Samhain Greetings Card by Jaine Rose

"The ancient Celtic view of time...is cyclical. And in this framework, New Year's Eve represents a point outside of time, when the natural order of the universe dissolves back into primordial chaos, preparatory to re-establishing itself in a new order. Thus, Samhain is a night that exists outside of time."
Mike Nichols.

The turn of the year is at Samhain, which continues today in the form of Hallowe'en, or the Christian All Hallow's Eve. Its symbols are the cauldron and the jack o'lantern - this is a survival of the ancient custom of placing the skulls of the ancestors, with a candle inside, outside the house to invite them back.

Deities relevant to the celebration of Samhain are the goddess in her Crone form, and dying and sacrificial gods.

Colours associated with Samhain are orange and black, and corresponding herbs are mullein, heather, patchouli and sage. Apt decorations, traditionally, are acorns, apples, oak leaves and ferns.

Samhain (pronounced SOR - vin) marked the beginning of the old Celtic new year, and many Celtic Pagans still observe Samhain as the renewal of the Wheel of the Year. This was the night that the old God died, returning to the Land of the Dead to await rebirth at Yule, and a time when the Crone Goddess would go into mourning for her lost son/consort, leaving her people in temporary darkness. As in days long past, Celtic Pagans believe that the veil between the world of the living and that of the dead is at its thinnest on this night, and that the spirits of the dead walk the earth, visit family and friends, and join in the ritual celebrations. This makes Samhain a prime night for any type of spirit contact rituals. The feeding of the dead is a widespread practice, even in modern Celtic lands. In Brittany and Ireland food is always left out for these spirit travellers, and candles are placed in windows to guide them along their way.