Día de Muertos is one of my favorite Mexican traditions. I love the idea of celebrating the dead and taking the time to remember the ones that left us already. Plus, the pan de muerto (bread of the dead) is delicious, and the Ofrendas are beautiful and very meaningful.
The pre-Hispanic cultures considered life and death as a duality concept; the indigenous people believed that when someone died, they did not perish but began to live again. Death was simply part of a constant cycle. They considered the seeding of the crops as part of the same cycle and that to maintain this equilibrium, they needed a ritual of life and death where they presented sacrifices and offerings (usually fruits, wax, money, and cocoa) to their ancestors.
When the Spaniards arrived, they tried to move these practices, so they were celebrated on dates that were part of the Catholic calendar: November 1, also known as All Saints’ Day, and November 2, known as All Souls’ Day. In 2003, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) declared the Day of the Dead an Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity in Mexican indigenous communities.
Today, we honor the dead by putting up Ofrendas (the Spanish word for offerings that colloquially is used to mean altar for Día de Muertos) for the dead, as well as visiting and decorating their tombs in the cemeteries. The Ofrendas can be dedicated to family members or to any dead person you want to remember. Usually, the children at school would choose a famous person to commemorate at the Ofrenda. They will research their favorite foods and include them in the offerings. On 2020 I put my first Ofrenda here in Indy and besides our grandparents I Included the supreme court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg that died in September of that year.
You can make the Ofrenda to your liking, but many of them have some key elements with specific meanings. Here are some of the most common ones and the symbolic meanings behind them:
- Calaveras (skulls): Probably one of the most popular symbols of Día de Muertos, these skulls are often made of granulated sugar and decorated with bright colors. The skulls are used to remember the dead and the destiny that we will all share.
- Cempasúchil flowers (marigold): This orange flower is believed to make the path of color and scent that attracts the souls to the altar (like in the Disney movie Coco).
- Papel picado (tissue paper with cut-out shapes): The papel picado is a Mexican handcraft that represents the air, one of the four elements that must be present in the ofrendas.
- Pan de muerto, food, and beverages: Pan de muerto is a soft, sweet, and delicious bread shaped to represent a skull with crossbones on top. Besides the bread, the ofrendas should have the favorite food and beverages of the person the ofrenda is for.
- Pictures placed on an altar are always of someone who is deceased, so their souls know what ofrenda they are supposed to visit with their favorite food and beverages.
Additionally, a cool thing to do during the Día de Muertos celebrations is to visit different ofrendas at museums or parks. The decorations are very creative and colorful. Finally, a relatively new tradition of Día de Muertos was started by none other than the secret agent James Bond 007. In 2015, the movie 007:Spectre showed a scene in Mexico City with a parade of skeletons. This was not previously a tradition but became part of the Día de Muertos celebration in Mexico City. The Mexican Ministry of Tourism decided to make it a part of the annual festivities because of the expectations the movie created for international tourists.
