Halloween is that one
great day of the year when kids get dressed up in costumes and go
from door to door in their neighborhood and get free candy. For
candy manufacturers and companies who make, sell or rent costumes,
this is a huge holiday. If you ask the average child who is going
from house to house and wearing a costume why they are doing this you
will find they aren't really into the big picture o Halloween.
Children are focused on Halloween parties, wearing costumes, getting
free candy and ignoring people who ask them why they are doing such a
thing. We are not the only nation with greedy capitalistic companies
willing to make increased revenue by exploiting a holidays nobody
knows much about and only want to celebrate and have fun. There are
other countries who have their own unique way of celebrating
Halloween.
Below are excerpts from
the story with my valuable insights in italics.
DÍA DE LOS MUERTOS //
MEXICO
The holiday is celebrated
with in-home altars full of fruit, peanuts, turkey, soda, hot
chocolate, water, stacks of tortillas and a special holiday bread
called pan de Muerto (bread of the dead), which are left as
offerings for weary ghosts. For the souls of children, families leave
out toys and candy, while adult souls receive cigarettes and shots of
mezcal.
It seems if you are a
dead person in the United States who wants to celebrate Halloween,
you might want to head south of the border. There it seems they take
care of the dead and offer them things. It seems very age
appropriate. The souls of children get candy and toys. Since they
are no longer among the living, they can have all the candy they
want. I don't know if the souls of children can get out of control
after having too much candy, but its the dead parents that will have
to deal with it. I like the shots of mezcal and cigarettes for the
dead adults. I suppose you can smoke all you want when you're dead
because it's not like smoking will kill you. Shots of mezcal and
ghost kids wired up on candy. Dead people probably love Mexico.
THE HUNGRY GHOST FESTIVAL
// HONG KONG
On the 15th day of the
seventh lunar month, which is around mid-August to mid-September, the
people of Hong Kong celebrate the Hungry Ghost Festival. The
festival is a way to “feed” these spirits both the food and money
they need for the afterlife. It’s part of a larger month-long
celebration that also features burning paper and food offerings.
The attitude to take
care of the dead even stretches to places like Hong Kong. I wonder
what kind of food you would provide a ghost? I suppose it doesn't
matter if a ghost has a food allergy because it's not like the food
will kill them. Maybe the eat goulash. (Oh, forgive me for that
one.) I like the idea of offering spirits money. Is there a
specific monetary exchange rate between here and the afterlife?
Exactly how much would an American dollar be worth in ghost currency?
I wonder what pictures ghosts would have on their money? If a ghost
can't pay their bills and tries to commit suicide, I wonder what
happens to them. Makes you wonder if there is such a thing as a
ghost lottery.
OGNISSANTI // ITALY
Better known
as Ognissanti, the festivities usually begin a couple of days
before, when people begin leaving fresh
flowers—generally chrysanthemums—on the graves of departed
loved ones, as well as complete strangers, turning the country's
cemeteries into a beautiful display of colors. Italians also pay
tribute to the departed by putting a red candle in the window at
sunset and set a place at the table for those spirits they hope will
pay a visit
As a kid who grew up in
the United States, I would find this Halloween celebration a bit
disappointing.
“Are we going to go
house to house and ask for free candy?”
“No, we are going to
go to the graveyard and put chrysanthemums on the graves of our
departed loved ones. We also put flowers on the graves of
strangers.”
“Then we go and ask
for free candy from different houses?”
“No, then we put a
red candle in the window at sunset.”
“Well, once it's dark
can we then put on costumes and go and ask for free candy from the
different houses?”
“No, we set a place
at the table for a spirit we hope will visit.”
“I'm wondering about
something.”
“Why we don't
celebrate Halloween like they do in the United States?”
“No, I'm wondering
how Italian costume makers and stores that sell or rent costumes make
any money without celebrating Halloween like in the United States.
I'm sure the companies who make and sell candy don't do too well
either. I do like one thing.”
“What?”
“Having a séance at
dinner for family spirits.”
“Oh.”
ALL SAINTS' DAY AND ALL
SOULS' DAY // Germany
Germany has its own
tradition: Many hide their kitchen knives so that returning
spirits won't be accidentally harmed (or use the same knives to harm
the living).
I have to admire
Germany's dedication to knife safety during Halloween. It is
important to consider the health of returning spirits who could
accidentally be harmed by a knife. I wonder if German homeowners
insurance policies cover such incidents. I think them being dead
would eliminate any possibility of a ghost lawsuit for negligence
based on a living individual's unsafe knife storage. It's not like
the spirits could get killed. They must have some pretty harsh
spirits in Germany who use knives against the living. It's a good
thing these German spirits aren't' into running people over with
cars. If that was the case, car insurance in Germany would be really
expensive.
Below is a link to the
story.
http://mentalfloss.com/article/506197/12-halloween-traditions-around-world
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