November 1, 2010
Oaxaca, Mexico
Sunny and Hot!
I first heard about Oaxaca in my Spanish class in High School in Santa Ana, California. After learning how to pronounce Oaxaca, our teacher told us about Dia de Los Muertos or Day of the Dead. It peaked my interest as it is a similar custom that the Buddhists have which is called Obon in Japanese . So what is Day of the Dead?
Like Obon, Day of the Dead is a family celebration that takes place in Oaxaca. Although there are 6 distinct indigenous languages in Oaxaca, Day of the Dead is primarily Zapotec in origin. It is the time to celebrate the family and the ancestors. It is believed that the spirits of the ancestors come back and visit the family during this time so is a very important day for many Oaxacans.
It is a very colorful and spiritual celebration. Altars are set up to honor the deceased family members. And depending on family customs the Day of the Dead decorations and food are taken down Nov.2 or even later. A typical altar has pictures of saints or other religious figures, framed photos of people being honored, lots of candles, chocolate and peanuts, many many loaves of Pan de Muertos (Day of the Dead bread), fruits, vegetables, prepared foods such as mole, tamales or special favorites of those being honored, beverages including beer or mexcal, beautiful sugar skulls and other candies featuring the skull and lastly colorful flowers and incense. Typical Day of the Dead flowers are coxcombs and marigolds dotted with calla lillies and gladialoas. The incense used is from the indigineous copal tree, which is also used for wood carving.
The graves are also cleaned and decorated with candles, food and flowers. Families spend the night at the graves, welcoming the spirits back to their home and also to make sure they have a safe trip back to the other world. Usually Oct. 31 is when the angelitos or spirits of the children come back. After they leave the adults stop by and then on Nov. 1, the parties or comparasas start. Neighborhoods celebrate the family with a dance and a play that depicts the struggle over the soul of the deceased man. At the conclusion, everyone jumps up and down madley to the music and follows the band through the communites. Mescal and food is shared amongst the communities and people party until day break. The most famous comparasas take place in Etna Valley and that is where we went and joined folks from the neighborhood for a night of dancing and drinking! Below are some photos from Day of the Dead and the Comparasas. Some are blurry because I forgot to bring my tripod!
Oct. 31, 2010: Gate into Oaxaca's main cemetery
Everyone was dressed for the day: Oaxacan's adopted some Halloween customs such as dressing up. But most of them dressed up as skeletons to "bond" with their ancestors.
A very old grave
A fancy altar
My alma mater had an altar!
Not sure who it was for but thought the Aggies did a good job
More fancy altars
The altar above included a path lit by candles so the spirits can find their way
Outside the cemetery was a carnival to the chagrin of locals. Many were disappointed that the spiritual aspects of the holiday was being overshadowed by commercialism.
Luved this boys costume!
Entrance to one of the oldest and most famous cemeteries in Oaxaca: XoXocatlan
Family members waiting and welcoming the spirits. The graves were decorated so beautifully
2 sisters and their brother, waiting for their families spirits
Many of the graves had the most intricate decorations. The only light was provided by candles which made the whole experience magical.
The next day, Nov. 1, we went to Etla to experience the famous comparasas. The costumes were magnificent. Many of the them were covered in mirrors and bells that added music to the band and made the night shine.
Dancers from the first local village we went to. We were greeted with Mezcal and a delicious tamale. It was so local and fun. All participants were from the village. The villagers welcomed us with open hands.
The 4 year old boy had a GREAT costume and was popular
And so was his sister
Sandra joining the party
It got crazy but FUN!
These boys (around 10 yrs old) must be exhausted jumping up and down and dancing in those outfits. The bells and mirrors must make the cape weigh a ton!
We then went off to the "city" comparasa which was grand but very crowded with all the tourists from Oaxaca. The costumes were amazing though. It was so crowded we only got a glimpse of the play
The ending of the play and the start of the dancing.
What a day! The last comparasa was so crowded that I just enjoyed the dancing from afar. We also ran into major traffic jams trying to get our car out of the place. Folks actually started lifting cars and moving them to make space! L0L! Oh but what a special experience and I was amazed how similar the culture is to Buddhism. Another proof point that we are all connected. I am so fortunate that the people of Oaxaca shared this experience with me.
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