Samhain is a pagan religious festival which begins at the nightfall of 31st October every year and continues till the sunset of 1st November. It is considered one of the most important festival of ancient Celtic religion.
It is a Gaelic festival marking the end of the harvest season and beginning of winter or "darker half" of the year. It is one of the four Gaelic seasonal festivals along with Imbolc, Beltaine and Lughnasa. Historically it was widely observed throughout Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man.
Samhain is considered to be the time when gods become visible to humankind, and they tend to play tricks on their worshipers. This day used to be a day of fear and danger. Sacrifices were one of the vital rites of the festival as Celts believed they were essential to prevail over the perils before them that the deities could have laid down.
| Event | Samhain |
|---|---|
| Date | October 31, 2022 |
| Day | Monday |
| Significance | Samhain is a pagan religious festival similar to Halloween |
| Observed by | United States |
Samhain History:
Ancient Celts marked Samhain as the most significant of the four quarterly fire festivals, taking place at the midpoint between the fall equinox and the winter solstice. During this time of year, hearth fires in family homes were left to burn out while the harvest was gathered. After the harvest work was complete, celebrants joined with Druid priests to light a community fire using a wheel that would cause friction and spark flames. The wheel was considered a representation of the sun and used along with prayers. Cattle were sacrificed, and participants took a flame from the communal bonfire back to their home to relight the hearth.
Various early texts presented Samhain as a mandatory celebration lasting for three days and three nights where the community was required to show themselves to local kings or chieftains. Failure to participate was believed to result in punishment from the gods, usually illness or death. There was also a military aspect to Samhain in Ireland, with holiday thrones prepared for commanders of soldiers. It is also believed that if anyonexwas found committing any crime or using any weapon during the Celebrations of this festival were given death sentence as punishment. There are also records which states that excessive drinking was also a huge part of the celebrations.
Because the Celts believed that the barrier between worlds was breachable during the period of Samhain, they prepared offerings that were left outside villages and fields for fairies, or Sidhs. It was expected that ancestors might cross over during this time as well. Some specific monsters were associated with the mythology surrounding Samhain, including a shape-shifting creature called a Pukah that receives harvest offerings from the field. The Lady Gwyn is a headless woman dressed in white who chases night wanderers and was accompanied by a black pig.
As Christianity gained a foothold in pagan communities, church leaders attempted to reframe Samhain as a Christian celebration. The first attempt was by Pope Boniface in the 5th century. He moved the celebration to May 13 and specified it as a day celebrating saints and martyrs. The fire festivals of October and November, however, this attempt wasn't successful. Then in the 9th century, Pope Gregory moved the celebration back to the time of the fire festivals, but declared it All Saints' Day, on November 1. All Souls' Day would follow on November 2.
Neither new holiday did away with the pagan aspects of the celebration. Later October 31st also became to known as All Hallows Eve, or Halloween, and contained much of the traditional pagan practices before being adopted in 19th-century America through Irish immigrants bringing their traditions across the ocean. Trick-or-treating is said to have been derived from ancient Irish and Scottish practices in the nights leading up to Samhain. In Ireland, mumming was the practice of putting on costumes, going door-to-door and singing songs to the dead and during which instead of candies cakes were given as payments.
Samhain Significance:
Samhain is a harvest festival with pagan origins. It celebrates the end of the harvest season and the arrival of winter and is about halfway between the autumn equinox and winter solstice. This is a festival which celebrates nature. This festival was significant for the Ancient Celtic people as at that time most of the Celtic people were employed in the agriculture and that's why harvest period was very important for the people that time and that's why this festival served as a way of praying to nature by the Celtic people to bless them with rich fertility for their agricultural fields and crops.
Samhain has an ancient Celtic history and is connected with several significant events in Irish mythology. The festival changed as it reached different nations, which makes it an even more interesting event. And that's why even though most of Celtic people follows Christianity today especially the Irish who follows Catholicism despite all of these this festival still holds a lot if significance among the Celtic people as it is an very important part of their history and that's why it has been adopted into many Christian festivals with different names.
