What Is Samhain?

Samhain, also known as Halloween, All Hallow’s Eve, All Saints’ Eve and All-hallow-even are the names referring to ceremonies that take place on October 31st. These have some agreements in their celebrations. However, we shall deal with some of the Celtic traditions associated with Samhain,

Samhain begins at dusk on Oct 31st and this is the Celtic New Eve of the year. The god of summer is thrown and the god of death and winter now controls the mother earth. This is a unique day, the period of the year when the curtain between the world of the dead and the living is the thinnest, and a period when the interaction between these two worlds is the most active Normally, this has its bad and good points, depending on whether the spirits are desirable or not!

When welcoming cherished ones home that normally dwell in the other life, it is conventionally to either prepare an empty at the table with drinks and food for the dead relatives or leave it outdoor for any traveling souls coming back the area they once were. The idea is that these souls sustain themselves on the principle of the meal given. Bonfires (from the English word bone-fires) were ignited, giving the deceased a room to warm themselves. The can do this at the door, the gate or windows. All these were left open to ensure that these long-awaited visitors understood that they were welcome. Originally formed or carved turnips (Jack -o’-lanterns) were remarkably represented to guard the living and frighten away bad spirits. These carvings described protective protectors residing in the spirit world.

Also, Samhain is a period when the normal rules of the community don’t matter, questioning the traditional order and bringing in confusion. People put on outfits switching traditional gender functions, put on masks that imitate departed ancestors or spirits and these two worlds rejoice together.

At this transformational time between dark and light, and life and death, an opening exists- a lapse in time when magic is known to be at its mightiest, making it an excellent time for insight and observing what the subsequent year holds. This is a great time to extend your instinctive abilities. You could design your own forecast party and assign yourself what can be described as “New Year’s” interpretation to boot. There are different books that talk about various kinds of divinations.

An amazing tarot set to supplement to your set and particularly suitable for Halloween (with a lot of skeletons than you can even count) is the Tarot of the Dead by Monica Knighton. This is the Otherworld-helpful deck utilizes Coffins for Cups, Pens for Wands, Reels for Pentacles and Pistols for Swords.

In Mexico, the Dia de Los Muertos or “Day of the Dead,” is celebrated at the beginning of November. Although the particular practices and dates differ from region to region, the essence the holiday remains the same- to acknowledge friends and family who have died. During this special day, homes and Graves are furnished with things like flowers and offering tables are also laid out with gifts of clothing, food, and anything that the loved ones liked in their life. Some people consider this day as a day set aside for a memorial, while others think that the deceased literally come back in spirit just for a visit, talking with the family and experiencing the fragrance of the sacrifices left for them. Nevertheless, if you decide to spend this particular day, take it as celebration and recollection of past, current and projected love. Dedicate your time to pause and respect the divine of all your relations, with a special concentration on the people we can never touch again.

Variety of Divination

To be sincere, divination can comprise any technique by which events are explained or interpreted. In fact, divination is even more than predicting the future. It does comprise prediction, however, it can involve divining some interpreting omens or truth also and symbols as part of its exercise. Normally, divination incorporates ways by which situations are described and illustrated. The most generally known tools and techniques in our current society are tarot, runes, dreams, astrology and the I Ching. Quite a number of strange and unique techniques have been used, from the study of the cloud structures to the study of entrails.