Many things have been tipped upside down, turned inside out and become like the topsy turvy world that Alice became so familiar with after tumbling Down The Rabbit Hole. But Halloween is another of those things that has been inverted it seems, turning into what appears to be just a rather elaborate commercial enterprise. Or is it?

I’m sure that some if you know that it is the eve of what they called All Saints Day, obviously with saintly and religious meaning. But it goes back to Celtic pagans they say, where it was called Samhain and was a harvest festival to appreciate nature and the change in season. And the pre-celebration of bright costumes and bonfires was added later, to ward off evil spirits and ghosts it is said. Strange that we now dress as ‘the evil spirits’, isn’t it? Is it part of the ritual to bring them forth? Is it to trick them into thinking the demons are already here? Or is it that witches and apparitions were once here to protect us, and once they were gone, we have tried to mimic that to protect ourselves? Seems whatever its original purpose and meaning, it really has had a thorough makeover for commercial times and is for making money now. So, I would lean towards it being given the demonic overtones as a marketing angle, and to help bring in this new rather sinister landscape they want on show for society.

Many will have noticed that for a number of decades now that a demonic and sinister theme has slowly worked its way through all the forms of entertainment and media we are fed, and choose to consume. Music, news, television, films, fashion, literature and society generally has taken a dark turn, deciding to give everything a devilish overhaul. Making it seem super cool and sexy, carefully placing enticements and things in the mainstream to hook your interest. Glittery skulls, pagan symbols, clothes, accessories, artwork and movies to give you a visual to go with the concepts being put forward. Exposing minds to the dark side, luring them in with an offer of something, like in That’s The Ticket, but with witchery and spells instead of a golden ticket. Even trick or treating is about knocking on a door and asking for sweets, wanting the door opener to volunteer sweets to them, but even by opening the door you may have accepted the ‘contract’ in the form of the interaction. And if you don’t give them something, you are supposed to then play a trick, if you don’t get your treat. In my mind along the thought of that, maybe like a vampire knocking and wanting you to hand yourself over, when you say no, the trick is to return pretending to be something else, either dressed up or shapeshifter style. And then get invited in, so by the time you have opened the door and heard the words ‘Trick or Treat’ you are already lost. The real ‘trick’ is to not open the door.

But is it speculated that the date they have chosen for this All-Saints Eve, is the time of the year when the veil between worlds or dimensions is thinnest. That the dead or supernatural entities of other dimensions and realms are able to cross over into ours. And who knows, maybe there are times when we are closer to a gateway than we think, like two gateways passing each other at the correct moment and they are connected. A temporary bridge to another dimension, where it seems things are able to cross over to here, but does not seem as though we are as capable, and end up instead sensing something is different, but unable to locate it or pinpoint it, but we can feel it. Almost as if the air changes around you, and something that can’t be seen is present, like they say in the film Poltergeist ‘they’re here’…

(c) MKW Publishing