The Veil Thins

Fall has arrived and is now waning.  I had anxiously awaited to embrace the height of the season, when all of the leaves had piqued in their full splendor.  I wanted to drive the back roads to absorb all of the glory of the season, where every road seems to have turned into a tunnel of fire, ablaze with orange, red, and yellow.   I wanted to walk in the woods and hear the leaves, and dried pine needles crackle underfoot; and, to breathe the cool crisp air, so welcome after the long, humid summer.  Unfortunately, the rain has arrived, and I did not afford the opportunity this year, and it has left me a disappointed.  

I can't help but think, however, that this is exactly what makes our beloved little state so special.  Each season is defined, but none more glorious than autumn. It has always been my favorite time of year.    

Something inside me changes, too.  There is a feeling, that occurs within me that I've never put into words until now, and for some reason, it occurred to me that it is definitely seasonal, and it is definitely there as we grow closer to Halloween, a.k.a. Samhain.  

I will try to explain it.  And, I am curious if others experience this, too? 

There is something innately within me that begins to shift after the Autumnal Equinox [Mabon].  Perhaps it could be described as a "creepy feeling".  It is as if something is following me, and I find myself looking out of the corner of my eye, or observing a dark corner as if I am waiting for something - or some one - to appear from it's depths.   I feel as if someone is behind me, lurking - only to turn around and find there is nothing there, but a presence seems to linger.  I have thought of someone from long ago, only to have them appear.  

Recently, I began to consider the "Thinning of the Veil" which is mainly of Celtic phenomena or legend, that occurs at Halloween.  

The belief is that the Veil begins to thin after the Autumn Equinox.  It is a time of dark mysteries and magical traditions where the "veil" between our world and the Underworld (also known as the "Otherworld") is lifted (and is the thinnest) between October 31st and November 1st, allowing the dead to convene with the living. 

In ancient times, during Halloween (which was known as "The Feast of the Dead";  or "Old Hallowmas"; or "Shadowfest" ; or "All Hallow's Eve"), the Celts would open all of their doors and windows open to both allow spirits to enter - and more importantly, -  to leave their households. 

Food was left on doorsteps for the wandering dead, apples were buried along roadsides and paths for spirits who had no descendants to provide for them or who were lost; and, candles were lit and left in windows to help guide the dead home.  All of this, and more, was an attempt to communicate with those departed and a way to guide them into Summerland.

Recently I have discovered that many, like me, also feel this "Thinning of the Veil".  Senses are heightened, we are very much in tune with nature, and our extrasensory perception is in over-drive. 

I found the following online, and it best explains what is happening to us, as the Veil "thins".  I loved how this person described the natural shift that occurs within many of us:

"The ability to feel Spirit is called clairsentience.  This ability, naturally inherent in all of us, is the ability to clearly sense the energy of those around you - both those living and those deceased. If you have the ability to sense emotions, thoughts and intentions of others or have the ability to connect and bond closely with animals by anticipating their needs, it’s likely you have high natural clear-sensing skills.

By detecting the emotions, thoughts and then using this sensory information to connect with others in empathy and compassion, you are connecting with the Spirit of another living being. And if you can connect with the Spirit of someone currently with a physical body, you can communicate and connect with the Spirit of someone currently without a physical world house - someone on the Other Side of the veil. This is because you are connecting with the Spirit of a person - not the body of a person - in almost all forms of true connection.

A veil,  a sheer and thin layer, is all that that separates the physical and the Spiritual worlds. Two very similar worlds, but based within different in levels of energy (one higher, one lower) are separated by only the types of individuals that can reside there. In the Spiritual realm, there are non-physical beings like Spirit Guides, Angels and Deceased Loved Ones and in the Physical realm, there physical beings, like humans, plants and animals. 

The human realm and the Spirit realm are essentially 'ecosystems' that live side by side, on top of each other.  An ecosystem, is a certain community of beings that are linked together through certain processes - and differences physical, energetic and environmental conditions of an area.

