Day of the Deceased

Like many other Christian festivals, the celebrations of Day of the Deceased every 1st November in Latin America also has roots in pagan rites.

Like many other Christian festivals, the celebrations of Day of the Deceased every 1st November in Latin America also has roots in pagan rites. The Christian missionaries had to adopt many of the rites and indigenous symbols to facilitate evangelization. Nowadays, from one side to the continent to the other, days such as this are characterized by the memory of the dead and visits to cemeteries, but different traditions in this regard are to be found in each country or region. This celebration stems from the belief that the souls of dead relatives visit the earth on this day and families need to ensure that there is plenty of food available for these souls so that they can gain strength to continue on their journey in the afterlife. So they visit the cemetery to either leave food or flowers at the graves or sing their favorite songs. This series of pictures are taken in the Nueva Esperanza Cemetery in the district of Villa Maria del Triunfo in Lima - Peru, one of the biggest cemeteries around the world. 1st November 2014. Lima-Peru