Account of the Fables and Rites of the Incas

4. The Sorcerers

18 Theyhadmanykindsofsorcerersintheprovinces,1 thenames and occupations of which were different from one another.2 The names and occupations are the following: Calpariçu, which means “those who are able to see the fortune and success of the things that they are asked.” For this purpose they would kill birds, lambs, and rams. Inflating the lungs through a certain vein, they would look for certain signs in them by which they could predict what was to happen.3 There were others that they called uirapiricoc [fat reader], who would burn coca and ram’s fat in a fire.4 They would tell see what was to happen [in the future] through the fluids and signs that were produced during the burning, and they would tell it to those who hired asked them.5 These were the least believed because they always lied.6 There were others called achicoc [a type of diviner] who were the fortune-tellers who cast lots with maize and ram dung.7 They would give their answers depending on whether these resulted in evens or odds, telling those who asked them what they wanted to know. There were others called camascas [shamans] who would tell [others] that the grace and virtue that they possessed had been given by the Thunder.8 They say that when someone was frightened by a lightning strike, on regaining consciousness, he would claim that the Thunder had given him the skill of either healing with herbs or of answering questions that they were asked. In the same way, when Chapter 4 The Sorcerers the sorcerers [ 19 someone survived from some river or great danger, they would say that the devil had appeared before them. And to those whom [he] wanted to heal with herbs, the devil would teach them. Therefore, because of this, there are many great Indian herbalists. He would show other people poisonous herbs to [be used to] kill to kill, and these were [all] called camascas. There were others called yacarcaes [types of diviners], and these were natives of Huaro.9 It seems that because of the occupation they had, these people held great pacts with the devil.10 [The divinations ] were carried out in the following way: they would take some pipes—the upper half were copper and the lower half were silver— the length of an ordinary-size harquebus, as well as some braziers, in which they would light a fire using charcoal.11 This [charcoal] was blown and lit with those pipes. The demons would give their answers in the fire, saying that it was the soul of the man or woman about whom they were asking, whether they were in Quito or in any other part of those conquered by the Inca. The principal questions they asked were: Who was against the Sun their father? or, Who sought to rebel against the Inca? or, Who in that area was a thief, a murderer, or an adulterer? or, Who lived badly? Thus, through the work of the devil, with this invocation the Inca knew everything that happened in his land. These yacarcaes were greatly feared by both the Incas and other people. Wherever he went, he took them with him. There were also other sorcerers who were in charge of the huacas , among whom were some who would intercede between some of the [huacas] and the devil.12 [The sorcerers] would receive their answers and tell either the townspeople what they wanted to know or the individual person who requested [their service]. However, they very rarely gave truthful answers. According to what they say, all the people of this land used to give confession to the sorcerers who were in charge of the huacas. This confession was made [in] public, and to learn if they had confessed [the] truth, the sorcerer would cast lots. In them, by work of the devil, he would see who had confessed a lie, in which case 20 ] Account of the Fables and Rites of the incas great punishments were given. Since some people had some grave sins punishable by death, they would bribe the sorcerer and confess to him in secret.13 The Incas and the people of Cuzco always made their confessions in secret, and for the most part, they confessed to the Indians of Huaro, [who were] sorcerers that they used specifically for this purpose. In their confessions, they would accuse themselves of not having revered...