Viracocha
Viracocha (also Wiraqocha, Huiracocha; Quechua Wiraqucha) is the great creator deity in the pre-Inca and Inca mythology in the Andes region of South America. According to the myth Viracocha had human appearance[1] and was generally considered as bearded.[2] According to the myth he ordered the construction of Tiwanaku.[3] It is also said that he was accompanied by men also referred to as Viracochas.
It is often referred to with several
For the
Viracocha created the universe, sun, moon, and stars, time (by commanding the sun to move over the sky)
So-called Staff Gods do not all necessarily fit well with the Viracocha interpretation.[14]
Cosmogony according to Spanish accounts
According to a myth recorded by
Viracocha eventually disappeared across the Pacific Ocean (by walking on the water), and never returned. He wandered the earth disguised as a beggar, teaching his new creations the basics of civilization, as well as working numerous miracles. Many, however, refused to follow his teachings, devolving into warfare and delinquency; Viracocha wept when he saw the plight of the creatures he had created.[17] It was thought that Viracocha would re-appear in times of trouble. Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa wrote that Viracocha was described as "a man of medium height, white and dressed in a white robe like an alb secured round the waist and that he carried a staff and a book in his hands."[18]
In one legend he had one son,
In another legend,[19] Viracocha had two sons, Imahmana Viracocha and Tocapo Viracocha. After the Great Flood and the Creation, Viracocha sent his sons to visit the tribes to the northeast and northwest to determine if they still obeyed his commandments. Viracocha traveled North. During their journey, Imaymana and Tocapo gave names to all the trees, flowers, fruits, and herbs. They also taught the tribes which of these were edible, which had medicinal properties, and which were poisonous. Eventually, Viracocha, Tocapo and Imahmana arrived at Cusco (in modern-day Peru) and the Pacific seacoast, where they walked away across the water until they disappeared. The word "Viracocha" literally means "Sea Foam."[19]
Etymology
Tiqsi Huiracocha (Spanish:Ticsi Viracocha) may have several meanings. In the Quechuan languages, tiqsi means "origin" or "beginning", wira means fat, and qucha means lake, sea, or reservoir.[20]
Viracocha's many epithets include great, all knowing, powerful, etc.
Some people state that Wiraqucha could mean "Fat (or foam) of the sea",
Some linguists think that linguistic, historical and archaeological evidence suggest that the name could be a borrowing of Aymara Wila Quta (wila "blood"; quta "lake"), due to the sacrifices of
Controversy over "White God"
The first Spanish chroniclers from the 16th century made no mention of any identification with Viracocha. The first to do so was Pedro Cieza de León in 1553.[24] Similar accounts by Spanish chroniclers (e.g. Juan de Betanzos) describe Viracocha as a "white god", often with a beard.[25] The whiteness of Viracocha is however not mentioned in the native authentic legends of the Incas and most modern scholars therefore had considered the "white god" story to be a post-conquest Spanish invention.[26]
Similarly to the
The beard, once believed to be a mark of a prehistoric European influence and quickly fueled and embellished by spirits of the colonial era, had its single significance in the continentally insular culture of Mesoamerica. The Anales de Cuauhtitlan is a very important early source which is particularly valuable for having been originally written in Nahuatl. The Anales de Cuauhtitlan describes the attire of Quetzalcoatl at Tula:Immediately he made him his green mask; he took red color with which he made the lips russet; he took yellow to make the facade; and he made the fangs; continuing, he made his beard of feathers...[28]
In this quote the beard is represented as a dressing of feathers, fitting comfortably with academic impressions of Mesoamerican art. The story, however, does not mention whether Quetzalcoatl had facial hair or not with the point of outfitting him with a mask and symbolic feathered beard being to cover his unsightly appearance because as Quetzalcoatl said "If ever my subjects were to see me, they would run away!"[29]
While descriptions of Viracocha's physical appearance are open to interpretation, men with beards were frequently depicted by the Peruvian
Rock formation at Ollantaytambo
A rock formation in the small village of
Wiracochan, the pilgrim preacher of knowledge, the master of time, is described as a person with superhuman power—a bearded, tall man dressed as a priest or astronomer.
