RAISING THE DEAD

Mexicans are different from you and me...no more so than in the ways our societies prefer to think about death.

With Day of the Dead ("Dia de los Muertos") arriving at the end of this month, it's a good time to take a look at some of the beliefs and activities associated with one of the most popular holidays in Mexico.

For those of us given to morbid thoughts and solemn observances of death, this festival may seem to fly in the face of all that's sacred.

Nothing could be farther from the truth. To many specialists, Dia de los Muertos presents a much healthier outlook on the end of life and what lies beyond death.  One generalization worth considering: Mexicans love life and are undaunted by death in ways many of us northerners don't get.

The most familiar symbol of Dia de los Muertos are the calacas and calaveras (skeletons and skulls), which appear everywhere during the holiday in the form of candied sweets, parade masks, and dolls. These figures are almost always portrayed as enjoying life, often in fancy clothes and in entertaining situations.

Families visit grave sites to decorate the tombs where their ancestors lay, and offer food, drink and temporary altars. Believing that the dead would be insulted by mourning or expressions of sadness, they instead celebrate the lives of the deceased with family parties and activities the dead may have enjoyed in life. The dead are awakened from their rest to share happy times with their loved ones again--metaphorically speaking, at least.

Tombs and altars, lit by candles, offer bowls of water for the dead to drink and salt for their journey back to eternity. The living walk between the tombs and altars as children ask passersby for a piece of candy or pocket change. Bright flowers, loud music, colorful decorations, and fireworks displays are common. Mariachis serenade the gatherings for a small fee.

In certain areas of Mexico, mourners put a clay dog on the altar--a clear reference to the pre-Hispanic custom of killing a dog and incinerating it with the body of the deceased to help it on its way.

At some cemeteries in Mexico City, the holiday has become a full-fledged tourist attraction, and they even go so far as charging small attendance fees.

Although observed throughout Latin America, Dia de los Muertos is most strongly associated with Mexico, where the tradition originated. To be precise, there are two separate observances--Day of the Little Dead, for children, on November 1, and Day of the Adult Dead, on November 2.

The holiday combines indigenous Aztec ritual with Catholicism, brought to the region by Spanish conquistadors. (Dia de los Muertos is celebrated on All Saints Day and All Souls Day, holidays in the Catholic calendar.)

Family and friends are significantly more important to Mexicans than to most of us northerners, and this significance carries into death as well. The goings-on can seem extravagant by our more reserved standards. But in fact, Dia de los Muertos recognizes death as a natural part of the human experience, a continuum with birth, childhood, and growth through adulthood.

Some ethnologists claim that Dia de los Muertos is an important part of Mexico's national identity. Some even feel it must be protected against the incursion of northern observances like Halloween. Whether or not Halloween is an actual threat to Dia de los Muertos, a sense of national pride is definitely emerging.

So, Dia de los Muertos endures. In death, as in life, Mexicans have a sense of fatalism that permeates all facets of their being. They also practice traditions that are hundreds if not thousands of years old. Without them Mexico would not be the colorful country it is.

© 2014 Tony DeCrosta
Contact me at adecrosta@gmail.com