Halloween is an annual celebration，but just what is it actually a celebration of？And how did this peculiar custom originate？Is it，as some claim，a kind of demon worship？Or is it just a harmless vestige of some ancient pagan ritual？
The word itself，“Halloween”，actually has its origins in the Catholic Church。It comes from a contracted corruption of All Hallows Eve。November 1，“All Hollows Day”（or“All Saints Day”），is a Catholic day of observance in honor of saints。But，in the 5th century B。C。，in Celtic Ireland，summer officially ended on October 31.The holiday was called Samhain，the Celtic New year。
One story says that，on that day，the disembodied spirits of all those who had died throughout the preceding year would come back in search of living bodies to possess for the next year。It was believed to be their only hope for the afterlife。The Celts believed all laws of space and time were suspended during this time，allowing the spirit world to intermingle with the living。
Naturally，the still-living did not want to be possessed。They would dress up in all manner of ghoulish costumes and noisily paraded around the neighborhood，being as destructive as possible in order to frighten away spirits looking for bodies to possess。
The Romans adopted the Celtic practices as their own。But in the first century A。D。，Samhain was assimilated into celebrations of some of the other Roman traditions that took place in October，such as their day to honor Pomona，the Roman goddess of fruit and trees。The symbol of Pomona is the apple，which might explain the origin of the modern tradition of bobbing for apples on Halloween。
The custom of Halloween was brought to America in the 1840's by Irish immigrants fleeing their country's“Great Famine”。At that time，the favourite pranks in New England included tipping over outhouses and unhinging fence gates。
The custom of trick-or-treating is thought to have originated not with the Irish Celts，but with a ninth century European custom called souling。On November 2，All Souls Day，early Christians would walk from village to village begging for“soul cakes”，made out of square pieces of bread with currants。The more soul cakes the beggars would receive，the more prayers they would promise to say on behalf of the dead relatives of the donors。At the time，it was believed that the dead remained in limbo for a time after death，and that prayer，even by strangers，could expedite a soul's passage to heaven。
The Jack-O-lantern custom probably comes from Irish folklore。As the tale is told，a man named Jack，who was notorious as a drunkard and trickster，tricked Satan into climbing a tree。Jack then carved an image of a cross in the tree's trunk，trapping the devil up the tree。Jack made a deal with the devil that，if he would never tempt him again，he would promise to let him down from the tree。
According to the folk tale，after Jack died，he was denied entrance to Heaven because of his evil ways，but he was also denied access to Hell because he had tricked the devil。Instead，the devil gave him a single ember to light his way through the frigid darkness。The ember was placed inside a hollowed-out turnip to keep it glowing longer。
The Irish used turnips as their“Jack's lanterns”originally。But when the immigrants came to America，they found that pumpkins were far more plentiful than turnips。So the Jack-O-Lantern in America was a hollowed-out pumpkin，lit with an ember。
Although some cults may have adopted Halloween as their favorite“holiday”，the day itself did not grow out of evil practices。It grew out of the rituals of Celts celebrating a new year，and out of medieval prayer rituals of Europeans。And today，even many churches have Halloween parties or pumpkin carving events for the kids。After all，the day itself is only as evil as one cares to make it。