When two ecosystems come together, there is an invisible, yet distinct line that separates the two different habitats. In nature, this line is seen in shorelines, edges of forests, cliffs, tree layers of a rain forest, etc. These are all examples of locations where a thin wall of separation exists - where a veil is located. These are all places where a distinct line in two world meet can meet.

And these are all places where you can identify where that line is located. In the world of Spirit, the thin, yet distinct separating line, is also identifiable, except it's not always visible. Most of the time though, you can feel it. 

When you stand on the edge of this forest, right at tree line, you can start to sense what the forest might be like, even before you step into it - even when you still standing just on the edge of the meadow. You can feel the cool breeze coming out from under the shady canopy, your eyes start adjusting to the lower light in the understory of the forest. You can even begin to feel a temperature change on your skin. When you stand on the line between the two worlds, you can begin to sense properties of both.

On the edge of the veil, between the Spirit World and the Human world, you might start to sense properties of what the veil might be like, and as you walk through it, you may begin to feel physical sensations -  changes within or on your body - indicating that your body is adjusting to an ‘environmental’ change. On the edge of a veil and as you begin to walk past it, it's possible to begin to sense and interact with those on the other Side - Spirit." 

Thy soul shall find itself alone
'Mid dark thoughts of the grey tomb-stone;
Not one, of all the crowd, to pry
Into thine hour of secrecy.

Be silent in that solitude,
Which is not loneliness- for then
The spirits of the dead, who stood
In life before thee, are again
In death around thee, and their will
Shall overshadow thee; be still.

The night, though clear, shall frown,
And the stars shall not look down
From their high thrones in the Heaven
With light like hope to mortals given,
But their red orbs, without beam,
To thy weariness shall seem
As a burning and a fever
Which would cling to thee for ever.

Now are thoughts thou shalt not banish,
Now are visions ne'er to vanish;
From thy spirit shall they pass
No more, like dew-drop from the grass.

The breeze, the breath of God, is still,
And the mist upon the hill
Shadowy, shadowy, yet unbroken,
Is a symbol and a token.
How it hangs upon the trees,
A mystery of mysteries! 

~Edgar Allan Poe

Ghosts

"Because, as we are told—

a sad old joke, too—

Ghosts, like the ladies, 

never speak till spoke to."

~Thomas Ingoldsby, The Ghost, 1837

You know what a ghost is, don't you?   As we move closer to Halloween, we are reminded that on that night it is said that the "veil" between our world and the underworld is the thinnest, allowing ghosts to inhabit our earth as we know it, and therefore, it is the one night where the spirit world collides with the human world.  

So, we must give the Devil it's Due and define a ghost.

First of all, you must make the distinction from other entities:

A ghost is not an angel, or a demon.

What you should know and is important:  A ghost is always manifested as human.

According to llewelynworldwide there are 3 characteristics that must be made when defining what a ghost really is.  Please note that I have edited comments, and given only the distinctions.

"The first of these—and perhaps the most important—is that ghosts are always human. To put it more precisely, a ghost is the disembodied conscious energy—that which we might call the personality—of a once living person.

The second characteristic of a true ghost is that it is interactive, at least to some degree—that is, it has the ability to manipulate matter, to observe and be observed, and have some capacity to communicate with the living... A true ghost, then, must be both human and interactive, or else it is simply something else.

Finally, the third characteristic unique to ghosts is that they are not a natural part of the spiritual realm, but beings that exist apart from it. In other words... whereas spirit guides and angels and other such denizens of the ethereal realm are a natural extension of the spirit world, ghosts are beings that are unnaturally confined to the physical realm for a variety of reasons, usually having to do with either a free-will decision to stay behind or an unwillingness to completely move on to their next level of existence.

In essence, ghosts are either “trapped” or choose to reside in a type of “twilight” state that exists between the spiritual and physical realms, effectively making them residents of neither the physical nor the spiritual realm yet subject to elements of both."

Today is Lammas

Lammas:  

(Updated/corrected since this morning)

This is the festival of the First Fruits of the Harvest and is the first festival of the Waning Year.   Summer has piqued and though it was traditionally celebrated on July 31st, Lammas is the first day of Autumn.  You can easily research Lammas, and it's meaning and history, so I will leave that up to the reader, respectfully.

