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00:11A historian traveling through Bolivia and Peru in the 16th century asked the natives whether the
00:17extraordinary temples seen there were built by the Inca. They laughed at the question,
00:24affirming that they were made long before the Inca, that they had heard from their predecessors
00:29that the sacred places appeared suddenly in the course of a single night built by an ancient race
00:35of tall superhuman people long since vanished who possessed a magical technology with which
00:42they carved, shaped and moved enormous stones as though they were lighter than air. All this took
00:53place after a crashing meteorite caused the catastrophic flood that wiped out most life
00:58on earth. These temples, it was said, are their legacy. By examining the myths and folklore so
01:10carefully preserved throughout the Andes and combining them with the latest evidence the
01:15megalithic temples of the Andes are coming alive once again revealing their secret as places of
01:21communication with the gods.
01:33music
01:5113,000 feet up in the Andes sits Titicaca, the world's highest navigable lake, once
01:58a formidable inland ocean.
02:01On its southern shore lie the remains of two temples, Tiwanaku and Pumapunku.
02:09Tiwanaku is probably the world's oldest temple.
02:13The megaliths along its central plaza reference significant celestial events along the horizon
02:18in 15,000 BC.
02:22Despite its age and destruction, it seems that something superhuman was once at work
02:28here.
02:29The stones, quarried as much as 55 miles away, were said to have been moved through the
02:35air to the sound of a trumpet.
02:37It appears the entire site was built using sound and anti-gravity.
02:43But to what end?
02:45In the local Aymara language, Tiwanaku means naval at the center, indicating a location where
02:52culture was seeded by people described as godlike.
02:57But the name is of Polynesian origin, and it also means receiver-transmitter.
03:05Tiwanaku, it seems, is a place where humans can communicate with other levels of reality.
03:16Then, the most ancient of Ayamara legends says there came the time of Unupachakuti, the world
03:23overturned by water.
03:24It describes how a disintegrating comet hit the earth and generated a flood whose waves reached
03:32even the tallest mountains.
03:36As the earth trembled, the waters of Lake Titicaca overwhelmed the temple city of Tiwanaku and Pumapunku.
03:45The legend also describes how a builder-god named Vitakosha appeared at Tiwanaku with his sister-wife,
03:53and together with seven shining beings, they were charged with raising humans from a state
03:59of savagery.
04:05They began by rebuilding Tiwanaku and Pumapunku, crafting some of the hardest rock on earth with
04:12laser-like precision that even today modern technology is hard pressed to match.
04:23Some of the masonry is still in pristine condition despite thousands of years of neglect.
04:32One of its most beautiful artifacts is the Sun Gate, carved from a single piece of stone.
04:39The ratio of its length to height is the same as that between the solar and lunar calendars.
04:47At the top, an effigy of the creator god Pashakamak holds two rods of power, the twin serpents
04:55representing the masculine and feminine energies that flow along the earth and sustain all life.
05:01The adjacent bird figures define the equinoxes, eclipses and other stellar information as observed from this location,
05:11making this whole piece one massive calendar, the observations of a scientist.
05:19Or a magician.
05:21Vidakasha and companions are described as being very different to indigenous peoples.
05:26They were white-skinned, bearded, fair-headed, and they understood the laws of nature and how to bend them.
05:35They were also described as giants.
05:39And there is evidence of a different race of people that lived in the Andes long ago.
05:45Analysis of unusual long-headed skulls discovered throughout the region reveals mitochondrial DNA
05:52with mutations unknown in any human, primate, or animal known to science.
05:58And what's more bizarre, these people appear to have originated in Europe or the Middle East.
06:05If so, Vidakasha and his Seven Shining Ones may have been the same people as another group of seven tall
06:12beings,
06:13the Egyptian Akushemsuhor, the followers of Horus,
06:18who likewise appeared after a catastrophic world flood to rebuild civilization.
06:25They too are said to have moved stones through the air and created the foundations of temples we see today.
06:33The same story is repeated in Sumeria, where this group of seven gods were called Apkalu,
06:40often depicted in Sumerian art as falcons.
06:46One of the highest concentrations of long-headed skulls ever discovered in the Andes is in Paracas,
06:53where a 400-foot-tall tree of life is carved on the side of a cliff like a geodesic marker.
07:00The design features an isosceles triangle,
07:04and if this triangle is superimposed across the landscape with the second point in Tiwanaku,
07:10then the third point marks the exact position of another ancient site, Cusco.
07:17After Virakasha and his Seven Shining Ones completed their work at Tiwanaku,
07:22they took their knowledge 300 miles northwest
07:25and established a second navel of the earth in this valley.
07:30Cusco means uncovered navel stone.
07:34Cusco was already ancient beyond memory by the time Spanish conquistadors arrived and enslaved the Inca.
07:41When they built their cathedral, they did so on top of Virakasha's original temple.
07:48Yet elements of its former glory are still visible today,
07:51such as the original wall of basalt blocks that once encircled the navel stone.
