What Is Samhain? Meaning, Traditions, and Simple Ways to Celebrate the Witch’s New Year

Samhain (pronounced sow-in) is an ancient Celtic festival marking the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter or the darker half of the year.

It’s celebrated from sunset on October 31st to sunset on November 1st, a sacred time when the veil between our world and the spirit realm is said to be at its thinnest.

This is the origin of many modern Halloween traditions, but at its heart, Samhain is deeply spiritual. It’s a time to slow down, honor the dead, connect with your ancestors, and reflect on the cycles of life, death, and rebirth.

Often considered the witches New Year, Samhain is a moment to release what no longer serves you, express gratitude for your personal harvest, and plant seeds of intention for the season ahead.

How to Celebrate Samhain:

Decorate
Decorate with pumpkin, squash & gourds to represent seasonal abundance & to honor nature. Samhain is all about celebrating the harvest and the culmination of the year - what can you display or give gratitude for that represents your harvest?

Candles
Lighting candles during Samhain is a traditional way to help spirits find their way home.

Connect with Nature
Find ways to connect with and honor nature by spending time outside. Even just a short mindful walk can be a great way to feel connected to mother earth.

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Dumb Supper
Make a feast. Leave some food outside & pour out wine as an offering. Keep a seat at your table open for spirit to join (including ancestors, spirit guides, angels, etc.)

Ancestors
Honor your ancestors with an altar & prayer. On your altar, consider placing items that remind you of the ancestor. If you don’t know your ancestors, consider tapping into intuition to see what you feel called to include. Perhaps consider what part of the world did they live in? What types of foods were enjoyed? Was it hot or cold climate? Questions like this can help to inspire you to add different items to your altar. Photos, trinkets, leaves, rocks, pumpkins, water, candles and even a food offering can be placed at this altar.

Spirits & Mediumship
During Samhain the veil between our world and the spirit realm is thin, this makes it a great time to practice your mediumship abilities. If you are a baby witch or someone who has not practiced mediumship before, please do your research to keep yourself and your home safe.

Releasing
Consider writing a list of all the things you want to release in your life and burn it during your Samhain ritual. Things on your list can be ‘negative’ qualities or traits that no longer serve you, memories you want to let go of, experiences you want to move past, and outdated ways of thinking or behaving.

Intention
Set intention for the upcoming darker half of the year by journaling & reflecting on the past year. What do you still want to accomplish? What feels complete? What lessons have you been learning?

Death
Celebrate the circle of life by acknowledging that death is one thing we all have in common. We are all walking towards death, so let’s consider how we can walk one another home safely.