Happy Halloween By Andrea Sipcic
Over the years, Halloween has come to be known as a day to dress up as someone or something you are not, collect candy, share scary stories and party. While these traditions have been wrapped up into western culture, many of the traditions, customs and beliefs have been intertwined into and share roots within the spiritual community and its different spiritual practices. Amongst many contemporary, western cultures, Halloween is the one time of year when spiritualists from psychics to witches to warlocks, can openly display and express their true spiritual roots through costume, home decor (inside and out) and free speech without judgment or scrutiny. It's the one time it is most accepted and not regarded as some type of weird act of “voodoo.” Halloween has roots in the well-known, 3000 year old Mexican holiday called The Day of the Dead. It is not the Mexican version of Halloween, as is commonly thought, rather an inspiration for Halloween. The Day of the Dead is a blend of Mesoamerican ritual, European religion and Spanish Culture, which is celebrated from October 1st to November 2nd. On the Day of the Dead, families welcome back their deceased relatives for a short time with food, drink and celebration, as it is believed that the border between the spirit world and the real world dissolves at midnight on October 31st and the spirits of children can join their families for 24 hours. The Spirits of adults can do the same on November 2nd. During this brief time, the souls of the deceased awaken and return to the living world with their families to feast, drink and dance. Treating the deceased as guests, the living leave their favourite foods and offerings at gravesites or at their homes. This is similar to the contemporary trick or treating of Halloween. Specially allocated areas in their homes called ofrendas, are decorated with things like candles and pictures of deceased family members, as can often be seen in present day Halloween house decorating.
