"The 'Pagan' Diaries": What is Known as Halloween

by B Condon 10:36 AM

Dear Voguegasm Diary,

I feel as a "pagan"* the incentive to finally debunk myths or rather perceptions of what people call Halloween,  but I cannot change minds or say "I am better than this, this, and this." No. It is the general attitude of Western culture of what they want or choose to believe within the present time.  And the general attitude is, based from words alone, "oh how cool" or "those crazy pagans" with a swing of a shoulder with an apple pie in one hand and a baseball in the other. Which,  is OK by me but when it is a topic so personally... just call me the Pat Matthews of the Celtic world.

Jack O Lantern Turnip last year

Diary,  I thank Amy Foster of hellogiggles in writing the recent article today on pre-Christian traditions of what is called by Western culture Halloween. But, not to be egotistical, this is merely the shallow end of the pool of the endless beautiful history that is both my ancestry and the spiritual path that found me -- Wicca 101 in essence. Not to be critical of any points Ms. Foster makes, but she doesn't include the detail Irish tradition of the Jack-O-Lantern in its previous counterpart of a turnip. It is when the Irish immigrated to America their fields were not equipped for turnip growing. So they turned to pumpkins which grew far better than turnips. *star swoosh: the more you know.*

V-Diary, I could easily take a trip through the UK Isles and go country by country of their geographical traditions that have turned into the melting pot of America's Halloween, but that would be too easy but in the immortal words of Mary Poppins "Oh well, if I must I must."

Wales  

October 31st: Nos Calan Gaeaf (pr. Nahs Calan Gay-ev) meaning (loosely), "The Night of the First Month of Winter" or Ysbyrdnos (pr. Es-birt-nos) meaning Spirit Night
November 1st: Calan Gaeaf (pr. Calan Gay-ev): meaning "The First Month of Winter."


This is the spiritual path that found me so I feel it is only right to start with what I know. Granted, I know the exact stories that Foster cites in "Stingy Jack, Soul Cakes and All Saints..." but the Welsh were, as I have written in my prose. "the original fantasy writers."

Calan Gaeaf was the perfect time for the Welsh as they had created beautiful yet creepy myths of Yr Hwch Ddu Gwta (Er Hew-wik Thu Gweh-ta) (loose pronounciation) , a spirit that takes shape of tail-less black sow (as the sow in Welsh symbolism means wealth, black obviously meaning evil) who roams the country fields Nos Calan Gaeaf with a headless woman, much in the tradition of the headless horseman. There is also a belief if you put a few twigs of ivy, you would experience Eiddiorwg Dalen (Aithiwrong Talen) or Ivy Dreams. If you are a boy, cut ten leaves and throw one away and you will have prophetic dreams (prophets often were bards in ancient Wales and are very important to its writerly culture).

Like in the other UK Isles, and as well as inching towards the East, this night was the most appropriate for divination because the veil between worlds is at its thinnest (although the Welsh believed the veil between worlds is far more flexible than one believes) and one can easily use divination to find out the important stages of pre-Christian life: marriage, children and death through messages from the Otherworld. Another divination in Wales is the Coelcerth or Bonfire where a family would write their names on white rocks, leave them at the bonfire once the fire is completely out, run back to their homes. In the morning if one stone is missing, that person is said to die within the next year. If someone found their stone, they are to have good luck for the rest of the year.

this year's altar

Ireland
October 31st: Oiche Samhna (pr. ee-eh-why SOW-in) "The Eve of End of  Summer = Samhain""
November 1st : Samhna (SOW-in) = Samhain "End of Summer"

If Wales was the pessimist "The Night of the First Month of Winter" then Ireland would do the opposite in "The Eve of the End of Summer", because that is like the Irish. It is most Irish customs that have been Americanized, which Ms. Foster brings up in the article. I don't blame her entirely, but most often it has been the more popular traditions of Wicca that has come from Ireland. And I don't blame anyone but Gerald Gardner (the reason why Wicca is what is is since the '50s/'60s) for incorporating the "popular kids" otherwise known as Ireland.

So what of Ireland has seeped into the American Halloween? Other than the Jack-O-Lantern, you also have costumes/trick or treating (Ms. Foster has that covered) which was more time appropriate in dressing as dead ancestors, goblins or other types of what things people feared from that time from the veil between worlds as well as Snap Apple, which is now in America Bobbing for Apples.

Scotland
October 31st: Oidhche Shamhna (pr. Oy-cha-HOW-na) "The Night of the End of Summer = Samhain"

Because of their shared Gaelic genetics, Scotland and Ireland are practically cut from the same cloth, save for the fact the similarities in language. A few special divination have set them apart from Ireland. If you put two large nuts next to each other in the hearth representing yourself and a significant other and the nuts stay together, it is a good omen; if they jump apart, it is not meant to be. They also partook in Coel Coeth in their bonfires much like the Welsh.

But it is fire is most associated with the holiday but Scotland takes it all the way, including Samhnags (Scottish Jack-O-Lanterns in Turnips) in the windows, which kept homes and trick or treating children (dressed as supernatural beings) safe from evil spirits. But if a spirit made through into the house, it would be common courtesy to leave a meal so they would not come around a second time next year.


England
October 31st: Mischief Night, Nutcracker Night, Snap Apple Night
November 1st: All Saint's Day, All Hallows,
November 2nd: All Soul's Day
 
England's traditions have evolved from a melting pot of both Welsh and Scottish traditions, and even geographical from North and South England. And to specify anything pre-Christian would be difficult as it is more difficult in a larger vicinity as England to narrow down. Where Scotland and Wales had turnips, England had beets called "punkies."  Both Wales and England shares the tradition of divination with nuts and rocks.

And the one thing all the Celtic countries (with the exception of Gaul), they all have bonfires. Fire is a common way to divine the future from scrying into a candle (which adapted itself into post '60s Wicca) and the nut and rock divination. But in the spiritual aspect, fire involved the wheel of the year. Whatever you want to call the 31st, it is the last night of the year, the entrance into winter or death for light to reappear around Yule (Christmas) bringing warmer weather and the ability for hearth fires to be taken outside when Beltane/Calan Mai etc etc hits as the first day of spring.

I guess the mission of this whole post, especially in response to the hellogiggles article was to display it is all about intent and people who want to be educated. Some people who are educated in this arena (I can only speak for myself) this is their way of life, especially in "Pagan" Reconstructionism. And I'm sure insult was Foster's intent but my theory is is that "those of the earth" are extremely sensitive people. We are in tune to the elements and some, if lucky, have higher intuition to more. So to have someone swing that arm with a baseball in one hand and an apple pie in the other is almost like a slap in the face and watering our beliefs down into what has evolved into the American over-industrialized, over-corporated Halloween that the low to middle class are not exposed to unless they want to learn more. It's all about education and a deeper to-the-vein respect that goes into human attitudes than just a holiday that kids dress up and get candy. But it is all about perception.



*= that's another blog post all on its own.