Location
The feast of the lord of Qoylluritui is done in the providence of Quispicanchis, district of Ocongate. Sinkara Mountain.
The ceremony comes alive at the bottom of the snow capped mountain Ausangate at 4,700 meters meters above sea level and with temperatures below 0º
Date
This ceremony comes to life the first week of May.
The locals that live in the district of Ocongate (Quispicanchis) in the department of Cusco, they begin a ritual in which the exterior image is Christ, but the main purpose is how man comes to be one with nature.
The ritual that is associated with the fertility of the land and the worship of the Apus makes a big part in this festivity for the natives in all of America. The main ceremony is made at the bottom of the snow capped mountain Ausangate, the ritual has priest, locals and believers they all come together in the sanctuary of Sinakara. According to the believes, Jesus as a child, using a costume of a Shepard,he appeared to a native kid, Marianito Mayta, and both of them became friends. When the parents found them dress with royal clothing they went to tell the priest, Pedro de Landa, who tried to capture them but he was not able to, instead of the child there was a rock. Marianito died immediately and the image of the Lord from Qoyllur Rit’i was carved in the rock.
The fest starts in the day of “La Santisima Trinidad” when more than 10,000 followers go up the mountain. The temperature is -4ºC in the trek all of the followers are accompanied by a band, fireworks and the symbolic market of Alacitas (artesian fair in miniature).
There also accompanied by different types of dancers like (chauchos, qollas, pabluchas, and ukukus) they all represent different myth characters. The ukukus are the guardians of the Lord, as well as the Apus and apachetas (small knolls of dirt, which they represent the sins) there also in charge of keeping the order during the ceremony. A group of Queros, locals that belong to the purest community in Peru, all in costumes as pabluchas, they go to the highest part of the mountain 6,362 meters meters above sea level in search of the snow star, that is said to be trapped in the inside of the huge mountain. In the way back these strong local, carried huge blocks of ice in their shoulder in order to irrigate the soil of their lands with sacred water from the Ausangate snow-covered mountain.
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