Samhain in the Southern Hemisphere; The Witches New Year
Samhain (pronounced Sow-in) means ‘the end of summer’ and is the last of the three harvest festivals. It is a time of remembering those who have gone before us. In the Southern Hemisphere, traditionally Samhain falls on April 30th – May 1st. Samhain gives us an opportunity to understand that for life to continue, there must be death. As the wheel turns towards the longest night of the year, we say farewell to the light. The Sun King passes into the Underworld where He awaits His rebirth at Yule. The Goddess reigns as the powerful Crone. Now is Her time. Heavily pregnant with Her lover’s child, She prepares for His re-birth. She is the Wise Woman. The Seer. It is a time of sacrifice as the Goddess mourns Her lover, yet She understands that this is how it must be. The seeds of the harvest lay dormant in the Earth. And so, the wheel turns. Without death, there can be no rebirth. Without sacrifice, there can be no survival.
While we celebrate this sabbat in May, in the Northern Hemisphere it is traditionally celebrated on October 31. This date immediately brings to mind the secular American tradition of Halloween – commercialised skeletons, zombies and jack-o-lanterns with children going door to door trick-or-treating for candy – however, Halloween is not Samhain. There is still some resemblance to the roots of the pagan Hallowe’en (hallow meaning holy) with pumpkins being carved to protect the home and costumes being donned to hide from evil spirits. Even trick-or-treating comes from the tradition of ‘Souling’ where beggars would go door to door hoping to be given a Soul Cake in exchange for prayers to the family’s dearly departed. Some scholars believe early Christian missionaries celebrated All Hallow’s Eve at this time in an attempt to convert pagans over to Christianity. For modern day pagans, Samhain is a time of reflection and honouring our ancestors who have gone before us, known and unknown.
This is a time of sacrifice. The Sun King sacrifices his light and dies to allow for rebirth. In the Northern Hemisphere in times gone by, the cold weather and snow meant large farmed herds of meat animals could not be sustained and were slaughtered and the meat smoked and cured to ensure food for the winter. This sacrifice also meant the herd continued to survive the cold winter with the limited amount of food available. In Australia, we commemorate ANZAC Day on April 25th. We honour our dead and the sacrifice they have made for our nation. Rosemary is planted around war memorials for remembrance and poppies (which contain opium) are worn as a show of respect for those soldiers resting in eternal slumber.
Here in Australia, the heat of summer has left us. In the north of the country, the wet season comes to a close with cooler nights. In the south, the air is crisp and cool and nature too is reminding us to let go and prepare for rebirth with deciduous trees shedding their leaves. Geraldton wax, red ironbark and paperbark are flowering. Wattle buds are forming. Dingoes and goannas are mating. Birds begin flying north for the winter and emus begin their breeding season. As the Antarctic sea ice thickens with the coming winter, Emperor penguins start to mate. Whales begin their migration to the warmer waters and breeding grounds off the coast of Australia. Fungi appears in the forest as a perfect representation of the cycle of death and rebirth breaking down dead material to allow for new life to emerge. The cold is on its way, and with it comes the harvest of winter produce – lemons, limes, mandarins, rhubarb, beetroot, cabbage, squash, brussel sprouts and cauliflower are all in season now. With the cooler nights, it’s a perfect time to make apple crumble and pumpkin soup.
Samhain is the Feast of the Dead. We know the danger of the coming winter, yet we feast and make merry while we can. We honour our ancestors who have gone into the darkness before us. This is a perfect time to leave offerings for deceased love ones. Bury apples in your yard for those who have passed over on their journey. Perhaps light a candle and place it in a window to guide lost souls home or set an empty place at the table in honour of loved ones who are no longer with you. Leave a plate of food and glass of wine outside as an offering. Invite your deceased loved ones to join you, but don’t attempt to summon them to you. If your loved one is at peace, don’t disturb them. Or perhaps you believe death is the end and that there is no afterlife or SummerLand. You may simply wish to reflect on what these loved ones meant to you in the time you had with them.
Samhain is a time of reflection, allowing us to look back over the last year. With the veil between the worlds being very thin at this time, divination and communication with the spirit realm is heightened. Use this energy to embrace the new, write down your concerns of the past year and submit them to the flames allowing the fire to act as a beacon to attract positive energy into your life. Now is an ideal time to begin or renew your spiritual studies or to initiate or rededicate yourself to walking this path. Complete any unfinished projects now so that you can start fresh in the New Year ready to be reborn along with the Sun King at Yule.
There is one thing we have no control over in this life and that is death.
How comfortable are you with death? Do you view it as a cycle of life and how can you apply this to your own life and goals? What must die away to enable new growth to come? What needs to happen to enable rebirth to occur? Are you living your authentic truth? And if not, what is standing in your way?
You are ready dear heart. Allow the old to pass over to make room for the (re)birth of amazing new things in your life.
Written by Courtney Stark with authors own images.
With thanks to the following reference sources;
Cameron, C. &. (2015). A Wiccan’s Walk in Oz: Perspectives From The Southern Hemisphere. Wamuran: Celticai Publishing.
Cunningham, S. (1988). Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner. St. Paul, Minnesota: Llewellyn Publications.
Cunningham, S. (2009). Book of Shadows: The Path of an American Traditionalist. Woodbury, Minnesota: Llewellyn Publications.
Ezzy, D. (2003). Practising the Witch’s Craft: real magic under a southern sky. Crows Nest: Allen & Unwin .
