*Note this story is in Ilocano

Alikamen:

Buneng – maaramat tapno mauluyan ti aswang kalpasan a maparmek daytoy.

Ipus ti Pagi – maaramat tapno saanen a makakuti ti aswang. Mangted kaniada iti nakaro unay a sakit.

Kalamansi – kalasag tapno saannaka a mapidut ti aswang. Dayta ti mangpadagsen kaniada.

Dapo – Iwaras iti bagi ti aswang no agsina ti bagida. Saanen nga maisubli ti Aswang ti naisina a bagina no naikkan ti dapo daytoy.

Gabon/Sambong/Bukadkad/Subsob (Blumea balsamefera) – Daytoy a mula ket mausar tapno mabugaw ti aswang. Masapul a kapurpuros ken ikabil a kanayon iti bulsa.

Bawang – Saan a maanusan ti aswang ti angot ti bawang. Kanayonen ti mangitugot.

Asin- Maaramat kasmet la iti dapo. Mausar met tapno maiyadayo  ti aswang kadagiti dadduma a lugar.

Ramramit –  Nabendisionan a banbanag, bendita, ken anting-anting a masapul iti panangiyadayo kadagiti nakabutbuteng a parsua.  Masapul a kasarita ti maysa a padi sakbay ti amin.

Dagiti ritos:

Mabalin a matiliw ti aswang babaen ti panangurnos ti tallo a dadakkel a bato iti sirkulo a kasla paglutuan. Inton mapasungadan ti ‘kak kak’ nga awag ti naparsua , baliksen ti Kredo dagiti Apostoles. Inton makadanon iti parte ti Kredo maipapan  iti pannakailansa  ni Cristo iti  krus, mangpidot ti maysa a bato ket ipak-ol ti maysa a lansa iti daga. Agpababanto ti naparsua ket agdisso iti tallo a bato, ket ditoy mabalinen a patayen.

Adda ritos  iti panangikkat ti lunod ti panagbalin ti maysa nga aswang; daytoy ket ti panaginum iti lemon ken danum, pannakaibitin a baliktad tapno maisarwada ti maysa a kasla billit a pinarsua ket daytoy maiwa-iwa iti pedaso.

Dagiti Palagip:

Usaren dagiti ramramit tapno mapasardeng dagiti encantasionda.  Padsuen  ida  babaen iti ut-ot manipud iti ipus ti pagi sa ipungsay ti uloda babaen ti panggibus a tagbat ti buneng.

Dagiti lunod  ti aswang ket mabalin a mapasingkedan babaen ti panangaramid ti ‘ritual ti itlog’ no sadinno a no makita dagiti marka ti mata ken dara iti itlog, kayatna a sawen a ti tao ket ‘inaswang’ (naallilaw).

Mabalin a maikkat dagiti ilusion iti taraon babaen ti panangipis-it iti calamansi kadagita. Dagiti masida a kas iti sinigang ket agbalin  a malukong a napno iti ramay ti tao ken dara.

Dagiti lunod  ti aswang ket mabalin nga agturong  iti  agsumbangir a dalan,  isu a no ti biktima ket masapsaplitan wenno masugatan iti aniaman a pisikal a wagas, ti aswang ti makarikna iti dayta.

Saan a nalawa daytoy a listaan ​​dagiti wagas iti panangtiliw iti naparsua. Adu pay dagiti ritual ken ramramit a maus-usar a manglaban kadagitoy a nakabutbuteng a parsua. .

Iwanwan koma ti Apo ti dalanmo.

Bendisyonannaka  ti Dios.

=——————————-=

Engilsh version

Equipment:
Bolo – used to give a final blow after incapacitating the aswang.
Stingray Tail – used to incapacitate the aswang. Causes great pain to them.
Kalamansi – A ward to ensure that the aswang cannot pick you up. It weighs them down.
Ashes – Used to sprinkle on the aswang’s body if they self-segment. Aswang cannot reattach if ashes are scattered on their other half.
Gabon/Sambong/Bukadkad/Subsob (Blumea Balsamefera) – This plant is used to ward off aswang. Pick it fresh and keep it in your pocket.
Garlic – Aswang cannot stand the smell of garlic. Keep some with you at all times.
Salt – Used in the same way as ashes. Can also be used to ward certain places away from aswang.
Wards – Blessed objects, holy water anting-anting are all useful to keep away the monsters. Make sure to see a priest beforehand.

