The festivity of the Lord of Qoyllority is a festivity that takes place in the province of Quispicanchis, district of Ocongate, at the base of the mountain of Sinakara, the date of celebration is movable between the months of May and June.
Lord of Qoyllority translated into Spanish means “Lord of the Shining Snow”, this lord, according to the traditions of the people, would have appeared years ago in the form of a child to an indigenous boy named Mariano Mayta who shepherded in the snowy Colquepunku, both became good friends, when the child returned home the parents saw him and the child dressed in rich clothes, and seeing the brilliance of the Baby Jesus, they decided to inform the parish priest of Ocongate about this, who decided to go in search of him. The legend says that the child Jesus fled to avoid being caught and was transformed into an image on the rock to which today is a pilgrimage.
Every year more than 10,000 people make this pilgrimage, the duration of the walk to the snowy peak is 5 hours and during this walk there is a procession accompanied by fireworks, in addition to “las Alacitas” (miniature handicrafts fair). Once you arrive at the sanctuary of the Lord of Qoyllority the first thing that is done is the greeting in honor of the image of the miraculous Christ, in the afternoon the groups that are divided by nations make their official entrance accompanied by musicians and dancers. The “pablitos” or “ucucos” are the intermediaries between the Lord of Qoyllority and the men, they are also in charge of maintaining discipline throughout the festivity.
On the central day a ritual is performed at sunrise, then the central mass known as the “Misa de gallo”, hours later the procession of the Lord of Qoyllority takes place where each group says goodbye singing and dancing. The Tawantinsuyo nation is the only nation that usually stays in the Sanctuary until the end, in order to clean and leave everything tidy for the next year.
