It’s officially October, busy witches! You know what that means. It’s Samhain time. Maybe you’re wondering, what is Samhain? Fortunately, you’ve come to the right place.
In today’s post, we’ll look at all the basics and correspondences of Samhian. When you’re done reading, you’ll be able to build your own magical Samhain celebration based on the themes that most strongly speak to you.
Busy Witchy Mama is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. This post may contain affiliate links through Amazon or other affiliate programs. If you choose to make a purchase through an affiliate link, I make a small commission at no additional cost to you. All opinions are my own and I only recommend products that I believe in. Read my full disclosure here. Thank you for your support!
Early pagans (and also just early humans, really) relied completely on the cycles of the seasons for survival. They had to know when the growing seasons started, peaked, and finished in order to grow enough food to make it through winter. Different cultures observed these cyclical changes in varying ways, but most ancient cultures did observe them in some form.
In modern times, most of us don’t worry about growing food for survival anymore, so we’ve become detached from the cycles of nature. Luckily, all us modern witches and pagans can still tap into these cycles by observing the Wheel of the Year – the eight Sabbats.
What are the origins of the Wheel of the Year?
The Wheel of the Year is Wicca’s answer to modern witches seeking communion with the cycles of nature. These festivals were created by Gerald Gardner, regarded as the founder of modern Wicca. I believe these are modern festivals, but he’ll tell you they’re rooted in ancient tradition. Far be it from me to argue with Gardner. I don’t personally think it matters whether they are ancient or modern.
What does matter to me, though, is knowing the origins of these celebrations. The 4 greater Sabbats (Imbolc, Beltane, Lammas/Lughnasadh, Samhain) are based in Celtic and western European origins, while the other 4 lesser Sabbats (Yule, Ostara, Litha, Mabon) mark the transitional times between the greater Sabbats.
Why is this important? Well, Britain and western Europe have a very specific annual cycle based on their climate. Spring often starts to peek its head out in February, and the growing season is done by the first of November. Winter is cold and snowy, and summer is one big, long growing season.
What If I Don't Live in Europe?
If you live in Texas, Northern Canada, Mexico, the entire Southern Hemisphere, or any number of other places in the world, your annual cycles look different. Your winter might start late like mine. You might not have a winter at all. Maybe you have growing dead zones in December and July. You might even need to observe those changes in the opposite order!
While the Wheel of the Year is well established as a tradition, your input as a witch matters. The best way to celebrate the Sabbats is to learn about them and modify them to be specific to your area. Trust your intuition, and trust your environment when determining what traditions are important to you and which ones you will leave behind. The Wheel of the Year, after all, is meant to help you connect to the cycles of nature.
But I'm Not Wiccan. Can I Still Celebrate?
I’ve never met a Wiccan who will tell you no, though I’m sure they exist. Pretty much everyone I’ve ever spoken to or read information from agrees that the Wheel of the Year is accessible to all of us. Even those of us who are not Wiccan. Modern witchcraft is so variable. There’s no rule book, and you get to make it your own. These celebrations bring us all together even when we are so different. What is witchcraft? Learn more here.
The Wheel of the Year includes associated deity, and the history centers on stories about the god and goddess. However, it’s up to you to decide if that speaks to you.
For many of us, myself included, The Wheel of the Year is simply a great way to reconnect with our environment and the natural cycles of all living things. For others, each Sabbat is a piece of the story that tells their faith.
I feel that as long as we all respect each other, the 8 Sabbats can totally serve both purposes!
The Wheel of the Year begins on November first and ends on October 31. The festivals alternate between solar observances and earth centered observances. Each Sabbat comes with its own themes, correspondences, and traditions that infuse your whole year with magic rooted in the shifts of your climate and seasonal patterns.
What is Samhain? The History
First, let’s talk about pronunciation. This one’s a bit tricky. It is not pronounced phonetically, like (Sam-hain). (Sow-win) or (Sow-een), sow rhyming with how, are some of the most accepted pronunciations. Most pagans and witches observe Samhain on October 31st. However, some prefer to celebrate on the closest full moon. Samhain is a Gaelic word that means summer’s end and is also one of the major Sabbats.
Samhain marks the end of the Wheel of the Year. For ancient Celts, this fire festival signified the official start of winter. The growing season is finished, and it’s time to prepare for winter. Food must be preserved preserved, animals need to be slaughtered, and the home must be prepared for a long, dark, cold winter. The time for rest and quiet is right around the corner.
