Inti Raymi - Sun Festival in Cusco, Peru

Inti Raymi - Fiesta del Sol en Cusco, Perú

Quechua term that means: "Fiesta del sol" that at the time the Incas ruled, it was a very important religious festival. At present it is a theatrical performance that takes place every June 24 at the Archaeological Complex of Sacsayhuamán.

At the time when the Incas ruled these lands, the Inti Raymi was held in the main square of Cusco, attended by the entire population. Garcilaso de la Vega relates in his writings that it was the main feast and the curacas, lords of vassals, attended with their greatest finery and inventions that could be. It was a holiday of high political content. The preparation of the festival was strict because three days before it was eaten only a little white corn, raw and some herbs accompanied by pure water. In all this time there was no fire in the whole city.

On the main day, the sovereign and his relatives waited barefoot for the sun to rise in the square, with open arms and kisses in the air, welcoming the sun god, then the Inca with two wooden glasses called keros, toasted the chicha of Jora, from the glass of the left hand his relatives drank, the glass of the right hand was poured out and poured into a jar of gold. After this ceremony all the royal members with their retinue of the nobility went to the Temple of Qoricancha where they worshiped the Sun. The curacas delivered the offerings that they had brought from the most distant lands. The meat of the animals was distributed among all present, as well as the chicha de jora, inevitable in such an important event, and so the celebrations continued during the following days.

Inti Raymi - Fiesta del Sol en Cusco, Perú

Fun facts about the sun party

  • The winter solstice marked the beginning of the year for the Incas, and was remembered with this important festival to worship the Sun God.
  • The chicha de jora was the main drink of this ceremony.
  • In 1572 the Viceroy Francisco Álvarez de Toledo prohibited this festival along with other original celebrations, considering it a pagan ceremony and contrary to the Catholic faith. The celebration of the sun continued to be carried out clandestinely.
  • In 1944, the Cuzco intellectual and artist Faustino Espinoza Navarro reconstructed the staging of the Inti Raymi to attract the tourist flow to Cusco.
  • The script of the performance was written in Quechua by Faustino Espinoza, who for many years represented the role of the Inca.
  • Inti Raymi is also celebrated as a syncretic rite in several Andean communities.

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    Inti Raymi - Fiesta del Sol en Cusco, Perú

    Of the staging of the fiesta del Sol

    The festival of the city of Cusco is held throughout the month of June, being the day June 24 the most important for the imposing staging of various artists, attracting domestic and foreign tourists to this traditional event. Cusco is marked by the encounter and the cultural diversity that it presents.

  • You can see in this party the magic and mysticism that in its best times marked the development of the history of Cusco.
  • It is carried out in three scenarios that are historical and natural: The Temple of Qoricancha, Huacaypata or Plaza Mayor of Cusco and the Archaeological Park of Sacsayhuamán.
  • More than 750 actors participate in the staging, who represent their ancestors with the same fervor of past centuries.
  • Participants take their role very seriously and the show is a waste of color, music and dance.

    • Inti Raymi - Fiesta del Sol en Cusco, Perú

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