Religion
The Inca were wholeheartedly dedicated to their religion as it touched almost every aspect of their lives. The Inca religion was Polytheistic meaning they believed in many gods along with practicing their own religious rituals. Viracocha is the name of their main god who created heaven and Earth. Inti however is the Inca’s patron god whom they believe descended from the Sun. He is represented by a large golden disc with rays coming from a human face. The Sea, Moon, thunder and other gods were his servants. These gods looked over and protected the Inca’s way of life by taking care of elements such as agriculture, fishing, lakes, llamas and seeds making sure they always had an abundance of resources (Robert J. Walker, 475). All citizens of the empire were encouraged to serve Inti by going to many temples and sacred sites called huacas established in his honour. The most magnificent temple of the Inca Empire was the Temple of Coricancha in Cuzco consisting of many buildings inside one enclosure. This temple was adorned with gold interiors, altars, fountains and elaborate sculptures (Elizabeth Baquedano, 34).
There were many rituals that went along with visiting temples. Prayer was part of their daily routine but other common rituals included divination where they would predict the future, fire circles to call upon gods, fasting and confession to remain pure throughout the many religious holidays and ceremonies. These ceremonies were held at certain times of the year based off of movements of the sun and moon. They included special days for each individual god, Calpa ceremonies which was believed to help the Military forces and festivals for the Sun where young girls were taken to Sapa Inca the ruler so he could choose some as wives (Robert J. Walker, 476). The most disturbing ceremony by far was Capac Hucha. Children ages 6-10 were chosen for their beauty, sent to a sacred site and sacrificed to the gods as messengers through drugs and exposure to the cold. Sacrifice was a normal part of Inca religion and could be both human or animal sacrifice but usually it was children and slaves. The Inca thought it was an honour to die for an offering and it usually occurred when Inaugurating a new reign or respecting a god. They would smear blood over an idol and carry on with the process (Dale Anderson, 33). Life after death was yet another belief. Relatives of the deceased would prepare the body for burial by drying them in the sun, wrapping them in cloth and woven mats and placing them in a seated position surrounded by their possessions (Dale Anderson, 30).They were usually buried either in sand graves on the coast or stone houses in the highlands. The funeral lasted 5-8 days and the family would be in mourning for a year to follow. Since the emperor represented the sun god in human form their funeral was much more elaborate. They were buried with treasure along with songs and stories by citizens. They were known as huacas afterwards which were sacred. During the festival of the dead they were brought out and put on display then paraded around Cuzco. Sapa Incas or leaders were important as well and would become Idols after death worshiped as Oracles (Robert J. Walker, 477). With such time effort and commitment that the Inca put into their religion it was hard appreciate the spanish cathedrals that have now taken over Cuzco. However even to this day the Inca legacy remains. Those with inca decent continue to practice their religious practices and carry out sacred traditions. |