It’s that time of the year again.
It is almost as normal as it is special, Halloween,
again. People can’t wait to dress up and look ridiculously “scary” but that is
actually the purpose of it. As I did some research, I found out that the origin
of Halloween was actually in Britain; dated back about 2000 years ago. Even back then
people would put on masks to help the deceased, who would return as ghosts, to
feel welcome and also leave food and wine on their doorsteps. Trick or
treating, another tradition, derived from so called “souling and guising”. The first one stands for
backing soul cakes and praying for ancestors whereas the other one describes people
dressing up and singing in exchange for money or food. Pretty surprising,
right? In fact, what surprised me most was that people would leave wash basin
and towels for the spirit of their dead fellows to wash themselves before starting
to eat the prepared food. Not enough, on November second they would go to their
deceased’s grave (who should be back in the grave by then, I guess) and drink tequila to celebrate.
Imagine that in Austria, you could count the fingers pointing at you. As a matter
of fact (the last historical one I promise), the English stopped celebrating
Halloween after Martin Luther’s protestant reformation because they lost faith
in saints and saw no more reason to scare away ghosts. Well, what am I trick or
treating if I am not going to the cemetery the day after to honor the spirits
and souls of my dead relatives? However, I personally like the fact that there
is a day where the world gets crazy and people lose their manners. Normally, I
would not go around my neighborhood wearing a costume, singing and asking people
for candy. Finally, no fingers are pointed.
I guess, you just have to leave out the (side)
effect of Halloween on the industry and the enormous amount of money it makes
with it .
Happy trick or treating everyone and don’t be too “lazy” to dress up!
Check out my former neighbor and his house.
don't forget to dress up your pet
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