Samhain Folklore - Halloween Superstitions and Legends

Love Divination:

Keep a sprig of rosemary and a sixpence under your pillow on Samhain night, and you'll dream of your future spouse.

Ever go bobbing for apples at a Halloween party? In England, everyone knows that the first girl to successfully retrieve an apple will be the first to marry!

In parts of England, it was believed that if a maiden carried a lantern to a well on Samhain night and held the light above the water, she would see the reflection of future husband.



The Spirit World:

People were often cautioned that if they heard footsteps behind them on the night of Samhain, they shouldn't turn back because it may be a spirit following them.

 

If you host a dumb supper and no one speaks, the spirits are far more likely to show up.

It was believed that ringing a bell on Samhain kept away evil spirits.

Burying animal bones in front of your house on the night of Samhain will keep evil away, according to some legends of eastern Europe.

Samhain is a good time of year to work on communicating with the spirit world.

Birds and Animals:

Black cats were once seen as bad luck.

One old folktale from Appalachia says that owls flew down on Samhain night to eat the souls of the dead.
If the bats come out early on Samhain night, and fly around, it means good weather is coming.

Some people believe that if you see a spider on Samhain, it harbors the spirit of a dead ancestor, watching you... so don't squash it!

By Patti Wigington

Paganism/Wicca Expert

 

Samhain History

What is Samhain?:

Samhain is known by most folks as Halloween, but for many modern Pagans it's considered a Sabbat to honor the ancestors who came before us, marking the dark time of the year. It's a good time to contact the spirit world with a seance, because it's the time when the veil between this world and the next is at its thinnest.

Myths and Misconceptions:

Contrary to a popular Internet-based (and Chick Tract-encouraged) rumor, Samhain was not the name of some ancient Celtic god of death, or of anything else, for that matter. Religious scholars agree that the word Samhain (pronounced "sow-en") comes from the Gaelic “Samhuin,” but they’re divided on whether it means the end or beginning of summer. After all, when summer is ending here on earth, it’s just beginning in the Underworld. Samhain actually refers to the daylight portion of the holiday, on November 1st.

 

All Hallow Mass:

Around the eighth century or so, the Catholic Church decided to use November 1st as All Saints Day. This was actually a pretty smart move on their part – the local pagans were already celebrating that day anyway, so it made sense to use it as a church holiday. All Saints’ became the festival to honor any saint who didn’t already have a day of his or her own. The mass which was said on All Saints’ was called Allhallowmas – the mass of all those who are hallowed. The night before naturally became known as All Hallows Eve, and eventually morphed into what we call Halloween.

The Witches' New Year:

Sunset on Samhain is the beginning of the Celtic New Year. The old year has passed, the harvest has been gathered, cattle and sheep have been brought in from the fields, and the leaves have fallen from the trees. The earth slowly begins to die around us.
This is a good time for us to look at wrapping up the old and preparing for the new in our lives. Think about the things you did in the last twelve months. Have you left anything unresolved? If so, now is the time to wrap things up. Once you’ve gotten all that unfinished stuff cleared away, and out of your life, then you can begin looking towards the next year.

 

Honoring the Ancestors:

For some of us, Samhain is when we honor our ancestors who came before us. If you’ve ever done genealogy research, or if you’ve had a loved one die in the past year, this is the perfect night to celebrate their memory. If we’re fortunate, they will return to communicate with us from beyond the veil, and offer advice, protection and guidance for the upcoming year.
If you want to celebrate Samhain in the Celtic tradition, spread the festivities out over three consecutive days. You can hold a ritual and feast each night. Be flexible, though, so you can work around trick-or-treating schedules!

