This book is intended to give the reader an account of the origin and
history of Hallowe'en, how it absorbed some customs belonging to other
days in the year,-such as May Day, Midsummer, and Christmas. The context
is illustrated by selections from ancient and modern poetry and prose,
related to Hallowe'en ideas. Large Print 15 point font.
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Excerpt:
If we could ask one of the old-world pagans whom he revered as his
greatest gods, he would be sure to name among them the sun-god; calling
him Apollo if he were a Greek; if an Egyptian, Horus or Osiris; if of
Norway, Sol; if of Peru, Bochica. As the sun is the center of the
physical universe, so all primitive peoples made it the hub about which
their religion revolved, nearly always believing it a living person to
whom they could say prayers and offer sacrifices, who directed their
lives and destinies, and could even snatch men from earthly existence to
dwell for a time with him, as it draws the water from lakes and seas.
In believing this they followed an instinct of all early peoples, a
desire to make persons of the great powers of nature, such as the world
of growing things, mountains and water, the sun, moon, and stars; and a
wish for these gods they had made to take an interest in and be part of
their daily life. The next step was making stories about them to account
for what was seen; so arose myths and legends.
The sun has always marked out work-time and rest, divided the year into
winter idleness, seed-time, growth, and harvest; it has always been
responsible for all the beauty and goodness of the earth; it is itself
splendid to look upon. It goes away and stays longer and longer, leaving
the land in cold and gloom; it returns bringing the long fair days and
resurrection of spring. A Japanese legend tells how the hidden sun was
lured out by an image made of a copper plate with saplings radiating
from it like sunbeams, and a fire kindled, dancing, and prayers; and
round the earth in North America the Cherokees believed they brought the
sun back upon its northward path by the same means of rousing its
curiosity, so that it would come out to see its counterpart and find out
what was going on.
All the more important church festivals are survivals of old rites to
the sun. "How many times the Church has decanted the new wine of
Christianity into the old bottles of heathendom." Yule-tide, the pagan
Christmas, celebrated the sun's turning north, and the old midsummer
holiday is still kept in Ireland and on the Continent as St. John's Day
by the lighting of bonfires and a dance about them from east to west as
the sun appears to move. The pagan Hallowe'en at the end of summer was a
time of grief for the decline of the sun's glory, as well as a harvest
festival of thanksgiving to him for having ripened the grain and fruit,
as we formerly had husking-bees when the ears had been garnered, and now
keep our own Thanksgiving by eating of our winter store in praise of
God who gives us our increase.
Pomona, the Roman goddess of fruit, lends us the harvest element of
Hallowe'en; the Celtic day of "summer's end" was a time when spirits,
mostly evil, were abroad; the gods whom Christ dethroned joined the
ill-omened throng; the Church festivals of All Saints' and All Souls'
coming at the same time of year-the first of November-contributed the
idea of the return of the dead; and the Teutonic May Eve assemblage of
witches brought its hags and their attendant beasts to help celebrate
the night of October 31st.