User:Alternativity/Ma-Yi/Philippine Indigenous Peoples

Indigenous Practices of Filipino Tribes

Aeta Culture

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Igorot Culture

The following was sent to me by my research assistant. It still needs references so I'm not transferring it to the main wiki yet.

Tattoo Art in Northern Luzon Tribes

The utterly peaceful and meditative atmosphere in the isolated mountains where these tribes live is the largely responsible for the highly creative culture of these tribes. It is widely believed that women undergo tattooing on their legs, arms and breasts to enhance their beauty. While the menfolk on the other hand, do so to mark bravery, age, tribal seniority and more frequently to underscore the prestige gained in headhunting expeditions. In certain tribes, it is claimed that some tattoos have “magical” qualities and in these cases, designs of scorpions, centipedes, snakes and boats are often repeated. In few instances, it is considered as curative for physical deformities. By covering the unsightly deformity with tattoos, the mountain tribes believe that the deformity (such as scars or birthmark) would automatically vanish. Tattoos among the diverse tribes differ in pattern, cultural motivation and interpretation. In some cases, the full significance of a tattoo cannot be arrived at without viewing it in relation to the wearer’s ornaments and garments. It could sometimes completely take place a blouse like for instance the Bukik Igorotes would tattoo their entire upper torsos, giving them an unusual appearance of wearing a coat of mail. Among the Pintados, it is customary to tattoo the whole body from a very tender age because it is believed that the sooner a child undergoes the operations, the greater would be his capacity to endure pain and discomfort that it causes. Tattooing instruments: Pintados – uses sharp metal instruments that have been previously heated over fire Kankanay of Central Benguet – uses a small piece of wood which they call ‘gisi’ attached to a which are three iron points Ifugao – uses an instrument made entirely of iron with two or three points Kalinga – uses five needles at the same time Isneg of Apayao – uses ‘ighisi’ which is made from a curved piece of rattan on which at one end four or five pins are attached and a string connects the central part of the instrument to both ends. The person who conducts the tattooing will continually beat the curve next to the pins, on its convex side, in order to push this pins deeper onto the skin.

Tattoo Motiffs Pintados – have extremely elaborate tattooing and take the form of illuminated paintings and tableux and versatile array of designs and forms are used leaving only the wrists and feet bare of tattoo. A black powder or soot is also used after tattooing which when dried can never be erased. As for the women, they tattooed only their hands.

Ibaloi – (Southern Benguet) tattooing is usually rare among the menfolk and in few men, the tattoos differed according to individual whims and no common or identifying pattern would be determined. The women, on the other hand, adorn their arms from elbow down to their arms from above the elbow down to their knuckles with elaborate and extensive designs (criss-cross, horizontal, vertical and curved elements).

Kankanay – has the same methods and motifs with the Ibaloi and also tattooing is scarce among men but frequent among women.

Ifugao – A male Ifugao would tattoo most of his whole body and the older Ifugao would tattoo himself on his chest, arms, legs, neck and shoulders but not on face buttocks or feet. The younger on the other hand, would tattoo only his neck and upper chest. The main designs used among the Ifugao are ‘tinagu’ (man) on the center of the chest, ‘kindahu’ (dog) also on the chest but at times can be found on the cheeks, and single line of stars. Grass designs cover the rest of their arms, broken only by ‘pongo’ (bracelet) motif at the elbow, wrist and back of hand. Ifugao women adorn their hands on the other hand, with several copper bracelets and their chests and abdomen are rarely tattooed. They wear instead, a necklace that reaches down below their navel and sometimes branch out and encircle their bodies at the hips in two or three rows of beads.

Bontok Igorot – freely tattoo their chests, arms, backs, and faces. It is done before only to those who successfully participated in headhunting expedition. The ‘tacklag’ is the breast tattoo of the successful participant. It consist of a series of geometric markings running upward from two nipples and curving out from each shoulder onto the upper arm. Then under this, two or three sets of horizontal line s are tattooed on the biceps immediately below the main design. Bontok women will only tattoo their forearms as previously described for the women of the neighboring Ibaloi and Kankanay tribes.

