Information AboutHuaca |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT HUACA | |
| inca mythology | |
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In Quechua , the language of the Inca Empire , a Huaca is an object that represents something revered, such as an Ancestor , a God or even a character trait. The Conquistadors extended its meaning to encompass any old buildings. This meant that the ruins of Moche administrative buildings would be called huacas just as readily as would their temple. The term ''huaca'' can refer to a specific type of sacred or holy locale, or shrine, sometimes a place for veneration and ritual. It can also refer to a specific Pacarina (burial place), or a place of origin similar in definition to the origin places in the North American Southwest known as the place of emergence or Sipapu/Shipapu among the peoples which used Kiva s for worship (especially among the people commonly referred to as Pueblo ). Each separate linguistic group in the Andean empires had its own sacred places. Many of the . A huaca could exist along a processional ceremonial line or route as they did for the enactment of sacred ritual within the capital at exchange of labor but also the exchange of the objects of religious veneration of the peoples whom they took into their empire. This exchange ensured proper compliance among conquered peoples. The Incas also transplanted and colonized whole groups of persons of Inca background with newly adopted peoples to arrange a better distribution of Inca persons throughout all of their empire in order to avoid widespread resistance. In this instance huacas and pacarinas became significant centers of shared worship and a point of unification of ethnically and linguistically diverse empire bringing unity and citizenship to often geographically disparate peoples. This led eventually to a system of pilgrimages throughout all of these various shrines prior to the introduction of Catholicism by the indigenous people of the empire. Of course, huacas were sometimes idols to false gods. Before Francisco De Toledo, Count Of Oropesa murdered Tupac Amaru , Amaru gave a speech in which he claimed that when he or his brother consulted the sun via Punchao for advice, they just made up whatever they wanted the sun to say. The statement of Tupac Amaru (who was one of the final rulers of the Inca empire) must be considered within the context of his capture and execution (1572). His rule was at the finale of his dynasty and his people had been under Spanish rule since 1532. He was captured and he was under coercion (at the very least) by the authorities (who were also the inquisitors) who were seeking any admission (however, miniscule) in order to legally justify his disposal. He was the son of Manco Inca, but his rule and his concepts upon the grandeur of his predecessors were tenuous at best. His knowledge of the religious practices and beliefs of his ancestors was no doubt genuine, but tremendous and terrible upheaval had taken place in the years between the conquest of the Spaniards and his capture rendering any statement here about his authority on the huacas fairly unreliable. Almost all continuity of rule by the Incas with the rule of the Incas of the past was severed by this point in time. As early as the death of Huana Capac the father of Atahualpa and Huascar the ruling lineages of the Inca was in great chaos and that was a large part of the reason why the Spaniards found their entry into Peru so unhampered. Without the highly federalized rule of the Inca in Cuzco both the political and ceremonial life of the state sponsored portion of Inca religious practice was in grave decline. Thus Tupac Amaru's statement about the huaca shrines should be used with only the utmost skepticism as he was attempting to please his captors. The European conquerors considered huacas to be . EXTERNAL REFERENCES |
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