PHOENIX — It was a day of celebration at Barrett, the Honors College, at Arizona State University's downtown Phoenix campus.
Folks there are kicking of Day of the Dead with the annual traditional altar display.
Day of the dead, or Día de Los Muertos, is a holiday that reunites the living and the dead. Families create ofrendas (offerings) and place them on altares (altars) to honor loved ones who have passed.
“I think it’s a symbol of what Mexico is,” said Andrea Hernandez.
Andrea Hernandez is from Mexico and says this is a holiday full of tradiciones (traditions) that date back thousands of years… to Aztec times. A time where Día de Los Muertos was celebrated as a day of purification.
“They would offer the life of somebody in order to have wealthiness and be lucky for the rest of the year,” she told ABC15.
Día de Los Muertos then evolved when the Spaniards brought the Catholic influence to Mexico, making it more of an intimate family tradition.
It is now a day to remember those we have lost.
“Growing up, it was a very nice experience to celebrate Day of the Dead with my family,” said Hernandez.
Hernandez now works as a Program Coordinator at Barrett, the Honors College, at ASU and gets to help build the annual ofrenda.
“Each element means something. Candles of course to illuminate them (souls). As well, we have photos of…of our loved ones. Of course we have the paper picador that is a very beautiful symbol of our culture. We also have the Catrina. The Catrina because the most important symbol of day of the dead,” she told ABC15.
The altares are filled with ofrendas and flores de cempasúchil (marigold flowers).
Their bright yellow petals represent the sun and act as a guide for the souls of the dead to return home.
“Day of the dead starts on the night of the 30th. So normally people start to set the ofrendas then because November first, the spirits of the children that die will come. They will be the first to come to the Earth,” said Hernandez.
The rest of the family then crosses over on November 2nd, and we can’t forget about the alebrijes Mexicanos.
“Normally these are believed to be our companions to the other world. They are the souls of our pets,” she added.
It has become a blend of Catholic tradition and Mexican mysticism, commemorating death as another element of life.
“They celebrate the life. They don’t celebrate the death,” said Hernandez.
Barrett Honors College will be hosting a day of festivities for Día de Los Muertos November 2nd at Barrett, located at 541 E. Van Buren Street, from 4 pm to 7 pm.
There will be live mariachi music, face painting, and traditional Mexican food and music will also be served.
