Philippines Guide
For Travelers, Expats and Pinoys
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.
The Myth on the Gracious Maria Makiling
Makiling is a mountain between Laguna and Quezon and towers all over most major towns of Laguna. According to myths, it is guarded by a local nymph-god named Maria Makiling. Ever met her yet?
A lot of local and foreign poets have been inspired by the myth on Maria Makiling. One of them was the national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal. There are countless myths and tales on her, and one of them is her kind disposition on both good and bad people.
This myth has it that Maria Mikiling, in earlier days, would be often seen roaming the forests of the mountain, or even visiting nearby towns around the foothills disguised as an old lady or teenage girl. She would dole out wealth to town folks who were in need by sending fruit baskets stashed with gold nuggets or pieces of expensive jewelry. The myth avers that she often sent newly weds precious stones as wedding gift. But as modernity became more pronounced in the nearby localities, the myth alleges that she had stopped doing so.
There were countless times when foreign hunters out to trace her tracks actually came face to face with her, says this myth, and had a sampling of her awesome fiery stares which were a mixture of angst, wrath, and gentleness. At times, says this myth, she would just let her vapory figure be felt or glimpsed as she crossed over shrubberies or fields with speed and grace. People would often see her gliding past, long hair waving in a mysterious wind, and her soft violin music filling the air with sweet serenity—another one of her liberality. According to this myth, her music and presence usually repaired the mountain forest after a fierce storm had passed by.
Once, the myth says, a hunter was after a wild bore which ran and hid under an old sagging hut deep in the forest. Suddenly a beautiful young lady came out of the hut and declared ownership of every wild creature in the mountain forest. The lady was said to be of native brown skin color, tall, long haired, with delicate hands and feet, and a serious but gentle countenance. She was visibly annoyed, and yet she treated the hunter with abundance of food, natural refreshment, and later sent him home with some jewelry.
The Philippine myth on the graciousness and liberality of Maria Makiling also reflects the legendary traits of a cultured and pure Filipina.
The Myth of the Banana Plant
The banana fruit is one of the favorite tropical fruits in the Philippines. Its luscious meat is healthy and enjoyable to munch. How did the plant originate according to myths?
According to a myth, there was a couple named Martha and Pedro. Their daughter was Selya. The myth says Selya was so beautiful people in their place admired her so much. She was also kind hearted and good mannered. The myth adds that obedience and thoughtfulness was always seen in the way she treated her parents.
The couple was over protective with Selya. They feared that someday, somebody would take her away from them. The myth says, they always guarded the young woman, and tried to discourage any guy who even came near her. But unknown to the couple, Selya met a young, tall man named Aging. According to the myth, being a farmer like Selya’s father, the arms of the man were roughened by the sun from tilling the rice fields. But the myth says Selya’s parents were against Aging.
Although Selya did not mean to disobey, the myth says, the girl decided to make good friends with Aging. Every afternoon before sunset, Aging would secretly meet Selya by the well near the house. According to the myth, their meeting continued for months unseen by anyone .They enjoyed each other’s company and soon fell for each other.
The myth further says, that Selya’s mother left the house one afternoon to go to town. They were so engrossed with each other that they didn’t realize Selya’s father would be coming home soon. They talked of a lot of things. The myth says the father, while still some distance away from home, saw Aging and Selya leaning against the window. The myth continues that the father burst with wrath and ran to the house to swing a sharp bolo at the young man. Aging was hit on the arm. Consequently, his arm was cut off and fell to the ground.
The myth adds, Aging was shocked and run away. Selya went out and carefully picked up Aging’s lifeless arm and buried it in the backyard. The next morning Selya noticed a strange plant that seemed showing itself off. Its trunk was tall, it had green leaves, and its yellow fruits were shaped like clusters of fingers. Since then, the plant has been called “Saging” or banana.
This Philippine myth on the banana plant shows us that true love only grows further, the more it is opposed.
The Folklore on The King an
What would be done to somebody who dares shoo off a king from a church seat? And what should be done to woo an insulted king who owns everything. These are the issues of this Philippine folklore.
According to this folklore, a long time ago, when Spain had just newly conquered the Philippines, there was a town church. It was newly built by the Spanish missionaries who had first come to the islands prior the invading forces. Many converts to Christian Catholicism had joined the church, among them a rich, old lady. The folklore says, she was known in the town as arrogant but religious. She was able to keep all the rigorous rituals of the religion, but people were aloof to her.