In Ireland，where Halloween originated，the day is still celebrated much as it is in the United States。In rural areas，bonfires are lit as they were in the days of the Celts，and all over the country，children get dressed up in costumes and spend the evening“trick-or-treating”in their neighborhoods。After“trick-or-treating”，most people attend parties with neighbors and friends。At the parties，many games are played，including“snap apple”，a game in which an apple on a string is tied to a doorframe or tree and players attempt to bite the hanging apple。In addition to bobbing for apples，parents often arrange treasure hunts，with candy or pastries as the“treasure”。
A traditional food eaten on Halloween is barnbrack，a kind of fruitcake that can be bought in stores or baked at home。A muslin-wrapped treat is baked inside the cake that，it is said，can foretell the eater's future。If a ring is found，it means that the person will soon be wed；a piece of straw means that a prosperous year is on its way。Children are also known to play tricks on their neighbors，such as“knock-a-dolly”，a prank in which children knock on the doors of their neighbors，but run away before the door is opened。
Pumpkin carving is a popular part of modern America's Halloween celebration。Come October，pumpkins can be found everywhere in the country from doorsteps to dinner tables。Despite the widespread carving that goes on in this country every autumn，few Americans really know why or when the Jack-O-lantern tradition began。
万圣节是年年都要庆祝的节日，但这个节日究竟要庆祝什么呢？这个奇特的风俗又是如何产生的呢？是像有些人说的那样，是一种对鬼神的崇拜，或者仅仅是某种没有恶意的古代异教遗俗？
“Halloween”这个词实际上来源于天主教。它是由“All Hallows Eve”缩减而成。11月1日的“诸圣节”是一个纪念圣人的天主教节日。然而，在公元前五世纪，在凯尔特人居住的爱尔兰，10月31日被定为夏季结束的正式日期。这个节日就是凯尔特人的新年，称作“萨温节”。
有这样一个传说：节日那天，前一年故去之人的游魂会回来寻找用以在来年栖身的活人躯体。据说，这是他们死后的唯一希望。凯尔特人相信，空间和时间会在这一时刻暂时停止，因而为这些魂灵创造了与活人接触的机会。
活着的人自然不愿被魂灵附身。他们会穿上各种怪异的服装，并且又吵又闹地在附近游街，尽量使自己看起来可怕至极，以便吓跑那些寻找躯体附身的魂灵。
罗马人借鉴了凯尔特人的这种习俗。但是，在公元一世纪，“萨温节”的习俗被融入到其他一些在10月进行的罗马传统庆祝活动中，例如纪念蒲梦娜女神的节日——蒲梦娜是罗马神话中掌管果实与树木的女神。蒲梦娜女神的标志就是苹果，这可能就是现代万圣节有咬苹果这一习俗的起源。
19世纪40年代，爱尔兰出现了“大饥荒”，到美国避难的爱尔兰移民也随之带去了万圣节习俗。那时，新英格兰地区的人们最喜欢开的玩笑就包括推翻厕所和摇坏栅栏门。
“不给糖就捣蛋”的习俗据说并不是源于爱尔兰凯尔特人，而是源于欧洲9世纪的一种“慰灵”习俗。在11月2日“万灵节”这天，早期的基督教徒会挨村乞讨“灵魂糕点”，这是一种点缀着葡萄干的方块面包。乞食者得到的灵魂糕点越多，他们就会更多地以捐赠者故去亲属的名义为其做祈祷。那时，人们相信死者在死后一段时间会徘徊在地狱的边缘，而祈祷，即使是由陌生人所做，也可以让灵魂快速升入天堂。
“杰克灯”习俗可能起源于爱尔兰的民间传说。故事是这样的，一个叫杰克的人，既是酒鬼又是骗子，声名狼藉，而他竟然把撒旦骗上了树。杰克随后在那棵树的树干上刻下了一个十字，将撒旦困在了树上。杰克和撒旦定下契约：如果杰克不能再骗撒旦一次的话，他保证会把他从树上放下来。
按照这个民间传说的说法，杰克死后，由于行为不良，他不能进天堂，但他也不能下地狱，因为他曾愚弄了魔鬼。不过，魔鬼给了杰克一点余烬，让他可以在冰冷的黑暗中照亮自己的前路。余烬被放在一个中空的萝卜里，以便可以燃得更久一点。
爱尔兰人最初是用萝卜做“杰克灯”的。但是当爱尔兰移民到美国后，他们发现南瓜可比萝卜多多了。因此，美国的杰克灯是一只掏空的南瓜，里面点着余烬。
虽然一些狂热者已经将万圣节当作其最喜爱的节日，但这个节日本身并不是源自邪风恶俗。它来源于凯尔特人庆祝新年的仪式，以及欧洲中世纪的祈祷仪式。而今，甚至一些教堂也为孩子们举行万圣节聚会或者刻南瓜活动。毕竟，这个节日本身并不是邪恶的——除非人们刻意那么认为。
在爱尔兰这个万圣节的发源地，人们仍旧是以与美国大同小异的方式来庆祝节日的。在乡村地区，与凯尔特人时代一样人们会燃起篝火，并且举国上下的孩子们都会穿好各种服装，整个晚上在邻里间做着“不给糖就捣蛋”的游戏。“不给糖就捣蛋”的活动结束后，大多数人会和邻居与朋友一道参加聚会。在聚会中，会进行很多游戏项目，其中就包括“咬苹果”，这个游戏是将一只苹果用绳子拴在门框或树上，而参与者则试图去咬悬在空中的苹果。除了咬苹果的游戏，家长还经常会设计一些探宝游戏，而“珍宝”就是那些糖果或蛋糕。
万圣节的传统食品是barnbrack，它是一种水果蛋糕，既可以在商店买到也可以在家自己烘制。一个由棉布包装的礼物会被放在蛋糕里与其一起烘烤，据说它可以预测到吃这个礼物的人的未来。如果是枚戒指，那就预示着这个人不久就会结婚；如果是支麦秆，那就说明丰收年即将到来。孩子们也经常会和邻居们开玩笑，例如：“knock-a-dolly”，这是一个恶作剧，孩子们会去敲邻居的门，然后在主人还没开门前就跑开。
在美国现代万圣节的庆祝活动中，刻南瓜是广受欢迎的一个活动。每当十月来临，南瓜在美国随处可见——无论是在门前的台阶上，还是在餐桌上。然而，尽管每到秋天，美国的刻南瓜活动非常普遍，但是很少有美国人知道为什么会有杰克灯的传统，以及这个传统是何时开始的。
Demon n。魔鬼
Vestige n。遗迹；痕迹
Pagan adj。异教的
Ritual n。典礼；仪式
Observance n。惯例；仪式
Disembodied adj。无实体的
Suspended adj。暂停的
Intermingle n。混合
Ghoulish adj。食尸鬼似的
Assimilate v。吸收
Limbo n。地狱的边境
Expedite v。加速
Folklore n。民间传说
Ember n。余烬
Medieval adj。老式的
Doorframe n。门框
Pastry n。面粉糕饼