Samhain - Halloween Week

[pyewacket]

Please share stories about paganism, witchcraft and folk magic with us.

http://www.mysticalraven.com/spirituality/the-last-of-the-granny-witches/

The Last Of The Granny Witches
Posted on October 26, 2015 1:48 pm by Raven Fon Comment

We are a peculiar breed. Our roots grow deeper than the cedars, and yet we don’t know precisely where or who it is that we grew from. We are a mystery as old as these hills themselves, and it doesn’t take much figuring to know that we are enigmas of intentional design and destiny.

God knows our names.

We are not Northerners â€" damn Yankees, the men folks’ Confederate influence called them â€" and this we know without a doubt. I myself was always preened into believing I was a Southern child, born out of notions of gallantry and romance, but the fact is, I ain’t a low country belle and I’ve never picked a shred of cotton or been to a debutante ball.

We are not peaches.

And these mountain women before us were not delicate flowers or distressed coquettes. In these old heirloom hills, the women are as tough as the men, and then some. There was only one person Papaw was leery of, and that was Mamaw. No, you are not a peach, never mind how long you’ve thought you were or the times your daddy said so. No, you’re not. You are not easily bruised fruit. The blood in our veins is laced with old magic and the secrets of the noble savants before us.

We are the last of the granny witches.

The old ones, the original Appalachian queens, were daughters of the Celts and the offspring of Druids and medieval mavens and the natives of the old world craft, and we are their children. And although we are indeed as mysterious as these old hills, we still have that Celt and Cherokee elder magic in our bones.

I have beheld divination in my grandmother’s kitchen as she would foretell future events spelled out in the remnants of black tea or coffee grounds on the bottom of a common porcelain cup. With my own eyes I have witnessed warts and scars blown clean off the skin with nothing more than a believing breath and a skyward nod towards The Maker. Those magic women, those healers of wounds and tellers of fortunes and hex casters never considered themselves anything but noble and proud and God-fearing, and it didn’t bother them to be called a granny witch or a bee charmer or a medicine woman. These were gifts to them from the Divine.

And I recall bed sheets over mirrors in rooms where some tired soul had just given up the ghost. Nobody wants to be haunted forever, not even by somebody they once loved, and so they cover up the mirror so the spirit won’t see themselves and linger around. Ain’t a’ one of us needs a specter in the house. That’s why Sister Brown paints her ceiling haint blue. You just never know and can never be too sure. Some folks don’t know when to leave, even after they’re dead. And the horseshoe hanging upright above the front door won’t do a thing for the spirits, but at least your luck won’t ever run out.

And you do such things yourself, too, and likely have never spent a juncture of a thought as to why, or from where or who, or for what consequence. I would wager you’d never pick up a coin that’s face down or cross the path of a black cat without blessing yourself (or at least thinking that you’re not superstitious anyway and you convince yourself there’s no need give that cat a second thought), and your very blood will chill when a broken clock starts a tick-tick-ticking again, for you already know what that means, and it’s not to tell the time.

There once was many more of us, back in the old days when it seemed like God was sleeping somewhere over on the mountain and the old ones ruled the land and fended for themselves. But that time has long gone. We must work harder to preserve our magic, for it is fading into the background noise of technology and naysayers and law men that tell us we are common simple folk and feed us pills and poverty to quiet us. I fear that we are truly the last of the granny witches, the last tellers of tales, and that will be the end of our magic.

Some of us have already lost it.

But that old blood still courses through my veins, and perhaps you can feel it, too, when the sparrow smashes against a window or the cow moos after dark. What we send out into the yonder surely comes back home to us, eventually. It always has.

Send out your magic. Don’t be the last of your kind. We are the daughters of the Celts and the offspring of Druids and medieval mavens and the natives of the old world craft. And yes, God knows your name. Tell your tales and bewitch history, just like the mother mountains with her ages of charm and mystery, where peaches have never grown.

