Influenced by the ancient pagan traditions of Samhain, the holiday now known as Halloween is associated with costumes, candy, and all things spooky and scary. Occurring on October 31 each year in different nations, Halloween has some history with the occult, and celebrations vary based on location. Read the blog: http://www.psychic-chicago.com/Blog.html?entry=halloween-origins-and-practices

1. Halloween
Psychic Readings By Ronn
Origins and
Practices

2. Influenced by the ancient pagan traditions of Samhain, the
holiday now known as Halloween is associated with
costumes, candy, and all things spooky and scary. Occurring
on October 31 each year in different nations, Halloween has
some history with the occult, and celebrations vary based on
location.

3. Samhain
This pagan festival was celebrated by the
Celts to honor the end of summer and
usher in the darkest part of the year.
It was believed that, at Samhain, the veil
between the world of the living and the
world of the dead was at its thinnest,
allowing for communication with the
deceased. The rituals and festivities that
took place reflected this belief.
Participants would make offerings to
please their ancestors who might return,
and they also would disguise themselves to
avoid being kidnapped by more malicious
creatures, most often the Sidhe or other
fae, who could more easily cross into the
world of the living at that time of year.

4. Feralia & Pomona
When the Romans conquered Celtic
territory, they began to integrate their own
traditions into Celtic practices.
The Roman festival Feralia was designed to
honor the dead, much like Samhain, and the
Romans also celebrated their goddess
Pomona who was associated with fruit and
trees around the same time. It is from this
celebration that the tradition of bobbing for
apples might originate.
Celebrating the dead in some form or
another at this time of year has been
relatively consistent, even across cultures,
as the shift from summer to autumn is
commonly associated with change and the
approach of darker months.

5. All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day
Catholic leaders attempted to adapt the festival into something more
conducive with their beliefs. In the fifth century, the celebration was
shifted to springtime and was slated to celebrate saints and martyrs.
However, in the ninth century, Pope Gregory returned the celebration to
its original season, establishing All Saints’ Day on November 1 to honor
deceased saints and All Souls’ Day on November 2 to honor all deceased
believers of the Christian faith. Eventually, the day before these
festivities, October 31, became known as All Hallow’s Eve. Though the
practices and beliefs shifted under ruling parties, the practice of
honoring the dead in autumn ultimately remained.

6. As a melting pot of many European cultures, the practices associated
with Halloween in America are an amalgamation of cultural
practices. The tradition of Trick-or-Treating, for example, is believed
to be a blend of Irish, Scottish, and English customs. In some early
practices, some groups would dress in costumes and visit houses to
sing to the dead; they earned cake as payment. The nature of playing
tricks or pranks also originated from ancient practices, though these
tricks were commonly played by fae creatures. In America,
Halloween was a community-oriented holiday, but in an effort to
limit harmful pranks and vandalism, marketing efforts shifted to
children alone.
American Halloween

7. Thank you!
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