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The Inti Raymi and Cusco Aniversary Celebrations

The Inti Raymi and Cusco Aniversary Celebrations

For the last year Cusco has been anxiously preparing for the festivals of this June and July.  As the faithful are setting off on the Qoyllur Rit´i pilgrimage and beautification projects are underway in Machu Picchu Pueblo, the streets of the Imperial City are already starting to fill with costumed dancers and musicians for Intí Raymi, the Festival of the Sun.  (We wrote about the celebration in an earlier post.)  The Festival´s central day, the 24th of June, falls on the Day of the Peasant (formerly celebrated as Day of the Indian) as well as Cusco´s Anniversary.  The celebrations won´t end until they reach their climax on July 7th when Peru celebrates the 100th anniversary of the discovery of Machu Picchu.

Official Program: Friday, 24th of June 2011

This day not only kicks of Intí Raymi, which we wrote about in an earlier post, but is also the day Cusco celebrates its anniversary.  No expense has been spared, so be sure to make it to the Imperial City in time!

08:15   The 5th Mountain Brigade hoists the rainbow flag of Tahuantinsuyo

08:30   Cusco´s Archbishop heads Mass and the Te Deum at the Basilica Cathedral

09:00   Act I of Intí Raymi

It all begins with the Sun Greeting at Qorikancha, the Temple of the Sun, as various characters of importance in the time of the Inca empire gather for the Incan Emperor´s Salute to the Sun.  Expect the air to fill with the noise of traditional Andean Instruments and conch shells as the streets are covered with flowers for the procession to the Main Square

10:30   Meeting of the Times at the Main Square

From his huaca, Incan altar, the Inca formally addresses the Mayor of Cusco

13:30   Central Ceremony at the Fortress of Sacsayhuamán

The main part of the celebration includes the Chicha de Jora rite, a (realistically faked) black llama sacrifice, and the fire rite.  There will be dancing, jubilation, divining from llama blood and viscera, and sacred bonfires.

The dancing, music, and overall celebrating won´t stop at Sacsayhuamán, fairs and concerts will continue throughout the day in the main streets of Cusco.

It´s a lot to get to in one post, so check out our earlier posts on Qoyllur Rit’i and Intí Raymi for some fascinating information about some of the celebrations, and check back here soon to learn where to go and what to do for the big Machu Picchu Centennial.

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Qoyllur Rit’i- Lord of the Snow Shine

Qoyllur Rit’i- Lord of the Snow Shine

A History Full of Legend…

Every year in Cusco´s Sinakara Valley there is an event like no other- Qoyllur Rit’i, the greatest indigenous pilgrimage in this hemisphere.  More than 10,000 pilgrims hike the icy Ausangate, an ancient site of pilgrimage since pre-Columbian times and sacred site linked with the fertility of the land.  The snowy Apu (Andean mountain deity), was thought to appear to peasants as a boy with white skin.  The pilgrimage always happens around the time of the solstice, probably due to the pan-Andean fascination with the Pleiades constellation.

Christianity arrived to the sacred rock in the 1780s, when religious authorities ordered the painting of an image of a crucified Christ on the rock to give the site a Christian veil. This image became known as Lord of Qoyllur Rit’i (Lord of the Snow Shine).  Legend now says that in 1780 a strange mestizo boy befriended an Indian boy on the Ausangate snow fields.  The boy appeared emanating an intense white light.  When Church officials tried to apprehend him, the boy transformed into a bush with the body of an agonizing Christ hanging from it.  His Indian friend fell dead from grief and was buried under the stone where Christ had last appeared.

The Festival

This year´s pilgrimage begins on June 12th with a hike to the Sanctuary Shrine, passing 14 crosses over sheets of snow.  Delegatio ns from Quechua and Aymara communities arrive carrying religious images to the Sanct uary.  Individual pilgrims participate as well as large troupes of dancers and musicians.  Pilgr ims pass the night inside the temple, warming themselves in the heat from thousands of candles offered by the devout in order to offset the glacial cold outside.  Locals believe that those who attempt the Qoyllur Rit’i pilgrimage without faith will meet their deaths.