[albrecht]

I ran across this some years ago. Interesting that some of the "old ways" survived even to America after migration.

http://www.amazon.com/Black-Books-Elverum-Mary-Rustad/dp/1880090759

[Eddie Coyle]

   Ancestry.com's only value to me would be tracking down my last pure pagan forebear. Unfortunately all roads thus far lead to those who carried the curse of Constantine.

[pyewacket]

A great collection of info and history on Appalachian Folk Magick. Lots of charms, remedies, haints, curses, and folk lore.

http://forum2.aimoo.com/ChalandorBOS/Pagan-Paths/Appalachian-Folk-Magick-1-205497.html

[maureen]

offering for the Day of the Dead

[starrmtn001]

Thank you for this Thread pyewacket.  It is an absolute Gem! 

[pyewacket]

offering for the Day of the Dead

My daughter lives in the southwest and really enjoys this particular holiday and traditions. She has made white chocolate skulls and decorated them in the style that her friends taught her. 

[pyewacket]

Thank you for this Thread pyewacket.  It is an absolute Gem! 

You're welcome, star! Happy to enjoy spooky stories with friends. 

[pyewacket]

   Ancestry.com's only value to me would be tracking down my last pure pagan forebear. Unfortunately all roads thus far lead to those who carried the curse of Constantine.

Why depend on ancestors, Eddie- pave the way for your descendants. Be that spooky weird branch in your family tree. 

[pyewacket]

I ran across this some years ago. Interesting that some of the "old ways" survived even to America after migration.

http://www.amazon.com/Black-Books-Elverum-Mary-Rustad/dp/1880090759

Thank you for the book recommendation, albrecht. It looks like a good one to add to my reading list. 

[UnscreenedCaller]

Bobbing for apples is an old Celtic solar custom where the apple represents the sun dropped into the sea of Annwn (Welsh lord of the underworld)  at yuletide when the days are shortest, and being snatched out and saved and so the days grow longer again.  https://www.facebook.com/gillian.smith.182940/posts/10206491503179776

Samhain is the end of the old year and beginning of the new in the old Celtic pagan solar calendar, and represents the night when the veil between this and the otherworld is at it's thinnest. The Catholic church made November 1st All Saints Day and November 2nd All Souls Day, when people customarily have masses said for deceased relatives and say prayers for the souls in purgatory, but the true roots of these and All Hallow's Eve are in Samhain.  Good Catholic girl that I once was, I was blown away when I first learned about this.

Great thread, pye. Blessed Samhain.

[trostol]

SAMHAIN APPLES FOR THE DEAD

Many Witches and Pagans, as a matter of tradition, bury apples or other fruit near to the front door as offerings for the dead as they travel between the worlds on this day, when the veils between life and death are thinnest and most easily pushed back. The tradition is an old one and city Pagans lament their lack of earth next to a front door to carry it on. One might as well lament a lack of chimney and tell a child Santa cannot come this Christmas!!!

This is easily remedied and makes a beautiful ritual. Simply bury the apple in a potted plant and place it by your front door on a stoop or, if theft of the plant is feared, on a windowsill or balcony. If the pot is a plain one and the plant easily replaced, even if it is taken, see it as a blessing to whomever it has gone to, and who knows, perhaps michievous Samhain fairies are actually the culprits!

THE SAMHAIN BONFIRE

Bonfires are lovely and exciting and often the cornerstone of a huge Hallow’s Eve celebration. I say, fire is fire and the spirits won’t decline to bless you or your rituals because the flames are modest. A small hibachi grill or cauldron filled with wood and herbs and set alight on a balcony, porch or even fire escape is sufficient to awake the spirits and draw them near. Those that leap over fires on Samhain and Beltane may even find that this is far safer than attempting to hurdle a taller, more robust fire. If your space doesn’t even include a patio or outdoor space, travelling to a park with public grills, or even staying in with a stout pillar candle is fine, too. As with all things magick, the important thing here is the intent.

http://www.paganspath.com/magik/samhain-history.htm

http://superstitionsonline.com/holidays-halloween/

[pyewacket]

Thank you for your post, UC, and a Blessed Samhain to you, too.

