I am going to tell you about a famous, yet kinda eerie celebration that takes place in mexico. This is a tradition celebrated by the Mexican Natives, most Mexican Americans (including myself) don’t even acknowledge this day, unless they happen to be visiting mexico at the time of this event. Foreigners have more trouble understanding Dia de Los Muertos than any of Mexico’s other celebrations. At first glance, they see Day of the Dead decorations which are colored paper garlands, little skeletons performing daily tasks and sugar skulls inscribed with names, which remind them of Halloween. Other tourists discover that much like Memorial or Remembrance Day in the US, families here visit, clean and decorate graves of loved ones for the November 1 and 2 holidays. Many families honor their ancestors and dead with different traditions, which I will be telling u about.
The infamous ‘Day of the Dead’ or dia de los muertos actually takes place over a period of 2 days. It is the largest and most elaborate celebration in mexico all year long, its even bigger than Christmas. In the past, this period marked the time when the deceased could return to the world of the living and visit their loved ones, but now it is usually a time to celebrate, remember, and pray for their souls. November 1 st is the day the deceased children are remembered and November 2 nd is for the adults. The calaveras, or skeleton, is an important symbol during dia de muertos.
Skeletons decorate the inside of shops and shop windows and they are dressed as judges, soldiers, housewives, soccer players, and even doctors. Death, and the skeleton represented as Death, is seen in a much different way by the Mexicans than by most other cultures. It is seen in a mocking, cheerful light. A symbol that can be as playful as it is serious, it appears everywhere during dia de muertos as wood, paper mache, sugar, and plastic.
The Essay on Los Dias De Los Muertos
... The spirits are honored during Los Dias de los Muertos. Los Dias de los Muertos translates to "the Days of the Dead", and is ... Muertos is not a sad time, but instead a time of remembering and rejoicing. The townspeople dress up as ghouls, ghosts, mummies and skeletons ... known as Halloween but "Los Dias De Los Muertos". Every autumn Monarch Butterflies return to Mexico for the winter protection of the ...
Stores and shops all set up large displays to show off their items. There are a variety of decorations, candy, and bread to choose from to prepare for the Day of the Dead feast and to decorate the tombs and gravestones of loved ones. In their decorations, the skull or skeleton is often used. They are often made to be grinning or to be doing things like drinking, eating, and even riding horses. The skeleton is turned into a mocking of death itself, and is a symbol of celebration of passing into the next life.
Candy flows through Mexico during el Dia de los Muertos and most of the candy displayed and eaten takes the form of sugar skulls. There are many different ways to make these sugar skulls. Some are large and thin, Some are coated with sesame seeds and nuts and Some are chocolate and decorated with hard candies. But most of those that are used to decorate the tombs are small, hard sugar skulls, painted with frosting and bits of foil.
Pan de Muertos. This sweet bread is a treat for both the dead and the living. You can see many loaves set out on altars or at the cemeteries. They are decorated with skull shaped candies and sweets. The altar is a table or area decorated to hold the offerings for the spirits. It is considered a great craft, and there is an altar competition in the cemetery.
How the deceased lived their life determines how the friends and family should decorate the altar (ofr enda) or grave. If the person smoked or drank often in life, then the family would most likely offer them a bottle of tequila and a pack of cigarettes. If they had a favorite candy or food, this would be placed on the altar as well. It is said that once the spirits return, they will be hungry and thirsty after their long journey. Special foods will be prepared and set out on the altar. The favorite foods and drink of the honored deceased will be placed out, as well as framed pictures of the deceased.
The Term Paper on The Death and Life of Great American Cities
For thousands of years, cities have existed, bringing together large numbers of people in common living conditions, complemented by the infrastructure to support the needs of these people, centers of commerce, and the like. In a modern context, cities are planned and executed with practiced precision, in an attempt to create an orderly setting for what has become a hectic way of life in light of ...
The altars are decorated with special candles, cloth, paper and flowers. The altar can be laid out on the floor or set up in tiers. Some are fully lit up, others are in a dark corner of the house or shop. They are always near a door, where the food, drinks and treats can be of easy access to the deceased when they first arrive. There is a lot said about the crazy parades of dia de los muertos, but the cemeteries are a lot more spectacular. Flowers, candy, bread and drinks adorn the tombs and thousands of candles cast an eerie glow on the families and friends mourning and celebrating their lost loved ones.
This is the place the souls of the dead revisit the land of the living and partake in the offerings given to them by their family and friends. Although Dia de Los Muertos looks a lot like Halloween in the states, the Mexicans take it very seriously. To give you a better idea of how Mexicans view death I found a quote by World Renowned writer Octavio Paz, he stated “undaunted by death, the Mexican has no qualms about getting up close and personal with death, noting that he ‘… chases after it, mocks it, courts it, hugs it, sleeps with it; it is his favorite plaything and his most lasting love.’ As you can see from the pictures you saw today and from the celebration’s I told you about, Death’s “bad” side seems to be buried somewhere under music and remembrances, while skeletons laugh and dance and sing as Mexico celebrates life and death.