Happy Halloween/Samhain History

Samhain -- The fields are bare, the leaves have fallen from the trees, and the skies are going gray and cold. It is the time of year when the earth has died and gone dormant. Every year on October 31 (or May 1, if you're in the Southern Hemisphere) the Sabbat we call Samhain presents us with the opportunity to once more celebrate the cycle of death and rebirth. For many Pagan and Wiccan traditions, Samhain is a time to reconnect with our ancestors, and honor those who have died. This is the time when the veil between our world and the spirit realm is thin, so it's the perfect time of year to make contact with the dead. You may want to take a moment to read up on:

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Rituals and Ceremonies

Depending on your individual spiritual path, there are many different ways you can celebrate Samhain, but typically the focus is on either honoring our ancestors, or the cycle of death and rebirth. This is the time of year when the gardens and fields are brown and dead. The nights are getting longer, there's a chill in the air, and winter is looming. We may choose to honor our ancestors, celebrating those who have died, and even try to communicate with them. Here are a few rituals you may want to think about trying for Samhain -- and remember, any of them can be adapted for either a solitary practitioner or a small group, with just a little planning ahead.

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Lore

Samhain is the third and final harvest, the harvest of meat. The Old King is dead, and the Crone Goddess mourns him greatly during the next six weeks. The sun is at its lowest point on the horizon as measured by the ancient standing stones of Britain and Ireland, the reason the Celts chose this sabbat rather than Yule as their new year. To the ancient Celts, this holiday divided the year into two seasons, Winter and Summer. Samhain is the day on which the Celtic New Year and winter begin together, so it is a time for both beginnings and endings.

It is also the day we honor our dead. Now, while the veil between the worlds is thinnest, those who have died in the past year and those who are to be reincarnated pass through. The doors of the sidhe-mounds are open, and neither human nor faery need any magickal passwords to come and go. Our ancestors, the blessed dead, are more accessible, more approachable during the time of the dying of the land. Samhain is a day to commune with the dead and a celebration of the eternal cycle of reincarnation.

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Altar

Altar candles should be orange (represents magick of fire and remainder of fire in autumn leaves), black (collects and absorbs light and keeps you warm), white (sends out energy), silver, and gold (represents Moon and Sun).

Incense may be myrrh or patchouli

Decorate with autumn flowers, small pumpkins, Indian corn, and gourds

Cauldron with black votive candle for petition magick (for writing resolutions on a strip of paper and burning in the candle flame)

Divination or scrying devises -- tarot, obsidian ball, pendulum, runes, oghams, Ouija boards, black cauldron or bowl filled with black ink or water, or magick mirror, to name a few

An animal horn, feather or talon as a power symbol (Samhain is tradtionally the meat harvest)

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Herbs

Rosemary (for remembrance of our ancestors)

Mullein seeds (a projection for abundance) 

Mugwort (to aid in divination)

rue, calendula, sunflower petals and seeds, pumpkin seeds, turnip seeds, apple leaf, sage, mushrooms, wild ginseng, wormwood, tarragon, bay leaf, almond, hazelnut, passionflower, pine needles, nettle, garlic, hemlock cones, mandrake root

At Samhain, witches once gave one another acorns as gifts. During the Burning Times, giving someone an acorn was a secret means of telling that person you were a witch. Acorns are fruits of the oak, one of the most sacred trees to the ancient Celts. They are symbols of protection, fertility, growth, values, and friendship.

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Stones

Black obsidian, smoky quartz, jet, amber, pyrite, garnet, granite, clear quartz, marble, sandstone, gold, diamond, iron, steel, ruby, hematite, brass

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Spells

At Samhain, witches cast spells to keep anything negative from the past -- evil, harm, corruption, greed -- out of the future. Cast spells to psychically contact our deceased forebears and retrieve ancient knowledge, thus preserving the great Web that stretches through many generations of human families.

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Happy Halloween from the Crafty Witch family to yours!

-The Crafty Witch

History Of Mischief Night

We all know what happens on Halloween, the night that little boys and girls dress up and (unwittingly) celebrate the ancient Celtic tradition of Samhain and All Hallows Eve.

Anyone who has woken up on Halloween morning to find their house egged, their pumpkin smashed or yard toilet-papered, however, is lucky enough to live where a sister tradition that is not quite as old (but a yearly custom all the same) is also practiced with fervor.

The night of Oct. 30, which goes by a variety of names including Devil's Night in Detroit and Miggy Night in parts of England, sees neighborhood youngsters pull pranks just as diverse as the custom's monikers, ranging from the innocent to the downright dangerous.

