Welcome,
My name is Melissa Klehammer and thank you for joining me in this Samhain ritual.
Please gather your journal and a pen and be sure to lay it open so that it'll be ready to go when it's time to write.
And I'll offer a few moments here for you to light a candle or incense or to place a drop of oil on your wrists to mark the beginning of this ritual.
And then settle yourself in a comfortable position to meditate and journal.
To the ancient Celts,
Samhain,
Or summer's end,
Was a pagan festival thought to be the original Halloween.
It was a festive time that marked the end of the harvest,
So summer's end was winter's beginning.
And with this great seasonal shift,
Samhain was celebrated as their new year.
In modern day,
You may have heard it as the witch's new year.
On this day,
October 31st,
It was and is believed that the veil between the living and the dead was thin,
Allowing spirits to visit.
Fires were lit to invite the dead to warm themselves,
Offerings and altars were made at their headstones,
And stories were told to bring the memories of them to life.
Samhain is celebrated as a bridge between the seasons,
Moving into a time to rest and to hibernate.
Summer is all about doing,
Winter is all about being.
And with Samhain,
We honor the in-between.
We honor the passing of time.
Passing of time is not easy for those we leave behind and those who carry on.
On this day,
We recognize the sorrow,
The pain we feel at the end of things.
We honor our lost loved ones,
Our ancestors,
And by doing so,
We maintain a connection to them,
To our roots,
And our family lore.
Celebrating Samhain in this way allows our memories to come alive,
Gives us time and space to grieve,
And we experience joy and sadness,
Release and connection.
We feel a level of acceptance,
Resolve,
Followed by hope,
Understanding that we never fully heal from loss,
But with sacred time spent honoring our loved ones,
We eventually find our way with the whole it creates in us.
Okay,
Let's meditate.
Please readjust your seat and settle in.
Bring awareness into your breath,
Moving in and out of your nostrils.
And then more specifically,
Follow your breath as it moves up your nostrils on inhale and down your nostrils on exhale.
As you follow your breath,
Moving in and out of your nostrils,
Let's also refine the breath,
Making sure that your breath is silent,
Soft,
And smooth.
So you're not unconsciously holding your breath.
The inhale blends seamlessly into the exhale,
And the exhale blends seamlessly into the inhale.
Three more breaths here,
Please.
And then settle your awareness to the space just outside of your body.
And begin to see,
Sense,
Or trust an element or item from nature,
Starlight,
Moonlight,
Limbs of trees,
Anything that comes to you,
Begin to see that forming around you in a circle.
This is your circle of protection.
See it forming all around you,
This element or item from nature.
And then just outside of this circle,
Draw another circle with a different element or item that you'd find in nature.
See,
Sense,
Or simply trust it forming around you.
This is your circle of healing.
And then draw one more circle around the other two.
One more element or natural item.
See that forming around you as your circle of support.
And begin to see or sense your ancestors well in spirit,
Your loved ones,
Mentors,
Guardians.
Begin to see them as part of your circle of support.
Notice the sensations in your body,
Any emotions that arise.
Stay with the circle of support and the beings who surround it.
And then begin to see or sense these beings moving toward you,
Piercing through your circle of healing,
Piercing through your circle of protection,
And entering into the space of your heart,
Becoming your protectors,
Healing your heart.
Take a deep breath in and softly let it out.
Stay with this image and the emotions that it evokes.
And silently repeat to my loved ones recently passed,
To all of my ancestors I never knew,
Your courage,
Your abilities,
Your hardships have made my life possible.
We are eternally connected in spirit.
May you rest in peace and may I live in peace until we meet again.
Please take a few deep breaths and take your time coming back.
When you're ready,
Pick up your pen and write about what you saw and what you felt.
We'll spend a couple of minutes here.
Please come back.
Now we'll move into a practical prompt for the seasonal transition.
But please keep that tenderheartedness with you.
In your journal,
Write in a line the words family,
Work,
Play,
Rest,
And home.
And draw a big circle underneath.
These words represent the main areas of your life where you spend your time and your energy.
So please adjust them as needed.
For example,
If your work is the homemaker or the home manager,
Keep that as work and either remove the word home or replace it with something else that reflects your life.
Play,
That includes time spent with friends,
Time spent with your hobbies.
Home includes making food,
Cleaning,
Care,
And maintenance.
So now consider the amount of time you spend on each of these areas of your life in a given week.
For example,
If you spend 50% of your time at work,
Draw a line straight down the middle of your circle and label it work.
Continue until you have all of the slices or areas of your life accounted for.
These are just estimates.
We're just trying to get an idea,
A visual of where your energy is spent.
And we'll spend another minute here.
Okay,
Please finish up.
Now,
Look at your energy pie.
Notice where you are fulfilled and where you'd like to bring more balance.
And begin to write about how you can spend the transition into winter,
Working it out.
Two minutes here.
Please come back.
Please readjust your seat.
And we'll close the ritual together.
Bring awareness back to the space of your heart.
And feel the residue of your ancestors,
Your loved ones settled there.
Feel the memory of your circles of protection and healing.
Place your left hand on your heart and your right hand on top.
And bow your head to your heart,
To the light your loved ones have lit for you.
Please take a deep breath in and softly let it out.
Lower your hands and flutter your eyes open.
If you'd like to continue your Samhain celebration,
Here are a few more ideas.
Create an altar for yourself to represent your past,
Present,
And future.
Set up a frame with a picture of an ancestor.
Look through old photo albums.
Visit an older member of your family.
They are the keeper of stories.
Visit a loved one at the cemetery.
And finally,
To close out your Samhain celebration,
Once you're in bed for the evening,
Listen to my healing yoga nidra here on Insight Timer,
And let it lull you to sleep.
Thank you for passing this time with me.
My name is Melissa Kleehammer.
Happy Samhain.