Samhain/Halloween- one of the three Spirit Nights.

The practitioners make use of times the threshold is more easily penetrated-

Noon- when the sun passes fom East to West

The Hour of Spirits is between 11pm and Midnight- best time for benevolent magic and divination

Midnight- the witching hour- for magical spells stemming from anger and a desire for justice

The Hour of the Wolf- encompasses the wee hours after midnight but before dawn, when sounds, emotions, and dreams are enhanced and more powerful.

[pyewacket]

Nice, trostol- I love a good bonfire to celebrate. One can also make a list of past grudges or hopes for the new year and burn them to free the energy. Nice way to clean the slate or set new goals.

[trostol]

[K_Dubb]

Both sides of my family are relentlessly Christian so I don't have any explicitly pagan stories.  In Norway my mom wasn't allowed to go down to the beach where the bonfires were lit for Sankthans because of the pagan connotations, and no julbukking -- basically trick-or-treating at Christmastime, for the same reason.

I did learn two things from Grandma that may have roots in folk belief or superstition:  always sleep with your head to the north, and what I've seen elsewhere termed "naming calls", i. e. speaking a worry will cause it to happen.  I remember her often saying du mÃ¥ ikke snakke sÃ¥nn:  you must not talk like that.  Words had potency beyond simple communication.

Also, my grandpa was in the Norwegian merchant marine and took pains to hide his Finnish ancestry, even changing the spelling of his name.  Finns were considered unlucky because of their more-recent pagan past; basically, they all were witches, and could cause storms and stuff.  We always suspected he was a Finn and when my uncle got a DNA test we knew for sure.

[chefist]

https://youtu.be/VmGUKl-gkIE

[pyewacket]

I'm enjoying the posts here, many cultures seem to share similar beliefs and superstitions. I've been reading up on Appalachian folklore and will add what I find.

