{"alias":"blogEntry","byline":"","standfirst":"Happy Halloween! To mark the occasion, we take a look at three otherworldly traditions from across the globe; to inject a little spookiness into your Scout programme if you\u2019re so inclined","content":{"layouts":[{"type":"singleColumn","areas":[{"items":[{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"gtmId","gtmClass":"gtmClass","image":"/media/4254/photo-1541176601668-f0965cd7b1d7.jpeg","width":3334,"height":5001,"altText":"","caption":"","link":null}]}],"config":null},{"type":"singleColumn","areas":[{"items":[{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Cp class=\u0022lead\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ESamhain\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhere is it commonly celebrated? \u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EBritain and Ireland\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhen does it happen?\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EOctober 31-1 November\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhat\u2019s it all about? \u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EMarking the end of Harvest season and the beginning of the \u2018dark half\u2019 of the year, Samhain (pronounced so-ween) is a traditional Gaelic festival dating back to ancient times, when rural workers would toast to the season gone by and buckle down for an inevitably difficult winter.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ETo this day, it\u2019s seen as a liminal time, when the weather is in transition, and boundaries between the physical world - as we know and experience it - and the mysterious \u2018otherworld\u2019 can more easily be crossed.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EOn the night, mumming and guising \u2013an older incarnation of trick or treating \u2013 is commonly practised, with locals dressing up (often in full disguise) and knocking on their neighbour\u2019s doors, reciting verses in exchange for food, which is then offered up to the dead.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ETraditionally, communal feasts and dances are held, games are played, and, in Ireland (believed to be the birthplace of Samhain), bambrack \u2013 a traditional Irish fruit cake believed to have mystical properties \u2013 is baked and shared. Inside the loaf, people place various prophetic items, wrapped in muslin cloth. Receive a loaf with a coin or a ring buried inside, and you\u2019re sure (predicably) to experience good fortune and wealth in the near future. But, receive a pea and you won\u2019t be lucky in love anytime soon.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EWorse still, steer clear of the humble thimble - a sign of eternal spinsterhood and sadness \u2013 and try to avoid the stray pieces of cloth, which denote a year of misery and strife.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""}]}],"config":null},{"type":"singleColumn","areas":[{"items":[{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Cp class=\u0022lead\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EDia de los Muertos\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""}]}],"config":null},{"type":"singleColumn","areas":[{"items":[{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"gtmId","gtmClass":"gtmClass","image":"/media/4255/photo-1509593101646-2c18bfd855b9.jpeg","width":3289,"height":1850,"altText":"","caption":"","link":null}]}],"config":null},{"type":"singleColumn","areas":[{"items":[{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhere is it commonly celebrated? \u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EIn Latin American communities across the world, particularly in Mexico (where the festival began)\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhen does it happen? \u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u00A0\u003C/strong\u003E2 November\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhat\u2019s it all about? \u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EDrawing on indigenous and European traditions, Dia de los Muertos \u2013 the day of the dead \u2013 is a two-day festival which takes place each November. Though most commonly associated with Mexican culture, it\u2019s celebrated across Latin America more widely, and indeed across the whole world, wherever those with Mexican heritage reside.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EBased on the belief that the dead would be insulted by our mourning and sadness, Dia de los Muertos provides an annual excuse to celebrate the lives of the deceased. Huge street parties are held, where food and drink overflows, and merriment is had.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe whole point is to engage in the very same activities loved ones enjoyed while they were alive while toasting to mortality, and the fact that death is as a natural part of the human experience, to be respected rather than feared.