Families and friends gather together carrying candles and flowers while walking to find the name of their lost loved one—some walking through the field of flat headstones and some climbing high up through the stacked tombstones. At this moment, the cemetery became more than just an empty graveyard. It became a mountain of memories. 

All Soul’s Day or also known for many Filipinos as “Undas”, is a special day to commemorate the lost souls of departed family members or even close friends. This wasn’t just a simple visit to the cemetery in your hometown but a time when tradition can move beyond religion. A memorable season to connect with the past. 

In cemeteries where tombstones are stacked high or laid plainly on a platform, reminiscing can take on different forms. The graves rise in layers like ascending generations, forming a structure that looks like a mountain where the lives are recorded through history. It shows how the dead and the living remain close, even after death.

When a family finds the tombstone, they take off the moss growing on the surface and clean out any debris, placing scented flowers beside their names while lighting the candles, and many are also bringing food to share with their relatives and for their lost loved ones. They sit in silence while thinking of the people who are not present in their lives anymore, praying that their spirits have rested in peace. 

Many practices for Undas can be observed from different beliefs passed on within each family but the purpose of this day remains: to honor those who have died and never letting the future generations forget their names and the role they played in their family. 

So when the candle is lit, its small glow beside the many engraved tombstones becomes a special symbol of remembrance and hope, but also conveying gratitude for the lives that touched them and others. It speaks of love that does not end with death. 

As evening deepens, families begin to leave. The flowers stay. The candles keep burning. The names remain on the stone. The cemetery returns to its peaceful silence. But the stories do not end. They live on in the hearts of those who showed up and who continually choose to carry them throughout the years to come. 

This mountain of souls is more than a pile of graves. It is a place where burial meets memory. Where generations meet. Where families keep their loved ones alive through remembrance because each tombstone holds a name. Each name portrays a life. Each life belonged to a family. To a community. To a world beyond the cemetery walls where it all started.

So every November, Filipinos bring candles that not only light the names on their tombstones but also bring light to their stories and the life they lived. The Filipino tradition of being sentimental makes Undas a day to honor the departed through whispered prayers that portray it as a bridge between silence and the living.

Maybe this is why the mountain is a paradise. Not because it hides death but because it holds memories. Not because it erases pain. Because it keeps the lives who have passed on. 

Article by Jamaez Monteron