As the air grows cold, trees shed their leaves, and the nights become longer after Mabon, the Wheel of the Year turns to Samhain (pronounced SOW-ehn). The last of the three harvest festivals, Samhain, is perhaps my favorite sabbat. And almost everyone has participated in Samhain activities without knowing it.

That’s because Samhain, celebrated on October 31^st by most pagans, is based on the same folklore as Halloween.

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What is Samhain

At this point, the harvest season is coming to an end. The goddess descends into the underworld to be with the sacrificed god. As the goddess travels to the underworld, we witness the veil between our world and the world of spirits grow thin.

From the thinning veil spirits, fairies, ancestors, and our departed loved ones come to visit. Additionally, this makes Samhain the perfect time for magick and divination.

The Veil Explained

If you haven’t heard someone talk about the veil before, it may seem a little strange or even scary. But the veil is a metaphorical boundary between our world (the physical world) and the spirit world (the otherworld, underworld, etc.). At Samhain, as well as Beltane, the veil is said to be thin and allows for spirits to pass through more easily.

Of course, this doesn’t mean it’s going to break. In fact, it can’t. So no need to be alarmed!

I like to compare the veil to the tides. At certain points during the day, the tides are higher or lower because of the moon’s pull. Similarly, at these two points during the year, the veil is thinner. Or closer in a sense. And the belief is that this is because the goddess is descending into the underworld.

This is seen through the myth of Persephone as well as others.

That’s why I like this analogy because the Goddess governs over the moon and thus the tides, just as she is responsible for the shift in the veil.

A Brief History of Samhain

In between the autumn equinox and winter solstice is Samhain. Out of the 4 cross-quarter fire festivals celebrated by the Celts, Samhain is believed to have been the most important of them.

Historically, Samhain was marked by the end of the harvest and marked a point where it became time to prepare for winter.

On Samhain night, it was said that ancestors came to visit. But all manner of spirits wandered about the world as well. It was believed that many of these spirits were malevolent or dangerous and thus the Celtic people would dress as animals or monsters to scare away any of these spirits.

Just like other pagan celebrations, the spread of Christianity eventually led to this festival mixing into Christian belief. In fact, All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day come from these practices being incorporated into the church.

As a result, the night before November 1^st became Halloween or All Hallows Eve.

Eventually, in the 1970s Halloween became a commercial and secular holiday. So during the rise in paganism and witchcraft, Samhain celebrations were held on the 31^st and the different activities merged more.

Nowadays, Samhain is celebrated in various ways by different traditions and practitioners.

Although some traditions have their established practices, others tend to celebrate in unique and individual versions of the sabbat. For some, such as myself, our celebrations combine the seriousness of Samhain with the spooky delight of Halloween.

Key Themes of Samhain

The most prominent aspect of Samhain is the theme of death and honoring our ancestors. Like Halloween, Samhain is about recognizing fear, grief, change, and even death. But it’s a chance to connect with the dead again.

The wheel of the year is a celebration of life. Of course, death is a natural part of life. As such, Samhain honors the dead and allows us to recognize the role it plays in life. Remember, without our ancestors, we wouldn’t be where we are today.

Samhain is a great time to feast, practice divination, hold a bonfire, and enjoy the changing nature of life.

Additionally, Samhain is a chance to rest. For the ancients, this was because their harvest was done. What have you harvested this year? What growth and change have you experienced? This sabbat is a chance to reflect on these changes and take a moment to relax before embarking further.

Likewise, the shift away from the harvest season meant that it was time to prepare for winter. Although we experience winter differently than our ancestors, how do you prepare for winter? Samhain is an excellent time to clean the home since we will soon be spending more time indoors.

Activities and Ways to Celebrate the Sabbat

Honoring Your Ancestors

As we’ve discussed, death is a major focal point of Samhain. As a result, ancestor work is a major part of the sabbat for most. During this time you may wish to establish an ancestor altar and have a dumb supper. These are two prominent ways that people honor their ancestors during Samhain.

But why exactly do we honor our ancestors? Well, simply put, our ancestors are the reason we exist. They are woven into our DNA and lineage. However, ancestors don’t just mean blood-lines. There’s a lot of information about ancestors which I won’t be discussing today.

Hopefully, my post about ancestor work and altars will be posted before the sabbat in case you want to learn more.

If you don’t know your ancestors or have never worked with them before, then the sabbat is a great time to get started.

The Dumb Supper

A dumb supper is an act of honoring dead ancestors that visit from across the veil by feeding them. During a dumb supper, a plate of food is set out for your ancestors. They also have their own seat at the table. Sometimes, the meal is held in silence as you eat and the offering is left for your ancestors.

Typically, if I am able to eat at the table with a space for my ancestors, I will put their plate at my ancestor altar afterward. Then, the next day I will leave the food outdoors.

Before you eat, you may decide to include an incantation to set the intention that this meal is to be shared with your ancestors. Instead of sitting in silence, you may also decide to talk about what’s going on in the world recently. This is a way to inform or entertain your ancestors.

Personally, talking as if I’m having a conversation with my ancestors helps me to focus on the idea that they are actually present.

