Halloween

One of my biggest fears has always been immortality. The thought of aimlessly wandering the grounds of Earth, eventually running out of things to do and people to love is, for a lack of a better word, daunting. This same fate is what befalls upon the man of the Jack-o-lantern myth. 

The origins of the Jack-o-Lantern

The term Jack-o-Lantern is a simplified version of “Jack-o-the-lantern” as akin to the etymology of “Will-o-the-wisp”. This tradition of carving pumpkins and lighting them up began as a means to keep away wandering evil spirits, specifically, the spirit of “Stingy Jack”. 

According to the legend, Stingy Jack was a man doomed to wander the Earth as purgatory amongst men due to his mismannerisms. One day, he invited the Devil to share a meal with him. When the day was done, Stingy Jack kept true to his stinginess and refused to pay for the meal, instead convincing the Devil to turn himself into a coin that Jack could use to buy their drinks. However, once the Devil did so, he was furious to find that not only did Jack decide to keep the money, but he also put the Devil into his pocket next to a silver cross, which prevented the Devil from changing back into his original form. Only when the Devil agreed to not bother Jack for a year was he freed.

But Jack was not done yet. One year wasn’t enough, Jack schemed another stunt: he convinced the Devil to climb up a tree. The moment the Devil climbed to the top, Jack quickly carved a cross into the bark and once again trapped the ruler of Hell in an unconventional position. The only way out? Ten more years of peace for Jack.

Eventually, Jack’s spontaneity caught up to him and he passed away. But when he knocked on heaven’s pearly gates, God turned him away for living such a wicked life. Off to Hell Stingy Jack went. But the Devil, still holding a grudge (and maybe his promise), refused to offer Jack residency. Instead, he gave Jack a single burning coal to light his way through eternal purgatory as an Earthly ghost. Resourcefully, Jack placed the coal inside a hollowed out turnip to create his own eerie lantern.

This singular source of light is the inspiration for the millions of pumpkin carvings created each year. From that night on, Jack wandered the Earth with a singular light, forevering carrying his glowing vegetable. The Irish called this haunting wanderer “Jack of the Lantern,” which over time became the name we all today – Jack O’Lantern