Pagan Mysteries of Halloween: Celebrating the Dark Half of the Year (Paperback)

It is not surprising then that Mr. Markale has written a most profound study of the Celtic celebration of Halloween or Samhain from the perspective of an actual historian and philosopher. The original of this book was first printed in France in 2000 and was translated and brought to the English speaking market in 2001.

I must first congratulate Mr. Graham for his extraordinary translation of this book. Not being fluent in French, I would never have tackled such a volume, but Mr. Graham has preserved, in my opinion, the poetic flavor of Mr. Markale's work. It flows rather than reading dry and halting, like many tomes on this subject.

The book is composed of only four chapters: The Celtic Festival of Samhain, The Fantastic Night, The Festival of All the Saints and The Shadows of Halloween. This is followed by a conclusion. While the number of chapters is small, the content of each is enormous, giving page after page of facts, religious comparisons, philosophies and supporting evidence for the practices of this misunderstood holiday.

I believe the best way to summarize what this book is about is to quote the author from his Conclusion:
"It is a way not of "taming death" as Montaigne said, but of exorcising it by establishing a direct line between before and after, which will display the permanence of life in all its aspects and all its states. This is the appropriate lesson to draw from Samhain and its survivals, whether the Christian All Saint's Day or the folklike manifestations of Halloween."

His book weaves these final thoughts into understanding as he unfolds the various aspects of this philosophy. I will only attempt to outline the book by its chapters, as it is difficult to take any of his material out of context without it suffering. The need to read, meditate and appreciate the written word as presented by Mr. Markale is one of the wonderful plus' of this book. To read it with all the footnotes as well as endnotes intact is to grasp the full appreciation of well researched work that pieces together the myths and stories and history with solid evidence. He creates a very balanced approach to defining what the origins and mysteries of Samhain were how it survived forced evolution and he brings it all into modern day understanding. There is a very extensive bibliography and one worth exploring if you wish to cover this topic further.

The Celtic Festival of Samhain examines the Celtic origins of this holiday. It examines the Celtic calendar, the division of the "Light of the Year" with the "Dark of the Year", compares the myths with evidence derived from recorded stories and histories and supports it with the culture of the Celtic people. He makes good arguments for the holiday occurring at the date assigned it, and then explores the practices or Rituals of the holiday. His conclusions are hard to argue with, as he produces some very strong evidence for his work. There is some wonderful material here, quoted from some common as well as obscure sources, and is both a pleasure to read and easy to understand.

The Fantastic Night explores the actual Celtic practices and meanings of this holiday. This chapter explores the philosophical aspects as evident from Celtic cultural practices. The meanings of "Other Worlds", or how time has no meaning on this occasion, and how this is supported by actual recording of cultural ideas and ideals of the Celtic peoples; all is presented here for you to savor, meditate upon and draw deeper understandings.

The Festival of All the Saints traces the evolving holiday, how it was forced into a mold created by those who failed to understand this holiday but could not remove it from the cultures of the areas. He traces how it was adapted and remade. But it is not a story of destruction but rather how the origins survived, maybe a bit worse for wear, and continued to thrive in spite of change. This is a very good look at the Christianization of the Celtic culture and how it created a very unique presence as "Celtic Christianity" and how it then proceeded to influence the rest of the Christian church.

Finally, in The Shadows of Halloween we see how this holiday has come down to us today, how it has survived the ravages of time and continues to be a time when we remember those things of old and incorporate them into our new. The outward signs are reminders of the old philosophies and beliefs and we cling to them because it sparks recognition of values that are not just Celtic, but universal ideas that cross many cultures.

His conclusions are very philosophical in nature, and are profound in the revelations he makes regarding our perceptions of life, death, time and rebirth. He uses many literary examples of how we have continued, over the course of time, to experience, again and again, the understanding of our basic need to acknowledge death and in the same breath, life. To quote again:
"Everything is contained within the apparent masquerades of Halloween. The sacred is inseparable from the profane, and popular memory, still rebelling against the dominate ideologies, has preserved within its most intimate depths and restored on certain occasions a state of nature that was so dear to the Utopian thinker Jean-Jacques Rousseau -- to wit, outside of time and space, the universal fraternity of beings and things."

Probably the best book on the subject, for its ability to successfully tackle the true meaning and origins of this very often misunderstood and sometimes feared holiday. A must read for anyone not afraid to expand their understanding and give more than a passing thought to the significance of Halloween.