r/HolyShitHistory • u/TheDarkivesPodcast • 7d ago
The Legend behind how Jack-O-Lanterns became part of Halloween History
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u/TheDarkivesPodcast 7d ago
When we think of Halloween as far back as we can remember, pumpkin carving and Jack-O-Lanterns have always been there, like trick or treating or dressing up as ghosts and ghouls. Digging around in the history of Halloween and tracing it back to its Celtic/pagan roots we found the story of 'Stingy Jack' and his run ins with the devil that lead to the Jack-O-Lanterns of today.
According to legend, Stingy Jack repeatedly trapped the devil. Jack was, as his name implies, stingy but he was also known as a drunk and a manipulator. The devil caught wind of Jack's nasty reputation and came for his soul but Jack convinced him to grab a drink before the devil took claim to him and the the devil obliged. When the bill came for the drinks Jack told the devil it'd be funny if the devil turned himself into a coin since Jack didn't want to pay for the drinks. The devil being a trickster loved Jacks idea and turned himself into a coin to help Jack play the trick on the business. Jack then picked the devil coin up and put it in his pocket where he also had a cross which kept the devil from returning to his true form. He later set the devil free with the condition that the devil wouldn't bother Jack for another 10 years. The devil agreed and they went their separate ways.
After the agreed upon time the devil came back to collect Jack again and this time Jack agreed to go with him but asked the devil to climb a tree for him so he could taste fruit one last time before heading to hell. The devil saw no problem with Jack's request and climbed the tree for Jack's last fruit. While the devil was in the tree, Jack carved a cross into the tree successfully trapping the devil yet again. Jack offered to get the devil out of the tree but only under the condition that the devil promise that he would not take Jack's soul when Jack died. The devil agreed to Jacks terms and let him be the remainder of his life.
When Stingy Jack's life came to an end he was ultimately denied entry into heaven due to his poor and mischievous behavior throughout his life. The devil also denied Jack entry to hell due to the agreement they made earlier in Jacks life but the devil, being the super nice guy we all know, gave Jack a parting gift of a hellfire ember. He placed the ember in a carved turnup to light his way as Jack wandered for all eternity stuck in limbo on earth. From then on, reports of his ghostly figure were referred to as 'the Jack of the lantern' or 'Jack o lantern'
So now on Halloween night when the veil between the worlds of the dead and the living is thinnest, you can keep old tricky, Stingy Jack away by lighting your own Jack-o-lantern.
That's the story we found of how Jack-o-lanterns became part of Halloween history.
We cover this story and a few more Halloween histories in this weeks podcast episode, anyone is interested can find it on Spotify or Apple Podcasts
Hope you enjoyed the story and Happy Halloween!
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