Philippines Guide
For Travelers, Expats and Pinoys
Philippine Myths on Dreams
Science says dreams are mind plays of the conscious and the subconscious that occur during sleep. They may also occur while awake, too—what they call day dreaming. But Philippine myths on dreams say otherwise. Dreams are more than what they seem to be.
Philippine myth number one is that dreams are actually soul and spirit travels—much like transcendental travels. The sleep gets too deep that body, soul and spirit separate. The body stays in bed but the soul and spirit escape to frolic in some distant dreamland. Dreams are somewhat similar to the real world, except that they are in exaggerated terms—like running can be either too fast as to fly, or too slow as to be in super slow motion.
The Philippine myth also avers that some dreams are travels in the real world. The soul and spirit escape the body and roam around the house or vicinity or a far away but real place. This explains why, says this Philippine myth, lots of people feel they have been in a place they have actually never visited before. The place was visited before in soul and spirit, but only visited now physically.
A Philippine myth on dreams says they are for extraordinary or supernatural communication. It’s a “cyberspace” where one connects through a dreamland “Internet” to talk “online” with someone from another dimension or “website.” Hence, in dreams we talk to animals, strange creatures, odd fellows, dead relatives, cars, the president of the Republic, talking shoes or food, and other mystical beings—not very unlike the real Internet. In dreams, every word is a message other beings from another dimension want to put across to us.
Another Philippine myth says dreams are realities and the real world is actually a dream. So dreaming is actually waking up. And when wide awake, it’s actually a dream. Another myth is that dreams are warnings or hints of the future. So when dreaming of numbers, they’re hints for winning a number gambling game. When dreaming of a car crash, that’s a warning of an impending accident.
Philippine myths on dreams teach that dreams can direct us to a safe future if heeded. They also counsel that dreams give alternatives in life—one may be poor in real life but can be rich in dreams, and vice versa.
Dreams may be a product of mental elements playing tricks on the imagination, but they can be so real to a people with records of unlucky vicissitudes seeking refuge in Philippine myths on dreams.
Philippine Myth: Origin of the Moon and Stars
A long, long time ago, some Filipinos thought the moon was a silver crescent comb and the stars were necklaces of diamonds. The sky was said to be a mere arm-stretch away overhead. The Philippine myth goes this way.
The myth says that once, a small community lived in the middle of a rice field. They focused on rice and corn agriculture and they brought in abundant harvest each year. One of the families in the community was Maria’s family. The myth continues that people in the community were so close that they knew each other well. Maria was know there as a pretty girl.
Particularly, she was known for caring too much for her long, silky hair. The myth says it was her pride, and lots of other girls in the neighborhood envied her for it. And Maria loved it. She fancied herself the star of her village. So, the myth goes that she worked double time on her beauty, especially her long, jet black hair.
Maria cared so much for her hair. The myth says, aside from daily comprehensive herbal rituals, she regularly brushed her hair with a special silver crescent-shape comb. The myth says she let nothing touch her hair except the best material around. Even as she went about her daily chore she wore a coiled string of jewels and diamonds (supposedly common as ordinary rocks that time) to crown her hair—that’s aside from the jeweled necklace she wore.
One day, according to the myth, as she was pounding grains of corn and palay (rice stalks) in a native wooden pestle with a wooden mortar, her mother noticed the jeweled string around her head , the silver comb stuck in her hair, and the jeweled lace round her neck. She scolded her and told her to lay aside everything while working. So, continues the myth, Maria hanged the comb and jewelry on the sky above her. Wanting to finish her work in a hurry, she pounded the grains hard by raising the mortar really high. She didn’t notice hitting the sky which went up higher as she hit it with her pounding. Soon the sky went all the way up, along with her comb and jewelry. And they became the moon and the stars, according to his Philippine myth.
The myth’s lesson? Don’t be too preoccupied with vain personal beauty. Work always comes first. Too much self indulgence is bound to compromise on things that really count.
Philippine Myth on Mango Fruits
Philippine succulent mangoes are among the well patronized products in the international market since early times. One of the Philippine myths on the mango fruit goes this way.
Long time ago, so this Philippine myth goes, in a wooden villa deep in the forest was a beautiful lady. An only daughter of an old, old couple, they wanted her married as soon as possible. They feared dying without seeing her married. This Philippine myth says Pangga was her name, meaning “object of love” in the vernacular. Aside from her arresting natural pulchritude, she was very industrious, kind, and smart with rustic wisdom. Moreover, Pangga knew a lot of trade skills that had earned her quite a bit of money. Thus, her parents wanted nothing but the best man for her.
