How to Celebrate Halloween Like a Witch

Spooky season is finally here, with its pumpkin spice lattes, haunted houses and hayrides! Everyone loves this time of year, but it holds a special place in the hearts of every Halloween lover.

Want to learn how to tap into your witchy roots and celebrate this season like a true blue witch?

Then look no further than these four simple tips and tricks for handling spooky season like the pros.

Samhain

First off, it’s pronounced SOW-ann, not sam-HANE. This common mispronunciation likely stems from the fact that this a Celtic pagan holiday and the Celts pronounce their letters quite differently from the English.

Samhain is one of four lesser sabbats. For earth based religions, the four big sabbats align to the solstices and equinoxes, the lesser sabbats are the midway points between the solstices and equinoxes. For the northern hemisphere, Samhain falls between the Autumnal equinox in September and the Winter solstice in December (for the southern hemisphere it falls between the Summer solstice and Vernal equinox).

For the Celts this time of year, from sunset on October 31st to sunset on November 1st, marked the official end of Summer and harvest season. This celebration was also a sober welcoming of the season of death that lay ahead. It is believed that as October 31st draws near the veil between the world of the living and the world of the dead becomes thinner. This is why it’s popular to associate this time of year with things like ghosts, ghouls and goblins!

Candle Magick

Nothing says spooky season quite like a fall scented candle, but what if those candles had a bigger purpose than simply making your home smell delicious? Candles have long since been associated with this time of year since the days are progressively growing longer and the natural light of the sun is waning.

Candles are thought to not only light our way in the dark, but also to help guide the spirits who have gotten lost. With the veil between the worlds so thin this time of year, the use of candles is meant to create a path and guide the spirits who have wandered away from their loved ones. So, as you light your candles this year you can help out your local spirits by repeating this incantation, “candle, candle light the way for all the spirits who have gone astray” to help all the spirits around you find their way back home.

Candles also make for an excellent magickal tool if you’re looking to manifest or even clear away some energy from your life. My favorite way to practice candle magick is by using a pillar or a chime candle, anything that is free from a glass or metal container. Once I have my candle I dress it in some oil–any household oil will do, but it can be nice to use an oil made specifically for magickal purposes–by gently rubbing the oil into the candle. Then I grab a few herbs such as cinnamon, rosemary, or lavender and press or sprinkle them onto the dressed candle (the oil helps the herbs stick into place). You can even add on an extra step before you dress the candle and inscribe a phrase or sigil onto the candle to set in your intention.

Once the candle is dressed the way you’d like it, place it in a metal bowl or dish (metal is safest, especially for candles that will be burning for a long time) and light your candle. I like to spend some time watching the candle burn at the beginning and the end. You can ascertain a lot of information about how this intention will come to fruition by watching the flame dance and jump.

Careful!

We have two eclipses this October! There is a Libra new moon solar eclipse on the 14th and a Taurus full moon lunar eclipse on the 28th. It’s important to refrain from any kind of manifesting during eclipse season since the energy tends to be more chaotic. It’s kinda like throwing a football into a tornado, you can try to aim as best as you can but it’s not likely to end up where you intended it to go.

Make an Ancestor Altar

Since spirits are far more likely to walk closer to this earthly plane, it’s a common practice to set up an ancestor altar during the month of October.

Ancestor altars are an easy, effective and nourishing way to celebrate Samhain like a true witch. All you need is a photo of your loved ones, something they owned or loved when they were alive, and some offerings to entice them to visit you. For example, I often set out a picture of my grandmother with some jewellery that belonged to her. Once a day I’ll fill up a cup with grape juice (her favorite), making sure to dump out the juice from the day before each time. On special occasions I will prepare an old family recipe and leave out a dish for my ancestors to enjoy while I eat my portion sitting by the altar, therefore inviting the spirits of my loved ones to share a meal with me.

Pro tip:

Don’t set up your altars in your bedroom! The spirits of our loved ones who’ve passed tend to gather by the altar and this can make sleeping in the same room as your altar quite difficult. …