The origin of Halloween is even weirder than you might think
Celtic priests, referred to as Druids, believed that their 'powers' would be magnified during this time.
VAMPIRES, werewolves and black-hat-wearing women dubbing themselves witches for 24 hours, all in the name of Halloween… and candy of course.
But people actually have no idea what this age old tradition is actually about. And yet, in fact, it has to do with ghosts, so continue donning those outfits and nobody should call you a fool.
This age-old tradition originated in ancient Europe, some 2 000 years ago when the ancient Celtics first celebrated Samhain. Bonfires would be lit and costumes would be worn to scare off ghost in the country now known as Ireland.
According to ancient superstition, the theory is that the festival marked the end of summer, thus the end of the harvest season.
It is believed that Halloween marked the night before the New Year and that at this period, the boundaries between the afterlife and the living would be weaker, resulting in the dead being able to cross over to the world of the living.
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Celtic priests, referred to as Druids, believed that their ‘powers’ would be magnified during this time.
In a severe time of uncertainty, especially for a civilization entirely dependent on nature, the Druids would predict the future to ease the concerns of the Celtic people, especially during the start of Winter.
To celebrate the event, animal sacrifices would be made, bonfires would be lit and some crops would be burnt as an offering to ancient Celtic deities.
Come November 1, the day believed to be New Year, Dagda – the protector of the tribe – would have sexual intercourse with the Celtic goddess most commonly referred to as Morrigan.
This intercourse was believed to ensure the well-being and future prosperity of the Celts.
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Come 43AD, the Roman Empire had conquered much of the Celtic lands, and during their 400 year long rule, the traditional Celtic festival of Samhain would be combined with two other festivals of Roman origin.
According to History.com the first festival was referred to as Feralia. This was a day near the end of October in which tribute would be paid to the dead.
The second festival, was in honour of Pomona, the Roman goddess of fruit and trees.
And now today, people around the world practice Halloween in the form of ‘trick or treat’, where costumes of all sorts would be donned, and people would roam about town from house to house either for something sweet or a devilish trick.
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