From Caral to the Inca
Andean civilisations, from Caral (one of the oldest cities in the Americas) through the Inca Empire, developed sophisticated divination practices integrated with astronomy, agriculture, and governance. The Inca ceque system was a network of sacred lines radiating from the Temple of the Sun in Cusco, connecting hundreds of huacas (sacred sites) and aligning with astronomical events.
Coca Leaves and the Quipu
Coca leaf reading remains the most widely practised form of divination in the Andes today. The quipu, a system of knotted strings, encoded not just numerical data but possibly narrative and divinatory information. Andean cosmology centres on ayni (reciprocity) between humans, nature, and the spirit world.
Related Traditions
- Mesoamerica — the parallel tradition
- The Amazon — the lowland traditions
- The Cosmic Library