But Pangga fell for a local poet, a professional dreamer. He was known in the village as a desperate writer whose works of poetry made meager money. This Philippine myth continues that Manong, the dreamer, lived in the fields and slept in mangers. He was the town’s vagrant. But one thing about him; he had a knack for speaking sweet nothings, a full-pledged sweet talker who could promise the sun, moon and stars to the one his eyes beheld. Girls in town went crazy for him (though they never bought his poems) but his eyes were only for Pangga.
His sweet nothings never fooled old folks, though. His own parents, when still alive, often remarked “Please cut out the sweet pleasantries!” when he was at his verbal talent again. In the vernacular the remark went “Manong magtigil ka nga!” So, as this Philippine myth goes, they gave him the nickname Manong.
Pangga’s parents never bought Manong’s promises of bringing down the sun and moon to shine on their forest-dimmed bungalow and other sweet nothings. “You’re always saying that sun-moon conversation of yours. That’s all you know!” Pangga’s parents mocked him. But Manong and Pangga sought to stubbornly keep their love vows till their dying day. Then, the Philippine myth says, one day they disappeared in the woods.
The Philippine myth ends with a discovery of a new kind of tree. Its fruit was a bit crescent-shaped like the moon, yellow like the sun, and sweet like Manong’s tongue. It was rich in nutrition as Pangga’s multi-faceted genius. In time it was called “Manga,” a mix of their names, and today’s vernacular for mango.
The Philippine myth on mango fruits is a local version of Romeo and Juliet but which went sweeter as to create a sweet offspring—the mango fruit.
Philippine Myth on Ant Hills
Ant hills are distinct earth mounds on the ground where ant underground condos are hid. Right? Well, says a Philippine tale, they’re more than that. They’re actually mystical kingdoms disguised as earth heaps. So the Philippine myth warns anybody making fun of them or meaning them harm.
The Philippine myth started before the Spaniards came to the country, when Christianity was not heard of yet. Then, native tribes believed in mystic pagan gods ruling the physical realm from their invisible kingdoms. But some thought the kingdoms to be coexistent with the real world, moving with them in their daily activities. But both versions believed that for some reasons, the kingdoms could wish to surface and claim territory. If so, according to this Philippine myth, they appeared as mounds on the ground.
Up to this day, this Philippine myth is believed even by some Manila residents. They fear touching or even staring at earth mounds, especially those that pop up over days or overnight. These mounds are said to “grow” and the higher they grow the more power the have, or so this Philippine myth says.
Elves or dwarfs often figure in this tale. Ant hills often grow beside trees. Some are lonely ant hills amid fields or lots. Where ant hills abound, so are spiritual elfin creatures, says this Philippine myth. They are said to rule the area. And what can they do? According to this Philippine myth, these dwarfs can inflict lots of fearsome mischief on the offender. Some people swear to have been harmed by them, struck ill with mysterious diseases no physician could treat.
The Philippine myth adds that there are two ways to lick off the infliction: call quack-doctors or pacify the elfin spirits. With quacks the victim gets a chance to ward off inflictions through some eerie rituals. With pacifying spirits, the victim gets to offer little sacrifices like chicken’s blood, food offering, or merely apologizing. The Philippine myth avers that when favored by dwarfs, a person is said to be given gifts or powers by such elves, but with dire later consequences.
Yet, lots of people claim they nonchalantly trample such ant hills flat or shovel them away. And sure enough, they say, they find no mystical creature inside save armies of ants, termites, and tiny moths.
Philippine myth on ant hills can teach us either of two things: never mess up with anything you know nothing of or, the termite infested ceiling costing sums to repair is blamable to an ant hill somewhere in the yard.
Philippine Tale on Arnis De Mano
World renowned Philippine sticks martial arts called Arnis de Mano (literally, “harness of the hands”) is still looking for who actually founded it. Popular in Asia, America and Europe especially today, Philippine masters still debate how it started.
There are various versions of the origin of Arnis (or sometimes called Eskrima or Kali), but most seem to agree that it evolved from the sophisticated arts of China—specifically from the Shaolin Temple.
Many writers have attempted to chronicle the history of Filipino Martial Arts and intimated that Arnis was brought here from different parts of Southeast Asia by different Filipinos with different styles.
