October 31, Halloween is one of the more popular holidays for children. What child wouldn't want to dress up as a monster or fairy and score a bag of candy in the process?

The traditional Halloween

Halloween is the last night of October and it used to be thought the most enchanted night of the year. It was the night when witches and evil spirits came back on earth to weave their magic spells. Superstitious people kept up many strange old customs in an effort to keep these evil influences away.

Farmers used to light big fires in their fields and the farm workers and their families would walk around the fields singing old songs and hymns. At intervals, the strange procession would stop to hear the local priest offer prayers to the good spirits and ask them to help keep the evil ones away.

 Great care was taken that none of the farm animals were left in the fields. They would all be locked up safely in their stables and sheds, and over each of the stable and shed doors a few rowan leaves would be hung. Witches and evil spirits would not go any where near rowan tree.In more recent times, Halloween has become a time for parities, when the children dress up as witches and play all kinds of special games. Their favorite games is “Trick or Treat”, and most people have some sweets ready to give them. Those that don't can expect maybe to have a tire flattened. Or the children may just knock on the door and run away.Most of house have a jack-o-lantern in their windows, which are hollowed out pumpkins with candles burning inside them. But in this modern age, many of the pumpkins are being replaced with the plastic electric ones that can be brought out each year.

The Jack-o-Lantern pumpkins

The Jack-o-Lantern stems from an old Irish myth about a man named Stingy Jack. According the story, Stringy Jack , an Irish blacksmith and notorious drunk, had the great misfortune to run into the Devil in a pub. Jack invited the Devil to have a drink with him. True to his name, Stingy Jack didn't want to pay for his drink, so he convinced the Devil to turn himself into a sixpence that Jack could use to buy their drink in exchange for Jack's soul. Once the Devil did so, Jack decided to keep the money and put it into his pocket next to a silver cross, which prevented the Devil from changing back into his original form. Jack eventually freed the Devil, under the condition that he wouldn't bother Jack and not try to claim his soul for ten years, When the ten years had passed, Jack ran into the Devil as he walked down a country road. The Devil was anxious to claim what was due but Jack stalled, Jack thought quickly and said to the devil. “I will go, but before I go, will you get me an apple from that tree?”. The Devil thinking he had nothing to lose climbed the tree as Jack pointed to choicest apple. Perturbed, the Devil climbed high into the tree after the apple Jack selected. When he was high up in the tree, Jack carved a sign of the criss into the tree's bark so that the Devil couldn't come down . Jack, very proud of himself made the Devil promise to never again ask him for his soul. Seeing no other choice the Devil reluctantly agreed.

Soon after, Jacked died. As the legend goes, God would not allow such ab unsavory figure into heaven. The Devil, upset by the trick Jack had played on him and keeping his word not to claim his soul, would not allow Jack into hell. Being unable to go to heaven or hell Jack asked the Devil where he should go. The Devil only replied “Back where you came from!” . The way back was dark so Jack begged the Devil to at least give him the light to find his way. The Devil tossed Jack burning coal from the fire of hell to light his way. Jack put the coal into a carved-out turnip and has been roaming the Earth with ever since. The Irish began to refer to this ghostly figure as “Jack of Lantern ” and then simply “Jack O' Lantern”.

Source: Microsoft ® Encarta

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