Remembering Traditions

07 November 2015



At this time of year people all over the UK are lighting fires and setting off fireworks, there may also have been some trick and treating going on, and the baking of soul cakes, treacle toffee and parkin.   The origins of all of this is much disputed.

The Celts celebrated their New Year at this time of year with their Samhain festival, we now think of that as being the 31 October but given that our current calendar has only been in use since the 1750s (in the UK) it could have been on any day at this time of year.  It was more likely to have been linked to the moon and night time* hours.  All the Celtish festivals were celebrated on the Eve, which is how this festival may have transitioned over time to All Hallows Eve and then Halloween.

This was a time for communicating with your dead ancestors, paying your respects, they were often perceived as hungry and in need of nourishment, places would be laid at the table so that they could join the feast.  A spirit of the dead invited to such a feast was a geist, a german word and the route of the words ghost and guest.  It is thought this gave route to the Christian festival All Souls Night.  Celebrating on the eve meant that this time belonged neither to the Old Year or the New it was 'in between' a time when the dead could pass from one world to the another along with Faeries, Elves and other mischief makers.  It was only safe to go out in disguise......

It is a time when we are heading into the dark (in the Northern Hemisphere), the earth dies and rests waiting for the returning sun to germinate its seeds.  Mother Earth has often been represented as a goddess, it is thought she was represented in black at this time of year.  Over time the dark nature of the goddess became an object of fear and for many years suffered persecution, witch hunts, or could be the scapegoat for disasters, natural or otherwise.

All this mischief and evil spirits roaming the earth needed warding off.  In some places Rowan was used or a offering of food to appease them, or carving turnips into faces and putting candles inside.

Fires have most likely been lit for centuries at important times of the year not only as a light in the darkness but as a means of rekindling and celebrating.  It is thought that all fires were extinguished at Samhain and new ones kindled from a main ceremonial fire.  If this ritual continued for centuries it could have become connected with Guy Fawkes, a man who was part of a plot to blow up the Houses of Parliament in London in 1605.  We know for certain that parliament decreed in 1606 that November 5 should be kept as a day of thanksgiving for lives spared.  The burning of a guy on the bonfire is a Victorian addition.

Over this weekend we have Remembrance Sunday, the nearest Sunday to the date of the Armistice of the First World War.  A time to remember all those who have fought and died for peace in our country.  Services are held, wreaths laid and a two minute silence observed at 11am the time of the armistice.  As a child there would be many veterans of WW1 at these services, now they all dead and we are approaching a centenary of the end of the War.  The technologies available now mean that we have many records which will, we hope, survive for many a year.  But like all the traditions celebrated at this time of year will it change over time particularly after many generations?

Whatever the root or origin of a festival, they will always change through time, a melting pot of influences bringing people together to celebrate. The changes they have seen over time seem all the more poignant in a year of such terrible unrest in the world. Persecution is a dreadful human trait. There is a thread of remembering running through this time of year, pulling all these festivals from the past, present, and hopefully the future, together. A time of reflection.

We have been remembering our ancestors who are no longer with us. My children have sadly lost a grandparent young, this is an important time of year for us to bring his memory alive. To talk about the happy times we had together, look at pictures and treasured objects. This is not something we did a few years ago, as he was still with us, so we have created a new tradition in our family, born of a need to keep memories alive. It seems natural then that our ancestors through time would have wanted to do the same.

********************


* The Romans recorded the Celts as measuring their calendar in nights rather than days

21 comments:

  1. What an interesting post - well researched. It's funny how all the ancient traditions become kind of mixed up to what we have today. Like you say, a melting pot. This has never been my favourite month but I do try to be positive about it these days - although looking out of the window this morning at the rain falling from a heavy sky it is hard to find anything to be positive about.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. After a while the rain and grey gets you doesn't it!

      Delete
  2. Fascinating and thought provoking post.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Yes, " a melting pot of influences" :-). We will be hanging up pictures of loved ones and remembering and praying for them through the month of November x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I like the idea of remembering them for the month rather than just a day :)

      Delete
  4. What a gorgeous shot! And thank you for this fascinating story!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It was actually taken in the summer when we were camping. The weather is so dreary and grey here that it is really difficult to get good pictures :(. Glad you enjoyed reading :)

      Delete
  5. That is very informative, thanks for taking the time to post it. It's so easy to 'celebrate' all these traditions without really taking time to understand the origins.
    I like your new tradition for remembering your familys grandparent, it must be very healing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You are welcome :). I struggle to 'celebrate' when I don't know the meaning behind it or it is something I am not comfortable with.

      Delete
  6. What a stunning photo. So much wonderful information in this post, thanks for sharing. We celebrate quite a few different festivals throughout the year, and I so love researching them, and discovering their origins.

    Hope you are enjoying your weekend.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am trying to bring them into our lives in a meaningful way. I too am researching them to find out if they fit with our way of life and what we believe.

      Delete
  7. What a beautiful sunset - well captured! It is interesting that you mention Armistice Day - it is not something that is widely celebrated here, but I just read something about it tonight! I am reading Citizen Soldiers by Stephen Ambrose about WWII and one of the quotes is from a soldier who remembered that it was Armistice Day, while he was fighting on the German border in the next war.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Armistice Day is a Brittish thing, celebrated in the UK and commonwealth countries. It marks the end of fighting for British soldiers in WW1

      Delete
  8. What an interesting post. There's so many traditions celebrated around this time of year but I must admit that I really don't know that much about their origins so I've definitely learnt something here today.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I loved reading all the traditions here. Great post.

    ReplyDelete
  10. A very interesting, well informed post. Thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  11. What a wonderful post, thank you for all this history. I love knowing how traditions are born, how celebrations (and the people that celebrate them) evolve through time.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I do too, it makes the tradition more meaningful to me.

      Delete

Hello......would love to hear from you :)