Piñatas are figures made from cardboard painted and decorated with all kinds of colorful paper, with the shape of animals, superheroes or traditional stars and are filled with candies and sometimes toys and/or fruits. At parties, a piñata is suspended from a rope where someone is pulling it from the other side and a child or adult (blindfolded or not) hits it taking turns until it breaks and the filling falls.
But what is the true meaning and story behind it?
The piñata's history in Mexico dates to the same time as the Christmas Posadas. In 1586 the Augustinian friars in Acolman held what was called "misa de Aguinaldo" which later became the posadas where they introduced for the first time the "Piñatas". They used the piñatas to help with their efforts to evangelize the native people of the region and teach them about the principles of Christianity.
Original piñatas had the shape of a star with seven points which represented the seven deadly sins (lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy and pride). All the bright colors of the piñata symbolize the temptation to fall into these sins. The blindfold represents faith and the stick is a virtue or the will to overcome sin. The filling of the pinata is riches of heaven, that those who can overcome sin will receive.
Nowadays Piñatas are a key element in every Mexican child’s birthday party, however; it is becoming more and more typical in other countries. In some places, they replace the stick by adding strings at the bottom of the figure where all children can pull without having to hit it.
It is a tradition that is full of history and culture for the Mexican people, just as the tradition and legacy in our coffee!