One tale goes like this: Long ago Chinese trade vessels docked at the port of Binundok (Binondo), a hilly part of pre-Hispanic Manila. Not far away was a Chinese settlement where Chinese Expats who liked the island lived. Here, an islander, Botho Pula, worked for a Chinese businessman.
Well, before he worked for the Chinese he had a quarrel with him. The Old Chinese easily beat him in the fist fight. To cut the story short, he agreed to work for free as a sign of penitence.
Before long, the old man saw Pula’s loyalty and took him to visit China. Pula eventually ended up studying in the Shaolin Temple. But in the Ming Dynasty, the temple was burned down by the Manchus and the temple monks massacred. Those who survived, Pula among them, were in hiding. The old Chinese was not as lucky.
Pula managed to find his way back to Manila passing through different Southeast Asian countries, taking in several stick fighting styles as he did—Indonesia, Thailand, Borneo, Malaysia, and finally, the Philippines.
From Kuta Kinabalu in Malaysia he landed first in Mindanao and worked his way to Manila from there, imparting the sticks arts he formulated to many natives on the islands. Later, a school of fighting arts in Mindanao was named “Bothoan.”
The natives each had different versions of what he taught them, owing much to different word meanings in their different dialects. Back in Manila, he taught the art to some natives of the North before he finally died.
When the Spanish conquistadores came to the Philippines years after Pula’s death, a cultic group of fierce and highly skilled warriors in the Visayas gave the Spaniards a real pain in the neck. They called themselves the Pulahanes.
Philippine Arnis art still remains fatherless except for some far-fetched claims such as tales like this. Yet, it remains part of the country’s proud heritage and among the deadliest fighting arts in the world.
Myths Surrounding Balete Drive
Balete Drive ghost stories have been around allegedly since the 1950s. The most popular is a “white lady” that haunts the long avenue and seems to target cab drivers in particular—but not exclusively. The hair-raising accounts went through the years, many claiming to have personally seen this mysterious lady. This has somewhat become part of Philippine folklore unofficially. Other ghost tales of Balete Drive include spirit kingdoms, spirit creatures, and haunted houses.
Balete Drive connects the long span between E.Rodriguez and N. Domingo Avenues in New Manila, Quezon City. It’s about 45 minutes travel from Manila via the Cubao route through Espana and E. Rodriguez Avenue. The Balete Drive corner at E. Rodriguez is a bustling business area mushroomed with fast foods and other establishments.
According to some Balete Drive ghost myths a tentacled, gargantuan Balete tree used to stand in the middle of the road. The tragedy began there. Some late night a cab driver was said to have violated a pretty girl on her way home. Since then, the ghost stories started and circulated in the metropolis. Some say the Balete Drive ghost tale was a brainchild of a news reporter who ran out of interesting stories to cover. Others say the Balete Drive ghost tales were testings for a school project on how fast and to what extent rumors would traveler.
Balete trees in Philippine folklore are said to be mysterious. They’re often a haunting place for evil spirits. Another version says they conceal mythical kingdoms unseen to the naked eye. Thus, Balete Drive is said to be a haunting spot for other spirit creatures like Philippine elves (“dwende”), smoking giants (“kapre), other monsters (“malign”), and fairies (“diwata”).
Actually, three haunted houses are said to remain in the vicinity. These are old mansions haunted by wandering spirits of their former owners. The myth is that their rich owners never bequeathed the mansions to anybody to ensure that they never fall in poor people’s hands. So they have become vacant for years, turning out to be what folks call haunted houses.
Also along Balete Drive is a 200 year old house that serves as antique shop, not for ghost stories, but Philippine heritage. It’s called “Bahay Sentenaryo” or Centennial House.
Balete Drive ghost stories are well circulated that they form part of local folklore—it was even a theme of a local movie. Its haunted house and spirit tales or myths thrill the imagination of adults, the young, and even skeptics.
Myth Quester: Enjoying Philippine Tales More
To see is to believe. This is how a Philippine tale ought to be enjoyed. Get out there and try to find out things for oneself.
A Philippine tale may sound too predictable to pay any attention to, but it begins to come alive when one is right in the middle of it. The unique thing about Philippine tales or myths is that, even in modern days, one can still find many people even in cities who believe them. Thus, follow up research on them is still possible. One only has to go right where the action is said to have happened.