07:58Its elegant curve and precision have withstood the earthquakes
08:02that regularly destroy the newer buildings all around.
08:07Inside, the megalithic masonry of the original temple
08:11bears testament to the skill of its ancient architects.
08:15It once featured seven rooms, dedicated to the sun, moon, the Pleiades, Venus, rain and thunder, and Virakasha.
08:27Four hundred sheets of gold covered its walls,
08:30while in the center stood a mythical scene of hundreds of animals
08:34and stalks of corn all made of gold.
08:38The Spanish melted everything and all that remains today is this curious stone box
08:43carved from a single piece of basalt.
08:49Along the streets and alleyways of Old Cusco
08:52there are reminders of its megalithic origins.
08:56Stones are fitted with extraordinary precision without mortar
09:00by people for whom shaping large rocks
09:02appears to have been as easy as rolling pastry.
09:06And as if this wasn't enough of a challenge
09:09some of the megaliths incorporate as much as twelve different angles.
09:17The skilled masonry often appears beside the inferior Incan stonework
09:21revealing how the knowledge has regressed over thousands of years.
09:27Many of the stones even have an unusual reflective glaze
09:30that suggests an extremely high heat was applied to create the joints.
09:37But the greater mystery of Cusco lies in its relationship
09:41with two other local sites overlooking the city.
09:45Sacsayhuaman and Kenco.
09:48And the three form a perfect triangular relationship.
09:51a remarkable feat of geodesy in itself
09:54considering the challenging altitude and steep terrain.
10:01Reaching Sacsayhuaman requires a steep 700 foot climb.
10:06It is a sprawling site composed of several different yet interdependent temples.
10:12The first tip of the Cusco Triangle is right here.
10:17Inside this horseshoe of seven alcoves
10:20each representing the elements of Andean creation
10:23as well as a reference to the stars in the constellation
10:26associated with high wisdom, the Pleiades.
10:31Few pay it much attention
10:33yet this is quite possibly the oldest and most important section of Sacsayhuaman.
10:40Judging by its present condition
10:42it appears to have suffered a major catastrophe long ago
10:45perhaps the same one that brought Virakosha here.
10:51A few hundred yards away lies this monolith.
10:55It has been carved from hard andesite
10:58with niches, false doors, alcoves
11:01and stairs that lead nowhere.
11:05Many of the features are astronomically significant.
11:09Hundreds of such house-sized boulders
11:12lie scattered throughout the region
11:14each resembling the plan of a city in miniature
11:17but why they were made is still a mystery.
11:23Sacsayhuaman features a large oval arena
11:26its perimeter fitted with about a hundred alcoves.
11:30In addition to its function as a solar and lunar calendar
11:33it may also have been a site
11:36where an initiation ritual was once performed.
11:40A clue lies in this small preparatory chamber
11:43beside which a narrow and awkward entrance
11:46has been cut into the bedrock.
11:48It faces the equinox sunset
11:51an alignment that is traditionally associated
11:53with the secret initiation
11:55in which candidates enter the tunnel
11:57and found themselves navigating
11:59a claustrophobic labyrinth in total darkness.
12:04The idea was to experience the journey
12:07taken by the soul
12:08as it navigates the other world
12:09during an out-of-body ritual.
12:12Part of this labyrinth of tunnels still exists.
12:17At the end the successful initiate
12:19would exit to face the equinox sunrise
12:22to be proclaimed raised from the dead.
12:26The ritual precedes Christianity's idea of resurrection
12:30by thousands of years
12:31and is repeated in the Mediterranean legend
12:34of Theseus and the Minotaur
12:36the story of a hero
12:38who ventures into the darkness of the underworld
12:40to metaphorically slay his animal self
12:43so that he may return to face the equinox sunrise
12:46as a risen or spiritualized hero.
12:53The focal point of Sacsaywaman
12:56is a natural outcrop of rock
12:58once artificially surrounded
13:00by walls of elegantly fitted stone.
13:04This is the Andean depiction
13:06of the Mound of Creation
13:08the hill that first rose
13:10out of the waters of chaos
13:11and where the knowledge of the gods
13:13was first deposited.
13:16Parts of its exposed limestone
13:18actually resemble water-tumbling like waves.
13:22The Mound is composed of nine levels.
13:26Like other sacred mounds
13:27throughout the world
13:28the number is symbolic of utmost perfection
13:31a reminder to the spiritual seeker
13:33of the path that is required
13:35on the road to self-mastery.
13:38At the summit of this navel
13:39a nameless ancient artist
13:41carved a set of 13 steps
13:43with extraordinary precision.
13:46The steps referenced
13:48the lunar calendar.
13:50They also faced the distant horizon
13:53as though expecting
13:54a significant event
13:56and this occurs like clockwork
13:58every 18.7 years
14:00for the stepladder motif
14:02marks the suddenmost rising
14:04of the moon
14:05before it begins its journey
14:06back to the northern hemisphere.