Prior to the dumb supper, you may wish to leave a door unlocked for your ancestors to enter. Although I don’t feel that this is necessary, I think it’s helpful and polite to symbolically invite your ancestors. One such way of doing this is by creating a path for them. Notably, this can be done with Jack-o-lanterns!

Samhain Foods

So, whether it’s just a Samhain feast or a dumb supper too, it’s important to decide on what kind of food to have!

• Apples
• Pumpkins
• Roasted nuts
• Roast Meat
• Potatoes and root vegetables

Honestly, there’s plenty of great seasonal foods to choose from. But I like to prepare traditional family meals from my grandma’s old recipe book. Since my Samhain feast is part of a dumb supper, I think it’s extra special to enjoy a meal my departed loved ones enjoyed and used to prepare.

Ancestor Altars

One way to invite your ancestors into your life and honor them is by creating an ancestor altar. Personally, I haven’t done a lot of work with my ancestors until recently. Previously, I’d set up a space on my everyday altar dedicated to my ancestors during the season.

But this year I am setting up one that will be kept up year round. Now, you may wish to do the same. But if you can’t, don’t worry, an ancestor altar can be set up in smaller spaces or used temporarily for the sabbat.

Some things to include on your ancestor altars are:

• candles
• images of your ancestors if you have them
• tokens/trinkets that represent them
• Family symbols such as family crests
• A plant to represent your family tree
• A space for offerings
• Symbols for the elements such as incense, a chalice of water, etc.

At your ancestor altar, you can meditate and honor your ancestors. Additionally, if you wish to try and communicate with them, you can do so through different divination practices.

Decorating

Honestly, decorating for Samhain is my favorite part of the sabbat. As a young adult, I loved decorating for Halloween. Once, I tried to host my own haunted house in my basement! Although it was just for my friends, it was still a lot of fun. In high school, I helped decorate for a haunted house as well.

Best of all, Samhain decorations can be spooky, serious, or as fun, as you’d like. From skulls, pumpkins, and other Halloween decorations you can get at the store, there’s a wide range of options to choose from.

Pumpkin Carving

Jack-o-lanterns and pumpkins are a staple decoration during Halloween. So why not carve a pumpkin for Samhain?

Jack-o-lanterns are a great way to create a path to your door for ancestors coming to visit. Or for trick-or-treaters. If trick-or-treating is happening in 2020… I don’t know.

But either way, carving a pumpkin with an LED candle inside evokes the Halloween spirit like nothing else!

Halloween Activities

Of course, Halloween and Samhain are closely intertwined. This means that there’s no reason you can’t celebrate with the well-known Halloween activities many of us know and love!

Obviously, trick-or-treating is a big part of Halloween for kids. Although you probably aren’t going to go trick-or-treating it’s still a lot of fun to decorate your yard for the neighborhood. Additionally, this provides a great excuse to dress up and wear a costume!

Sadly, haunted houses, trick-or-treating, and parties won’t be a part of my 2020 Samhain celebrations. But that won’t stop me from enjoying the Halloween spirit in other ways! In fact, since we can’t go out, I will be enjoying Halloween, costumes, and more on Animal Crossing: New Horizons on my Nintendo Switch that evening.

In fact, I might invite some people to visit my island online and spend Samhain together… be sure to check my Instagram for more info on that!

Seasonal Movies

In 2020 we should all stay home instead of going to haunted houses or costume parties… so for Samhain this year, why not watch some scary movies? And if scary movies aren’t your thing, well there’s plenty of other great Halloween movies too!

Some of my suggestions include:

• The Craft (Such a fun movie about witches!)
• Practical Magic (Another great film about witches who don’t have green skin and warts)
• Halloweentown (it was on Disney every year as a kid!)

There are so many other great activities to consider for your sabbat celebration! A bonfire is a great activity if you have a yard. I think that I will be having one this year so I can spend some time outside despite the cold and enjoy the night in peace.

Truthfully, Samhain is steeped in rich lore. There are tons of activities, rituals, recipes, and more that I haven’t even touched on yet. If you want to learn more about Samhain I recommend checking out Llewellyn’s Sabbat Essentials book on Samhain.

Magick for Samhain

Samhain is the perfect time for powerful magick! And for 2020, there will be a full moon on Samhain. As we enter the darker half of the year, this can be a great time for protection magick.

In fact, in line with the idea of preparing the home for winter, Samhain is a good time for home protection and blessing. I recently wrote a post about home protection spells known as wards.

Since I have already worked on my words recently, I am actually working on a ritual to consecrate my staff. Why? Because my staff is a tool for hedgecraft and journeying. So the thin veil and full moon is a great chance to empower my ritual staff with that intent.

Last year, I performed a spell focused on my goals for the new year. And while New Years’ isn’t until January 1st, Samhain is very much the end of the Wheel of the Year. It’s also the start of the next cycle in the Wheel of the Year. I’ve heard of some calling it the “Witches New Year.” This is a great time for reflection and planning, so maybe you’d like to do the same!

Conclusion

Samhain is a few days away. As one of my favorite sabbats, it took me a lot of time to decide on what I should write about. There’s so much more to learn about the sabbat and I recommend you look into it to find what works for you! No matter how you choose to celebrate the magick of this season, be sure to take a moment to take it all in!

How do you celebrate Samhain? Are you a big fan of Halloween too? Let me know in the comments below!