Atahualpa was the 13th and last ruler of the Tahuantinsuyo, or Inca empire, that covered present-day Bolivia, Peru, and parts of Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, and Colombia.
Atahualpa was born in Quito, present day capital of Ecuador, and was one of the younger and favorite son among the sons of the Inca ruler, Huayna Capac. Her mother was an Ecuadorian princess, and concubine of the Inca ruler. Atahualpa was not a legitimate heir.
The Incas were only permitted to marry their sisters, because no one else was noble enough to sustain the power invested only in the Inca line of emperors. A lack of harmony would arise if the heir was not from the noble blood putting the whole empire in jeopardy.
Huayna Capac died, before his time, from an infectious disease thought to be malaria or smallpox, brought to the Inca land by the europeans. No one knows if the infectious disease was brought to the land on purpose since it was the method that the Europeans used to fight their wars.
After Huayna Capac death, the heir to the throne also died, forcing the empire to be divided between the brothers Atahualpa and Huascar. Atahualpa ruled the Northern region while his brother Huascar ruled the Southern region.
Since Atahualpa was not from the sacred line, he acted solely in his own will without been backed up by the noble class. Then, Atahualpa waged a bloody civil war against his own brother, Huascar, that caused severe distrust and division in the Inca empire. He later had Huascar murdered to ensure that he no longer was a threat to him.
The european invaders later exploited the division of power and the spread of the infectious diseases among the andean people to their own benefit since they became immune to the virus making the situation worse.
Atahualpa saw how enamored the europeans were of gold and silver and he is best known for providing a room full of gold and silver as his ransom when the foreign invaders captured him using the help of Huascar followers to provoke more confusion, though they still executed him.
Cultural destruction followed on a large scale, replacing it with a system with no respect for the land.
Under the Incas, consumption and food production had been carefully balanced, with everyone contributing to the good of the community and everyone receiving enough.
Wednesday, August 30, 2017
Sunday, August 20, 2017
MAMA QUILLA, THE MOTHER MOON.
The Inca culture of Western South America were a very advanced, wealthy culture with sophisticated record-keeping, astronomy and art. The Inca had a very complex religion that incorporated many aspects of the sky and nature. The Inca had a pantheon of major gods who had an individual personalities and duties and one of their most important deities was Mama Quilla, the moon.
Mama Quilla was known as "Mother Moon"and was generally the 3rd deity in the Inca pantheon, after the god of the sun, Inti, and the god of thunder, Illapu. However, she was viewed as more important than Inti by some coastal communities, including by the Chimu. Relatives of Mama Quilla include her husband Inti, and her children Manco Capac, first ruler of the Incas, and Mama Ocllo, his sister and wife.
Mama Quilla was venerated because of her admirable beauty and the benefits she bestows upon the world.
Mama Quilla was important for calculating the passage of time and the calendar, because many rituals were based upon the lunar calendar and adjusted to match the solar year.
The Incas could not predict solar or lunar eclipses and when one occurred, it tend to trouble them greatly. The priests and priestesses would attempt to figure out why the gods were diepleased, and sacrifices would be offered. The Inca rarely practiced human sacrifice, but an eclipse sometimes was considered a deep cause to do so. The reigning Inca would fast for days after an eclipse and would fear lunar eclipses as they believed that during the eclipse, an animal, usually the jaguar, was attacking Mama Quilla. Consequently, they would attempt to scare away the animal by beating their dogs to make them howl and bark, or by throwing weapons, or by gesturing and making as much noise as possible. They believed that if the jaguar achieved its aim, then the world would be left in complete darkness, letting the jaguar crash to Earth to eat its people. The jaguar's assault explained the rusty or blood-red color that the moon often turned during a total lunar eclipse.
Mama Quilla had her own temple in Cuzco, served by priestesses dedicated to her. She was imagined as a human female, and images of her included a silver disc covering an entire wall. She was also believed to cry tears of silver.
Mama Quilla was known as "Mother Moon"and was generally the 3rd deity in the Inca pantheon, after the god of the sun, Inti, and the god of thunder, Illapu. However, she was viewed as more important than Inti by some coastal communities, including by the Chimu. Relatives of Mama Quilla include her husband Inti, and her children Manco Capac, first ruler of the Incas, and Mama Ocllo, his sister and wife.
Mama Quilla was venerated because of her admirable beauty and the benefits she bestows upon the world.
Mama Quilla was important for calculating the passage of time and the calendar, because many rituals were based upon the lunar calendar and adjusted to match the solar year.