The post Aswang – Ilocano Translation appeared first on Philippine Spirits.

*Note this story is in Tagalog

May isang bata na ngalan ay Edgardo. Siya ay maliit at tahimik, at mas nainin niyang magbasa ng atlat kaysa makipaglaro sa ibang mga bata. Ang mga libro ay xahirap makarating sa munting mabundok na komunidad at nanyang pinapahalagahan and mga panahong pupunta siya sa siyudad, pinapanood din niya ang kanyang ama sa pagpapalit ng ginto galing sa minahan para sa salapi at pambili sa gustong niyang mga libro.

Isang draw siya ay nilapitan ni Faustino, batting lalaki na madalas siyang iniiwasan. Ibang bagay ang pagiging iba, ngunit kung making iba sa komunidad na may higit kumulang sa isang daan na tao. Nakaramdam si Egardo na para bang nasa mata siya ng pagkilatis sa kanya.

“Maaari bang umupo rito?” Ang tanong ni Faustino sa kanya.

“Oo, wala naman pipigil sa iyo,” Ang sagot ni Edgardo.

“Narinig mo ba kung ano ang nangyari?” Sinubukan ni Faustino tumingin sa kanyang mata pero mas  nangibabaw ang pagyuko niya at tinignan ang kanyang pahila  na paglakad ng paa.

“Hindi ba lahat?” Sinabi ni Edgardo habang hindi niya inaalis ang kayang mata mula sa pahina na kanyang binabasa.

“Kasama si Veronica ay tattle na sila simula noong Pebrero.” Umupo sa tabi niya si Faustino.

Hindi na bago kung may kabataang nawawala sa bundok. Kahit saan ay may panganib. Isang saglit ng pagkawala ng pagiging mapagmasid sa paligid ay lubos na mapanganib. Ang mga minahan ay nakakabahala rin. Madalas ang kanilang ama o kapatıd ay hindi na bumabalik. Ang kumpanya ng minahan ay magpapadala ng pakikiramay sa pagpanaw- kung ano man ang halaga nito.

“Sabi naman naman na kinukuha na lamang ang anak.” Saad ni Faustino, muli, sinubukan ngunit bigo niyang tignan ang kanyang mata.

Binaba ni Edgardo ang kanyang aklat at sumagot naman, “Sino ang may nais na cumula ng mga bata? Kung para ito sa pera maaaring naman sila magpadala ng sulat? Maulan na panahon, ang mga tao ay naglalakbay sa bundok at hindi na bumabalik. Ganun yun.”

“Hindi.”Nilagay ni Faustino ang kanyang kamay sa balikat ni Edgardo. “Ito ay iba sa ganyang pangyayari, kutob ko ito. Dapat tayong magkasama. Tinanong sila Melinda, Pepito at Belen. Maaari namin subaybayan kung ano man ang mangyari sa amin.

“Ligtas ka sa amin,” Nakangiting sabi ni Faustino. Sumimagot si Edgardo. “Kung sabi mo.”

Hindi ito ang unang pagkakataon na may nagpangako ng ganito. Naisip niya ang kanyang nakatatandang kapatid. Mga gabing pumunta sila sa kweba ng magkasama para maghanap ng mga ginto. Noong isang pagkakataon na hindi siya maingat. Mga bagay na nangyari at hayaan na maganap. Isang gabi si Edgardo ay nakarinig ng bulong ng ibang bata.

“Edgardo—— psssst——— gising, ito ay importante,” sabi ng boses. Lumipas ang ilang minuto kay Edgardo bago bumalik sa realidad. Makatotohanan ang kanyang panaginip: isang bahay na puno ng mga aklat para sa kanya. Malinaw ang kanyang panaginip at nangako na isang araw ito ay magkakatotoo.

“Belen?!”

“Sshhhhhh- huwag mo hayaan na may makarinig sa iyo.” Tinakpan ni Belen ang bibig ni Edgardo. “Anong ginagawa mo rito?” Sabi niya sa pamamagitan ng paguusap gamit ang mga daliri  sa senyales.

“Ito ay si Faustino.” Nag-aalala na mukha ni Belen. “Siya ay nawawala.”

“Sigurado ka ba?” Mas tahimik si Edgardo sa pagkakataon na ito, “baka lumabas lamang para maglakad?”

