4 – They Were Polytheists
As was the case with many ancient civilizations, religion was inextricably linked with history, politics and life in general for the Inca. They believed that the successes and failures they had in life were the will of the gods. Again, like many ancient peoples, the Inca were polytheists which means they believed in several different gods. They also believed their emperor was a god on earth.
According to the Inca, their gods occurred in a trio of realms: Hanan Pacha (The Sky), Uku Pacha (The Inner Earth) and Cay Pacha (The Outer Earth). Inti was the most important Inca god; he was the sun god and the Sapa Inca was said to be descended from him. Inti’s wife, Mama Quilla, was the Goddess of the Moon and the defender of women. According to the Inca, lunar eclipses were the result of Mama Quilla being attacked by an animal. Other important gods included Pachamama (Goddess of Earth), Viracocha (the first god to create the Earth) and Supay (God of Death).
Shamans were respected and feared in the empire as they were said to have the ability to cast certain spells. There were almost 500 shamans in the empire’s capital Cuzco alone. The most important shaman was the yacarca as he was the emperor’s personal advisor. Many Inca beliefs came from earlier Andean civilizations such as the Tiwanku and Wari. Indeed, most local communities had their own belief system which they followed in conjunction with the religion of the Inca.
They built an array of stunning temples of worship including the remarkable Temple of the Sun at Cuzco’s sacred Coricancha complex. It was built to honor Inti and included a magnificent gold statue of the sun god which was brought outside the temple each day to bask in the sun. Predictably, this statue vanished once the Conquistadores arrived and the estimated 1,400 kilograms of gold on the exterior and interior of the temple was also stolen by the invaders.