Samhain Season: Tending the Fire, Remembering the Grandmothers
As the wheel turns and the veil thins, we step into the ancient Celtic New Year of Samhain season, the threshold between light and dark, life and death, summer and winter. It marks the last harvest before winter.
In the ancient days, it was thought to be a time when the dead is thought to roam the earth. Ghosts appeared, the faery folks or the Sidhe hovered around, and the Tuatha De Danann -‘the people of the goddess Danu’ became more visible.
This is also a time where ancestors draw closest, when the whisper of the wind carries their voices, and the unseen realms feel just a breath away.
In 2025 in the Gregorian Calendar, Samhain occurs from October 31st – November 1st, which aligns with the waxing moon. In the astrological calendar it begins on November 7th, the halfway point between Fall Equinox and Winter Solstice. I am not an astrologer, so I will defer here for the differential explained in detail.
On this page, I will include a prayer I wrote that I have been working with that I am sure will evolve over time as I deepen my practice and reclamation of my ancestral ways. I will also include simple practical ways to honor this season.
To me Samhain season lasts all the way to the next change of the wheel for Winter Solstice a time of Cailleach season.
Remembering the Healed and Whole Grandmothers
Since I am embodying my crone years while also healing ancestral wounds and reclaiming ancestral wisdom and medicine, this prayer is structured with that in mind.
We call upon the healed and whole Grandmothers — those whose wisdom flows through our blood and bones, who knew how to navigate times of uncertainty and change. These are the ones who tended the hearth, the land, and the people with devotion and discernment.
In my Samhain Prayer, I call in these ancestral lineages as well as archetypes I have been working with — the Morrígan (a most misunderstood Fierce Goddess of Feminine Sovereignty), the Witch, the Crone, and the Cailleach — those who teach us how to flow and lead in times of transformation.
Samhain Prayer: Calling the Healed and Whole Grandmothers
By: Laura Bonetzky
At this sacred turning of the wheel,
Under the thinning veil of Samhain,
We gather in remembrance and renewal
As the veil thins and the wheel turns,
We honor the last harvest
Honor what is dying
And the seeds that fall for next harvest season
Honor the blanket of nourishment fallen
And the blanket of life it protects
We give thanks to all that has sustained us, seen and unseen.
As we move into a time of slumber
A time of hibernation and migration
We embrace the veiled ones
To show us the way and help us to remember
As the land releases, so too do we
Shedding what no longer serves,
Making room for the wisdom of those who came before
In this prayer, we call upon the healed and whole Grandmothers,
The ancient ones, the wisdom keepers of sacred knowledge,
Those whose wisdom flows through our veins,
Whose knowing is etched in the marrow of our bones,
Whose songs are coded in our DNA.
We remember you
Those who walked before us,
Who knew how to navigate the dark and the unknown,
Who tended the land and the fire,
Who whispered to the waters and spoke with the wind.
We call upon the Morrígan,
Keeper of sovereignty, shadow, and transformation
Upon the Inner Witch and the Crone,
Those who flow between worlds with courage and grace.
As we cross this threshold
From the masculine light of summer
To the feminine depths of winter,
May we surrender into the womb of the Cailleach,
The Great Mother of storms and stone.
Teach us again to listen
To tend the soil of our souls
As we tend the earth beneath our feet.
May we honor the ancestors who walked with integrity and love,
And may we heal the wounds carried forward through time.
May we dream the new world into being
With their guidance at our side.
In these liminal nights,
When the ancestors draw near and the unseen speaks clear,
May we realign with the Spirit realms
Rooted, open, and whole.
Blesssed be the ancestors.
Blessed be the earth.
Blessed be the turning of the wheel.
So may it be.
So it is.
🔥 Rituals and Practices for Samhain
Here are a few simple ways you can honor this sacred turning of the wheel:
1. Create an Ancestor Table or Altar:
Gather photos, heirlooms, candles, seasonal fruits, nuts, or bread. Say their names aloud. Offer gratitude for their wisdom, their resilience, their love.
2. Tend the Fire:
If you have a safe outdoor space, light a small fire or candle. Offer herbs, corn, tobacco, or notes of gratitude. Release what you are ready to let die as you move into the dark season.
3. Feast in Remembrance:
Share a meal with loved ones, leaving a plate or portion for the ancestors. Eat mindfully and invite them to join your table.
4. Connect to the Feminine Within:
Journal or meditate on what it means to move from the masculine energy of summer (doing, creating, striving) into the feminine energy of winter (being, resting, listening).
5. Listen in the Silence:
Go out under the night sky. Let the wind, the stars, or the moon speak. The veil is thin — your ancestors are near.
6. Attend a Gathering:
Join us for an upcoming event to tend to your temple and those in your community.
If you would like to work with Laura:
1.. Check out the book Secrets To Healing
2. Visit the podcast Triggers and Spiritual Medicine
3. Book a 1:1 session, 1:1 full day immersion, group here
4. To learn more about Laura and her work, click here.
5. For social media outlets etc, visit Laura’s Linktree
