Each year the people of District Ocongate (Quispicanchis) performs a ritual whose external aspect appears to be the image of Christ, but whose real goal is to bring man closer to nature. The ritual, associated with the fertility of the land and the worship of Apus, the spirits of the mountain, is one of the greatest festival of the Indian nations in the hemisphere: Qoyllur Rit'i. The main ceremony takes place at the foot of Mount Ausangate, at 4,700 meters, where temperatures often plunge below freezing. The ritual attracts thousands of pilgrims, including shepherds, traders and the merely curious who gather in the sanctuary of Sinakara. The popular belief is that the Christ child, dressed as a shepherd, appeared to a young boy Indian Marianito Mayta, and they quickly became friends. When the parents of Mayta have found dressed in rich tunics, they informed the local parish priest, Pedro de Landa, who tried in vain to capture the infant Christ who had disappeared and left behind only a stone. Marianito died immediately, and the image of the Lord appeared on the stone. Today, the festival begins with the day of the Holy Trinity, where more than 10,000 pilgrims climb to the snowline, accompanied by all sorts of dancers in costume (chauchos, qolla, or pabluchas Ukukus and various mythical characters).
