Mexican Beauty
Worcester, MA

The Piñata

     According to some sources, the first missionaries that arrived to Mexico were the ones who introduced the piñata.  They used it to explain and teach the Indian populations how we must be strong and beat the Devil.   They designed a huge ceramic pot covered with colored paper in the shape of a star, where each one of the points represented one of the seven deadly sins.  It was something that would come down from and then rise up to the sky (hence the shape of the star) and it would bother people, touch them, and tempt them.  So when you hit the piñata hard, you overcome the temptation and break the evil.  And when the piñata is broken, the candies that were used to fill it, come flying out, which means we are being rewarded by heaven with gifts and immense happiness that fill us with joy.  Evil has been destroyed.

These days the piñata has been transformed like the popular culture, and has changed its form from the traditional star to animals, fruits or cartoon characters.  It is not used just for the posadas -- now it’s a must for any children's party and other occasions.