Quyllurit'i

The new year is marked by indigenous people of the Southern Hemisphere on the Winter Solstice in June, and it is also a Catholic festival.

The young native herder Mariano Mayta befriended a mestizo boy named Manuel on the mountain Qullqipunku.

The culminating event for the indigenous non-Christian population takes place after the reappearance of Qullqa in the night sky; it is the rising of the sun after the full moon.

Until recently, the main event for the Church was carried out by ukukus, who climbed glaciers over Qullqipunku and brought back crosses and blocks of ice to place along the road to the shrine.

Its time of disappearance was marked in Inca culture by a festival for Pariacaca, the god of water and torrential rains.

Metaphorically, the constellation's disappearance from the night sky and reemergence approximately two months afterward is a signal that the human planes of existence have times of disorder and chaos, but also return to order.

She examines the feast of Corpus Christi and its relationship to the indigenous harvest festival at winter solstice, celebrated in early June in the Southern Hemisphere.

It is told that an Indian boy named Mariano Mayta used to watch over his father's herd of alpaca on the slopes of the mountain.

On June 12, 1783, the commission ascended Qullqipunku with Mariano; they found Manuel dressed in white and shining with a bright light.

[9] The Quyllurit'i festival attracts more than 10,000 pilgrims annually, most of them indigenous peoples from rural communities in nearby regions.

[10] They are from two moieties: Quechua-speaking Paucartambo, people from agricultural communities located to the northwest of the shrine in the provinces of Cusco, Calca, Paucartambo and Urubamba; and Aymara-speaking Quispicanchis, which encompasses those living to the southeast in the provinces of Acomayo, Canas, Canchis and Quispicanchi, This geographic division also reflects social and economic distinctions, as the Quechuas of Paucartambo cultivate agricultural crops, whereas Quispicanchis is populated by the Aymara, whose lives are based on animal husbandry, especially herds of alpaca and llama.

[11] Peasants from both moieties undertake an annual pilgrimage to the Quyllurit'i festival, with representatives of each community carrying a small image of Christ to the sanctuary.

[12] Together, these delegations include a large troupe of dancers and musicians dressed in four main styles: Quyllur Rit'i also attracts visitors from outside the Paucartambo and Quispicanchis moieties.

[20] There has also been a rapid growth in the number of North American and European tourists drawn to the indigenous festival, prompting fears that it is becoming too commercialized.

[22] Preparations start on the feast of the Ascension, when the Lord of Quyllurit'i is carried in procession from its chapel at Mawallani 8 kilometers to its sanctuary at Sinaqara.

[23] On the first Wednesday after Pentecost, a second procession carries a statue of Our Lady of Fatima from the Sinaqqara sanctuary to an uphill grotto to prepare for the festival.

[26] At dawn on the third day, ukukus grouped by moieties climb the glaciers on Qullqipunku to retrieve crosses set on top.

[28] According to oral traditions, ukukus from different moieties used to engage in ritual battles on the glaciers, but this practice was banned by the Catholic Church.

[30] The festival precedes the official feast of Corpus Christi, held the Thursday following Trinity Sunday, but it is closely associated with it.

Shrine of the Lord of Quyllurit'i at night
Dancers at Quyllurit'i. A ch'unchu performer can be seen behind and to the right of the child.
Festive costume of Qhapaq Qulla dancers
Dancers with the mountains Qullpiqunkpu and Sinaqara behind them.
Panoramic view of the festival, with sanctuary church of Sinaqara in background
One of the crosses along the road to the Quyllurit'i shrine