Sun in Scorpio
Tarot XIII - Death
Samhain (the witch's new year) is one of four major fire festivals and one of three times a year when the veil between worlds thins. Casting a circle during this time is common; some choose to cast two circles, one for the living and one for the dead. Samhain is the perfect time to commune with your ancestors or loved ones who have passed on.
Acts of service during October
Clean off neglected gravesites
Dedicate memorials
Offering food to the dead
Visit nursing homes
The night of the new moon
Begin during the second new moon after the autumn equinox.
Dumb Supper
Cook a large supper with Samhain's corresponding foods.
Set your table with a white tablecloth and black dishes or fine china. Decorate with fall and/or spooky themes. Add photos of deceased loved ones and/or the names of ancestors you'd like to be among while dining.
Set extra places at the table for the dead and leave their chairs empty during the meal.
Sit at the table with your family and your empty chairs. When passing around the food, serve your open places as offerings.
Invite the spirits to your meal and toast to them. It's customary to spill on your white tablecloth during the toasting. Eat in somber quiet to respect the dead at your table. Look for signs from the other side during dinner.
Only when the table is cleared may you speak again.
Spell/Ritual
Establish a fire, either indoors in a fireplace or outdoors using a firepit.
Gather paper, pen, & dried herbs (chamomile, marigold, and/or rosemary).
Meditate with your fire and write a list of needs (money, protection, inspiration, etc.) on your paper. Cast your paper into the fire and ask for your needs met in the coming year. Follow this by offering your herbs to the fire and giving thanks.
Optional Tarot Reading
Pull nine cards in a three-row formation, three represent life - past, present, and future. Three represent death - past, present, and future. Three represent renewal - past, present, and future.
Past | Life: What part of your life have you left behind
Past | Death: What changed in your past to bring you to this present
Past | Renewal: What part of yourself have you left behind
Present | Life: What part of your life are you celebrating
Present | Death: What part of your life is about to change
Present | Renewal: What will your next change bring forward
Future | Life: What new blessings are coming into your life
Future | Death: What to work on next
Future | Renewal: What future is waiting for you
Recipes
Click here for Vegan Jack O'Lantern Stuffed Peppers
Click here for Vegan Sauerkraut Soup
Click here for Vegan Pumpkin Coffee Cake
Click here for Vegan Pentagram Apple Pies
Click here for Vegan Apple Cider Donuts
Correspondences
Focus & Spellwork
Ancestors
Protection
Endings
Release
Death & New Beginnings
Renewal
Reincarnation
Change
Faeries
Rest
Love
Deities & Gods (Irish & Celtic)
Macha
The Morrighan
Cernunnos
The Daghda
Taranis
Teutatesn
The Horned God
Deities & Gods (Norse)
Hel
Deities & Gods (Greek)
Demeter
Hecate
Persephone
Psyche
Hades
Colors
Black
Brown
Gray
Orange
Yellow
Silver
Herbs
Garlic
Mugwort
Myrrh
Rosemary
Sage
Wormwood
Yarrow
Plants & Trees
Cedar
Hazel
Hemlock
Chrysanthemum
Calendula
Marigold
Crystals, Stones, & Metals
Carnelian
Jet
Moonstone
Obsidian
Onyx
Iron
Silver
Animals & Creatures
Black Cats
Owls
Ravens
Spiders
Scents
Cinnamon
Clove
Decaying Leaves
Myrrh
Pine
Symbols & Tarot
Cauldron
Mask
Death
High Priestess
Wheel of Fortune
Foods
Fermented Foods
Pumpkin
Apple
Nuts (raw & roasted)