the hallowtide portal 🎃🌑💀

darkness | death | mystery

Hello, you.

Blessed Samhain, my friend. And welcome to Hallowtide.

This week I’ve been feeling overwhelmed by all of the magic and mystery as we come to the end of October and the beginning of November. There’s Halloween, Samhain, a new moon, and the All Saint’s Days. All moments and celebrations that I deeply want to mark in simple ways. But, the culmination of it all has turned out to be quite a lot to process. I’ve wondered how I want to celebrate, what I want to write to you, and how I intend to remain anchored and present in the midst of these deep, dark, liminal days.

And, then, one morning this week I thought about the word hallow, meaning holy. These are sacred days. Holy days. A very special portal that guides us from one point to another in the wheel of the year. As I pondered all of this, another word rose from within.

Hallowtide.

And I felt my soul whisper to me: “These days are to be known as Hallowtide”.

So, I immediately scribbled some thoughts in my journal on how these next 3 days are connected, how they set the tone for the coming 3 months, and how they are all filled with the otherworldy themes of darkness, death, and mystery.

And then I googled the word. Turns out, Hallowtide is a thing. According to Wikipedia, the word Allhallowtide was first used in 1471, and is made of the Old English word, hallow, meaning holy, and the word tide, meaning time or season.

Hallowtide is a triduum - a period of three consecutive, holy days meant for prayer and fasting and contemplation preceding a Roman Catholic feast, such as Easter. If you know anything about the Christian church (Catholic and Protestant), then you are aware of the triduum of Easter, consisting of Good Friday, Holy Saturday, and Easter Sunday. There is no triduum associated with Christmas. But, my friend, there is one for the ending of October and beginning of November. Who knew?!

My own inner wisdom and intuition apparently knew, and that is why the word Hallowtide rose from deep within me.

Hallowtide is the short triduum season encompassing All Hallow’s Eve (Halloween), All Saint’s Day (Nov. 1), and All Soul’s Day (Nov. 2). It is a celebration of the days of the dead. A chance to reflect, remember, honor, and gratitude for the saints and souls who have left us earth-side.

I did not grow up Catholic, but I do have my roots in the Protestant Christian church; so I have celebrated All Saint’s Day (and Halloween, of course, as an American) for as long as I can remember. But, these days, my spirituality is a bit more of a mix of my roots and my witchy-ness. My old Christianity will always be my foundation, but my faith has expanded and grown to encompass much more than my younger ways.

My own wisdom, inspired by Spirit, has guided me to embrace the cycles of nature as an embodiment of the wisdom of the divine.

Therefore, I cannot celebrate Hallowtide without marking and honoring nature as well. I cannot leave out Samhain celebrations in my own Hallowtide observances and rituals. For, it is nature that teaches me ,on a daily basis, of the life, death, rebirth cycle that informs my spirituality.

I believe that the word Hallowtide rose up from my soul as a way to pull together the magic of this seasonal shift. I find myself drawn to the energies that swirl around as October surrenders to November. During these three days my focus turns toward darkness, death, and mystery.

Darkness

While Samhain and All Hallow’s Eve are not the same, both fall at the end of October and welcome us into the dark.

Samhain is the ancient agricultural festival marking the shift from summer to winter. It is the end of the growing season and the portal to the darkest time of the year when we turn our focus inward, both literally by coming inside to the glowing warmth of our homes, and figuratively, as we are invited to spend the next three months resting and rooting and discovering the wisdom of the night.

The current celebrations of Halloween are, of course, way different than they once were, when they were connected to All Saint’s Day. Still, I love the mysterious, dark night of Halloween.

This year, I will spend Samhain baking pumpkin bread, lighting candles, cozying up to watch a scary movie, spending some time in meditation on the ending of the year, and welcoming the invitation to drop down into the darkest months of the year. There is also a new moon on Halloween, making the vibes just a bit more spooky and the night just a wee bit darker than usual, which feels absolutely like a perfect welcome to winter.

Death

Ancients speak of the thinning of the veil between the living and the dead during Hallowtide, and I feel a sense that all things are possible, as the mysticism of the season hangs in the air on these dark, misty, foggy nights.

In the quiet of the longer nights, I feel the presence of spirits and ghosts draw closer. Or perhaps I am just more open. In any case, while many of us are uncomfortable with death, and the grief of loved ones who have passed over still breaks our hearts a little, there is something about this season that reminds me that death is a sacred mystery and a blessing that is part of the cycle of life for us all. And that the spirits of our loved ones are nearer to us than we realize.

So, for just a few nights, I feel called to ponder my own life cycle, connect with those who have left me earth-side and tend to my relationships with their memories and stories.

Hallowtide is also a time to honor the deaths of those things we no longer need in our life, those ghosts that haunt us and keep us up at night, worrying and fretting about who we are. It’s time to put all of those spirits that hold us back to rest.

So, I’ll light candles this weekend by the photos of my beloved father and the other loved ones that we have lost. I’ll sit in the dark and feel closer to the mystical energy of the spirit world than I usually feel. And I’ll wander through a cemetery, remembering all of the souls who have moved on from this world, and praying for the souls who are left behind in their grief and love.

Mystery

It’s impossible for me to not feel the palpable mystery in the air during Hallowtide. As we move from October to November, the trees are left with bare branches, standing as silhouettes against dark, gray skies. There is a melancholic feeling that lays as a heavy cloud over every single day. Everything feels unknown and a bit unsettling. It is a tough time of the year.

But, I find a deep, meaningful coziness in these days. As Halloween and Samhain come to a close, we will have passed through the liminal, otherworldly portal of Hallowtide into a season meant for gathering together to tell stories, share memories, and celebrate the traditions of our ancestors. I find that this portal weekend is just the beginning of the my opportunity to reflect on what it means to be a descendent to all of those who have died before me.

This is the perfect time to honor the past and to look forward into how I am continuing the traditions, carrying the stories, and bringing forward the wisdom of my ancestors in my own life and into the future. Who am I in the long line of saints and martyrs and loved ones who have gone before me? How do I honor them with my life? What is my message, my purpose going forward? What will be my legacy?

Hallowtide. I had no idea how this idea would transform my relationship with Halloween, Samhain, and the days of the dead. But, I feel like these three days - October 31 - November 2 - have all come together as one mystical unit of deep meaning. My understanding and approach to the October/November shift has henceforth been changed.

This is exactly what I believe a portal should be. A few magical days meant for marking the cycles of life, the changing of the seasons, and a time for deep reflection, nostalgic traditions, and mysterious moments of liminality and possibility.

I wish you a most blessed Hallowtide, dear one. May you feel the presence of love and mystery as you surrender to the darkness of the season and cross over into winter.

I’ll meet you here again in just a couple of days to welcome moody, melancholic November.

xoxo. liz.

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Here’s a lovely ritual for Samhain from one of my fellow Substackers. Claire is super inspiring, so give the ritual a try and then explore her other writings and rituals. 🫶🏼

The inner forest tarot spread for the season of the witch

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the wsc wheel of the year: festivals and seasons