The myths say that the Father of the Incas was Wiracocha, blond and bearded with emerald eyes who rose out of Lake Collasuyu after the great flood that swept the earth and left it in darkness. The people are divided as to who he was. Some say he was from Atlantis and that he survived the destruction of his civilization; others say that he descended from the stars and that he came to help the Incas create their great civilization. Depictions of Wiracocha show him with the disk of the sun around his head and golden serpents in each hand. It is said that out of his love for all of life he created the sun, the moon and the stars. Then he created humans out of great pieces of rock and sent them to the four corners of the earth. He kept Manco Capac and Mama Ocllo with him; they were the children of the sun and the moon. Then one day he told them that they must leave Lake Collasuyu and walk into the wilderness and establish their empire. He gave them a golden bough and said they would know when to stop when they plunged their bough into the ground and it took root. Therefore, they set out on their journey, traveled a great distance, and encountered many hardships.
One day, they came to a place of great beauty, which they named the Sacred Valley. They knew in their hearts that this must be the place, and so they plunged the golden bough deep into the earth and there it took root. They built their city in the shape of a puma and named her O'osgo Cusco, which means "navel of the earth."
One day, they came to a place of great beauty, which they named the Sacred Valley. They knew in their hearts that this must be the place, and so they plunged the golden bough deep into the earth and there it took root. They built their city in the shape of a puma and named her O'osgo Cusco, which means "navel of the earth."