“Altar of the dead” displayed at House of Culture
Whether you use the Spanish name ?Dia de los Muertos,? ?Finados? or the Maya name ?Hanal Pixan? the ancient tradition of honouring one’s ancestors is still a meaningful part of the culture of many Mayas and Mestizos in Belize. The House of Culture in Belize City has mounted two altars like those set up in many homes which provide favourite foods to departed loved ones. News Five spoke with the Institute of Social and Cultural Research’s Froyla Salam about this time honoured pre-Colombian practice that coincides with the Christian All Soul’s Day, and Halloween on the secular calendar.
Froyla Salam, Researcher, ISCR
?The origin of the feeding of the dead is actually a prehistoric, pagan ritual and certainly among the indigenous people of the Americas, the tradition goes that far back. Basically what they believe is the dead continue to remain among the living, and at this time of the year it kind of coincides with the Christian tradition. But basically, the dead need to be fed. And that?s what we are doing, honouring the ancestors, those who have gone on before. ?
?This particular feast is still in existence in the more remote parts of Belize, in Toledo, in Benque, in northern villages. But certainly what has changed is with the advent of Halloween, everyone gets more excited about costumes and trick or treating, and certainly that is more dominant in the more urban areas. But in the rural areas, people pretty much still have this belief that the dead need to be fed and in October, the first day of November, that is when they recognize that.?
?All it is, is basically if you were a child what would you like to eat, biscuits, chocolate, anything that is sweet. And children also mean babies, so we also have a bottle for the baby. The adult section has what an adult would want, alcohol, rum, biscuits. And the altar we have here is not as elaborate as what most people would have in their homes. They would have a much more real food, a lot more.?
The Hanal Pixan exhibition runs through the month of November at the Belize City House of Culture.
