The History Of Halloween
Metaphysical Mojo presents: The History Of Halloween.
During the months of September and October, we will be sharing local stories, myths/legends, recipes, videos, Halloween crafts, games, Halloween trivia and much more. We encourage all to share this page with others so they can experience the magic, wonder, and childhood memories of the Halloween Season.
Bright Blessings to you and your family.
Mabon : A Witches Thanksgiving
The Second Last Sabbat In The Wiccan Wheel Of The Year.
Written by: Johnathon Boyd
There has been mystery, myth, legend, and lore attached to Wicca and Witchcraft.
I myself am a 2nd generation Wiccan. I am know as, "A Solitary-Ecclectic Egyptian Tradition Witch/Wizard/Sorcerer". All terms are acceptable for a male Wiccan. Wiccans accept everyone no matter what your previous religion was, sexual orientaion, heritage, place of birth etc.
As with any religion there are fanatics and misguided individuals. Wiccans have a written set of rules to adhere to. We don't accept the concept of Absolute Evil, a Heaven/Hell , or God/Devil. We worship the Father God and Mother Goddess, Male and Female energy
in all of us, balance "As Above, So Below". Wiccans respect nature, animals, the devine matrix, the universe, and how important their role is with everything they come
in contact with. Hollywood Witchcraft is not even close to "The Craft".
Here are some Wiccan basics to start :
The Wiccan Rede: Do What You Will, In Perfect Love and Perfect Trust,
And Harm NONE!!
The Threefold/Karmic Law: Whatever you do Good or Bad, will come
back to you THREEFOLD!!
Wiccans celebrate Esbats (Full Moon Ceremonies) and Sabbats (Sacred Holidays).
The Wiccan calendar is called the Wheel of the Year and marks the Equinoxes,
Solstices, and Sabbats. Mabon is the second last Sabbat in the Wheel of the Year.
MABON (ma'-bon), or "Great Sun", is a festival in honour of the Welsh God
of the same name. The legend goes that Mabon, at three days old,
was stolen from The Great Mother (Modron), and taken to the Underworld
to prevent His light from shining upon the Earth. Mabon used his knowledge to
out-smart the Lord Of the Underworld. While residing deep within the Earth,
Mabon used his wits, personal strength and devine energy to become new seed.
Knowing that his future was secured, he would need all his energy to
fertilize the barren, dark Earth to lush greenery once more.
Mabon celebrates the First Day Of Autumn (Fall Equinox), and the second
harvest, both personal and agricultural. It is a celebration of thanks and blessings
given to Mother Earth for her bountiful cornucopia of food she provides us.
It is the "Witches' Thanksgiving" with lavish feasting, blessings, gratitude, and thanks.
With Mabon's trials in the Underworld, it reminds us to give thanks to our Ancestors.
Mabon is when Wiccans give thanks for everything they have, everything they are,
and for everything the future holds for themselves and the new souls coming to
the Earth Realm or Physical Plane. It is reflection time for community, personal
joy/freedoms, life on the planet, and to remember everyone who has helped us.
Mabon reminds us to be grateful and give thanks for the many blessings we receive.
Bright Blessings to you and your family.
It's All Hallows Eve:
The History of Devil's Night!
The Pranks People Play On One Specific Day.
Written by: Johnathon Boyd
As a child of the 80's, going to bed on October 30th and waking up Halloween morning was an adventure! You made sure to keep your Jack'O'Lanterns indoors, your pellet gun loaded, and a pack of Black Cat Firecrackers handy on October 30th. This was Mischief Night or Devil's Night! I would walk to school Halloween morning, to streets littered with Smashed Pumpkins, Toilet Papered Trees, Busted and Soaped Windows, Egged Houses and many other forms of vandalism. The city was hit again with the costly yearly Pranks on October 30th.
Before the 20th century, Halloween mischief in North America happened on Oct. 31st. Pranks consisted of tipping over outhouses, unhinging farmer's gates, throwing eggs at houses etc. During the 1920's and 30's, Halloween celebrations resembled a rowdy block party, plagued by acts of vandalism due to mounting tension over the Great Depression and the threat of war.
To curb the vandalism, parents and town leaders tried to bribe kids with candy. Children revamped the tradition of trick'or'treating in costume for sweets! The mischief element slowly disappeared from Halloween altogether. Troublemakers, neighbourhood by neighbourhood, adopted Oct. 30 as their day to pull pranks eg. Toilet-papering of homes and trees, "soaping" cars and windows, and pumpkin smashing.
Devil's Night or Mischief Night is especially popular in Irish and Scottish populations in the northeastern United States and in the English-speaking communities of Canada.
Examples of the regional varieties include:
CABBAGE NIGHT: Northeastern United States, where rotten vegetables are collected and left on porch stoops or smeared on doors and windows.
MAT NIGHT: English-speaking Quebec, where pranksters steal doormats and switch them with the neighbours'.
GATE NIGHT: in the Midwest, where farmers gates are opened, leaving livestock to roam free.
October 30th consists of harmless fun in most places, "Devil's Night" in Detroit is notorious for random acts of arson. In 1984, more than 800 fires were set there on Devil's Night, leading to an Oct. 30 curfew for minors that persists to this day. Yearly an army of more than 30,000 volunteers patrol their neighbourhoods to prevent any mayhem.
Bright Blessings!
Halloween Icons
&
Superstitions!
The Icons We Cherish Have Humble Beginnings!
