31st rather than November 1st.

It is a personal choice...but most don't even know about fluctuating dates because they just go with what they read in a book. If you understand both and decide to go with the fixed date...then it is truly a choice.

JMO and YMMV

Elise

[skilly-nilly]

Samhain and Halloween are two different holidays...one is secular and is for the kids...see Rick's answer for what we do on Halloween.

We hold ritual, then feast, commune with the dead, etc.

Elise

I both agree and disagree with this:
I make a distinction between 'Societal Holidays' (how everybody celebrates holidays, what's in the shops, stardard decorations, etc) and 'Religious Hoidays' (belief-based applications). All of the major societal holidays started out as religious and are now mainly about gifts and chocolate, Hallowe'e'n just one of many.

So I generally call my religious holiday "Hallowe'e'n"; it's just a contraction of 'Hallowed Evening' after all.

I do leave food and drink offerings for my Beloved Dead, but that's about all the congruence between me and Elise.




For us Samhain doesn't have anything to do with the dead or thinning veils.
For us, its a very lively time of the year.
Its the harvest.
Its time for thanks for the nourishment all of nature has provided for everything, including the plants and animals.
It a preparing for the winter rest.
Its time to dance around the fire with the nature spirits that have helped to keep the circle of life revolving and will continue to do so.

Its a time to mark another stage of the changing of the seasons.


I agree that it's a season change and a harvest (or the end of harvest or the blood harvest of thinning the herds). My cosmology divides the year into the 2 halves (bright and dark) and this is the shift to the dark, sleeping, cold season.

I re-ward my home and smudge all of the trees in my yard.
I carve jack-o-lanterns using protective runes as part of the faces.

I follow a very traditionalist, folk-lore based Path. I believe that the Gentry (the Good People, the Fair Folk, the Feckie Buggers) are trooping on the night as they shift homes twice a year. So I stay in after dark and I don't let anyone cross my threshold. If little suspect disguised beings come to the door, I buy them off with tiny candy bars and lollipops, making them yell 'Trick-er-Treat!!' first.

When my children were small I didn't let them go out after dark either, I would take them to one or several 'parties' (the church/s, the KoC, the woman's league) that were always on the closest Saturday to Hallowe'e'n in exchange.
They were fine with it. As pre-teens they went out a few times defiantly, but were happy to carry rowan berries in their pockets and have StJohn's Wort oil on their foreheads. If I forgot, they would ask for "the protective greasiness" themselves. When my son moved out to his own apartement he insisted I come ward it, and all of his room-mates also put rowan berries in their pockets as well.

I believe that acknowledgement of Dark is a part of Balance.

[chris1203]

Great question though - its one of the reasons I got my degree, coincidentally.

What type of degree do you have, if you don't mind me asking?

Incidentally, that was a fascinating history lesson you gave me. I had never heard of the Renaissance/Inquisitions origin of our current perception of witches and their secret meetings in the woods. Thank you for sharing this.

[Garm]

Duh, sorry Garm. I neglected to quote you when I asked "are you serious?" lol

Yep, my personal tradition stems back to a Halloween party that I missed but got to hear about later. One friend of mine got his facial bone structure slightly rearranged and another one lost a testicle as a third friend went a little berserk on to much alcohol.

You can imagine how the third guy felt about it afterwards. It was a reoccurant problem with him, he had to have explained to him just what he had done while inebriated because he could not remember any of it. Time came when we started making stuff up just so we could watch his anguish.

I found out later the two injured guys had witches with some serious beefs for XGF's

One of them I later had a clash wills with because I objected to being dragged in to her vendettas. That was resolved when she ended up in the emergency ward after taking a prescription medication that went wrong.

The other XGF became one of my XGF's.

I think I have good reasons for staying home and keeping out of trouble.

[~Elise~]

What type of degree do you have, if you don't mind me asking?

Incidentally, that was a fascinating history lesson you gave me. I had never heard of the Renaissance/Inquisitions origin of our current perception of witches and their secret meetings in the woods. Thank you for sharing this.

here's another source:

http://www.suppressedhistories.net/secrethistory/witchpolitics.html

[Cloaked Raven]

Well, since we were asked, I'll share what Mr. Cloaky and I do on Halloween.

We do the traditional stuff--Jack O Lantern, fake spiderwebs, etc. We do have a fake graveyard set up in the yard, but not with the names of horror movie monsters...We put names of old time horror movie actors on them. Vincent Price, Bella Lugosi and Boris Karloff have "graves" in our yard. :uhhuhuh: I dress in black from head to toe, set up a lot of candles around my kitchen and some outside beside the jack o lantern. Either myself or my husband take Lil Cloaky around trick or treating while the other one stays home and hands treats out to the children.

After the trick or treaters finish coming around for the night, I go outside into the back yard and say prayers honoring those who came before me. I say prayers for all of my friends, family and loved ones, and ask my deity that the year ahead be prosperous and peaceful. I spend a lot of time thinking of those I knew who have passed through the veil and hope their souls are happy and may be stopping in for a visit sometime that day.

