Halloween Superstitions

Halloween Superstitions, omens and myths.

The ancient Celts believed that, on Halloween night, the veil between this world and the next is thin and the spirits of the dead rise up out of their burial mounds and walk among the living.

If you hear footsteps following you on Halloween night, do not turn around, because it is the dead who are following you and if you meet their gaze, you will die.

On Halloween night, do not look at your shadow in the moonlight or you will die.

If you go to a crossroads on Halloween night and listen closely to the wind, you will hear what will befall you in the next year.

If you stand in front of a mirror, combing your hair and eating an apple at midnight on Halloween night, you will see the face of your future husband/wife appear over your left shoulder. However, if you are destined to die before you get married, you will see a skull instead.

If you take a 3-legged stool and sit at a crossroads while the church bell is striking midnight on Halloween night, you will hear the names of all the people who are doomed to die within the next year. If you want to save someone from death, you should take an article of their clothing, toss it into the air and call out their name.

On Halloween, if you see a spider, it may be the spirit of a loved one that is watching over you.

If you put your clothes on inside-out and walk backwards all the way to a crossroads on Halloween night, at midnight you will see a witch.

If a child is born on Halloween, they will be protected from evil spirits throughout their lives. They will also be able to see ghosts and communicate with them.

If you’re out walking on Halloween night and a black cat crosses your path and looks at you, you should go back home because the cat is a demon in disguise.

The ancient Celts would light bonfires on Halloween. Each family would have their own bonfire. When the bonfires burned out, they would gather all the ashes together and spread them out into a big circle. Each family would take a white stone and make an identifying mark on it. Then, they would hide their stones under the ashes. Members of each family would stay up all night guarding the stones. The next day, if one of the stones was missing, it meant that one of the members of that family would die within the year.