Many believe that an invisible, membrane-like veil exists between the world of the living and the dead. During this time, that veil is especially thin. Therefor, it becomes very easy for the living and the dead to communicate with each other. As a result, this is the time when the spirits of the dead would return to visit still living relatives. It’s also considered to be a time of heightened activity for spirits of all kinds.
Spiritually, this is considered the time when the god is dying, and the goddess descends to the underworld in order to reconnect with him… if you know what I mean. This is the season of the Crone, of dark goddesses, and of gods that rule the underworld.
Samhain is also considered by many to be the witch’s new year, and time for resetting the canvas and starting fresh. During this time, we wrap up old projects, tie up loose ends, and prepare to set new goals.
Samhain Themes and Symbols
When I ask myself, “What is Samhain?”, the first place I go for inspiration is the themes of the season. This determines all my altar decor and many of my favorite celebrations. Consider what is going on in nature where you live. Then use these themes to figure out what kind of Samhain celebrations you want to have.
For example, this is the time of year where you’re doing a lot of hunting or freezer stocking, the theme of sacrifice might speak to you. If so, consider what you might sacrifice to help you make the best of your time and energy this season. If you are really feeling the theme of honoring home, family, and ancestors, choose activities and correspondences that help you connect to family, both living and dead.
Themes of Samhain
These are some of the common themes of Samhain, but don’t feel confined by this list. First and foremost, you should always listen to your intuition and defer to the cycle of the seasons in your area to honor these changes. October in England is very different from October in North Texas where I live. For this reason, I pay careful attention to seasonal cycles relevant to North Texas when trying to determine, just what is Samhain?
- family and ancestral ties – Connect to your family and ancestors. Honor or heal your generational ties.
- final harvest – but only if you’re in a region that’s wrapping up the growing season. This might not feel right if there’s already snow on the ground or if your climate is tropical year round.
- healing – Winter is the time for rest and reflection. With that rest comes deep healing.
- home and hearth – We’re about to spend a lot of time indoors. Prepare your home.
- mourning – As we honor our passed loved ones, periods of mourning are totally normal.
- preparation – Get ready for the impending winter by making sure your emergency preparations are in place.
- protection – Protect yourself from unwanted energy and the issues that winter brings.
- realized potential – This is our final harvest festival. All our hard work through the year now pays off.
- reflection – Look back at your goals from the year, and reflect on what worked and what didn’t. Bring only the good into the coming year.
- release – Let go of whatever isn’t serving you. There’s no need to carry it around anymore.
- sacrifice – What will you sacrifice in order to thrive this winter?
- transformation and transition – The thinning veil makes this a transitional time. We are in between seasons as well as being in between the living and spirit worlds. We’re also moving into winter. Consider how you will change and move forward.
- wrapping things up – The year is done. It’s time to finish up old projects, pay old debts, and prepare to start a new year.
Symbols of the Season
Think about the symbols of Halloween, and you’re on the right track. The symbols of Samhain and Halloween have a lot in common. Think dark, mysterious, and spiritually charged.
- bats – represent intuition and the space between death and rebirth.
- bonfires – represents life, home, and hearth.
- brooms and besoms – cleansing.
- cats, especially black – associated with magic and witches.
- cauldrons – feminine energy and transformation.
- crows – can bring messages from the spirit realm.
- dead and dying leaves – represents transition and dormancy.
- dead and barren sticks and herb stems – associated with dormant nature and one of my personal favorite altar decorations.
- Jack-o-lanterns – said to ward off evil spirits.
- masks – hides us from unsavory spirits and helps us view things from a different perspective, protective.
- owls – wisdom, night, and darkness.
- ravens – associated with the Morrigan, can carry messages from beyond the veil to the living world, represents awakening the higher self.
- scythes – death and mourning.
- skulls and bones – death and mourning.
- snakes – symbols of power, grace, protection, and transformation.
- spiders – shows us that we are weavers of our fate, used in folk magic for binding and banishing.
- scavenging animals such as wolves, coyotes, vultures, and birds of prey – represent the nature of survival and doing what is needed to make it through harsh winters.
- witch hats – associated with witches and magic.
Samhain Colors, Herbs, and Crystals
You can use these correspondences to bring Samhain flair to your decorations, foods, altar, and spellwork.
Samhain Colors
When choosing Samhain colors, look to nature for inspiration. Consider which plants and flowers are in bloom and the color scheme of the world outside your door. Think autumn leaves and winter squash! Here are some of the most common colors of the season.