What can I say? Halloween is my favorite time of the year. It's spooky and fun! :boing:

Just like me... :toofless:

[Teresa]

I celebrate both Days of the Dead and Samhain( the date does vary) . We usually have a Dumb Supper for Samhain followed with different forms of divination as the guests are paired off. We finish up with a nice bon fire weather permitting. This time of year is very special for me personally and one of my favorite to celebrate.

I believe you can google Dumb Supper and see what this is in detail.

http://www.witchvox.com/va/dt_va.html?a=uswa&c=holidays&id=12151

Here is one article.


For Days of the Dead we make Sugar Skulls and decorate them. An altar for our Ancestors is made with marigolds and the bright and colorful sugar skulls, sweet breads, gifts, traditional foods as offerings, candles, and photos of the deceased. This is a time when we remember and revere our deceased loved ones.

Honoring my ancestors plays a large role in my Spirituality.

[Louisvillian]

It is a personal choice...but most don't even know about fluctuating dates because they just go with what they read in a book. If you understand both and decide to go with the fixed date...then it is truly a choice.
Well, if you mean Witchcraft and Wicca holidays, then...that gets a bit into a grey area of historicity.
Half of the Sabbats are based on Germanic and Greco-Roman solar festivals, and half of them are based on traditional British/Irish harvest festivals. So, really, half of them truly fluctuate based on the year. The Celtic-based ones differ because of slight differences in season from region to region, around which the harvest is planned; Samhain might be on one day in Dublin, and on a different one in Edinburgh, for example. But, generally, those stay within a certain range. The solstices and equinoctes differ slightly more broadly from year to year.

But, generally, you are right. They do fluctuate depending on who's telling about them. What a good practitioner has to realise is that not all groups and not all books will say the same thing about it, so one must make an informed decision on their own, based on analysis of multiple sources.

[patch]

I, like elise; celebrated Samhain in november time.
Last year I was going to put flowers on family graves and then share some baked goods with local land spirits.

But suddenly I got lots of issues with what I was doing and converted to hellenic polytheism. xD I've done the above since though. :)

[Astara Seague]

we celebrate Halloween as most everyone else does we do our yard up with some sort of theme every year..and give the kids candy..we are known as "the Magickal House" in the neighborhood so it would be a shame if we didnt do "the usual" we all dress.. all the grown kids and their friends and our friends come and have fun scaring the kids and of course giving them candy

as for Samhain we do not usually celebrate on Halloween because of the taking kids trick or treating and so forth..so usually its a day or two after..I have considered the 21st..I try to do the Samhain Sabbat on which ever weekend is closet..Saturdays work best with our group
we have a dumb supper and a ritual/blessing we also decorate graves and share baked goods with others... oh I almost forgot this sabbat is one everyone "dresses" for cloaks and capes and so forth

[Shanti]

I both agree and disagree with this:
I make a distinction between 'Societal Holidays' (how everybody celebrates holidays, what's in the shops, stardard decorations, etc) and 'Religious Hoidays' (belief-based applications). All of the major societal holidays started out as religious and are now mainly about gifts and chocolate, Hallowe'e'n just one of many.

So I generally call my religious holiday "Hallowe'e'n"; it's just a contraction of 'Hallowed Evening' after all.

I do leave food and drink offerings for my Beloved Dead, but that's about all the congruence between me and Elise.






I agree that it's a season change and a harvest (or the end of harvest or the blood harvest of thinning the herds). My cosmology divides the year into the 2 halves (bright and dark) and this is the shift to the dark, sleeping, cold season.

I re-ward my home and smudge all of the trees in my yard.
I carve jack-o-lanterns using protective runes as part of the faces.

I follow a very traditionalist, folk-lore based Path. I believe that the Gentry (the Good People, the Fair Folk, the Feckie Buggers) are trooping on the night as they shift homes twice a year. So I stay in after dark and I don't let anyone cross my threshold. If little suspect disguised beings come to the door, I buy them off with tiny candy bars and lollipops, making them yell 'Trick-er-Treat!!' first.

When my children were small I didn't let them go out after dark either, I would take them to one or several 'parties' (the church/s, the KoC, the woman's league) that were always on the closest Saturday to Hallowe'e'n in exchange.
They were fine with it. As pre-teens they went out a few times defiantly, but were happy to carry rowan berries in their pockets and have StJohn's Wort oil on their foreheads. If I forgot, they would ask for "the protective greasiness" themselves. When my son moved out to his own apartement he insisted I come ward it, and all of his room-mates also put rowan berries in their pockets as well.

I believe that acknowledgement of Dark is a part of Balance.

Its all perspective. :)
For my beliefs dark-light...there is no reason to acknowledge either for neither is different nor separate. They are both one in the same.

