Ofrenda
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An ''ofrenda'' (Spanish: " offering") is the offering placed in a
home altar A home altar or family altar is a shrine kept in the home of a Western Christian family used for Christian prayer and family worship. Home altars often contain a cross or crucifix, a copy of the Bible (especially a Family Bible), a breviary and/o ...
during the annual and traditionally Mexican ''
Día de los Muertos The Day of the Dead ( es, Día de Muertos or ''Día de los Muertos'') is a holiday traditionally celebrated on November 1 and 2, though other days, such as October 31 or November 6, may be included depending on the locality. It is widely obser ...
'' celebration. An ''ofrenda'', which may be quite large and elaborate, is usually created by the family members of a person who has died and is intended to welcome the deceased to the altar setting. __TOC__


Background

This display coincides with the
Día de Muertos The Day of the Dead ( es, Día de Muertos or ''Día de los Muertos'') is a holiday traditionally celebrated on November 1 and 2, though other days, such as October 31 or November 6, may be included depending on the locality. It is widely obser ...
, which is a tradition some believe originated with the
Aztecs The Aztecs () were a Mesoamerican culture that flourished in central Mexico in the post-classic period from 1300 to 1521. The Aztec people included different Indigenous peoples of Mexico, ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those g ...
, though others dispute this. The Aztec culture considered souls to continuously live and enter different realms when a body would die. This view the Aztecs held was commingled with the Christian beliefs that the soul is eternal (whether it be in
heaven Heaven or the heavens, is a common religious cosmological or transcendent supernatural place where beings such as deities, angels, souls, saints, or venerated ancestors are said to originate, be enthroned, or reside. According to the belie ...
,
purgatory Purgatory (, borrowed into English via Anglo-Norman and Old French) is, according to the belief of some Christian denominations (mostly Catholic), an intermediate state after physical death for expiatory purification. The process of purgatory ...
, or
hell In religion and folklore, hell is a location in the afterlife in which evil souls are subjected to punitive suffering, most often through torture, as eternal punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hell ...
) during the
Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire The Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, also known as the Conquest of Mexico or the Spanish-Aztec War (1519–21), was one of the primary events in the Spanish colonization of the Americas. There are multiple 16th-century narratives of the eve ...
when the two cultures were merged. The ofrenda is presented in one's home in order to commemorate the souls of loved ones in the family.


Components of the offering

A common format for an ''ofrenda'' contains three levels or tiers. The topmost tier identifies the dead person who is being invited to the altar, frequently with photos of the deceased, along with images of various saints, statuettes of the Virgin Mary, crucifixes, etc. which are positioned in a ''retablo'' which forms the back of the altar; on the second tier are things placed to encourage the dead to feel at home and welcome: the deceased person's favorite food items might go here, including such things as ''
mole Mole (or Molé) may refer to: Animals * Mole (animal) or "true mole", mammals in the family Talpidae, found in Eurasia and North America * Golden moles, southern African mammals in the family Chrysochloridae, similar to but unrelated to Talpida ...
'', candy, ''
pan dulce Pan dulce, literally meaning "sweet bread", is the general name for a variety of Mexican pastries. Bread was introduced in Mexico by Spanish colonists, settlers and immigrants; however, Mexican pan dulce as we know it today rose to popularity ...
'', and especially a sweet bread called ''
pan de muerto (), is a type of pan dulce traditionally baked in Mexico and the Mexican diaspora during the weeks leading up to the Día de los Muertos, which is celebrated from November 1 to November 2. Description It is a sweetened soft bread shaped like a ...
''. For deceased adults, the ''ofrenda'' might include a bottle or poured shot glasses of
tequila Tequila (; ) is a liquor, distilled beverage made from the Agave tequilana, blue agave plant, primarily in the area surrounding the city of Tequila, Jalisco, Tequila northwest of Guadalajara, Jalisco, Guadalajara, and in the Jaliscan Highlands ...
or
mezcal Mezcal (, ), sometimes spelled mescal, is a distilled alcoholic beverage made from any type of agave. The word ''mezcal'' comes from Nahuatl , which means "oven-cooked agave", from and .What is MezcalElmezcal.org Traditionally the word "m ...
, while if the deceased is a child a favorite toy might be placed here. The bottom-most tier almost always contains lit candles, and might also have a washbasin, mirror, soap, and a towel so that the spirit of the deceased can see and refresh themselves upon arrival at the altar. Throughout the altar are placed ''
calavera A calavera (Spanish language, Spanish – for "skull") is a representation of a human skull. The term is most often applied to edible or decorative skulls made (usually by hand) from either sugar (called Alfeñiques) or clay, used in the Mexican ...
s'' (decorated candied skulls made from compressed sugar) and bright orange and yellow marigolds (''cempazuchitl''), an Aztec flower of the dead. According to cultural descriptions of the celebration, the smell from the Marigolds helps guide the dead to the ofrenda, and the petals are often picked and spread in a pathway to lead the way. ''Ofrendas'' are constructed in the home as well as in village cemeteries and churches. The ofrenda typically features types of decorations that are representative of the
four elements Classical elements typically refer to earth, water, air, fire, and (later) aether which were proposed to explain the nature and complexity of all matter in terms of simpler substances. Ancient cultures in Greece, Tibet, and India had simi ...
. For example, candles are lit on the table to symbolize the element of fire. Papel picado represents the element air because it is so light weight, you can see how the wind moves it. Since food is solid and is grown in the ground, it represents the element earth. The element of water is represented by the glasses of water. It is thought that because the journey to the land of the living is a long one, water is left out to satisfy the thirst of those who made the journey. Incense from the resin of copal trees are also used in the offering in order to produce smells that will scare away evil spirits.