“Kalagitnaan na ng gabi! Wala pa siya sa kanyang bahay. Sumama ka sa akin. Nasa likod ng isang malaking puno na malapit sa bahay ni Faustino si Pepito at Melinda. Kailangan natin siyang hanapin.”

Kinuskos ni Edgardo ang kanyang mga mata at humikab ulit. “Sige, baka nga naman.” Nandoon si Melinda at Pepito sa lugar na sinabi ni Belen kung saan dapat sila matagpuan, ang mga alitaptap sa puno ay nakakatakot sa pakiramdam.

“Sa tingin ko ay nakakita ako ng bakas.” Saad ni Pepito. “May mga bakas papunta sa kweba malapit sa burol.

Napangiwi lahat ng bata. Ang mga kweba na malapit sa minahan ay mapanganib sa mga matanda, lalo naman sa apat na batang nakagrupo. “Kailangan na natin umalis,” sabi ni Belen, “Gagawin ko rin ang parehas para sa amin.”

“Ano ang dapat nating gawin kapag nahanap na natin siya? Meron dapat na maging responsable sa mga pagkawala nila. Paano natin lalaban ito?” Sambit ni Melinda na malapit nang umiyak.

“Hindi natin kailangan kalabanin ito, kailangan mahanap si Faustino at maibalik natin dito, kung saan ligtas,” sabi ni Pepito.

Tumingin sila sa isa’t isa at naghawak kamay. Ang bawat isa ay may solusyon na mahanap ang kanilang kaibigan si Edgardo hanggang maaari. Siya ay nagagalak sa kanyan panaginip.

Sinundan nila ang bakas sa abot ng kanilang makakaya, matuklap man ang kanilang mga balat mula sa mga bato at ugat ng halaman. Noong malapit na silang maabot ang pagkapagod, narating naman nila ang kanilang destinasyon, isang kakaibang kweba na pasukan sa mga maraming lagusan at maaaring hindi na sila makabalik.

Pinamunuan ni Belen ang grupo. Siya ay kumuha ng lampara mula sa kanyang magulang at isang beses ay naisama na rin siya ng kanyang mga kapatid sa kweba. Hindi sa pamumuno ang kanyang lakas, ngunit dapat niyang siguraduhin na meron gagabay sa iba. Kailangan niya itong gawin para kay Faustino.

Si Melinda ang nauna.

Hindi niya kailangan sumigaw. Isang beses na si Belen ang nagsinag ng lampara sa entrada ng ibang lagusan at sa sumunod, noonf tumawag siya ng mga pangalan ng kanyang kasama. Hindi siya natakot sa katahimikan ngunit na pagkakataon na ito, hindi malilimutan sa buong buhay niya.

Sinikap ni Pedro na manatili sa paglalakbay. Naghawak kamay silang lahat at naramdaman ni Belen nanginginig ang kanyang kamay. Sinubukan nitong pakalmahin siya.

“Magiging maayos din ang lahat. Mahahanap natin silang pareho, pangako ko ito.” Sinubukang hindi umiyak ni Pepito habang tumango, ngunit nangibabaw ang kanyang takot.

“Hindi!” Sigaw niya. “Kailangan nating umuwi!”

Sinubukan ni Edgardo sa abot ng kanyang makakaya na pakalmahin siya.” Pepito, kailangan nating manatiling magkasama, ito lamang ang tanging paraan para maka-alis dito!”

Hindi siya nakinig, tinulak niya si Edgardo palayo sa kanya at tumakbo sa kadiliman.

Ang katahimikan ay nagpabigat ng pakiramdam sa dalawang naiiwan.

“Ang tanga ko para isipin na gagana nitong plano.” Nagsimulang bumigat ang paghinga ni Belen at kanyang binaba ang hawak na lampara. “Dapat tayong manatiling magkakasama. Ngayon hindi lamang si Faustino. Lubusang humihingi ako ng patawad. Patawad Melinda, at Pepito! Kailangan nating bumalik, siguro kung sinabi natin sa ating pamilya na pupunta tayo dito at pwede nating hanapin silang lahat. Mahahanap natin sila.” Kinuha ni Edgardo ang lampara at sinabi, “sumama kayo sa akin”.