So, for some people its not a matter of them not acknowledging anything, its just a different acknowledgment of something perceived differently.
Gee, I wonder if that makes sense. :weirdsmil

[chris1203]

I celebrate both Days of the Dead and Samhain( the date does vary) . We usually have a Dumb Supper for Samhain followed with different forms of divination as the guests are paired off. We finish up with a nice bon fire weather permitting. This time of year is very special for me personally and one of my favorite to celebrate.

Thank you, Teresa. This is interesting. I have never heard of the Dumb Supper but will research it now, following both your link and a Google search.

[chris1203]

we celebrate Halloween as most everyone else does we do our yard up with some sort of theme every year..and give the kids candy..we are known as "the Magickal House" in the neighborhood so it would be a shame if we didnt do "the usual" we all dress.. all the grown kids and their friends and our friends come and have fun scaring the kids and of course giving them candy

as for Samhain we do not usually celebrate on Halloween because of the taking kids trick or treating and so forth..so usually its a day or two after..I have considered the 21st..I try to do the Samhain Sabbat on which ever weekend is closet..Saturdays work best with our group
we have a dumb supper and a ritual/blessing we also decorate graves and share baked goods with others... oh I almost forgot this sabbat is one everyone "dresses" for cloaks and capes and so forth

Thank you, Astara. You, and others that have contributed to this thread, have given me an idea for my first article. I have always thought that those that follow the Pagan tradition celebrated something OTHER than Halloween. It never occurred to me that you could (and do) celebrate both, mainly because of your children, I suspect. I think that a lot of people think the same way I did. (As you can tell, I want to write articles that are different from the stereotypical portrayals.)

[chris1203]

I want to say that I am overwhelmed at everyone's help and positive response to my inquiry. Thank you very much and please keep the ideas coming. Not only have you helped me clarify (somewhat) my initial question, but you have given me avenues of other areas to invesigate, such as Days of the Dead, Dumb Supper, etc. I so much appreciate all of your help and your individual experiences of your holidays.

By the way, although I publish my articles in a couple of different places online, Associated Content gets the majority of my articles. When I start publishing articles on this subject, I will be sure to post links to them in this thead and on the forum so that you can let me know what you think.

(Also, if I should choose to quote any of your responses in my articles, I will be sure to PM you to ask your permission.)

[Whitewolf]

I love Halloween. It's my favorite holiday. Last year I went to a circle at my friend's house. We had a ritual and after had some food. If she doesn't have it this year I plan to stay home and light incense and candles. I usually watch as many horror movies as I can on Halloween. I also answer the door and give out candy to the trick or treaters.

[~Belladonna~]

For Samhain I'll be doing some kind of ritual, not sure what yet, and also the usual of trying to make contact with the dead, not just any old dead however, it will more than likely be my grandad, that's if he's willing to come through again :) If all goes to plan then that's all I'll be doing, if however communications with the dead arn't going to plan then I'll whip my crystal ball out and get down to some serious divination :thumbsup:

I LOVE Samhain!!!

[Glowy]

For Samhain I'll be doing some kind of ritual, not sure what yet, and also the usual of trying to make contact with the dead, not just any old dead however, it will more than likely be my grandad, that's if he's willing to come through again :) If all goes to plan then that's all I'll be doing, if however communications with the dead arn't going to plan then I'll whip my crystal ball out and get down to some serious divination :thumbsup:

I LOVE Samhain!!!


I do very personal things on Samhain, but for Halloween I am 100% wicked fun fluff.

Samhain, I tend to say goodbye to the plants and trees and animals that will soon my in hybernation for the winter. I thank the Earth for her sustaining us for another year. It is like I am closing down one season to open another. The deep fall is also when I connect the best.

[David19]

What do you do on Halloween?

I eat the candy that I buy to hand out to the neighborhood kids... :smile:

:lol: and that's the best way to celebrate :thumbsup: ;)!.

[RunningRiot]

I trick or treated until I was 18, believe it or not. :D Now no one believes me when I say I'm just a very matured 15yr old.. The jerks!

Now I honor the dead (animals, humans, etc), by wearing bones, leaving out food, talking and praying, dancing, setting up shrines.. I dress up, eat candy, watch horror movies and read ghost stories. I love the spooky atmosphere and the costumes.

[chris1203]

Now I honor the dead (animals, humans, etc), by wearing bones, leaving out food, talking and praying, dancing, setting up shrines.. I dress up, eat candy, watch horror movies and read ghost stories. I love the spooky atmosphere and the costumes.

So is your celebration a combination of pagan and traditional Halloween practices?

[Louisvillian]

So is your celebration a combination of pagan and traditional Halloween practices?
That's sort of redundant, since many traditional Halloween practices are based in Irish pagan festive practices. Now, of course, they've changed a lot over the centuries, having been reappropriated for Catholic festivities before All Saint's Day, and especially after moving to North America, but the history of those practices is rooted in Irish paganism.