Mythology Book

256

L

ying over 12,500 feet

(3,800 m) above sea level in

the Andes mountains, Lake

Titicaca straddles the border

between Bolivia and Peru. It is the

largest lake in South America, and

the Inca people viewed its vast

waters as the font of all life.

The lake existed in the darkness

before all things, and from it the

creator god Viracocha emerged. In

the darkness, Viracocha made a

race of giants to populate the void.

Realizing they were too large, he

destroyed them and created the

human race instead. Viracocha

demanded that people should live

without pride or greed, but they

disobeyed him. Angered, he sent

a great flood, which swept his

creations away.

Teaching humanity

After the land had dried, Viracocha

started again from scratch. First, he

brought light to a dark world. In the

southern part of Lake Titicaca lies

the Island of the Sun. Sleeping on

this island were the sun, the moon,

and the stars. Viracocha roused

them from their slumbers and gave

them their places in the heavens.

The sun was jealous of the moon’s

brightness, so Viracocha threw

ashes over the moon’s face to

make it cloudy and dull.

He then enlisted the help of two

servants whom he had saved from

the flood, Ymaymana and Tocapo,

who, in other versions of the

story, were his sons. Aided by

them, Viracocha gathered clay

Viracocha the creator god is

depicted with his signature white

hair and beard in this pottery from the

Moche people, who lived in northern

Peru from the 1st–7th century ce.

IN THE BEGINNING, AND

BEFORE THIS WORLD WAS

CREATED, THERE WAS A

BEING CALLED VIRACOCHA

VIRACOCHA THE CREATOR

IN BRIEF

THEME

Creation of the world

SOURCE

The History of the Incas, Pedro

Sarmiento de Gamboa, 1572;

An Account of the Fables and

Rites of the Incas, Cristóbal de

Molina, ca. 1575.

SETTING

The Andes, the beginning

of time.

KEY FIGURE

Viracocha The creator god;

god of the sun and of storms.

Ymaymana Servant of

Viracocha.

Tocapo Servant of Viracocha.

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THE AMERICAS 257

Lake Titicaca is home to dozens of

populated islands, including Isla del

Sol, where Viracocha is believed to

have commanded the sun to rise.

See also: Izanagi and Izanami 220–21 ■ The legend of the five suns 248–55 ■ Makemake and Haua 324–25

from the shores of Lake Titicaca

and used it to make mankind and

all of the animals. He assigned

each animal its place, and gave

the birds their songs.

Viracocha and his servants

fanned out from Lake Titicaca,

walking northwest while calling

out and telling people to go forth

and settle the world. They named

all of the different trees and plants,

and informed mankind which fruits

were safe to eat or use as medicine.

So that he would not overwhelm or

frighten any of his human subjects,

Viracocha traveled disguised as an

old man in a white robe with a long

beard, carrying a staff and book.

Walking from town to town, he

observed the people’s behavior,

punishing all who treated

him unfairly and rewarding

all who treated him kindly.

Merciful god

All was peaceful until Viracocha

arrived at Cacha. There he was

attacked by its inhabitants, who

did not realize who he was. The

disguised god brought down flames

from the heavens, burning the

countryside. The awestruck people

pleaded the god for forgiveness, and

Viracocha complied, using his staff

to make the flames die down. The

grateful people of Cacha built a

shrine to Viracocha and made him

offerings; later, the Incas would

erect the largest of Viracocha’s

temples on the site of this miracle.

Viracocha moved on to Urcos,

where the people treated him well.

As an act of gratitude, he created

a monument—or huaca—there.

Then, in Cuzco, which would

eventually became the capital of

the Inca Empire, he declared that

a great empire would form there.

The last stop in Viracocha’s journey

was Manta, in modern-day Ecuador.

From there, he walked west

across the water, until he finally

disappeared over the horizon.

The Incas believed that, in

crossing the water, Virococha

relinquished his spirit and control

of humans to the Inca pantheon

and to nature. From this moment

on, Virococha no longer took part

in the affairs of humanity. ■

Huacas

Huacas are structures, objects,

or landscape features believed

by the Incas to be charged with

spiritual forces. Almost anything

can have this sacred property,

from an oddly shaped ear of

corn to a natural spring. At the

most significant huacas are

shrines where priests performed

rituals. The word “huaca” comes

from the Quechua word huacay,

which means “to wail.” This

is because people prayed to

the gods by crying out to them.

This allowed the worshipper to

interact with the supernatural

world and lobby the gods for

favors such as a good harvest,

victory in battle, or protection

from illness.

The most important huacas

were in Coricancha, a temple in

Cuzco dedicated to the sun god

Inti, and Wanakawri, a mountain

nearby. After conquering the

Inca Empire in 1572, Spain

tried to eradicate the huacas

and convert the region to

Catholicism. However, many

huacas survive to this day.

Some were swallowed up

by the earth, others by the

sea, and over all there

came a general flood.

The History

of the Incas

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