Peruvian Wisdom

Archeo-astronomer Mallku Aribolo on Ancient Incan Observatories

by Theresa Olson

Mallku Aribolo gazes over the pristine valley of Cusco with guests.

When I first stepped off the plane that took me from Lima, the capital city of Peru, to Cusco, the ancient capital city of the Incas, I thought I had landed in Switzerland. Soft blue skies with puffy white clouds greeted me, punctured by the tall snowy mountain peaks of the Andes. Traditional Andean folk music, consisting mainly of pan pipes and drums, floated through the air, providing a delightful entertainment while we waited in line for our luggage. The airport was clean, light, and airy. Even the restrooms were clean. Not a bad beginning to the trip, I thought.

The air smelled sweet, clean, and healthy. No smog, no pollution, just good old fresh air, albeit a tad short on oxygen that high up. The City of Cusco resides at 10,000 feet, and if one is not careful, altitude sickness can become a very real concern.

Standing outside the airport, watching the dazed American tourists come off the plane, stood a man short in stature but big in presence, dressed in white Western clothes, with long black hair and the brown skin of the Quechawan or native Peruvian. His eyes were soft but piercingly clear, his nose aquitaine, his forehead high. He smiled at us and gently directed us towards the waiting bus. I was drawn to him; something was different about this man—the confidence he portrayed, the knowingness that issued from his very being.

I later discovered that he was Mallku Aribolo, an esteemed archeo-astronomer, and our tour guide during this ten-day spiritual pilgrimage in Peru. Mallku had spent most of his life uncovering the secret locations of the ancient Incan solar and lunar observatories hidden throughout the land and learning about their proper function. He was about to share some of this knowledge with us, and I was ready to leap into the quest. This was the beginning of my sojourn into the ancient mysteries of Peru.

For the next ten days Mallku took us to the ancient observatories of the Incas, allowing us access to the hidden buildings and centers located on hills, in dales, in very dark caves and labryinths, behind farms, above towns, and in just about every nook and cranny that the Spanish overlooked when they invaded Peru in the 1500s.

Although some of these sites have fallen into disrepair, the feeling of something special lingered in the air. Mallku would take us into the center of these places: Moray, Tipon, the Sun Temple near Ollyantaytambo, Pisac, Sacsayuaman and, of course, Machu Picchu, and share with us not only the legends but also the scientific use of each location and show us the various instruments created by the Incans to measure the movement of the stars (which still work to this very day). He would take pictures of the various instruments for his own journals and explain the precise scientific measuring systems that the Incas developed for tracking the journey of the sun and stars over the Andes. The Incas were a sun-god people, and called themselves the Children of the Sun. Legend has it that the Children of the Sun are now returning and restoring the hidden knowledge and that this knowledge will remain lively for the next 500 years.

Moray, also called "Navel of the Earth," has terraced micro-climates in which the Incans grew crops.

Many a time in these sacred places we would meditate. Meditations were filled with silence, spontaneously deep, as if these places were built to augment and nourish inner spiritual experience.

When our ten-day tour came to an end, it was difficult to leave the country of inner spiritual experience and outer physical beauty. I knew I had to come back.

Seven years later that desire came true, and earlier this year, Mallku took me on a spiritual pilgrimage to holy sites I had not visited before. We ended up in Puno, a medium-sized town located on the shore of Lake Titicaca, the largest navigable lake at the high altitude of 15,000 feet. Due to the intense interest of these people in all true spiritual experiences, more than 10,000 children now practice Transcendental Meditation in the tiny town of Puno. Entire schools began the practice together, once all the wonderful benefits of this technique became known to the administrators of the schools in the area. I met with some of the children and relished being in their happy presence. These children of the mountaintops are smart, happy, and spiritually fulfilled. They speak with innocence yet maturity, they sparkle with inner satisfaction, they live in joy. It was a huge contrast to the children I had met seven years ago who were suspicious, harsh, and sad. Something very good is happening, I thought.

Mallku continued to share his vast knowledge of the ancient observatories, taking us this time to even more out-of-the way locations, such as the Aramu Muru doorway and Amantani Island. The Incas were precise in the construction of their buildings, simple in the design of their architecture, wise in the knowledge of the universe. It simply takes one by surprise that such precise knowledge could be gained quickly, easily, effortlessly with the instruments used by the Incas. Where did they get this knowledge? How could the stones that were used in construction be placed so precisely? How did the Incas manage to move stones that weigh more than 16 tons in a time when automobile cranes did not exist?

Mallku did not overstep his limits. He would tell us information, and then stop when speculation took the listeners by storm. In this way Mallku honors his ancestors, keeping knowledge pure and simple. Like the scientist that he is, if he doesn’t know, he doesn’t say. If he knows, he explains as clearly as he can. English is the fifth language he learned to speak, and sometimes the words do not come, but the meaning is there, clearly. One comes away knowing without speculation.

I remember coming home the first time with pictures of various instruments carved into boulders and wondering about how they were used. I had heard that Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, the founder of the Transcendental Meditationmovement, considered the Incan civilization to be Vedic in its origins, so I thought to ask Tim Fitz-Randolph, the top builder of Maharishi Vedic Observatory in Fairfield, about these instruments.

Tim explained these were just like the ancient Vedic instruments used in India. With regard to the boulder, Tim explained that ancient vedic astronomers would fill the flat space with water, which would mirror the stars overhead. The various holes in the flat space and on the small ledge just above the flat space would be for holding a staff for measuring the movement of specific stars across the sky.

I knew then that Tim and Mallku must meet, that the exchange of knowledge that would take place between them would be one of the most fascinating dialogues ever held. But I had no idea how to arrange it.

It has arranged itself.

On Saturday, October 4, at 8 p.m., in Dalby Hall at Maharishi University of Management, Mallku Aribolo and Dr. Tim Fitz-Randolph will speak on the Ancient Observatories of the Incans Seen in the Light of the Maharishi Vedic Observatory. Their presentation will include photos, music, and a lively exchange of knowledge not heard before on the topic of ancient observatories. Admission is free and open to everyone.

“The individual is cosmic,” Tim quoted Maharishi as saying. In other words, the universe within reflects the order of the universe without. The proper use of the Vedic Observatory is to generate harmony in the neurophysiology of the human nervous system. Although the instruments do precisely measure the movement of the Sun and Moon, their purpose is to do more than that—they also align human intelligence with the cosmic intelligence of creation, simply through perception Pretty much a description of my experiences at the observatories of Peru.

Mallku and his wife, Alanna Aisha, will also speak on the Spiritual Art and Culture of Peru on Sunday, Oct. 5, 8 p.m., at ICON Gallery. A $5 donation is suggested. Both events are sponsored by the Institute for the Development of Enlightened Arts and Sciences (IDEAS), 501 (c)3 non-profit organization. For more information, call 641-472-5875.

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