This is the time for planning any rituals and ceremonies you intend to do to celebrate Samhain.
I though a thread so people could post their favourite things to do, or anything new they intend to try this year might be nice.
So if any of you have anything related to this sabbat you want to share with the rest of us, I'm sure we'd all love to hear it.

This is the Oat Cake recipe I always use. I add chopped apples and cinnamon at this time of year too, just to make them that little bit more special.

Samhain Oat Cakes.

ingredients.

4 oz/100g self raising flour
4oz/100g porridge oats
½ level teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
4oz/100g butter or margarine
4oz/100g granulated sugar
1 rounded tablespoon golden syrup
2 apples, peeled, cored and chopped finely.
Pinch cinammon

method

Heat your oven to gas mark 4/180 c
Grease 2 large baking trays with butter or margarine if you use margarine.
Mix the flour, oats, apple, cinnamon and bicarbonate of soda together in a bowl, and place on one side.
Put butter or margarine, sugar and golden syrup in a saucepan, heat on a low heat and stir occasionally until the butter and sugar are melted, remove from the heat and stir in the oat mixture, stirring well to make sure it is properly mixed together.
Using a dessertspoon place spoonfuls of mixture on greased baking trays. Place them well apart though as they can spread if the idea occurs to them. lol
Slightly flatten each mound with a fork. If you keep dampening the fork with cold water it helps stop it from sticking to the mixture.
Cook in the oven for 15 minutes, they're ready when they are golden brown, don't leave them too long or they become very crunchy when they cool. Remove from the oven and leave to cool on the baking sheet for 5 mins before moving them carefully onto a wire rack.

If they aren't over cooked, when they cool, they will be crispy on the outside and sticky and gooey in the middle.
Yummy.

I serve these as my offering cakes to accompany the wine or the cider or apple juice I use for Samhain.

Lady C.

I am surprised that no one has posted anything in here as of yet. I would frankly love to try some Samhain rituals, but I am sadly trapped all alone over here in the US. My family is Christian and so there is nothing I can do but wait for times when I can celebrate Samhain with the rest of you.

~Farshief

ahh now samhain however you celebrate it is about remembering the ancestors so even the simplest ritual where you allow the veil between worlds to come forward to narrow the gap between living and dead will allow you to celebrate Samhain. All you need to do is bring the veil closer to the physical and offer your thanks to the ancestors.
I am sure there is a way you could do this on your own Farshief....I'll see if I can sort you out a ritual if you like that doesn't need candles and other parent alerting objects.
Hows your visualisation?

Zygo

It has gotten much better zygo. I would much appreciate such a ritual.

I look forward to seeing what you come up with.

~Farshief

Samhain Hazelnut Charm

You will need 9 hazelnuts
Black coloured Twine
A nut pick or small boring tool

Using the nut pick or boring tool make holes right through nine Hazelnuts. (Don't shell them, use them whole).
String them on the twine, knotting each in place. Make the twine just long enough to hold the nine nuts with a small spaec in between and a few inches at the end. Then tie the twine into a circlet.
On the night of Samhain, consecrate it with fire, passing it back and forth across the flames, whilst chanting:

"Hazelnuts nine in a ring
By the smoke of the Samhain fire bring
To those within our humble home
A place of safety, a protective dome
Guard for a year those who dwell
Under the protection of this spell
I ask you kindly head this plea
As I will so mote it be.

This charm should be hung in your home somewhere as a protection for the coming year.

Here you go. I wrote it so that it's reasonably easy to remember and doesnt need tools.

Use you right hand to sweep out a circle around you pushing out any negative energy.

Again using your right hand scribe around you deosil (clockwise) visualising a circle of light being drawn on the floor and rising up to form a wall.

Repeat as you draw the circle

I cast this ring of love and light,
circle of goodness protect this rite

Facing east visualise a tornado or similar air related thing that means something to you
Turn to the south and visualise a fire or similar fire related thing that means something to you
Turn to the west and visualise a waterfall or similar water related thing that means something to you
Turn to north and visualise a large cliff or similar earth related thing that means something to you

(Try to see them completely encircling you and joining each other somewhere around the edge of your circle)

Now turn full circle raising the light of your circle to a point over your head build up the point until you see a ball of light floating there.
Now let the circle sink back to the floor leaving your ball of spirit light hovering above you.

Speak to the ball of light. You can do this in your head but make sure your words reach the ball.
Say something like this. (You can read this bit from a paper)

As old year ends and new begins
The veil between the worlds now thins
The ancient ones I thank and more
I thank all those that went before

Build the power in the ball and give it to the universe.
(Symbolically send it up and outwards. )

As above so below
So the years renew and grow
As below it is above
We end this rite with peace and love.



Now turn in your circle thanking all who have gathered there. Thank them and bid them hail and farewell.

Using your left hand sweep away the circle widdershins (anticlockwise)
You are done

It’s short but should do the job it raises a circle of power for you and covers the essence of the Samhain ritual but without any tools or extra bits.

