The Thinning of the Veil

Letting Go

Samhain, which marks the beginning of a new year in the ancient calendar, loosely translates to "the end of summer" in Irish. It heralds the end of the harvest that began at Lughnasa. We have spent the last two or so months gathering everything that we wish to bring with us into the darker months (literally and figuratively). Now it is time to step over the threshold, bring our energy inward and let go of what no longer serves us. We can see this in nature too; as plants let go of their leaves and animals begin to reduce activity and head towards a more restful lifestyle.

Samhain also means the beginning of the restful part of the year, where we bring our energy inward and focus on dreaming and planning for the spring season ahead. This is a great time to reflect on the year gone by and start thinking tentatively about what you would like to manifest in the coming year.

Ancient Rituals

Samhain is the precursor to modern Hallowe'en; and many of the customs and traditions have survived to this day. One of the most prominent aspects of the festival is of course the tine cnámh or bonfire. This fire is lit to protect the people, livestock and crops for the winter months. The bones on the fire were offered to appease the gods and the land in return for protection.

Hallowe'en is a time where we tell spooky stories and watch horror movies; this concept comes from ancient times. The veil between our world and the Otherworld is extremely thin at this time of year. It is believed that entities from the Otherworld can easily pass across the veil into ours and in some cases cause mischief and mayhem, which is why people began dressing up in costumes to fool the spirits from the Otherworld. 

Samhain is a wonderful time to connect to the ancestors and those special to us who we have lost, as they are only a whisper away. It is tradition to light a candle and place it in the window to welcome loved-ones home. 

An Cailleach and the Morrígan

Two deities who are very prominent this time of year are An Cailleach and The Morrígan. An Cailleach, the crone goddess, began her reign back at the Autumn Equinox and will continue to spread death and darkness over the land until Imbolc, where she will transform into Brigid. An Cailleach is a wonderful entity to remind us that there is beauty even in the winter. The story goes that Niall of the Nine Hostages and his brothers were competing to be king. Their task was simple; go to the well and bring back some water. However, An Cailleach was guarding the well and agreed to give the men water only if they kissed her. Being so repulsed by her, all the men but Niall refused. When Niall kissed An Cailleach, she turned into a beautiful maiden; showing us that anything can be beautiful if we show it love.

The most famous story is how she created the cairns at Loughcrew by jumping from hilltop to hilltop with stones in her apron to prove her strength. As she jumped, the stones fell out of her apron one-by-one, creating the cairns we see today. 

The Morrígan is another ferocious entity that is prominent this time of year. Goddess of war, death and chaos, she was often visited by warriors in her home, the cave known as Oweynagat. She is also a shape-shifter, her most well-known form being a raven. She famously appeared on the standing stone that Cúchulainn tied himself to for his last stand.