Samhain: Through the Eyes of a Broom Closet Witch
Blessed Be! Welcome back and welcome to “For Broom Closet Witches”, with a new twist! Claire de Lune here, a High Priestess in the Temple of Witchcraft tradition, with the 21st article in our “For Broom Closet Witches” column, where, as a Broom Closet Witch, I turn inward and show that, even if a Witch can do nothing outwardly to celebrate the Sabbats, there will always be ways to celebrate the Wheel of the Year inwardly.
What does it mean to see through the eyes of this Broom Closet Witch? Well, let’s see . . .
During the Season of Samhain, when the veil between the worlds of the living and the dead is at its thinnest, we turn most easily to thoughts of our ancestors and feel their presence and influence more profoundly, especially if such contact is purposely sought after.
Up until quite recently, I have thought of my ancestors as “other” – those individuals who had their own lives, experiences, and their influence on me from “outside” of myself and people whose remains are now “resting” in their graves. However, lately, especially since having my DNA tested with multiple companies, I have become keenly aware that (as I see it, anyway), my ancestors were not just people who existed prior to, and in some cases, concurrent to my own existence. Furthermore, the way I see it, they still live on – inside me! I am them and they are me! (Maybe not enough to “freak me out” but it is enough for me to look down at my hands and see both my mother’s and my father’s hands at the same time. I see my mother’s hands in the shapes of my fingers and the way I hold them in different positions. Even my cursive writing is very similar to my mother’s. I see my father’s hands in the hair patterns on my fingers, wrists and forearms. (Yes, I said fingers – but much lighter and sparser, thankfully!) Anyhow, back to Samhain.
At Samhain, I celebrate my ancestors’ lives and acknowledge their presence inside me in the form of DNA – my flesh and blood, breath and bone. I have spoken about my ancestors before – about my DNA tests and discoveries, new understandings about my family’s holiday baking traditions from the new vantage point of my DNA results, etc. So, I can say, for example, that I am Norwegian, Saami, Icelandic, Scottish, (even Pict), Irish, Welsh, Native American, Mayan, German, Polish, Hungarian, Greek, Italian, Bulgarian, Turkish, French, Russian, Balochi, Syrian, Iraqi, as well as Syrian and Iraqi Jew, Bedouin, Iranian and more. How is all this possible? Royal, Nomadic, Diasporic, Displaced and Sea-faring people – especially Vikings – who “got around” – as well as Invasion and Colonization.
Connections to different cultures, languages, customs and cuisines of the various ancestries one has discovered can easily be done with a little research, a little reaching out and a little reaching inward to see what aspects of one’s various ancestries may resonate/strike a chord/trigger a genetic memory. I have done this with many of my ancestries, and I have found it most helpful to buy a book or two about each one, especially cookbooks from the various cultures represented in my family tree.
But, until quite recently, part of me has slipped through my fingers and eluded me every time I tried to get a firm grasp on what this part of me means. I desperately wanted to understand and make sense of these particular ancestors of mine, this particular part of myself. I knew that they were there – in the very fiber of my DNA – and that I could not escape their presence in my body and my life. As a matter of fact, I have more of this ancestry than 80 percent of the clientele of the company that I tested with. For me, this is big. This is important. This is real. This is not fantasy.
I have wondered how to honor them, connect with them, know them, pay tribute to their lives. I felt that I should be able to do all this, as parts of their DNA are my DNA and parts of my DNA are their DNA. But I couldn’t, until quite recently, completely take myself seriously, as there has been much downplaying of the intelligence of this population. At this Samhain Season, however, I felt the need to honor this part of myself regardless and hoped that they would grant me the honor of feeling their presence in my life in a real, serious, no jokes, no kidding way.
So now, with much humility and honor, I can proudly say that I am Neanderthal. There. It is done. And so, it is.
But, back to the question of how to know them, honor them, connect with them? My answer came quickly after I seriously asked my Higher Self. And it is so simple. I couldn’t believe I even had to ask. I would know, honor and connect with them the very same way I do with any of my other ancestors – through food – foods that they used to eat and would recognize if they were here today. So, I did a little research to learn about the foods Neanderthals ate. I learned that there have been discoveries made of remains of food in fire pits in caves that Neanderthals occupied. Also, through the analysis of dental calculus found on the teeth of Neanderthal skeletal remains, it is now known that, among other types of food, three items that I can easily access today are Pine Nuts, Bison and various Greens.
So, first I buy the food, cook it (or not, depending on the type of food it is), and eat it with the intention of connecting with my ancestors. Then, in a light meditative state, I see what insights come to me – what intuitions, what mind’s eye visions, flashes of scenes of places and faces, memories, as well as automatic writings. I also look for dreams and daydream visions. If one is able, shamanic journeys are very helpful. A pendulum is also useful for Yes/No questions.
The particulars of my findings through the above methods will remain in my Book of Shadows.
I hope this article has been helpful, and until next time –
Merry Meet, Merry Part and Merry Meet again!
Samhain Blessings,
Claire de Lune