The Incas could not predict solar or lunar eclipses and when one occurred, it tend to trouble them greatly. The priests and priestesses would attempt to figure out why the gods were diepleased, and sacrifices would be offered. The Inca rarely practiced human sacrifice, but an eclipse sometimes was considered a deep cause to do so. The reigning Inca would fast for days after an eclipse and would fear lunar eclipses as they believed that during the eclipse, an animal, usually the jaguar, was attacking Mama Quilla. Consequently, they would attempt to scare away the animal by beating their dogs to make them howl and bark, or by throwing weapons, or by gesturing and making as much noise as possible. They believed that if the jaguar achieved its aim, then the world would be left in complete darkness, letting the jaguar crash to Earth to eat its people. The jaguar's assault explained the rusty or blood-red color that the moon often turned during a total lunar eclipse.
Mama Quilla had her own temple in Cuzco, served by priestesses dedicated to her. She was imagined as a human female, and images of her included a silver disc covering an entire wall. She was also believed to cry tears of silver.
THE VIRGINS OF THE SUN.
The Inca Empire adopted from earlier cultures several religious institutions to manage the union of the people in the territory it ruled. Among these institutions were the aclla.
Each year a select group of girls called "Virgins of the Sun"(Acllakunas) were chosen by the Inca government representatives, called Apu-Panaca. They collected girls 8 to 10 years old from the provinces and were taken from their families and lived in special dwellings to be prepared for the highest honor -to serve the Sun. The girls selected weren't of noble birth, instead they were village girls gifted with a special beauty reflected from the inside out and their talents radiated naturally. The girls were sent for training in provincial centers to live together in complexes of buildings called acllawasi (house of the chosen women) which were big enough to house up to 200 women in residence.
The girls were trained for about 4 years in religion, spinning and weaving, preparation of sacred food, and brewing chicha. They they became temple priestesses (mamacunas) to become the brides of special soldiers who had distinguished themselves in combat, or maidens in state shrines performing their assigned religious duties. In this case they lived celibate lives, serving the Creator God (Viracocha) in their physical manifestation of live.
The most skilled and physically perfect mamacuna were sent to Cuzco, the capital of the empire, and became the secondary wife or concubine of the Inca and other noblemen. A few were destined to cross over to the world of the dead in a religious ceremony called Capacocha to carry messages to the noblemen already there.
The Capacocha was a solemn sacrifice or royal obligation in which the Inca sent the best representative in order to ensure that humanity's best were sent to join their deities and deliver their messages. The ceremony took place under several circumstances fulfilling religious and political goals and were usually not done in the region from which they originated. It was often associated with high-altitude occurrences at the tops of the Andean mountains. Over 100 ceremonial centers and shrines were built within Inca territories on or near the high summits of the highest mountains. Some mountains were viewed as home to important mountain deities. The ceremonies at these important locations held a great deal of weight.
At the time of the European invasion in the early 16th century, the Virgins numbered several thousand and were governed by a high priestess, the Coya Pasca, a noble woman of royal blood who was the earthly receptor of a very special energy given by the Creator god, Viracocha.
Each year a select group of girls called "Virgins of the Sun"(Acllakunas) were chosen by the Inca government representatives, called Apu-Panaca. They collected girls 8 to 10 years old from the provinces and were taken from their families and lived in special dwellings to be prepared for the highest honor -to serve the Sun. The girls selected weren't of noble birth, instead they were village girls gifted with a special beauty reflected from the inside out and their talents radiated naturally. The girls were sent for training in provincial centers to live together in complexes of buildings called acllawasi (house of the chosen women) which were big enough to house up to 200 women in residence.
The girls were trained for about 4 years in religion, spinning and weaving, preparation of sacred food, and brewing chicha. They they became temple priestesses (mamacunas) to become the brides of special soldiers who had distinguished themselves in combat, or maidens in state shrines performing their assigned religious duties. In this case they lived celibate lives, serving the Creator God (Viracocha) in their physical manifestation of live.
The most skilled and physically perfect mamacuna were sent to Cuzco, the capital of the empire, and became the secondary wife or concubine of the Inca and other noblemen. A few were destined to cross over to the world of the dead in a religious ceremony called Capacocha to carry messages to the noblemen already there.
The Capacocha was a solemn sacrifice or royal obligation in which the Inca sent the best representative in order to ensure that humanity's best were sent to join their deities and deliver their messages. The ceremony took place under several circumstances fulfilling religious and political goals and were usually not done in the region from which they originated. It was often associated with high-altitude occurrences at the tops of the Andean mountains. Over 100 ceremonial centers and shrines were built within Inca territories on or near the high summits of the highest mountains. Some mountains were viewed as home to important mountain deities. The ceremonies at these important locations held a great deal of weight.
At the time of the European invasion in the early 16th century, the Virgins numbered several thousand and were governed by a high priestess, the Coya Pasca, a noble woman of royal blood who was the earthly receptor of a very special energy given by the Creator god, Viracocha.
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