THE INVISIBLE WORLDS DURING SAMHAIN
Veils Lifting // Entering the Invisible Worlds
We are entering a threshold in the year, a time when, as many ancient ways remind us, the veil between worlds grows thin. The seen and the unseen draw close, and the boundaries between the living and the dead dissolve into a shimmer of permeability.
Across cultures and ages, this has been known as a moment to honor those who have gone before us, to celebrate their lives, to remember their wisdom, and to assist their spirits in their passage. It is a festival of remembrance and renewal, of continuity and connection.
As the darkness deepens and nature turns inward, we too are invited to cross into subtler realms, to listen, to commune, and to rekindle our relationship with the invisible worlds that pulse beneath the surface of things.
I want to take this moment to share a few reflections on these unseen dimensions, and to offer ritual inspiration for your own journey through this liminal time.
Wishing you a deeply magical Samhain. May your remembering be guided by ancestral light.
Celebrating American Consumer Culture vs. honoring our origins in reverence to the ones who have passed
It’s likely unnecessary to explain that Halloween is a mainstream adaptation of what originally was a sacred tradition, honoring the connection between the living and the dead—a time to acknowledge the thin veil between worlds and to celebrate ancestral wisdom. Halloween is a commercialized version that often mimics what was once a sacred tradition observed across cultures. Originally, this time of year was dedicated to honoring the dead, acknowledging the thin veil between the visible and invisible worlds. Cultures from the Celts with their festival of Samhain to the Mexican Día de los Muertos have long marked this period as a profound opportunity to connect with ancestors, pay respects to departed souls, and reflect on the mysteries of life and death.
In contrast, Halloween overshadows these meaningful origins, focusing on costumes, entertainment, and consumerism. This modern adaptation has largely detached from the reverence and depth seen in traditional practices that honor the spiritual dimension and the wisdom of those who came before us. Today, Halloween has become one of the most commercially profitable holidays in the U.S., second only to Christmas, with billions spent on candy, costumes, and decorations each year. American capitalism has reimagined Halloween from its spiritual, ancestral roots into a consumer-centered celebration, where companies profit by transforming ancient traditions into a retail opportunity. This shift highlights how capitalism can obscure the original meaning of cultural traditions, reshaping them to fit a consumer-driven landscape.
By rediscovering the origins that lay in Samhain and other celebrations of that ancestral origin and its deeper roots, we can reconnect with the significance this time once held—seeing it not as a night of mere fright but as a reminder of the sacred ties that bind us across generations and dimensions.
And I wonder: In these times of grieving loved ones who have passed, can we also grieve those we never knew? Entire families lost in the name of war and genocide? Can we grieve the trees that fall in the name of economic growth? Entire districts that have been swallowed by floods? Let us invite them to our altars and honor all that has been lost, sowing seeds for a world that remembers and respects all life.
SAMHAIN
Samhain, an ancient Celtic festival celebrated at the end of October, marks the final harvest and the beginning of winter—a liminal time when the boundary between the physical world and the spirit realm is at its thinnest. Rooted in Ireland, Scotland, and other Celtic lands, Samhain is a time for honoring ancestors and departed loved ones. Bonfires are lit to ward off harmful spirits, and people traditionally leave offerings of food and drink to welcome the benevolent spirits who visit.
This night is seen as a “time between times,” a moment to reflect on life, death, and the cycles of the earth. Samhain customs have influenced modern Halloween, yet the ancient ritual itself remains distinct.
It is a time of reverence, connection, and introspection, where we are reminded of our bond with those who came before us and the unseen forces and invisible worlds that surround us.
Día de los Muertos en México
During my time living and studying in Mexico in 2013 and 2014, I witnessed the celebrations of Día de los Muertos for the first time. It was unlike anything I had ever experienced, a vivid and heartfelt honoring of life and death that opens a collective field of remembrance, celebration and reverence in ways unknown to cultural outsiders. If I could, I’d pack my backpack in a heartbeat and travel back to Oaxaca or Mixquic to join in the traditional festivities.
