The COG Blog

The true origins of Halloween lie with the ancient Celtic tribes who lived in Ireland, Scotland, Wales and Brittany. For the Celts, November 1st marked the beginning of a new year cycle and the coming of winter. The night before the new year, they celebrated the festival of Samhain, pronounced Sow-one, the Lord of the Dead. During this festival, Celts believed the souls of the dead returned to mingle with the living. On the eve of Samhain, a veil between the worlds parts, allowing communion with ancestors and the spirit world. Families would leave their doors open and set tables with meals for the dead who returned to visit.The purpose of these feasts is to remember those who have died.

Have a blessed Samhain and All Hallows

Twas the evening of Samhain
By Cathor Steincamp

‘Twas the evening of Samhain, and all through the place
were pagans preparing the ritual space.
The candles were set in the corners with care,
in hopes that the Watchtowers soon would be there.

We all had our robes on (as is habitual)
and had just settled down and were starting our ritual
when out on the porch there arose such a chorus
that we went to the door, and waiting there for us
were children in costumes of various kinds
with visions of chocolate bright in their minds.

In all of our workings, we’d almost forgot,
but we had purchased candy (we’d purchased a LOT),
And so, as they flocked from all over the street,
they all got some chocolate or something else sweet.

We didn’t think twice of delaying our rite,
Kids just don’t have this much fun every night.
For hours they came, with the time-honored schtick
of giving a choice: a treat or a trick.

As is proper, the parents were there for the games,
Watching the children and calling their names.
“On Vader, On Leia,
On Dexter and DeeDee,
On Xena, on Buffy,
Casper and Tweety!
To the block of apartments
on the neighboring road;
You’ll get so much candy,
you’ll have to be TOWED!”

The volume of children eventually dropped,
and as it grew darker, it finally stopped.
But as we prepared to return to our rite,
One child more stepped out of the night.

She couldn’t have been more than twelve or thirteen.
Her hair was deep red, and her robe, forest green
with a simple gold cord tying off at the waist.
She’d a staff in her hand and a smile on her face.
No make-up, nor mask, or accompanying kitsch,
so we asked who she was; she replied “I’m a witch.
And no, I don’t fly through the sky on my broom;
I only use that thing for cleaning my room.
My magical powers aren’t really that neat,
but I won’t threaten tricks; I’ll just ask for a treat.”

We found it refreshing, so we gave incense cones,
A candle, a crystal, a few other stones,
And the rest of the candy (which might fill a van).
She turned to her father (a man dressed as Pan)
and laughed, “Yes, I know, Dad, it’s past time for bed,”
and started to leave, but she first turned and said
“I’m sorry for further delaying your rite.
Blessed Samhain to all, and a magical night.”

As the year officially draws to a close and we mark the beginning of the new year, it is a good time to let go of the old and make ready to embrace the new and all that the new year will bring. Is it new love? Is it new job or career? Will your relationship deepen and go to the next level? A psychic reading with Sophia or Lady Sarah can help you see what is leaving your life and what is coming in. You may find out more about our psychics by clicking on their images at left. To speak with them, please click on their Click4advisor buttons also at left.

This year’s fall equinox occurs on September 22nd. Mabon is the second grain harvest, nestled between the first harvest, Lughnasadh, and Samhain. It celebrates a moment of perfect balance – a time when light and dark, night and day are briefly and perfectly equal. Shortly after Mabon, the days become shorter, the nights longer, as the sun begins to wane; the year comes to an end to symbolically represent the waning of our own lives as we approach the death of the winter months.

Mabon is very much like Thanksgiving celebrated in the United States bringing with it an abundant harvest and all of its colors. It is a time when we reap the fruits of our labors, both seen and unseen. I Rich golden colors decorate our homes with symbols of the season. Corn, pumpkins and the cornucopia of the harvest adorn our porches with their brilliant gold, amber, russet and garnet until the winds of Samhain blow them away. The full moon closest to the Autumn Equinox is called the Harvest Moon, and farmers would harvest their corps by this moonlight as part of the Second Harvest celebration.

Mabon is named for a Celtic dying-resurrecting god. Between the times of Lughnasadh and Yule, there is an underlying awareness of approaching death, and the rebirth that most certainly comes with it. It is a time to celebrate the approaching darkness and the transformation it will most assuredly bring.

It is a time for journeys as animals begin their migration to where they will spend their winter. For us, however, it becomes a journey within where we assess and reassess the year’s joys and sorrows as we feel the year winding down just 6 weeks from now. As the Earth begins its death song, we once again begin to appreciate the things that are important to us, the things that truly last – our families, our friendships, our inner wisdom. It is a time of celebration to honor our experiences of the past year and gaze toward a brighter future.

Symbols of Mabon
Dieties: The Mother aspect of the Triple Goddess, Morgan, Mabon, Persephone, Aging Dieties
Food: Corn, Root vegetables, Nuts, Squash, Acorns, Wine and Ale
Colors: Gold, Orange, Brown, Yellow, Burgundy, Russet
Stones: Sapphire, Agate, Carnelian
Plants: Gourds, Pine Cones, Acorns, Pomegranate, Cedar
Herbs: Marigold, Milkweed, Sage, Cedar, Pine