INCAS GODS: MYTHS AND LEGENDS OF THE ANCIENT EMPIRE

These are just some of the Inca gods, each one represented a natural phenomenon or gave an explanation of life on earth and what was the possible destiny of the lives that were extinguished in this world

Inca history tells us about their beliefs and way of seeing the world, it has a great list of gods, each one with a specific function in this world, each one with their virtues and defects, as well as followers who dedicated offerings to them so that they in return, take care of them and help them in their daily life.

To understand how they were structured, we must start with their worldview, the way they saw the universe, which was divided into 3 parts:

Hanan Pacha, this is the world above, the celestial, where the gods like Viracocha, Inti and more live, it is all that is seen and cannot be controlled and only people who were righteous in life can enter by crossing a bridge of hair. This is represented by a condor.

Kay Pacha, is the earthly world where people live, it is also inhabited by gods like Mama Sara, Pachamama and Pariacaca, it is all that is seen and can be controlled. It is represented by a Puma.

Uku Pacha, is the world below, the world of the dead and everything that is under the earth or the sea. Supay, who is the owner of this world, Mama Cocha and Pachacamac live here, it is everything that cannot be seen and cannot be controlled. It is represented by a serpent.

Wiracocha
All mythology begins with a creator, a father who started everything, in the case of the Incas the creator and father of everything we know is Wiracocha, he was born from the waters and created heaven and earth, always accompanied by a bird that was a kind of sage who knew what was happening in the present and what was going to happen in the future, he was venerated by the Inca nobility and is considered the first sun of the ancient world.

Inti
He is the son of Wiracocha and represents the sun, he is one of the most revered gods since his rays help to germinate the harvest, alleviate the cold and illuminate the world, he is also considered the ancestor of the Inca rulers, for which the Inca was considered of divine descent. He is the second most revered god after Wiracocha.

Mama Quilla
Goddess of the Moon and fertility, sister and wife of Inti, was venerated by women who came to her for protection at all stages of their life, she also announced the periods of fertility and offered protection to girls and newborn babies.

Pacha Mama
She is the goddess of the fertility of the earth, represents nature, provides protection to crops and was one of the most invoked deities by the Incas, it is said that they could communicate with her through the fields, springs and streams.

Mama sara
The goddess of corn or food, which was a very important food along with potatoes and coca. With corn, chicha, bread for ceremonial use and many foods were made, even making chicha was considered a religious and magical work, observed by Mama Sara and performed only by women. It is believed that its origin is that of a maiden who was transformed into corn by the power of Inti to save her from being the wife of a sorcerer, Kuru, it is for this reason that only women could harvest corn, since it could not be touched by men as it would bring misfortunes to the crops.

Pariacaca
He is the god of torrential rains and fertility, he protected humanity from the attack of the god Huallallo (God of fire), who, not being venerated, attacked the settlers, Paricaca, upon realizing it, came out to protect the settlers and he defeated it through torrential rains, putting out all the fire of Huallallo. He is also regarded as the god of wild animals and wild flora.

Supay
He is the god of the dead and of the other world, represented by a being with fangs, long horns and penetrating eyes, he was also the protector of the path to the other world, within his evil it was considered that he became good at the end of life of those who expected death, the Incas considered it as a being that balanced good and evil, considering that there can always be evil, but not enough. It is because of these characteristics that when the Spanish invaders arrived, they thought that Supay was actually the devil of the Catholic religion.

Mama Cocha
She is the goddess of the waters, venerated mainly on the coast of Peru by fishermen, the rituals in her name were performed by women as a female deity, and took place in a lagoon or spring.

Pachacamac
He is considered the god of tremors, although his name means creator of the earth, he is considered the son of Inti and the older brother of Manco Capac. He is seen as evil and eater of children. Legend has it that he was the husband of Pacha Mama and that when he created the first man and woman, he forgot that they had to eat and they died of hunger, the woman accused him of neglect and he made her fertile and gave birth to a child. which was murdered and mutilated by him and threw the pieces on the earth where fruits and vegetables grew, the second son that the woman had managed to escape but Pachacamac, not finding him, murdered the woman, then this son, called Wichama, attracted him to the sea where he was exiled.

As you will see, these are just some of the Inca gods, each one represented a natural phenomenon or gave an explanation of life on earth and what was the possible destiny of the lives that were extinguished in this world.

There are still many more gods and many stories to tell, each place of the ancient Inca empire had a god that protected them and whom they worshiped. Do you know what the god of your locality was?

We hope this post has been to your liking and leave us in the comments what other Inca myths and gods you know

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