Walang pagpipilian si Belen kung hindi sumunod sa kanyang bagong kaibigan. Ang ilaw sa lampara ay unti unting naglalaho at ang landas na tinatahak ay mas dumudulas sa daanan. Sinubukan niyang humawak sa pader para maging balanse, ngunit nalaman niyang mamasa-masa din pala. Nakita na rin niya kung ano man iyon noong binigay ni Edgardo ang lampara.

Kulay pula sa kahit saang lugar. Namantsahan ang kanyang mga kamay at damit pati na rin ang mga tumutulo mula sa kisame.

“Hindi ko maitindihan—-” Sinubukang sabihin ni Belen.

Ngunit may panibagong ilaw na tanglaw ni Edgardo, nagbigay liwanag sa isang nilalang na may dalang mabigat na supot ng ginto.

“Dapat kang nakinig sa kanila. Kung nakinig ka maaaring si Faustino lamang.”

“Ako—-Ako—-” Naparalisa si Belen, sinibukan niyang sumigaw habang dinala siya nitong nilalang sa malalim na bahagi ng lagusan.

Noong sumikat na ang araw kay Edgardo habang naglilinis ng kanyang sarili sa ilog, napag-isipan niya:

“Nais kong malaman kung ilang libro ang aking maaaring makuha  sa pamamagitan nito.”

=————————-=

English Version

There was once a child named Edgardo. He was small and quiet and preferred to read books instead of playing with the other children. Books were hard to get in his small mountain community and he treasured the moments when he would go to the city, watch his father exchange the gold they mined for money and buy the books he wanted.

One day he was approached by Faustino, a boy who would usually avoid him. It was one thing to be different, but to be different in a community of a few hundred people made Edgardo feel like he was under a microscope.

“Can I sit here?” Faustino asked him.

“Sure, no one’s stopping you,” Edgardo replied.

“Did you hear about what happened?” Faustino tried to look him in the eye but only succeeded at putting his head down and staring at his shuffling feet.

“Didn’t everyone?” Edgardo said without moving his eyes away from the page he was reading.

“With Veronica that makes 3 since February.” Faustino sat beside him.

It wasn’t uncommon for children to go missing up in the mountains. Danger was everywhere. One moment of absentmindedness could cost you dearly.

The mines were also an issue. Too often their fathers or brothers would just not come home and the mining companies would send their condolences – for whatever that was worth.

“They say someone is taking the children away.” Faustino, again, tried and failed to look him in the eye.

Edgardo put down his book and replied, “Who would possibly want to take the children? If it was for money then wouldn’t they have sent a note? It’s rainy season, people walk around the mountain and don’t come back. Just leave it be.”

“No.” Faustino put his hands on Edgardo’s shoulders. “This is different from that, I can feel it. We have to stick together. I asked Melinda, Pepito and Belen. The five of us can watch what happens with each other.”

“You’ll be safe with us,” Faustino says with a smile.

Edgardo frowns. “If you say so.”

This wasn’t the first time someone made that promise. He thought back to his elder brother. Those nights when they went to the caves together to find gold for themselves. That one time he wasn’t careful. Things would happen and you just had to let them be.

One night Edgardo was awakened by the whispers of another child.

“Edgardo —- psssst —— wake up, it’s important,” the voice said.

It took a few minutes for Edgardo to snap back into reality. The dream that he had was so vivid: a house filled with books all to himself. He was lucid in his dream and he swore that one day it would come true.

“Belen?!”

“Sshhhhhh—don’t let anyone hear you.” She put her hand over his mouth.

“What are you doing here?” he managed to say through her fingers.

“It’s Faustino.” Her face was grim. “He’s missing.”

“Are you sure?” Edgardo was quieter this time, “maybe he just went out for a walk?”

“It’s the middle of the night! He’s not in his house. Come with me. Pepito and Melinda are by the big tree near Faustino’s house. We need to find him.”

Edgardo rubbed his eyes and yawned again. “Fine, might as well.”

Melinda and Pepito were where Belen said they would be, the fireflies giving the tree an eerie aura.

“I think I found a trail,” Pepito said. “There are footprints leading to the caves over by the hills.”

The children all grimaced. Those caves were near the mines and they were dangerous enough for adults, much less a group of four children.

“We have to go,” Belen said, “he’d do the same for us.”

“What are we going to do when we find him? There must be something responsible for the disappearances. How do we fight it?” Melinda was close to tears.