http://www.angelfire.com/tn2/ScottCoTnMemories/superstitions.html

1. If you tell a bad dream before breakfast it will come true.
2. If you hear a dog howling in the middle of the night, it is a sign of a death in the community.
3. If your nose starts itching, company is coming.
4. Death comes in threes to a family or community.
5. If you whistle before breakfast, you will cry before dusk.
6. If you drop a biscuit while taking them from the oven, you will have unwelcome company.
7. Petting a calico cat will bring you good luck. You will have better luck if it is a stray and you give it a home.
8. If a bird flies into a house it is a sign there will be a death in the family in the near future.
9. Cats and dogs will not go into a room where there are spirits and ghosts present.
10. A way to tell if the husband or wife is the boss of the family is to look at their toe's. Look at the toe next to the big one. If that toe is longer than the big toe on one, that one will be the boss.
11. The number of winter snows can be told by counting the number of morning fogs you see in August.
12. Don't go barefoot or without your longhandles before May 10.
13. Planting potato's on the full moon will cause them to grow closer to the top of the ground and be sunburn. Planting them on the dark of the moon will cause them to grow deep roots and make it almost impossible to dig.
14. Never plant any crop while the sign is in the "privates".
15. A woman should not "can" food during her monthly. Anything she cans will spoil.
16. Never look directly at anyone with a stye because you will get it.
17. If a woman wears high heels while she is pregnant the baby will be borned crosseyed.
18. A pregnant woman should never look at a snake, it will "mark" the baby.
19. It's bad luck to pick up a coin if it's tails side up. Good luck comes if it's heads up.
20. It's good luck to find a four-leaf clover.
21. A cricket in the house brings good luck.
22. An acorn should be carried to bring luck and ensure a long life.
23. It's bad luck to put a hat on a bed.
24. You must get out of bed on the same side that you get in or you will have bad luck.
25. If someone is sweeping the floor and sweeps over your feet, you'll never get married.
26. Keep cats away from babies because they "suck the breath" of the child.
27. If you get a chill up your back or goosebumps, it means that someone is walking over your grave.
28. It's bad luck to leave a house through a different door than the one used to come into it.
29. If you dream of death it's a sign of a birth, if you dream of birth, it's a sign of death.
30. If your right ear itches, someone is speaking well of you.
31. If your left ear itches, someone is speaking ill of you.
32. To cure a sty, stand at a crossroads and recite:
"Sty, sty, leave my eye
Take the next one coming by."
33. If the bottom of your right foot itches, you are going to take a trip.
34. It is bad luck to cut your fingernails on Friday or Sunday.
35. It brings bad luck for a flag to touch the ground.
36. To drop a fork means a man is coming to visit.
37. If the palm of your right hand itches it means you will soon be getting money. If the
palm of your left hand itches it means you will soon be paying out money.
38. A horseshoe, hung above the doorway, will bring good luck to a home.
39. A horseshoe hung in the bedroom will keep nightmares away.
40. A knife placed under the bed during childbirth will ease the pain of labor.
41. It is bad luck to close a pocket knife unless you were the one who opened it.
42. It is bad luck to walk under a ladder.
43. It is bad luck to kill a ladybug.
44. To break a mirror means 7 years bad luck.
45. Bad luck will follow the spilling of salt unless a pinch is thrown over the left shoulder into the face of the devil waiting there.
46. The devil can enter your body when you sneeze. Having someone say, "God bless you," drives the devil away.
47. All wishes on shooting stars come true.
"Star light, star bright
First star I see tonight,
I wish I may, I wish I might
Have the wish I wish tonight."
48. It's bad luck to open an umbrella inside the house, especially if you put it over your head.
49. A watermelon will grow in your stomach if you swallow a watermelon seed.
50. The Weather:
Red sky at night,
Sailor's delight.
Red sky at morning
Sailors take warning
51. Knock three times on wood after mentioning good fortune so evil spirits won't ruin it.
52. Two people pull apart the dried breastbone of a chicken or turkey until it cracks and breaks, each one making a wish while doing so. The person who gets the long half of the wishbone will have his or her wish come true.
53. Mirrors in a house with a corpse should be covered or the person who sees himself will die next.
54. You can not swim in the river during the "Dog Days" of Summer.
55. It is bad luck to walk on a grave in a cemetery.
56. To make it rain, kill a snake and turn it belly up. Submitted by: Jim E.
57. Eating honey on the day of a funeral of someone you know will keep their spirit tied to the earth.
58. If you don't put a candle or lamp in the front window after the death in the family their spirit will return to their home.
59. Don't place the foot of your bed facing the door, it means death.
60. If you are having nightmares, put a bible under your pillow when you sleep, and your nightmares will go away.
61. To get rid of warts, steal someone's dishcloth and bury it, the warts will disappear.
62. To stop bleeding, say a specific verse in the bible . Some people still swear by this method. "The Bible verse to stop bleeding is Ezekial(sp?) 16:6 Paraphrase --- Though I see you awash (drowning) in your own blood, I say to you live."
63. If you first see the new moon in clouds, someone in your family will get sick.
64. It is bad luck to burn sassafras or apple logs in a fireplace.
65. When you comb your hair, you must not let a bird steal a strand for its nest or you will have headaches all summer.
66. If you set the table and accidentally set out an extra fork at a place setting someone is coming hungry.
67. Covering mirrors in the house of the deceased usually with black cloth so that the next person to see himself in the mirror would not be the next to die.
68. It was bad luck for pregnant women to attend funerals.
69. Taking the corpse from the house feet first in the belief that if the head of the deceased faced backward he might influence another member of the family to follow him in Death.
70. Stopping clocks in the house of the deceased to prevent bad luck for the living.
71. Closing the eyes of the deceased so that he may not choose someone to accompany him to the grave.