In culture

A non-fiction children's book called ''Day of the Dead: A Mexican-American Celebration'' was written by Diane Hoyt-Goldsmith. The book is about a Mexican-American family celebrating the Day of the Dead (Día de Muertos) in California and is focused on two young twins in the family. The twins help the family create an ofrenda for their loved ones, as well as a larger ofrenda for their community. An ''ofrenda'' forms a central plot theme in the 2017 animated film '' Coco''. In Season 15 of ''
Grey's Anatomy ''Grey's Anatomy'' is an American medical drama television series that premiered on March 27, 2005, on ABC as a mid-season replacement. The series focuses on the lives of surgical interns, residents, and attendings as they develop into se ...
'', the family of a patient build an ofrenda in her hospital room to mark the Día de los Muertos. The episode contains several other references to the holiday, including many of the doctors meditating on dead loved ones and multiple appearances of marigolds. In the 1998 PC adventure game ''
Grim Fandango ''Grim Fandango'' is a 1998 adventure game directed by Tim Schafer and developed and published by LucasArts for Microsoft Windows. It is the first adventure game by LucasArts to use 3D computer graphics overlaid on pre-rendered static background ...
'', which is set in the Land of the Dead during the Day of the Dead, one of the supporting characters is named Olivia Ofrenda. The game is also largely based around Mexican folklore and traditions such as the Día de Muertos, as well as some Aztec mythology. In Season 2, Episode 18 of ''
Vampirina ''Vampirina'' is a computer-animated children's television series created by Chris Nee. Based on the ''Vampirina Ballerina'' series of books written by Anne Marie Pace and published by Disney-Hyperion, the series was announced in March 2016 and ...
'', featured on Disney Junior, Vampirina learns about Día de los Muertos and how to construct an ofrenda. Rooms for the Dead, a labyrinth of over 25 altars are featured each year at the Yerba Buena Center in San Francisco. The display was curated and created in 1972 by artist and activist Rene Yanez. In the game ''
Cyberpunk 2077 ''Cyberpunk 2077'' is a 2020 action role-playing video game developed by CD Projekt Red and published by CD Projekt. Set in Night City, an open world set in the ''Cyberpunk'' universe, players assume the role of a customisable mercenary know ...
'', an ofrenda is held as part of an optional mission.


References

{{reflist Death customs Guatemalan culture Mexican culture Sacrifice