Bolivia: Guy at pagan festival passes out drunk, wakes up having been buried alive as a sacrifice

After passing out the night before following a heavy drinking session at the opening of the Mother Earth Festival in El Alto, Bolivia, on 5 August, Víctor Hugo Mica Alvarez, 30, found himself 50 miles away inside a casket in Achacachi.

The Mother Earth Festival sees people giving thanks to Pachamama, the goddess of earth and fertility, where they give offerings, also known as a 'sullu', to the planet.

Indigenous Bolivians believe the goddess 'opens her mouth' for offerings in August, and many will give anything from live animals to sheep foetuses, as well as cocoa leaves and sweets.

Some say ancient human sacrifices and offerings are still carried out in secret.

Alvarez believes that other party-goers had buried him alive as a 'sullu', sacrificing him to mother earth.

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