“We don’t need to fight it, we just have to find Faustino and bring him back here, where it’s safe,” Pepito said.

They all looked at each other and put their hands together.

Each had a resolve to find their friend, Edgardo less so. He was still enraptured by his dream.

They followed the trail as best as they could, scraping their skins against the rocks and the roots. And as soon as they were about to fall from exhaustion, they reached their destination, a nondescript cave that they knew was an entrance to a network of tunnels they might not return from.

Belen lead the group. She had taken a lamp from her parents and her siblings had taken her to the caves once. Leadership was not her strength, but she had to make sure the others had a guide. She had to do it, for Faustino.

Melinda was the first.

She didn’t even scream. One moment Belen was shining the lamp on the entrance to another tunnel and the next, when she called out for the names of her companions. She had never feared silence until that moment, it was one she would remember for the rest of her life.

Pepito tried to stay the course. They all held hands and Belen could feel his shaking. She tried to console him.

“It will be alright. We’ll find both of them, I promise.”

Pepito tried to hold back tears as he nodded, yet fear had overtaken him.

“No!” He shouted. “We have to go back home!”

Edgardo tried his best to hold him down.

“Pepito, we have to stay together, it’s the only way we can make it out of here!”

He didn’t listen, he pushed Edgardo off him and ran into the darkness.

The silence weighed heavy on the remaining two.

“I was so stupid to think this would work.” Belen’s breath started to become rapid and she put the lantern down. “We should have stayed together. Now it’s not just Faustino. I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry Melinda, Pepito! We have to go back, maybe if we tell our families they can go here and we can all search for them. We’ll find them. We have to find them.”

Edgardo took the lantern and said, “come with me”.

Belen had no other choice but to follow her new friend.

The light from the lantern was slowly fading and the path was getting more slippery as they went along. She tried to grab the wall to balance, but she found that it was damp as well.

She finally saw what it was when Edgardo handed her the lantern.

It was red everywhere. It stained her hands and clothes and drops fell from the ceiling.

“I don’t understand—-” Belen tried to say.

But another light glowed by Edgardo, illuminating a creature carrying a hefty bag of gold.

“You should have listened to them. If you did maybe it would have just been Faustino.”

“I—-I—-” Belen was paralyzed, she tried to scream as the creature carried her deeper into the tunnel.

And as the daylight shined on Edgardo as he cleaned himself in the river, he thought:

“I wonder how many books I can get with this.”

Inspired by the Sagay description in Creatures of Philippine Lower Mythology. Ramos. 1971.

Sagay Illustration by Christian Bitao

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anegs.gg/

The post Sagay – Tagalog Translation appeared first on Philippine Spirits.

The scent was carried by the western wind.

Deer? No not gamey enough.

Wait. I know this one.

The olfactory sense, the one she was most proud of was weak tonight. In normal days she could identify the musk of a carabao or even the scent of freshly cut undergrowth at a great distance.

Yes.

Humans.

Not the stringy kind, she thought, much more tender.

It had been a while since she had eaten juveniles. They were faster than the older ones, but the sweet taste of their flesh lingered on her tongue, long after that meal.

Three?

No. Two.
The wafting of the breeze emboldened her.

A great vintage. She said to no one in particular.

One male. Seven years old, very nervous. Sweating too much. A bit heavy set.

Another one. Female. Related to the boy. Old enough to have passed puberty. She seems to be the one leading them both through the forest.

Leading them to her first meal in a while.

Small game was what the giantess had been subsisting on for the past few weeks. She brought them to her cave, the soft light of the small fire exuding some form of comfort in her bleak existence.

She was an outcast even among the giants. She was not the strong Bungisngis, the fearsome Dambuhala or the oath sworn Sarimao.

She was Bekat, the giantess who could smell.

And today she was hungry.

The humans were in the part of the forest where the river ran.

Perfect. She could wash the meat without having to inconvenience herself.

She took a large log, felled from a narra tree and started her hunt.

That smell again.

She could tell by the scent that both of them were sweating, their adrenaline seeping out of their bodies.

Her belly growled. All she had to do was get close enough for one swipe. Just one.

The girl screamed, giving ample time for the boy to run away.

Bekat grabbed her quarry, the girl struggling to escape her grasp.

