Post by robincragin on Oct 27, 2015 16:54:59 GMT -5
Why do Witches celebrate death? To folks who are new to the Craft, the celebration may feel morbid, frightening or distasteful. However, it is important to remember that it is a lifetime of conditioning that tells you that death is morbid or frightening. These are learned concepts about death.
So what is the right attitude to take about death? The most powerful position you can take is one void of opinion. This means that you consciously make an effort to hold no associations at all with death. When you clear your mind of everything you have learned about death, it unfolds as a simple, natural process. When you come to this more neutral understanding, death holds no power over you.
Witches do not believe that death is the end of life. The spirit, the immortal part of you, survives death. Wiccan myth says that the spirit journeys to the Summerland, a place of endless bounty and feasting. There, you reunite with loved ones that have already passed over. Witch lore states that your time in the Summerland is one of rejuvenation, so that you can replenish yourself before re-entering the world of physical form.
Witches believe in reincarnation not as a symbol, but as a literal fact. Although the concept of reincarnation may, upon first encounter, appear to be eastern in origin, it is a belief common to many spiritual traditions around the globe. One can find historical evidence for belief in reincarnation throughout Old Europe and later in the classical world of Greece and Rome. For example, Julius Caesar said of the Druids, “They wish to inculcate this as one of their leading tenets, that souls do not become extinct, but pass after death from one body to another….” The Greek Pythagoras also believed in the transmigration of the spirit from one body to another: “The spirit wanders now here, now there and occupies whatever frame it pleases.” Contemporary Witches base their beliefs on these ancient western notions of reincarnation. Contemporary Witches have added lore to classical western reincarnation beliefs. In particular, modern Witches believe that the purpose of reincarnation is that of spiritual learning.
If we contemplate the symbolic level of Samhain, we discover that it is directing our attention to the theme of endings. It is about ending one phase of our lives and beginning another. But if we consider this thing we call “endings” rather closely, we can see that it is a concept, an invention. Does anything ever really end? Perhaps, more appropriately, one might say that all things in life have their progression. People, events, conditions of life transform from one moment to the next. In that sense, each moment is an ending and a beginning. Samhain is a time to contemplate these truths and to gain insight into how they affect your life.
Exercise:
* Take time to journal about your thoughts and feelings about death. Sit down with paper and pen and simply free-associate about death for five minutes. Set a timer and do not allow the pen to stop during the five minutes. Just keep on writing, even when you have nothing to write about. Say whatever is coming to you and even if initially you experience writer’s block, you’ll move through it to reveal your deepest insights and understandings.
* Make a list of every deceased person you have known or that has been part of your life. Examine the list and, if possible, visualize each person whose name appears on it.
* Imagine your own name appearing on the list and then add it in writing.
* Post this list near you and refer to it throughout the day.
* Take note of how it feels to periodically refer to deceased persons throughout your day.
So what is the right attitude to take about death? The most powerful position you can take is one void of opinion. This means that you consciously make an effort to hold no associations at all with death. When you clear your mind of everything you have learned about death, it unfolds as a simple, natural process. When you come to this more neutral understanding, death holds no power over you.
Witches do not believe that death is the end of life. The spirit, the immortal part of you, survives death. Wiccan myth says that the spirit journeys to the Summerland, a place of endless bounty and feasting. There, you reunite with loved ones that have already passed over. Witch lore states that your time in the Summerland is one of rejuvenation, so that you can replenish yourself before re-entering the world of physical form.
Witches believe in reincarnation not as a symbol, but as a literal fact. Although the concept of reincarnation may, upon first encounter, appear to be eastern in origin, it is a belief common to many spiritual traditions around the globe. One can find historical evidence for belief in reincarnation throughout Old Europe and later in the classical world of Greece and Rome. For example, Julius Caesar said of the Druids, “They wish to inculcate this as one of their leading tenets, that souls do not become extinct, but pass after death from one body to another….” The Greek Pythagoras also believed in the transmigration of the spirit from one body to another: “The spirit wanders now here, now there and occupies whatever frame it pleases.” Contemporary Witches base their beliefs on these ancient western notions of reincarnation. Contemporary Witches have added lore to classical western reincarnation beliefs. In particular, modern Witches believe that the purpose of reincarnation is that of spiritual learning.
If we contemplate the symbolic level of Samhain, we discover that it is directing our attention to the theme of endings. It is about ending one phase of our lives and beginning another. But if we consider this thing we call “endings” rather closely, we can see that it is a concept, an invention. Does anything ever really end? Perhaps, more appropriately, one might say that all things in life have their progression. People, events, conditions of life transform from one moment to the next. In that sense, each moment is an ending and a beginning. Samhain is a time to contemplate these truths and to gain insight into how they affect your life.
Exercise:
* Take time to journal about your thoughts and feelings about death. Sit down with paper and pen and simply free-associate about death for five minutes. Set a timer and do not allow the pen to stop during the five minutes. Just keep on writing, even when you have nothing to write about. Say whatever is coming to you and even if initially you experience writer’s block, you’ll move through it to reveal your deepest insights and understandings.
* Make a list of every deceased person you have known or that has been part of your life. Examine the list and, if possible, visualize each person whose name appears on it.
* Imagine your own name appearing on the list and then add it in writing.
* Post this list near you and refer to it throughout the day.
* Take note of how it feels to periodically refer to deceased persons throughout your day.