﻿302 
  SOUTH 
  AMERICAN 
  INDIANS 
  [B. 
  A. 
  E. 
  Bull. 
  143 
  

  

  to 
  King 
  David. 
  Many 
  are 
  very 
  poetical 
  and 
  have 
  great 
  literary 
  

   merit. 
  (See 
  also 
  Pachacuti, 
  1879, 
  1927; 
  Cobo, 
  1890-95, 
  bk. 
  13, 
  

   ch. 
  23.) 
  

  

  Feasting, 
  drinking, 
  songs 
  and 
  dances, 
  games, 
  and 
  most 
  other 
  group 
  

   activities 
  were 
  ceremonial 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  lay 
  acts, 
  although 
  discussed 
  

   above 
  under 
  Esthetic 
  and 
  Recreational 
  Activities. 
  It 
  was 
  the 
  religi- 
  

   ous 
  nature 
  of 
  Inca 
  literature, 
  music, 
  and 
  public 
  festivals 
  that 
  caused 
  

   their 
  persecution 
  by 
  the 
  Spanish 
  missionaries 
  and 
  their 
  consequent 
  

   modification 
  under 
  Spanish 
  rule. 
  

  

  Divination. 
  — 
  The 
  Inca 
  believed 
  in 
  the 
  necessity 
  of 
  consulting 
  the 
  

   supernatural 
  beings 
  before 
  taking 
  any 
  important 
  action. 
  Divination 
  

   was 
  practiced 
  to 
  diagnose 
  disease, 
  determine 
  the 
  truth 
  of 
  a 
  confession, 
  

   locate 
  lost 
  property, 
  identify 
  hostile 
  sorcerers, 
  choose 
  between 
  possible 
  

   heirs, 
  determine 
  the 
  most 
  acceptable 
  sacrifice 
  to 
  a 
  deity 
  being 
  wor- 
  

   shiped, 
  and, 
  in 
  general, 
  to 
  settle 
  any 
  doubtful 
  question. 
  In 
  addition, 
  

   the 
  Indians 
  were 
  constantly 
  on 
  the 
  watch 
  for 
  omens 
  by 
  which 
  they 
  

   could 
  adjust 
  their 
  conduct 
  to 
  future 
  events. 
  

  

  The 
  most 
  direct 
  type 
  of 
  divination 
  was 
  the 
  oracle. 
  Any 
  huaca 
  

   might 
  answer 
  questions, 
  but 
  there 
  were 
  a 
  few 
  oracles 
  with 
  such 
  pres- 
  

   tige 
  that 
  they 
  were 
  consulted 
  by 
  people 
  from 
  many 
  different 
  parts 
  of 
  

   the 
  Empire. 
  The 
  most 
  famous 
  were: 
  apo-rjmaq 
  ("lord 
  oracle"), 
  

   whose 
  shrine 
  was 
  on 
  the 
  banks 
  of 
  the 
  Apurimac 
  River 
  near 
  Cuzco; 
  

   paca-kamaq, 
  at 
  Pachacamac 
  on 
  the 
  central 
  coast; 
  rimaq 
  ("oracle") 
  

   at 
  Maranga, 
  near 
  Lima; 
  and 
  wari 
  in 
  the 
  valley 
  of 
  Jauja. 
  The 
  first, 
  

   a 
  good 
  example 
  of 
  such 
  oracles, 
  was 
  a 
  building 
  housing 
  a 
  tree 
  trunk 
  

   decorated 
  with 
  golden 
  breasts 
  and 
  sash, 
  and 
  dressed 
  in 
  fine 
  woman's 
  

   clothing, 
  with 
  a 
  row 
  of 
  smaller 
  figures 
  on 
  each 
  side. 
  The 
  images 
  and 
  

   their 
  garments 
  were 
  stained 
  with 
  the 
  blood 
  of 
  sacrifice. 
  A 
  priestess 
  

   called 
  *sarpay 
  had 
  charge 
  of 
  the 
  shrine. 
  During 
  the 
  rising 
  of 
  Manco 
  

   Inca 
  (1534), 
  a 
  Spanish 
  prisoner 
  watched 
  him 
  question 
  the 
  "lord 
  oracle" 
  

   and 
  heard 
  it 
  reply 
  (Cobo, 
  1890-95, 
  bk. 
  13, 
  chs. 
  20, 
  36). 
  Usually, 
  the 
  

   oracle 
  had 
  to 
  be 
  interpreted 
  by 
  the 
  attendant 
  priest. 
  

  

  The 
  sorcerors 
  (omo) 
  claimed 
  to 
  speak 
  directly 
  with 
  the 
  spirits. 
  They 
  

   usually 
  dressed 
  differently 
  from 
  ordinary 
  people, 
  and 
  wore 
  their 
  hair 
  

   long 
  or 
  cut 
  in 
  some 
  special 
  way. 
  They 
  were 
  usually 
  consulted 
  to 
  find 
  

   lost 
  or 
  stolen 
  articles 
  or 
  to 
  learn 
  what 
  was 
  happening 
  at 
  a 
  distance. 
  They 
  

   talked 
  to 
  the 
  spirits 
  in 
  the 
  dark, 
  and 
  theirs 
  and 
  the 
  spirits' 
  voices 
  

   could 
  be 
  heard 
  but 
  not 
  understood. 
  Some 
  diviners 
  summoned 
  the 
  

   spirits 
  by 
  saying 
  a 
  spell 
  and 
  drawing 
  lines 
  on 
  the 
  ground, 
  others 
  drank 
  

   themselves 
  into 
  insensibility 
  and 
  gave 
  their 
  answers 
  when 
  they 
  re- 
  

   covered. 
  The 
  latter 
  put 
  the 
  juice 
  of 
  the 
  wii/ka, 
  a 
  berry 
  also 
  used 
  

   as 
  a 
  purge, 
  into 
  their 
  chicha 
  to 
  give 
  it 
  more 
  strength 
  (Cobo, 
  1890-95, 
  

   bk. 
  13, 
  ch. 
  36; 
  Polo, 
  1916 
  a, 
  ch. 
  10). 
  

  

  The 
  most 
  solemn 
  method 
  of 
  Inca 
  divination 
  was 
  communication 
  

   with 
  spirits 
  by 
  means 
  of 
  fire. 
  Its 
  chief 
  practitioners 
  (*yacarca), 
  

  

  