* To ward off evil on Sowain you should walk around your home three
times clockwise and three times counterclockwise

* To see a spider on Halloween means it is a relative returning from the
dead to check on you

* Knives were hidden on Halloween night so that returning spirits would
not come to any harm

* If you place a turnip on your gatepost on Halloween then no evil spirits
can harm you or your home

* Originally children would ask for food (soulcakes) and money when they
went from door to door-for every cake a prayer was said for the dead

* If a bat flies around your house on Halloween it is a death omen

* Trick or Treat came from the ancient idea that you must be nice to your
deceased ancestors on Halloween or they will play a trick on you

* Single girls should scatter hempseed in a field on Halloween night and
they will dream of their future husband

* Light a candle to remember your departed loved ones on Halloween night

* If the flame of a candle goes out on Halloween then you are in the
company of a ghost

* People used to lock up their cats on Halloween as an elf could travel on
your cats back into your home and create havoc

* In ancient times a person always rang a bell (not a doorbell) which would
ward off evil spirits for the entire year

* If you see an Owl diving then he/she is coming to take your soul away

* To see a black cat on Halloween is very good luck for the next year

* To see a white cat on Halloween is very bad luck for the next year