Most Filipinos are natural Philippine myth or tale lovers who are only too glad to help out in unveiling mysterious stories from olden days. There are so-called psychics around who would gladly “trace” mystical spirits in rumored places of mysticism. There are plenty of acclaimed spiritists and local shamans who are still greatly sought out for as far as Philippine tales are concerned.
The myth on Maria Makiling, for instance, is still alive along the foothill vicinities around Mount Makiling in Laguna. Lots of curious tourists, local and foreign, still stick their noses in nooks and crannies of the mountain top in hopes of seeing or hearing the popular nymph of Philippine tales sing or cry.
Tale researchers or “questers,” a term coined from today’s growing interest in tales and myths, also look into the many mystery stories behind Mount Banahaw bordering Quezon and Laguna in Southern Tagalog. This mountain, according to Philippine tales, is said to be a power source of dark mysticism, and curious “questers” personally go there to “find out for themselves.” Tale “questers” also probe the mythical “footprint of Jesus” on the mountain.
Tale “questers” also frequent the hills of Montalban in Rizal, just south of Metro Manila. A Philippine tale says Bernardo Carpio, the fabled local giant hero who kept two mountains separate, still walks around the place as the guardian of wildlife in the area. Tale “questers” still visit the place to somehow chance upon the giant peeking through or quietly roaming the mountain ranges.
Tale questing is easy. Just be equipped with details on a Philippine tale or myth, know about the place, know how to get to the place, and have someone from the locality as company in the tale questing.
Books seldom capture the excitement of a Philippine tale or myth. Nothing beats the thrill of personally checking out details on the spot as a Philippine tale or myth “quester.”
Ghost Myths of San Juan, La Union
A headless nun, a faceless cigar smoker, a mysterious white lady at the old tower—-these are among the spooky tales that itchy ghost hunters can pry into during a short stay in the coastal town of San Juan, La Union.
San Juan was a quiet fishing town of La Union province in the North before the Americans came. Most tales are said to have originated around this time and handed down to generations. It’s still a quiet town, but pompous cottages and mansions have popped along its shores.
Modernity has caught up among its very old Hispanic buildings, with a few shops and inns budding along the main highway. It is an 8-hour trek from Manila by bus or private car.
The eerie tales persist today, though in mumbled whispers by folks wistful for the past. The present generation would just shrug apathy on them. But now and then fleeting shadows are said to cast themselves on a chosen few—-perhaps just for a fun scare.
One of the myths goes that old historical ruins of a Spanish convent were burned by the Japanese and a nun was killed and beheaded. The old ruins of the covenant still stand. On some nights when an unfortunate vacationer happens to pass by on a full moon at midnight, some bell would toll spookily. It supposedly signals the approach of the nun from behind.
First it’s a cool, creepy breeze. Then wavy long hair brushing against the nape. Looking behind, the victim would discover the spooky tale for himself.
Another myth is that, before the war, youths around an abandoned man-hole used to smoke cigars at midnight. Once, a stranger came, face overshadowed by a straw hat, asking for light. When they lent a lit cigar, the man looked up to light his, showing a spine-chilling blank where a face should have been. The faceless man allegedly still shows up, though rarely, because he prefers unbranded, native tobacco to imported ones.
The pristine beach of San Juan attracts foreign fishers who brag on their big catches of sword fish and tuna or “bariles” from the sea, which is also ideal for surfing. Old historical ruins of red bricks still stand there. It used to be part of a watch tower in pre-Hispanic times. A look-out sentry was posted watching out for pirates from the China Sea.
One of the tales on it says, in an attack, the sentry alerted the whole town. A mural on this is painted on one of the walls of the town plaza.
In recent times, tales say a laughing white lady is said to have been showing herself periodically in the old historical ruins, especially to handsome young men who brave the seashore at midnight.
Spooky tales of ghostly nuns, faceless creatures, and laughing white ladies may sound absurd and kids-stuff, but there’s always a child in us that want to find out. Well, San Juan, La Union is the perfect town to go spook-busting while checking out its historical old ruins and immaculate azure waters.
A Visayan Genesis Tale
A love story turned sour. This folklore says the world started in romance but ended in fierce rebellion. Like many Philippine history events that started in the invader’s love for the islands and how the natives rebelled against it.