Kalinga – uses only armlets and necklaces as ornament but their chests, backs and arms and faces as well are tattooed with elaborate and beautiful designs. This is true for the people of South Kalinga as they wear no upper garment. The menfolk of North Kalinga on the other hand, tattoo serves as their upper garment and called ‘silup’ . The women of Kalinga will only paint their faces of bright red and wear necklaces dangling over their breasts that reach their navels. Their arms are tattooed more ornately than the other tribes of Northern Luzon, and include more often the upper arm, shoulder and collar bone.

Isneg – (Apayao province) The men tattooed themselves mainly of black rather than of indigo blue which most of the tribes used. The reason for this is the same with that of the Pintados, which is to help heal the wound. Their arms are tattooed from halfway down the forearm to the middle of the back of the hand. The fingers are sometimes dotted and their thighs are decorated with spider motif. After their successful participation on headhunting expedition, they would be permitted to put a special design on the bare part of their arm. This design would run upwards from the waist to their armpit and circles out and around onto the front of the upper arms. The length of this design will depend entirely on the number of enemy heads that they had brought back. If they had shown themselves to be especially successful and brave, they would also be allowed to tattoo the upper arms of their daughters instead of their own. For the Isneg women, two two main designs are used for their tattoos. The ‘balalakay’ or spider motif which is tattooed on both thighs, throat and occasionally at the forearm and the series of horizontal lines and dots on the the back of the hand and the fingers. If her father has been a successful headhunter, she would be entitled to put on the special design of tattoo ‘andori’ running from her wrist up to her upper armpit and out across her upper arm.

Tagbanwa Culture

The following was sent to me by my research assistant. It still needs references so I'm not transferring it to the main wiki yet.

Tagbanwa Religion and Society

The Tagbanwa are slash and burn agriculturists that lives permanently in communities along the streams that bisects the narrow coastal plains of Palawan. They regard rice as perfect food and divine gift and they made rice wine known as ‘tabad’ which is used to attract deities and their soul-relatives to the pagdidiwata rituals.

The religion of Tagbanwa is a system of faith and worship which provides for the Tagbanwa a ‘worldview’ – an ordered explanation of Man’s universe and life processes, and a definition of life here and hereinafter. Their ritual life is entwined with adat or custom law which provides a formal framework directing interpersonal relationships. Religious activities are linked with all levels of the society – the elementary family, the kinship group, the community and others. Daily social responsibilities and obligations are emphasized and reinforced by religious sanctions. Example is when an ill person is being treated by a babalyan, a religious functionary, a person cannot enter the household where the ill person lies if a jural obligation which could be a fine or a fee has not been paid.

The traditional term for the family is sanganakan which is considered a full family (a mother, father and unmarried child) which have a common residence, a common agricultural plot and responsibility for their own economic support. the residence of the newly married couple is usually within the community of the girl’s family and should stand within the sight of the of the dwelling of the girl’s parents. This practice leads to the development of the kababalayan – a cluster of households found within the larger Tagbanwa community. Marriage is purely a social act in the society in which a small fee called kapangasawa is paid by the boy to the girl’s parents or guardian during the council. A share of this fee is kept by the participating leaders and when litigation is held such as divorce of the couple, the contestants are each represented by a ginuu (usually relatives) who argue their side. There are seven mutya (charm) that a blood brother carries with him in a difficult case (this practice is a result of the strong link of the Tagbanwa religious beliefs and their daily activities): - one half of an ancient glass bead, red in color but said to be the fruit of the ceremonial plant, kilala (cordyline terminalis), it is thoroughly cultivated but rarely bears fruit and is grown around every Tagbanwa household. The leaves of the said plant is used in all rituals and it is believed that the owner of this charm, will be brave in times of stress, an attribute which every ginuu should possess - a piece of bone carved like a claw and said to be the claw of the hawk, it is supposed to act like a claw when used during a council: “If you seize a case, you cannot lose it.” - A small, black, stone-like object which can be found inside a decayed log. The person who possess this charm is supposed to enjoy a long life. - A rock crystal, possibly a diamond, found in the trunk of a baliti tree. This, overpowers the tree that surrounds it. This charm is used in council with the obvious function of overpowering the arguments of opponents. - Three small rock crystals which were originally one, the other two being ‘born’ in the container where the original stone had been placed. The function of this charms is indefinite though it cannot be separated from the other two charms. - One –half of a water –worn, blue glass bracelet of the type excavated in archaeological sites containing trade pottery. It is said to be a baklaw of the thunder and found near the place where the ‘thunder’ had struck. Thunder is said to be caused by the monstrous animal which lives in the sky-world. When trashing, its huge body knocks down trees and causes houses to be burned. The owner of this charm is guaranteed participation in councils and council meetings which will last at least seven days. - A blue-glass bead which was found in cavity of a growing bamboo, this charm is carried when one anticipates a difficult case in order to overpower an opponent, as well as to protect oneself from his charms.

