Happy New Year!...?

Samhain (pronounced "sow-en") is the ancient Celtic celebration of the end of the old year and the beginning of the new. Each year, according to Celtic Mythology, a new sun god (male) was born of the goddess of the earth each spring. During the year he grew old until he dies in the late autumn with the darkening of the year, but not before he has taken earth as his bride and left her with a new son god to be born in the spring. so the end of the year is also the beginning.

However, with the death of the sun god, the souls of the wicked creatures and the dead all run wild on this night. In order to confuse the spirits and keep them from harming the living, the Celtic people devised many "tricks" that are still used to this day (although not for the original intended purpose). Bonfires are still a traditional part of Halloween (Samhain) which were thought to chase away the evil spirits who would think that it was the sun god still living.

Another method of tricking the creatures, was to disguise yourself as one of them so that they would mistake you for one of their own and leave you be. Part of this was that many families would invite the spirits in for a feast, the food would distract them long enough for the living to done costumes...and lead the spirits from the house dancing their way out in the wilderness, away from the homes of the living. But for the timid spirits, just a scary face would do to frighten them away!

Happy Halloween!