I am the hallow-tide of all souls passing,
I am the bright releaser of pain,
I am the quickener of the fallen seed-case,
I am the glance of snow, the strike of rain.
I am the hollow of the winter twilight,
I am the hearth-fire and the welcome bread,
I am the curtained awning of the pillow,
I am unending wisdom’s golden thread.
Song of Samhain – Caitlín Matthews

To understand Samhain we must go back to our Celtic ancestors who arrived in Ireland five hundred years before Christ. Other people occupied Ireland before the Celts; they were the Fómhoraigh, the Fir Bolg and the Tuatha de Dannan. We know from the burial places of these people that they believed in an after-life. The spiral symbol on their tombs is a symbol of eternity according to the experts.

The Celts then came along and their two main teachings were the immortality of the soul and transmigration of souls. They considered the after-life as an ideal world. The legend of Oisín í dTír na nÓg gives us a glimpse of their beliefs and hopes regarding an after-life.

The season of Samhain is particularly linked with the belief in an after-life and hence the link with the Celtic tradition. The Celtic year had four seasons beginning with Samhain “the coming of dark”. The second season was Imbolg “the coming of light”. The third season was Bealtaine “time of growth”. The fourth season was Lughnasa “harvest time”.

The festival of Samhain started on the eve of the 1st November. In the Celtic tradition the 24 hour duration of a day started at night-fall, time being reckoned in nights and days. For the Celts the season of Samhain, 31st October to 31st January marked the end of one pastoral year and the beginning of the next. The word ’Samhain’ means assembly or gathering and it is thought that the early Celts gathered together at the beginning of the season for a special festival. Samhain also corresponds to the end of the grazing season when herds and flocks were brought together and only those animals selected for breeding were spared from slaughter. There is also the possibility that some animals were sacrificed to the gods in the hope that the earth would be renewed. The Celts like the Romans had many gods. There gods were considered supernatural beings with magical powers. Therefore the people offered sacrifice to appease the gods and to beg them to look favourably on them.

Samhain was also a time when the Celtic other world became visible to humankind. It was a time when spiritual forces were let loose on the human world. The evening of Halloween – eve of the hallowed – is still celebrated in Ireland as the night when spirits and ghosts get to disturb the living. It was believed that the spirit of deceased members of the household returned to the homestead where they were met with tokens of welcome e.g. the open door, the fire burning on the hearth and the table set for a meal.

The hall-mark of early Christianity in Ireland was to respect the traditions of the people and to absorb them into the Christian way of life. We see this in the feast of Imbolg, dedicated to the Goddess Brigid which became the Feast of St. Brigid and we see it in the Feast of Samhain – 1st November which became the Feast of All Saints and the 2nd November the Feast of All Souls. This is a definite link up with the Celtic tradition. Growing up in Donegal I knew the customs of leaving the door open, a fire lighting and food available on All Souls night for the ancestors.

We have also continued until this day the celebration of the eve of 1st November, Halloween. The tricking and treating which all Dublin children know well – without probably knowing the origins of it – follows in the steps of the Celtic celebrations. One was pre-Christian. Is the other at this stage post-Christian? Bonfires are lit at Halloween to link with the fires lit by the Celts to appease the Gods and linked also with the Christian fires built to honour the one true God. The new type of fire in many places is the crackers and fireworks.

At Samhain in many homes there are games like ducking the apple and looking for coins, tailing the donkey and many other games. There is also a feast of barm brack with a ring, apples, nuts, pumpkins and other goodies. Children dress up as witches, banshees, ghosts etc. as they go tricking and treating. With the renewed interest in Celtic spirituality people are celebration feasts like Samhain with prayers, ritual and sharing of various kinds. The whole mix of secular and spiritual makes for our present day Feast of Samhain.

Caitlin Matthews in her book ‘Celtic Devotions, Prayers and Rituals’ has the following invocation welcoming the particular gifts and qualities of Samhain into the home. This invocation is said at the front door of the house on 31st October, the eve of Samhain.

Grandmother Wisdom, open the door
Grandfather Counsel, come you in.
Let there be welcome to the ancient love,
Let there be welcome to the winter of the year.
In cold and darkness you are travelling,
Under crystal skies you will arrive.
May the blessed time of Samhain
Clarify the soul of all beings
Bringing joy and wisdom to revelation
From the heights to the depths.
In the cave of every soul.

Samhain shona dhaoibh go léir.

Agnes Coll rsm
South Central Province