The Quotation of the Week (25 - 31 October, 2020)

 

A quotation of Rose Lane on 'genuine happiness,' compiled by Jerome D'Costa

Photo (Halloween pumpkins in Toronto) © Jerome D'Costa

The Quotation of the Week (May 15 - 21, 2016)

A quotation of Leo Tolstoy on 'changing oneself,' compiled by Jerome D'Costa

Photo (Halloween decorations in Scarborough, Toronto: Oct. 22, 2014) © Jerome D'Costa

The Quotation of the Week (November 2 - 8, 2014)

A quotation of River Phoenix on the 'halloween,' compiled by Jerome D'Costa

Photo (Halloween carvings on pumpkins in Scarborough, Toronto: October 22, 2014) © Jerome D'Costa

Today Is the Halloween Day

Today is the October 31st, the Halloween Day. This is the day when people -- young and old -- of the western countries think of witches, ghosts and ghouls.They get a special thrill in scaring people with all kinds of creative ideas, decorations, and costumes.

Originally the Celts were into this Halloween thing and later the Catholic Church tried to give it a religious character by letting people think and pray for their dearly departed who are officially remembered by the Church on the All Saints' Day (November 1) and All Souls' Day (November 2). With the immigration of the Irish, Welsh and Scottish people to the USA, Canada, Australia and some other countries, the Halloween customs and rites spread to other ethnic groups. When the business community found it to be financially lucrative, they took it to a new level selling their Halloween items and making billions of dollars in profit.

The following photos depict how the Halloween is represented in the decorations in and around the houses and apartment buildings in Toronto, Canada.

Some Halloween Decorations in Toronto

The Halloween, originally based on religious aspect of death and Christians' preparation for it, gradually turned into a social event and festivity dominated by ghosts and ghouls. Now it is fully commercialized with the sale of ghostly costumes and paraphernalia which are used for Halloween parties, trick or treat, decorations of houses and offices and so on. 

We present below some photographs depicting decorations of several houses in Toronto.

Halloween decorations in front of different houses in Scarborough, Toronto

Photos (Scarborough, Toronto: Oct. 31, 2011) © Jerome D'Costa

The Poem of the Month (October, 2011): HALLOWEEN

A Halloween doodle

Doodle (Toronto: Oct. 31, 2011) © Jerome D'Costa

Halloween

By Jerome D'Costa

Trick or treat?

Trick.

Trick or treat?

Treat.

Trick or treat?

Trick and treat.

That's the suspense

                of the Halloween.

Today is the Halloween Day

_

A Jack-o'-lantern (a hollowed-out pumpkin
 with a candle inside)

Art by Jennifer Tibbits @ the courtesy

 of http://www.catholicgreetings.org/

Today is the Halloween Day. This day is celebrated, mostly in the western world, on every October 31 -- the day before the feast of All Hallows' Day or officially called All Saints' Day. The word halloween is the short form of All Hallow E'en (holy evening).

The Background of the Halloween

More than two thousand years ago, the pagan Celtic tribes of Ireland, Wales, Scotland and Brittany used to observe this day as the last day of summer and the advent of winter. On this occasion, they celebrated the festival of Samhain, the Lord of the Dead. It was believed that the souls of the dead returned on this night and mixed with the living. Moreover, on this day, the Celts also took stock of their harvested grains and killed cows, goats and sheep and stocked the meat for use in coming winter months. To prevent the returning dead from causing harm by sickness and plague or by crop damage, people set bonfires and threw bones of slaughtered livestock on them. They also wore ghostly costumes and masks (witches, ghouls, skeletal figures, and the like) so that the dead souls might think that the living people were ones of their own and abstain from causing them any harm.

The Christian Aspect of the Halloween

In 835 A.D., Pope Gregory IV tried to Christianize the festival by moving the celebration of Christian martyrs (later called Saints) from May 13 to November 1. November 2 is observed as the All Souls' Day. These two feasts have been placed together to remember the dead -- who are saints as well as others who may or may not be saints.

The Modern Halloween

In the mid-1850s, about two million Irish people came to the United States as refugees and migrants. With them came the custom of the Halloween. Gradually, this custom spread all over the USA and Canada with the commercialization of this festival, that is observed by treat-or-tricking, bonfires, costume parties, ghost-story-telling, and the like. Today, Christians and non-Christians alike observe the Halloween Day as part of merry-making.

Happy Halloween to you all!