The idea of a man changing into a vampire bat and then back into a man came from an Irish novelist called Bram Stoker (1847-1912) from his Gothic horror book on fiction entitled “Dracula” written in 1897. Bats, in primarily being nocturnal creatures, also helped them to develop a sinister reputation. In many witchcraft brews, bats were used, including bodily parts as bat’s blood, wings, eyes, heart, etc. In medieval Europe, some people thought bats were evil spirits or demons in animal form that were associated with witches. Bats were not the only creatures certain medieval Europeans believed that were in league with witches. Animals that alleged witches lived with, especially as pets, such as cats, particularly black cats, lizards, and various birds as parakeets, cockatiels, canaries, and an important factor were parrots who are known to mimic human speech on occasions, were considered evil spirits or demons of the witch.
Witches believe that Halloween is the most magical time of the year, so witches would be the most active in occult terms on that very night. Spelling casting rituals are a major performance on that highly revered evening which ends the month of October.
In medieval times, people believed in goblins. Goblins would be very short people, usually men, who were dirty, unkempt, very poorly dressed, and so very ugly and deformed, especially in the faces and hands that they appeared to some observers as monsters. In thinking such extremely physically deviant people were monsters, especially from folks hearing jarring stories of them from other folks, people began to assume that goblins were supernatural creatures. Goblins would live in dark, and highly secluded places, and be known to villagers and townspeople as troublemakers, mischievous, cruel, harsh, and downright evil.
These little adversaries would steal food such as grains, crops, fruits, and vegetables grown on farms.Individuals of various residences and goblins got into fights. These diminutive nemeses of society would speak in hoarse; impaired voices; either in the language of the general people or in the native language of the goblins themselves. As time went by, stories told of goblins became less and less frequent to the point that such tales basically stopped being told.
Some individuals, when going to a Halloween night party, would go dressed up as all sorts of individuals who they have a special respect for, but many years ago, costumed males would go as Satan: the Devil wearing all red and having horns on the head, and very often a long pointed tail. In some cases, a man looking like Satan in attire would also wear a false moustache and a goatee. Other individuals went as angels wearing white robes, wings, and a halo over the head. Such devilish and angelic costume wearing is, as a rule, long gone from the outfits worn on that holiday.
Ghosts; spirits are believed to be particularly around on Halloween night. Some spiritualists believe All Hallows Eve (October 31th) as the best time of the year for holding seances and engaging in divination. Gypsies, who would practice fortune-telling, would peer into their crystal balls with earnest on Halloween night to allegedly see the future. Spiritualist mediums would be in heavy demand by spirit contact seekers on Halloween nights.
