約２週間後に迫った10月31日は、近年日本でもメジャーになりつつある”ハロウィン”の日です。

しかし、もともと日本の行事ではないので、具体的にどのような日なのかご存知ない方も多いのではないでしょうか。

”ハロウィン”とは、古代ケルト人が起源と考えられているお祭りで、この夜は夏から冬への季節の変わり目であり、死者の霊が家族を訪ねてくると信じられてきたそうです。

日本のお盆と似ていますが、決定的に違うのは時を同じくして有害な精霊や魔女まで出てくるということ。

それらから身を守るために仮面をかぶったり、魔よけの焚き火を焚いたりしてきたことが、現代のハロウィン仮装やカボチャをくりぬいた蝋燭立て（ジャック・オ・ランタン）に繋がっているようです。

さてそのハロウィン、フィリピンでは”UNDAS”と呼ばれ、数日間に渡り独自の祝い方をするそうです。

今日はGelo講師による”UNDAS”のご紹介をぜひお読みください。

UNDAS

By: Gelo Abalos

In western part of the world, people celebrate Halloween on the night of October 31st. It is dedicated to remember the dead, including saints and all the faithful departed. It is also the night when people will be in their cute and epic Halloween costumes and will throw different parties. In the Philippines, however, it is a lot different since Filipinos are well-known to be family oriented.

Filipinos traditionally prepare for the Halloween – locally known as UNDAS – by going to different cemeteries where their love ones are buried to clean and repaint their graves a few days before the first two days of November. Most Filipinos link All Saints’ Day which is celebrated on the 1st day of November and All Souls’ Day which is celebrated on the 2nd day of November and viewed these two celebrations as one called UNDAS.

Some Filipinos will start visiting cemeteries as early as October 30 to avoid millions of people who will visit and remember their love ones on the first two days of the following month since it is a national holiday in the country. Most Filipinos will even travel far and go to their provinces just to see and be with their families. This is also the time for everyone to have cheerful family reunions with some other relatives that will be celebrated inside the cemetery. People will bring a lot of food, flowers, and candles and will offer prayers together. Some people will bring sleeping bags and even stay overnight. Though it looks and sounds fun and exciting, everybody still respect the place and it is prohibited to bring in any kinds of alcohol, playing cards and sound system.

This is also a perfect time to do business. Filipinos are business-minded people and they will grab this opportunity to earn money, still for their families. You will see a street of different stores selling flowers, candles, different kinds of food, and whatever product they can sell. It is an old tradition that is uniquely Filipino.

＜このブログをご覧の方におすすめ＞