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So where did this license to cause mayhem come from?

Mischief Night, as it is most commonly known in the United States, has been around in its present form for at least 50 years, when it became a day for playing "tricks" while Halloween itself was reserved for the little one to gather "treats." The practice goes back hundreds of years before that, though, to a time when Halloween and misbehavior were inextricably linked.

In some areas, unfortunately, today's pranks have evolved into acts much scarier than ghosts or goblins.

Mischief always a part of Halloween

Causing mischief has been a part of the Halloween tradition since the very beginning.

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The most ancient roots of Halloween come from the Celts of Great Britain, who believed that the day before their Nov. 1 New Year was a time when spirits came back to haunt and play tricks. On Oct. 31, people dressed up in scary costumes, played games, lit bonfires and left food out on their doorsteps for the ghosts in celebration of this otherworldly event, which the Celts called Samhain.

When Great Britain was Christianized in the 800s, the ghoulish games of Samhain merged with All Saints Day and All Souls Day, during which the dead were honored with parades and door-to-door solicitation by peasants for treats — usually a bit of food or money.

After the Protestant Reformation, much of England stopped the "treating" side of Halloween because it was connected to Catholic saints, and transferred the trickery to the eve of Guy Fawkes Night, a Nov. 5 holiday celebrating the foiling of the 1605 Gunpowder Plot to blow up British Parliament. Mischief Night in England is still celebrated on Nov. 4.

The Irish, Scottish and northern English, meanwhile, kept up much of their Halloween traditions, including the good-natured misbehavior, and brought their ways to North America with the wave of immigration in the 1800s.

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Before the 20th century, Halloween mischief in the United States and Canada happened on Oct. 31 and consisted of tipping over outhouses, unhinging farmer's gates, throwing eggs at houses and the like. By the 1920s and 30s, however, the celebrations had become more like a rowdy block party, and the acts of vandalism more serious, probably instigated by tensions over the Great Depression and the threat of war, historians say.

To stem the vandalism, concerned parents and town leaders tried to ply kids with candy, encouraging the forgotten tradition of trick-or-treating in costume in exchange for sweets, bumping the mischief element from the celebrations of Oct. 31 altogether. It was then that the troublemakers, neighborhood by neighborhood, adopted Oct. 30 as their day to pull pranks.

Rotten vegetables

The custom of vandalism on Oct. 30, oddly, seems to have only developed sporadically, often appearing in some areas but not at all in others nearby.

Nowadays, Mischief Night is especially popular in pockets where Irish and Scottish immigration was common — in northeastern United States but not in the South and West, for example, and in the English-speaking communities of Canada but not the French. Examples of the regional varieties include:
Cabbage Night in parts of the northeastern United States, where rotten vegetables are collected and left on porch stoops or smeared on doors and windows.
Mat Night in English-speaking Quebec, where pranksters steal doormats and switch them with the neighbors'.
Gate Night, in the Midwest, where farmers gates are opened, leaving livestock to roam free.

Other popular pranks include the ubiquitous toilet-papering of homes and trees, "soaping" cars and windows and pumpkin smashing.

Though it consists of harmless fun in most places, "Devil's Night" in Detroit is notorious for its ties to gang culture and random acts of arson.

In 1984, more than 800 fires were set there on Devil's Night, leading to a serious crackdown and an Oct. 30 curfew for minors that persists to this day. This year, the mayor of Detroit has recruited an army of more than 30,000 volunteers to patrol their neighborhoods to prevent any similar mayhem.

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Thank you livescience.com

-The Crafty Witch

Fav Halloween Movies 7 of 7

Last but not least the 2 remaining movies of the Fav Halloween list. I absolutely love the Halloweentown movies but, if I can have a mini hate fest for a second, I think they should've just stopped with the 3rd one, its not the I hate the 4th but I hate who they replaced Marnie with. Personally I think Sara Paxton is one of the worst actors of all time, and not to mention she looks nothing like Kimberly Brown's original character. Whew okay, got that off my chest! But back to the reason you're here - To end the list please enjoy these movies.

