DAY OF THE DEAD IN MEXICO CITY
Benjamin
Franklin had never been to Mexico when he wrote, “In this world nothing is
certain except death and taxes”.
With big business tax loopholes, and an estimated
59% of the workforce in the non-taxpaying ‘informal economy’, the only
certainty here is death. Each year on Dia de Muertos, Mexicans face that
inevitability head-on.
My first experience of Dia de Muertos was years ago in San
Miguel de Allende. I waited patiently in a long line of flower-laden visitors
to pass through the narrow gateway. Visits to gravesites in the U.S. were dark,
sad, and solemn events, with no encouragement to linger. In Mexico, upon
entering the vast field of tombstones, it seemed more like a big party, a bit
subdued, but festive, colorful, bustling. There were flowers everywhere,
candles flickering, guitar players strumming, people eating, talking, praying,
laughing, and only a few of them crying.
With
its roots deep in the pre-Christian past,
Mexico’s attitude toward death presents one of the strongest contrasts to that
of its northern neighbors. Nobel laureate Octavio Paz wrote, “The word death is not pronounced in
New York, in Paris, in London, because it burns the lips. The Mexican, in
contrast, is familiar with death, jokes about it, caresses it, sleeps with it,
celebrates it; it is one of his favorite toys and his most steadfast love”.
Famed
19th century artist José Guadalupe Posada created a popular image of
death,
La Calaca Catrina, that shows up everywhere. With her big
feathered hat and wide grin, she looks more like Carol Channing in ‘Hello
Dolly’ than any frightening image of the Grim Reaper. The curious phrase “Feliz Dia de los Muertos” shows up on
sugar skulls and greeting cards. Death in Mexico, while not exactly a friend,
is certainly a member of the family.
Indigenous
peoples believed that the soul did not die, but moved on to a resting place
known as Mictlán, from whence it could be summoned home to visit friends and
relatives. Before the Spanish conquest, the return of departed souls was
celebrated in July and August. The Spaniards changed the date to coincide with
All Souls’ Day of the Catholic Church, leaving the newly baptized natives with
only two days, November 1 and 2, during which they welcome home the
deceased. The first day is devoted to
departed children, the next to adults.
It’s
a long way from Mictlán, so the living must appeal to all the senses of the
dearly departed to help them find their way home. Food, flowers, incense,
music, even cigarettes and alcohol are used to create altars, known as ofrendas in homes and public spaces all
over Mexico. You don’t have to be Mexican to participate in Day of the Dead
rituals, however. Visiting a cemetery or preparing an altar at home can be done
by anyone.
The best place to stock up on all the necessary items for a home altar is
the Mercado Jamaica (Avenida Morelos and Congreso de la Union, metro stop
Jamaica on the #9 line). As the city’s wholesale flower market, the quantity of
marigolds, coxcombs and other flowers is staggering. Booths set up around the
perimeter of the market offer sugar figurines, candles, incense, food, papel picado (die-cut tissue paper), and
other items used to create altars.
Although
celebrations in rural areas of Oaxaca and Michoacán are often written about,
Day of the Dead in Mexico City occurs on a scale befitting one of the planet’s
biggest cities.
Getting
into the main cemeteries in Mexico City can be a daunting proposition, but
altars are set up all over town. You’ll see them in markets, shopping malls,
metro stops, banks, hotels, school, hospitals, and outside every Delegación
office. Here are some special places
known for their elaborate altars:
The
Zócalo, the city’s main plaza in the Centro Histórico
Claustro
of Sor Juana (Izazaga 92,near Isabel la Católica in the Centro)
Museo de las Culturas (Calle Mondea, Centro)
Plaza
Juarez (on the south side of the Alameda)
Museo de la Ciudad (Pino Suarez 30,
Centro)
Museo Dolores Olmedo, Xochimilco
Plaza Civica del Museo Panteon de San
Fernando (Plaza de San Fernando 17, Colonia Guerrero, near Metro Hidalgo)
UNAM
(on the esplanade near the Rectoría)
Altars
are set up between October 28 and 30, and dismantled promptly on
November
3, when Death is given a holiday until next year.
