Dia de los Muertos: Mexican holiday focuses on life not loss

By Patricia Ho

Hispanic theologian and Catholic priest Virgilio Elizondo has said that there are three types of death: the first is a physical death, the second is the burial of the body, and the third, perhaps the worst kind, is to be forgotten.

For those unfamiliar with the Mexican celebration of "Dia de los Muertos" (Day of the Dead), it would be helpful to keep that perspective in mind.

Far from being a morbid or macabre tradition, Day of the Dead is a happy one where families get together to remember loved ones that have passed away. The purpose is not to lament or mourn their loss, but to remember people who have gone before and to celebrate their contributions.

"Most people in American culture try and get rid of the idea that death is present - we send our old people away to old folk homes and treat death as a taboo subject," said Nadine Garza, a junior liberal studies major. "I think that's one of the reasons that Day of the Dead is so important. Death is part of life and we need to deal with it in any way possible."

Day of the Dead as it is known today is a fusion of Catholicism and indigenous practices that date back to 1800 B.C., well before the Spanish conquest of Mexico in 1521. Originally celebrated in August, it was moved to November to coincide with All Saints Day and All Souls Day as part of an effort to increase Spanish influence in the country. How it is practiced in Mexico varies by region, and in the United States the practice is continued in different ways and to different extents by families and communities.

Traditionally, Day of the Dead involved setting up altars at gravesites and adorning them with candles, flowers, pictures of the deceased and various kinds of food and drink. Families would have picnics at these sites with a festive rather than somber atmosphere.

"Pan de muerto" (bread of the dead) and candy skulls made from sugar are items commonly adorning altars.

"For those who are not part of the Latino world, they think it's bizarre. But the Latino world has a way of teasing death or befriending death," said Ana Maria Pineda, a professor in the religious studies department. "It's a way of reminding oneself that death is part of life and will be part of all our lives, but at the same time, we don't want to be afraid of it."

In addition to bread and sugar skulls, items that the deceased were fond of in life can also be placed on altars as a way of welcoming them back.

"For my grandma we put up flowers that she liked and for my Uncle Dennis, he was very into poetry, we put up his favorite poetry book on the altar," said Garza.

In contemporary American society it is more common to see altars constructed in homes, but the idea behind them remains the same.

"The altar of the dead can have many different items on it, but the primary purpose is to remember, never to forget," said Pineda. "Since we don't separate the world of the living from the world of the dead, they are very much a part of us, and we can't forget them, because to forget them would be to forget a very essential part of who we are."

However, as commercialization and globalization homogenize cultures, some fear that Day of the Dead will go down the same road as Halloween and supermarket shelves crammed full of orange plastic pumpkins.

"The sugar skulls are mass-produced now - they're on lollipops. You can buy them in bags," said Manuel Perez, a junior communications major. "It's become a lot more commercialized. It's unfortunate, but as with most traditional celebrations, more and more people are losing the meaning behind it."

Ramon Chacon, a professor in the history and ethnic studies departments agrees. He claims that people are often too busy with work and raising children to have time to set up elaborate altars. Social roles have changed and traditions correspondingly have had to undergo transformations. Transplanted into a new culture, heritage passed down from generation to generation often becomes diluted.

This has been the case in senior English major Enrique Chombo's experience. He is looking forward to spending Day of the Dead with his mother and grandparents, but will probably be the only representative of his generation present.

"The rest of them don't really understand it anymore. They have Halloween," he said. "I would like to see more Latin people celebrating it.

That being said, the tradition continues to thrive in other forms.

"It has become very much not only a family, but also a community celebration," said Pineda. "In contemporary times, the traditional altars of the Dead have been transformed. In some cases it's an altar that is dedicated to AIDS victims or victims of drunk driving."

Chacon remembers loved ones that have passed away whether or not there is an altar.

"I talk to them all the time. They're right there, sitting on the roof, looking at me," he said. "I talk to them when I'm barbecuing. They ask me how I'm doing, I say, 'I'm alright.' You don't have to commemorate it, I do it all the time."

Regardless of the form Day of the Dead may take, the need to remember will continue to be felt. As Pineda points out, Day of the Dead speaks to the human need to express one's grief and one's love.

"In remembering that person, they continue to live on," he said.