There is a very nice Samhain essay posted at Witchvox by Caroline Kenner. Kenner went to Ireland to visit her mentors Janet Farrar and Gavin Bone and wrote about her experiences there. The whole thing is well-written and worth a read, but one thing in particular popped out at me. During the essay Kenner describes the efforts of local man Joe Conlon of Athboy who helped revive Samhain observances at Tlachtga on the Hill of Ward.

“For the last six years, the tradition of celebrating Samhain on Tlachtga has been revived thanks to one man, Joe Conlon of Athboy. Joe grew up three miles from Tlachtga: “Every morning when I got out of bed, I would look at the spire of the Athboy church on one side and the hill of Tlachtga on the other side. I have always been interested in Irish history, and Tlachtga has played a major role in Irish history. So six years ago, I decided to start having a Halloween bonfire on Tlachtga once again.” Although Tlachtga is a national heritage site, it is on privately owned land. The Clarke family is preserving the site with careful stewardship. They allow sheep (but not the heavier cattle and horses) to graze on the hill fort in order to keep the grass under control without having to mow. The Clarkes care deeply about Tlachtga, and have never plowed the ring fort as has happened to too many ancient earthworks.”

Despite the fact that Conlon and many of the people who celebrate Samhain at Tlachtga aren’t Pagan they still feel drawn to preserve the festival and invite local Pagans to help run the ceremony.

“Like many of the local people who attend the torchlit procession, Joe is not a Pagan person. But he is inspired by a vision of a Halloween festival honoring Tlachtga and the ancient customs of Ireland. ‘I am disappointed that the government does nothing to preserve or maintain the site, which is a thousand years older than the earliest monument on Tara. We are fortunate that the Clarkes are such good stewards. They cooperate with the Halloween ceremony every year, asking only that no-one brings any fireworks as they would frighten the Clarkes’ horses.’”

I suppose such a gesture in Ireland or the UK isn’t that uncommon. But here in America where such a practice would brand all participants no matter their faith as “Pagan” it seems somewhat magical.

Tags: Paganism