Kallpachakuy
Quechua
 Serafin M.
Coronel-Molina |
In Quechua the verb form “to
inspire” is much more productive than the noun form “inspiration.” Thus,
there are lots of verbs for the action of inspiring oneself and
others! The following verbs are from the Cuzco variety of Quechua.
Kallpachakuy
(kaly-pah-CHAH-kooi) – to inspire oneself, strive, exert oneself
Kallpachay
(kaly-PAH-chai) – to inspire, to encourage
Kawsachiy
(kow-SAH-chee) – to instill courage, to inspire the soul
Munachiy
(moo-NAH-chee) – to make someone want (to do) something
Sunquchay
(son-KO-chai) – to encourage, to inspire
Sunqullikuy
(son-ko-LYEE-kooi) – to be inspired, to strive to achieve
Sunqulliy
(son-KO-lyee) – to inspire others, to give others confidence |
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Kallpachakuy
and kallpachay literally have to do with “kallpa”, physical strength,
plus the suffix –cha, which changes a noun to a verb; thus, “becoming strong
(to be able to accomplish something).” One of these words has a reflexive
suffix –ku that makes it refer to the speaker, thus “to inspire oneself.”
The other one, without this particle, refers to inspiring in general.
Kawsachiy comes from the root
for life, meaning literally to make something live or survive.
Munachiy comes from the root
meaning to love, to want, to need or desire, plus the causative suffix –chi
meaning “to make to do something”: thus, to make (someone) want, need, love,
and by extension, to inspire.
Sunquchay, sunqullikuy and
sunqulliy come from the root for heart. The first one has the suffix
–cha which changes a noun to a verb, making this verb literally mean “to
hearten.” Both the second and third have the suffix –lli which more or less
means “to make like or to become”; thus, literally changing a noun to a
verb. Finally, the second also has the reflexive suffix –ku, making it
refer back to the speaker: to make oneself strong of heart, to
hearten oneself.
The –y at the end of all these
verbs is the mark of the infinitive form. |
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In Quechua culture, nature plays an all-important role. All
of our creation stories take Wiraqucha or Pachakamaq as the
prime creator of life, with Mamapacha or Pachamama, Mother
Earth, and Tayta Inti, Father Sun, as the principal gods and
sustainers of life. For us, life originated in the mountains, lakes and
rivers, and these places continue to offer us solace and sustenance, so all
of these are sacred and inspirational places.
Our cosmovision intimately links Hanaq Pacha,
the world above, with Kay Pacha, our earth, and Ukhu Pacha,
the world below. This is why the sun, stars, moon and even rainbows and
other natural phenomena that come from the sky inspire and sustain us as
much as the mountains, waterfalls and trees, flowers and plants that are
found everywhere on earth; and our ancestors buried their ancestors in caves
that they believed led to the underworld.
Our rich mosaic of music, dances, festivities and
artwork (textiles, ceramics, metalworking, painted crafts, etc.) all
demonstrate our close attachment to these sources of inspiration. And one
has only to see the majestic mountains and canyons, awe-inspiring volcanoes,
a condor in flight, or the simple beauty of a mountain flower or a rainbow
over one of our many mountain lakes, to appreciate how inspirational nature
has been and continues to be for us. |
Machu Picchu
(source:
Webshots)
Inti
Raymi, Festival of the Sun
(source:
www.cusco.info)
Lake
Llanganuco
(source:
Webshots)
Mount Huandoy
(source:
Webshots) |
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I am inspired by the
constancy of the mountains, the tranquility of the lakes, the effervescence
of the rivers. Sheep and llamas remind me of my youth, and inspire me with
their peacefulness and playfulness. Birds and wild animals inspire me
because of their strength, freedom and survival spirit.
The economic poverty but the spiritual richness of my
family have always inspired me to continue to struggle to better my life and
theirs, to be the best person I can be spiritually, emotionally and
physically.
The fact that my native language and culture have
survived for many centuries despite the oppression of the dominant society,
all inspire me to fight the good fight to save my language and my culture
from erasure and extinction.
