Spirituality and the Pachamama in the Andean Aymara Worldview - Earth Stewardship: Linking Ecology and Ethics in Theory and Practice - page 67

most fertile. The sun too gives information. When it appears encircled by
rainbow colors, sowing potatoes and oca must be stopped until the pheno-
menon passes. If the winter time sunset is very red and yellow, cold, freezing
nights are predicted. This shows that it is time for preparing chuño, tunta, uma
kaya, juphi kaya , freeze-dried products made from potatoes and oca , staples of
the Aymara diet (Box 6.1 ).
Box 6.1. Ritual for Planting Potatoes
This ritual begins with the preparation of the soil for planting. I remember my
parents coming to the fi eld with the plow, the yoke and the oxen. They would
take off their hats and sandals, make the sign of the cross, and pray softly to
the pachamama asking permission to use the soil and to allow the yoked oxen
to work without diffi culty. This was accompanied by a brief rite, the k'inthu ,
to teach the oxen to work as a team. We carried a small bottle of alcohol which
was sprinkled over the oxen and the soil that was to be plowed. At the same
time some coca leaves along with lejía 1 or sugar were pushed into the soil and
a prayer was said so that the oxen would be tranquil and encounter no diffi -
culty. This rite still is practiced. After plowing the soil, animal manures are
prepared. This has to be done over various days because the manures have to
ferment so that they will be effective fertilizer and also so they will not be too
heavy to carry.
On planting day, seed, oxen, plows, and the sata manq'a (food for the
seed), are all brought to the fi eld. The seed must be handled carefully because
it is believed that the potato seed is pregnant and so must be treated delicately.
It must not be stepped on nor thrown aside, because it might cry and go away.
Upon arrival at the fi eld, the women, with the seed, arrange themselves
on the soil in a circular fashion. The fi eld's owner sits on the soil facing
the sun with her companions around her. Once the potato seed is taken out
of the woolen sacks and scattered upon a cloth, the women and the seed
are encircled with the wisqha (rope made from llama wool) as protection
assuring that the seed stays put and does not run away. The belief is that if
the wisqha is not placed around them, jathax sarxaspawa, jaltxaspawa
(the seed might go away).
After this, the women place in the center of the circle tari , a small woven
cloth, along with coca leaves. In another circle they place sweets, colored
wool, llama grease, and other required ingredients. Meanwhile, one of the
1 In Aymara language lejía or ñaka is the name given to shrubs of the genus Baccharis . In
vernacular Spanish it refers to the ashes of the plant, which are used to peel quinoa and corn
(Villagrán and Castro 2004 ).
(continued)