Every year, on 24 June, thousands of people gather in Cusco and on the esplanade of Sacsayhuamán to watch Inti Raymi, the «festival of the Sun». It is today one of the best-known events in Peru. Behind the modern re-enactment lies a festival that was among the most important of the Inca empire, linked to the cult of Inti, the Sun, and to the power of the ruler who considered himself his descendant.
Inti, the Sun
In the Inca pantheon the Sun, Inti, held a central place alongside other powers: the creator Viracocha, the Moon (Mama Quilla), thunder (Illapa), the earth (Pachamama). Inti was the source of the heat and light that make corn grow, the plant most closely tied to prestige and ritual.
He was represented in various forms. Colonial sources speak of a great gold image called Punchao, «day», kept in the main temple and sometimes carried in procession. In some descriptions it looks like a boy, in others like a radiant disc.
The Sapa Inca, son of the Sun
The Inca ruler, called Sapa Inca, «the only Inca», was considered a direct descendant of the Sun. According to an origin myth, the first Inca, Manco Cápac, and his consort Mama Ocllo were sent by the Sun to Lake Titicaca and from there reached the valley of Cusco, where they founded the city.
This descent gave the ruler sacred authority. The mummies of dead rulers continued to be treated as living persons: they were dressed, fed, consulted and took part in the most important ceremonies.
The Coricancha, the golden enclosure
The main temple of the Sun in Cusco was the Coricancha, «golden enclosure». Spanish chroniclers who saw it shortly after the conquest described walls covered in gold plates and a garden with plants, animals and human figures made of precious metal. Much of that gold was melted down by the conquerors.
On the foundations of the Coricancha the Dominicans built the convent of Santo Domingo. Even today one can see the splendid Inca masonry incorporated into the colonial buildings: a concrete image of one religious world laid over another.
The ancient Inti Raymi
In the southern hemisphere the June solstice is the shortest day of the year: the sun reaches the farthest point of its path and seems to move away. Inti Raymi was celebrated at this time, to honour the Sun and ensure its return, at the start of the new farming cycle.
The most famous account of the festival is found in the Comentarios Reales de los Incas by the Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, published in 1609. Garcilaso, son of a Spanish conqueror and an Inca noblewoman, describes:
- days of fasting before the festival, without fire and with simple food;
- the ruler and the nobility gathered in Cusco's main square before dawn, waiting for the sun to rise;
- the greeting of the Sun and libations of chicha, the fermented corn drink;
- the kindling of a new fire with a concave mirror that concentrated the sun's rays;
- sacrifices of llamas and communal feasts.
It should be remembered that Garcilaso wrote in Spain, many years after leaving Peru, and that his account mixes family memories and literary aims. It is nonetheless the main source for anyone wishing to imagine the ancient festival.
The banned festival and its revival
After the conquest, colonial authorities banned the great Inca religious festivals. Inti Raymi disappeared as a public ceremony for centuries, although elements of the solar cult survived in the Catholic festivals of June, such as Saint John's Day and Corpus Christi.
In 1944 a group of Cusco intellectuals promoted a re-enactment of Inti Raymi, based largely on Garcilaso's account. Since then the festival has been held every year on 24 June, with a sequence of scenes at the Coricancha, in the Plaza de Armas and at Sacsayhuamán, performed in Quechua. It is at once spectacle, pride in identity and memory of a past that was not erased.
In short
- Inti, the Sun, was one of the main Inca deities, tied to corn and royal power.
- The Sapa Inca considered himself son of the Sun, according to the myth of Manco Cápac and Mama Ocllo.
- The Coricancha of Cusco was clad in gold; today its walls support the convent of Santo Domingo.
- The ancient Inti Raymi was held at the June solstice and described by Garcilaso de la Vega.
- Banned in colonial times, the festival has been re-enacted since 1944 and is held every 24 June.
