Thoughts on Samhain for Any Time of Year
Forgotten but not gone, we see them; unbeknownst to us, we walk past them. Unaware of their etymology, we even utter them: remnants of faded meaning and erstwhile traditions that, while nearly obscured by centuries of cultural overgrowth, still exist to be found and enjoyed once you learn how and where to look for them.
In the fourteenth century, the word “spring” was a verb meaning “to leaf out.” Over the next hundreds of years, the season in which bushes and trees would spring would come to be known as “spring” or “springtime.”
The remnants of early Paganism today
Few realize that when we observe Groundhog Day, today a rather silly “holiday” that remains nonetheless on our calendars, we are observing an ancient remnant of Imbolc, the Pagan holiday tied to divination of the weather. Groundhog Day and Imbolc both fall on February 2. The May Pole and May Day, likewise, have their distant roots in Beltane, May 1 or April 30.
Better known and much more conspicuous are the Pagan roots of Easter, or Ostara. Associated with Easter eggs and bunnies and other symbolism that has nothing to do with the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ, some Christians now prefer the alternative name Resurrection Day in Christian contexts.
Yet even Resurrection Day is still tied to the first Sunday after the first Full Moon after the Spring Equinox – a schedule set by pure Pagan tradition. Which brings us to Samhain.
“Ancestors’ Nights” often have Pagan origins
Is it coincidental that Dia de los Muertos and the Catholic All Saint’s Day fall so close to Samhain? These, too, are ancient remnants of Pagan spirituality that continue to brightly color our culture.
Wiccans sometimes call Samhain Ancestor’s Night, because in the most literal traditional sense, the veil that separates this world from the next is most thin, making Samhain the easiest time to contact the spirits of departed loved ones. For those who reify their Pagan symbolism a little less than this, Samhain is a traditional time of remembrance.
It is also considered the beginning of the new year by many, marking the end of the harvest and a time of planning for the winter and for new beginnings come next spring.
This aspect of Samhain can be put to good use by anyone. People who are not spiritually inclined, or choose not to adopt the beliefs and symbolism of Witchcraft, can still, if they choose, use Samhain as a starting point to renew or reinvent themselves.
Whether it’s these examples, or Halloween, or Yule (Christmas), so many modern traditional observations and celebrations still have not wandered far from the faded Pagan holidays to which they moored.
From rediscovered remnants to a shared beauty
This is not, however, meant to imply that “we Pagans were here first, so it belongs to us.”
No, the Pagan roots of these traditions, and many others, belong to the Earth, which in turn exists and turns and springs equally for each of us – or ultimately to the glory of the Creator of the universe if you subscribe to a classical monotheistic faith.
We Pagans, of course, associate with the Earth and Her cycles a particular form of spirituality – a spirituality that comes intuitively to us which we in turn use to supply meaning to the cycles of the Earth, the turning of the Wheel of the Year.
It is these old, forgotten but not lost, symbols, markers and signposts that modern Pagans seek to restore for ourselves their former prominence and reverence.
But we don’t own them; they shape our lives.
One thing is for certain, though; the Christmas and Holiday season, so close to the calendar New Year, can mean new beginnings to all of us, just as it means the beginning of new rebirth to the Earth.