Every morning, the folklore continues, she wanted to occupy the first pew in the church. Daily, she would march up straight to the very front pew to take her place. Nobody dared occupy the front pew.
One morning, she came in a bit late. She marched down the aisle, proudly but solemnly, fan gently covering her face, until she reached the front pew. But, the folklore says, to her consternation, she saw a man already seated there. She snapped close her folding fan and shouted at him in impaired Castilian: “How dare you sit there in my pew!” Then, according to the folklore, in a milder tone, she said, “You’re new around here, I suppose, because you don’t know who it is reserved for!”
The man, simply dressed but nonetheless very honorable-looking, smiled and excused himself. He sat in another pew behind her. Afterwards, the folklore says she noticed that people were still looking at her with apparent unbelief and astonishment. She wondered why. Then, the folklore says, an altar boy, or “sacristan,” approached her and told her why. The king of Spain himself had just arrived last night and was now in church to hear the first morning mass—the same guy she had just shooed off to another pew!
The folklore says, the king kept his decorum by simply enjoying the mass, smiling, and shaking the hands of everybody in church after the mass, even the old lady’s. She was speechless. The folklore poses this dilemma: What could she say to somebody she had insulted who turned out to be owner of everything?
This Philippine folklore reminds people to treat everybody fairly, and not value them according to their looks and material possessions.
A Philippine Tale on Angels
Angels are popular spiritual creatures in Philippine religions, folklores, and tales. The tale is believed even by many modern Filipinos. The tale says angels live among us, taking active parts in our daily lives. The most popular tale on angels is that they are guardian spirits of long departed family members and relatives.
Philippine Myth has it that good people can turn into angels when they die. If a person has been good all his earthly life and dies, the tale says the choice is between being a saint or an angel. If a person chooses to be a saint, a supernatural event will happen back here on earth confirming this decision. This person’s portrait or statue may suddenly manifest supernatural qualities that will attract people and later decide on making this person a saint. Or there may be tales on spiritual apparitions.
But if one chooses to be an angel, this tale says, a new member will be added to the myriad of angels soaring and crisscrossing from heaven to earth, and vice versa. These angels, according to this tale, many of whom were former people, are often times our guardian angels. So if a good family member decides to be an angel after dying, the person becomes a “detailed” guardian angel for the family. So, the tale adds, if a mysterious rescue from danger happens to someone, a relative guardian angel is responsible.
According to this same tale, dead babies easily make it as a guardian angel in the after life. Being innocent of any wrong doing, babies, on dying, instantly grow feathered wings and a halo on the head. According to this tale, some babies just have their heads growing a cute pair of wings and flying off to report for duty. From this army of infant guardian angels comes “kerubin” and “kupido,” the tales’ local versions of cherubim and Cupid—the latter being the so-called guardian angel of hearts.
Infant angels are also guardian angels, so this tale goes. They’re assigned to children and youths. So when news or stories of kids and young people being mysteriously rescued from danger go around, they often end with a guardian angel tale. These guardian angels also baby-sit and play with infants, says this tale on angels.
A Philippine tale on angels tells of good people opting to be guardian angels when they die. The tale is still strongly believed by most Filipinos. It tells us much of how Filipinos generally look at heaven as an extension of an extended family.
The Myth about the Cashew Nut
Cashew nuts, or “kasuy” in Filipino, are edible seeds found outside its fruit. A myth on it alleges that once upon a time cashew nuts used to be inside a hallow portion inside the fruit. How did it end up being outside?
In the beginning, according to this myth, the seeds of cashew nuts were inside the hollow center of its fruit. Similar to the darkness of a womb, the seeds stayed inside the fruit until somebody got them out to be eaten. Hence, says the myth, the seeds complained later of not being able to enjoy the outside world long enough before being eaten by humans.
The myth says the seeds would hear the sounds of the outside world and just wonder about the excitement of what may be going on around them. The myth goes on to say that the seeds listened to birds chirping, the river flowing, the wind swaying tree branches and leaves, and the hundreds of night insects singing their various nocturnal tunes to the moon. According to the myth, all the cashew seeds could do was imagine what was going on.
