Climate Change & Disappearing Glaciers,  Festivals, Sacred Rituals, Religion,  Peru's Andes Mountains,  Traditions + Rituals

I End up Doing the Whipping Dance

Doing the Yawar Mayu dance with a dancer from Cusco

El Fotografo and I were making friend with our camping neighbors — a comparsa from Cusco — at the Qoyllur Rit’i pilgrimage last weekend, when suddenly one of the young dancers snatched me by the arm.

“Come on, dance,” she said.

No, I said, several times — No to the satin skirt being pinned around my (enormous) down jacket, No to the elaborate flat hat (montera) being strapped on my head, No to the leather whip being thrust in my gloved hand.

No, because this gringa didn’t want to risk having a heart attack by foolishly dancing the “Yawar Mayu” (River of Blood) ritual whipping dance at 15,500 feet above sea level.

Not even El Fotografo took my objections seriously: “Look, if you want to get your interviews with them, you have to dance.” He pushed me into the circle of comparsa members that were looking on.

Disconcertingly I noticed a few turistas running over with cameras in hand. I was fair game for all.

So I went along with it: The violin and drum music started up, and the dancer and I swung our whips in the air, circling one another, as we closed in to whip each other’s ankles.

The poor girl had nothing on her legs but thin pantyhose. I gave a few lame cracks.

“Harder! Harder!” the onlookers yelled.

I staggered around in my preposterous outfit — with a fully loaded backpack on my shoulders — and prayed that I wouldn’t faint. The girl wasn’t hitting my legs that hard, but my heart began to pound erratically, and I was reminded of the arrogant French alpinist who had died at Qoyllur Rit’i in 2007. He tried to run up the mountain and his heart exploded.

Boom. C’est la vie.

The dance ended, and the girl and I hugged, and then, yes, I did get my interview.

I still maintain that I would have gotten it without going through the whipping dance, but EF insists not.

I am an American writer who lived in Lima for seven years (2007-2014), where I covered Andean traditions, melting glaciers and daily life in the capital for Miami Herald, MSNBC and Huffington Post. I now live and work in northern Florida where I champion climate change advocacy and compassionate, affordable eldercare.

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