14:10It is from this summit
14:11that one gets a first glimpse
14:13of the scale
14:14of the undulating walls
14:16of Sacsayhuaman
14:20The megalithic construction
14:21looks skilled
14:22and effortless.
14:24Boulders appear as though
14:25poured into place
14:26each stone fitted
14:28onto the next
14:29without mortar
14:30as though the gods
14:31were playing with Lego.
14:34Geologists have discovered
14:35how the composition
14:37of the stone differs
14:38from that at the quarry
14:3920 miles away
14:41on the opposite side
14:42of the valley.
14:43Although the stone
14:44in the quarry
14:45contains fossils
14:46these are not just
14:47missing from the stones
14:48at Sacsayhuaman
14:49but the stone itself
14:51appears to have been
14:52subjected to an intense heat
14:54of 1500 degrees
14:55that has recrystallized
14:57the stone.
14:59Since this is impossible
15:00under normal
15:01natural conditions
15:03it implies that
15:04the ancient builders
15:05of Sacsayhuaman
15:06and sites like it
15:08used some kind
15:09of portable technology
15:10that is incompatible
15:12with such a remote age.
15:16It is also
15:17an excessive amount
15:18of work
15:19for what is supposed
15:20to be nothing more
15:21than a protective wall.
15:25There is a second possibility
15:27In the 16th century
15:29two Jesuit priests
15:30were walking
15:31the Inca trail
15:32when they came across
15:33an old grave.
15:34As they rummaged
15:35through the contents
15:36they found a clay vase
15:38which was accidentally
15:39dropped
15:40revealing a pungent
15:41brown liquid.
15:42The priests were
15:44disappointed
15:44to lose the vase
15:45and moved on.
15:47When they returned
15:48the following day
15:49they noticed
15:50that the rock
15:50where the liquid
15:51had spilled
15:52had been made molten.
15:54This curious anecdote
15:56may provide
15:57a major clue
15:58as to how
15:58the megalith builders
15:59moulded their stone
16:00into place.
16:02They may have
16:02discovered a type
16:03of organic
16:04molecular acid
16:05that is capable
16:06of dissolving stone.
16:09But why did the builders
16:11arrange the walls
16:12of Sacsayhuaman
16:13in three tiers
16:14and in the shape
16:15of a zigzag?
16:18Certainly the design
16:19offers tremendous
16:20structural integrity
16:21in the region known
16:22for violent earthquakes.
16:23Yet a recent study
16:25of the measurements
16:26of its 22 angles
16:28revealed them
16:29to be astronomically
16:30significant.
16:31They encode
16:33the mathematical values
16:34of the cycle
16:34of the sun and moon,
16:36the measurements
16:37of time,
16:38the axial tilt
16:39of the earth,
16:41eclipses
16:41and much more.
16:44The wall of Sacsayhuaman
16:45is essentially
16:46a library in stone.
16:50Was Vidakosha
16:52and his seven shining gods
16:53responsible
16:54for this marvel?
16:56These traveling gods
16:57are described
16:58as magicians
16:59and very tall.
17:00To such people
17:02the size of the corner stones
17:04of Sacsayhuaman
17:04which measure 35 feet
17:06on average
17:07would seem perfectly
17:08normal to them.
17:10It is also worth noting
17:12that the original threshold stones
17:14of the gateways
17:15are over three feet tall,
17:16totally impractical
17:18for normal humans
17:19but a sensible
17:20stepping stone
17:21for very,
17:22very tall people.
17:25The same situation
17:26appears in the Egyptian
17:27temple of Edfu
17:29where the followers
17:30of Horus
17:31are described
17:31as being 15 feet tall.
17:36Indeed,
17:37there is a strong
17:38Egyptian connection
17:39at Sacsayhuaman.
17:41The name means
17:42the place
17:43of the satisfied falcon.
17:46While the condor
17:47is central to
17:48Andean mythology
17:49the falcon
17:50is never mentioned.
17:52So why name
17:53such a temple
17:53after a bird
17:54that is symbolically
17:55insignificant
17:56in this region?
17:57And why should
17:58this falcon
17:59be satisfied?
18:02If an ancient
18:03Egyptian were
18:03traveling here
18:04he would understand
18:05the implications
18:06of such a name
18:07because in Egypt
18:08it was synonymous
18:09with the temple
18:10complex of Saqqara.
18:14Saqqara is named
18:15for Seker
18:16the falcon
18:17god of rebirth.
18:18Here,
18:19countless initiates
18:21came to take part
18:22in a secret ritual
18:23marking the highest
18:24level of initiation
18:25the ritual
18:26of living resurrection.
18:30It required a candidate
18:31to be interred
18:32inside a dark chamber
18:33for several days
18:34while his or her soul
18:36explored the other world.
18:39When the initiate
18:40regained consciousness
18:41he or she
18:42was led
18:43at dawn
18:44to the top
18:44of a mound
18:45to witness
18:45the rising of Venus
18:47before the sunrise.
18:49The ritual
18:50was conducted
18:51on the winter solstice
18:52and the spring equinox.