Here in central hills of the Green Mountains, we have been waking to cooler temperatures during the past week, a welcome reprieve from the constant humidity.  Yet, if you sniff the cool morning air, you can sense it is very subtly changing.  With the seasonal changes, one may experience an emotional change.  To me, this day signifies the fading summer.  Grass will begin to appear more yellow than green and leaves on the trees, may begin to change in the same way.  You may feel an urgency to indulge and to make merry before the summer season ends for the year.  

If this is how you feel, that is perfect!  "Lammas takes its name from the Old English "Hlaf," meaning "loaf" and "Maesse," meaning feast."  

"This was one of the four great pagan festivals of Britain, the others being on the 1st November, 1st February, and 1st May. The festival of the Gule of August, as it was called, probably recognized the realization of the first-fruits of the earth, and more particularly that of the grain-harvest. When Christianity was introduced, the day continued to be observed as a festival on these grounds, and, from a loaf being the usual offering at church, the service, and consequently the day, came to be called "Hlaf-mass", subsequently shortened into Lammas, just as half-dig (bread-dispenser), applicable to the mistress of the house, came to be softened into the familiar and extensively used term, lady. This we would call the rational definition of Lammas. There is another, but in our opinion utterly inadmissible derivation, pointing to the custom of bringing a lamb on this day, as an offering to the cathedral church of York. Without doubt, this custom, which was purely local, would take its rise with reference to the term Lammas, after the true original signification of that word had been forgotten."   ~ from the Chambers Book of Days (1864).

Preparing the Lammas Altar

Every altar is different - - (very personal) - - and yours should be too!  

Here, green and white candles have been lit for the Goddess and God, respectfully.  A pink candle burns positive vibrations for emotional love, nurturing relationships and romance. A pink candle will also promote spiritual depth, healing of the spirit, femininity, friendships, honor and morality. Pink is used in rituals to draw affections and brings friendly, lively conversation to the dinner table.

This Lammas altar was prepared with apples, seashells and pine cones.  A poppet (made of sculpey clay) with a cow statue on the right (God/Male) represents the ancient bull - specifically devoted to His Goddess-Mother.  "The Bull owes this association in part to the shape of its horns, in part to its connection with the Sacred Cow-Goddess, and in part to its power and virility. A single bull will produce a herd of calves, which creates prosperity for the people."

A green candle is lit, and surrounded by both seashells, symbolizing eternity, water and the Goddess.  Pine cones were also used (symbolic of the Tree of Life), and as a reflection of the fall season to come.

The East:  (Air):  Incense, Salt

The North: (Earth):  Pictured here, the offering of seasonal fruit.

The West:  (Water):  A picture of blessed water poured into a medieval goblet, a crystal ball and a bell.

Write a wish on a leaf of Bay, burned it over a candle, and then let it finish smoldering in a fire safe bowl (as you visualized the wish coming true). 

The South:  (Fire):  A brass bowl holds the burnt remains of a bay leaf. 

Salt is used to purify water, and symbolizes the element of Air / East (or Earth / North).

Blessed water to the West (water).

A stone of Hematite wards off evil and its energy is known to be calm and cooling. 

Incense to the East, representing Air.

On the left, is the female fairy.  The word Fairy is "derived from the ancient "faunoe o fatuoe" which, in the pagan mythology, indicated the faun's (deer) companions, creatures endowed with power of foretelling the future and ruling the human events. The word Fairy also comes from "fatigue", which in Middle Ages was synonymous with "wild woman", that is woman of woods, waters and, in general, of the natural world. Fairies are supernatural creatures endowed with magic power, thanks to which they can change their appearance and make it change to the others."  And since we are celebrating change, this seemed appropriate.   

"Lammas is often celebrated as the Wake for the Sacred King. As you know, a Wake is a Celebration of Life, not a time to grieve. And Lammas is a joyous time of celebration. Feast to your heart's content, sing, dance and make merry. Light your Need-Fires and make your Kern-babies. You'll "ne'er forget that happy night" you celebrated in The Old Ways!"