An Inca Legend
The Ynca Pachacutec, having reached an advanced age, decided to cease his conquests. He had expanded his empire to over one hundred and thirty leagues from north to south and from the Andes’ snowy peaks to the sea, spanning sixty to seventy leagues in width. Instead of further expansion, he focused on reinforcing ancestral laws and creating new ones for the common good.
Pachacutec established numerous towns in previously barren lands by constructing extensive irrigation channels that transformed them into fertile regions. He built many Sun temples modeled after Cuzco’s temple and convents for virgins. Additionally, he repaired storehouses along royal roads and constructed lodging houses for traveling Yncas.
He also ensured that every village had storehouses filled with supplies from the crops of the Ynca and the Sun to feed people during times of scarcity. Pachacutec reformed both religion—introducing new rites while destroying idols—and societal norms by enacting laws against previous abuses.
In military matters, he proved himself a capable leader by reforming the army and rewarding those who excelled in war. He favored Cuzco particularly, enriching it with new buildings and increasing its population.
A palace was built near schools founded by his great-grandfather Ynca Rocca. Due to these achievements and his benevolent rule, Pachacutec was revered as another Jupiter. According to Indian accounts, he reigned for over fifty years—some say more than sixty—in peace until his death when he was mourned deeply by all vassals before being deified like other Kings Yncas before him.
His heir was Ynca Yupanqui—his son with Ccoya Anahuarque—and left behind over three hundred children; some claim up to four hundred due to his long life span with many wives—a number considered modest given such a father figure among Indians.
