Samhain Life Lessons
Tis the Season of the Witch! A time of remembrance and magick. Last year I moved the Writing the Magick blog to Substack. When you sign up to get my newsletter here, I add you to my free subscribers on my Writing the Magick Substack. But since this holy day is the big one, I wanted to share Samhain Life Lessons here, too.
Celebrated on October 31, Samhain, pronounced “Sow-in” means “summer’s end” in Gaelic. It is the third and final harvest of gourds, corn, and pomegranates. It is known as the Witches’ New Year because life begins in the dark womb and soil. It is considered the twilight of the year, when the veil is thin between the worlds, and we can communicate more clearly with the spiritual realms.
On November 1, we celebrate Dia de los Muertos, a Mexican tradition that celebrates our beloved ones who have passed. Marigolds are sprinkled from gravesite to the celebration to guide our ancestors back to their family. It is a joyous time of remembrance, a revelry of a family-centric love, music, dancing, and the most delicious food ever.
As the nights grow longer, the Great Mother Goddess guides us to trust the mysterious unfolding of your life. The Greek Goddess Persephone, the Queen of the Underworld, walks beside us now. With her presence as a sovereign, self-governing woman in the land of the dead, we have the support we need to face death as part of nature. Read about the Kore Persephone myth and her connection to the pomegranate in my post Healing the Perfect Daughter’s Curse.
In the Great Turning of the Wheel, each pagan sabbat offers life lessons. Samhain grants us many magickal opportunities. Three Magickal Samhain Lessons
It is the time of year to engage our shadow selves, the hidden parts of ourselves that house our damaging tendencies and negative self-talk and habits. As the veil between worlds is thin, we can ask advice from our spirit guides.
We can look at our reflection and let go of what no longer serves us, just as the leaves have let go for the survival of the trees. Whatever we release, creates space for new beginnings, hope, and manifestations.
We can create an altar with seasonal produce such as pomegranates, apples, pumpkins, or gourds, autumn leaves or flowers. An ofrenda is an altar for your beloved dead decorated with orange marigolds, candles, their pictures, and favorite foods. Talk with your beloved ancestors about the shadow self and journal any response you receive. If we can pass down ancestral trauma, we can also receive ancestral healing.
This reciprocity of interacting with the Divine within you and the universe is how you craft a magickal life. My favorite way to embody spiritual lessons is through handiwork. On my Writing the Magick publication on Substack, I share this holy day craft project passed down to me from my mother Cathi Budd, who shared how to create a Descanso at the Priestess Retreat in Greece earlier this month. In her own words:
A Descanso is something that altered a person’s life forever. There are small deaths, los muertes chiquitas, and big deaths, los muertes grandes. These places must be blessed. They must be remembered, some forgotten. They are love notes to your suffering, pinning them to the Earth, so they don’t follow us.
Lay them to rest.
