The Tinguian: Social, Religious, and Economic Life of a Philippine TribeCole, Fay-Cooper
Religion
The Tinguian: Social, Religious, and Economic Life of a Philippine Tribe
Cole, Fay-Cooper
Tinguian (Philippine people)
A woman of Lagangilang was ill with dysentery; and a medium, in this
instance, a man, was instructed to make _Dawak_. He began summoning
the spirits by striking a dish with his head-axe. Soon he covered
his face with his hands, began to sway to and fro, and to chant
unintelligible words. Suddenly he stopped and announced that he was
the spirit Labotan, and that it was his wish that blood and rice
be placed on a head-axe, and be laid on the woman's abdomen. Next
he ordered that they should feed some rice to the small pig which
lay bound on the floor. "If he eats, this is the right ceremony,
and you will get well," he said. The pig refused the food, and, after
expressing regret that he was unable to help, the spirit departed, to
be succeeded by Binoñgon. He at once directed that the pig be killed,
and the palpitating heart be put on the woman's stomach, and then
be pressed against each person in the room, as a protection against
illness. At first he refused to drink the liquor which was offered to
him, for it was new and raw; but when he learned that no other could be
obtained, he drank, and then addressed the patient. "You ate something
forbidden. It is easy to cure you if the spirits have made you ill;
but if some one is practising magic, perhaps you will die." With
this cheering message the spirit departed, and Ayaonwán appeared. He
directed an old woman to feed rice and water to the patient, and
then, without further advice, he said, "The other spirits do not
like me very well, so I cannot go to their places. I went to their
places, but they said many bad words to me. I offered them _basi_,
but they did not wish to take; so I asked the way, and they showed
me to the other spirits' place. I was poor, and had nothing to eat
for noon or night. When I was in the road, I met many long snakes,
and I had to push them apart so I could walk. And I met many eels,
and asked of them the road; but the eels bit me, and took me into
their stomachs, and carried me to Luluaganan to the well there; then
I died. The people, who go to the well, say, 'Why is Ayaonwán dead? We
have a bad odor now;' and the eels say, 'Whose son is this?' and they
rubbed my dead spirit, and I received life again. Then I took blood
and rice with me to the sky to the other eels to make _Sayang_. The
eels gave me gold for my wrists; the monkeys gave me gold for my teeth
and hair; the wild pig gave me bracelets. There is much more I can
tell you, but now I must go." The spirit departed, and a new one was
summoned. This spirit took the spear in his hand, and after chanting
about the illness of the woman, he drank _basi_ out of a dish, sitting
on the head-axe. Then singing again he dipped the spear in the oil,
and allowed it to fall drop by drop on the stomach of the sick woman;
later he touched the heads of all present with the spear, saying,
"You will not be sick any more," and departed.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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