I think of any and all of these things whenever I
need a lift, to cheer myself up, to remind myself of the value of what I
believe in.
Inspiration
After a long silence
the day will come when the
downtrodden
will make their voices heard
beneath the perplexed gaze
of the oppressor. And that day,
the mountains will tremble,
the rivers will roar,
the condors will stretch out their
invincible wings,
to give shelter and solace
to the newly voiced.
–Serafín M. Coronel-Molina, 1997
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Serafin M.
Coronel-Molina
(source:
personal photo)
Special words of
inspiration in Huanca Quechua
“Kichwanchik
pulun allpanawlaqmi kaykan. ¿Imaylaqtra tuki talpuy traklaqnaw likalinqa?”
Our Quechua is
still barren soil. When will it become fertile land for sowing the
seeds
of new knowledge?
– Rodolfo Cerrón-Palomino
1980
Andean condor
(source:
Webshots)
Waterfall in Ingenio, Huancayo
(source:
hyoperu.com) |
Pronunciation Guide
Except for the following exceptions,
all letters sound similar to the same letters in English.
a.
The “ll” in Quechua (represented
by “ly” in the pronunciation) is said like the “ll” in Spanish, or approximately
like the “ll” in “billion.”
b.
The “u” in some Quechua words
(represented by “o” in the pronunciation) is said like a Spanish “o”, or similar
to the “o” in English “fold.”The “q” in Quechua sounds like “k” at the beginning
of a syllable, and like the “ch” sound in the Scottish word “loch” at the end of
the word (represented as “kh” in the pronunciation). Note that a “p” at the end
of a syllable will also sound this way.
c.
The Quechua “ñ” is
the same as the Spanish “ñ”, said rather like the first “n” in “onion” and
represented by “ny” in the pronunciations.
d.
The Quechua q with an apostrophe, q’, is what’s called an ejective, said
by stopping the air flow in the back of the throat very briefly when pronouncing
the “k” sound. It makes it sound like a very sharp, “popped” k sound.
Unlike English, the
Quechua words for emotional inspiration are completely unrelated to the physical
words for inspiration (breathing).
Hahatiy
(hah-HAH-tee) – to pant, as when over-exerted
Hawkay/Hapkay
(HOW-kai / HAHKH-kai) – to breathe through the mouth
Ñusñuy
(NYOOS-nyooi) – to breathe noisily
Samay
(SAH-mai) – to breathe deeply, especially when tired
Sinq’ay
(SEN-k’ai) – to breathe through the nose
Interview
Questions
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Edwin: What does Wiraqucha and Pachakamaq mean?
Serafin: these are basically synonyms for one another,
meaning in essence 'creator god' in the Incan culture.
You mentioned that nature inspires you.. What word for
inspiration would that be in Quechua?
Wow, that's not such an easy question! I would have to say
that the word that best fits that usage would be 'sunquchay' because it is the
kind of inspiration that comes from the heart, and that is where
I most feel that kind of inspiration that nature gives
me.
What is your most intense experience of being inspired?
Do you recall the actual time and what happened?
I would say my most intense inspirational experience
was probably the simple fact of being born and raised in abject
poverty. Strange as it sounds, experiencing life
at that level inspired me and made me determined to overcome the poverty and
make a better life for myself and my family. All throughout my childhood, I kept
swearing that I would not end up like my parents, and that I would someday help
them so at least in their old age they would not have to suffer as they suffered
as the parents of young children. My experience was not unique or novel; it is
the experience of many indigenous families, but I was fortunate enough to have
parents who believed in the value of education and insisted that all of us
children at least finish grade school. Most of us also went on to finish high
school and at least some college. I am the only one who has gone all the way to
obtain a PhD (which I am in the process of finishing, and at an Ivy League
school no less!), although my younger brother also has a Master's degree in
computer science and artificial intelligence. So the suffering of my parents and
my brothers and sisters, and the community in general in which I was raised,
served as kind of contrary inspiration: rather than giving up hope, as so many
do, I became determined to overcome my circumstances and bring myself and my
family up out of poverty.