The Druid Order

Samhain

(0ctober31/November1)

Thinning of the veil between the living and the dead, the visible and invisible worlds. Death of the external, the horror of rotting and decay. The popular version is seen in the monster masks of Hallowe’en, the black and the orange, the shrieky, squeaky ghosts and ghouls. All Souls Day, bonfire night, fireworks.

Acknowledgment of the dark side. Acceptance and release. Letting the past leave. Old habits unwilling to die - look them in the eye, descent into hell, death and darkness, the underworld without which there is no spring resurgence. Decaying and dying to give space for renewal, recycling. Scorpio, fixed water.

Winter arrives bringing with it the dieing down of nature, yet if Winter did not come there could be no pathway for Spring. The sunset brings darkness over the land, yet the Sun must go down, or how could the world sleep, and the Sun rise again. What we call death, leaving or completion is the same thing, yet it is indispensable because it completes the circle.

We will surely melt away even as the snow-flakes that fall upon a running stream.

Time is the root of all beings born and unborn of pleasure and of pain. Time destroys and it also renews everything continually. It remains unaltered, unassailable, the creator, preserver and destroyer.

Within our dissolving bodies and the results of our harvest is a spiritual seed that is unconscious of change or decadence and will not be appeased except by a return to the source of its existence. This seed is born from the present and returns to the present. Born from darkness it returns to darkness. From being nothing it grows into something but must return to nothing. Unity to diversity and back to unity.

Arawn, Samhain, Moses, Aaron and Halloween

Arawn (silver tongue) Lord of Annwn, he fought against Amaethon and Gwydion ap Don in the battle of Cad Goddeu (the battle of the Trees). His magic cauldron was stolen by Arthur.

Arawn’s own kingdom adjoined that of his friend and ally (Annwn), and when Annwn got out of hand, his friend called upon him to come and establish law and order. Arawn invaded Annwn established the rule of law, but stayed to long and his own land forgetting him, fell into strife, in consequence he had to return to his own land as an invader from Annwn.

Arawn, Samhain, Slow; associated with the period when the sun-power is too weak to fertilise the seed that is in the urn or gwrn; the period in which death approaches.

Arawn is like Aaron who was raised by Moses to his position; so that he too passes slowly on to his rest so that the period between the Harvest Equinox and Winter Solstice may be shared with another. Symbol of courage and distress.

Plennydd, light bringer. Gwron, the Heartener of heroes and Arawn.