Samhain (pronounced "sow-win" or "sah-win") is an ancient Gaelic festival that marks the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter, celebrated from sunset on October 31 to sunset on November 1.

This is believed to have pagan origins and therefore many modern-day pagans celebrate it.

How did the Celts celebrate it? 

First, they extinguished the interior fires in the home's hearth(s). The people gathered around a bonfire, taking home embers to restart the fire in their hearths. 

The Celts also believed that the separation between the living and dead worlds were thinner, easier to penetrate. The dead were said to walk among the living that evening. 

The families left food and drink outside of their homes that evening as offerings to the dead and to the magical beings. 

This was also a time of celebrating the harvest, slaughtering the animals, celebrating with community meals, and preparing for the winter's food supply.

It is interesting to note what we do today that mirrors these practices. 

We have firepits and bonfires and get friends, family, and neighbors together to enjoy. We cook stews, bake breads, can foods, and generally appreciate the harvest and keep warm firelight around for the cooler nights.

I am not certain whether or not the practice of trick-or-treating is rooted in the practice of leaving food for the dead outside of homes or not, but my guess is children in costumes and dressed as specters are likely representing the dead, going house to house for treats. 

We find a lot of European practices and pagan practices within our holidays even today. The painted eggs of Easter are pagan symbols of fertility in the time of the Spring Equinox, called "Ostara" are deeply embedded.

The German and Norse tribes utilized evergreen boughs during winter solstice, known as "Yule." Today, we erect evergreen trees in our homes.

I am intrigued by how the world has embraced so many cultures and practices. Superstitions still abound in the religious sects. There will always be fear of outsider knowledge and wisdom. 

No matter how one celebrates Halloween, we all tend to focus on the harvest and the warm firelight. The Celts have carried a deliciously romantic approach to the solstices. To honor their insights and wisdom, light up a Jack O'Lantern, attend a bonfire, or simply sit down to a hot bowl of chili and homemade bread. Oh, and don't forget to hand candy out to the wee representatives of the dead.

It's rather ironic how the population can rebuke pagans when all spiritual practices have paganistic features such as holy water, incense, prayer, chants, candles. Our ancestors depended on ties to nature and prayer for harvests, sickness, weather, and understanding what was given to them by the Maker for them to survive. There was reverence, working together with the Powers That Be. These practices were pure and awaiting a representative such as Jesus to understand even further the nature of our world and our God.

Here are some of the worst interpretations that show the titillation and terror filmmakers have brought to the traditional practices. 

The Wicker Man
Race With the Devil

Summer of Fear 

Hocus Pocus 

The Blair Witch Project

Bell, Book, and Candle

The Craft

The Dark Secret of Harvest Home

Crowhaven Farm 

The Wizard of Oz

Samhain can best be portrayed by feast and fire, and remembering the dead. These are positive and heartwarming focuses that in one way or another we practice today, but forget about its Celt origins.