If you ever need a little extra protection you can raise a circle like that anywhere (you don’t need the directional powers for that )

Zygo 24/10/08

Thank you for this ritual Zygo.

I don't have a lot of experience in rituals but it looks well written and done to me. So thank you.

Sadly, on Samhain I have a football game that I must attend being that I am in the band. I will still, however, try to make sure to conserve an amount of my energy to perform this ritual later that night after I am home.

Thanks once again,
~Farshief

yeah..i might try that..Oh wait..if one of my friends live with me that might be wierd..so idk i will try that.but i to sadly have a game that requires my attendance to be there I don't wanna be...but oh well..what can you do? lol. but i will try it after i get home if i have the energy..my energy generally runs out after games

Well, I think that friend might understand if you explained to her that considering it is Samhain you need a bit to yourself.

Also, on the count of energy. You can always take some of mine. I will be massively conserving my energy during this game as OBA(major band competition of the year) will have passed and I'll be relaxing.

So yeah, feel free to take some of mine as I will have plenty.

~Farshief

Much is spoken about honouring those passed at this special time of year, and of course as the veil between the world is at it's thinnest there could be no better time for that, but it is too often forgotten that this is a time to re-affirm the power of life and death as it relates to everything in our lives. Situations, experiences, and relationships as well as people and other creatures and beings. Through the time frame of this holiday we experience many changes, and pay tribute to how fragile everything in life can be. We remember how precious everything and everyone in our lives are and give thanks for them all.
All frustrations are burned away in the fires of this Sabbat and a new beginning emerges for the New Year.
This is the time to give thanks and make pleas.

Hermann Slater says of Samhain:
"a time which is not a time
in a place which is not a place
on a day which is not a day
between the worlds
and beyond..."

Thinking this way, a simple spell for Samhain uses a special black candle lit to represent the outgoing old year, and one special orange candle lit to represent the incoming new year.
Prior to beginning your celebrations give all of your guests two pieces of paper. Have them write onto one piece something they would like to see gone with the old year, a habit, an experience, a relationship etc. Then on the other piece have them write something they would like to have come into their life with the new year, a new job, new experiences or knowledge, a new home etc.
Place both candles on your altar and as the midnight hour approaches, light them.
The guests then file past the two candles and burn the first scrap of paper to honour the old year in the flame from the black candle. Thanking the powers of the old year for it's gifts and lessons and asking them to take the things to be rid of away with them as they leave. The second scrap of paper is burned to honour the new year in the flame of the orange candle. They thank the powers of the new year for the bounties it promises to bring, and the new possibilities it presents, and ask that it brings with it as it enters all the good things they personally desire.
This is a good ritual for those of you who may have Samhain guests who are not Pagan, as it is not particularly formal, and therefore open to all who have even the smallest amount of belief or imagination.

For most, lighting a bonfire is an easy ritual to do at Samhain, all you need is a patch of earth outside, a hearth inside, or a metal container large enough to hold a small fire, and it has a magical significance all of it's own if you understand the reasons behind it.

Samhain is a Fire Festival.
Bonfires were lit all across the countryside, and were used to represent the sun, honouring the warmth it bestowed, and carrying the wishes of the people that the sun would soon return and bless them with it's warmth again. The fires were also alleged to warm friendly spirits and ward off evil ones.
A traditional custom in ancient villages was to light a bonfire on the green in the center of the village, and every household would put out their hearth fire before attending the celebrations of feasting and merry-making. At the close of the evenings festivities the head of each household would be given an ember from this fire to take home with them. From this ember they would light their home hearth fires. This was to keep out the wandering evil spirits that were abroad on this night, and encourage happy spirits to attend the families, and keep the home a happy and healthy one with no wants and needs that could not be met.

The Celts used to disguise themselves at Samhain so the spirits would accept them as their own. In this disguise they attempted to connect and communicate with the spirits, an action they would have referred to as 'souling'.
It is believed that the tradition of dressing in costume at Halloween is derived from this ancient practice.

Once, if you lived near the Forest of Pendle in North Lancashire, then you may have taken part in a ceremony called 'Lating the Witches' on Samhain night. There the locals believed witches gathered at Samhain, and so lit candles were carried over the hills between 11 p.m and midnight - lighting the witches or 'lating' them.
If your candle stayed lit then the witches' power was broken and they dispersed, but if it went out it was assumed to have been blown out by one of the witches, and bad luck may have been your lot for the following 12 months.

My most favourite thing to do as a ritual is to carve a pumpkin.
It's not just for children, it's a ceremonial thing too.

In the ancient times at Samhain the Celts used to put the skulls of their dearly departed outside the front door.
This was supposed to show that the house was protected by friendly family spirits and so drive off the evil ones who may mean harm to the family living there.
Of course eventually the practice of digging up long dead relatives and removing their skulls became less and less popular, so a replacement had to be found. The pumpkin replaced the skull, with a few modifications. A face was carved into the pumpkin to make it look more skull-like, the face was made as scary as possible to frighten evil spirits and discourage them from trying to enter the house.

So, in case you grown-ups need one, there's a really good and genuine reason to be caught carving a pumpkin this year.