A Brief History of Halloween
With its origins rooted in Celtic culture, Samhain is last harvest and beginning of the much darker and colder parts of the year. During this time there was said to be an overlap in the worlds of the living and the dead. A time when the thinning of veils between worlds allowed spirits to roam freely. The Halloween traditions we see in the popular culture here in America have origins embedded in this holiday. Although we have gotten farther and farther away from the origins of the traditions and Halloween has morphed into something completely new. This holiday now is a time to dress up and be someone else, as well as a time to dance with our fears. Masks did have origins in the festival of long ago. These were worn when out after dark during this time to keep away the spirits and/or to blend in with them and thus remain safe. The classic ghost costume which used a bed sheet as a drape finds its origins in the burial shroud. It has been suggested that ghost impersonation was taken up by criminals as early as the 16th century Trick or treating might have begun with the tradition of offerings of food that were left outside the home to appease spirits and keep those indoors safe. Or perhaps the origins of this are found in the church’s celebration of all saints day on November 1st, when soul cakes were made to commemorate the dead and door to door visits for food were made primarily by the young and the poor. In 1st century AD Samhain celebrations were enfolded into some Roman celebrations like the festival of Pomona a Goddess of fruit and trees. This may be the origins of the the bobbing for apples game. Later the Church created All Saints Day nov 1 and All HallowsDay to All Hallows eve or as we now know it, Halloween The pumpkins we carve into jack o’ lanterns were originally carved from a turnip. The story was: Jack was so bad he got kicked out of hell He was given a coal to take with him’ He put it into a turnip to create a lantern Children then began to carve these in homage to jack Later pumpkins took over the turnip phase, whether this came from the abundance of this squash this time of year or the ease with which they were carved is unknown. Scots and Irish brought Samhain/All Hallows lore to the US in the 1840’s and Halloween began to become a night of mischief and trouble making which actually turned into mayhem. By 1920’s Halloween pranks in the US were becoming out of control; this was primarily adolescent boys and there was even talk of canceling halloween. Some work was done by different communities to make this night safer and more controlled and thus the more organized event of trick or treating was born. According to a Smithsonian article “The effort to restrain and recast the holiday continued after World War II, as adults moved Halloween celebrations indoors and away from destructive tricks, and gave the holiday over to younger and younger children. The Senate Judiciary Committee under President Truman recommended Halloween be repurposed as “Youth Honor Day” in 1950, hoping that communities would celebrate and cultivate the moral fiber of children. “ Divination was often practiced at this time of year as a means to discover one’s future husband Apple peels, burning hazelnuts and eating sugary walnut goodness that created dreams were all forms of love divination practiced during this time In 1998 when I spent Halloween in London, my American roommates and I were shocked that there were so few celebrations occurring to mark this holiday. There was very little in the shops by way of decoration or costume. In the early 2000’s however changes occurred around this celebration in the UK shifting to a more Americanized version of this holiday. In addition to Samahin, there are other celebrations of the dead during this time. Perhaps the most popular and well known is the Day of the Dead- this celebration corresponding with the same dates as Halloween and All Souls Day is said to have origins with the Aztecs who would use skulls to honor the dead. In the 16th century when the Spanairds conquered the Aztec empire they brought with them All Souls day and these traditions merged. There are many cultures that celebrate and honor their dead but not all do it during this time of year. How do you celebrate Samhain? What traditions do you hold for this time? Simple ideas for celebrating
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I’ve been visiting with the ghosts of the women I have been. The many incarnations of Self. They all have their wisdom.
