Viracocha

Surrounded by the peaks of the Andean cordillera, the deep blue waters of Lake Titicaca have long provided refreshment and nourishment to the people who live along its shores. From prehistoric times, the Andean peoples have held Titicaca to be a sacred place, the source from which all life originated and the site where the divine manifests its presence. In this interdisciplinary study, Verónica Salles-Reese explores how Andean myths of cosmic and ethnic origins centered on Lake Titicaca evolved from pre-Inca times to the enthronement of the Virgin of Copacabana in 1583. She begins by describing the myths of the Kolla (pre-Inca) people and shows how their Inca conquerors attempted to establish legitimacy by reconciling their myths of cosmic and ethnic origin with the Kolla myths. She also shows how a similar pattern occurred when the Inca were conquered in turn by the Spanish. This research explains why Lake Titicaca continues to occupy a central place in Andean thought despite the major cultural disruptions that have characterized the region's history. This book will be a touchstone in the field of Colonial literature and an important reference for Andean religious and intellectual history.

Bestselling author of The Tutankhamun Prophecies decodes the spiritual mysteries hidden within the recently discovered Mochian pyramids in Sipan • Reveals that ancient Inca sun-kings possessed the same solar science as Lord Pacal of Mexico and Tutankhamun of Egypt • Solves the mystery of the ancient Inca legend concerning a white god who traveled through ancient Peru, healing the sick and restoring sight to the blind Inca mythology tells of a tall, white leader who wandered along the coast performing miracles, a man they called Viracocha Pachamac, which means "God of the World." Centuries later another great miracle worker, similar to the first, appeared and wandered the countryside, healing the sick and restoring sight to the blind. He, too, was named Viracocha. These accounts have long baffled scholars, as have the carvings left by the people of Tiahuanaco who preserved these legends. Now Maurice Cotterell, who cracked the codes hidden in both ancient Maya carvings and the treasures of Tutankhamun, unlocks the secrets concealed within the treasure-filled tombs of Viracocha Pachamac and Viracocha. His investigation of these tombs, held within the long-lost pyramids of Peru, proves that these two figures were not myth but actually existed 1,500 years ago. The two Viracocha sun-kings had much in common with Lord Pacal of Mexico and Tutankhamun of Egypt and, like them, left the secrets of a super solar science encoded in their treasures. This science reveals the intimate connection between the cycles of life and birth on Earth and solar activity such as sunspots. More important, it holds the key to reincarnation and human spiritual realization, with answers to the spiritual mysteries of life and death.

At the heart of this book is the controversy over whether Inca history can and should be read as history. Did the Incas narrate a true reflection of their past, and did the Spaniards capture these narratives in a way that can be meaningfully reconstructed? In Reading Inca History,Catherine Julien finds that the Incas did indeed create detectable life histories. The two historical genres that contributed most to sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Spanish narratives about the Incas were an official account of Inca dynastic genealogy and a series of life histories of Inca rulers. Rather than take for granted that there was an Inca historical consciousness, Julien begins by establishing an Inca purpose for keeping this dynastic genealogy. She then compares Spanish narratives of the Inca past to identify the structure of underlying Inca genres and establish the dependency on oral sources. Once the genealogical genre can be identified, the life histories can also be detected. By carefully studying the composition of Spanish narratives and their underlying sources, Julien provides an informed and convincing reading of these complex texts. By disentangling the sources of their meaning, she reaches across time, language, and cultural barriers to achieve a rewarding understanding of the dynamics of Inca and colonial political history.

This reexamination of the creator god of the Incas offers a fascinating look at pre-Columbian religion, culture change, and imperialism.

First published in 1882, this volume contains a study of native religions of the western continent, including American hero-myths.