Halloween: From Dark Origin to Compelling Convergence of Customs

Halloween is second only to Christmas in popularity and revenue generation among all the celebrated holidays. Every year on this global holiday thousands of children and companions dress up in costumes and go door-to-door in a ritual known as trick-or-treat. These innocents are unaware their playful masquerades are actually derived from ancient pagan Celtic and Druid religious customs. While almost every major holiday has been tainted with some form of Paganism, none are so deeply immersed in the occult as Halloween.

The Origin Of Halloween

2,000 years ago in the British Isles the Druids celebrated two special nights of the year: Beltane which took place on May 1 ^st and marked the birth of summer; and Samhain (pronounced Sah-wen) which occurred on November 1 ^st and signified the end of summer harvest. Here we find the holiday stripped to its most essential element. Depending on the material source, the Druid lord of death and evil spirits was called Saman, Samana, Shamhain or Samhain. His "holiday" was the "Vigil of Saman" or Samhain. This pagan god was depicted as a ghostly skeleton holding a sickle who later evolved into today's Grim Reaper.

The Celts strongly believed that during this interval of Samhain the normal order of the universe was suspended. The barriers between the natural and supernatural were temporarily removed. All divine beings and the spirits of the dead moved freely among men and interfered-- sometimes violently-- in their affairs. Samhain, a night celebrating death and hell, was the Druids' most important ritual. It was a terrifying night of human sacrifice; and it was the original Halloween.

The Druids

The ancient Druids were without question history's kings of the occult. Witchcraft, Satanism, Paganism and virtually all facets of the occult acquired instruction from the Druids. From the popular jack-o'-lantern, trick-or-treat, masks and costumes; to the pranks, ghoulish ghosts, demons, goblins and witches--Halloween owes its morbid birth to the Druids.

The Celts considered November 1 ^st the day of death because the leaves were falling and the nights were longer colder and darker. They believed their sun god Muck Olla was weakening because Samhain, lord of death, was overpowering him. Further, they believed that on October 31 ^st Samhain assembled the spirits of all who had died during the previous year. These dead had been condemned to inhabit animals' bodies as punishment for their evil deeds. On the eve of the feast of Samhain they were allowed to return to their former homes to visit the living.

Supposedly, to protect these people from the evil spirits, Druid priests led them in diabolical worship ceremonies. They would meet in a grove of oak trees or in a Druid stone circle; the most famous surviving circle being located in Stonehenge, England. Horses, cats, black sheep, oxen, human beings and other offerings were rounded up, stuffed into wicker cages and burned to death. Archaeological evidence from the remnants of over 350 funeral mounds proves this sacrificial circle was an active site.

The Ordination Of Halloween

In 601 A.D. Pope Gregory dispatched Catholic missionaries to Britain and Ireland seeking mass conversion to Catholicism. Rather than wipe out the strong Celtic traditions their orders were to cunningly convert the Druid rituals into sanctioned Catholic activities. Thus, in the 7 ^th century the Church began celebrating All Saints' Day on November 1 ^st to honor any saints without a day of recognition. At the turn of the century the Church created All Souls' Day on November 2 ^nd to honor dead ancestors.

In 835 A.D. Pope Gregory IV blessed All Saints' Day as a sacred day of obligation. Consequently, on that day the Catholic Church officially "ordained" Halloween. Samhain (Halloween) owes its very life and breath to the blessing of the Catholic Church. Few holidays have a stranger or more paradoxical history than Halloween.

The spread of Christianity did not erase hundreds of years of traditions. The Celts continued to celebrate Samhain on October 31 ^st , the Witches' Sabbath. Over the years the customs from all these holidays merged and their convergence created today's Halloween.

Halloween And The Occult

A perverse twist to Halloween lies in the fact that "hallow" means holy, to sanctify or consecrate. While many deem Halloween as harmless fun and fantasy it is serious business in the occult world. Witchcraft, Wicca, Satanism and Paganism believe on the night of Halloween devils and spirits are unleashed. The ancient Druids' celebration of Samhain involved rituals of human sacrifice, blood-letting and dining on human flesh. Halloween's subtlety in "normal" society disarms our discernment of witches and the occult. Over 1.2 million practicing and proud witches live in America alone. Even innocent untrained experimentation can open the door to forces beyond a novice's control.

Anton LaVey, founder of The Church of Satan and author of The Satanic Bible states, "Halloween, one of Satanism's most cherished days is one of the four major Sabbats celebrated by the modern witch. It gives even the most mundane people the opportunity to taste wickedness for one night. They have a chance to dance with the Devil...I see Satanists all over the world meeting in small groups this night and Hallowe'ens 500 years hence, to raise a glass to the Infernal Hosts..."

Conclusion

Fear is a powerful primitive biochemical reaction to the presence of danger. Physical responses include sweating, increased vital signs and high adrenaline levels. Emotional responses are highly personalized. Some people are adrenaline "junkies," thriving on extreme sports and fear-inducing thrill situations. Others go to a "safe warm place" whispering repeatedly with eyes tightly shut, "please, go away."

The global horror genre generates millions in revenue and charitable fund-raising. An entire Halloween industry has been built on peoples' compulsion to be terrified in a safe environment. Repeated exposure leads to familiarity and desensitization. Undeniably, these adrenaline "junkies" will seek out ever new and bigger thrills to the extent of the "ultimate price." Others with a darker agenda will remove themselves completely from the mainstream.

Nonetheless, the holiday celebrated by the great majority of people today is one of our most enjoyed. It rebukes nationalism and has lost its religious significance for most people. Due to its tremendous popularity modern Halloween observance has instilled complacency belying its controversial origins.

Sources:

LaVey, Anton, "Anton LaVey's First Church of Satan," Gale Encyclopedia of the Unusual and Unexplained

Santino, Jack, "Halloween," Encyclopedia of Food and Culture

Author unknown, "Sabbats," Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology

Images Courtesy of Yahoo Public Domain:

image 1: credit-J.L.James/copyright-J.L.James 2007, caption: The mysterious Stonehenge, up close and personal

image 2: credit-BLT and Associates/copyright-Paramount Pictures, caption: It is not Halloween without Paranormal Activity (sigh)

image 3: credit-are ghosts real/copyright-areghostsreal.com, caption: Equipment

image 4: credit-topsoft/copyright-sxc.hu/topsoft, caption: a Pagan pentacle