Filipino Mythology

Sunday, August 19, 2007

MELU, THE CLEANLY CREATOR (Blaan)

In the very beginning, there lived a being so large that he could not be compared with any known thing. His name was Melu, and when he sat in the clouds, which were his home, he occupied all the space above. His teeth were pure gold, and because he was very cleanly and continually rubbed himself with his hands, his skin became pure white. The dead skin which he rubbed off his body was placed on one side in a pile. By and by this pile became so large that he was annoyed and set himself to consider what he could do with it.

Finally, Melu decided to make the earth; so he worked very hard in putting the dead skin into shape. When it was finished, he was so pleased with it that he determined to make two beings like himself, though smaller, to live on it.

Taking the remnants of the material left after making the earth, he fashioned two men. But, just as they were all finished, except their noses, Tau Tana from below the earth appeared and wanted to help him.

Melu did not wish any assistance, and a great argument ensued. Tau Tana finally won his point and made the noses which he placed on the people upside down. When all was finished, Melu and Tau Tana whipped the forms until they moved. Then Melu wen to his home above the clouds and Tau Tana returned to his place below the earth.

All went well until one day a great rain came. All the people on earth nearly drowned from the water which ran off their heads into their noses. Melu, from his place on the clouds, saw their danger and he came quickly to earth and saved their lives by turning their noses the other side up.

The people were very grateful to him and promised to do anything he should ask of him. Before he left for the sky, they told him that they were very unhappy living on the great earth all alone. So, he told them to save all the hair from their heads and the dry skin from their bodies and the next time he came he would make them some companions. And in this way, there came to be a great many people on the earth.

Source: The Soul Book. Francisco R. Demetrio, Gilda Cordero-Fernando and Fernando N. Zilacita.
________________________________________________________________

Ang mapanumpa at mainggiting diyos The vindictive and jealous god

From the beginning, Tasu Weh has always been jealous of Fiu Weh.
Once upon a time, when the heavens still hung low, there was plenty of food to eat. Fiu Weh didn't have a hard time looking for something to eat.

One day, he laid out his rice to dry in the heat of the sun. Afterwards, he called the birds to him and he asked for some of their eggs. The birds landed near the rice and gave Fiu Weh their eggs in thanks. Fiu Weh thanked the birds, and feasted on the eggs.

There was also this other day, when Fiu Weh craved the heart of the wild boar. He called the Wild-boars of the forest and asked them for a heart. Because he was kind and good, the boars gave him what he wanted. Happily, Fiu Weh thanked the boars and feasted.

When Tasu Weh learned of this, he became very jealous of Fiu Weh. He approached Fiu Weh and asked him how was he able to get food so quickly, for he was starving. Because Fiu Weh cannot lie and was inherently good anyway, he told Tasu Weh the truth.

Tasu Weh did as he was bid by Fiu Weh. He laid out rice for the birds and asked for eggs. The birds landed on the rice, but refused to give their eggs to Tasu Weh, for they knew what he was really like. This angered Tasu Weh, and he cursed them, saying "From now on, you shall never be close to man. You will only be able to get close to them only if they trap you. That is my curse upon you and all your kind!"

Tasu Weh, still hungry, decided to call the Wild Boars. "I wish a boar heart," he shouted to them. The boars approachd, and then Tasu Weh killed one of them and it cried in pain. The boars got scared and scattered. Tasu Weh flared!!! He was so angry! 'Accursed boars! I curse you like I did the birds! You would never be close to man, and you will only be close to you when they catch and kill you. Remember that!" he shouted.

From then on, the boars and the birds aren't easily caught, they need to be hunted, and then killed.
____________________________________________________________________

SPIRITS OF THE B'LAAN TRIBE

The Benevolent Spirits

MELE or MELU

The Creator and ancestor of men. The highest in the order of spirit-beings. He lived in the Sky World and did not meddle in the worldly affairs of men. He is the most powerful of all spirit-beings and his assistance was sought in times of calamities and at very special occasions by mortals. They prayed and gave offerings to him.

DIWATA (Duwata, Dwata, Duata, Adwata)

According to Bilaan myths, Mele with Diwata and with Fiuweigh and Saweigh, were the first beings in the beginning of the world. They made the world and men by joint efforts. There were also two different other stories told by famous anthropologies, Cole and Genotiva. According to Cole, Diwata is the wife of Mele and of equal strength with him. But, according to Genotiva, Diwata is Mele's younger brother and of not equal strength with Mele.

MNGUHUL

A harmless spirit-being because they made friends with the people. They had the ability to forewarn people of dangers and to foretell possible luck in hunting, any event or activity that will be undertaken by any member of the community. The Malevolent Spirits Magical incantations and offerings were employed to ward off their evil powers.

BLUGUL

They are the souls of bad men eaten by a soul-eating-demon who sleeps in the underworld. He causes earthquakes when he moves in his sleep.

SILING/BLANGA/MAGUT-AYEM Another class of demons, old and most feared because they feed on human flesh.

LOOS KLAGAN

A mischievous spirit that caused a lot of embarassment to his victims especially among women. He also caused harm to people who angered him.

