Sowen, also known as Samhain, is a pagan holiday that originated in ancient Celtic cultures. It is celebrated on October 31st and marks the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter. Traditionally, Sowen was a time when the lines between the living and the dead were believed to be blurred. It was believed that on this night, the spirits of the dead would return to the earth, and people would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off any evil spirits. The holiday also had religious significance, as it was a time to honor and give thanks to the gods and goddesses for the harvest. Offerings were made to the deities, and rituals were performed to welcome the new year and ensure a prosperous year ahead.
After the harvest work was complete, celebrants joined with Druid priests to light a community fire using a wheel that would cause friction and spark flames. The wheel was considered a representation of the sun and used along with prayers. Cattle were sacrificed, and participants took a flame from the communal bonfire back to their home to relight the hearth.
The offerings of food and goods to protect themselves from spirits and ancestral ghosts became offerings of food and drink to the poor, displays of generosity and goodwill. One of the most famous Samhain-related stories is The Adventures of Nera, in which the hero Nera encounters a corpse and fairies, and enters into the Otherworld.
Offerings were made to the deities, and rituals were performed to welcome the new year and ensure a prosperous year ahead. In modern times, Sowen has evolved into the holiday of Halloween. While many of the original pagan customs have been adapted or forgotten, some traditions still remain.
What Is Samhain? What to Know About the Ancient Pagan Festival That Came Before Halloween
D ressing up in costumes and trick-or-treating are popular Halloween activities, but few probably associate these lighthearted fall traditions with their origins in Samhain, a three-day ancient Celtic pagan festival.
For the Celts, who lived during the Iron Age in what is now Ireland, Scotland, the U.K. and other parts of Northern Europe, Samhain (meaning literally, in modern Irish, “summer’s end”) marked the end of summer and kicked off the Celtic new year. Ushering in a new year signaled a time of both death and rebirth, something that was doubly symbolic because it coincided with the end of a bountiful harvest season and the beginning of a cold and dark winter season that would present plenty of challenges.
According to historian Nicholas Rogers, author of Halloween: From Pagan Ritual to Party Night, Samhain was a “time of stock-taking and perhaps sacrifice” — including probably animal sacrifice — during which “pastoral communities [prepared] to survive the winter.”
Rogers also notes that little is firmly known about the particulars of the holiday, since the limited sources available are either folkloric literature like the Celtic sagas and Roman authors who would have likely “trashed” the traditions of a culture with which they were often in conflict.
To understand what we do know about Samhain, it’s important to recognize how the structure of the year’s calendar affected the Celts’ religious practices. According to The Guardian, much of modern pagan practice is based on the wheel of the year, a major determining factor in Celtic worship. The Celtic year was divided into two halves — light and dark, which were delineated by two of their four annual fire festivals. In between, rituals or ceremonies were celebrated marking solstices (when night is either the shortest or longest) or equinoxes (when day and night are equal). Samhain, the fire festival that marked the beginning of the dark half of the year, is situated between the autumn equinox and the winter solstice.
Encyclopedia Britannica notes that, during this festival, the world of the gods “was believed to be made visible to humankind,” leading to supernatural tricks and trouble; ghosts of the dead and spirits from the Otherworld were also thought to return to the earth during Samhain. To appease deities during this time, sacrifices (generally of crops and animals) were burned in bonfires as a protective measure from from evil otherworldly beings and offerings were left out for other visiting mischievous spirits. Tricks and pranks were often played, but blamed on fairies and spirits during the three-day period when the line between the two worlds blurred.
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For example, carving pumpkins into jack-o'-lanterns is thought to have originated from the practice of carving turnips to scare away evil spirits. Overall, Sowen is a time to celebrate the changing of the seasons, remember and honor the past, and prepare for the months ahead. It is a holiday that connects us to our ancestors and reminds us of the cyclical nature of life and death..
Reviews for "Samhain: A Time for Balancing and Harmonizing Energies"
1. John - 1 star
I was extremely disappointed with the "Sowen pagan holiday" event. As someone from a different cultural background, I found it highly offensive and disrespectful to depict pagan rituals and traditions in such a commercialized and trivialized manner. It felt like the event organizers completely missed the mark on understanding the historical and cultural significance of Sowen. The event was a hodgepodge of inaccurate and stereotypical representations that only served to further perpetuate misunderstandings and misconceptions about pagan beliefs. I would strongly advise against attending this event if you are looking for an authentic and respectful experience.
2. Sarah - 2 stars
I attended the "Sowen pagan holiday" event with high hopes, but unfortunately, it fell short of my expectations. The organizers seemed more focused on creating a spooky atmosphere and selling merchandise rather than providing educational and insightful experiences about pagan traditions. The event lacked depth and substance, and I left feeling like I had just attended a generic Halloween party rather than an event that aimed to celebrate and honor pagan beliefs. If you are genuinely interested in learning about pagan cultures and traditions, I would suggest exploring other avenues rather than attending this event.
3. Michael - 1 star
"Sowen pagan holiday" was a complete disappointment. The event felt like a tacky attempt at cashing in on the popularity of pagan themes and aesthetics. The lack of knowledge and respect for the historical and spiritual aspects of Sowen was palpable. The activities and performances were cliché and shallow, and I left feeling like my time and money were wasted. If you are sincerely interested in paganism and its traditions, I would recommend seeking out more authentic and reputable events that prioritize respect and understanding over a commercialized spectacle like this one.