Aztecs: Life After Death

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Celebrating Life

Where do we go after we die? What happens to our souls? Is there really people walking among us who haven’t found peace? Many questions have been asked about death, but no answer has been really found. One thing is for sure, we all have come up for an answer on our own. We weren’t the first to think there is life after death, thousands of years ago different civilizations believed in the afterlife. The Aztecs believed that death is not an ending to life, but rather yet a new begging of another life. Therefore Aztecs didn’t mourn the dead, but even better they celebrated them. “Aztec …show more content…

During the festival they remembered the children who passed away before they could grow and those who died as adults. “The Spaniards considered the rituals to be blasphemous. The pre-Hispanic people were considered barbaric and pagan. So, in the Spaniards’ attempts to convert them to Catholicism, the ritual was attempted to be vanished.” Casa Blanca. “Day of the dead raises again.” OCTOBER 29, 2012. Although Spanish priests tried to change this Aztec celebration to fit into theirs all they did was cause transculturation. Instead of celebrating day of the dead for one month from July to august, it was shortened to two days in November 1st and 2nd. These dates would coincide with the Christian’s all soul’s holiday. Spaniards had hoped that the Aztec holiday would transform into an acceptable Christian holiday. Spaniards bringing a new way to celebrate the dead and the indigenous trying to keep their own ritual has caused what we called today “el dia de los …show more content…

“The Aztecs kept skulls as trophies and displayed them during the ritual. The skulls were used to symbolize death and rebirth. The skulls were used to honor the dead, whom the Aztecs and other Meso-American civilizations believed came back to visit during the month-long ritual.” Azcentral. “Day of the day History.” October 9, 2015. The grave yard is decorated with skulls, flowers and candles among other things. Candles are used as a guide for the spirits to get home. The flowers have a strong scent that is believed to make the spirits welcomed and happy. Families are gathered together for this special day every year, even if they haven’t spoken to each other in months. They spend the whole day together talking about the loved one who passed away, drink and

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