ABSTRACT
Quechua-speaking farmers in the southern Peruvian Andes depend on water from glaciers, springs and rain for the irrigation of their fields and for domestic use. Water is seen as a life-giving and living being, and a vital force that emerges from the mountains. People maintain relations of reciprocity with sentient beings in their surroundings to ensure fertility, productivity, wellbeing and water supply. Mountains and water-beings, like springs, lakes and ponds, can be dangerous and should be approached with caution. Before starting construction works, proper offerings have to be made to avoid accidents. In the last few decades, farmers have experienced the effects of climate change: glaciers are melting and springs are drying. Collective ritual practices, such as making offerings to springs and paying tribute to mountains, have acquired new meanings. This chapter discusses the contemporary collective work to maintain springs, streams, canals and ponds, and the ritual practices that ensure continued water supply. The author analyses these kinds of work as world-making practices that engage living water-beings, and argues that these practices are as important as ever in the wake of climate change.
