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On one of my recent trips to Disney World I visited "Mexico." If I didn't know any better I would have thought that I was really there. After going on the boat ride through the history of Mexico, we stopped in the Mercado and I purchased a few things to remind me of this visit. I bought a reed flute and two Day of the Dead figurines. I have my altar set up with some photos of my deceased loved ones, candles and marigolds. I am planning another trip to "Mexico" to celebrate The Day of the Dead and to get a sugar skull to add to my altar. This is a little history on the holiday known as The Day of the Dead.
The celebrations in Mexico can be traced back to the indigenous peoples such as the Olmec, Zapotec, Mixtec, Mexica, Maya, P'urhépecha, and Totonac. Rituals celebrating the deaths of ancestors have been observed by these civilizations perhaps for as long as 2500-3000 years. It was common to keep skulls as trophies and display them during the rituals to symbolize death and rebirth.
The festival that became the modern tradition fell in the ninth month of the Aztec calendar. This was around the beginning of August and was celebrated for the entire month. These festivities were dedicated to the goddess Mictecacihuatl. Her purpose is to keep watch over the bones of the dead.
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She is known as the "Lady of the Dead" since it is believed that she was born and then sacrificed as an infant. She is also known as the Queen of
Mictlan, the underworld, and the wife of Mictlantecuhtli. She has become the modern Catrina. Her cult is sometimes held to persist in the common Mexican worship of Santa
Muerte. |
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Some feel that death is a special occasion that should be celebrated because the soul is passing into another life. Plans for the festival are made throughout the year. For The Day of the Dead, families usually clean and decorate the graves.
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Most visit the cemeteries where the loved ones are buried and decorate their graves with offerings. These often include marigolds because they are thought to attract souls of the dead to the offerings. |
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Some families build altars or small shrines in their homes. These altars usually have pictures of deceased relatives along with candles. Traditionally families would spend time around the altar praying and sharing stories about the deceased. In some locations the families would wear shells on their clothes so when they danced the dead would wake up because of the noise.
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Toys are brought for dead children and bottles of liquor for the adults. Families will also offer trinkets or favorite candies on the grave. Offerings are also put in homes. This would include food, pan de muerto (bread of the dead) or sugar skulls and beverages. |
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The offerings are left out in the homes as a welcoming gesture for the deceased. Pillows and blankets are left out so that the deceased can rest after the long journey.
In some parts of Mexico, such as the towns of Mixquic, Pátzcuaro, and Janitzio, people would spend all night beside the graves of their loved ones.
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A common symbol of The Day of the Dead is the skull. These can be masks or skeletons. Sugar skulls are inscribed with the name of the recipient on the forehead. Sugar skulls are gifts that can be given to both the living and the dead. |
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