Halloween - what is it?

What does Halloween mean to you?

I've been pondering this for some time. For everyone its different - in fact if you ask the kids its about getting free candy. But what was it to begin with? Where did this tradition come from? I'm still looking around for answers, but I did find some interesting tidbits from the Ancient Celtic religion.

I do know that Halloween used to be - in old ancient times, a celebration of the fall's harvest. It was the end of one soltace and the beginning of another. There are many different beliefs but for the most part, Hallow's Eve has its roots in the Ancient Celtic festival of Samhain. It was in fact the beginning of the Celtic New Year, the end of the light half and the beginning of the dark half.

Hallow's Even became a time to celebrate the passing of loved ones. During hallow's eve good and bad spirits were released fromthe Otherworld and allowed free roam. Those of the family, friends were welcomed within homes while the bad spirits were warded off - thus began the ritual of wearing costumes.

There is some belief that it goes back to a Roman celebration, to Briton, and many other places. I however, haven't done a lot of research in that direction - simply because I'm knee deep in a new Celtic novel, but it's definitely something to look into.

So I'll leave you with this simple question: What does Halloween mean to you? All comments are welcome!