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Halloween, the time when we lure strangely-clad strangers to our homes by lighting lanterns in our windows, and offering them food and welcome at our doors.

This tradition is firmly associated with the celebration of ghosties and ghoulies and long-legged beasties and things that go bump in the night, but does it also fulfil some deep-rooted need in us to just go forth into the darkness of a night lit only by lanterns?

Fire is fast becoming an elusive element in our lives, yet for our ancestors it was a vital part of their existence. After human ancestors controlled fire 400,000 to 1 million years ago, flames not only let them cook food and fend off predators, but also extended their day.
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We all love a good monster movie, don’t we, even if it’s viewed with just one eye open from behind the safety of our sofas?

Year after year, Hollywood favourites such as Count Dracula and the Wolfman, and other classic fiendish figures continue to draw crowds of eager horror-movie-lovers. But when and where did our preoccupation with the "bogeyman" arise? Is there any basis in truth to the stories of mythical monsters?

Greg McDonald, director of forensic medicine at Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, says that like many myths and scary stories, both Dracula and the Wolfman stemmed from a poor understanding of medical maladies.
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We are all programmed to have strong reactions to the vivid color of the life-giving fluid that runs through our veins. For some, it is a morbid fascination that causes them to watch horror movies, but for others it evokes terror and can often have a deeply profound effect when witnessed; phobia of blood is very common and can cause fainting in those who are particularly sensitive.

Researchers believe that, in fact, this is a deep-rooted reaction that may once have saved our lives in primitive times:
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We are counting down the week to Halloween here at Unknown Country! Whatever your personal beliefs about this archaic and arcane tradition, this is a good time to examine the shadow-sides of our personality and the importance of recognising the purpose of the dark side in each and every one of us.

The term “shadow” was first used by the psychologist Carl G. Jung to describe the denied or repressed aspects of the self. We are conditioned to believe that we should exist only in Light, but without the darkness light would not be thrown into focus. Life is an endless struggle to bring light and dark into balance, to learn from this battle and in the process grow and expand our consciousness.
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