Halloween Apple Celebrations
An old custom, which was meant to be fun but was dangerous, involved hanging a stick horizontally from the ceiling using string at Halloween. On one end an apple was hung from the stick, while on the other end, a lighted candle was hung from the stick. The stick was twirled rapidly and then left to unwind the string on its own while the guests used to leap up and bite the apple, while their hands were bound behind their backs. Most of the time, while they were jumping, the candle used to scorch their faces or black soot stuck on their face and it was thought to be hilarious. Apple bobbing is an old Halloween sport too where people duck inside the tub to catch the apple as it floats away from them. While some know how to suck up the apple deftly, others force it to the bottom by plunging in. People also display their marksmanship skills by taking turns drop a fork from the height into the tub and try to make it stick in the apple.
In the old Greek and Celtic mythology, apples are often associated with sex and pagan religions. The Three Mothers of the World were said to be connected with apple tress while the apple tree was sacred to the Goddess in Romanian folklore. In Christianity, apples are well portrayed as the symbol of sex in the Garden of Eden legend. It is believed that eating an apple before a looking glass at midnight on Halloween will allow a young girl to see their future husband in the reflection peeping over her shoulder. The spell says that the girl should cut the apple into two pieces in such a way that the ‘seed part’ resembles a pentangle. She should then throw one of the pieces over her left shoulder for her lover and should walk backwards towards the mirror without looking back while she eats the rest of the apple with one hand and comb her hair with the other hand before the mirror. Then she should look back to see the face of her future spouse.
Tags: Apple, Celebrations, Halloween