The bilang ritual which links the dead from the living is held in the household and is a familial affair, although guests are invited to share wine (rice) during the social drinking after the ritual. The more jars of wine are prepared the more prestige for the family. The relatives which are recently dead are called tiladmanin. They play an active role in everyday life activities – agriculture, hunting and fishing- and are believed to be the principal cause of ordinary illness; not because they are malicious but because promises or vows to them have not been kept or because they have been ‘forgotten’. They are best described as soul relatives demanding the same respect as those with the living relatives. Death in the Tagbanwa is not viewed as a final separation, for the dead continues to interact with the living.

The Role of the Babalyan The babalyan, a religious functionary, which is best describe as mediums, exerts considerable influence upon the daily life of the people. They are ‘high blood’ who also posses powerful charms which can influence the social, religious, economic, and political well being of the people and these charms could also be inherited. They are intermediaries who guide a person’s relationship with the dead who are his soul-relatives. They also mediates with the great hierarchy of diwata or deities and with the spirits who inhabit the proximate environment. Majority of the babalyan are women. It is also through the babalyan whom the deities interact with the living during the pagdiwata ceremony. This ritual is the focal point of Tagbanwa life, its activities embody traditional sentiments and contribute to their persistence. Pagdiwata is also a curing séance when the people, particularly children, are treated for sickness through the soul relatives of the mediums. In pagdiwata ritual, a tiny wooden turtle “floats” on grains of palay contained in an ancient Ming trade bowl. This ceremony is associated with the breaking of the kaingin ground for planting in Palawan. The sculptured turtle is regarded as a vehicle of the gods. At times the wooden effigy is also made to float in a rice wine jug. The babalyan, as religious specialists, are the one who are able to describe the cosmos, the meaningful universe which is inhabited by man, the dead, the deities and the spirits. It is also from the babalyan that sacred myths are heard which describes the journey, the underworld and the travel of the dead. The perception of the babalyan of the Tagbanwa’s universe or cosmos is based on their social life. According to the babalyan, the sacred places inhabited by the deities and the soul-relatives surround the Tagbanwa are the forest, the river, the sea, the sky and the land beneath them. A clump of bamboo is not simply a clump of bamboo but a place where a deity from the sky world had once visited and it is described as his ‘visiting place’. The conception of the sacred world for the Tagbanwa is in terms of particular directions and specific regions, related to phenomena which influence their lives. They are not concerned with a sacred and ordered description of the cosmos.