- black – mourning, grief, protection, the dark half of the year.
- red – blood, ancestral ties .
- orange – hearth fire and warmth, seasonal leaves and produce, transformation.
- gold – gifts for ancestors, the guarantee of comfort in winter.
- purple – spiritual strength and psychic activity.
- silver – The Goddess, the moon, reflections, shadow work.
- brown – nature, the Earth, soil, roots, decay.
Herbs, Plants, and Oils of Samhain
These seasonal herbs, plants, and oils can be infused into your spells, meals, and even decor to add some herbal inspiration to your Samhain season. I am not a master herbalist or doctor. As with all medicines, treat carefully, and do your research. Don’t take unnecessary risks.
- acorns – symbols of fall and potential.
- allspice – supports immune health, good luck.
- angelica– warding and banishing.
- basil – protection, abundance.
- bay – inspires wisdom, great wishing herb.
- belladonna – astral projection, hexes and curses, divination, wisdom, cleansing (Highly toxic! Proceed with caution! Do not consume.)
- cedar – protection, tapping into ancient wisdom, strength.
- cinnamon – brings abundance and prosperity, promotes fertility and good health, shielding.
- clove – healing.
- copal – healing, spiritual growth, manifestation.
- Dittany of Crete – manifestation and spirit contact.
- garlic – supports health, blesses the home.
- ginger – protection, success, personal power.
- Hawthorne – ancestor and fairy magic.
- hemlock – associated with the Crone (Highly toxic! Proceed with caution! Do not consume.)
- rosemary – healing, protection, supports mental and psychic power.
- mandrake – protection and cursing (Poisonous! Proceed with caution!)
- marigold – associated with the Crone and ancestors, protection.
- mugwort – scrying, divination, supports lucid dreaming, astral projection, and psychic. ability (Hallucinogenic. Poisonous in large quantities. Proceed with caution. Burn in a well ventilated area)
- mums – strength.
- myrrh – healing, meditation, offerings.
- nettle – inspires courage in times of fear.
- nutmeg – brings comfort and peace in trying times.
- pine – prosperity, good health, supports persistence.
- red roses – healing, love.
- rosemary – past life recall, healing.
- sage – cleansing, healing, supports meditation.
- salt – protection and preservation.
- star anise – promotes psychic vision.
- thistle – protection and healing, courage, healing, deters evil.
- wormwood – calling spirits, psychic abilities, protection (Highly toxic! Proceed with caution! Do not consume.)
- yarrow – endurance, healing, associated with the Horned God, divination.
Samhain Crystals and Stones
These crystals and stones are perfect for home and altar decor. They’re also great for infusing your spell work and your day with the energy of Samhain. I don’t recommend putting any crystals directly in water. If you choose to use crystals in baths or elixers, I suggest using an indirect infusion method. Please do your research.
- all fossilized crystals – connect to ancient wisdom.
- amethyst – supports third eye and intuition.
- black tourmaline – protection, absorbs unwanted energy.
- bloodstone – healing, supports ancestral connection.
- carnelian – healing, protection, creative potential.
- hematite – grounding and protective, helps with connection to Earth, balances the nervous system and calms the mind, helps with feelings of safety.
- iron – protects from fairies.
- jet – protection, absorbs negativity.
- labradorite – a stone of transformation and magic.
- moonstone – hidden knowledge, the Moon, the Goddess.
- obsidian – grounding, helps process shock and trauma, a great shadow work tool, protection.
- onyx – protection, helps process shock and trauma, a great shadow work tool, healing, calming.
- rhyolite – helps you to connect past, present, and future, supports healing trauma and helps you find your true path, aids in positive transformation.
- ruby – protection, helps with goal setting, supports dream magic, helps you see that nothing is as it seems at surface level, a great support stone for shadow work.
- Selenite – supports past life recall, protects from harmful energy, helps to build energetic connections.
- silver – associated with fairies, the Moon, and the Goddess.
- smoky quartz – protection, supports transformation, helps you stay open to messages from the universe.
Flavors of Samhain
Any seasonal foods and drinks this time of year make the perfect addition to your Samhain celebration. These are some of the most common suggestions as well as a few of my favorites.
- any meat, but especially pork – representative of sacrifice.
- apple – a symbol of magic, mourning, and autumn.
- bone broth – a great use of those meat bones and sooo good for your gut.
- cider – a delicious way to utilized freshly harvested apples.
- corn and grain – represents harvest.
