Samhain
November, 1st or 2nd, usually.
Colors
Black, orange, yellow, brown, red
Objects
Candles, fires, Jack-O-Lanterns, skulls, images of the dead, divination tools, nuts and acorns, colored leaves, masks
Animals
Stag/buck, cats, rats, bats, owl, raven/crow, jackel, coyote, scorpion any animal considered a guide or messenger of the dead
Plants
apples, deciduous trees, esp nut-bearing trees, late-season flowers: asters, chrysanthemums, calendula, cosmos etc.
Fragrances
Apple, copal, sandalwood, wormwood, sage, patchouli, tobacco
Foods
• Apples • Apple Cider • Beet Root • Fava Beans • Parsley • Pomegranate • Pumpkin • Turnip • Wine
Deities
All Gods of Death and the Underworld, Psychopomps: Hades, Pluto, Persephone, Proserpina, Dis Pater, Thanatos, Osiris, Anubis, Hel, Erishkigal, Nergal, Arawn, Mannanan, Cichol, Donn, Hecate, Hermes, Nephthys, Tuoni, Macaria, Orcus, Aita, Mania, Guédé, Ghede, Baron Samedi, Santa Muerte, Chernobog, etc. The Horned God, Cernnunos, Herne the Hunter
Other Symbols
death, the dead, ancestors, transformation
Library
Poems and Prose
Sisyphus Tricks Death
Who is Sisyphus this man who struggles endlessly in Hades to push a rock to the top of a mountain, only to watch it roll down again. Who is this man who knows only labor and futility in death. This man who is denied rebirth by Persephone the merciful and denied rest by his very […]
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Library
Poems and Prose
Orpheus and Eurydike
Orpheus was a bard, a singer of great renown, son of the Muse Calliope and also the King of the Cicones, a tribe that lived in the Rhodope Mountains in Thrace (part of what is now Bulgaria). They say that he was the first to master the lyre that Hermes made upon the first day […]
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Some Samhain History
Samhain originated as a Gaelic festival. The word is from the name for the month of November. A popular translation of the word is “Summer’s end” though it could refer to an “assembly” or “gathering”. The festival kicks off the month beginning with Samhain night (October 31st) and runs through Samhain Day (November 1st). Traditionally […]
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Kitchen Witch Corner
Recipes
Apple Butter
Apple butter is spiced, cooked apples made smooth and delicious for spreading on toast or serving over waffles. This recipe is my favorite way to use up a big harvest of less-than-perfect, windfall and insect damaged apples. Just cut off the damaged parts and share them with the poultry. Preparation Time: Ingredients: As many apples […]
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Food
Homestead and Hearthcraft
Kitchen Witch Corner
Morningbird's Garden
Apples
The apple tree is a deciduous, fruit-bearing tree that produces the crisp fruit that gives it its name. It is a relatively small tree, reaching 25 feet in height and dwarf cultivars are available that are considerably smaller, 10 feet tall or less. Small (2 inches long usually, up to 4 inches long), ovular, slightly […]
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Family
Ritual
Storytelling In The Hallows
What is The Hallows? It is that big collection of sacred days that happen at the end of October/ beginning of November. Also known as Samhain, Halloween, The Feast of the Dead. This is a liminal period. Just a few days ago the leaves started to turn and in just a few more the trees […]
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