Conversion to Christianity
Spanish scholars and chroniclers provide many insights regarding the identity of Viracocha.
- Bartolomé de las Casas states that viracocha means "creator of all things"[36]
- Juan de Betanzos confirms the above in saying that "We may say that Viracocha is God"[37]
- Polo, Sarmiento de Gamboa, Blas Valera and Acosta all reference Viracocha as a creator[36]
- Guamán Poma, an indigenous chronicler, considers the term "viracocha" to be equivalent to "creator"[38]
Spanish interpreters generally attributed the identity of supreme creator to Viracocha during the initial years of colonization.[36]
The decision to use the term "God" in place of "Viracocha" is seen as the first step in the evangelization of the Incas.[36] The reasoning behind this strategy includes the fact that it was likely difficult to explain the Christian idea of "God" to the Incas, who failed to understand the concept. In addition, replacing reference to Viracocha with "God" facilitated the substitution of the local concept of divinity with Christian theology.[36]
See also
- The Colombian myth of Bochica who has a similar role as creator and civilizer as Viracocha
- Moche culture
- Staff God
- Tiwanaku
References
- ^ Mathieu Viau-Courville: Spatial configuration in Tiwanaku art. A review of stone carved imagery and staff gods Boletín del Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino, Vol. 19, No. 2 (2014), p. 15–16
- ^ Alphons Stübel, Max Uhle: Die Ruinenstätte von Tiahuanaco im Hochlande des alten Perú: Eine kulturgeschichtliche Studie auf Grund selbständiger Aufnahmen. Hiersemann, Leipzig 1892, Zweiter Teil, p. 58 (digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de).
- ^ Alphons Stübel, Max Uhle: Die Ruinenstätte von Tiahuanaco im Hochlande des alten Perú: Eine kulturgeschichtliche Studie auf Grund selbständiger Aufnahmen. Hiersemann, Leipzig 1892, Zweiter Teil, p. 57 (digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de).
- OCLC 837631534.. 'Bajo este nombre [i.e. ⟨Tecsi Viracochan⟩] o el de ⟨ticci viracocha⟩ lo conocen también Polo [Ondegardo](1990, pp. 265, 266), Huaman Poma (1936, p. 911) y [Bernabé] Cobo (1956, p. 155, L. XIII, cap. IV). En un trabajo que está por salir, Rodolfo Cerrón-Palomino ha mostrado que el epíteto ⟨ticci⟩ no fue el mismo elemento que aparece dentro del compuesto ⟨Contiti⟩ (Betanzos), ⟨Conditi⟩ o ⟨Condici⟩ (Las Casas, 1967, pt. I, p. 659), también epíteto de Viracocha.' (p. 49) Translation: 'It is known by the same name [of ⟨Tecsi Viracochan⟩] or the one of ⟨ticci viracocha⟩ by Polo [Ondegardo] (1990, pp. 265, 266), by Guaman Poma (1936, p. 911), and by [Bernabé] Cobo (1956, p. 155, book XIII, chap. IV). In a piece that is about to be published, Rodolfo Cerrón-Palomino has proven that the ⟨ticci⟩ epithet is not the same formative that appears within the compound ⟨Contiti⟩ (Betanzos), ⟨Conditi⟩, or ⟨Condici⟩ (Las Casas, 1967, part. I, p. 659), which is also an epithet for Viracocha'.
- ISBN 978-3-653-02485-2.
- ^ Alphons Stübel, Max Uhle: Die Ruinenstätte von Tiahuanaco im Hochlande des alten Perú: Eine kulturgeschichtliche Studie auf Grund selbständiger Aufnahmen. Hiersemann, Leipzig 1892, Zweiter Teil, p. 55 (digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de).
- ^ Mathieu Viau-Courville: Spatial configuration in Tiwanaku art. A review of stone carved imagery and staff gods Boletín del Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino, Vol. 19, No. 2 (2014), p. 16
- ^ Alphons Stübel, Max Uhle: Die Ruinenstätte von Tiahuanaco im Hochlande des alten Perú: Eine kulturgeschichtliche Studie auf Grund selbständiger Aufnahmen. Hiersemann, Leipzig 1892, Zweiter Teil, p. 55 (digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de).
