A practical guide to using the sacred herbs of Samhain for healing, divination, purification, protection, magic, and as tools for contacting the Spirits • Explores the identification, harvest, and safe practical and ritual use of more than 70 plants and trees sacred to the Celtic festival of Samhain, the origin of Halloween • Details the most effective plants for protection from the mischief of Fairies, herbs for releasing the Dead, and visionary plants for divination and shamanic work • Provides instructions and suggestions for a traditional Dumb Supper, offerings to the Land Spirits, Samhain rites, and recipes for the sacred foods of Samhain The ancient Celts separated the year into two halves, the light half and the dark half, summer and winter. The festival of Samhain, from which the modern holiday of Halloween originates, marks the transition from summer to winter, the end of the Celtic year, a time when the barriers between the physical and spiritual world are at their most transparent. The herbs most characteristic of this time have specific magical and healing properties that echo the darker aspect of the year and offer potent opportunities for divination, contact with ancestors and Land Spirits, and journeys in the Otherworld. Presenting a practical guide to the sacred herbs and trees of Samhain, Ellen Evert Hopman details the identification, harvest, and use of more than 70 plants and trees in healing, divination, purification, magic, and as tools for contacting the Spirits wandering the landscape at this liminal time of year. She explores the most effective plants for protection from the mischief of the "Good Neighbors," the Sidhe or Fairies, as well as herbs for releasing the Dead when they are trapped on this plane. Identifying visionary plants used to induce ecstatic trance, Hopman explores how herbs have been used for millennia to aid in psychic travel and shamanic work and shows how one might safely use plants to take a voyage to the Otherworld. Drawing on her knowledge as a master herbalist, she also includes cautions to prevent harm and misidentification, along with advice on basic etiquette and common sense approaches to herb magic. Detailing the history, rites, and traditions of Samhain, Hopman explains how to make an offering to the Land Spirits and provides instructions for the traditional Samhain ritual of the Dumb Supper, complete with recipes for the sacred foods of Samhain, such as Soul Cakes, Colcannon, Boxty bread, and dandelion wine. Woven throughout with mystical tales of folk, Fairy, and sacred herbs, this guide offers each of us practical and magical ways to connect with Nature, the plant kingdom, the Spirits that surround us, and the turning of the year.

Foreword by Andrew Theitic Acknowledgments An Introduction to Samhain, the Otherworld, and the Power of Herbs A Primer on Herbal Preparation PART ONE HERBS OF THE SPIRITS AND THE DEAD AND HOW TO USE THEM AT SAMHAINHerbs for Protection from and Communication with the Spirits and Fairies Herbs of Purification Visionary Herbs and Herbs of Divination Herbs to Communicate with, Release, and Honor the Dead PART TWO HERBS, FOODS, AND TRADITIONS OF SAMHAIN Ritual Foods for Samhain OfferingsThe Dumb Supper: History, Modern Paganism, and Traditional Recipes How to Conduct a Dumb Supper Ritual A Sample Samhain Rite The Goddess at Samhain APPENDIX A Offerings for the Land and Water Spirits APPENDIX BOfferings for the Fairies at Each Sabbat Notes Other Books and Resources from Ellen Hopman Index of Plants by Common NameIndex of Plants by Scientific Name General Index