Bet You Didn't Know: Halloween
(History, Oct. 30th, 2013) It's one of America's favorite holidays, but what's the real story behind the tricks and treats of Halloween? It started as the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain -- ghosts, masks, treats, costumes, with Catholic modifications from Britain.
Irish and Scottish immigrants in the USA revived the old European customs to make it big business, $6 billion in 2013, much more now with all the sexy outfits, libations, parties, and Bacchanalian revelry. The Americas added Day of the Dead, Dia de los Muertos, lore and Spanish-Catholic traditions to the mix. Halloween's ancient origins took their modern form in the United States.
- Buddhist Ghost Stories: Petavatthu: 51 narratives describing in verse how the effects of bad karma can lead to rebirth in the unhappy world of petas (ghosts). Moreover, it details how meritorious actions done by the living can benefit these beings (the would-be grateful dead) and alleviate the suffering of our relatives and ancestors.
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