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The Inti Raymi Celebration In Ecuador

People celebrate The Inti Raymi in Peguche, Imbabura, Ecuador on 24th June 2018. Every June 21 the summer solstice is registered. In the Ecuadorian indigenous communities this natural event does not go unnoticed and is celebrated with a big party in honor of the sun: the Inti Raymi. According to the indigenous worldview, the harvest season begins on this date and it is therefore time to thank the Sun and the Pachamama for the products they offer. In Peguche, parish of the indigenous community of Otavalo, province of Imbabura, the celebration begins with a purification bath, which can be performed in water springs or waterfalls in the area. José "Mashi" Maldonado is in charge of purifying his family and friends. He does it every year in the water springs of his community. It is night and cold does not matter, only interested in the desire to be free of bad energy and receive the harvest season with the best spirit. People enter the stream and the "Mashi" takes a good bite of water to then spit it hard on the face, nape and armpits of those who require the purification bath. Then the celebration begins. Tradition dictates that groups of musicians form and go to squares or houses of neighbors and take the party. For about 30 minutes they sing and dance in circles, while being followed in the same direction by the people who join the celebration. That they dance in circles is not arbitrary. The dance represents the solar system, the musicians are the sun and the planets dance. Thus, throughout the community, squares and houses, the night passes in the middle of the festivities, until the sun reappears. That is when the cheerful locals and visitors (many foreigners) decide to go to rest and then resume the celebration. (Photo by Franklin Jacome/Press South/NurPhoto)

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