Candlemas (Día de la Candelaria)
2 February 2026 — The candle glows and the tamales are for everyone. Happy Candlemas!
Candlemas, or the Presentation of the Lord, is observed on 2 February, forty days after Christmas. Christian tradition recalls Mary and Joseph bringing the infant Jesus to the temple. On this day, candles are blessed in churches, which gives the feast its Spanish name, Día de la Candelaria (from candela, a candle). In Mexico it is closely tied to Three Kings Day on 6 January. Whoever found the small figurine of the baby in the rosca de reyes (the sweet ring-shaped bread of the holiday) traditionally hosts everyone with tamales (steamed corn dough parcels with fillings, wrapped in husks), often served with atole (a thick, warm corn-based drink). Many families also bring the Christ Child figure from their home nativity scene (the Niño Dios), dressed in new clothes, to church to be blessed. The date also sits roughly midway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox, so in parts of Europe and North America it has long been linked with the hope of spring. The feast has a fixed date and does not depend on the phases of the Moon.
Flying across the sky: An ethereal, bluish-silver candle made of pale points of light and thin lines, like a constellation, with a small warm flame at its top, drifting slowly across the night sky
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