18:55This ritual
18:56may have taken place
18:58at Saksaiwa Mun.
18:59From the air
19:00the zig-zag walls
19:02resemble
19:02the feathers
19:03and wings
19:03of a large bird.
19:04and as long as tradition
19:06records
19:07there has been
19:08a festival here
19:09every winter solstice
19:11celebrating
19:11the resurrection
19:12of the sun.
19:14Seen from an observation
19:15tower on the summit
19:16the edges of the walls
19:18mark the exact position
19:20of the rising sun
19:21at the solstices
19:22while every eight years
19:24Venus
19:25rises along the spine
19:27of Saksaiwa Mun.
19:28The event
19:29marked the high point
19:31of this important ritual.
19:43A short walk
19:45along an ancient
19:45ceremonial route
19:47stands another mound
19:48deliberately surrounded
19:50by an expertly built
19:51enclosure.
19:53The bedrock
19:54has been carved
19:55into all manner
19:56of intriguing shapes
19:57for a purpose
19:58that remains unknown.
20:01Similar sculptures
20:02exist on the other side
20:03of the Pacific
20:04at Mount Miwa
20:05in Japan
20:06the location
20:07of a similar
20:08culture
20:08also placed
20:10in a remote age
20:11a time of gods
20:12who appeared
20:13following a global flood.
20:17Adjacent to this site
20:19lies a colossal
20:20limestone butte
20:21called Kenko.
20:23It marks the third point
20:25of the Cusco triangle.
20:28It too has been carved
20:30with stairways
20:31that lead
20:31to the sky
20:32niches
20:33curves
20:34libation bowls
20:35and other unusual
20:36shapes
20:37in the stone.
20:39Most impressive
20:40of all
20:41its interior
20:42has been hollowed
20:43out into a chamber.
20:46Kenko
20:47may have been
20:47the final stop
20:48for initiates
20:49performing their duties
20:50at Saksaiwa Mun
20:51the last stage
20:53of the living resurrection ritual.
20:57Even before the Inca arrived
20:59it was already known
21:00locally
21:01as the door
21:02to the other world
21:03and enough evidence
21:04survives
21:05to support the theory.
21:07Outside the chamber
21:08there is a preparatory area
21:10composed of a curving wall
21:12shaped into seventeen alcoves.
21:15This number
21:16is common to temples
21:17around the world
21:18where the same ritual
21:19took place
21:21the great
21:22mound of Nauf
21:23in Ireland
21:24with its seventeen
21:25satellite mounds
21:27and the Osirian
21:28at Abydos
21:29with its seventeen
21:30side chambers
21:31where the mysteries
21:32of these resurrected
21:34god-men Osiris
21:35were once conducted.
21:39After preparing
21:40candidates at Kenko
21:42were led
21:42to the entrance
21:43which is reached
21:44by a passage cut
21:45out of the bedrock
21:46facing the equinox
21:47sunset.
21:48the low entrance
21:50forces a person
21:51to enter in humility.
21:54Inside
21:55the dark chamber
21:56is elegantly
21:57hollowed out
21:58of the limestone
21:59into various alcoves
22:00with a central
22:02freestanding structure
22:03where one can lie down
22:04and spend a few
22:05solitary nights
22:06wrapped inside
22:07a protected womb
22:08again in accordance
22:10with the procedures
22:11of initiation.
22:20At dawn on the third day
22:22the initiate
22:23would leave
22:24via an S-shaped tunnel
22:26and into a courtyard
22:27to witness Venus
22:29rising before the equinox sun.
22:32the face of the bedrock
22:33has been artificially cut
22:35at an angle
22:36of twenty-three degrees
22:37to allow this
22:38to be witnessed.
22:41The purpose of the ritual
22:43was to allow the soul
22:44of the initiate
22:45access to specialized
22:46knowledge
22:46that can only be obtained
22:48in the other world.
22:50It is therefore significant
22:52that a second passage
22:53has been skillfully cut
22:55and angled
22:55in this limestone boulder
22:57to allow the trajectory
22:59of Sirius
22:59to be observed
23:01on the solstice.
23:03Like Venus
23:04Sirius was a star
23:06venerated by the Andean
23:07people
23:07and other ancient cultures
23:09as the source of wisdom.
23:12This bright star
23:13can be seen
23:14rising above bedrock
23:15that has been artificially
23:17cut
23:17beside the courtyard.
23:21It seems these temples
23:22fulfilled purposes
23:23that were both practical
23:25as well as spiritual.
23:28There is a lot more
23:29to Cusco
23:30that meets the eye.
23:31The mountain peaks
23:33surrounding the navel
23:34of the earth
23:35mark the passage
23:36of the Milky Way
23:37which the Andeans
23:38regarded as Mayu
23:39the celestial river.
23:42Seen from Cusco
23:44the mountains establish
23:45an inter-cardinal horizon
23:47and as the river of stars
23:49arcs through the night
23:51it creates a cosmic axis.
