Inti

, included in the book El primer nueva corónica y buen gobierno ( ) Inti ( ) is the ancient Inca sun god. He is revered as the national patron of the Inca state. Although most consider Inti the sun god, he is more appropriately viewed as a cluster of solar aspects, since the Inca divided his identity according to the stages of the sun. Worshiped as a patron deity of the Inca Empire, Pachacuti is often linked to the origin and expansion of the Inca Sun Cult. The most common belief was that Inti was born of Viracocha, who had many titles, chief among them being the God of Creation. The word inti is not of Quechua origin but a loanword from Puquina. Borrowing from Puquina explains why historically unrelated languages such as Quechua, Aymara and Mapuche have similar words for the Sun. Similitudes are not only linguistic but also symbolically as in Mapuche and Central Andean cosmology the Sun (Inti/Antu) and the Moon (Killa/Cuyen) are spouses.

, included in the book El primer nueva corónica y buen gobierno ( )]] Inti ( ) is the ancient Inca sun god. He is revered as the national patron of the Inca state. Although most consider Inti the sun god, he is more appropriately viewed as a cluster of solar aspects, since the Inca divided his identity according to the stages of the sun. Worshiped as a patron deity of the Inca Empire, Pachacuti is often linked to the origin and expansion of the Inca Sun Cult. The most common belief was that Inti was born of Viracocha, who had many titles, chief among them being the God of Creation. The word inti is not of Quechua origin but a loanword from Puquina. Borrowing from Puquina explains why historically unrelated languages such as Quechua, Aymara and Mapuche have similar words for the Sun. Similitudes are not only linguistic but also symbolically as in Mapuche and Central Andean cosmology the Sun (Inti/Antu) and the Moon (Killa/Cuyen) are spouses. ==Worship== worshiping Inti in the temple Coricancha, drawing by Martín de Murúa of 1590|352x352px]] The Inca dedicated many ceremonies to the Sun in order to ensure the Sapa Inca's welfare. The sun was also important to the Incas, particularly the people of the highlands, because it was necessary for the production of crops like maize and other grains. The sun's heat was also thought to cause rain. During the rainy season the sun was hotter and brighter, while during the dry season it was weaker. The Incas would set aside large quantities of natural and human resources throughout the empire for Inti. Each conquered province was supposed to dedicate a third of their lands and herds to Inti as mandated by the Inca. Each major province would also have a Sun Temple in which priests and priestesses would serve. The priestesses were the mamakuna, who were chosen from the aqllakuna ("chosen women"), and they would weave special cloth and brew chicha for festivities and sacrifices to Inti. Additionally, the chief temple of the Inca state religion was the Qurikancha in Cusco. Within this temple were wall niches in which the bodies of previous emperors and rulers were exhibited along with various statues of Inti in certain festivals. Some figures of Inti also depicted him in human form with a hollowed out midsection that was filled with a concoction made of gold dust and the ashes of the Inca kings' hearts. Inti is represented as a golden disk with rays and a human face. Many such disks were supposedly held in Cusco as well as in shrines throughout the empire, especially at Qurikancha, where the most significant image of Inti was discovered by anthropologists. This representation, adorned with ear spools, a pectoral, and a royal headband, was known as punchaw (Quechua for day, also spelled punchao). This image of Inti was also said to have lions and serpents projecting from its form. The worship of Inti and the rise of the Inti cult are considered to be exploitations of religion for political purposes, since the Inca king was increasingly identified with the sun god. This grew into a form of divine patronage and the convenience of these comparisons for Inca emperors is crucial. The priestesses had a different specialized purpose during the solstice, as the sun was said to have foretold of a death that would end the line of the Sun in the Inca Empire. After the solstice, the mamakuna would begin a fasting area, to hopefully bring them closer to the sorrow of the sun, so that they might understand what was going to happen and prevent the wrong-doing from happening. There is another aspect of worship that does not involve the priests, but rather the people of Inca. Because they believed that they were descended from the sun. More specifically the ruling class were descended from the sun and that connected the people to that holiness. This led to every time a member of Inca society travelled, they were doing so as a symbol of Inti and their nation, which led to the need to be holy to enter certain cities, and even to travel at all within the empire. The items offered in worship to Inti for which there is archeological evidence in include simple prayers, food, coca leaves and woven cloth, as well as animals, blood and human beings. The temples often have the most embellishment, with the designs inside being done of gold and other jewels. Thus, adding to the status of those who worshipped within the building for the sun, and to show that there is some sacrifice to the god by giving the temple these glories that would no longer be used for the people of the civilization, but the god instead. File:José Bernardo de Tagle Inti.svg|Inti on the flag of Peru, as designed by José Bernardo de Tagle, 1822 File:Flag of the Hispanic peoples.svg|Flag of the Hispanic people featuring Inti File:Flag of Peru (1822).svg|Second design of the flag of Peru featuring Inti File:Insigne Bolivicus.png|Shield of the coat of arms of Bolivia, with Inti rising above the mountains File:Insigne Aequatorium.svg|Shield of the coat of arms of Ecuador, with Inti above the land File:Flag of Tacna Regiment (1820 proposal).svg|Proposed flag of Peru featuring Inti ==References== Bushnell, G. H. S. (1957). Peru. London: Thames and Hudsonar Cobo, Bernabé and Hamilton, Roland. Inca Religion and Customs. 1st ed., University of Texas Press, 1990. Conrad, Geoffrey W. and Arthur A. Demarest. (1984). Religion and Empire: The Dynamics of Aztec and Inca Expansionism. Cambridge; New York: Cambridge University Press. D'Altroy, Terence N. (2003). The Incas. Blackwell Publishing. Fash, William and Mary E. Lyons. (2005). The Ancient American World (The World in Ancient Times). New York: Oxford University Press. Lane, Kevin. (2011). Inca. In Timothy Insoll (Ed.), Oxford Handbook of the Archaeology of Ritual and Religion. (pg. 571–584). New York: Oxford University Press. Littleton, C. Scott. (2005). Gods, Goddesses, and Mythology. Volume II. Marshall Cavendish Press. Moyano, Ricardo. Astronomical Observations on Inca Ushnus in the Southern Andes. London: Archetype. NASA, 2014 Parker, Janet, et al. (2007). Mythology: Myths, Legends, and Fantasies. Global Book Publishing. Protzen, Jean-Pierre. Architecture- Design Methods-Inca Structures. Kasel University Press, 2009. Silverman, Helaine and Isbell, William H.. Southern American Archaeology. Springer, 2008. Steele, Paul R., & Allen, Catherine J. (2004). Handbook of Inca Mythology. ABC-CLIO, Inc. Suarez, Ananda Cohen and Jeremy James George. (2011). Handbook to Life in the Inca World. (pg. 86–129). New York: Facts on File Library of World History.

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