Halloween - History and origins
could not miss in this section, the true story of Halloween ...
As most of people believe this is an American holiday and as such should be minimized and criticized, I decided to reveal the scoop: Halloween is a European festival, with important references to Catholic festivals ... incredible is not it? Read, read ...
First name origins and draws Catholic on the November day when, in the Catholic calendar, are celebrated All Saints. The celebration of "All Saints", in English "All Saints' Day", also called All Hallows' Day "at the ancients, from the very beginning of the sunset on October 31, so the evening of October 31 took the name" All Hallows' Even, then the contract in "Halloween." However, the celebration of this festival has its roots much more distant and alien to Catholicism, in fact, the ancient Celts, inhabitants of England, France and Ireland, used to celebrate the start of The new year on November, the day marking the end of the hot season and the beginning of the cold. For this reason, the night of Oct. 31 and in November I was a very intense and solemn, and was the most important celebration of the Celtic calendar, called "Samhain." In fact there are many ancient legends set in the night of Samhain, most of which relate to the fertility of the earth, the kingdom of darkness and his God, Samhain note, although no reliable evidence to establish whether that Samhain was also a deities as well as a celebration. It is certain that for the Celts this anniversary is especially important because, as a people entirely devoted to agriculture, the arrival of cold weather radically changed their habits and forced them to spend the most time in casa.Un ' other Celtic belief stated that October 31 Samhain, the God of Darkness, recalling for all the spirits of the dead, Knock down the laws of space and time and allow the spirits to return to earth and join the living. It is also believed that the dead dwells in a land of eternal youth and happiness that "Tirnan Oge" and that sometimes they could live in the hills along with the characteristics of the area Pay scozzese.Secondo another legend on October 31 the dead returned to earth to possession of the body of the living, so in the villages were turned off all the households, to ward off spirits. This was a real ritual involving the whole population and was to shut down the Sacred Fire the altar and all the homes, and then again the next morning with a new fire wood collection from house to house by children (see Trick or Treat), symbol of the beginning of the new year. Turn off the heat symbolized the arrival of the dark part of the year, while on again testify to the hope and confidence for the new year, and symbolized the cyclical nature of time. It is said that at dusk were rekindled the fire to burn offerings, but also those who were considered possessed. They were also cast spells to ward off spirits and guide them to their land. The dusk, in fact, was the time when the spirits could roam the earth and with their help Samhain could imprison the Sun depriving people the main source of life. Therefore, the sacrifices were offered to appease the spirits and the divinity itself. Stories and legends also speak of human sacrifice, not only in the case of possession ... The festival of Halloween, as is understood in the modern sense, probably derives from the custom of the Celts to disguise himself, after the sacrifices of the night of October 31, the skins of animals killed to frighten the spirits and celebrate for three days. Thus disguised return to their village with lanterns lighting up the path consisting of turnips carved and filled with the embers of the sacred fire (see Jack O'Lantern). The typical colors of these celebrations, which remained in vogue for centuries and also used today for Halloween, they were orange and black, orange to commemorate the harvest and the end of the summer, and black to symbolize the arrival of the season of darkness. When the Romans invaded Britain they found themselves in contact with these bizarre celebrations and at the same time as they too honored the goddess of fruit (Pomona), offering apples to ensure the fertility of the earth, the worship of Samhain and Pomona, with the time, unified. The practice of sacrifice was abandoned, giving way to tender, while the custom of dressing up was part of the ceremony. This tradition, being deeply rooted among the population, was not left out even with the advent of Christianity, despite the two cults were obviously incompatible. Among the various attempts made by the Catholic Church to root out these rites is surely important to Pope Gregory in 835 moved the feast of All Saints' Day from May 13 to the first of November. However, the influence of the cult of Samhain was not eradicated, so in the tenth century, the Church added a new holiday: November 2, All Souls' Day, in memory of the souls of deceased loved ones were wearing angels and devils, and lit a great falò.Tuttavia the ancient Celtic ritual has never disappeared, just think of the modern Halloween, which is currently the most pagan and anti-Catholic party imaginable.
Trick or Treat Trick or
The Treat is definitely the most entertaining of the American version of Halloween: in the States on the evening of October 31 is easy to see swarms of children dressed as fairies, vampires & company knocking on the doors of neighbors to ask for fun "Trick or Treat?" . Generally every family prepares a certain stock of sweets, candies and snacks to give to the child sprites in exchange for their kindness, but the unfortunates who are without a candy children unsheathe their worst repertoire of tricks .. . Some examples? Let's say you emptied the trash you may find yourself in your beautiful garden, dug holes, eggs thrown at your front door, or cans empty linked to the exhaust pipe of your car ... really a hoot! Where did this custom? Even here there are several options, of which two seem most plausible of the other: one has Christian origins, dates back to the other rites celtici.La first hypothesis says that the Trick or Treat has originated from a practice in vogue in the ninth century AD that "souling," that is "begging the soul." This term comes from the fact that I November, the All Saints Day, early Christians roamed the villages begging for the "soul cake" (Sweet Soul) a square cake made with bread dough and decorated with raisins and currants . For each received promised a sweet prayer for the dead relatives of the donors. This is because it was believed that the dead remained in limbo for a specified period, before going to Heaven, and that the prayers of strangers, as well as those of relatives, could shorten the stay in this place. In the Middle Ages was still in vogue the practice of souling, however, were the children to practice more and to go door to door to ask for soul cakes, just like American kids do today. Again the children had to recite a prayer for the dead each received sweet. Meanwhile, religious beliefs were a little 'change, so the prayers of the children were no longer to shorten their stay in limbo, but in purgatory, an intermediate realm between Heaven and Hell where the dead discount for a certain period their pain and then ascended into heaven. Just as today's American children singing nursery rhymes to ask for sweets, even in medieval times the children sang "the song of the soul cake" ... Let's look in comparison! You will notice that in the modern version is totally missing the religious aspect ...
