Ancient Origins of Halloween

Ancient Origins of Halloween

Samhain was a feast celebrated by Celts, which now a days is known as Halloween. Celts divided the year in four major holidays. Samhain feast was one of them, which marked the beginning of winter, this day was very important for Celts since they were pastoral people on this day crops were harvested and stored for the winter months. They also believed that at the time of Samhain, the ghosts of the dead were able to join with the living, because they thought the souls of those who died during that year traveled to the other world. Therefore they used to get together to sacrifice animals, fruits and vegetables. They also lit bonfires for the dead to help them on their journey and as well to keep them away from the living. During this celebration they used to wear costumes, typically consisting of animal heads and skins. Samhain became the Halloween as we know it today because of Christian’s missionaries who tried to change the religious practice of the Celts. Christian efforts were repaid as they succeeded in making big transformations on Pagan Holidays such as Samhain. Druids who were Celtic priests were considered as being worshippers of the Devil as they represented the rival religion.  Celts insisted in believing in the supernatural creatures, while the church defined them as being dangerous and malicious, so followers of the old religion went into hiding and were considered as witches. In 1000 A.D., the church made November 2 All Souls’ Day, a day to respect the dead. It is thought that the church wanted to replace the Celtic festival of the dead with a more religious feast.  All Souls Day which eventually now is Halloween was celebrated in a very similar way to Samhain, with big bonfires, parades, and dressing up in costumes. The American Halloween tradition of "trick-or-treat" probably dates back to the early All Souls' Day feastival in England. During the festivities, poor citizens would beg for food and families would give them pastries called "soul cakes" in return for their promise to pray for the family's dead relatives. The giving out of soul cakes was encouraged by the church as a way to replace the ancient practice of leaving food and wine for spirits. It started as a Celtic end-of-summer festival during which people felt especially close to their dead relatives and friends, for which they set places at the dinner table, left treats on doorsteps and along the side of the road and lit candles to help loved ones find their way back to the spirit world.

 

 

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