AnnaThe Andean mythology is a heritage of the Inca culture that is still very strong today in Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, and including the south of Colombia and the north-west of Argentina. Since there’s no written source from the Incas, the collection of the mythology is mainly based on the chronicles of the conquering Spaniards which were produced 20-50 years after the conquests, and the few oral traditions of Andean people that were passed along from generation to generation.
Cosmos in the Andean mythology
In the Andean mythology cosmos (Pacha) is a notion of totality and abundance of time and space. Pacha is divided into 3 levels: our world is Akapacha, the upper world is Ajaxpacha, the lower world is Manquapacha.
In Ajaxpacha live the Sun, the Moon, the lightning and the stars. In Akapacha are the rivers, the mountains, the plants, the animals and the humans. And in Manquapacha live, for instance, the minerals, the roots and Pachamama or Mother Earth. These 3 worlds are symbolized by 3 animals: Akapacha is a Condor, Ajaxpacha is a Puma and Manquapacha is a Snake.
These worlds constantly interact with each other, for example between Ajaxpacha and Akapacha the Condor is the means of communication, and the Frog and Snake are the links between Akapacha and Manquapacha. These worlds are not to be understood as good/bad like heaven and hell are in Christian world explanations; all three of them are a mix of good and evil. For example, Manquapacha is responsible for soil fertility but also for illnesses.
Have you heard of Pachamama?
Pachamama is the most well-known divinity nowadays across South America. Pacha in Quechua (the language of the Incas) means “universe, world, time, space” while mama is “mother”.
She is the highest feminine deity of the mountains – which are central in the Andean culture. People present her with offerings (valuable consumables, such as coca leaves) when asking for favours; eg. good harvest or to avoid illnesses or to help them with luck during travels, among others. These gifts are placed in a hole in the stone while murmuring prayers.
Pachamama is believed to live in the mountains and religious paintings often depict her in a mountain. Read more about Pachamama en español.
After the Conquest
After the Spanish conquered the area, heavy and forced Evangelisation was carried out and a lot of religious art was produced in the Colonies to “educate” the Indigenous. But it was impossible to eradicate beliefs that had been so present.
Artists started fusing the Andean cultural imagery with the Christian’s in order to make the latter religion accepted. This fusion in art is called syncretism.
For example, in the Andean culture, it was customary to decorate headpieces with feathers. There are many paintings where Mary is wearing not only a crown, but feathers too. Another well-known example is a painting about the holy trinity, where the Virgin appears in the shape of a mountain (Cerro Rico in Potosi), reminding Pachamama.
Because of the violence the Spaniards used on whoever refused to become Christian, natives learnt to lie and hide their true belief.
There is evidence that they hid sacred objects of the Andean mythology among Christian religious artefacts. For example, they commonly hid little llama-shaped stone figures, called illas, into home shrines depicting scenes from the Bible. The illas were considered to be the protective spirits of domestic animals in the Andean mythology but natives were not allowed to worship them under Christianity.
The polytheist Andean mythology still co-exists with Christianity nowadays. A high proportion of the population go to church regularly and consider themselves Christian. However, upon reaching a mountain top or visiting the ruins of a sacred Inca place, we always encounter coca leaves left in a hole by believers. Several traditional rituals are still carried out by some (eg. burning llama foetus for good luck) and illas are still passed on within families.
Many of the festivals in Bolivia are direct celebrations of the Andean cosmology.
Read more about the Inca ceremonies in the Inca Empire.
Andean mythology: Inca ceremonies today
Around Cusco, Peru, many communities have Andean religious practices regularly. We were lucky to be allowed in one of those during our stay in Urubamba.
The ceremony took place in a mountain shaped space made of see-through plastic. The interior is decorated with sun symbols and there’s a mountain-shaped stone with 5 candles in the middle. The participants are standing in silence facing east; the ceremony master and 4 other people chant prayers to Pachamama while lighting up the candles.
The ceremony master sends prayers to Inti, the Inca God of the Sun. It’s followed by reciting and chanting all together. The ceremony ends with everyone hugging and wishing each other a nice day.
Had you heard of the Pachamama before? Have you taken part in an Andean ceremony or attended a festival? Share your thoughts in the comments!
Hey… you forgot Ecuador in your piece. Quite an important piece in the Andean cosmogision and history of the Inca empire
You’re completely right, Katherine, thanks for pointing it out! We’ve corrected that but you’ve inspired us to review this post and maybe add a few things (maybe mention the mummies). South American mythologies are such a fascinating topic!