“The core belief of the Day of the Dead is so poetic and simple: as long as we remember those who have

passed away, as long as we tell their stories, sing their songs, tell their jokes, cook their favorite meals,
THEN they are with us, around us, and in our hearts. The moment we forget them, [...] then they are
truly gone. (The Art of the Book of Life, Introduction) . The traditional Mexican holiday of Day of the
Dead or El Día de Los Muertos has attracted a remarkable number of followers in Mexico and the USA,
over the last decade. I chose this topic because I find it very interesting and Mexicans seem to be so
comfortable with the natural cycle of life and death. In Mexican literature on death, and the Day of the
Dead in particular invariably incorporates a cultural continuity model to explain cultural history, religious
beliefs and adoration of life after death.

(In order to dig deeper, we will need to know about the history of this tradition. )

The Day of the Dead, the Mexican elaboration of the feasts of All Saints and All Souls, is one of the best-
known festivals in world ethnography. It has its origin from pre-historic Hispanic civilisation about 3000
years ago. The Day of the Dead is now and has long been a symbol of Mexico.It lasts for 2 days i.e
November 1st and 2nd. The first day is called ‘Dia de los inocentes’ or the Day of Innocents, which is in
honour of the deceased infants and the children while the second day is in the honour of the deceased
adults.

(Now you must be wondering, what was their belief system that gave rise to such a tradition?)

Mexicans believe in the eternity of the soul and that it can travel from one world to another. Hence, the
celebration of the Day of the Dead is based on the belief of the living that their loved one’s souls will
come to visit them. Also, the traditions followed on that varies across the regions of Mexico. One of the
popular traditions is to set up an altar with the photograph or the memory of the deceased loved one in
the presence of five elements, i.e air, water, earth and fire. They also offer their deceased loved one’s
favourite food, drinks or possession.

(Such traditions do exist in other cultures, so what’s the most peculiar thing about El Día de Los
Muertos?)

The peculiar feature of this celebration is its iconography. La Santa Muerte is the Saint or Holy Death
who is represented in printing, with statues of varying dimensions and of various materials, in jewellery,
in painting and in tattoos. Basically, she appears as a skeleton draped in a tunic (or a cape) whose aspect
and nature can vary. Some of the believers argue that, unlike other saints, La Santa Muerte never lived
an earthly life. The devotees explain that she is a spirit but that they call her a saint because she does
saint-like things. For example, she saved people and granted them wishes. Whereas in some legends, La
Santa Muerte lived a human life. They believe that she is a bride waiting for her husband to show up at
the altar. When he does not turn up, she dies. Since she sacrificed as the neglected woman, they believe
her to possess supernatural powers.

(The essence of El Día de los Muertos lies in its folklore, traditions, beliefs and creativity. The
iconography of La Santa Muerte exists to celebrate life and death equally. )

These diversified folkloric traditions inevitably suggest the wisdom of people whose oppressed situation
has not been an obstacle to the expression of a unique and creative philosophy of life and death. All that
live must die, passing through eternity. It’s not that death that we should fear but not having lived. I
hereby conclude by hoping that El Día de Los Muertos will continue to inspire people to not fear death
instead celebrate it and continues to be one of the symbols of the Mexican traditions.