Guided Meditation for Samhain

Contrary to popular belief, Halloween is not just about costumes and candy.
Samhain, as
this holiday is known to pagans, is a time for remembering our loved ones who
have
passed over into the Summerlandsa peaceful place where souls can meet long-lost
acquaintances, and recharge before returning to the world in another form.

This is a scary time of year: Summer has ended, the days are getting shorter and
the
nights longer. We are afraid of the things that go bump in the night. So
dressing up as
them is a cathartic way to face those fears, and move onward.

Samhain is also the pagan New Year. The old year dies, and the new year begins.
It's a
good time for working magic, whether by yourself or with a coven, and also a
good time
for divination. Break out those runes, Tarot cards, and scrying bowls, and see
what you
will see.

Here is a guided meditation used during a virtual ritual I conducted when I was
the
About.com Guide to Pagan/Wiccan Religion. Find a quiet space where you can be
undisturbed before you begin.


I want to leave you with a meditation that you can perform at home, in a quiet
space.
If you have a an altar, I suggest you do it there
First, relax your body. Do this by first concentrating on your breath, and then
on a
line of relaxation that moves up your body and spills over, until you are
completely
relaxed.

Go back to your breath. Go inside your breathing. Inside, you will find a dark
wood,
with most of the leaves already fallen from the trees. It is a dark, moonless
night.
You can hardly see. It is cold, and you do not have a coat. You move through the
trees
shivering, frightened of the dark, until you come to a clearing.

In it is a cheery house, and a garden that has just been cleared of the last
fruits of
the summer. You knock on the door, and a woman answers. She is not ancient, but
her
face has begun to sag.

She brightens when she sees you, and invites you in.

She is the Crone, and she has something to tell you, something about the year
that has
passed and the year that is before you. Listen to her.

What does she say to you?

Frances Donovan