Samhain Meditation
This meditation was inspired by a reference in Z. Budapests book,
Grandmother of Time.  She talks about the Celtic Grandmothers of  Halloween, pg 208.
I wrote this about 10 years ago, so I can't quite remember some of the other
 references that figured into it.  I recorded it on a tape, with music playing in the background.
  At the end of the meditation, I gave the participants gifts to take with them.
  I gave little cauldrons, green stones, little spears made from a sharpened
dowl rod with a feather tied to it, and a little sword made from
 popsicle sticks and silver cord holding them together.  

It is the night of Samhain.  Let the doorway open to the Otherworld.  Let us take a journey to the land of myth and legend.  In our home, we put out our hearth fire for the ending of the year.  We walk out into the night and we are surrounded by mist and darkness, but it is not frightening.  We start walking slowly.  The path opens before us.  We are walking through a grove of large, straight trees.  Because of the mist, we cannot see the tops.  It is as if they disappear into the shadows.  We walk along the path as it winds through the woods.  We come out to a low fog covered field. We disappear one by one into the gray dragon’s breath.   We start climbing a grass-covered hill.  As we near the top, we start coming out of the fog.  The moon shines through the clouds illuminating the area all around us.  We gather at the crown of the hill and circle around a fire pit filled with wood ready to be lit.  We start chanting softy:     Hecate, Cerridwen, Dark Mother, take us in,     Hecate, Cerridwen, Let us be reborn… As we circle, the priestess takes a branch and lights it.  She uses it to light the bonfire.  As it flickers to life our voices become louder and stronger.  Suddenly we stop and all is silent.  We all sit down around the fire.  As we watch the fire, we see things- people, scenes. The firelight flickers and the flames grow stronger.  We sit and we watch.  We wait to see visions- information that is meant for each of us alone.  We will all see what we need to see. Softly someone begins drumming.  A slow steady beat like our heart beat. Another drum joins in with a counterpoint.  A tambourine starts jingling; a flute begins a haunting melody slowing increasing in complexity.  We slowing leave this world and our earthly bodies.    We are going between- to the Otherworld- we see others waiting for us- familiar faces- loved ones, people we have missed so much- they welcome us and begin to walk with us.  We are going to the cave.  We walk along together holding hands, hugging and just smiling to be with them once more.  This is the night, you see, we can join them for a little while.  As we walk, we don’t say anything- just so happy to be together.  Soon we are at the cave.  We stop.  The opening is dark- huge, yawning maw.  Suddenly we are frightened and unsure.  What is in there?  Is it our fears?  Is it our Shadows?  Will we be safe?     We gather together and begin to enter the darkness.  Our feet seem to know where to go.  As we walk along a corridor, we feel the walls worn smooth by other hands which were there long before us.  We hear water in the distance, rushing, it gets louder as we walk along.  We turn and enter a large passage.  A waterfall is falling from above.  We walk under it, the mist moistening our faces, chilling yet refreshing us.  We come out from behind the waterfall and see the Grandmother of the Cauldron.  She is dressed in lapis blue and her silver hair and azure eyes sparkle.  The water in the pool at the bottom of the falls is iridescent.  She holds the Cauldron of Rebirth, which represents pleasure. She states:      -For every sadness, there is joy.     -For every ending, there is a beginning.     -For every question, there is an answer      and the answer is within you. We silently contemplate her words. (music interlude) We gather together to walk on.  The path leads back into the cavern.  As we walk, it gets quieter.  Soon all we can hear is our feet and our breathing.  Then we walk into a new cavern.  It is green and crystal. There are stalagmites and stalactites made of quartz.  The room vibrates with energy.  Seated on a flat quartz crystal in the middle is the Grandmother of the Stone.   She is dressed in forest green and her hair is white.  Her eyes shine with green lights.  She holds the Stone of Destiny which represents power.  It pulses and vibrates with potency.  She states:      -Draw your energy from the Earth, but be her protector for if she has a need         and we do not provide for it, we will not survive.      -The Earth does not belong to us, but we belong to her. We silently contemplate her words. (music interlude) We gather together to walk on.  The path leads back into the cavern.  As we walk, we hear the wind.  It whistles through the passageways.  We walk into the Cavern of winds.  It is bathed in soft yellow light.  Seated on a stone in the middle is the Grandmother of the Spear.  Her hair is yellow and white, her eyes are light yellow amber and her dress is the color of the sunlight at dawn.  She hold the Spear of Courage.  She states:      -You will never be given a greater task than you can manage.      -And knowing yourself takes the greatest courage. We silently contemplate her words. (music interlude) We gather together to walk on.  The path leads back into the cavern.  As we walk we begin to feel warmth.  We see the flicker of firelight.  We walk into a room filled with torches. In the middle, we see the Grandmother of the Sword bathed in the light of the flames.  She is dressed in scarlet and her hair is gold and silver.  Her eyes are black and her glaze is fixed into ours.  She holds the invincible Sword of Knowledge.  She states:     -I read and I remember     -I use and I create     -I teach and help others     -And thus I understand. We silently contemplate her words. (music interlude) We gather together to walk out of the cave.  We silently go down the path to the valley and then we enter the sentinel trees.  We speak not a word and climb back up the hill to the bonfire,.  We reenter our bodies and awaken to this world.  The fire is low.  We take a bucket and put an ember of fire in it.  We will take it back to our hearth and start our fires anew for the New Year.  We silently hug everyone and walk home.