History of Holloween

Halloween is October 31st. The Halloween customs that we observe on
October 31st had their beginnings long, long ago. They came from the
beliefs of the druids - priests of ancient Gaul and Britain. The
druids believed that witches, demons, and spirits of the dead roamed
the earth on the eve of November 1, on Samhain, one of the
Equinoxes. Bonfires were lit to drive the bad spirits away.

To protect themselves further from the mean tricks of the bad
spirits, the druids offered the demons and devils good things to
eat. They also disguised themselves so that the spirits would think
the druids belonged to their own evil circle. Later, the Roman
Catholic Church established the first day of November to honor all
the saints who had no special days of their own. It became known as
All Saints' Day or All Hallows' Day. The night before was called All
Hallows' Even. The two festivals gradually became one, and All
Hallows' Even was shortened to Halloween. Since then, we've
celebrated Halloween by playing trick or treat, dressing up in
costumes, and wearing masks.

Halloween.... such a magical time of year. Originally, All Hallows
Eve was considered sacred as a pagan recognition of the dead. You
set up hollowed out squash carved with demonic faces and lit by
candles in order to ward off evil spirits. You dressed as the dead
to blend in with the dead who walked the earth for one night a year
so they wouldn't drag you back with them to the underworld.

Today, we honor this long-standing tradition by dressing in our
kinkiest or wackiest costumes and parading back and forth in public
in search of fun-size chocolate treats, perhaps exploring a few
tricks of our own.

In honor of this most revered holiday filled with fright and fun
alike, here are a few sexy and scary Halloween myths to get you in
the mood.

Bloody Mary

Status: Try it and see!

Myth: Go into the bathroom, light a candle, look into the mirror
with the lights off and the room completely black, and then
chant "Bloody Mary. Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary". As you continue to
chant your voice should grow louder and louder into a near scream. A
woman will appear and scratch your face off.

Origin: The myth of Bloody Mary the mirror-witch goes back to 1978,
when folklorist Janet Langlois published her essay on the legend.
While some confuse Bloody Mary with her cousin Mary Queen of Scots,
that Mary was not known as a murderer (although there was definite
suspicion as to how her husband actually died).

It's possible that this game may be inspired by an old form of
divination or scrying using mirrors, because both practices involve
chanting rhythmically and then looking into a mirror. However, the
concept of ghosts and mirrors is an old one. It was common once,
when funerals were still held in the home (in the parlor or 'dead
room'), that all mirrors be covered until the deceased was buried.
The fear was that the departed may catch a glimpse of himself or
herself and the mirror would trap the spirit in the house forever.
(Coincidentally, the parlor was eventually replaced with a place the
family could go to enjoy life and live, hence 'the living room'.)

Razor Blades in Candy

Status: True!

Myth: Check every piece of Halloween candy you get because someone
might put razor blades and needles in the candy.

Origin: Why does there always have to be someone out there to ruin
something wonderful for everyone? Yeesh.

While candy poisoning has never been substantiated, there have been
many objects placed in Halloween candy, including needles and razor
blades. However, none have resulted in anything more than stitches.

Trick or Treat?

Status: Originally appeared in Reader's Digest. It has been retold
many different ways since.

Story: On Halloween, a man dresses for a costume party and asks his
wife if she will accompany him. His wife is a bit suspicious of her
husband's fidelity.

"No, I've got such a terrible headache. You go without me," she
says, laying down on the bed.

The man goes to the party, and his wife slips into a new costume
that her husband had never seen. She arrives at the party to see her
husband shamelessly flirting and dancing with every girl he sees.
Seeing red, the wife decides to get even.

Seductively, she sidles up to him and suggests they spend some time
together upstairs alone. He quickly agrees and they slip upstairs
together. At midnight, when everyone was to unmask, she slips away
and heads home.

At 3am, her husband finally returns home.

"How was the party?" she asks.

"Boring," her husband answers. "When I got there, all my friends
were alone too, so we went into the den and played poker all night."

"You played poker?" she says angrily.

"Yeah," her husband shrugs, "I gave my costume to Charlie. He said
he had the time of his life."

Black Cats

Status: Undetermined

Myth: Black Cats, being associated with witches and thus Halloween,
are often used for pranks, party props and even satanic, sacrificial
rituals around Halloween.

Origin: More than 2000 years ago, Druids believed that evil spirits
were responsible for cold weather and shorter hours of daylight. To
pacify the spirits, they initiated a festival honoring Samhain, the
lord of the dead. The festival was held October 31, the day before
the beginning of the Celtic new year. Huge bonfires were lit in
order to frighten away evil spirits and to honor the souls of the
recently deceased. Rituals were held in the belief that mysterious
entities could possibly return for retribution, and these rituals
included sacrifice. Black cats were a favorite sacrifice because
they were thought to be evil spirits transformed into animals.

All Hallows' Eve Legends