medieval version
"A Soul Cake!
A Soul Cake!
Have mercy
On all Christian souls
For a Soul Cake!
A Sweet Soul!
A Sweet Soul!
Have mercy for all Christian souls
For Sweet Soul! "
modern version
" Trick or Treat Trick or Treat
Give me something
Good to eat!
Trick or Treat Trick or Treat
Give me something good to eat! "
A second option is to go back Celts this type of practice: in fact it was the custom of these people dress up in terrifying ways and paraded through the streets to ward off evil spirits from their cities, while their children turned from house to house to collect firewood to light a huge bonfire to downtown. When this fire was lit the fires of all the houses were shut down, only to be rekindled with the embers from the bonfire of Samhain as a symbol of unity among the villagers. The Celts, Samhain was the celebration for the new year and their gods for this purpose we dressed as the gods and went house to house to ask for food to be offered to dei.Come can see the custom to turn for home Home appears in all these practices were presumably all contributed to the Halloween party as we know it today ... Here is yet another example, if proof were needed, that Halloween was a uniquely European tradition and, moreover, also has Christian roots ...
Jack O'Lantern
Everyone knows that the carved pumpkin is the symbol of Halloween, but the most unaware that it is a modern symbol, an icon in the era of globalization has become a series of gadgets that are selling in stores on Oct. 31 when approached ... In fact, the tradition of placing lanterns inside carved pumpkins is utterly foreign the Halloween party, as was intended by the ancients, but rather stems from an Irish legend that once landed in the United States, has undergone some changes ... For example, never believe that the pumpkin was originally a turnip? But first things first ... As I said, this is probably one of Irish legend, which tells the story of one Jack ... that Jack, an old blacksmith scoundrel and a drunkard, he was on his way home on the evening of All Saints, drunk as usual ... Was about to leave the skin due to a bout of liver cirrhosis, but Satan, with a little 'before he went to claim his soul when Jack still had a bit' of lucidity. Jack, you old rogue, pulled out the ace from his sleeve: pity Satan, convinced him to fulfill his last wish, that is, drink a glass of beer. But, not having enough money, also asked him to turn into a coin from 6 pence to allow him to buy beer. Satan, who in this legend takes on the appearance of a poor fool, he accepted ... so the evil Jack put the coin in her purse, along with a silver crucifix, and Satan was trapped because, under the influence of the crucifix, she could not revert. Jack Satan freed on condition that put back a year before the date of his death and the Devil could not do otherwise, he accepted. Jack then made the good intentions for the coming year, but after a few days he found himself leading a dissolute life the same time, until ... came back the evening of All Saints, and Satan came on time to claim his soul. Jack played the joker again and that Satan, like a few idiot, yet he agreed to fulfill the dying wish of Jack, who really knew more of the devil: in fact this time he wanted to eat an apple, and asked Satan to help him get it. Satan did not know that "He who lives by the sword, dies by the sword," and, forgetting that the play of the apple she had invented him, went up on Jack's shoulders to catch the fruit. Meanwhile, Jack carved a cross on the bark of the tree, rubbing for the second time the Devil, which is not could no longer get ... these, pity for Jack, he promised to leave him alone for ten years, but the good Jack claims that even Satan can not claim more than his soul! Satan reluctantly agreed, but the guts to Jack, unaware of these agreements, after a year dropped. So the legend goes that Jack was not only not accepted, of course, in heaven, because of his conduct in life, but even in Hell, where Satan, reminding him of the promise, blocked his way. Discouraged, Jack looked back and saw only darkness ... then asked one last favor to the devil, asking him to help him find his way. Satan, who in this bizarre legend looked like Mother Teresa of Calcutta, helped him again and gave him an ember burning with flames of Hell. Jack, for reasons not clear that he had a big tent, a carved and she put in the coal to light the road. Legend has it that Jack is still wandering in the darkness with her rape and that, on Halloween night, you can see in the distance the flame of Jack of the Lantern! But the pumpkin, then, what the hell got to do, you ask ? Well, it is said that the Irish who landed in the States in the mid-nineteenth century, fled from their homeland because of famine, they found in the U.S. territory of turnips big enough to be carved ... On the other hand, however, found many large pumpkins, that could be used similarly. And what we did the Irish with the pumpkins? Simple, used them to ward off the spirits from the houses that, like Jack, the night of All Saints were trying to return to casa.Strana legend, but really nice ...!
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