So one day, the myth says, the cashew nuts could not bear the deprivation any longer. They wished that things for them would be reversed a bit so that they could be outside their fruit instead of inside. A fairy of the forest heard their wish and granted it. Soon, the myth says, they found themselves outside their fruit. They were jubilant because they could now enjoy the surroundings. They saw what birds looked like, as well as the river, and the insects. And they saw that the wind could not be seen, but only felt. Another thing they saw, according to the myth, was that other fruit seeds were not found outside but inside fruit. And they soon learned why.
At noon, the myth says, they could not bear the burning heat of the sun. At night, they were unsafe against fruit bats. In rainy days, they were unshielded from the rain. The myth says, they learned the painful way that all creation had a purpose for being created the way it was created. Altering creation against its design proved harmful. So, according to the myth, cashew nuts sought to be heard again as they wished to return inside their fruit, but to no avail.
The Philippine myth on cashew nuts teaches generations that creation was particularly designed for a purpose—which should never be defied.
The Filipino Myth on Creation
How did everything on Earth start? This Filipino myth tells us why.
In the beginning, this myth claims, there was nothing on earth—no things, no people. Lumawig, the Great Spirit, came down from the sky and cut many reeds. The myth says he divided these into pairs and placed in various parts of the world. “You must speak”, said Lumawig to the reeds. Instantly, the reeds became humans, men and women who could talk. Their languages differed from each other, the myth adds.
Lumawig, thereafter, commanded each couple to marry. The myth says, they did. As a result, there were many children, all speaking the same language as their parents. The myth says these, in turn, married and had many children. Then, gradually, the earth was filled with people.
Now, says the myth, Lumawig saw that there were several things people on the earth needed. So he set to work to create supplies for such needs. For instance, the myth says, he created salt and told the inhabitants of one place to boil it and make a business out of it. But these people could not understand the Great Spirit. When Lumawig visited them, he found that salt was yet unexploited, the myth adds.
Lumawig took the salt away from them and gave it to another people called Mayinit. The myth says, the Mayinits did as they were told. Being good stewards of salt, he told them that they would always be the owners of salt, and that the other people must buy it from them, the myth says.
After some time, Lumawaig went to the highlands, to the people of Bontoc. The myth says he told them to exploit their rich clay and make pots and trade them with people of the low lands. They took no interest in clay molding, much less, the art of pottery, the myth says. Lumawaig’s lessons on pottery were ignored. The myth says the jars they made were not well-shaped. Consequently, Lumawig told them to forget about pottery and jsut focus on their other skills.
The myth says that, consequently, Lumawig thought it best to just entrust pot making to another people group. Eventually, he found a worthy people of pot making. They did just as he said, and their jars were all of excellent quality, the myth says. The Great Spirit told them they would monopolize the jar industry.
The myth shows examples of how Lumawig taught people and brought them everything they needed.
A Myth on the Coconut Tree
Considered by some as the second national tree, the coconut tree is as versatile and useful as the Narra tree. From roots to leaves, the coconut is valuable. But how did it come into being? The coconut tree has lots of myths about it, and here is one.
According to this myth, once there was a kingdom in Mindanao known as Bangonansa Pulangui (“kingdom by the river”), which was ruled by a just and kind sultan. The myth says the kingdom was known for Putri Timbang-Namat, the sultan’s only daughter. She was a most beautiful and charming woman. Her name meant “lady grace.”
Putri’s admirers came from the seven seas, but she did not care for any of them. According to the myth, the kind sultan was touched by their persistence. One day, he tried to ask his daughter to choose from among them the man she would marry, the myth adds.
”I need a son to succeed me when I die,” the father said, “and I wish that before I die, I would see you married,” he added. The myth says the king thought of a contest for the princess’ hand. A tournament was held to determine who among the suitors was worthy of the princess’ love, the myth says.
In the palace garden, meanwhile, the myth says the princess met a young and handsome gardener, Wata-Mama. The myth says Wata-Mama decided to reveal his past to her. According to the myth he was of royal descent but had been lost when he was three. His father was killed by his greedy uncle. The myth says that the princess said, “We love each other, that’s all that matters. ”
The myth says a general was very jealous of Wata. So, that night, in the dark corner of the palace, he and his aides waited for the young lovers. The myth says the general suddenly emerged, struck Wata-Mama and beheaded him. The princess, fearless, picked up Wata’s head.
After Wata’s head was buried, the myth says, early one morning, while the princess was watching the spot, she saw a tiny plant growing from the ground. Suddenly, the myth says, it grew into a tree and reached the height of the window where the princess was sitting at. It produced a round fruit the size of a man’s head.