And their folly. I’ve discarded many of them over time, leaving a shell behind like a hermit crab and moving into a new roomier shinier version of me. Each change a metamorphosis. . Each shift an initiation. This year has been one of those in between places. The place where I’ve left one shell and have yet to land in my new one. On Friday my therapist reminded me that I’ve been hanging in The Void. The Void is never a terribly comfortable place to reside. Especially for someone who likes to “do” and doesn’t like to wait. (And I am both). Every step forward this year has been met with resistance. The places of ease have been in the stillness. In the presence. And reminder after reminder that this is where I supposed to be right now have arisen. But I am stubborn. I want to make things happen. I feel impatient. We can not force growth. We cannot force development. We cannot force things into being that are not yet ready to be born. ‘ (and trust me, I’ve tried.) So I’ve been hanging with the ghosts of the women I’ve been. Borrowing their wisdom, rediscovering things I left behind that perhaps are ready for a polish and shine. Discovering new truths. New ideas. Certainty of what comes next. Fidgeting in my impatience to begin. Now! What has become so clear to me in the past couple of weeks is that the heart of Wise Woman Witchery has always been about helping women step into their power., Their magic. And of all the things I have taught and shared and offered, the magic of ceremony held in community is where the deepest transformations lie. I’m not entirely certain of the shape and form but I am feeling the call and I know for certain in the future I’ll be bringing more of these offerings. For now, as the season deepens and Samhain nears, I will be sending out my annual invitation to connect with your ancestors. Faster perhaps than a song.
A taste. A photo. A word. The scent of raw gasoline on my morning walk, sent me from the streets of my neighborhood in the predawn gloom, to the shed where our gas powered lawnmower was kept as a child, to the familiar exhaust fumes of my Dad’s old pick up and straight to my Dad himself. In that darkness, with one of my dogs pulling me along, that scent brought my Dad into clear focus for me. And I missed him. He has been gone now for 13 years. And that in and of itself feels impossible. Yet just as impossible was the simple smell of raw gas emanating from an old car, carrying me across time and space to childhood moments where my Dad was alive, and well and doing the everyday Dad things he did. Maybe you’ve had this experience. A scent drifts into your nose and the memories play across the screen of your mind’s eye. Or perhaps you feel someone with you. Someone who has been gone for a time. Someone who is brought back to life from the power of smell. It sounds kind of funny. And perhaps even impossible. Until you have it happen to you. During this time of year as the veils thin, we might find ourselves having a few more of these experiences than we normally do. Perhaps we glimpse someone in a crowd that we know to be long dead. Or a song that reminds us of them arrives at the perfect moment, or your dreams bring visitations from beyond. We all have the ability to connect with our beloved dead. And we may find certain times of year (like now, or birthdays or anniversaries) increase this ability. We also might find that different practices enhance our psychic skills or support our connection to the other side. During the 5th Annual Season of the Witch Virtual Conference we will have several opportunities to discover more about facilitating these connections.
These are just 4 of the Witchy Workshops that will be filling our time together. We begin in just 5 days on the evening of October 10th. I’ll be kicking things off with the class Hecate-Goddess of the Crossroads. You can find the whole line up and registration details here See you there! My mom and I took a little overnight excursion to get a change of scenery.
It's been a bit of a Hanged Man journey (surrender, changing perspective), yet in that, has also been a layer of calm. The Ocean is a place of deep soothing for me. It’s a funny thing to live 30 minutes from the Sonoma Coast but to frequent it so rarely (to be fair this has been the Summer and Autumn of staying home). 15 minutes of staring at waves and my body let’s go. The longer I breathe the salt and watch the water the more I sink into a place calm. My go, go, go retreats into the background and I’m just present. The water heals me. Maybe it’s all the fire in my chart, or maybe it’s just the way the waves move in and out like my breath, reminding me to breathe and re-regulate with every movement. It is true that nature is a place of connection and healing for me in whatever form I am blessed to be with her in, but the Ocean holds something different. Deeper. Older. There are mysteries in the depths of her body, secrets that we may never know and treasures too. No, not the pirate kind (although I understand there is plenty of gold in the depths of the sea), but the treasures of the natural world. Ecosystems that support this planet and our