Obchodzisz Halloween?
October 31 is approaching, meaning the famous American Halloween. It seems, however, that Poles are becoming increasingly skeptical about this custom. This can be seen, for example, in the interest in Halloween pumpkins from the farm of Mr. Bogdan in Różyniec. Previously, the grower devoted as much as a hectare to so-called Halloween pumpkins; now 30 ares is enough. Interest is declining year by year.
According to Mr. Bogdan, this is the fault of some media outlets, which present All Hallows' Eve (that is, the eve of All Saints’ Day in Polish) as the greatest evil, one originating in the “rotten West” at that. Meanwhile, the custom itself has much older roots. As we read on polityka.pl:
The holiday itself, however, has a much older and deeper origin, although it is not entirely clear. The tradition of dressing up in frightening costumes on the night from October 31 to November 1 certainly comes from the British Isles. Its precursors were most likely the Celts, who welcomed winter that night during a festival called Samuin in Old Irish, and later Samhain (the name literally means the end of summer). We know that on this occasion they invoked some supernatural forces, but which ones? There is no complete certainty about that either. According to tradition, families summoned the benevolent spirits of their ancestors, from whom they expected advice for life. The terrifying costumes, meanwhile, were meant to frighten away evil spirits, whose appearance could disrupt the family gathering of the living and the dead.
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