- fermented foods – a great way to preserve food and stay healthy through winter.
- mulled cider, wine, and mead – great for preservation, but also a popular offering to spirits and ancestors.
- nuts and seeds – squash and sunflower seeds as well as many varieties of tree nuts become ready for harvest in late fall.
- pomegranate – associated with Persephone.
- root veggies like potatoes, carrots, radishes, turnips, parsnips, onions, garlic, and rutabagas.
- soups, especially stews and squash soups with lots of bone broth and hearty veggies.
- winter greens like kale, spinach, winter lettuce, chard. Kale chips, anyone?
- Winter squash like pumpkins, butternut squash, spaghetti squash, acorn squash, pretty much any hard skinned squash.
What is Samhain? Activities to Bring Magic to Your Samhain Season
Celebrating Samhain with children? Check out this post for ideas!
Mundane Ways to Celebrate Samhain
Maybe you’re short of time or looking to get skeptical family members involved in Samhain. Perhaps you’re just not super into the witchy aesthetic, or spiritual stuff makes you uncomfortable. These fun activities are just the ticket for helping you reconnect with the cycles of the season without the pressure to include actual spell work.
- Go on a nature walk. If you’ve got kids, let them pick up sticks, leaves, flowers, and acorns. You can bring them home and set up a simple science investigation to help your little witchlings learn about the changing season. My oldest loves looking at everything under a magnifying glass, while the baby loves crunching and squishing whatever she can get her hands on!
- Research your ancestry or buy an ancestry kit to learn about who and where you come from. If you’re adopted and don’t have ties to your bio-family, I believe that your adoptive ancestors will still connect with you! They’re totally your family. Want to know if your ancestors were accused of witchcraft? Ancestry.com has a database for that now!
- Wear the colors of the season. Go simple with painted nails or a tie. Alternately, go full out with a head to toe Samhain inspired outfit.
- Get prepared. Ensure that your home and emergency supplies are in order for winter. Wrap up home renovation projects and restock your supplies.
- Reflect on the goals you set for the year. Assess what worked, and release what didn’t. Clean the slate for setting new goals at the end of winter.
- Trick-or-treat, carve pumpkins, and have a costume party for some fun!
- Watch scary movies to get into a spooky state of mind.
- Host a bonfire to inspire faith that it will be warm and bright againn.
- Settle your debts for the year. If you’re not in a position to pay them, establish a plan for doing so. Don’t take that stress into the coming year.
- Physically clean your home. Open up the doors and windows to let in the energy and flow of autumn before it gets too cold.
- Adopt a local, unkempt grave site. Clean it up and offer respect to the soul resting there.
- Fill your freezer. This is traditionally the time livestock is put up for winter. Most of us don’t need to slaughter our livestock to survive winter anymore, so many just grab some extra meats or hearty veggies to refill the freezer.
- Gather the family together and share stories about passed relatives.
Witchy Ways to Celebrate Samhain
If you want to infuse some magic into your season, these activities are perfect for all you witches at heart.
- Set up your Samhain altar. Include the colors, foods and symbols you have learned about here!
- Carve a Jack-o-lantern to place outside your door, and fend off unwanted spirits. Or go old school and carve a turnip.
- Set up an ancestral altar to honor your dead (pets included). Fill it with photos, family heirlooms, and favorite foods/drinks of your passed loved ones.
- Host a silent supper. Cook your family’s favorite foods, set table places for your passed loved ones, and eat in silence to honor your ancestors.
- Perform a year at a glance tarot pull to see what the coming year has in store for you.
- Usher the spirits home. Light a purple candle and place it in your front window to help guide the spirits of your loved ones home.
- Perform shadow work to release what no longer serves you. Tread carefully, as shadow work often brings up old traumas with a vengeance. For some, this is best done with the support of a mental health professional.
- Carry the crystals of the season with you. Choose one stone per week over the 6 or so weeks of the Samhain season. Then, make sure to pay attention to what you notice, and journal about your experience. Perhaps you’ll find a new favorite.
- Host a bonfire. Tap into some ancient tradition by bringing the flame from your bonfire inside to light the hearth. No fireplace? Not a problem. Use candles instead.
- Cleanse your home using your favorite methods.
- Make soul cakes or sugar skulls to leave out for the dead.
- Decorate and wear masks to hide yourself from unsavory spirits.
- Collect grave dirt for spells. Proceed with caution! Never take soil from an actual grave. Instead, collect from near the entrance of the cemetery. Leave an offering for the gift of the dirt, and listen to your intuition. If your gut says no, it’s best to leave the soil untouched.
