In February, the festivity of the Virgin de la Candelaria, our Little Virgen of Copacabana, is celebrated on Lake Titicaca and in many parts of the world
In February, the festivity of the Virgin of Candelaria, our Little Virgin of Copacabana, Indian Mother of this land is celebrated on Lake Titicaca and many parts of the world.
The Aymara population of Titicaca have worshiped the Pacha Mama for centuries, in the area where the sanctuary of Copacabana now rises, as it was considered a sacred place, close to the islands of the Sun and the Moon. With the arrival of Christianity, this cult of Mother Earth became syncretized in the form of the Virgin of Candelaria or Copacabana.
The main day is February 2nd, and on that day the Virgin is driven through the city of Puno and other Andean places, in a colourful procession, accompanied by priests, altar boys and parishioners. This is the moment when groups of musicians and dancers appear playing and dancing throughout the city.

Candelaria Festival

The festival is linked to the pre-Hispanic agricultural rites, and they celebrate by offering rituals to the Pachamama in honour of the Virgin.

Imbolc

Candelaria is also celebrated in Europe, and has its origin in Celtic celebrations in honour of the goddess Brigid in the northern hemisphere, during the month of February, it is the time in which the sun begins to recover its strength to heat the earth; the days get longer, the seeds germinate inside the earth and the sheep are in conditions for suckling their lambs.

It is, in short, the time when nature’s fertility awakens. And to make it sacred, the mother goddess, the Earth, was worshiped under the name of Brigid. Its festivity was called Imbolc and its celebrations, as in the Andean area, led to the current festivals of the Virgen de la Candelaria.

In the Candelaria’s celebration, light is of great importance, since its festivity coincides in the Northern hemisphere with the midpoint between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. It is the moment when days become longer, and the «clarity» returns. That is the reason why it was traditionally celebrated with processions along the paths and fields with candles lit and previously blessed in churches, which acquired sacred power against the devil and witches.

Virgencita de Copacabana, Mamacha de la Candelaria, Mother India, Pacha Mama, Brigit, Goddess Mother … thank you for blessing and taking care of us throughout time and cultures.

In these dates, we remember you, because recuperating the Ancestral Memory is also part of our healing.