The Celts believed that everyone had a soul that lived on after death, and on Halloween, they thought some of these spirits would come back to haunt and scare them. Now not all of the souls were bad, but in order to have some control over this scary situation, the Celts would dress in costumes of white robes and horse-head masks to trick the spirits. They would also light huge bonfires and ring bells to scare the spirits away.
In order to keep Samhain happy during the day the Celts would pray to honor to the dead. At night they held elaborate fire rites and rituals to hopefully gain some insight into their future. It was believed that during the eve of Samhain that spells, charms, and predictions were to have more power.
Overall, the Festival of Samhain was a joyous festival, it marked the death of the old year and the beginning of the new one. This festival moved the Celts forward and allowed them leave the past in the past, and to move on into the year to come. It also marked the time that they started to think about the next crop.
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