According to this tale, long before anything was created save sea and sky, two gods ruled: Maguayan and Kaptan. The first had a daughter, which was the sea, and the second a son, the wind. Maguayan’s daughter was Lidagat, Kaptan’s son was Lihangin. The gods agreed to their marriage.
Sea and Wind had 4 kids: Likalibutan, Liadlao, and Libulan were boys and Lisuga was a girl. The folklore says Likabutan, the eldest son’s body was of rock. He was brave and very strong. Liadlao’s body was of gold. He was a happy kid. Libulan’s was of copper—he was weak and timid. Lisuga, the girl, was of pure silver. She was a gentle, sweet girl.
The parents, Wind and Sea, died. So Likabutan, took charge of wind control. The tale says grandpas Maguayan and Kaptan reared the growing siblings.
Likabutan, turned power greedy and sought to challenge grandpa Kaptan, the sky god. He tried to enlist his brothers’ help, which they gave reluctantly. Soon the trio was storming the heavens.
But they couldn’t topple the steel gate that barred their way. Likabutan, summoned enough wind power and blew the thing down. The tale adds that this so infuriated grandpa Kaptan that he struck them with a bolt of lightning each.
Libulan the copper and Liadlao the gold both melted into balls, turning into “moon” and “sun” respectively. The folklore continues that Likabutan was demolished into huge pieces and fell in the sea. His shattered body became “land.” Lisuga, their sister, wasn’t spared either. A lightning bolt shattered her into tiny silver pieces which became “stars.”
Later, the tale adds, out of a bamboo tree a man and woman came out. Later they had offspring. Their youngest, Pandaguan, was fierce and adventurous. He caught a big shark, thought it was a god, and adored it. Later, it made him think he was a god-conqueror, so he turned on the two gods. Angry they sent him a low-voltage lightning–just enough to get him back to his right senses. The folklore says that burned him black. From his darkened body came Negritos.
This folklore certainly mirrors how Filipino folks saw life around them. This affected some of their values and character—a romantic and adventurous people. Even tales attest to that.
Hidden Treasures in the Philippines
Is it true that caches of treasures–notably, Yamashita treasures– are buried in secret places in the Philippines? How did they get there in the first place? Treasure hunting in the country is accompanied by numerous Philippine myths or tales on them—from word of mouth and some even from the news.
Treasure hunting takes place in the country now and then, more so for the Yamashita treasures. Lots were illegal. Philippine legends say treasures are said to come from two sources—the Second World War and the unseen supernatural world.
According to a Philippine myth, Hitler tied up with Italy and Japan, worrying the Allied Forces about Vatican treasures that might fall in The Fuehrer’s hands. They were said to have secretly smuggled out some treasures and kept in England. But Hitler was gaining more ground faster than expected. So they were shipped out to Hongkong. But the Japanese intercepted it and diverted it to Australia.
But a super typhoon destroyed the Japanese fleet and the treasures ended up somewhere between the Visayas and Mindanao. That’s how it came to the Philippines, says a Philippine legend.
The treasures were gradually transported to Manila, says the myth, and portions were stashed away in remote mountains, caves, old churches, old monuments, old trees, or underground.
Then Americans came to free Manila forcing General Yamashita to divide his forces, each carrying enormous amounts of treasures. Some headed north, some to provinces around Manila. Filipino slaves were said to have carried the bulk of the treasures and did lots of the digging, says Philippine legends about them.
The Filipinos were later killed, along with scores of Japanese soldiers, to ensure the treasures’ secrecy. Later, According to the Philippine myth, ranking Japanese soldiers reportedly returned to the country as tourists after the war and recovered a lot of the treasure—again with the help of Filipinos.
Souls of those killed in the course of treasure hiding are said to be guarding them. So ghost stories accompany tales of the Yamashita treasures. They say, where ghosts of Japanese soldiers abound; there a treasure might be hidden. Tales of white ladies are also connected to treasures, more of the Yamashita treasures, according to Philippine myths-—they were rape victims of Japanese soldiers.
The local version of fairy tales has its own story. Local, flat-nosed nymphs, fairies, leprechauns, gnomes, and the like are said to be spirit guardians of unimaginable hoards of wealth—fact is, the tales say, Filipinos are sitting on a mountain of gold. And these are not just natural resources; they are literally treasures of gold.
Philippine myths or legends of treasures never die. They’re taken seriously even by respectable people. And who knows? They might indeed be real, and those of us who laugh at these tales might one day discover too late that the joke was on us.