- ^ Alphons Stübel, Max Uhle: Die Ruinenstätte von Tiahuanaco im Hochlande des alten Perú: Eine kulturgeschichtliche Studie auf Grund selbständiger Aufnahmen. Hiersemann, Leipzig 1892, Zweiter Teil, p. 56 (digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de).
- ^ Jean-Pierre Protzen: Inca Architecture and Construction at Ollantaytambo. Oxford University Press, New York 1993, p. 8.
- ^ ISBN 0-253-31815-7. Retrieved 22 November 2009.:56
- ^ Jean-Pierre Protzen: Inca Architecture and Construction at Ollantaytambo. Oxford University Press, New York 1993, p. 8.
- ISBN 978-0-8061-9972-6.
- ^ Mathieu Viau-Courville: Spatial configuration in Tiwanaku art. A review of stone carved imagery and staff gods Boletín del Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino, Vol. 19, No. 2 (2014), p. 18
- ^ Alan Kolata, Valley of the Spirits: a Journey into the Lost Realm of the Aymara (1996), pages 65–72
- ISBN 0-19-513677-2.
- ^ a b "Viracocha". Bloomsbury Dictionary of Myth. Bloomsbury Publishing Ltd., London. 1996. Retrieved 10 February 2009.
- ^ "Viracocha and the Coming of the Incas" from History of the Incas, by Pedro Sarmiento De Gamboa, translated by Clements Markham, Cambridge: The Hakluyt Society 1907, pp. 28–58.
- ^ a b "Glossary, Inca Gods". First People of America and Canada – Turtle Island. Retrieved 10 February 2009.
- ^ Teofilo Laime Acopa, Diccionario Bilingüe, Iskay simipi yuyay k'ancha, Quechua – Castellano, Castellano – Quechua
- ISBN 0-7734-6217-1. Retrieved 22 November 2009.
- ^ Alfons Stübel, Max Uhle: Die Ruinenstätte von Tiahuanaco im Hochlande des alten Perú: Eine kulturgeschichtliche Studie auf Grund selbständiger Aufnahmen. Hiersemann, Leipzig 1892, Zweiter Teil, p. 55 (digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de).
- ISBN 978-3-653-02485-2.
- ^ Colonial Spanish America: a documentary history, Kenneth R. Mills, Rowman & Littlefield, 1998, p. 39.
- ^ Pre-Columbian America: Myths and Legends, Donald. A. Mackenzie, Senate, 1996, p.268-270
- ^ Mills, 1998, p. 40.
- ^ Siemens, William L. "Viracocha as God and Hero in the Comentarios Reales." Hispanic Review 47, no. 3 (1979): 327–38. doi:10.2307/472790.
- ^ Anales de Cuauhtitlan., 1975, 9.)
- ^ "Readings in Classical Nahuatl: The Death of Quetzalcoatl".
- ^ Portrait Vase of Bearded Figure, Brooklyn Museum
- ^ In Quest of the Great White Gods, Robert F. Marx, Crown Publishers, 1992 pp. 7–15.
- ISBN 978-0-202-02036-5. Retrieved 31 May 2011.
- ^ "Dominquez and Escalante Expedition, 1776". UintahBasintah.org. Retrieved 16 November 2010. cites: Chavez, A; Waner, T (1995), The Dominguez and Escalante Journal, Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press|pages=187–193
- ISBN 978-612-00-3072-1.
- ^ Vecchio, Rick. "Is that the Inca Creator God you see in the cliffs overlooking Ollantaytambo?". Fertur Peru Travel. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
- ^ a b c d e Itier, César. Viracocha o El Océano: Naturaleza y Funciones De Una Divinidad Inca. Lima: IFEA; IEP, 2012. Print.
- ^ Betanzos, Juan de, María del Carmen Martín Rubio, and Digitalia (Firm). Suma y narración De Los Incas [Electronic Resource] Archived 3 May 2016 at the Wayback Machine.Web.
- ^ Guamán Poma de Ayala, Felipe, and Franklin Pease G. Y. Nueva crónica y Buen Gobierno;. Lima,: Casa de la Cultura del Perú, 1969. Web.