Celebrating el Dia de los Muertos On November 1st and 2nd, thousands of candles will light up across the world welcoming the souls of family and loved ones who’ve passed away back to earth. The Day of the Dead, or Dia de los Muertos in Spanish, is a holiday celebrated throughout Mexico and other parts of the Americas. There’s debate on the origin of the practice, but to my understanding it’s a blend of indigenous mesoamerican traditions and Catholic observances brought to the Americas by Spanish colonizers. It's a national holiday in Mexico where families and friends gather to honor their deceased loved ones. The idea is that no one who isn’t forgotten is actually dead and that by setting up a colorful altar we’ll attract and welcome the spirits of the departed back home. Three level traditional Dia de los Muertos altar from the alcaldia Milpa Alta in Mexico City. (Photo By Eneas de Troya - https://www.flickr.com/photos/eneas/4072192627/, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=11952725) This year, Dia de los Muertos is especially significant for my family since my Father recently passed away. I’ve had the restless urge to make sure he can enjoy all of the elements and tributes an altar of this kind has to offer. The concept of the holiday itself can be seen as a contradiction to traditional Christian and Catholic practices. After all, believing that objects can attract the dead back to earth does not fall in line with the purist Christian ideology. Although, many altars include general Christian imagery (like the cross) and more specific Roman Catholic religious symbols — like the image of a saint the deceased was devoted to, or whose feast day falls on the deceased’s birthday. Still, to my knowledge, you don’t have to be Christian, Roman Catholic, or belong to a specific religion to set up an altar. Let me preface this note by clarifying that I’m no expert in Day of the Dead altars, but here’s a bit of what I’ve learned through the years and this planning process. Traditional altars are colorful, maximalist, and full of life! Altars can have 2 levels representing heaven and earth, 3 levels representing heaven purgatory and earth, or the more elaborate 7 levels representing different steps to heaven. The seven layers may also represent the different stages to reach Mictlan, the underworld of Mexica mythology. Like a lot of families throughout Mexico, we usually celebrate Dia de los Muertos by visiting a cemetery, but that won’t be possible for my partner and I this time around. So we decided to go all out and build a 7 tier altar for our loved ones. (more on how to build different layer altars) An elaborate offering in Puebla, Mexico. (Photo: AlexgarcesM, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons) Day of the Dead altars can be dedicated to family, friends, mentors — basically anyone who’s passed away and you’d like to commemorate and celebrate. There’s even a day of the dead dedicated to pets on October 27! (more on that here). It doesn’t have to be expensive or an elaborate structure. We’re going the eco-friendly route and using cardboard boxes to set up the layers. Because of how place and community shapes culture, the specifics on what to incorporate vary across regions and family traditions. Altares (or alters) represent a connection to the circle of life as well as the four elements of nature: water, wind, fire and earth. Water: Altars traditionally incorporate a glass of water to signify purity. Wind: The light and delicate texture of papel picado or perforated paper represents wind and the fragility of life. Some say the holes in the tissue paper make it possible for the souls to travel and visit us. Papel picado is not only placed in Dia de los Muertos altars but also adorns the streets of Mexico . (Photo: Luis Alvaz, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons) Fire: Lit candles, which serve to light the path and guide the spirits of the deceased home. Earth: Seeds, fruits and food. Since we’re dedicating the altar to multiple people, we plan on cooking up a feast as well as purchasing from local shops. Tamales, bacalao, and seafood. Agua de horchata and cold beer will also be part of this tier because who wouldn’t want to be received with a cool beverage after a long journey! Copal, an aromatic incense to purify the environment. At the bottom of the altar, we’ll be placing the flor de cempasuchil petals. It's a flower native to Mexico known as the Mexican marigold. Its colorful orange and yellow petals, as well as its fragrant smells, are meant to attract and guide the departed back home. Flor de cempasuchil. (By JMndz - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=94411759) Personal objects: To honor my father’s connection to the earth and agriculture, we’re incorporating alfalfa, cotton flowers and a bit of dirt from the fields he worked on and loved dearly. Planning an altar this year has led to long phone calls with aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. with the intention of learning more about our loved ones. It’s healing to cherish the joys that our beloved enjoyed, they’re favorite foods, what they loved about this earth and to be able to receive them. Like Elida Guardia Bonet mentioned back in 2011 during a Living Earth episode dedicated to the Day of the Dead, “You're celebrating the afterlife but you're also celebrating the life that you shared with those people here, on earth.” In my opinion, the Day of the Dead can be celebrated by anyone who’s moved to do so as long as it’s done respectfully.
Paloma Beltran Associate Radio Producer