MALULUGUD

Spirit that scares and frightens people by transforming into frightful-looking animals. MALALAGUY, a Bilaan who was a vagabond and a good-for-nothing individual was likened to this spirit.

BUSUA

This is a class of malicious spirits. They fedd on the souls of people and caused sickness to those whose souls they wanted to eat. Source: The Soul Book. Francisco R. Demetrio, Gilda Cordero-Fernando and Fernando N. Zilacita.

Read more...

Filipino Folklore

What is Filipino Folklore?

Dr. Damiana Eugenio, a renowned Filipina folklorist, says there is still no universally accepted definition of the word "folklore". But any bit of knowledge handed down from generation to generation, which describes or depicts the beliefs and lifestyle of the ancestors of a chosen ethnic group, is rendered unique to that group, and is respected as folklore.

Folklore is usually transmitted by word of mouth. Oral traditions are very common among the indigenous tribes still existent in the Philippines. What students of folk literature do, basically, is transcribe and interpret what is related to them by the storytellers of a tribe. The preservation of the knowledge of our elders can be carried out in many ways, and they are not inaccessible to anyone who would seek them.

Recently, interest in folklore seems to have diminished. With the swift pace of modern living, looking back at our roots through spyglasses such as the study of folklore seems more and more difficult, if not pointless. The Filipino youth, especially, are more concerned with looking forward as the rest of the world hastens toward a technological future. We do not want to be left behind, after all. But if we were never meant to look back, why does the ancient saying "Ang siyang di lumingon sa pinanggalingan ay di makararating sa paroroonan (Whoever does not look back at a starting point, will not arrive at a destination)" remain in our lips? Why do we remind ourselves of the necessity of stopping to pay respect to our forebears and the advice they could still give?

This website is dedicated to the presentation – or, should I say, representation – of native Filipino folklore. It aims to favor the lore of no particular ethnic group, as everyone is aware of the diversity of tribal affiliations still present in our everyday lives. It means to declare that the tales spun during one tribe’s journey through life and time are no longer for the enjoyment and convenience of the members of that tribe alone, but for the whole world.

It also does not intend to evoke rivalry among ethnic affiliations. Sometimes closely-related versions of a single story exist in the lore of two or more ethnic groups, and a sort of discord is brought about when some groups attempt to "reclaim the rights" to the plot. It is hoped that the topographical areas attributed to particular tales would only serve to be references for study and not argument. At any rate, contributed variations of any tale presented in this site are welcome.

We shall endeavor to keep on adding as many stories to this site as we can. But for the moment let us all look back and see what we have done.

This site divides Philippine folklore into five major parts, namely:
Myths and LegendsFablesTales of the SupernaturalHeroic TalesTales of Laughter

Myths are tales involving the gods of old. They may deal with a conflict among the gods themselves, or ways in which the gods would reveal themselves as unique characters unto the lowly creatures of the Earth, including, of course, man. Legends of creation usually involve spirits or gods, or just an omnipotent God. At any rate, almost every legend involves a miracle or curse invoked in the name of, or by the hand of, a Higher Power.

Generally, fables are short narratives that revolve around particular moral lessons. Animals are the heroes in most fables. They are made to stand for certain traits of the human race, and to teach the ways of the world through vivid characterization and lively interaction.

The supernatural involves the fair folk, dwarves, mermaids, demons, strange beasts – and other phenomena. Tales of divine intervention are included here, as they are also classified as unexplainable.

Heroes adventure and gather the fruits of their labor and Fate. These tales have inspired the Filipinos to aspire for the greatest since the dawn of time.

And, finally, what is a Filipino if he does not know how to laugh? Tales of laughter insist on having a separate category. Moral lessons are sometimes scattered about…though most of the time, stories in this area had been created and are handed down for the sole purpose of having fun.



Manananggal

What are Manananggal? The scariest goriest bad ass vampires you are ever to come across.
By day, they look like beautiful women. In fact, the more adoring males they come across they often turn into their consorts who guard their queen fanatically, especially when her inanimate body is most vulnerable: at night. The word Manananggal roughly means "self-remover" in Tagalog. This is because at night, a Manananggal's head lifts from her body cavity, and she flies about, her internal organs hanging from her floating head. Alternatively, she turns her arms into wings, or spouts wings, and severs at the torso instead.
The smell of vinegar gives them away, the fluid that preserves their ghastly parasitical cohabitation with their daytime body. Manananggal prey on pregnant women, specifically the fetus, almost exclusively. They have a tube which comes out of their mouth to perform the feeding,

You kill a Manananggal by putting salt on its lower body while the head is flying about. But of course, you have to get past the fanatical consorts which guard her vulnerable lower half first. If a Manananggal cannot reunite with its lower half by sunrise, she dies. The salt prevents this. They are part of a larger group of corpse-loving changelings called Aswang, of which they are perhaps the strongest and most powerful.

Maria Makiling

Maria Makiling is a diwata, a filipino fairy. She is a trickster forest spirit. She is alternatively malevolent, especially to hunters, and helpful. She is also sad in a way. Her story is attached to Mt. Makiling on the big island of Luzon.

