All Hallow's Eve

Halloween is a celebration of Spooks and Goblins, Spirits and Witches, Mysteries and Magick. What we now call Halloween actually evolved from an ancient European holiday known as All Hollow's Eve. This was the day supernatural spirits were known to wander the earth. It began as the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain. Samhain marked the moment when the veil between the living and the dead was lifted and the inhabitants of the two worlds could commune. For about 2000 years, October 31st meant bidding goodbye to summer, welcoming winter and remembering the dead. Samhain marked the death of the old year and the birth of the next. It was a day of the dead, a night of magick and mystery, a time when ghosts and lost souls roamed the land. According to legend, every Samhain the souls of the dead were set free by the Lord of the Dead. It was believed that many of these spirits then roamed the natural world searching for bodies to possess. Families began dressing in scary disguises and noisily marching around their neighborhoods to scare away these immortal souls. This practice became the origin of the modern Halloween tradition of wearing costumes. So the next time you are choosing what to be for Halloween, remember all those spirits looking for a strong healthy body to inhabit, and pick a costume that is truly terrifying!