Last updated by Madison Carter
Tonight, the veil grows thin: a message is waiting for you 🕯️
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Long before pumpkins, there was Samhain. It closes the harvest season that Mabon, the fall equinox festival, opened, and carries us from the light into the dark.
Where does it come from, what really happened that night, how did it become Halloween, and how can you honor it at home this year? Let me take you to the other side of the veil. 🕯️
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Samhain (pronounced “SOW-in”) marks the end of the Celtic year and the passage from the light half of the year to the dark half. It runs from the evening of October 31 to November 1: for the Celts, the day began at nightfall, and Julius Caesar already noted that the Gauls counted time in nights.
It is one of the four great Gaelic festivals, along with Imbolc, Beltane and Lughnasadh. In Ireland and Scotland, herds came down from the summer pastures, the harvest was in, and people prepared for winter. The word has stayed: in Irish, Samhain is still the name of the month of November.
The festival is very old: the Gaulish Coligny calendar, engraved in bronze in the 2nd century, already marks “the three nights of Samon” (trinox Samoni).
From the 9th century on, Irish texts make it the time of great gatherings, such as the Feast of Tara presided over by the High King. Its name keeps its mystery: some read “summer's end” in it, others “assembly”, perhaps the gathering of the living and the dead.
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Samhain stands on a threshold, between two seasons and two years, and in Celtic tradition a threshold is a passage. That night, the border between our world and the Otherworld opens: the souls of the dead come back to visit their homes, and the aos sí, the people of the hills, roam freely among the living.
So a place was kept free at the table and by the fire for the returning ancestors. It is also the night when you are most likely to notice the signs that a spirit is trying to contact you. The druids honored the dead, called on their protection for the winter and questioned the future.
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Four traditions have come down to us through the centuries.
Great fires burned on the hilltops against the advancing night. The 17th-century Irish historian Geoffrey Keating tells that every hearth was relit from the sacred fire of Tlachtga.
Food and drink were left on the doorstep to win the favor of the ancestors and benevolent spirits.
In Scotland, an apple peel tossed over the shoulder spelled out the initial of your beloved, and two roasted hazelnuts told whether a couple would last.
To pass unnoticed among the spirits, or to keep them away, people wore masks. Recorded in Scotland as early as the 16th century, the custom became today's Halloween costumes.
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Halloween is the direct heir of Samhain. The Church set All Saints' Day on November 1 (the Frankish Empire adopted it in 835), and its eve, All Hallows' Eve, gave us the word “Halloween”.
The customs, meanwhile, survived. In the 19th century, in Ireland and Scotland, turnips were carved into grimacing lanterns; emigrants brought them to America, where the pumpkin replaced the turnip. For the Halloween side of the night, discover the costume made for your sign, or the Halloween ritual that reveals your soulmate's initial.
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You don't need to be a witch to honor Samhain: thank those who came before you, close the cycle that is ending and entrust your intentions to the next one. Three gestures are enough.
For a peaceful night, write down your wishes for the coming year and keep them away from prying eyes, give your home an energy cleanse, and thank your ancestors before going to bed.
Never force the spirits to communicate, protect your space (a circle of salt will do) and don't forget to blow out the candles! For the rest, follow your intuition: the spirits have seen it all before. 😉
The darkness that opens has nothing frightening about it: it is the time when the seed sleeps beneath the earth. Samhain makes you aware of what must end and what wants to be born; the light will return with Yule, at the winter solstice.
Key takeaways 📌
Madison's insights: open yourself to the energies of Samhain
Samhain opens a door to the invisible, the ideal moment to take stock before winter. If the future troubles you or if you sense a presence, a spiritual guide can help you hear these messages from beyond. The future is mine.
Talk to a spiritual guide✦ ✦
Article presented by
Madison Carter
"Psychic Healer & Angelic Channel for MyAstro ✨ As a psychic healer and angelic channel, I translate loving guidance from the divine into practical wisdom. My work is dedicated to delivering messages from guardian angels that bring clarity, comfort, and deep spiritual healing. Through MyAstro, I aim..."
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