Día de los Muertos traces back to ancient Mesoamerican civilizations, including the Aztecs, Maya, and others, who held rituals celebrating death as far back as 3,000 years ago. These traditions were later blended with Catholic practices brought by the Spanish in the 16th century, merging Indigenous rituals with the Catholic holidays of All Saints' Day (Allerheiligen in Germany) and All Souls' Day.
In Mexico, Día de los Muertos is a sacred celebration, a vibrant dance between life and death where boundaries soften, and the living invite their departed loved ones back home. Altars, known as ofrendas (offerings), bloom with marigolds, their golden petals guiding spirits across the unseen bridge. Candles flicker in the night, illuminating photographs, sugar skulls, and the favorite foods of those who have passed, lovingly placed as offerings.
It is a time of joy and remembrance, as families gather, laughing and sharing stories that keep the memories alive. Music fills the air, and laughter mingles with whispers from another world. In this space, life and death hold hands—there is no mourning here, only a deep reverence, a celebration of souls who linger as beloved memories and guardian spirits.
In Mexico’s Día de los Muertos, death is a doorway, a reminder that love transcends, connecting generations across time and realms.
Fotocredit of the mexican altar: Vogue México
TURN TO THE INVISIBLE // RITUALS THAT YOU CAN DO DURING THIS TIME
Create an altar or renovate the one that you have
Put photographs or the names of loved ones who have passed on your altar or a central place in your home
Add a glass of water and flowers for them
You can also add some sweet things or things that the ones who have passed liked during their lifetime
Light a candle
Sit there and see if messages are coming through. Maybe you want to send a message to the invisible realms and certain people who are there
Think of someone or something outside your inner circle or family whom you’d like to invite to this altar in reverence for their passing
Invite something non-human whose existence you wish to celebrate
Some questions to ask yourself during this portal time of Samhain (you can take notes):
What feels most alive in you at this moment in your life?
How is your relationship with death, including your own?
When you accept that you, too, will pass someday, what feelings come up?
What might you do differently today and tomorrow?
What does this teach you about life and truly being alive?
Is there someone who has passed to whom you would like to send a special message of love or appreciation during these days?
JOIN THIS INVISIBLE WORLDS EPISODE
For the turn of the year
This episode will be held in German
Die Rauhnächte sind zwölf Nächte zwischen dem Ende eines Jahres und dem Beginn des nächsten - Zeit des Wandels, der Einkehr und Vision. Nach heidnischem Brauch und paganen Mythen lösen sich in dieser Zeit die Grenzen zwischen den Welten, die Schleier in das „Nicht-Sichtbare“ lüften sich und ein Raum öffnet sich – für Rückschau auf das Vergangene und für das Träumen von dem, was kommen darf.
Es ist der Moment, um bewusst die Fäden unserer Zukunft zu weben. Lass mich dich auf dieser Reise begleiten, damit deine Vision für das neue Jahr klar und kraftvoll ist und dein Handeln und Denken sich harmonisch mit dem Wandel der Welt verweben.
INHALTE
Kulturwissenschaftliche Perspektive auf heidnische Bräuche
Märchen und Mythen, die die heidnischen Ursprünge dieser Tradition ausmachen
Traumarbeit und Journaling
Integration des alten Jahres
Vision für das Neue
Gesang- und Stimmarbeit
Geführte (Sound-) Meditationen
Kundalini & Yin Yoga
Anleitungen zu Natur- und Räucher-Praktiken
Ritualarbeit
Kreative Akte
Visionsarbeit
Das Format
4× zweistündige Zoom Klassen für Community, Austausch und Deep Dive;
4 Yoga- und Meditationsklassen liva via Zoom
Wöchentliche Videos, Texte, Literatur und Bonusmaterial zur Vertiefung.
Im Rahmen dieser Reise erhältst du auch ein Begleitbuch, das dir durch diese besondere Zeit zur Seite steht.