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 Halloweentown High

Rating: G           Length: 83 mins.               Year: 2004

Cast: Debbie Reynolds, Kimberly Brown

Movie Description

The final installment of the trilogy finds young witch Marnie struggling to become a young adult witch while working with her grandmother to prove monsters aren't dangerous. If the daring duo can disguise monsters as humans and successfully enroll them in high school in the mortal world, they can save the family's powers.

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Return To Halloweentown

Rating: PG           Length: 88 mins.               Year: 2006

Cast: Sara Paxton, Lucas Grabeel

Movie Description

Marnie Piper struggled for years with the knowledge that she had been given magical powers from her grandmother that enabled her to be a young witch. Finding a happy balance between being a normal girl and a developing witch had been hard on Marnie. College proves to be another challenging phase as Marnie learns more about the secrets of Halloweentown.

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-The Crafty Witch

Fav Halloween Movies 6 of 7

Now that we are winding down and getting to the end of the Fav Halloween movies I'm saving the best ones for last Movies 6 - 7 in my opinion are the best of all time Halloween movies. (And yes I know both photos are of Halloweentown 2, just use your imagination here people)

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 Halloweentown

Rating: PG           Length: 84 mins.               Year: 1998

Cast: Debbie Reynolds, Judith Hoag, Kimberly J. Brown

Movie Description

A Disney Channel Original Movie that's become a Halloween-season standard, 1998's Halloweentown stars screen legend Debbie Reynolds as the matriarch of what turns out to be a family of witches.

When Aggie (Reynolds) unexpectedly drops in for a visit, her daughter (Gwen) isn't as thrilled as her three children about the surprise appearance. Aggie's drop-in coincides with an argument between Gwen and the children regarding why they aren't allowed to celebrate Halloween. To Gwen's displeasure, the grandmother supports her grandchildren's desires, and Gwen is soon fighting a losing battle.

Against Gwen's wishes, Aggie begins training Marnie, the 13-year old, to be a witch. A huge argument ensues, but Aggie (as always) convinces Gwen that Marnie is needed to help solve a string of mysterious disappearances that only a fresh, novice witch can help with.

From there, the film takes off on an other-worldly adventure filled with spells and teen romance, highlighted by the three siblings discovering and using their previously untapped powers to save their town from an evil demon who ironically was once Gwen's boyfriend.

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Halloweentown 2

Rating: PG           Length: 81 mins.               Year: 2001

Cast: Debbie Reynolds, Judith Hoag, Kimberly J. Brown

Movie Description

Screen legend Debbie Reynolds portrays the grandmother of a teenage witch in the Disney Channel Original Movie, Halloweentown II: Kalabar's Revenge. The film is the first sequel in a series of four films adapted from the original Disney production of Halloweentown.

The grand-daughter, Marnie (Kimberly J. Brown), has unknowingly allowed her grandmother's book of magical spells to fall into the hands of Kal (Daniel Kountz), who turns out to be the warlock son of Kalabar, a fearsome demon. When Aggie, the grandmother, begins noticing unusual magical activity, she becomes suspicious and, with Marnie in tow, depart for Halloweentown to investigate and try to rectify the situation. Upon arrival, they discover that the town has been transformed (via black magic) into a nightmarish version of all things "Halloween."

The film is directed by Mary Lambert, whose resume includes music videos and television as well as feature films, primarily in the horror genre.

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-The Crafty Witch

DIY Black Bat Wall Decor

This is not an official DIY Dollar store project, but it is still so cute and very much affordable  All items on the Black Bat Wall Decor can be found at your local Dollar Tree.

Best of this entire project will only cost $3.00!

What you’ll Need:

• Scissors
• Tape
• Construction Paper
• Template

*All items italicized are item you probably already have around your own home.

*All items underlined are optional

Easy Step-by-Step Directions:

1. Print out the template and cut out the bat shape

2. Trace the Bat Shape onto the Black Construction paper

3. Cut out the bat from the construction paper

4. Tape To the Wall

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-The Crafty Witch

Fav Halloween Movies 5 of 7

Now that we are winding down and getting to the end of the Fav Halloween movies I'm saving the best ones for last Movies 5 - 7 in my opinion are the best of all time Halloween movies.

