Samhain: Entering the Dark
Samhain (pronounced sa’wen) is a potent season in the cycle of the year. In many ancient Pagan traditions this is the turning from one year into another, the end of one complete cycle and beginning of the next. Sitting opposite Beltaine in the Wheel of the Year, Samhain marks the completion of energies that have been growing and manifesting since the spring. At Beltaine the energies are rising, new possibilities take form in the material world shaping our lives and opportunities. These energies peak at midsummer and come to fruition at Lammas, reaching their completion at Samhain. Samhain brings with it an opportunity to close the doors that were opened at Beltaine, taking what we’ve gained and what we’ve learnt through the seasons into our own interior world, into the dreaming earth to be let go in preparation for the new birth of spring. With the northern hemisphere deep into the autumn, Samhain beckons us to withdraw, calling our energies within, back down into our roots and into the nourishing earth. In the southern hemisphere at this time, Beltaine’s energies are rising.
Here in the north, days get shorter as the light recedes and the increasing cold tempts us inward, to nurture our own energies and tend to our roots. It’s no surprise that the seasonal produce consists of many root vegetables, such as beetroot, parsnip and carrots. Foods that grow underground as roots, nourishing our own roots with their earthy energy. Soups, stews and casseroles are particularly warm and nourishing at this time, and can easily be made in abundance and shared with friends.
We can celebrate the energies of Samhain by eating these seasonal foods, including pumpkins, squashes, nuts and seeds. Apples are abundant, and pomegranates connect us with the myth of Persephone entering the underworld. Orange, brown and black are the colours to wear for Samhain. While the energies invite us to withdraw, it’s good to be mindful of the temptation to become isolated – so look out for loved ones and bring people together for cosy evenings or extravagant autumn feasts.
Autumn can be a difficult time, and the Luna Rhythms Yoga practices for this season are designed to support the inward movement of our energies and aid with letting go.
Samhain can be a difficult time of the year for some. The days are darkening and the energies are withdrawing – there’s a real sense of loss and letting go with a focus on remembrance of what’s passed. With Luna Rhythms Yoga we acknowledge and embrace all these challenges, and we learn to find the JOY in every moment: To discover the gift within every season of the cycle. Samhain’s gifts include the opportunity to reflect with gratitude for what we’ve accomplished and clarity for what still needs to be done.
The greatest gift is to allow us to let go.
With focus on our ancestors and those who have gone before us, this time reminds us to reflect back on what’s passed, acknowledging our loved ones and our former selves with gratitude and grace. Looking back to the past, it is not yet time to step forward into the future, so give yourself permission to lay it all down into the ground for a while, just through the winter until the energies are ready to start growing again in spring. Let it go, just for a while, and become present with what is.
Speaking of letting it go, now’s a great time to delete old messages, organise your inbox, cull your contacts and get super-organised in your online and offline worlds. What’s no longer serving you? What can you afford to drop through the winter months? If there are things that have been weighing on you, Samhain’s energy of release can be called upon to help you let them go. Take this time as a reset. Our ancestors would have done. Samhain is the end of the old year and the start of the new in some Pagan calendars. So let go of anything you no longer need or that’s no longer serving you, give yourself permission to lay it down and de-clutter. Give thanks for everything that’s been and create space for what’s yet to come!
How Luna Rhythms Yoga can support you through the season of Samhain
At Luna Rhythms, our unique system of yoga integrated with the lunar cycles and solar seasons teaches techniques from the ancient yogic practices of asana, pranayama, mudra, bandha and mantra in alignment with the energies of the day, season and cycle. Samhain provides us with opportunities to cultivate our inner fire to warm us through the autumn chill. This inner fire is fuelled by our gratitude for what has passed and it can be used to transmute and release all that we wish to let go.
We work with the Breath of Fire and with warming and cleansing asanas – such as deep twists – to cultivate our fire and burn away all that needs to go. Like a good autumn bonfire, we clear the deadwood and create space for new growth to emerge in the spring. Our bodies are the vehicle for this process, which also has an impact on our minds, emotions and spirit. Working regularly with these practices enables us to integrate the energies of the season in a positive way, allowing old energies to move through and be released without becoming stuck and destructive.
At Samhain the goddess Kali can be invoked to help us with this process, and to remind us of the fleeting nature of all things. Kali empowers us to let go of what no longer serves. She can be called upon by repeating the following mantra: Om namo kali kali om namo.
A great mudra to try this season is Abhaya Hrdaya Mudra, or the Fearless Heart hand-position. Like the goddess Kali, this mudra will support you in finding the courage to let go and to enter the winter’s darkness without fear. This mudra can be practiced by bringing your hands together back-to-back in front of your heart, interlacing your index, middle and little fingers, then touching your ring fingers to your thumbs. Sounds complicated, but it’s easy once you know how! Give it a go for a few days and notice how you feel when you do it.
Each season at Luna Rhythms Yoga we practice a range of different techniques from the yogic tradition that enable us to embody and integrate the energies of that season in powerful and positive ways. We work with the monthly and daily rhythms of the moon cycle to give subtle nuance to those techniques, ensuring that our practice is always in alignment with exactly what we need when we need it.
To find out more about these practices and how you can get involved check out our Classes, Retreats and the Luna Rhythms Foundation Course. Feeling the call? The inaugural Luna Rhythms Teacher Training Course will run in March 2020, in Orgiva, Spain. Join us!