How to Celebrate Diás de los Muertos

Like most holidays throughout the world, Diás de los Muertos mingles the rituals of ancient and modern religions with a hefty dose of rowdy fun. The Aztecs believed that when people die, their souls live on as birds and butterflies. So, on October 27, when golden clouds of Monarch butterflies return to Mexico from their summer homes in the North, the celebration begins.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• 42-hour Liquid Candles
• Pan De Los Muertos
• Flowers
• piñatas
• Candles
• Party Food
• Party Drinks
• Paper Butterflies
• Marzipan Skulls

1. Throw a party to celebrate the lives of your departed relatives or friends, and invite the people who knew and loved them best.

2. Keep in mind that the festivities in Mexico last for several days, and when the Aztec goddess Mictecacihuatl ran the show, it went on for a month. But you can easily condense your party into one tradition-bending evening.

3. Serve food and drinks that your absent guest or guests of honor liked; play their favorite music; deck the party scene with their favorite flowers and photographs of their favorite places; read aloud from their favorite books.

4. Show videos or old home movies, pass around snapshots, and tell stories about the absent guest or guests of honor.

5. Add a Mexican touch by serving traditional Diás de los Muertos treats such as marzipan in the shapes of skulls, skeletons and crosses; and a bread called pan de los muertos. You can find these and other seasonal goodies in Hispanic markets, or make your own from recipes in a Mexican cookbook.

6. Hang a piñata filled with paper butterflies.

Tips & Warnings

• Diás de los Muertos is a light-hearted, even boisterous, celebration, not a somber ritual of mourning - have fun with it.