Love’s passion and jealousy’s wretchedness can suddenly change lives disastrously. This myth on the coconut teaches that love is best kept going on its natural course.
Source of Money is Better Than Money
Money is good but Philippine folklore says having the source of money is better. Filipino folklore principles value work or business more than its rewards. Even when giving alms to the poor, Filipino folklore principles reason that monetary alms relieve hunger pangs only for a moment. Then the beggar begs continuously. But a job gives him continuous source to draw out from. Like this one:
There was a turtle and a monkey. They were friends. Well, not good friends really. The sly monkey kept the kind turtle an underdog. In their daily businesses the monkey conned the gullible turtle into unfair deals.
One day the turtle found a small island in the middle of a lagoon. In the middle of the island were banana trees bursting with ripe and plump fruits. He could swim across to the island but could not climb the tree. So he got the monkey to strike a deal with him.
They both wanted the bananas but neither one could do the job by himself—the monkey couldn’t swim. The monkey agreed to ride on the turtle’s back as the latter swam across to the island. On the island, the turtle watched with gusto as the monkey climbed up and took a sampling of one of the fruits. Then another one. And another one.
The turtle, mouth all watery, requested for samplings, too. But the monkey said bananas are best eaten on wide, open spaces, not on a small island. The turtle regarded him for a second and then agreed. He swam back to the other side while the monkey, on his back, carried a bunch of bananas.
At the other side, the monkey immediately climbed up a tall tree with the bananas. There he ate everything, safe from the turtle’s reach. Of course, the turtle protested, but the monkey haughtily said, “So what else is new?”
The turtle went away sad and stared wistfully at the banana trees afar in the middle of the island.
Then the next banana season came and the trees on the island were again ready for harvest. As the turtle surveyed them from afar, he noticed birds perched on the branches and nibbling the fruits. Just then, the monkey came. He apologized for the misdemeanor he had shown and offered to help the turtle with the bananas again.
This time the turtle ignored him and swam across alone. He struck a bargain with the birds. He said bananas are best eaten as dessert after a hearty meal of fish. The birds agreed. He traded the fish he caught with the bananas the birds dropped him.
This Filipino folklore stresses a Filipino proverb: Easy money doesn’t last. It is good only as mercy lasts. It may require hard work but nothing beats keeping a business or a job. It makes the supply last.
The Folklore About Tabaco, Albay
At first glance, anybody would think that Tabaco, Albay in Legaspi City probably got its name from some tobacco plants in the area. Well, one thinking that would wrong.
Here’s a folklore on how the place really got its name.
The folklore begins with a time when the Bicol region, during Spanish times, was said to be inhabited by very friendly natives. But then some Spaniards occupying the region became hostile to the inhabitants. Being too cruel to the natives, the news soon spread quickly to other localities in the area. Soon, many local people despised the mere sight of the invaders. One day, the folklore has it that two Spaniards ventured to some remote village and there found a beautiful young lady. She was known in the place for her talent for herbal medicine. One of the two foreigners fell for her native beauty.
The young lady’s father was annoyed by the two foreigners so that one day, as the folklore goes, when the two came over to the girl’s home for a visit and some herbal medicine samples, her father reacted in an unfriendly manner. The folklore adds that the place was also known for the people’s penchant for bladed weapons and its craft. Thus, the father owned a well sharpened native sword known in the vernacular as a “tabak.” The folklore stresses that every man in that village was armed with a “tabak” as a work implement and for self-defense.
So, as the Spaniards approached, they wondered about what the name of the place was. They thought it was a perfect way to establish rapport with the father. Coming closer and asking the name of the place, the folklore says the father was very alarmed at them and shouted to her daughter for his native sword. “Give me my sword! Give me my sword!” In the vernacular, he said, “Tabak ko! Tabak ko!” The foreigners, thinking that the answer to their query was “Tabaco,” soon spread the word that the name of the place was Tabaco in Albay. Soon afterwards, even local folks started calling their place by the name.
What of the “tabak” and the Spaniards? Well, the folklore admits that the natural friendly and hospitable spirit of the natives in the place got the better of the father, and soon the foreigners were tolerated and befriended.
Though fond of deadly bladed weapons, this folklore shows a people naturally gifted with kindness and hospitality can still opt for peaceful settlement in the face of adversity.