[ItsOver]

https://youtu.be/VmGUKl-gkIE

Ha!  Of the Halloween movies, III is my favorite.  There's just something creepy odd about it.  The blasted "Silver Shamrock" song and Dan O'Herlihy complete the atmosphere.  O'Herlihy is definitely in my top ten list of perfect film villains.


"You call this a GLITCH?"

[chefist]

Ha!  Of the Halloween movies, III is my favorite.  There's just something creepy odd about it.  The blasted "Silver Shamrock" song and Dan O'Herlihy complete the atmosphere.  O'Herlihy is definitely in my top ten list of perfect film villains.

For my two best friends from childhood and I, it's one of our top 10 favorite horror movies...John Carpenter's "The Thing" being #1. HW3 was very underrated, and just an excellent Halloween story! Who can forget the song, "3 more days to Halloween, Halloween, Halloween..."...then the kids heads turn into bugs and snakes! What's not to love?!

[K_Dubb]

I'm enjoying the posts here, many cultures seem to share similar beliefs and superstitions. I've been reading up on Appalachian folklore and will add what I find.

http://www.angelfire.com/tn2/ScottCoTnMemories/superstitions.html

Thank you, these are great.  I'm sure most of our ancestors had similar beliefs, now lost.  I'm glad somebody's preserving them.

[pyewacket]

Thank you, these are great.  I'm sure most of our ancestors had similar beliefs, now lost.  I'm glad somebody's preserving them.

I'm happy that you appreciate this thread. Many thanks to those who keep the records alive for us on the web.

[K_Dubb]

One more point that occurs to me:  my other grandpa was a Pentecostal missionary to the Dayaks on Borneo in the '30s-'50s, going way up the rivers in native canoes, and he had a lot of missionary stories he told when fundraising at churches.  He would find a village's "shaman" (not the right word, but it's the closest I know) and, after preparing himself through prayer and fasting, challenge him to a trial of faith, much like Elijah and the prophets of Baal.

The point is that Christianity was introduced practically as a more powerful magic, not necessarily as a belief that is true in a way that makes others false.  I think much of the conversion of Europe a thousand years ago was done the same way.  That's why I found the witch's stories last night of Baptist ladies buying potions so interesting:  in many ways there's no dichotomy; they're just returning to the roots of the faith.

[pyewacket]

One more point that occurs to me:  my other grandpa was a Pentecostal missionary to the Dayaks on Borneo in the '30s-'50s, going way up the rivers in native canoes, and he had a lot of missionary stories he told when fundraising at churches.  He would find a village's "shaman" (not the right word, but it's the closest I know) and, after preparing himself through prayer and fasting, challenge him to a trial of faith, much like Elijah and the prophets of Baal.

The point is that Christianity was introduced practically as a more powerful magic, not necessarily as a belief that is true in a way that makes others false.  I think much of the conversion of Europe a thousand years ago was done the same way.  That's why I found the witch's stories last night of Baptist ladies buying potions so interesting:  in many ways there's no dichotomy; they're just returning to the roots of the faith.

Interesting K_Dubb. I can only speak from a Catholic POV, I think the early church incorporated more pagan traditions and rituals than they will admit. The goddess aspect of pagan groups transformed into the Blessed Mother - the female influence remained in the church under her form. 

[pyewacket]

Here's a good podcast to check out- The Moonlit Road Podcast. This is a 2 part story - A Mother's Love

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rgsqif6TV4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-S8MoGrbaEI

[trostol]

http://paganwiccan.about.com/od/samhainrituals/

[pyewacket]

[PB the Deplorable]

Tequila para el Dia de Muertos

   

[pyewacket]

Tequila para el Dia de Muertos

   

Those are so cool, PB. Where can you buy them? Are they available in the states?

[PB the Deplorable]

Those are so cool, PB. Where can you buy them? Are they available in the states?

I've seen them at Costco and I think also at BevMo, so they are probably at other stores too.  The name of the company is Kah