23:54This was recreated
23:56and marked on the ground
23:57with sacred sites
23:58called Huakas
24:01328 of them
24:02representing the time
24:04it takes the moon
24:04to complete 12 cycles.
24:08It was believed
24:09that by mirroring
24:10the perfection of the sky
24:12a cosmic order
24:13was established
24:14on the ground
24:15that permeated
24:16through all aspects
24:17of everyday life.
24:21One of these sacred sites
24:23is Huirayu Myok.
24:31It is a large site
24:32containing a preparatory temple
24:34waterways
24:35and a step pyramid
24:37and a path gradually
24:39leading uphill
24:40to a small cave.
24:42but its most curious feature
24:44is a huge boulder
24:45on whose face
24:47someone cut
24:47a semicircular bowl
24:49with seven steps
24:50with great precision.
24:54The device appears
24:55to be another
24:56calendrical masterpiece
24:57for each step
24:59references the solstices,
25:01equinox
25:02and the major
25:03and minor standstills
25:04of the moon.
25:06Its alignment
25:07may help establish
25:08a possible date
25:09for the site.
25:11The arc of this
25:12stellar dial
25:13marks the three
25:14prominent stars
25:15of the Andean people
25:16Sirius, Capella
25:18and the Pleiades
25:19and this conjunction
25:21last occurred
25:22at sunset
25:23on the summer solstice
25:24in 3100 BC.
25:28The design
25:29is also a symbolic gesture
25:31to Vitakosha
25:32and the seven shining gods
25:34who brought this wisdom
25:35to the Andes.
25:39The Huacos that encircle
25:41Cusco
25:41are not placed
25:42at random
25:43on the land.
25:44They are each
25:45positioned along
25:46ley lines
25:47that radiate outward
25:48from the naval stone,
25:50each one appearing
25:51to reference
25:51astronomically significant
25:52objects in the sky.
25:56One of the most intriguing
25:58of these
25:58is Amaru Maché.
26:03Amaru means serpent,
26:05referring to the pathways
26:07of the Earth's energy
26:08that flow into each
26:09of the chambers
26:10carved out of the living rock.
26:12The stone inside the chambers
26:14is covered
26:15with an unusual ceramic glaze
26:17composed of aluminium,
26:20magnesium and silica.
26:21how this was done
26:23is not known,
26:24but inside
26:25the effect on the sensors
26:26is palpable.
26:32Another intriguing site
26:33is found halfway up
26:35a steep ravine
26:36where someone carved
26:37an entrance
26:38into the mountainside.
26:42Then, they sliced the bedrock
26:45with great precision
26:45to create a false door.
26:50The same design feature
26:51appears in Persia
26:53and Egypt.
26:56This site is called
26:58Nauta Iglesia.
27:00A Nauta is an inhabitant
27:02of the spirit world.
27:04It's not by accident
27:05they are referred to
27:07as spirit doors
27:08or windows into paradise,
27:09because these alcoves
27:11mark the passage
27:12of the Earth's
27:12electromagnetic currents.
27:16The measurements
27:17are not random.
27:18They conform
27:19to musical notation.
27:21The length
27:22to height ratio
27:23is 3 to 1,
27:25making a perfect fifth
27:26in the second octave.
27:29The ratio
27:29of the alcove
27:30is 5 to 6,
27:32a minor third.
27:34The 5 to 6 ratio
27:36describes
27:36the rotation
27:37of the Earth,
27:38whose pole completes
27:39one full rotation
27:40of its axis
27:41every 25,920 years,
27:44while the planet
27:45tilts 4 degrees
27:47every 21,600 years.
27:50A ratio
27:51of 5 to 6.
27:53This accurate calculation
27:55of the motions
27:56of the planet
27:56is also encoded
27:58in another unusual temple,
28:00the Ben Pyramid of Egypt.
28:06Dominating this unique
28:07environment
28:07is the cave ceiling.
28:10It has been sliced
28:11like butter
28:11at two different angles,
28:13creating another mystery.
28:15One angle is 60 degrees,
28:18the other 52.
28:20There is only one other place
28:22on Earth
28:23where these two numbers
28:24appear side by side.
28:26The angles of the slopes
28:27of the two major pyramids
28:29at Giza.
28:30Yet again,
28:32the echo of ancient Egypt
28:33permeates the temples
28:34of the Andes.
28:37There is another anomaly
28:38in this sacred space.
28:40Its creator
28:41picked the exact spot
28:43on the side of the mountain
28:44where exists
28:44a single outcrop
28:45of bluestone.
28:47The three-step design
28:49defines the Andean view
28:51of the universe,
28:52the creative underworld,
28:54the physical middle world
28:55and the ethereal otherworld.
28:59The central niche
29:00is also cut
29:01to musical notation.
29:03The ratio,
29:04three to two,
29:05a perfect fifth.
29:08Bluestone contains
29:09a type of crystal
29:10that was used
29:11in early radio receivers
29:12because of its excellent
29:14transmitting qualities.
29:16The rock is also magnetic,
29:19a useful feature
29:20for shamanic journeying.