The “Sky – World” The sky-world for the Tagbanwa is describe simply as langit, conceived vaguely as an infinitely high canopy enclosing all celestial phenomena familiar to men. Beyond this, a “nothingness’ lies where there is no winds. A deity, tungkuyanen, sits on the edge of this sky-cover with his feet dangling into the universe. He always sits looking down at the earth. If tungkuyanen were to raise his head to look up, he would fall into the “nothingness”. The rains came from a hole in this sky cover, a gift of Mangindusa, the highest ranking deity. Two giant trees support the sky cover. The bark of the trees is red, bathed by blood of Tagbanwa who have died from epidemics. This also explains the color of the sunrise and sunset. Within the sky-world, are seven heavens which are not visible that are layered like a house ladder. This region was said to be inhabited by many deities but only one was mentioned often – magreked. He is found at exactly noontime on the other side of the sun. Magreked gives the warmth which sustains life. When people are ill, he is called to “carry away sickness”. The region most sacred to the Tagbanwas is however not the heavens but the region between the heaven and the earth, called awan awan. This includes the area of the effulgence of the sunset and sunrise. It is here where the highest ranking deity Mangindusa and his entourage – Bugawasin, his wife; the dibutawanin, his “messengers”; and others dwell. Sidpan, the cardinal direction west, is also the specific place where the sun sets. The term is used in a latter sense when spoken of a sacred place. There are many deities in sidpan with Mangindusa including a deity by the same name, diwata kat sidpan, who helps to control the rains. Libatan, the “east”, is the opposite of the universe, and a deity lives here, diwata kat libatan, who also helps to control the rains. These directions are cogently equated with the directions of the southwest monsoon and the northeast monsoon which bring the life-giving rains to Tagbanwa land. Manigndusa never descends from awan awan. He is pictured as sitting and swinging back and forth in a bintayawan, a “swing” identical to that used by the babalyan in the pagdiwata ceremonies and placed directly in front of the jars containing rice wine. The many deities who attend the pagdiwata ceremonies, including the “messengers” of Mangindusa, carry back to him the thanks of the people, their prayers, and the offerings of rice, tobacco, betel quids and wax. Kiyabusan, (from kabus, meaning lacking) is the void beyond the sky-world that looms significantly in the Tagbanwa’s description of the universe. It is the place from which the feared salakep come, the deities of epidemic and sickness. They sail their large outriggers through the sky driven by the northeast winds, which begin in the late October or early November. It is the time when the land is wet and cold, when the rivers flood and sickness is widespread. The salakep gather the dying and sail with them back to kiyabusan. The Tagbanwa speak of those who have died during the epidemics as eaten by the salakep. A reference found in myths which reveals a cannibalistic behavior of deities when they once lived on earth with the Tagbanwa. The salakep are described as small, dark and kinky-haired, their faces and bodies covered with small round scars. Offerings are made to the “captain” of the ship-of-the-dead named Sumurutan, and his three lieutenants – Tuwan Ding, Tuwan Pagbuysan, and Tuwan Pagraskadan – to “convince” them that they should not catch and eat the souls of the dead. The rituals are viwed as prophylactic in character, one babaylan remark it that there would be a hundred deaths if the ritual pagbut-is is not performed. The lumalayag or “sailors” are also called during the ceremonies. Their presence is revealed when the babalyan and participants shoot bamboo popguns to symbolize the combat with salakep or deities of epidemics. The runsay is accordingly the most dramatic rituals in the Tagbanwa society. It is held once a year after the full moon in December on the beach near the mouth of the Arborlan River. Its purpose is to protect all the Tagbanwa from epidemics and sickness. The epidemic bearing salakep do not select souls from just one family or one village but sweep across the land of the Tagbanwa in their fearsome quest. Mangindusa is traditionally described as the “punisher of crime” (from dusa, “crime”) rather than as creator. The single public crime is said to be incest. And Mangindusa holds the whole society, not the individual involved, as responsible for the incest. Incest may be seen as disturbing the well-being of the society, for it is within the community that incest becomes known. Mangindusa may punish everyone within a specific area by withholding rains which will cause the grounds to crack and the rice crop to fail. The lambay ceremony is held twice a year, as noted, to seek optimum conditions which include both dry and warm periods as well as rains. During the lambay ceremony, the Tagbanwa ask Mangindusa to forgive them for known or unknown acts of incest, including cousin-marriage or even sumbang (an incestuous relationship between brother or sister or between father and daughter). Mangindusa was not an omnipotent deity. He is merely the most powerful or highest ranking deity. Another deity by the name of Tandayag, lives at kiyabusan with the salakep or deities of epidemic sickness. He was sent there by Mangindusa to prevent these dangerous deities from sailing at any time except during the period of the northeast winds. No deity has control over the epidemics during this period for there exists an “agreement” between Mangindusa and the salakep that they can sail with the northeast winds. Between awan awan and the earth are cloud-world. The cloud regions are inhabited by souls of the dead, deity-like in status that are called bulalakaw. These are the souls of the Tagbanwa who have died by violence, who have been “poisoned” or women who have died in childbirth. The bulalakaw travel, literally “fly” through out the cloud-world, ever ready to help the living. Also, in this region live a deity called diwata kat dibuwat, which is the deity of the high place who is always willing to expedite the needs of the Tagbanwa. He is frequently called during the pagdiwata ceremony. Each Tagbanwa has one “true” soul, the kiyarulwa, and five secondary souls, the pa-yu. The kiyarulwa is given to each child by Mangindusa as the nose of the child emerges from the vulva. The secondary souls appear when a lambay ceremony is held for the infant. These secondary souls are located in the extremeties of both feet and hands and in the head just below the hairwhorl. When the secondary souls below the hairwhorls move, frequently in the case of children, it causes illness. And it is the babalyan who will reset the soul. Death occurs when the true soul leaves the body. The eyes turn, breathing stops, the soul departs and the person is dead. Following death, the true soul goes to one of four places: (1) to Kiyabusan if it had died of epidemic; (2) to the cloud-world if it had died of violence, of “poisoning” or childbirth; (3) to live in the immediate environment of man if it had been sa-bu, that is , “caught” by the panya-en or “eaten” by panya-en, the evil damdam and others; and (4) to basad, the underworld, if it had been a “natural” death. At death, the secondary souls simply disappear into the environment. For seven days following the death – until the termination of the kapupusan or “death rite” – the soul remains on earth. The death rite establishes a proper ritual relationship between the soul of the deceased and its living relatives. During these seven days the soul is said to spend the daylight hours at the grave; but at night it visits its former households and village observing the behavior of its relatives.