bodies. I know I’m waxing a bit philosophical, but it is 4:50 am in a dark hotel room and I haven’t yet had my coffee. Simple Practice Do a body scan. Notice what you are feeling and experiencing in this moment. Set a timer for 7 minutes Now visualize a natural place that speaks to you, One that you go to for sanctuary and rejuvenation. This is a real place. As you imagine it, let yourself fill in all the details and drink in the sensations of sight, sound, smell and touch. In your mind's eye discover the tiniest details about this place. When the timer goes off return to your current space, releasing the visualization. Recheck with another body scan. Has anything changed? The Autumn Digest is now available! This sweet 40 page color digest, calls us into Autumn with information and offerings about the season not only from me but from our community as well! We even have a couple articles from some of our Season of the Witch Contributors. You can get your copy of the digest here Two weeks from now we will be preparing for day two of the 5th Annual Season of the Witch Virtual Conference. I’ve been getting some questions from folks about the event and I wanted to respond here. 🌟How do we watch? The event is live streamed via Zoom and you can join in real time with us. Once registered you will receive the link to the livestreams. 🌟Is participation required? Only as you are comfortable. Cameras on or off. Adding commentary or questions in the chat or just watching. Totally ok. A couple presentations will offer you an opportunity to practice some of what you are learning in a breakout room, but if this is out of your comfort zone that is ok too. Show up as yourself, in whatever capacity meets your learning style and desire. 🌟What if I can’t attend live? I’ve got you covered! All the livestreams are recorded and registrants have access to the replays beginning at the end of each day. These are yours to come back and watch whenever you’d like to. 🌟I’ve heard you mention giveaways. What are these? During the conference we have giveaways for each of the presentations. Some of these are from our presenters and some are from me. These range from readings, to books, to gift bags and more. These drawings are entered through attendance of the conference. However even if you can’t attend live, I have three drawings for some witchy goodies that are done after the conference is done and include the names of all the attendees. 🌟What are the bonuses included in the conference this year?
Check out the full lineup and schedule and register here. I can’t wait to Witch with you! Today we experience equal parts day and night.
It is a balance point. A pause if you will. We so often strive for balance in our lives, our inner pendulum swinging between action and rest, work and home, self care and tending to others needs. Balance is not something we live in. Instead we are always playing with and seeking balance. We find ourselves balanced for a moment here or there. A day, a week, a month. But inevitably we find our pendulum swinging once more. Nature does this too. These points of perfect balance come at the equinoxes, during the first and last quarter moons and those halfway points between seasons. There are moments where nature’s pendulum swings too. Full and New moons, the Solstices and the pivoting moment when a season changes. I invite you on this day to play with balance. Explore the following questions. What does balance mean to me? Where does my inner pendulum tend to swing? When I feel into the energy of balance, where do I long for this in my life? Are there action steps I can take to bring my inner pendulum a little closer to my center. The equinox is also the second harvest festival. This is a time for gratitude for all we are harvesting, have harvested and will harvest. Ask yourself, what am I grateful for? Who am I grateful for? And if there are people in your life you are feeling grateful for, let them know. The more we share our gratitude the more it grows. Blessed Autumn, the Season of the Witch has officially arrived. Let the sweaters, boots, pumpkins and colorful leaves begin their reign! And speaking of the Season of the Witch… Our fifth annual virtual conference is just weeks away. This event is offered via Zoom so you can tune in from anywhere! Gather your friends, your notebooks, lots of snacks and join me the evening of October 10th to kick off this exploration of all kinds of Witchery. You can find the full schedule, line up and register here I have extended the early bird discount on the conference until tomorrow at 8 am PT. Use code BROOM20 at checkout for 20% off. I can’t wait to share these 11 classes with you! We have some truly exceptional presenters coming your way. Let’s make some magick Wise Ones! And finally, the fourth installment of The Cauldron digest is availabel now! This AUtumn Equinox edition is packed with articles and recipes from our community as well as some seasonal offerings from me. You can get your copy here The mornings are cooler, blankets of fog and the beginnings of leaves changing their shades. The scents of windfall apples and dry sweet grasses are everywhere.