- Leave offerings at the edge of a local forest for the fairies. They’re extra mischievous this time of year. They prefer natural materials and shiny things. Fairies hate iron and manmade materials. Leave your offering and don’t look back.
- Host a seance. I’m no expert on seances, so do your research, and protect yourself.
- Brew up a cup of mugwort tea and try your hand at astral projection or lucid dreaming. Be careful with your measurements so as to stay safe.
Divination for the Season
Pretty much any of your favorite forms of divination are fair game any time of year. However, these are some of my favorites that I feel truly embrace the themes of the season.
- Peel an apple skin in one long strand and throw it over your shoulder. The tossed peel is said to show the first initial of your true love.
- Pull out your favorite tarot or oracle deck.
- Practice palm reading.
- Throw bones or cast runes made of bone.
- Try your hand at scrying. Scrying with a black mirror, water, fire, crystal ball, or a scrying stone lends itself well to this time of year.
- Spirit boards
- Ogham rods
Samhain Spell Ideas for Seasonal Magic
Whether you have loads of time for an elaborate ritual, or you’re a busy witch with no spare time, you’ll find spell ideas here to perfectly suit your needs and bring in the themes of Samhain.
- Death and Mourning Workings
- Protection Spells
- Bump in the Night Protection Spell
- Protection Working Candle
- Protection Charms
- Home Protection Spells
- Healing Magic
- Self Care Rituals
- Release Rituals
- Cleansing Magic
- Curses and Hexes
- Cord Cutting Rituals
Spirits and Deities of Samhain
Samhain is the time of year for Crone goddesses, dark goddesses, and the gods of the Underworld. Here are a few examples to guide your research if deity work interests you. This list is NOT exhaustive and really only scratches the surface.
Crone goddesses
- Ama No Uzumi – Japanese Shinto ancestral goddess of longevity, protection, and psychic ability.
- Baba Yaga – Slavic goddes of the forest.
- Cerridwen – Welsh goddess of poetry, inspiration, transfiguration, and the cauldron.
- Grandmother Spiderwoman – Native American goddess responsible for giving man the sun and fire.
- Hekate – ancient goddess of the crossroads, the underworld, and death. While considered Greek, she may even predate most ancient Greek civilizations.
- Kali– Hindu goddess of death, destruction, and rebirth.
- Lilith – goddess of wild freedom, passion, and pleasure. Considered by some the first wife of Adam and a demon of Christianity, but possibly also has roots in ancient Sumerian.
- The Morrigan – Irish Celtic goddess of war and shapeshifting.
- Sedna – Inuit goddes of life and death.
- XochiQuetzal – Mexican goddess of the cycles of life.
Dark goddesses
- Circe – Greek goddess of sorcery, transformation, and witchcraft
- Demeter – Greek goddess of grain, the fields, and harvest. Mother of Persephone. Her grief at losing her daughter was said to explain the cycles of dormancy that occur each year.
- Freya – Norse goddess of love, sex, fertility, and war.
- Isis – ancient Egyptian goddess of fertility, motherhood, magic, death, and rebirth.
- Hel – Norse goddess of death.
- Inanna – ancient Mesopotamian goddess of love, fertility, and war.
- Persephone – Green goddess of Spring and queen of the underworld.
- Rhiannon – Welsh moon goddess of fertility, death and rebirth, magic, and transformation.
- Sekhmet – Egyptian goddess of war.
Gods of the Underworld
- Hades – Greek god of the underworld
- Anubis – ancient Egyptian god of the dead
- Osiris – ancient Egyptian god of the underworld
- Daghda – Irish god of life and death
- The Horned God – the male deity in Wiccan traditions who dies and goes to the underworld during this time
- Janus – the Roman god of beginnings and endings
- Cernunnos – ancient Celtic god of nature, flora, fauna, and fertility, often represented with antlers or horns similar to the Horned God.
- The Fae. This is a popular time for fairies to be out causing mischeif.
- The Fates
- Spirits of the dead
- The Puca – an Irish shapeshifter who is said to appear at night and can imitate human voices
How Do You Celebrate Samhain?
As you can see, Samhain can mean so many different things to each of us. You have a lot of options to make your Samhain magical! It all just depends on what rings true and what lines up with our surroundings.
What is your favorite way to celebrate Samhain? Do you have any traditions I didn’t mention here? I’d love to hear about them!
So, what is Samhain to you?
