The sunchu[1] and the nucchu[2] red
Are sent to all he would destroy.
Doubtless you have not forgot
That I was Hanan-suyu's Chief.
Yupanqui ordered me to come;
Arrived, I came before the king,
And as he has a cruel heart,
He had me wounded as you see;
And now thou knowest, king and friend,
How this new Inca treated me.
Ollantay. Grieve not, old friend Rumi-ñaui,
Thy wounds before all must be cured;
I see in thee th' avenging knife,
To use against the tyrant's heart.
At Tampu now we celebrate
The Sun's great Raymi festival;
On that day all who love my name,
Throughout my realms hold festival.
Rumi-ñaui. Those three days of festival
To me will be a time of joy,
Perhaps I may be healed by then,
So that my heart may pleasure seek.
Ollantay. It will be so. For three whole nights
We drink and feast, to praise the Sun,
The better to cast all care aside
We shall be shut in Tampu fort.
Rumi-ñaui. The youths, as is their wont, will find
Their great delight in those three nights,
Then will they rest from all their toils,
And carry off the willing girls.
- ↑ Sunchu, a very large composita with a yellow flower, growing round Cuzco. It was one of those which were used on sacred festivals.
- ↑ Nucchu is a salvia, also considered sacred. A red flower. Perhaps these flowers were sent as a summons from the Inca, but I have not seen the custom mentioned elsewhere.
