You're always in for a treat when you visit the Yucatán Peninsula during the Día de Muertos.

It's that time of year again when we can get creative and head to the costume store to transform into our favorite spooky characters. Halloween is a great time for creative expression, partying and pranks, but sometimes it seems like it arrives as quickly as it ends! But don't be so quick to throw out your costumes and candy, because if you're not all Halloween-ed out after October 31st consider visiting Mexico for another ghoulish celebration, Day of the Dead.

If you want to learn about the Day of the Dead celebration and its shared common elements with Halloween, then keep reading!

A shared inheritance

Halloween and Day of the Dead are both liminal festivals that draw influence from Catholic and indigenous cultures. Traditionally, ancient observers of these festivals believed that during the fall and after the harvest, the boundary between the living and the dead was broken and it was a time to either commune with the dead or protect yourself from them. Moreover, the end of the season and subsequent  winter represented the closing of the circle of life.

Halloween and Day of the Dead have their origins in the ancient Celtic Festival of Samhain. The festival happened on October 31st,  and on this day Celts believed that the realm between the living and the dead would cross and that demons and spirits would roam the Earth. Using animal heads and skins, Celts would dress up as spirits to defend themselves against the spirits. It was also considered an easier time for Celtic priests, called druids, to make predictions about the future, particularly concerning the harvest. 

The Festival of Samhain was eventually repurposed after the Celts fell to the Roman Empire, who traditionally celebrated Feralia (a celebration of the passing of the dead), and Pomona, a day to honor the goddess of fruits and trees. Eventually, this medley of holidays was transformed to All Saints Day by the Catholic church after Pope Boniface IV dedicated the Pantheon of Rome to the Christian Saints and Martyrs. The festival was moved to May 13th, but this didn't stop people from celebrating in October and November.  Eventually it was moved back to November 1st, and named All Souls Day. All Souls Day was a day to commemorate the dead and soul cakes were given to children to pray for the dead. Additionally, poor people would  go from house to house to ask for food in exchange for their prayers for the dead, since purgatory was a concern in those days. This was the origin of trick-or-treating. All Souls Day was also called All Hallows Day and the night before it was called All Hallows Eve which is where we got the name Halloween.

In the United States, Halloween parties started as play parties, which were community get-togethers which featured a mish-mash of European and Native American customs and beliefs. In these parties, neighbors would tell ghost stories, do fortune-telling and divination. It was commonplace to play apple-based divination games such as apple bobbing. In one game,  it was said that the first person to take an apple from a bucket filled with water without using their hands would be the first to marry. This explains why apples feature prominently in Halloween as both a snack and a symbol. Irish immigrants who escaped to the Americas during the potato famine helped crystallize how Halloween is traditionally celebrated in modern day. The Irish introduced the Legend of "Stingy Jack" and story about a man who tricked the devil, along with the jack-o-lantern and carved pumpkins. 

The Maya Day of The Dead

Although largely associated with Mexico, Day of the Dead is observed throughout Latin America. The festival is a merger between the Indigenous cultures of honoring the dead, and the Catholic traditions brought forward by Spanish conquistadores and this is the same with the Maya celebrations. The latter imported All Saints Day and All Souls Day respectively, which is why Day of the Dead is celebrated on November 1st and 2nd. Spanish conquistadores would bring wine and spirit bread to deceased relatives. They would cover their graves with flowers and light candles to help them find their way.

In the Maya tradition, Day of the Dead is called Hanal Pixán translated to ‘the meal of the souls’. The Maya believe that the souls of their loved ones return from Xibalbá, the Land of the Dead, for the whole month of November rather than just the 1st and 2nd of the month. Traditional Maya altars for their Hanal Pixán differ from other parts of Mexico in their design, the flowers and food which is used for offerings, and the mix of Maya and Catholic prayers. The Maya also light candles to lead their loved ones home starting at the end of October and relight them at the end of November to lead them back to Xibalbá,

The dead are not mourned on the Day of the Dead, instead, they celebrate their return with parties, special foods and celebrations. The dead returning home are not something to be afraid of but are considered a part of the community. During these days, the dead are "awakened" from their sleep to share celebrations. Symbols that are featured prominently during the celebrations and motifs are the calacas and calaveras: skulls.

How Day of the Dead is Celebrated Today

Today, Day of the Dead is celebrated over three days, and in some places, up to a week. Day of the Dead parades are considered a recent phenomenon in Mexico. In the past, parades were limited to small pueblos, but now, the parade's growing popularity worldwide has inspired a countrywide celebration throughout Mexico. Carrillo, had its first annual three-day festival in 2018, Festival de los Ánimos or Festival of the Souls in English. The three-day festival took place in the evenings at Carrillo’s Parque Central starting on October 31. Apart from select pueblos, Mexico as a whole did not have big Day of the Dead celebrations in the past, but now big cities such as Mexico city celebrate with yearly parades after being inspired by the James Bond movie, Spectre. Other big cities known for their Day of the Dead parades are Janitzio, Merida, and Oaxaca.

The tradition of leaving food and treats for the dead remains, with altars and ofrendas (offerings) built in honor of loved ones who passed away. Building ofrendas is a complex process. They are displayed in homes or in the public featuring flowers, candles, sugar skulls, and pan de muerto.  Those with recently deceased family members are advised to refrain from immediately putting a deceased member's photo on the altar until they journey to Chicunamictlán. To learn more about the process of building an altar and its importance to the celebration, check out this article.

In the past two years many of us have had to deal with unexpected deaths and burials; it has been a tough year for all of us. Take this opportunity to think of your loved ones who have  passed and spend time with those who are still here. Celebrate life and be comforted in the notion that the memories you share together shall never die.

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