29:22The same stone
29:23was once chosen
29:24to build
29:25the oldest part
29:26of Stonehenge.
29:30It seems that Nauta Iglesia
29:31was designed
29:32by a cosmic artist
29:33for anyone
29:34wishing to access
29:36another level of reality
29:37and communicate
29:38with the gods.
29:45of the gods.
29:50Just as the Egyptians
29:51regard the river Nile
29:52as the terrestrial
29:53counterpart
29:54of the Milky Way,
29:55so the Aymara,
29:57the Keshua
29:57and the Bukhina people
29:59have the Urubamba.
30:04Around the winter solstice,
30:05the sacred marriage
30:07of Isis and Osiris
30:08were celebrated
30:09in the temples
30:10along the Nile.
30:11While in Peru,
30:12it was the festival
30:13of Capac Raimi
30:15when pilgrimage
30:16was undertaken
30:17and people paid tribute
30:18at the temples
30:19that lined the banks
30:20of the Urubamba.
30:23It began with gatherings
30:24at sacred springs,
30:26such as Tombo Maché,
30:28during which the waters
30:29were blessed
30:30and ritual bathing
30:32purified pilgrims
30:33on the long journey ahead.
30:39The pilgrim trail
30:40was arduous.
30:42It followed
30:43the meandering river valley
30:44and a narrow trail
30:45along steep mountain sides.
30:48People would rest
30:49and pray
30:50at the temple complex
30:51of Pizak,
30:52built onto a natural spur
30:54overlooking the Urubamba.
31:04The terracing around Pizak
31:06is a wonder of engineering
31:07in itself.
31:10The next stop along the trail
31:12was Ollantaytambo.
31:17Six colossal stone blocks
31:19made of andesite
31:21and polished paint porphyry
31:22make up the sacred area,
31:24part of a destroyed
31:25megalithic temple
31:26called the House of the Dawn.
31:29The stones appear
31:30as though machined.
31:33There are over 30,
31:35300 ton megaliths here,
31:37perhaps the biggest masonry
31:39to be found in this valley,
31:40in a style resembling that
31:42of Tiwanaku.
31:45Carved on the face
31:47of the stones
31:47is a stepladder relief
31:49called a Shekana,
31:50meaning to bridge or cross.
31:53It represents
31:54the free levels of existence.
31:56It was the mastery
31:58of this spiritual ideal
31:59that allows the soul
32:00to transmit the cosmic vault
32:02to access all levels of reality,
32:05the benefit being
32:06immortal life.
32:08The same design appears
32:10in ancient Egypt.
32:13Gazing at this temple
32:14from the steep hill
32:15across the valley
32:16is the place
32:17where the god descends.
32:19It is the carved face
32:21of Pasha Kamak,
32:23the regenerative
32:24creator-god of the Andes.
32:28Pasha means universe
32:29and Kamak to animate.
32:32He was depicted
32:33as an old androgynous
32:35grey-bearded giant
32:36who carried a staff.
32:38His nickname,
32:39Tunapa,
32:40means mill-bearer,
32:41upon whose shoulders
32:43the vault of the heavens
32:44rotates perpetually.
32:47Above his head,
32:48a small temple
32:49stands like a crown.
32:53The pilgrim trail
32:55continues into the heart
32:56of the Andes,
32:57culminating in a lush
32:58mountainous landscape
33:00and a 2,000-foot climb
33:02to the city in the clouds,
33:04Machu Picchu.
33:09Pilgrims would complete
33:11the winter solstice ritual
33:12of Kapak Raimi
33:13with festivities
33:14in the main plaza.
33:18This area of Machu Picchu
33:20is part of the public section.
33:23There is also
33:24the sacred section
33:26called Yampu,
33:27the dwelling place
33:28of the gods,
33:29and it stands
33:31on its own
33:31natural mound.
33:35This area was accessed
33:36only by those
33:37who had received special training
33:39in the mystery secrets.
33:44The sacred section
33:46is the mirror image
33:47of the gods
33:47and of the heavens.
33:49It was considered perfect,
33:51and so its priests
33:52were sensitive
33:53to anyone
33:54who would bring
33:55impurity of thought
33:56or action
33:57into this sacred space.
33:59If the dwelling place
34:01of the gods
34:01was compromised,
34:03the city would fall,
34:04and with it,
34:05the cohesion
34:06of the tribe.
34:09This exact location
34:10is linked
34:11to two other locations
34:13across Peru
34:14also associated
34:15with Viracocha
34:16and his group
34:17of travelling gods,
34:19Paracas
34:19and Maturani
34:21from where they were
34:22last seen
34:23disappearing
34:24into the Pacific Ocean.
34:26The three sites
34:27form a perfect triangle.
34:30It's in the sacred section
34:32that we find
34:33the oldest megalithic masonry.
34:35In fact,
34:36there are three stages
34:37of construction here.
34:38The prehistoric
34:40uses stone
34:41of extraordinary scale.
