Day of the Pachamama | Ancestral thank-you ceremony
Volunteers from the Global Embassy of Activists for Peace (GEAP) in Argentina attended the ancestral ceremony of the Day of the Pachamama that was held at the Biopark La Máxima de Olavarría with the purpose of honoring Mother Earth.
This ancient Andean ancestral tradition is celebrated in Latin America every 1st of August (it extends to the 31st of the month). It includes different rituals: of purification, of gratitude to Pachamama, also to ask for the prosperity of the whole year and to bless the fruits of Mother Earth.
The group Voces Originarias, the director of La Máxima Biopark, Flavio Maldonado, members of the Mapuche urban community Pillan Manke, and representatives of the environmental movement of the GEAP "Guardians for the Peace of Mother Earth", among others, participated in the event.
The ritual carried out consisted of opening a hole in the earth to introduce typical foods with the purpose of feeding Pachamama. The rituals vary according to the region.
The activity organized by the Mapuche community Pillan Manke, led by Mirta Millán, takes place throughout the month of August and is one of the oldest in South America.