She smelled something on the girl, a kind of perfume or a lip balm? Bekat never liked eating those, they tasted like chemicals and preservatives.

It was time to drown her prey. The cold waters of the river would rush away any unwanted flavors.

“Wait!” The girl said. “Do not drown me giant, my flesh will be tough!”

Bekat reflected, had all her drowned prey been tough to chew? That may have been the case.

The giantess sat down, the girl still struggling against her grip.

“Hmmm.. How should I deal with you, child?”

“You could release me, giant. I can bring you many more humans.”

“I could not eat all of you given the chance. I only want a light meal.”

“then what kind of meal do you want to have?”

“Something plump and juicy.”
“I can get you my brother! All you need is to let me go and I can bring him!”
“What if you run away?”
“I will not, I promise.”
So Bekat let her go and waited.

The sun set and she waited.

Twilight passed and she waited.

“Damn, fooled again,” she said.

It was not the first time she was tricked like this and it wouldn’t be the last. Her strength equaled her ignorance.

She smelled a whiff of deer in the air.

And resumed her hunt.

=———————————-=

Written by Karl Gaverza
Copyright © Karl Gaverza

Inspired by the Bekat description in The Creatures of Philippine Lower Mythology, Maximo Ramos, Phoenix Publishing, 1990.

Bekat Illustration by emirajuju
IG: https://www.instagram.com/emirajuju/

The post Bekat appeared first on Philippine Spirits.

*Note this story is in Surigaonon

Waya gajud mawaya sa ako hunahuna adtong panahona.

Sugod pa sa upat katuig nako, pirme na ko sa dagat. Naa na sako dugo an tubig .

Nakakadto nako sa Pantabangan ug Lumot para mamingwit nan Apahap, sa Sugbo

para manguha nan Tikos , sa Mactan para manguha nan Maming. Jauy sab ako

nakuha na 120 cm na Maja – Maja pero lain gajud katong ako nakitan sa una.

Pirmero sa Anilao nako sija nakitan, waya ako kabantay kun uno na klase adto na

isda. Murag dagko sija na Lizard fish, mas dagko pa sa ako nakitan sa una. Kasagaran

sa Lizard fish kay 30cm ra man, inin ako nakitan kay murag 400 cm o mas dako dako

pa.

Pila ka semana nako gihimo ug tiboon an panalubon sa isda na ako kinahanglan,

murag tag ganahan adto sa mga dagkong isda parehas sa Mahi-mahi ug Lapu-lapu.

Kay sa ako pamingwit kada adlaw, pirme nija gajud bangaon an panalubon kun jauy

mabilin gamay rakan. Makitan man gajud nimo na grabe ka talom an ija ngipon.

Murag manginahanglan gajud ko nan mas ligon na pisi.

Buntag sajo nan alas tres kay nimata na ko, ako na tag preparar an panalubon para

sa ija. Bisan bugnaw pa kay sajo pa man sab, naghuyat ako.

Amo gajud ini an ako tagka ganahan sa pamingwit, an pagka hapsay ug pag kalinaw

sa paligid. Murag gikan pagkahuman sa bagjo. Pirme sa ako iistorya ni papa na 90%

kuno sa pamingwit kay ang pag preparar. Dugay pa bago nako adto hinumdumi.

Bago mag paniudto kay nakitan na nako an ija kapay. Nahibayo na ko na amo na

ini,na human na an ako pag preparar. Tag itsa na nako an ija tagkaganahan na

panalubon, tag plastar nako an ako sarili kay hibayo gajud ako na arang ka kusog an

ija pwersa, basin madaya ako. Daan ko pa, nabugto an pisi. Amo na adto an pinaka

ligon sa tanan na pisi na pwede gamiton, tuyo sab kabuyan ako nag preparar pero

tanan hago nako na waya ra.

Usahay ako balikan sa Anilao an mingwitan basin ako na sab adto makitan, pero

waya ako tag pasuyod kay dili kuno pwede, ila ako tag bawalan. Kay jauy kuno

nalumos na mga mangisdaay dapit sa ila pambot.

Grabe gajud adto ka sayang waya nako nakuha, pirme nako isipon adto. Kagana tana

kun ako adto na dakpan kay ako isabak dajun, di gajud ako muhunong.

Bisan kanusa pa, basta dili gajud ako muundang.

