A Mexican with the typical make-up for the Day of the Dead in Mexico. His face is made up like a skull. He has a yellow flower in his hair. He is wearing a white shirt and a brown jacket. You can see a strap of his backpack. He is holding some of the same flowers he has in his hair. He is standing in front of a yellowish wall that merges into a glass surface at the top. To his right is a door frame, which shows that the photo was taken from inside a room. You can see the outside world, a woman who seems to be waiting for something.

Día de los muertos - The day of the dead

by
All Around The World

Anna Sophia carefully places her grandmother’s necklace on the small table. Her favorite cake is already there, right next to a pack of cigarettes. She wants her grandmother to feel at home when she finally comes back. After all, she’s been in the realm of the dead for eight years now.

The Mexican Día de los Muertos is now well known in this country as well. However, the “Day of the Dead” has little to do with the commemoration of the dead as we know it in Austria. Depending on the region, the deceased are honored in different ways. The Día de los Muertos—or Hanal Pixan, as it’s called in Yucatán—lasts several days. The main celebration takes place from late October to early November. Preparations for it, however, begin even earlier.

The procedure

It all starts with a thorough cleaning of the entire house. Everything must be tidy and clean when the dead come to visit. And they don’t just stay for a day or two. Beloved departed loved ones spend the entire month of November in their family’s home. It goes without saying that people treat one another with great respect during this time. If you hit your finger with a hammer, you’d better refrain from cursing. 

A few days before the deceased arrives, the altar—also known as an “ofrenda”—is set up. It is meant to make the deceased feel at home and, above all, to show that they have not been forgotten.

On a table, alongside flowers (cempasúchil), candles, a small sugar skull, and a photo of the deceased, his or her favorite dish is also placed. A journey from the realm of the dead makes one hungry and thirsty. Water and a sweet bread decorated with dough bones (pan de muerto) are also placed on the ofrenda.

Of course, items that were important to the loved one should not be missing. So an ofrenda might very well include a bottle of Scotch alongside a Bible. Incidentally, the altar does not have to be in the deceased’s room. It is usually set up in the entryway. 

A colorfully decorated altar for the Day of the Dead celebrations in Mexico. In the center is a large portrait of a deceased person; the table is filled with orange flowers and white candles, and there is also a bottle of water and several bottles of soda on the table. The table stands in front of a white backdrop, which is also decorated with garlands of flowers.
A typical ofrenda for the Day of the Dead in Mexico.
  • October 27 is the big day. The first visitors arrive. On this day, Mexicans welcome the souls of their beloved pets. An altar (ofrenda) is prepared for them as well. It is adorned with dog treats, chew bones, and a water bowl.
  • The next day, the 28th, is set aside for the arrival of loved ones who have died in a tragic or unexpected event. Incidentally, multiple altars are not set up in the house; instead, a single altar is redecorated repeatedly.
  • October 29 is set aside for the “Anima Sola”—the souls of people who have been forgotten by their own families.
  • The arrival of deceased children and babies on October 30 and 31 is particularly emotional for Mexican families .
  • On November 1, the day we visit graves in Austria, relatives are welcomed. 

To help all souls find their way home, candles are placed by the front door. Mexicans make their pilgrimage to the cemetery on November 2, All Souls’ Day. After a church service, a so-called “novena”—a nine-day commemoration of the dead—takes place later in the home .

People spend time with the deceased

In some parts of Mexico, it’s customary to spend time with the deceased at their graves. So it’s not uncommon to see a man sitting by a grave with a bottle of tequila, telling stories about the deceased. Of course, there’s a filled glass on the grave so that the grandfather can have a drink too.

Mexican cemeteries tend to be quite colorful. The gravestones are painted in bright colors. In this picture, you can see red and green gravestones standing in a meadow. There are also a few traditional, stone-colored tombs.
Some of the graves in Mexican cemeteries are colorful.

The attitude toward death in Mexico is different. Of course, people are just as afraid. However, death is viewed there more as“part of the cycle of life.”Even with children, once they reach a certain age, people talk openly about the inevitable. You can see this in the colorful parades that take place on the Día de los Muertos. People take part in the celebrations dressed in traditional costumes as La Catrina. Death is seen not as something terrible, but rather as a new beginning. It’s a perspective that certainly has its merits …

Sources: National Geographic on the Day of the Dead

Conversations with Emiliano (Mexico) and Giovanna Noh (Mexico—Yucatán)

Image credits:

Cover photo: Emiliano A. 

Photo of the altar: Giovanna Ortiz Noh

Photo of the cemetery in Mérida: Ingrid Müller

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