In the Brittonic branch of the Celtic languages, Samhain is known as the "calends of winter". The Brittonic lands of Wales, Cornwall and Brittany held festivals on 31 October similar to the Gaelic one. In Wales it is Calan Gaeaf, in Cornwall it is Allantide or Kalan Gwav and in Brittany it is Kalan Goañv. The Manx celebrate Hop-tu-Naa on 31 October, which is a celebration of the original New Year's Eve. Traditionally, children carve turnips rather than pumpkins and carry them around the neighbourhood singing traditional songs relating to hop-tu-naa.
Samhain and Samhain-based festivals are held by some Neopagans. As there are many kinds of Neopaganism, their Samhain celebrations can be very different despite the shared name. Some try to emulate the historic festival as much as possible. Other Neopagans base their celebrations on sundry unrelated sources, Gaelic culture being only one of the sources. Neopagans usually celebrate Samhain on 31 October–1 November in the Northern Hemisphere and 30 April–1 May in the Southern Hemisphere, beginning and ending at sundown.
It is widely believed that many of the modern secular customs of All Hallows' Eve (Halloween) were influenced by the festival of Samhain. Other scholars argue that Samhain's influence has been exaggerated, and that All Hallows' also influenced Samhain itself. Most American Halloween traditions were brought over by Irish and Scottish immigrants in the 19th century. Then, through American influence, these Halloween traditions spread to many other countries by the late 20th century.
Samhain Celebrations:
Despite occurring at similar times and containing similar themes, Samhain and Halloween actually are not the same holiday. Halloween, short for All Hallow's Eve, is celebrated on and around Oct. 31 and tends to be more family-focused. On the other hand, Samhain is more religious in focus, spiritually observed by practitioners. There are some more light-hearted observances in honor of the dead through Samhain, but the underlying tone of Samhain is one of a serious religious practice rather than a light-hearted make-believe re-enactment.
Samhain is typically celebrated by preparing a dinner to celebrate the harvest. The holiday is meant to be shared with those who have passed on as well as those still with us. Set a place at the table for those in the spiritual plane, providing an offering for them upon every serving throughout the meal. In addition to those who have passed, invite friends and family to enjoy the feast with you. Typical beverages include mulled wine, cider, and mead, and are to be shared as an offering to your ancestors.
Today's Pagan Samhain rites are benevolent, and although they are somber and centered on death, they do not involve human or animal sacrifices as some rumors may claim. Another difference between Samhain and Halloween is that most Samhain rituals are held in private rather than in public. If you want to start honoring this pagan tradition, you might wonder when to start. Well, the timing of contemporary Samhain celebrations varies according to spiritual tradition and geography.
Practitioners state to celebrate Samhain over the course of several days and nights, and these extended observances usually include a series of solo rites as well as ceremonies, feasts, and gatherings with family, friends, and spiritual community. In the northern hemisphere, many Pagans celebrate Samhain from sundown on October 31 through November 1. Others hold Samhain celebrations on the nearest weekend or on the Full or New Moon closest to this time.
Samhain isn't necessarily a creepy, morbid holiday obsessed with death, as some may conclude. Instead, it reaches for themes deeper than that, tying in with Nature’s rhythms. In many places, Samhain coincides with the end of the growing season. Vegetation dies back by killing frosts, and therefore, literally, death is in the air. That's why various rituals performed during this festival can also help you in getting more closer with the mother nature!
Most Searched FAQs on Samhain:
1. When is Samhain celebrated?
Samhain is annually celebrated on 31st October.
2. What does Samhain mean?
In modern Irish, Samhain means "summer's end."
3. Is Halloween the same as Samhain?
Though Halloween traditions can be traced back to the practices during Samhain, both festivals are different. Samhain is a pagan festival, while Halloween is a secular celebration.