
Beyond the Marigolds: The Day of the Dead in Mexico
Every culture develops its own way of dealing with mortality, and few are as strikingly colorful, profound, and meaningful as Mexico’s DÃa de los Muertos, or the Day of the Dead. Observed annually on November 1st and 2nd, this holiday fuses pre-Hispanic traditions with Catholic practices introduced by Spanish colonizers. At its heart lies a worldview in which death is not the end but a continuation, a transformation, and a time for joyful communion with ancestors. Unlike funerals marked by mourning, the Day of the Dead is an event of vibrant flowers, altars laden with food, music, parades, and gatherings in cemeteries where families laugh, sing, and honor their departed loved ones. Over the past decades, DÃa de los Muertos has gained international attention, celebrated not only within Mexico but…