There are some who say that the term “Cullahuada” comes from the Aymara Word “Cullaca” which jeans “Sister”; that is to say the dances of siblings. It is also said that it was a sacrosanct dance that the God Viracocha created to cure maladies. The Cullahua in our times is a dance that depicts ancient human as in the first man and first woman. The Aymara legend says that Cullahuada was the wife of the god Viracocha.

Viracocha created the three essences of nature; animal (el llamppu), vegetable (la qoa) and mineral (sihuayro). These are the elements that are still used today in offerings and were used by those who cured illnesses. Later this person became a “Yatiri”, one sent by the Pachamama. Then this figure became the Candelaria Virgin.
Cullahua, as the first woman and wife of Viracocha, is always seen spinning thread and teaching her chosen ones how to cure illnesses.

The music of the Cullahuada is one of those native genera in which the melody and rhythm combine beautifully and communicate an uncontrollable dynamism.