In the heart of Peru, several streams and rivulets course out of the gorges of the Andes, to join the River Urubamba or the Rio Sagrado (Sacred River). The waters cut through the mountains to form a valley. The colonists called it the Valley of Yucay, the Incas called it El Valle Sagrado los Incas. We know it as the Sacred Valley – a place the Incas worshipped for its incredible spirituality, fertility, and climactic harmony.
At its epicenter lies Cusco, a well of deep spirituality and culture. Cusco is the perfect place from which to start exploring the Sacred Valley – as well as your mind, body and soul. Even as the altitude wears thin, breathe in the crisp cool air deeply with a yogic pranayama at the Temple of the Moon with one of Enigma’s yoga experts. These gorgeous ruins have an important spiritual significance and are a place of immense tranquility. Enigma’s yoga teachers guide you through the asanas and breathing techniques to align your inner equilibrium, so that it resonates with the rhythm of the Sacred Valley.
A short walk brings you to the Temple of the Monkeys. This tiny but exquisite jewel of archaeology, is filled with fascinating primate iconography. Hewn out of rock, the ancient rock cut monkey figures can be discerned even after so many thousands of years. Make a small offering of local flowers or a piece of fruit at the small shrine of the heart shaped stone.
Walk a little ways to arrive at Q’engo, and pause to meditate as you contemplate the stairway to the Holy Trilogy. According to Andean myth, the holy trilogy consists of the serpent, the puma and the condor, which symbolize our mental, corporal and spiritual faculties (read our facebook post on the Andean Trilogy: http://bit.ly/23y9Psi) Q’engo is a fascinating place and was a path of pilgrimage for the Incas. The labyrinthine zig-zag cuts across the complex which actually consists of four separate blocks of ruins. Q’engo Grande was an important site of worship on the Chichaysuyu – a suyu was the intersection of several ceques, or pilgrim paths. For the ancient Inca, Q’engo not only served as a huaca or shrine, but also as an important astronomical observatory from where they could explore the heavens. A beautiful sequence of caves, altars, thrones, water channels, basins and other such spaces, were hewn out of its rock face. Several of these related to the passage of the sun, and the two little knobs at the head of the ruins cast shadow patterns during the summer solstice. These were known to the Inca as the “awakening of the puma”. At the onset of the solstice, the knobs are bathed in a light and cast a shadow formation that resembles the face of puma. At the equinox, only half the puma’s face is seen.
Beneath the ruins lies a cave, within which are two beautiful altars, and three series of stairs. The three stairs depict the three worlds: The underworld, our current existence, and the world above. At the onset of the summer solstice, sunlight streams into the cave and each of the stairs is bathed in its light in progression.
Follow the course of the Urubamba to your home away from home, the magically rejuvenating Sol y Luna Lodge Spa that lies just on the outskirts of Urubamba. Indulge yourself in an Andean spa therapy at the Yacu Wasi (House of Water) spa – a body massage with coca leaf cream, or an exfoliation with honey and kiwicha (amaranth), may just help to ease out those stressed muscles even further.
A journey to the Sacred Valley opens up your mind, body and soul to the beauty, wisdom, and mystical spirit of the Andean region. Peel back the layers of time and history in this incredible energy center of our planet, to take a journey of the spirit into yourself.
