*Note this story is in Tagalog
“Minsan rin akong naging marikit.”
May kinuha sa kanya ang mga tao na mas mahalaga pa sa lahat ng ginto sa mundo, kaya naman ngayon, nandito sya’t naghihintay upang maghiganti.
“Aking kapatid.”
Ang kanyang kapatid ay isang pawikan, na ang landas ay sinusundan ng mga alon. Natakot ang mga tao na ang kanilang tahanan ay maaaring maglalaho sa ilalim ng dagat. Ngunit hindi naman nila kailangang mag-alala, sapagkat doon nangitlog ang kanyang kapatid, at doon matututo ang mga supling nito na maglakad sa lupa. Hinding-hindi niya hahayaan na may mangyari sa islang iyon.
Ngunit ang sangkatauhan ay isang duwag at mahinang nilalang, kaya naman kinatay siya ng mga ito upang “isalba” ang kanilang sariling balat, katulad na lamang ng mga halimaw na sila.
“Ang mga buwan”
Kaya naman kinuha niya ang pinakahahalagahan nila. Bawat minumutya nilang liwanag sa gabi. Lasang abo ang mga buwan sa kanyang bibig, at hindi na rin mababalik ng paghihiganti ang kanya kapatid, ngunit matuturuan nito ang mga tao na malaki ang kapalit kapag ginalit mo ang dragon.
“Ang kulog”
Nilamon niya ito nang isa-isa. Nang marating niya ang ika-pito, pumagitan ang nakamaskarang bathala upang iligtas ang kanyang pinakamumutyang liwanag. Pagkatapos, may ginawa ang mga tao; nagpakawala sila ng kulog at ingay, mga tunog na kailanman ay hindi pa narinig ng Bakunawa. Kaya naman niluwa niya ang ika-pitong buwan, at agad bumalik sa kailaliman.
“Kaya naman nandito ako’t naghihintay, hanggang sa maging mayumi ako muli.”
Sabi nila, babalik lamang siya sa kanyang tunay na wangis kapag tumigil na sya sa pagtangka sa ika-pitong buwan, pero sa puso ng mga tao, alam nila na hindi mangyayari iyon. Sapagkat may kinuha ang mga tao na mahalaga sa kanya na kailanman ay hindi mapapalitan ng kahit anong ginto o yaman sa mundo.
“Hindi ako titigil, hangga’t hindi nila alam ang tunay na halaga ng pagkawala.”
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English Version
“I was beautiful once. “
The humans took something from her more precious than all the gold in the world. And here she lies, waiting for the day she can fulfill her revenge.
“My sister.”
Her sister was the sea turtle, whose path was followed by the waves. The humans feared that their home would be lost beneath the sea. The humans needn’t have worried. That was where her sister laid her eggs, where her children would learn to walk on the land. She would never have let anything happen to the island.
But humanity is a scared and frail creature, they butchered her to ‘save’ their own skins like the animals that they were.
“The moons.”
She took from them what they cherished the most. Each of their precious lights in the night. Their moons tasted like ashes in her mouth. Revenge would not bring her sister back but it would teach the humans the price was high when dealing with the dragon.
“The thunder.”
She swallowed them one by one. When she reached the seventh the masked goddess intervened to save her precious light. Then the humans did something. They let loose thunder and noise, the likes of which the Bakunawa had never heard before. She spat up the seventh moon and retreated beneath the depths.
“And here I wait, until I am beautiful again. “
They say that she will once again regain her true form when she stops hunting the seventh moon, but in the hearts of man they know that will never come to pass. The humans took something precious from her, something irreplaceable.
“I will not stop until they know the true meaning of loss. “
=——————-=
*Tagalog is an Austronesian language spoken as a first language by a quarter of the population of the Philippines and as a second language by the majority. Its standardized form, officially named Filipino, is the national language of the Philippines, and is one of two official languages alongside English.
Written by Karl Gaverza
Translation by Luna Diwa
Copyright © Karl Gaverza
Translation Copyright © Luna Diwa
Inspired by the Bakunawa myths
Bakunawa Illustration by Ku Rei
