Steps to building an ofrenda.
- Find a table or corner of a table. A lot of space is not needed.
- Add the elements of water, wind, fire and earth.
- Find a way to add an arch, a small bowl of salt and maybe a cross or crucifix. A sugar skull may make it less scary and more celebratory.
- Place some photos of the dead and some of their favorite things.
- Bake a pan de muerto and other items to feast. Add some of the food to the table.
It is time for the Day of the Dead.
Celebrated on Nov. 1, Día de los Muertos is a popular holiday in Latin America that dates back to the Aztecs and their view of death. They believed that upon death the deceased traveled to the land of the dead, “Chicunamictlan,” but to get there they had to go through rigorous challenges and levels. So during August, the Aztecs and Nahua people provided food, water and tools for their dead family and friends to get through the years of challenges to get to the afterlife.
The tradition was then mixed with Spanish beliefs upon the arrival of the Spanish in the world. In Medieval Spain, people would decorate their ancestors’ graves with flowers and leave wine and bread for them.
“It’s a day of mourning,” junior Jocelyn Lira said.
Some people believe that on Dia De Los Muertos the literal spirits of their ancestors return. Some celebrate by creating a layout path made from cempasuchil flowers and opening their doors, that way the ancestors visiting can have a clear path home and a way to enter.
“We communicate with our ancestors,” junior Fernanda Ruiz said
While some people believe in the literal return of spirits, others who celebrate do it in more of a way of remembrance. They don’t believe that the actual soul of their ancestor can be back on our earth, and therefore omit specific traditions.
“We honor our ancestors,” junior Amy Garcia said
Day of the Dead is often times misrepresented in the media. It has been shown to simply be an alternative to Halloween. However, Day of the Dead has a different origin and vastly different traditions that surround it.
“I feel like people tend to think of the Day of the Dead as a scary holiday but it’s not,” Rodriguez said.
As movies and shows of many different backgrounds, have diffused across the world. Recently, Dia de los Muertos has been more publicized in the media in movies like “The Book of Life” and “Coco.”
“I’ve seen it on social media, I’ve made skulls in Spanish class, and I’ve seen ‘Coco’,” junior Marly Flippo said.
However, today Dia de Los Muertos is still widely celebrated. A major part of the holiday is decorating something called an altar. This is usually a table decorated with Zimpazuchil flowers and setup with pictures of the family members who have now passed away. People add candles and the preferred food of their ancestors to the altar.
“We set up an altar, it’s small, and we set up pictures of them (ancestors) and small food in front of, ” junior Alyssa Rodriguez said.
