Happy New Year!
In parts of the world where Christianity has had a profound influence, time, historically, has been depicted as a line moving steadily from beginning to end. This makes sense to the human mind, as we experience life in a sequential process moving from birth to death. The Celts, however, had a way of understanding time not based on a birth-life-death linear sequence, but rather on the cycles of nature, such as fall,-winter-spring-summer or dusk-night-dawn-day-dusk. Spiritual holidays were not based on events in linear time (such as the birth and death of a great leader) but rather on recurring events in cyclical time.
In the ancient Celtic mind, a day began not with midnight or at sunrise, but actully at sundown. Night precedes the light, and together they form a single unit of time. In a similar way, the Celtic year began not at the coming of midwinter or the new spring but with the end of the harvest time. Thus, Samhain (summer's end), celebrated on or near 31 October, marked not only the end of autumn and the onset of winter, but also the Celtic new year.
Because, Samhain marks the end of the old year and the beginning of the new, it meant a break in the flow of time. This break meant the "veil" separating our world from the otherworld was temporarily opened. The otherworld, being simply, the spiritual dimension of the physical universe. The belief in the immanence of the otherworld was important to the Celts, along with the possibilities of the average person inte acting with it. Immanence is a theological term, literally meaning "remaining within". It is used to suggest God's presence is within the world, as opposed to transcendant, which suggests God is far away. The Celtic idea of immanence meant the spiritual dimension was very close to the material.
Samhain was a time when fearsome beasts and monsters could walk the earth, but more than just ghosties and ghoulies could visit. To the Celt, and the modern day pagan, Samhain is a solemn and reverent holiday, filled with transformational "magic". It is the best night of the year to make contact with the spirits of loved ones who have passed to the otherworld-the ancestors from whom we received our life and our DNA.
In my household we set up a "dumb supper". A meal where friends and family eat in silence. An extra place is set for our loved ones on the other side. As we eat, we reflect on their lives, their love, and the wisdom they imparted to us.
Samhain shona daoibh, go léir!
*said SOW-en, with sow as in female pig.
In the ancient Celtic mind, a day began not with midnight or at sunrise, but actully at sundown. Night precedes the light, and together they form a single unit of time. In a similar way, the Celtic year began not at the coming of midwinter or the new spring but with the end of the harvest time. Thus, Samhain (summer's end), celebrated on or near 31 October, marked not only the end of autumn and the onset of winter, but also the Celtic new year.
Because, Samhain marks the end of the old year and the beginning of the new, it meant a break in the flow of time. This break meant the "veil" separating our world from the otherworld was temporarily opened. The otherworld, being simply, the spiritual dimension of the physical universe. The belief in the immanence of the otherworld was important to the Celts, along with the possibilities of the average person inte acting with it. Immanence is a theological term, literally meaning "remaining within". It is used to suggest God's presence is within the world, as opposed to transcendant, which suggests God is far away. The Celtic idea of immanence meant the spiritual dimension was very close to the material.
Samhain was a time when fearsome beasts and monsters could walk the earth, but more than just ghosties and ghoulies could visit. To the Celt, and the modern day pagan, Samhain is a solemn and reverent holiday, filled with transformational "magic". It is the best night of the year to make contact with the spirits of loved ones who have passed to the otherworld-the ancestors from whom we received our life and our DNA.
In my household we set up a "dumb supper". A meal where friends and family eat in silence. An extra place is set for our loved ones on the other side. As we eat, we reflect on their lives, their love, and the wisdom they imparted to us.
Samhain shona daoibh, go léir!
*said SOW-en, with sow as in female pig.