34:43A later stage
34:44features beautifully
34:45cut and fitted masonry,
34:47just as in Cusco
34:48and Tiwanaku.
34:51The stones are so tightly fitted
34:53that even an alpaca hair
34:55cannot be inserted
34:56between them.
34:59The newer masonry
35:00is that of the Inca period,
35:02where stones are smaller
35:03and the fitting
35:04less precise.
35:07at the summit of Machu Picchu
35:09sits the Intihuatana,
35:11the hitching post
35:12of the sun,
35:13where astronomer priests
35:15announced the exact moment
35:16when the sun reached
35:18its maximum position
35:19in the sky,
35:20and they figuratively tied it
35:22to the stone
35:22so as to cause it
35:23to move
35:24in the opposite direction.
35:28The Intihuatana's
35:3014-degree declination
35:31means that at midday
35:32on the equinox
35:33the sun casts no shadow.
35:36It is said to
35:37sit with all of its might
35:39upon the pillar.
35:42Each angle aligns
35:44the stellar events,
35:45such as the position
35:46of the moon,
35:47Pleiades,
35:48and Sudden Cross.
35:52The sacred precinct
35:54was the place
35:54to where a small group
35:55of initiates
35:56were led aside
35:57from the rest of the crowd
35:58during the winter solstice
36:00celebration.
36:01Here,
36:02they prepared themselves
36:03for the final initiation ritual.
36:06This included
36:07further understanding
36:08of the mystery secrets,
36:09part of which
36:10was taught
36:11in a restricted chamber
36:12beneath this observational tower.
36:17This unusual room
36:19has been carved
36:19out of the bedrock.
36:22A shallow wall
36:23has been cut
36:24into angled steps
36:25to allow the rising
36:26equinox sun
36:27to shine
36:28onto specific parts
36:29of the chamber
36:30at prescribed periods.
36:33Inside,
36:34two shallow doorways
36:35have been carefully fitted.
36:37One represents truth
36:38and the other,
36:40falsehood.
36:41It is an important teaching
36:43on the path
36:44of initiation called
36:45the Two Ways.
36:47It was still taught
36:48in the 5th century BC
36:50in the mystery schools
36:51of Greece.
36:55And yet,
36:56the final phase
36:57of this unique ritual
36:58was not performed
36:59at Machu Picchu,
37:00but on the mountain
37:01that so dominates
37:02the sacred city,
37:04the beehive-shaped hill
37:06of Huayna Picchu.
37:09Huayna Picchu
37:10is 400 feet closer
37:12to the sky
37:12and very steep.
37:17The unusual shape
37:19acts like a coil,
37:20attracting the
37:21electromagnetic current
37:22generated by the
37:23Urumbamba river
37:24as it flows
37:25in an arc
37:26around the base
37:27of the hill.
37:29The beehive shape
37:31is itself symbolic.
37:32It is the shape
37:33associated with temples
37:35where the living
37:35resurrection initiation
37:37took place
37:37around the world.
37:42The path to the top
37:43is steep and challenging,
37:45mirroring the spiritual
37:46training common
37:47to such temples.
37:48temples.
37:50But before initiates
37:51set their sights on
37:52reaching the summit,
37:54they first had to
37:55descend 1200 feet
37:56to a secluded temple.
38:01The restricted temple
38:02is set among absolute
38:04stillness.
38:05It is yet another
38:06superb example
38:07of a sacred site
38:09expertly cut into the
38:10bedrock,
38:10with a series of niches
38:12set under a colossal
38:13boulder that seems
38:14to defy gravity.
38:17It faces the equinox
38:19sunset.
38:21In 3100 BC,
38:24initiates retiring
38:25to this man-made womb
38:26would have observed
38:27Orion,
38:28the constellation
38:28marking the gateway
38:29to the other world,
38:31descending behind
38:31the mountains,
38:32followed by Sirius,
38:34the star of knowledge.
38:37Here, initiates would
38:39spend several nights
38:40in an induced near-death
38:42state,
38:42while the soul wandered
38:44and experienced
38:45the other world.
38:47Like other temples
38:48used for the same ritual,
38:50it is presided
38:51by a lunar goddess.
38:54At the end of this
38:55initiation,
38:56they would make the
38:57final arduous ascent
38:59to the summit
39:00before sunrise
39:01and greet the morning
39:02star, Venus,
39:04whereupon they would
39:05be declared newborn
39:06or risen from the dead.
39:10They also got a
39:12fantastic view
39:13of Machu Picchu.
39:21Machu Picchu
39:23and Huayna Picchu
39:24form a ritual landscape,
39:25and this is revealed
39:27in their names.
39:28The first means
39:29old bird,
39:31referring to Machu Picchu
39:32as a place
39:33where the old self
39:34comes to die,
39:35metaphorically speaking,
39:37while Huayna Picchu
39:38means
39:39young bird,
39:40a place
39:41where the new self
39:42is born.
39:43is born.