Written by: Johnathon Boyd
Black Cats, Skeletons, Witches on Broomsticks, Bats, Bonfires, Spiders, Cobwebs, The Jack'O'Lantern, Graveyards, Cauldrons, and Ghosts. These are some of the biggest icons to have been associated with Halloween! The innocent origins of some of Halloween's icons, may shock you.
BLACK CATS : During the Burning Times/Witch Hunts In England, a "Suspected Witch" was observed going into her cottage. After 20 Minutes, the back door opened and a BLACK CAT walked out. The Observer claimed that The Witch "Shape-Shifted" into a BLACK CAT! Since that time , Witches and BLACK CATS are seen as Consorts of THE DEVIL, Thus the BLACK CAT got it's infamous reputation.
BATS & BONFIRES : BONFIRES were a means for heat, cooking food, sacrifices, Sacred Ceremonies and FUNERAL PYRES. BONFIRE is translated from Ancient Saxon Language meaning "Bone Fire". Many Ancient cultures used FUNERAL PYRES/BONFIRES to cremate their dead. In ancient Celtic times, Druids would meet their clansman at Samhain BONFIRES in the forest glades. With the days growing darker sooner, and the night being colder, the insects would be attracted to the light of the BONFIRES. BATS being nocturnal, would swoop down over the Samhain BONFIRES for an easy meal, and VOILA...Instant Icon!
GRAVEYARDS/SKELETONS/GHOSTS : The origins of what we now celebrate as Halloween started thousands of years ago in the Ancient Celtic Lands. Samhain (Sow-en) was a celebration of Death in the Cycle of Life, that we all return to Mother Earth and our SKELETONS are the only thing that remain. It was a time to Honour your Ancesters, give offerings to the God and Goddess, and attend to personal Karma. Offerings of food, milk & honey, and sweets would be left outside family homes, at GRAVEYARDS, burial mounds, and temples to appease the wandering spirits and GHOSTS on Samhain. The Grim Reaper, a Symbol of Death, appeared as a SKELETON shrouded by a cloak and Weilding a Sickle.
SPIDERS & COBWEBS : This is another Halloween icon that has perfect timing associated with it. In the late August and early Fall months of September and October, SPIDERS weave their nightly silks of COBWEBS, to be revealed in abundance each morning. You can clean the COBWEBS everyday and they are back each morning. If you live close to water, it is even
more prevalent. Not To Mention, SPIDERS come indoors to warm places and
"Hang Out" for the Winter.
CAULDRONS & WITCHES ON BROOMSTICKS : In Ancient times every household had a CAULDRON or Stock Pot over a Bonfire or home hearth. It wasn't until Shakespeare's Macbeth, that Witches brewing potions in CAULDRONS entered into the Halloween Iconography.
The BROOMSTICK or BESOM is used as a Symbol of Fertility in Pagan Religions. During Ceremonial Bonfires, Pagans and WITCHES would jump over the Bonfire on their BESOM/BROOMSTICK for a Fertility and Good Luck Ritual. The next thing you know, there are accounts of flying WITCHES ON BROOMSTICKS throughout the night sky.
Our society has always been cautious, and October 31st has become linked to being an extremely superstitious day, Friday the 13th being the first. Over the centuries the myths and folk lore has continued to grow along with the celebration and traditions of Halloween. Here are a few of the more accepted superstitions which people have strong beliefs about.
– If a black cat crosses your path you will have bad luck for a year. Black cats were seen to be incarnations of the Devil and consumed by evil spirits.
- It is said that a cat has 9 lives. Witch and Black Cat’s have a strange myth attached to them. It is said that A Witch “Shape-Shifts” into a cat, and can do this 8 times and change back to human form. If the Witch “Shape-Shifts” a 9th time,
they are trapped as a cat forever.
– If you see a spider on Halloween it means that the spirit of a loved one is
watching over you.
- The Souls Trapped in Purgatory are set free for 48 hours on All Hallows Eve!
– If you walk around the outside of your house 3 times backwards before the sun sets on October 31st, you will be protected from all forms of evil.
– If candle flames turn green or go out on Halloween, it means that a spirit is close by.
– Should a bat fly into your home on Halloween it is an omen that either
spirits are close, or spirits let the bat in.
– If you hear footsteps behind you on Halloween do not turn around for it may be a spirit following you. If you do turn around, you may join the dead soon.
– Wearing your clothes inside out and walking backwards on Halloween, would grant your wish of seeing a witch in the sky at midnight.
– Burying animal bones in the yard and keeping pictures of animals by the
doors on October 31st wards off evil spirits.
– A bat that circles your house three times on Halloween is an omen that
someone will die soon.
– Pulling out your pockets and leaving them hanging would protect you from the
owls diving down to eat the souls of the dying on Halloween.
– Ring a bell to chase away evil spirits on October 31st.
– If a single girl slept with a sprig of rosemary and silver coins under her pillow on Halloween, she will dream of her future husband.
– Carry nuts as magic charms on Halloween to keep evil and Satan, a nut gatherer, at bay.
– If you run around your house 3 times with the Ace of Spades in your hand at 11:59 PM on Halloween, on the third pass you'll come face to face with The Devil.
– Attending a Dumb Supper or Mourning Tea and sitting in silence during the
ceremony, invites spirits to join you at the table.
- On Halloween, cut an apple horizontally and count the seeds to learn how
many children you will have.
- After bobbing for apples, place the apple under your pillow to dream about
your future Husband/Wife.
- At Midnight on Halloween, light a new orange pillar candle and let it burn until sunrise to receive Good Luck! (Be Careful and never leave candle unattended)
Bright Blessings!