In this changing time, I’m feeling the first threads of the veil beginning to unweave.That portal between worlds opening. I’ve been thinking of my beloved dead and talking to them. Remembering them. As the second of the three harvest festivals nears, I find my own magick getting louder. A call into the liminal resounds. What happens for you as the Summer ends? Do you find that pulse of magic beneath your skin getting louder? The garden is turning out its bounty and I am drying herbs, mint and lemon balm and verbena. The lavender is steeping in oil and the ingredients for my annual batch of fire cider and sitting on the counter ready to be chopped. It’s a time for calling our energy back to ourselves. It’s a time to embrace the churning of magick within. It’s a time known as the Season of the Witch. And to celebrate this season we are gathering again for the 5th Annual Season of the Witch Virtual Conference October 10-12th. Here is a peek at this amazing line up! Thursday October 10 4:30-5:45 pm Hecate-Goddess of the Crossroads- Emily Morrison Friday October 11 8:30-8:45 Opening Ceremony 9-10:15 am Tarot Every Witch Way- Lilith Dorsey 10:30-11:45 am Let’s get to Know Some Crystals -Yvonne Miguez 11:45-12:30 pm Break 12:30-1:45 pm Inviting Our Dead to Dinner-Jess the Death Empath 2-3:15 pm Learn to Read the Akashic Records- Michelle Green 3:30-4:45 pm Taking the Advice of Circe: Greek Magick & Death Rituals- Irisanya Moon 5-5:15 pm Closing Ceremony Saturday October 12 8:30-8:45 am Welcome Day Two 9-10:15 am Power in the Tarot- Maria Minnis 10:30-11:45 am The Spanish Fan-Leticia Ferrer 11:45-12:30 pm Break 12:30-1:45 pm Working with Root Medicine-Erin LaFaive 2-3:15 pm Crafting Agua Florida-Emelina Law 3:30-4:45 pm Signs from the Afterlife: Recognizing and Understanding Messages from Lost Loved Ones- Melissa St. Hilaire 5-5:15 pm Closing Ceremony Interested in coming but know you won’t make all the livestreams? I’ve got you covered. Registrants receive not only access to all the livestreams but also to the replays of the workshops. And you get lifetime access! Early bird registration is open now! Use code BROOM20 for 20% off at check out. (Diving Deeper members, please check our group for your special code. ) Gather witches! Let’s make magick! You may have heard me mention this in a podcast or a class but I don’t talk about it often. It feels far away. And I guess by now it kind of is.
In August of 2007 I quit drinking. I had started the habit when I was 12 and had continued to use alcohol recreationally (read this as “to get drunk”) until that day. Mostly I was a weekend binge drinker, but that Summer my drinking had gone from a couple of times a week to almost everyday. After a particularly regrettable drunken escapade, of which I remember little but whose blanks were filled in for me later, I realized I had to stop. It was my last semester of graduate school. I was actively seeing clients as a trainee therapist and I knew that if I kept going I was going to throw all that hard work and my career goals away. So I stopped. And my nervous system went into a perpetual state of fight or flight for the next 8 weeks. I would wake up feeling ok but by 10 am I would be in a panic, dysregulated and terrified. I still went to school (it was a miracle I passed my classes), I still managed to see clients and to do the basics of everyday life. Yet all of it was in a haze. I started extra therapy, I had friends check on me, I took supplements and when those failed I saw a psychiatrist and took valium (which I hated). And I prayed. Alot. A friend in my Circle recommended a book at that time called Mysteries of the Dark Moon- the healing power of the dark goddess. It was a little bit of a dense book for the time I was in, but it did remind me of the ways my practice could hold me, it reminded me that I could be supported and cradled by the goddess and I remembered that there is medicine in the arms of the dark goddesses. I brought in ritual to connect with these energies and made and found talismans to carry with me through my days. Today as I was doing my reading of Witch Crafting for our Summer book club, the words in the chapter on the Goddess brought this memory of that other book and other time into focus. I don’t often work with deities. From time to time they creep into my practice or make an appearance for a ritual, yet something in my body is asking me to revisit the energy of the goddess. Something inside of me was lit up by the this reading and this memory. Do you work with deities in your practice? What is your relationship to the Goddess (or Goddesses?) Is the divine feminine an entity? An energy? A culmination of all the facets of the archetype of “the mother”? As Summer gives the gifts of her bounty and the slow dying away begins, I find myself reflecting on all of these things and more. (and yes, for those of you wondering, I am still sober all these years later). Upcoming events in the Diving Deeper Membership Circle! If you are not yet a part of Diving Deeper, now is a great time to join! Not only will you get all the usual benefits of this group (monthly calendars guiding you through the library and lunar rituals, live seasonal ceremonies, deep discounts and more), but for September I’ll be bringing back live Moon ceremonies for both the New and Full Moon and will be going live via zoom each week day in the wee hours (5:30 am PT), to meditate with those who’d like to join and pull a card for myself and one for the community. In addition the 5th annual Season of the Witch Virtual Conference is coming up and members get a deep discount on registration. You can join the circle and get your first month free here use code FREEMONTH25 at checkout. Ghost Stories Have you had a spirit encounter? I’m beginning the collection of ghost stories for the spirit encounter episodes for the Witch Next Door podcast. If you would like to share your story you can reply to this email in one of three ways
Readings I’ve been having such a lovely time doing intuitive card readings that I am opening up more time in my schedule to offer these. I have simplified the offerings and you can choose from a recorded reading or a 30 minute zoom meeting. Reply to this email for details. Birthday Gifts Finally, I want to share with you all that Wise Woman Witchery turns 6 this year! It was September first 2018 when I decided to begin this journey officially. Pay attention to your inbox in the coming days as there will be some celebratory gifts headed your way. The pull of this moontime has been strong for me. My dreams the last few nights have been exceptionally loud and my intuition has been cranked way up!