39:56Like other initiation
39:58traditions going back
39:59at least 5,000 years,
40:01the Andean spiritual system
40:03taught that the soul
40:04of a living person
40:05that experiences a resurrection
40:07does so by undertaking
40:09a journey to the other world.
40:11Accounts of this journey
40:13describe a bridge
40:14across a raging river,
40:15and how the soul
40:16crosses the river
40:17assisted by black dogs
40:19capable of seeing
40:20in the dark,
40:21just like the Egyptian
40:22story of Anubis
40:24and Apuat,
40:24and the Greek legend
40:26of the Hounds of Hades.
40:28And in the Andes,
40:30we find these two dogs
40:31in the most unlikeliest
40:32of places,
40:34Lake Titicaca.
40:41When the level of the lake
40:42was much higher
40:43than it is today,
40:44the Mesa of Kutimbo
40:46was an island.
40:48Here we find the most
40:50unusual stone towers
40:51called Chulpas.
40:54Although conventional
40:56archaeology believes
40:57they were burial places,
40:58the Aymara disagree.
41:01They call them
41:02Uta Amaya,
41:03houses of the soul,
41:05not for the soul,
41:07indicating they were
41:08used as places
41:09of facilitation
41:10rather than burial.
41:13The entrance to each Chulpa
41:15faces the ritual direction
41:16of the equinox sunrise,
41:18and their interiors
41:20are shaped like beehives.
41:24When the sun casts its light
41:26upon the pillow-shaped stones
41:28at midday,
41:29reliefs of a bride
41:30and her groom
41:31reveal themselves
41:32above the entrance,
41:33indicating that
41:34inside this chamber
41:35the Initiate engaged
41:36with a sacred marriage
41:37with the Divine Bride.
41:40This symbol is known
41:42the world over
41:42in temples
41:43used strictly
41:44for this secret ritual.
41:48But more tellingly,
41:49the reliefs of two dogs
41:50that guide the soul
41:52in the underworld
41:52appear either side
41:54of the tiny entrance.
41:59of the
42:00Not far from Kutimbo
42:01is the Mesa of Silustani,
42:03still surrounded
42:05by the water
42:06of what used to be
42:07Lake Titicaca
42:08around 7,000 BC.
42:14The towers taper
42:16from the top down,
42:17complete with
42:18beehive interiors
42:19and doors facing
42:20the equinox sunrise.
42:23these were properly built
42:24by the Pukina
42:25long before
42:27the ancient Ayamara.
42:31Silustani is a naturally
42:33magnetic environment.
42:35Surrounded by water,
42:37its basalt and sandstone
42:38attracts and stores
42:39an electromagnetic charge,
42:41making the entire Mesa
42:43an ideal environment
42:44for shamanic journeying,
42:46rather than a place
42:47to bury the dead.
42:50This ongoing theme
42:52of communication
42:52between worlds
42:53seems to have been
42:54central to the
42:55philosophy of
42:56Firakosha and his
42:57shining gods,
42:58seeing as the temples
43:00between Tiwanaku
43:01and Cusco
43:01follow this idea.
43:04And none more so
43:05than an unusual hill
43:07on the western shore
43:08of Lake Titicaca
43:08called
43:09Hayu Marka.
43:13High in iron oxide,
43:15Hayu Marka
43:16feels like a place
43:17set aside
43:18from the normal world.
43:20Not surprisingly,
43:21the name means
43:22City of the Gods.
43:25Along its eastern face,
43:27an ancient architect
43:28carved an immense portal
43:30and a spirit door
43:31facing the equinox sunrise.
43:35The Keshuwa name
43:36of the portal
43:37is Amaru Meru,
43:38the Place of the Serpent.
43:40So this place
43:42marks the earth's
43:43naturally flowing
43:44pathways of energy.
43:46The native people
43:47speak of this
43:48as a gateway
43:49to the lands of the gods.
43:50And in times
43:51long past,
43:52great heroes
43:53pass through this gate
43:54for a glorious
43:55new life of immortality
43:57in the world
43:58of the gods.
43:59The legend concludes
44:01with a prophecy
44:01that this doorway
44:02will one day open
44:04many times bigger
44:05than it actually is,
44:06allowing the gods
44:07to return
44:08in their sun ships.
44:10certainly local people
44:11respect this temple
44:12for they often see
44:14strange people
44:14dressed in unusual clothing
44:16emerging from it
44:17and walking towards
44:19Lake Titicaca.
44:31and so we return
44:32to where we began,
44:34to this inland ocean,
44:36the birthplace of gods,
44:40of legends,
44:41of the superhuman
44:43from Virakosha
44:43and the temples
44:44he built
44:45to last into our time,
44:47reminding us
44:48that if we should
44:48follow the example
44:49he set
44:50so many thousands
44:51of years ago,
44:53that by tuning in
44:54to the sacred places
44:55of the gods
44:56and following
44:57in their footsteps,
44:58we may yet become
44:59like them.
45:26we may yet become
45:37of the old
45:38because of the
45:39to go to the
45:39of the gods,
45:39of the gods.
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