Apus: The Sacred Spirits of the Mountains The Apus are powerful spirits and beings of light which have been considered to be manifested in the mountains for millennia. The are seen as guardians and guides, and masters to help us. Many andean communities still hold a powerful communion and relationship with these Apus and seek guidance and aid through many ceremonies in their names. In the Quechua language, surviving still from the Incas, the plural of Apu is Apukuna.