The travels of Pedro de Cieza de Léon; part 2Cieza de León, Pedro de
History
The travels of Pedro de Cieza de Léon; part 2
Cieza de León, Pedro de
Incas; Peru -- History -- To 1548
Besides this, they say that, a long time having passed, they again saw
another man resembling the first, whose name they do not mention; but
they received it from their forefathers as very certain that wherever
this personage came and there were sick, he healed them, and where there
were blind he gave them sight by only uttering words. Through acts so
good and useful he was much beloved by all. In this fashion, working
great things by his words, he arrived at the province of the Canas, in
which, near to a village which has the name of Cacha, and in which the
Captain Bartolomé de Terrazas[67] holds an _encomienda_, the people rose
against him, threatening to stone him. They saw him upon his knees,
with his hands raised to heaven, as if invoking the divine favour to
liberate him from the danger that threatened him. The Indians further
state that presently there appeared a great fire in the heaven, which
they thought to be surrounding them. Full of fear and trembling, they
came to him whom they had wanted to kill, and with loud clamour besought
him to be pleased to forgive them. For they knew that this punishment
threatened them because of the sin they had committed in wishing to
stone the stranger. Presently they saw that when he ordered the fire to
cease, it was extinguished, so that they were themselves witnesses of
what had come to pass; and the stones were consumed and burnt up in such
wise as that large blocks could be lifted in the hand, as if they were
of cork. On this subject they go on to say that, leaving the place where
these things happened, the man arrived on the sea coast, where, holding
his mantle, he went in amongst the waves and was never more seen. And as
he went, so they gave him the name of _Viracocha_, which means “the foam
of the sea.”
Soon afterwards they made a temple in this village of Cacha,[68] on the
other side of a river which passes near, where they set up an idol of
stone, very large, but in a somewhat narrow recess. This recess is not
so large as those in Tiahuanaco, erected in memory of Ticiviracocha, nor
does the figure appear to have the same kind of vestments. Some gold was
found in holes near it.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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