The numerous dance performances, processions, and Catholic masses are punctuated by some unique activities:

  • There´s the Alabacitas market, where miniature goods are bought and sold with Qoyllur Rit´i currency according to real-life wishes.
  • In the Burning of the Castles wooden constructions built with fireworks are set alight.
  • In the “Game of Little Houses”, pilgrims construct miniature building a few inches in height in order to ask the Lord of Qoyllur Rit’i for real-life property.  Some merely draw their wishes: a home, a child.
  • You´ll see lots of costumed characters from Quechua mythology throughout the event.  One of these, the ukukus, have the task of retrieving crosses and block of glacial ice for use as for use as holy water in the year to come and for symbolic irrigation of their land.

After the Blessing Mass there´s a “24-hour” procession passing Calvario Machacruz, the Kumukasa lagoons and Alqamarina sectors en route to Yanacocha (approx. a 6 hour hike).  After a 3-4 hour nap the Night Hike to Tayancani begins, with the Sun Greeting Ceremony en route.  At Tayancani there will be a blessing to the Sanctuary and village.

Tips for Travelers

  • Soroche (Altitude Sickness) can cause fainting- if you´re concerned about the altitude buy one of the mini-oxygen tanks available in Cusco´s pharmacies.  (Don´t worry, they´re bottle-sized.)
  • Surusppi, irritation of the eyes by the reflection of the sun on the snow, is also a problem.  Bring some good sunglasses to be on the safe side.
  • Prepare for COLD- good jackets, thermal underwear, and a below-20 sleeping bag
  • The main ceremony is held at the foot of Mount Ausangate, at 4,700m, where temperatures often plunge below freezing.
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Inti Raymi- The Incan Festival of the Sun

Inti Raymi- The Incan Festival of the Sun

Inti Raymi (Quechua for Sun Festival) honors Inca theology´s supreme deity, the sun.  The celebration begins on June 21st, which was the first day of the Incan solar calendar as well as the winter solstice.   This is New Years Day- the Inca Edition.  During the time of the Inca Empire, this was the most important ceremony of the year.  Tradition holds that it dates back to the first Inca, Pachacutec, although its observation was forbidden by the Spanish during the time of the conquest.  Since its rebirth in 1944 Cusco has presented a theatrical reenactment of the opening ceremonies based on the chronicles of Garcilazo de la Vega.  Come watch Cusco come alive as more than 50,000 spectators witness and more than 500 actors, dancers and musicians perform.  After the opening ceremonies festivities continue throughout the week, with elaborately costumed dancers, street fairs, and free concerts.

A Trip Through Time

The week´ s events are kicked off at the impressive Temple of the Sun, Qorikancha, by the ceremony proper.  Cusco travels back in time as characters representing the most important function aries and nobility of the Incan empire appear among the music of the conch shells, quepas, and tamborcillos, culminating with the appearance of the Inca, who calls on the blessings of the sun.  Afterwards the procession directs itself along flower-strewn streets towards the Plaza de Armas (Cusco´s main square), where a large huaca (Incan altar) has been constructed for the coca ritual, where a priest divines the will of the Sun: good fortune, but conditional upon the sacrifice of a llama.  The entire coterie continues on to the fortress of Sacsayhuamán just outside the city for the main part of the ceremony.  Here the Inca will perform the chicha de jora (fermented corn drink) rite, a (realistically faked) black llama sacrifice, and the rite of fire.  Actors dance around burning stacks of straw while priests divine the Incas future from the llama blood and viscera, and from the smoke released when the heart is thrown into the main, sacred bonfire.  When the I nca shows satisfaction, the place erupts in jubilation.  A fter the main day of ceremonial events, the fun continues through fairs, dances through the streets, and free concerts which fill the streets.

Travelers´ Tips

  • This is t he 2nd largest festival in South America and rooms get scarce- just this once, you´ll want to book in advance.
  • More than any other time of year, the streets of Cusco are packed with people- dancers and musicians in the streets and spectators crowding the sidewalks- this is the time to be especially wary of pick-pockets counting on your distraction.
  • Tickets can be bought by those who want prime seating for the main ceremony at Sacsayhuamán.  Many, however, choose to simply gather in the surrounding area.
  • Expect prices to soar in keeping with the demand…train and bus tickets, rooms, food- everything costs more.  (Don´t worry- Pirwa´s prices will stay the same throughout the festivities.)
  • June is wintertime in Cusco, but the cold tends to be limited to the morning and evenings, and the afternoon sun can still scorch.  Prepare for the variability of Cusco´s climate by dressing in layers and remembering the sun screen.

 

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