Day of the Dead

Day of Dead

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DAY OF THE DEAD

Writer: Dorisa Ferrete

INTRODUCTION

The culture is part of human progress, it's the identity of one folk and gradually goes building symbols and giving sense to them, what differentiates from other cultures, before the dynamic and the proper structure each one has. Urges note, then, that without it, we lost our identity, values ​​and principles.

The diversity of each country it's which becomes one, reason why individual can keep social life, involve once quotidian of everybody. It's cultural heritage through of why people can communicate with each other.

The different the culture is always in interaction and interconnected, because no culture is isolated. There are exchanges of cultural symbols and mutuality influence among the people. Besides, knowing about other ones will permit us building and complementing our cognitive baggage .It's the means we have to protect our cultural roots , such as promote human development .

Therefore, the Mexico, for example has a very peculiar tradition, they presents a mix of cultures, which are derived from millenniums. And being an open country it permits mixture of traditions and manifestations that defines the nation. So, nothing more interesting than to study the several manners of celebrating this day and homenage the people who has died in this country and in other nations of the globe.

DAY OF THE DEAD

History

The festivity it's a national symbol. The mexincan tradition is celebrated between October 31 and November 2, with humour and happiness. The celebration is dated hundreds to thousand years ago.

The tradition is originary of indian civilization, dated back for more than thousand years. In that period the indigenes used to use skulls to simbolyze the death.

The according with several searches, the ritual is commemorated since before the arrival of spainard in America in the XV century. The folk that lived in a hispanic period used to say that the destiny of the souls coincide with kind of death that the person had and not with the behaviour that they had during the life.

Besides, they used too destine each place for each kind of death, for example, for those which had the death related with water, used to go to Tláloc, while those who were related to the wars, would go to Omeyocan. And for the person that death was related with natural causes would go to Mitclan.

But to get to Mictlan, they need to be buried with a dog, because the according with tradition, it help their get there. However, the children used to have a special place to go when they dead, called of Chichihuacua, because in this place had a tree, which used to fed them with milk of the branch.

But this tradition changed when the spainard arrived in Mexico. They arrived there in an american ship, which followed a catholic tradition. For they, this tradition were very strange, because was not commom to catholicism commemorate the death, because the death symbolizes sadness not happiness.

However, when the conquistadors arrived in America they were terrified with the practices of indigenous and with the intencion of change the americans native on catholicism, they changed the date of the festival for the beginning of November to coincide with the Catholic celebrations of the Day of All Saints.

For the indigenes, the ritual was a manner to help the soul his way, his destiny, because they believed in life after death. So, it means the continuity of life. Is part of the natural cycle live, die, be reborn.

The date in other countries

It's very interesting to see how the date is celebrate in each country, because each one has a manner commemorating. So let's see how are the celebration in Brazil,Spain and Japan in comparison with the mexican tradition.

Brazil

In Brazil, the family use to go to the cemetery and put flowers on the graves, some people pray and other go to the church.

The tradition is use black clothes, but is not commom how was in the past. For us, the tradition symbolizes the sadness.

Spain

In Spain, they used to commemorate the day of all saints, which happens in November 1st. There, people use to take flowers to the graves and at night, their eat a special sweet called " Huesso de Santos", made with apple, eggs and syrup, which is made with juice, peel of orange and sugar.

Furthermore, during the day, the cities receive marshal in honor for the dead. The tradition is wear colorful clothers, because