The Day of the Dead Celebration
Day of the Dead or “Día de los Muertos,” is a tradition in Mexico that is celebrated every single year. During this festivity in Mexico, people have the opportunity to create “altares” or “ofrendas” also known as “altars” for their loved ones that have unfortunately passed away. Also this is when people feel that closer connection of remembrance for their loved ones.
Historically, this celebration originated several thousands of years ago with the Aztec, Toltec and other Nahua people. Actually, our pre-Hispanic ancestors considered mourning the dead disrespectful. They believed, death was a natural phase in life’s long continuum. To them, the dead were still members of the community, but they were kept alive in memory and spirit. Which now this remembrance of the dead is a festivity called “Día de los Muertos” because this is the time that the dead return to Earth temporarily.
When is it Celebrated
Families, communities and individuals get to spend time together honoring and celebrating the life of their deceased loved ones. Usually, Day of the Dead is celebrated from the end of October, into November 1 and 2nd, every single year in Mexico. In fact, there is an order of who people remember and honor according to the dates, which are the following:
- October 28: Day of the “accidentados” those souls that passed away in accidents.
- October 31: Day of remembering the souls of children, called “los angelitos” or little angels.
- November 1: Day of remembering the spirits of adults.
- November 2: Day that spirits are believed to depart.
Items and Artifacts that Are Placed On Altars
Furthermore, when “altares” or altars are created to honor our loved ones there is a variety of different items that people place on their altars. The display of the altars are usually very colorful and they really do express how the person was and how people want to remember that person. Moreover, when placing the altars, this is a way of welcoming their spirits. Also, anything can be placed on the altar for the visiting souls, such as:
- Traditional food.
- Fresh flowers (“cempasuchil” or marigold).
- Pan de muerto (or bread for the dead).
- Candles.
- Copal incense (aromatic tree resin).
- Fruits.
- Photographs
- Favorite drinks of the deceased.
- Sugar folk toys.
- Religious images.
- Clothing and more.
My Highlights of the Festival
I recently attended a Day of the Death event that took place in Aurora. It was very interesting to me, I noticed how the culture really expresses throughout the festivity. The way how the altars were arranged and how everything was going in the event. There were performances like Aztec Dance, which was very entertaining and exciting to watch.
Also, I saw the display of the traditional and cultural old cars and motorcycles that I believe belonged to those who are not here on Earth anymore. On one side there was the display of cars and other other the display of motorcycles. There was one specific motorcycle that had its own altar and that was surrounded by several of the things mentioned above.
There were also a variety of food and people selling many different things that represented the event. I also found it very captivating that a lot of people had their face painted of “catrinas” a very artistic and colorful way of people representing skulls and the culture of the Day of the Dead, there was a lot of people with different versions of the skull face. Overall, it was a very cool event where everyone was having a good time, with all different aspects of the culture, remembering those souls and portraying what they enjoyed best, motorcycles, cars, and the sense of community unity.
The Aurora Police Made an Appearance at the Event
However, I do want to mention that there was a bit of an incident that went down during this Day of the Dead event at around 8:30 p.m. So, the police responded a call from a nearby neighbor that was complaining about the event being too loud. Then like about four police cars pulled up to the event and were trying to stop the event when it had just started only two hours prior.
The police officers were talking to the event organizer about stopping everything. Everybody in the event were standing up for the celebration because it was not fair. The people in the event were all having an enjoyable time, having fun peacefully, there were no altercations. Overall, nobody was causing any problems, but the police were firm with their decision.
Shortly after, the event was over, police officers were there until everyone was out. In my opinion I think that this incident was unfair for the organizers that took their time and dedication to execute this event. Then there were people who drove far distances to make it to the event. However, even the event went against the odds, I personally did enjoy it and had a good time while it lasted.
Written by Jeanette Sanchez
Sources:
National Geographic: 10 things to know about the Day of the Dead
Day of the Dead NYC: What is the Meaning of the Day of the Dead?
Featured Image Courtesy of Jeanette Sanchez
Inset Images Courtesy of Jeanette Sanchez
