By Doug O Taylor
When it comes to celebrating holidays with imaginative costumes, nothing can surpass Halloween. As the day approaches every year on October 31, the excitement around Halloween tends to mount. It is the celebration of the things associated with the dead and the supernatural elements related to it such as ghosts, witches and other spiritual beings. However, the celebration of the haunted night is not without a meaning or justification and has roots of its own. The history of Halloween shows it to be a coinciding festivity of pagan rituals and Christian faith.
Origin of Halloween: With changing times, the celebrations and its meanings have changed. Now, Halloween is a secular community based holiday where kids get to do a lot of fun and tend to begin preparations from weeks ahead. Yet the roots of the festivity remain unforgotten. It dates back to over 2000 years ago when Celts had dominance. They celebrated their New Year's festival "Samhain" on October 31st every year. It was to celebrate and mark the end of summer season. They also believed that it was the day when the dead arise from their sleep and wander the land to possess the earthly souls. Thus to stay protected and secure from getting involved in any paranormal activity, the Celts dressed up as monsters, ghosts, witches and other supernatural elements they could think of. They put out all lights in their homes and went out as mischief makers. The basic idea was to stay protected from being haunted or possessed. The Celtic priests would also build bonfires and offer sacrifices. These rituals have faded leaving behind the carving of pumpkin and the costumes only for today's generation of Halloween traditions.
Honoring the supernatural: With the pagan rituals having toned down, the day found its new roots in America through Christianity when Irish celebrations of Halloween or the Hallow 'en (evening of the Hallow), celebrated on November 1st gained popularity. The word 'Hallow' in old English means 'saint'. Thus it is also known as All Saint's Day. It is a day when all the Christian saints are honored. While the next day is marked as All Soul's Day which honors all Christians who no longer live and were not saints. On All Hallows Eve or on Halloween, the Irish beggars went asking for money or food. Those who refused to give were threatened to be destroyed by the evil spirits and paranormal entities. This ritual of asking has continued invariably as today children wearing costumes carry lighted ornaments and go to people's houses to collect treats. The whole concept of trick or treat thing, telling haunted stories makes it more fun and of course no one dares to forget to keep themselves stocked with soul-cakes, currant buns, chocolates, candies, pastries and goodies when they come knocking on the doors.
Thus it is not only coming up with new ideas for desserts, costumes and themes for Halloween party, it is the essence of respecting the dead as well as celebrating life that should be inculcated. We wish everyone a happy Halloween all year long!
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Article Source: [http://EzineArticles.com/?Find-Out-About-the-Origin-of-Halloween---The-Night-We-Have-Loads-of-Fun&id=8005712] Find Out About the Origin of Halloween - The Night We Have Loads of Fun