Makiling is one of the most famous mountain in the archipelago and with that comes a lot of folklore and legends about the mountain and the goddess that lives in the mountain, Mariang Makiling. In fact people living within the towns under the shadow of the mountains has always describe the silhouette of the mountain peak as that of Makiling lying down.
One of the famous stories is about an enchanted woman who lived in the quiet woods at the foot of Mt. Makiling. The people named her Maria Makiling because of where she lived. She was a young and beautiful woman. The beauty abundance and serenity of this enchanted place complimented her rare qualities. She was kind and compassionate to the town people. She shared the full and rich abundance of her enchanted places; fishes in the lake, food and crops, fruits and trees. All were for free. People could borrow from her whatever they need, whatever they wanted. Her kindness was known far and wide. One afternoon, a hunter came by and wandered into her kingdom. When he saw her beauty, he fell in love with her and she too felt the same way for him. They met and talk everyday and promised to love each other forever. Until one day Maria waited for him but he did not come. Maria discovered that he found a real woman and got married. She was very sad and frustrated. She felt deeply hurt and realized that the town people could not be trusted because she was different from them and they were just using her. Forgiving was really difficult. Her sadness and frustration turned into anger that she refused to give fruits to the trees. Animals and birds were no more. Fish no longer abound the lakes. People seldom saw her. It was only during pale moonlit nights that they sometimes see her.

Another story is about three suitors who intensely battled for the heart of Makiling. One was a Spanish soldier, another, a Spanish-Filipino mestizo and the third, a Filipino farmer named Juan. In the end the Filipino won the heart of Maria Makiling which angered the two other suitor. They have plotted to kill him through a fire that broke down on the garrison, which they blamed against Filipinos including Juan. They shot Juan as punishment and before dying he shouted the name of Maria. Maria went down in the mountain and cursed the two as well as the other men who cannot accept failure in love then she went back in the mountains never to be seen again. The Spanish soldier died during the revolution while the mestizo died of illness. When somebody gets lost in the mountains, people attribute it to the curse on Makiling.
The legends usually revolve around hunters getting lost in the woods and falling in lover with her, and her alternately being helpful at first, and then wrathful when promises to her are broken, or just plain mean to hunters lost in the woods to begin with, perhaps due to prior experiences? There is always a theme of lost or forbidden love as well with Maria.

Tikbalang

A tikbalang is sort of a centaur in reverse- like a minotaur. They are sometimes harmless, and sometimes downright malevolent creatures, depending upon the myth, but they are never stupid. They are tricksters, and are very playful and intelligent. They often riddle whomever they meet, and if successfully beaten at their riddling, they will allow their victims to pass, or reward with gold.

Kapre

Kapre are strange tree demons that smoke huge cigars.
The term kapre was derived from the Spanish "kapfre", in turn from the Moors, from the Arabic Kaffir, an African non-believer. It is suggested that when the conquistadors first came to the Philippines, they heard about the mystical creatures approximating their kafre, and soon the conqueror's lexicon prevailed in any areas.

Be very careful when trees move without wind. This means that a kapre is present at the very top of the tree. The kapre sits quietly smoking a leg-sized cigar that never burns out. It terrifies passerby with its size, glowing eyes and cigar, but it is otherwise harmless. It is said to live in trees, abandoned houses and ruined buildings. They are believed to appear only at night.

Mangkukulam

Mangkukulam is Filipino black magic. A great practitioner of Mangkukulam is called a Mambabarang. Do not mess with it. I won't even talk that much about it, besides to quote this tale:

A woman friend (let's call her Lita) of ours from Batangas (Philippines) had an ugly fight with an old man regarding a coconut tree. After sometime, Lita finds her tummy getting big. Thinking she was pregnant, she announced it to almost everyone in the barrio. Days passed she became aware that there is something wrong with her preganancy. Her tummy gets bigger way too fast - considering that she had only been "pregnant" for two months. When she went to a doctor, the doctor tells her that there's some kind of a "mass" inside her tummy, and it's definitely not a baby. So she had surgery. When the doctor opened her tummy, nata de coco (a processed coconut) spilled out of her. Almost 2 bags were taken out. "Binarang ka siguro ng matandang nakaaway mo, kilala iyon sa lugar namin bilang mambabarang" (The old man you had a fight with is well known to be a mambabarang and you had become his victim) says one of our ka-barrio.

Siquijor
I once talked to a guy from Siquijor. I told him I wanted to go to that island because of its fascinating connection with the supernatural. And he was like, "Why would you ever want to go there?" It's not a particularly large or impressive island. It's quite tiny and charming, actually, it's just a little out of the way. But for some reason, its infamy in the Visayas as a center of witchcraft and Mangkukulam is well-establish. The guy said he was constantly teased at school in Cebu for being from there. And whatever you do, according to those "in the know," if you go to Siquijor, if you let anyone there touch you, you MUST immediately touch them back! Or you will be doomed to the world of black magic and be at the mercy of Mangkukulam. Here is a good examination of the quaint little island with the strange reputation.

Read more...
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...

  © Blogger template Brownium by Ourblogtemplates.com 2009

Back to TOP