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Hocus Pocus

Rating: PG           Length: 96 mins.               Year: 1993

Cast: Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy

Movie Description

A spin on the infamous 17th-Century Salem Witch Trials is the focus of the 1993 Walt Disney Pictures fantasy-comedy Hocus Pocus.

Salem, Mass. 1693: Three sisters (deemed witches by townspeople) are publicly hanged after allegedly killing another girl and transforming the slain girl's brother into a talking cat. Dissolve to Salem, Mass. 1993, October 31st (Halloween) to be precise.

New high school student Max isn't adjusting well to his new school or classmates. Apparently Max is an object of ridicule because he scoffs at the legend of the three witches, which is held to be a "sacred truth" in Salem. Reluctantly, Max agrees to accompany his younger sister on her "trick-or-treat"-ing rounds, where they become involved in strange goings-on at the house where the three 17th-Century "witch" sisters lived.

Hocus Pocus has developed somewhat of a cult following over the years. The cast is solid, led by Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kathy Najimy, Omri Katz and Thora Birch. Legendary TV producer/director Garry Marshall has a cameo as the Devil.

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The Haunted Mansion

Rating: PG           Length: 88 mins.               Year: 2003

Cast: Eddie Murphy, Terence Stamp, Nathaniel Parker, Marsha Thomason

Movie Description

The Evers family needed a little quality time together, but what they didn't need was quality time with a floating head in a crystal ball. Ghosts, dark secrets, and mysterious characters transform their tranquil family outing into a ghoulish night they'll never forget.

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Thank you to http://www.disneymovieslist.com for info

-The Crafty Witch

DIY Blood Candle

This project I like to call the Blood Candle, so spooky and really ties a room together during your halloween celebrations.

Best of this entire project will only cost $2.00!

What you'll Need:

• White Pillar Candle

• Red Taper Candle 

• Candle Holder

*All items underlined are optional

Easy Step-by-Step Directions:

1. Put the White Pillar Candle on some sort of safe, non flammable surface.

2. Light Red Taper candle and melt over the edges of the white candle to give it the blood effect, (total project time is est 4 min - depends on how "bloody" you want your candle)

3. Set on some sort of candle holder or safe surface. Enjoy

 
 

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-The Crafty Witch

20 Days Till Halloween

Yep, thats right, 20 days remaining until Halloween. 

These upcoming weeks will be a bit different because of some of the upcoming events.

Check --

Monday for a DIY Project

Wednesday for Fav Halloween Movies

& 

Friday for History & Lore of Octobers Full Moon aka The Blood Moon


-The Crafty Witch

Fav Halloween Movies 4 of 7

I have to be honest, these two movies are not my top Favs but they still deserve to make the list. Both are filled with mystery, not knowing what's really going on until the very end, and yes, very entertaining.

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 Phantom Of The Megaplex

Rating: G           Length: 89 mins.               Year: 2000

Cast: Taylor Handley, Corinne Bohrer and Caitlin Wachs

Movie Description

Adapted rather loosely on the classic Phantom of the Opera, the Disney Channel Original Movie, The Phantom of the Megaplex takes viewers behind the scenes of a theater where mysterious goings-on are occurring.

Pete Riley is the 17-year old assistant manager of the Grand Megaplex who's busily preparing for the premiere of "Midnight Mayhem." Rumor has it that the millionaire owner of the theater is planning to attend the much-anticipated screening, and the employees are working frantically to make certain that everything is ready.

Pete's agenda is complicated by his having to "babysit" his younger brother and sister, and just as that situation appears resolved, every other imaginable snafu occurs, making his "sibling" predicament an afterthought.

Taylor Handley, Jacob Smith and Caitlin Wachs as the siblings turn in fine performances, while screen legend Mickey Rooney, portraying an eccentric who believes he is employed by the theater, adds a nice touch.

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Mom's Got a Date With A Vampire

Rating: PG           Length: 85 mins.               Year: 2000

Cast: Matt O'Leary, Laura Vandervoort and Myles Jeffrey

Movie Description

A few years ahead of its' time, the Disney Channel Original Movie, Mom's Got a Date With a Vampire deals with the (now) mega-popular subject of vampires and their interaction with the living.