This full moon is called a super moon due to its closeness to the earth at this time. And perhaps the super moon vibes are what have my psyche making louder and more prominent connections. The season is shifting and in this shift, I can feel the veils beginning to thin. With harvest season underway I often discover my connection to other realms feeling stronger, but with the Full moon this seems even more amplified. What are you noticing under this Lunar energy? To honor this Aquarian Full Moon, consider taking some time beneath its glow to open yourself to the messages and wisdom that live within you. You might imagine the rays of the moon washing through you and clearing out any of the background noise of the day to day. Then sit quietly for ten minutes. Notice what thoughts, stories, messages come through. If your mind wanders, bring yourself back to your breath. When you feel complete you can take a few minutes to journal about your experience. You may choose to follow this practice up with a Tarot or Oracle card pull, using the following questions for guidance.
Coming Soon- As we get ever closer to the Season of the Witch, there is a lot of behind the scenes action happening at Wise Woman Witchery. The Autumn Circle- a 6 Circle seasonal celebration begins at the end of September. The Autumn edition of the Cauldron digest is in production and will be available soon The 5th Annual Season of the Witch Virtual Conference is scheduled for October 11th and 12th And the Witch Next Door Podcast is going to be shifting gears as we move into the last part of the year. Stay tuned for updates. If you are not already a part of the Diving Deeper Membership Circle, now is a great time to join! In addition to monthly calendars with suggestions for exploring the library of classes, rituals, meditations and workshops, you will also get to join us live for Wheel of the year rituals and get deep discounts on all upcoming offerings. You can learn more about membership and sign up here (Membership is month to month and you can cancel at any time) The New Moon in Leo was this morning in the predawn hours. New Moon, new possibilities, new ideas, new paths.
In the cycles of the moon, the seasons, the calendar and our lives, there is always an opportunity to begin anew. The energy of Leo brings a vibration of self expression and confidence to this time. When you ask yourself what parts of you have been hiding or shoved into the back of the closet of your psyche, what do you discover? In what ways have you shrunk or been small? What would happen if you let yourself take up some room? What would it be like to stretch out your wings and be seen? Scary? Liberating? Empowering? When you watch a lion move through the world, you do not ever question the strength and confidence of that being. They are powerful, watchful, stealthy and they know it. They don’t apologize for their power. They just live it. I invite you take some of this Leo energy and try it on. Dust off those parts of you that haven’t been getting enough sun, and shine your beauty into the world. Weave this into your new moon intention and let this lunar cycle bring your authentic self forward! Like I said, there is always an opportunity for a new beginning. Speaking of new beginnings…there have been so many time over the last 2 plus decades that I have found myself so entrenched in the responsibilities and happenings of everyday life, that I have set my practice down. Not intentionally. But simple by accident. By not having enough space or support to carry on the actions associated with my witchery. There are gifts with having practiced my craft for so long. One is that I know I will eventually make my way back to my cards, creating ceremony, casting spells and tidying my altar. The other is that my craft isn’t just these actions. My witchery is part of the fabric through which I see the world. The way I connect with each day and the energies in it, the way I know where the moon is at in its cycle, the way I hear the messages that arrive on the wind or on the earth, in the form of knowings and synchronicities, feathers and stones (and sometimes bones too). The way the elements guide, fuel inspire and inform me. And the magic that pulses beneath the surface of everything. This is what it feels like to embody your craft. You are invited to step across the threshold and onto the Priestess Path with me. Where you will deepen into your connection with your magic. Learning and practicing skills both new and familiar, being both witness and witnessed in this circle of women. Stepping into your gifts and your power and letting your inner Priestess shine! Early Bird registration is open! Take advantage of 20% off when you use the code PMW20 at checkout Want to learn more about what we will be exploring? I’ve been offering mini lessons Mondays and Wednesdays at 10 am PT and you can find the first 8 replays here. We have two more weeks of these bite sized classes. Reminders are sent out 90 minutes before we gather. As always reply to this email with any questions you might have. Lammas/Lughnasadh is just a few days away!
