Samhain: Remember Who You Are

Samhain is the end of summer – that’s the literal meaning of the Irish word that names the holy day on October 31 and the season surrounding it.

Samhain is the final harvest, when the last of the crops are gathered, and a portion of livestock is slaughtered and preserved rather than kept through the coming winter. Even those of us who don’t live an agrarian life feel the chill – both literal and metaphysical – in the air.

Samhain is the season when the Veil Between the Worlds grow thin, and we can more easily sense the presence of our beloved ancestors. Some of us have reason to believe that whatever it is that separates this world from the Otherworld is always thin, but it’s especially thin right now.

Samhain is…

Can I be honest?

I’m not feeling it this year.

Part of that is the weather here in North Texas. It was a relatively mild summer (only five days of 100° or more) but it’s been a very long summer. It was 90° on Monday, for what we hope – but can’t be sure – is the last time this year. It’s cooled off a bit this week, but temperatures are still running 7° to 8° above normal. Summer doesn’t feel over.

Part is the dysfunction and cruelty on display in this country. The federal government is shut down and those with the power to reopen it show no interest – much less urgency – to do so. Immigration is a complicated issue where good people can disagree, but previous administrations of both parties have managed to deport millions of undocumented immigrants without having storm troopers terrorizing people just trying to make a living – including legal immigrants and U.S. citizens.

In Texas, the most important issues for the Republican-dominated state government appear to be harassing trans people and eliminating rainbows from crosswalks.

The war in Ukraine continues, and while there is a tentative peace agreement in Gaza, I see no indication either side wants peace on anything other than its own terms (there are no good guys in the Hamas – Netanyahu conflict, only bad guys and victims).

I could go on – I haven’t even mentioned the economy or the continued rise of Christian nationalism – but why torture ourselves?

The bottom line is that the holiest day on the modern Pagan Wheel of the Year is rapidly approaching and I’m in no mood to celebrate.

But I’m going to celebrate anyway.

Because at Samhain – especially this Samhain – we need to remember who we are.

Remember your ancestors

Walk into the home of even the most conservative Christians and you’ll see old family portraits, artifacts, and mementos. You’ll hear stories about grandfathers and great grandmothers and those who were the first to immigrate to this country. Ancestor veneration is something so basic to human culture that people do it without even thinking about it.

As a Pagan, I do my best to be deliberate about remembering my ancestors. I pray to them every day. I make offerings to them every week. And at this time of year I break out the old pictures, remember the old stories, look over the family tree. I don’t have the details that my genealogy-obsessed cousin has, but I have enough to feel like I know where I came from.

The further back we go, the more the family tree becomes a bush with many roots and many branches. I know few of those ancestors’ names, but I know enough history to know they faced challenges far worse than anything I’m having to deal with. That doesn’t minimize my own challenges – other people’s greater suffering doesn’t lessen yours. But knowing that they lived meaningful, successful, and happy lives despite bad situations gives me confidence that I can too.

Remembering my ancestors is part of who I am.

Acknowledge death

When we honor our ancestors, we realize that sooner or later we will be the ancestors. None of us will live forever, at least not in this world.

Our mainstream society likes to ignore death, to hide from it, to deny the reality of aging with hair treatments and plastic surgery and desperate attempts to hold onto power – especially for those in high political offices. I’m at a point where I know I have far more days behind me than in front of me, and while I have much I want to do – and intend to do – in my remaining years, I have to acknowledge death is coming.

And that’s OK. Death is inevitable… and it’s necessary. Death does not end things – it changes them, transforms them, prepares them for something… more.

At Samhain we contemplate death, talk with our long-dead ancestors, and journey to the Otherworld. Then when our own death eventually arrives we will not be frightened. We know where we’re going and what it will be like, because we’ve been there before.

Magic and witchcraft

Two years ago at Samhain, I claimed the title of witch. My practice has always been very witchcraft-adjacent, but I saw no need to call myself a witch when my primary spiritual identities are Druid, polytheist, and of course Pagan. But given the direction of current events, I felt obligated to choose a side. I chose witchcraft.

Regardless of what you call yourself, Samhain is a season for magic. Part of that is the liminal space between this world and the Otherworld. Part is the mainstream connection to Halloween – more people think about magic this time of year, so more people do magic, so magic in general is stronger.

I have two long-term magical workings going to close out this segment of my life and to move on the next segment. I recharge and reinforce those workings periodically – I’ll be doing that again between now and the end of the month.

Samhain is also a time for divination. I did a Tarot reading for my mid-range future earlier this week. It showed that I’m headed in the right direction. I just have to keep putting in the work – both ordinary work and magical work – and I’ll get there. That’s encouraging news, especially now.

I’m an engineer – I like tangible plans and tangible actions. But I’m also someone who understands that when ordinary paths are blocked, we still have magic.

Listen for the call of the Morrigan

I am a sworn Druid of the Morrigan – listening for her and to her is what I do. Samhain is her season, in part because of her connection with death, and in part because some of her most notable actions attested in lore occurred at Samhain. (Morgan Daimler pointed out that the Bed of the Couple took place a week before Samhain, and the day before Samhain was when the Tuatha De Danann gathered for battle).

I’m leading the Samhain ritual at Denton CUUPS this year. Herself was quite clear on what she wants in the ritual: a call to action, to challenge people to reclaim their sovereignty and live their lives their way, in accordance with her values and virtues. And so we will.

I pray to the Morrigan every day. I make offerings to her every week. When the occasion calls for it, I lead rituals in her honor. That’s more than what I do – it’s part of who I am.

I like this season

October is the best month. Even if it doesn’t feel like October, the temperatures are cooling, the days are shortening, and better days are ahead.

I don’t know when better days are coming, in a general sense. I can’t control the weather, or the climate, or the politics, or the mainstream culture.

But I can remember who I am.

I’m someone who honors the many Gods, and especially the Morrigan.

I’m someone who remembers my ancestors, and who takes inspiration from their stories.

I’m someone who understands that when ordinary means of change fail, we still have magic.

I’m someone who accepts that death is inevitable, and who knows there is no reason to fear change.

This is who I am. When times are good, when times are bad, when times are frustrating, this is who I am.

At Samhain, remember who you are.