The Underworld The journey of the soul from the grave to the underworld is uneventful until it reaches the sacred river, kalabegang to which the soul is about to meet the taliyakad, who guards the large vine bridge which crosses the sacred river into the underworld. He asks the soul before it can proceeds if the soul has eaten any sugar cane. If the soul reply “yes”, the watcher will ask if it had eaten the nodes of the cane. If the answer to this question is no, the soul will become excruciatingly thirsty but be unable to obtain water. Furthermore a soul that lies will be punished by being carried to the crown of a very tall tree and then dropped into a thorny bushes. The last question of the watcher is directed to the body lice of the soul, rather than to the soul itself. These invisible lice live around the waist of the living. They are one’s constant companions, know all that one does and they always tell the absolute truth. The guardian deity will ask if how many wives and lovers that the soul had and the answer of the lice must be seven. If it is not seven, the soul is dunked over and over in the sacred river. (This belief provides social justification of high divorce rate and for the acts of premarital and extra marital sexual relationships.) When the soul had crossed over the vine bridge into the underworld, it meets the Angguru, the “keeper of the fires”. He accepts the souls into the basad or “underworld” and provide them with fire. The cause of death, not moral judgment, selects the afterworld. The “keeper of the fires” possesses one charcoal log and he provides the soul-relative with fire only once. If the soul lets the fire go out or “loses” it, and then asks for more, Angguru will chase the soul with a sharp piece of bamboo. The lives of the soul-relatives in the “underworld”, their personalities and their daily activities mirror those of the living. They plant and grow rice, live in families, and have children until they have died seven times. Everything on the underworld is inverted. When it is dark on earth, there is sunlight in basad. In the underworld, the rivers flow from the ocean to the mountains, not the other way around. Rice is eaten cold in basad unlke on earth. The Tagbanwa’s conceptualization of the cosmos provides for them a logical system of explanation for the continuity of life’s processes. The soul-relatives each die seven times. The first time that the tiladmanin dies, it is buried by the other soul-relatives. But the next six times, the insects and small animals in the underworld bury. After the soul-relatives have died seven times, they return to earth transmigrated as the ramu ramu. These are flies, dragonflies, dung beetles, - all of the insects and tiny animals which are not edible and which do not eat rice or green plants – the insects and animals useless to man and vaguely dangerous. (Thus, the two infinite quantities – the legion of the dead and the countless insects and small animals found on earth are cogently equated).