This is the first of three harvest festivals and in Christian traditions is called loaf mass, as it is the time of the wheat harvest, flour making and thus bread baking. If you would like to learn more about this festival you can read about it here. Thai Harvest often brings reflection with it. What am I harvesting? What is still continuing to grow into fruition. This has been a year of cultivating and tending to slowness. Moving slow. Saying no. Focusing attention close to home and heart. My broken foot made me slow way down and just now as I am casting my boot aside and just learning to walk with two shoes once more, my dear pup Bella has undergone surgery for a torn ACL (CCL is what it’s called in dogs). The surgery requires a bone cut and plate installation and four months of recovery. And so the cultivating and harvest of slowness continues.. My girl is in a pen in the living room and I have shifted to complete work from home mode and sleeping next to her on a cot. I’ve started planning a Autumn/Winter garden for the first time in years, since I’ll be here to tend it, and I’m settling into a different pace and rhythm, rediscovering balance in my body (literally without a boot elevating my hip) and in my days too. In this time I am both harvesting slowness and continuing to tend new ways of growing it in my body, my mind and my life. What are you tending? Cultivating? Harvesting? Lughnasadh Card Spread
Book Club Some time ago I asked if you’d be interested in a Summer Book Club. Many of you replied with a big YES! I was all prepared to have us read a fiction book together and I got a head start to begin the ground work to create discussion questions and journal prompts. After the first few chapters, I discovered something very important. I do not like to discuss fiction books I’m reading. I want to dive completely imaginatively into a story and lose myself there. I don’t want to share it. I want to savor it. And so I scrapped my notes and let myself just enjoy. And I highly recommend the book. Weyward by Emilia Hart is a bewitching work of historical fiction and a wonderful venture into other lives and places. That being said, I don’t feel the same way about non-fiction. I enjoy chatting about it and am inviting you to chat with me. We will be reading Witch Crafting by Phyllis Currot. This book was written in 2001 and was one of the books I read and practiced with early in my witchery. It offers information and exercises through the Wiccan lens and I will be both interesting and fun to share with each other. This 6 week, 6 meeting book group, will meet for an hour on Saturdays starting August 17th. We will chat a bit about the book and then do one to two exercises from the chapters we have read. I have also crafted an off Facebook group where I will post questions for reflection/discussion and where you can also share your thoughts and questions. You can check out the details and sign up here Shadow Work Tomorrow (Monday the 29th) is our 7th sneak peek into the Priestess Path. During our mini lesson, we will chat about shadow work, its place in witchery and do an exercise to play with the concept. We gather at 10 am PT here https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86242100576 And you can catch all the replays here, also be sure to add your name to the waitlist for pre-registration for the next cohort that begins August 23rd! The Cauldron-Autumn Equinox Edition I am accepting submissions to the Cauldron digest, Autumn Equinox edition. Autumn witchery abounds! Bring your magic to the community, by submitting, poems, recipes articles or a spell/ritual. These submissions are not paid but you will receive a copy of the Autumn Digest and some Wise Woman Witchery swag for your entry. Email your submission to me at [email protected] with the subject “Fall Digest” no later than August 15th. Sending you all some slow Summer vibes, from my inner garden to yours. |
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Emily Morrison MA, MFTArchives
February 2025
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