Historic Incan religion

[Talmid HaYarok]

I know there are a few people interested in that part of history.

Anybody know about the religion of Viracocha?

I don't know a lot about it, but it appears this Incan religion (Incans were a religiously pluralistic society) didn't permit the worship of other g-ds, and believed in one created G-d similar to Biblical Judaism.

Anybody who knows more, please post.

 

[Brimshack]

Well they divided the cosmos between male and female forces. The principle deities were the sun and the moon. The Inca was descended from the Sun, and the Coya (his wife) was descended from the moon. Now the empire survived for about 5 or 6 generations as I recall, so given the information presented so far I'll give you three guesses as to how the Inca's wife was chosen?

 

[Talmid HaYarok]

You're speaking of the Imperial-Priestly pantheon. Entirely different religion in Incan culture.

As I recall one of the few writings they do have about the Viracocha religion is a debate with the Priests who worshipped the Sun.

The Incan empire allowed the incorporation of any religion from the tribes they conquered. It no more had one religion than the United States or Roman empire did.

Its been a long while since I last studied that area of history though.

 

[Philip]

You might try this website

 

[Talmid HaYarok]

That looks like a good one. Anybody read it? Any comments or anyone else have outside knowledge of this Incan religion?

 

[Kiwi]

did a university paper on spanish history last year, and did a bit about the incas, that link was pretty much what I learned. Doesn't it sound remarkably like the bible. I did a little side project going through many different myths and legends of indigenous groups and nearly all of them, from asia, africa, south america had a flood story or comparison, and most originally had one supreme being. As a christian I found this extremely interesting. I am an anthropology major.

 

[Ryder]

Uh, which incan group was it that did the bloodletting? I'm certainly not trying to brand them all under said practice, but I've seen specials on the history channel talking about either incan or some ancient south america group where the priests cut themselves (don't ask where *cringe*) to bring the rains and such. I remember seeing the show, but I just can't remember which group in SA they were talking about. Frustrating.

 

[DanielAlexander]

You're thinking of the Mayans, Ryder. They invented the original ball-and-goal game, similar to lacrosse. Every year, if I recall correctly, they would hold one game of extreme significance: The losers were killed, and the winners had the "honor" of cutting themselves (there) to fertilize the freshly-planted crops.

 

[Sphinx777]

I know there are a few people interested in that part of history.

Anybody know about the religion of Viracocha?

I don't know a lot about it, but it appears this Incan religion (Incans were a religiously pluralistic society) didn't permit the worship of other g-ds, and believed in one created G-d similar to Biblical Judaism.

Anybody who knows more, please post.

The belief system of the Incas was henotheistic: Inti, their Sun God, was the most important god, although other deities were also worshipped. Inti was believed to be the direct ancestor of the Sapa Inca, the hereditary ruler of the empire.

Huacas, or sacred sites, were widespread around the Inca Empire. Huacas were deific entities that resided in natural objects such as mountains, boulders, streams, battle fields, other meeting places, and any type of place that was connected with past Incan rulers. Spiritual leaders in a community would use prayer and offerings to communicate with a huaca for advice or assistance. They usually sacrificed a child or a slave. They (the Incan People) thought it was an honor to die for an offering.

The Incas also used divination. They used it to inform people in the city of social events, predict battle outcomes, and drive away demons. They also used it to figure out who was to be sacrificed.

The Inca calendar had 12 months of 30 days, with each month having its own festival. The Incan year began in December, and began with Capac Raymi, the magnificent festival.

Inca religion is one of the main counter arguments in the debate regarding the notion that the Inca state was an early 'Socialist Empire' (Baudin, 1928). These facts, however, have little to do with the Inca economy, which, with its large-scale central planning; vast system of grain-houses; and mandatory work periods, does closely resemble many features of modern socialism, although there were markets, catus, where barter was practiced without any regulation. (Von Hagen, p. 91)

 

[Douger]

There is a wikipedia article about Viracocha. The stories about him do have a lot in common with the God of the Bible.

 

[Sphinx777]

Lost Civilization - Inca - 1 of 6
Lost Civilization - Inca - 2 of 6
Lost Civilization - Inca - 3 of 6
Lost Civilization - Inca - 4 of 6
Lost Civilization - Inca - 5 of 6
Lost Civilization - Inca - 6 of 6

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[Dale]

Ryder & DanielAlexander,

The Incas also practiced human sacrifice. This is one reason I'm finding it hard to believe the Incas were pluralistic. It is true that the Incas themselves were a restricted group but they ruled a large territory. There may have been various religions among the ruled, but that doesn't mean the ruling class to the religions of their subjects seriously.

Inca Sacrifice Victims "Fattened Up" Before Death

Kelly Hearn
for National Geographic News

October 3, 2007
Children selected for Inca ritual sacrifice were "fattened up" with high-protein diets in the months leading up to their deaths, a new study has found.




http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/10/071003-inca-sacrifice.html


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Quote:

Sacrifices were often made during or after a portentous event: an earthquake, an epidemic, a drought, or after the death of an Inca Emperor. According to archaeologist Juan Schobinger, "Inca sacrifices often involved the child of a chief. The sacrificed child was thought of as a deity, ensuring a tie between the chief and the Inca emperor, who was considered a descendant of the Sun god. The sacrifice also bestowed an elevated status on the chief's family and descendants." The honour of sacrifice was bestowed not only on the family, but was forever immortalized in the child. It is believed that the sacrificial children had to be perfect, without so much as a blemish or irregularity in their physical beauty.




http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/peru/worlds/sacrifice1.html


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[Gremlins]

IIRC, the official religion was worship of the Sun, and thought that the Inca was seen as the son of the Sun (Hence why his headgear looks distinctly solar, and why Gold had more significance to the Incas). Viracocha was a representation of the Sun God. Interestingly, when the Spanish arrived they often took the Inca temples and built churches out of them (adding towers, enclosing them, adding extensions, etc.)