Day of the Dead - Dia de los Muertos
Day of the Dead or Dia de los Muertos is celebrated in Mexico on November, 1. Some of the traditional foods are tamales, bread (pan de muerto), and champurrado (a thick base concoction made with corn, cinnamon and molasses served like hot chocolate). It is a custom to visit the local cemetery and pay respects to our loved ones who have passed away. When I was four, I lost my two-year old sister, I remember visiting her grave site in Chihuahua on this holiday every year.
Crowds filled cemeteries. Vendors lined near by streets selling food, flowers, sugar skulls and other trinkets with skeleton figures. People gathered around grave sites singing folk songs and praying. After our visit, I always felt my beloved departed closer to my heart.
All works in acrylic on canvas
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DIA DE MUERTOS HISTORY
Dia de los Muertos ("Day of the Dead") is a Mexican tradition celebrated on November second. It honors the dead with festivals and lively celebrations. This custom combines indigenous Aztec ritual and Catholicism. Day of the Dead recognizes death as a natural part of the human experience, a continuum with birth, childhood and growing up. The spirits of the deceased are thought to pay a visit to their families on this day to be part of the celebration.
The Altar
Before Dia de los Muertos, an area of the house is cleaned up and the furniture removed to make room for the altar. The altar consists at a minimum of a covered table, and usually a few crates or boxes are added to it and covered to create open shelves and other raised display areas. The coverings used can vary from plain to vibrantly colored oil cloth. The altar is then set up with the appropriate ofrendas (offerings) for Dia de los Muertos.
Ofrendas (Offerings)
The offerings placed on the altar for Dia de los Muertos usually consist of a wash bowl, basin, razors, soap and other items the traveling spirit can use to clean-up after the journey.
Pictures of the deceased are also placed on the altar as well as personal belongings for each person and any other offerings the deceased may enjoy such as a pack of cigarettes, candy, tamales or a bottle of tequila.
Candles are used to help light the way for the spirits as well as other decorative items such as papel picado (tissue paper cut-outs) wreaths, crosses and flowers. Certain Dia de los Muertos dishes are also placed on the altar to help feed and nourish the traveling souls. Some of these offerings also double as the four main elements of nature — earth, wind, water, and fire. These are represented by movable or light-weight items such as tissue paper cut-outs (wind,) a bowl of water, candles (fire) and food (crops, earth.)