Recovery of rituals associated with the conservation and use of water

According to the worldview of Andean peoples like the Quispillaccta, the local world (or Pacha) is a living being populated by living beings and deities of all kinds. Everything that accompanies us in this world is perceived and conceived alive and a person with whom humans interact and talk. Water is a person with its own knowledge, and in moments of high emotionality it is Yakumama (Mother Water), and thus the relationship is conceived in terms of reciprocity.

The revitalization of collective rituals aims at recreating the human, with high sensitivity and capacity for open and continuous conversation, because only then will we be able to create the harmony that is convenient for all others (humans, nature and deities), and also let ourselves be raised by others. A ritual activity is nothing but a collective and collaborative action among all. It means that humans do ayni (cooperation, solidarity, mutual support) with nature and with the deities, which is what yarqa aspiy (cleaning of water channels) shows us: humans in reciprocal action with the water that celebrates its “birth”. Rituals for permission, visits to “water breeding” sites and rituals for calm waters are held in rainy years with the Yachaq (wise persons).

  • The presence of the Yachaq (wise persons with regard to water) and the families considered curious, since the “breeding of water” is an ancestral practice recovered from the collective memory in this place.
  • The local strengths, promoted by a local team (ABA) that interacts with the community with motivating impacts.
  • Dialogue of knowledge, strengthening confidence in the population’s own way and cultural affirmation.
  • The value of (traditional) knowledge and wisdom for adaptation to climate change is reinforced and practices and activities for “water breeding” is strengthened. Ritual practices for water breeding became revalued - to call for rain, to dispatch rain, when there is excess, as well as to cope with climatic phenomena such as icy hail, etc.
  • Reciprocity not only serves to help families in agricultural production, but also provides guidance in all aspects, for example, in the health of the family, in the marketing of products, in the education of children, etc.
  • One aspect that hinders the implementation of this component is the tendency towards an extractive view of water: The modern conception of water as a merely physical resource to be exploited through "irrigation projects" introduced to the communal agenda, hinders trust in their original believes. This has required a long process of communal reflection on it.