Life and death are conceptions that have been present in various cultures since the beginning of history, as happened with the society of Ancient Egypt, which turned the passage of the dead into the other great life. Nevertheless, the cult of death in Mesoamerica was different from that of the West. In Supercurioso, we wanted to investigate a little more about it, that is why today we want to tell you some of the curious facts about the Day of the Dead in the Mexica culture. Do you want to know what their rites are? Join us to discover it! đ
10 Curious Facts of the Day of the Dead
1. A mixed tradition
In the Mexica world, life and death were dual, so that dying for the mexica only meant passing to another form or state within the universe. However, when the Spanish arrive to invade American lands, there is a clash of perceptions about the world and, of course, about death. It was precisely in this context that the Day of the Dead emerged as we know it today.
One of the curious facts of the Day of the Dead is that this celebration not only takes up the elements of the Mesoamerican world, but also, by having altars for visitors, it also recovers European beliefs and reinterprets the ancient cult of death from medieval times.
2. The cult was underground
In colonial times, the celebration of the Day of the Dead was completely prohibited, as it was linked to the idolatry of death. Despite this, there are records that show that this type of death cult was also practiced in Europe.
For example, with the San Pascualito, a celebration that was born as a result of popular beliefs of medieval origin. Is, in Mexico and some parts of America, was syncretized with the Day of the Dead. So, one of the curious facts about the Day of the Dead is that it was practiced clandestinely for a long time.
3. The Cempoalxochitl
If you have ever stopped to look carefully at an altar for the Day of the Dead, you will have noticed that small intense orange petals are scattered throughout its area. It turns out that these come from the cempoalxĂłtchitl flower, also called flower of the dead or bead flower.
This type of flowers, as one of the curious facts of the Day of the Dead, It was used in pre-Hispanic times for multiple religious celebrations.. For academician Eudave Eusebio, these flowers contain symbolisms such as those of the life cycle: in indigenous thought an account means a timecomplete a cycle and from there start another.
4. The Day of the Dead is not just a day
One of the curiosities of the day of the dead is that, in reality, the celebration does not last a single day, but two. The Mexican version indicates two Catholic festivities: the day of All Saints and the day of the souls, which are celebrated on the 1st and 2nd of november respectively.
Every day has totally different activities. On the first day, as its name suggests, the saints are commemorated. Catholic masses are held for its celebration and sugar bread is offered. On the other hand, the second day is the day of the dead, the best known of all. It is recognizable, above all, because offerings are placed on the altars, which can be exchanged for delicious tamales and atole. In fact, this religious tradition is one of the great differences between Halloween and the day of the dead.
5. The importance of food
For many, the Mexican tradition of the Day of the Dead has more folklore than tradition. Nevertheless, Mexican society shows us in each celebration that its rituals are full of mysticism and symbolismespecially in the food arranged on the altar.
For the expert Eudave Eusebio: “the food that is offered to the spirits of the dead that visit the homes has great meaning, and they go according to the tastes of the deceased. In food and in some elements such as fire or copal they warn very important symbolic loads».
6. Directions
Another of the curious facts of the Day of the Dead are the aforementioned âcoursesâ. It is about the four directions of the indigenous worldview. These specified Where did each person go when they died?
For example, if the women died giving birth, or warriors in battle, had to go to the sun. Likewise, those who drowned went to Tlalocan. For their part, those who died naturally would rest in Mictlan. These perceptions of life and death make the Day of the Dead a very interesting bundle of curiosities.
7. An indoctrination strategy
For the historian Ălvarez Moctezuma, when the conquest and colonization of America occurred, society was already charged with festivals of the dead. However, in the Mexican territory, the Day of the Dead would have been used by the friars of evangelization as one more element to incorporate the indigenous peoples into Catholicism.
One of the great curiosities of Mexico is that the traditions that endure over time sometimes have political and commercial overtones. These interests, to a large extent, were marked by colonialist visions, such as the indoctrination of pre-Hispanic societies to the Catholic religion.
8. Catrina
Surely you know who Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera were, one of the most controversial couples in Mexican art. Well, you should know that within the curious facts of the Day of the Dead, Diego Rivera, the great muralist, has a lot to do with it.
It was precisely this painter who was responsible for inventing the famous catrina that we all now know and that lies in the Prado museum. The curious thing is that it did not become famous until well into the 20th century. All thanks to cartoonist José Guadalupe Posada.
9. The altar
The altar is perhaps one of the most ornate elements of a venue when the Day of the Dead is celebrated. Depending on the region, each altar is decorated with photographs, fruits, bread and figurines that represent the deceased, as well as candles, incense and, of course, the petals of cempoalxĂłtchitl.
The structure can have up to five levels, all covered by some type of fabric, especially satin. Likewise, they have chopped paper on all the surfaces of the altar. There, you can take a closer look. traditional mexican dishes that in life were the favorites of the deceased.
10. Other celebrations
To close our list of curious facts about the Day of the Dead, we would like to tell you about other regions where similar celebrations are also celebrated.
For example, in Indonesia, where every three years the dead are celebrated in a celebration called Manene. In this, they take the dead man out of the tomb to dress him again.
Similarly, it is celebrated in Ecuador. There, as in Mexico, it comes from pre-Hispanic traditions in which the traditional guinea pig is eaten.
If you are a lover of Mexican culture, know how Christmas is celebrated in Mexico, we tell you all about their Christmas traditions.