Teopankali, a space to commemorate the dead in the Chapultepec Forest

The Ministry of Culture of the Government of Mexico, through the General Directorate of Popular, Indigenous and Urban Cultures, in collaboration with the Government of Mexico City, through its Ministry of the Environment and the Chapultepec Forest, invite visit the Teopankali, “House of the altars”, located between Lake Maggiore and Lake Menor.

The facility, which takes its name from the Nahua words teopan, home and kali, altar; It represents a house without walls, whose pillars are covered with cempasúchitl flowers and lion’s claws, in the style of the Huasteca and Nahua offerings.

Inside, 12 altars erected with the elements typical of the cultures of four states and six cultures will be placed face to face in the manner of a mirror: Oaxaca (Ayuujk), Guerrero (Amuzgo), Michoacán (P’urhépecha and Mazahua) and Chiapas (Tzeltal and Mam).

The Teopankali, which is in the process of being installed, will be ready to receive visitors to the Chapultepec Forest from Sunday, October 31 at 7:00 p.m. and until November 3 at 11:00 p.m. in the intermediate space between the Lago Menor and the Lago Mayor of the First Section of the Chapultepec Forest.

To offer a collective farewell, various artists and groups will perform traditional songs of mourning. Starting at 7:00 p.m. on Sunday, October 31 and until 9:00 p.m. on November 2, attendees will be able to enjoy various musical presentations, for example, with the Oaxacan composer and singer Natalia Cruz, who will perform he are Zapotec, Guendanabani and a free adaptation of La Llorona.

The singing group pirekua Kustakua will also be present, who will perform The Zempoalxochitl flower, the rock group Zak Tzevul, with a cover of the song tsoltsil Bolom Chom and the Huasteco trio Tres en línea.

As part of this collective ritual to honor the memory of the deceased, people are invited to attend on October 31 from 7:00 p.m. with a standard-size photo of their loved ones to place in one of the 12 altars.

The schedules and dates of the musical presentations can be consulted on the Facebook account @CulturasPopularesOficial and on Twitter @dgcpopulares

(Photo: Courtesy DGCPIU)