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EOn Dia de los Muertos, many people believe that the dead are risen temporarily from their graves to become part of the community, awakened from their eternal sleep to take part in the celebrations with their loved ones. \u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cbr\u003EThe most familiar symbol of Dia de los Muertos are probably the\u00A0colourful \u003Cem\u003Ecalacas\u003C/em\u003E\u00A0and\u00A0\u003Cem\u003Ecalaveras\u003C/em\u003E\u00A0(skeletons and skulls), which appear everywhere during the holiday: printed onto the wrappers of various snacks and sweets, and worn as masks. Wherever they appear, \u003Cem\u003ECalacas\u003C/em\u003E\u00A0and\u00A0\u003Cem\u003Ecalaveras\u003C/em\u003E\u00A0are almost always portrayed as enjoying life, often in fancy clothes and entertaining situations.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""}]}],"config":null},{"type":"singleColumn","areas":[{"items":[{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Cp class=\u0022lead\u0022\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EHungry Ghost festival\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""}]}],"config":null},{"type":"singleColumn","areas":[{"items":[{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"gtmId","gtmClass":"gtmClass","image":"/media/4257/photo-1476283721796-dd935b062838.jpeg","width":3300,"height":2200,"altText":"","caption":"","link":null}]}],"config":null},{"type":"singleColumn","areas":[{"items":[{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhere is it commonly celebrated? \u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EIn Buddhist and Taoist communities across the world\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhen does it happen?\u00A0\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAugust 25\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWhat\u2019s it all about? \u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ECelebrated by Buddhists and Taoists across the world, the annual Hungry Ghost festival dates back to ancient China. According to its origin story, it can be traced back to the earliest a monk named Muilan asked the Buddha to help his deceased mother \u2013 who had grown very hungry during her time in the spirit world, unable to access her old earthly belongings.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe Buddha instructed Muilan to make offerings of food and new robes to local monks. Grateful for their gifts, the monks then prayed for Muilan\u2019s mother, until she was eventually reborn as a human.\u00A0\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EBeing trapped between worlds is exhausting, and hauntings make for hungry work. That\u2019s why, during the festival, families gather in the kitchen to prepare an elaborate meal together. Then, they set the table for their long lost ancestors.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EIf you ever get the chance to witness one of these otherworldly dinner parties: listen closely. You might just catch the sound of the invisible guests, slurping and cackling. Just be sure not to steal any snacks for yourself, unless you want to be tormented for the rest of your days.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EBonus trivia\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EDuring the Hungry Ghost Festival, those who are feeling superstitious might choose to avoid all manner of things, staying away from home renovations (which could accidentally upset ghostly co-tenants) and avoiding the colour red like the plague. That\u2019s because red\u00A0 is believed to attract hungry ghosts on the hunt for a living, breathing body to possess. Better safe than sorry, right?\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""}]}],"config":null}]},"searchDescription":null,"pageType":null,"location":null,"versionDate":"31 October 2019","reviewDate":null,"furtherReading":[],"relatedLinks":[],"id":48470,"nodeName":"Halloween traditions around the world blog","title":"3 Halloween traditions from around the world","type":"blogEntry","image":{"url":"/media/4532/pumpkin.jpeg?rxy=0.49221183800623053,0.4677754677754678\u0026width=800\u0026height=450\u0026v=1d9becd326eb6f0","caption":"Pumpkin","type":"jpeg","size":646684,"width":1800,"height":2700,"altText":"Pumpkin"},"assets":null,"headerOptions":{"headerTitle":"3 Halloween traditions from around the world","headerSubTitle":null,"headerCta":null,"headerCtaText":null,"headerCtaLink":null,"headerBackgroundColour":null,"showSEOImage":false,"headerBackgroundImage":null,"quickLinks":null},"subHeader":"","browserTitle":null,"silktide":"eyJjbXMiOiJVbWJyYWNvIiwiZWRpdG9yVXJsIjoiaHR0cHM6Ly9wcm9kLWNtcy5zY291dHMub3JnLnVrLy91bWJyYWNvIy9jb250ZW50L2NvbnRlbnQvZWRpdC80ODQ3MCJ9","canonicalUrl":"https://www.scouts.org.uk/news/2019/october/halloween-traditions-around-the-world-blog/"}