The three children of a single mother each have their motivations for getting their mother out of the house, but when the youngest, Taylor, who happens to be engrossed in all things "vampire"-related, meets his mom's blind date, he is convinced that the handsome stranger is actually a vampire. His efforts, both to convince his older siblings of his suspicions, as well as desperately trying to nip the date in the bud, make for an entertaining hour-and-a-half of classic Disney fare.

Myles Jeffrey as the perceptive Taylor nearly steals the show with his performance, while Matt O'Leary, Laura Vandervoort, Caroline Rhea and Charles Shaughnessy also turn in admirable performances. Steve Boyum directed, a role he also performed in another Disney Channel production, Stepsister From Planet Weird.

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Thank you to http://www.disneymovieslist.com for info

-The Crafty Witch

DIY Candy Corn Candle Holder

This is not an official DIY Dollar store project, but it is still so cute and very much affordable  All items on the Candy Corn Centerpiece can be found at your local Dollar Tree.

Best of this entire project will only cost $3.00!

What you'll Need:

• Candy Corn

• Pillar Candle

• Tall Glass Candle Holder

Easy Step-by-Step Directions:

(The easiest three step directions of your life)

1. Open the bag of candy corn and pour into the candle holder

2. Unwrap any plastic off the candle and press into the candy corn

3. Light candle and enjoy

 

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-The Crafty Witch

Fav Halloween Movies 3 of 7

The 2 Favorite Halloween Movies today are Don't Look Under The Bed and Under Wraps. I love watching movies like this cause I constantly think "Oh my gosh I can't believe Disney was allowed to show that back then" not that they isn't anything kid friendly, just some light language. Don't Look Under The Bed had me terrified when I was young, some definite nightmare material haha

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 Don't Look Under The Bed

Rating: NR           Length: 92 mins.               Year: 1999

Cast: Erin Chambers, Ty Hodges, Robin Rikeres

Movie Description

In an unusual departure from their traditional "feel good" productions, the Disney Channel Original Movie, Don't Look Under the Bed, is a full-blown horror film, only the second attempt within the genre by Disney's television wing. The pastoral little town of Middleberg has been undergoing some strange occurrences, including alarm clocks sounding off well before their settings, dogs appearing on the roofs of houses, gelatin in the community swimming pool, and most disturbingly, the letter "B" inexplicably turning up spray-painted all over the town.

Frances McCausland, a normal, highly-intelligent teenager, finds herself in the center of the strange goings-on, and fair or not, she becomes the focal point for most of the town's suspicions regarding the unusual happenings. Don't Look Under the Bed stars a largely unfamiliar cast, including Erin Chambers as Frances, as well as Jake Sakson, Eric "Ty" Hodges II, and Robin Riker. Kenneth Johnson (The Incredible Hulk, V, Alien Nation) directed.

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Under Wraps

Rating: NR           Length: 95 mins.               Year: 1997

Cast: Adam Wylie, Mario Yedidia, Clara Bryant

Movie Description

Featuring a largely non-descript cast, the Disney Channel's 1997 production of Under Wraps is a Halloween-themed film involving the discovery of a 3,000 year-old mummy (Bill Fagerbakke) by a trio of 12-year-olds. Suspension of belief is necessary (it's only a movie) as the three befriend the obviously "out-of-his-element" mummy. Hilarity ensues through the efforts of the youngsters to keep their often-clumsy, bumbling discovery secret, and when they learn of an attempt by dark, powerful forces (led by veteran actor Ed Lauter) to "recapture" Harold (as named by them), the film takes on an "Us vs. Them" slant, with the predictable outcome.

Directed by Greg Beeman, who also was behind the camera on TV series as The Wonder Years, Nash Bridges, The Sentinel and JAG, Under Wraps was written and produced by Don Rhymer, who served the same dual role on hits such as Coach, Evening Shade and Caroline in the City.

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Thank you to http://www.disneymovieslist.com for info

-The Crafty Witch