Waya ako maka sabot sa ako nakitan pero hibayo gajud ako na delikado adto. Karon

na tuig,sukad sa ako pag balik diri sa Anilao pirme jauy ma lumos.

Jauy mag uyab na turista tag anod murag gikan nag picture picture kay ginunitan pa

nila an ila mga celpon pag kakita sa ila sa baybay. Laong sa mga lokal kay lain an

banga sa ila lawas makalaong ra kaw na aksidente an nahitabo.

Waya pa nagdugay kay nag sunod-sunod na an pagkawaya sa mga surfers.

Karon na simana lima na kabatanon ang nawaya. Laong nan mga lokal kay basta tag

uyan kay magkadako ang bayud jaun man pirme an pag bantajan nan mga surfers.

Kasagaran di na sila makabalik, waya na sab mahibagtan an ila mga lawas. Tanan

resorts nag pahibalo sa tanan tawo na ajaw anay pag kadto sa dagat.

Kada jauy mawaya pirme ako naa didto, didto dapit sa baybay ba. Waya ako

manlimbong pero ako gajud pirme makitan an ila kapay didto dapit kun asa malumos

an mga bata.

Nabuang na siguro ko kay makalaong man ako na an isda ang hinungdan sa

pagkalumos nila. Pero makalaong gajud ako na konektado ini sila.

Murag di na anay ako muuli sa amo, kada adto nako sa dagat kay nagkahamok an

ako makitan na kapay.

Nihunong anay ako sa pag mingwit basin mawaya sab ako parehas sa ila tas way

mutuo sa ako. Pirme nako sila pahinumdoman na delikado na gajud kaliguan an

dagat pero waya na sila mamati sa ako. Tag abrihan na pud nan mga resort an ila

area para sa mga mangaligoay, mamingwitay ug mansisiday kay nanginabuhi man

sab daw sila.

Di gajud ako muhunong, kinahanglan mag bantay gajud an mga tawo.

Kay dili raman gud isa an kapay na ako nakitan, hamok man.

=———————–=

English Version

I still think about the one that got away.

I’ve been fishing since I was four years old. The water’s in my blood. I’ve been to Pantabangan and Lumot to catch Bass, Cebu to catch Tikos, Mactan Island to catch Wrasse and I’ve even managed to catch a 120 cm long Maya-Maya. But none of them compare to this.

I first spotted it off the coast of Anilao. I didn’t know what to make of it. It looked like a large lizardfish, larger than any I had ever seen before. Typically a lizardfish only reaches a maximum of 30 cm but this looked more like a shark that was well over 400 cm, maybe more.

It took me weeks to come up with the amount of bait I needed. It only seemed to like large fish, Mahi-Mahi and Grouper most especially, though I couldn’t be surprised. Every time I fished the bait out of the water there was a giant bite taken out of it. The fish were ripped apart with incredibly sharp jaws. I knew I was going to need a stronger line.

I got up at 3 am and I waited. I strung the bait on my line and I sat in the cold early morning air. This is why I loved fishing. It was about the nice quiet moments, the calm before the storm when you can think about every eventuality that might come your way. My dad always told me that 90% of fishing is preparation. I took too long to learn that lesson.

I saw a glimpse of its fin right after sunrise. I knew the time for preparation was over. I threw some chum near the line. The fish had a taste for blood, I remembered. I braced myself for the inevitable bite and nothing could have prepared me for what happened.

The line was cut. I don’t know how that could be, it was the strongest one I could find on the market, but there it was. 3 months of preparation all for nothing.

I never saw that fish again, though I sometimes take trips to Anilao to see if I could spot it. I wanted to go again this year but the fishing grounds were off limits. A couple of amateur fishermen were found drowned by their boats.

I still dream about that catch. How it would have been amazing to carry it on my shoulders, but I won’t give up.

Tomorrow is another day and maybe someday I will find it.

I don’t understand what I stumbled upon, but I know for a fact it’s more dangerous than people let on. Ever since I returned to Anilao this year to find that fish again more people have been found drowned.

There was the tourist couple who was found by the dock. They looked like they were taking pictures, they were still holding on to their phones when their bodies washed on shore. The bites that appeared on their bodies weren’t like anything the locals had seen before. We were all prepared to say it was a terrible accident.

That was until the surfers started disappearing.

5 young people in total had been reported missing since the start of this week. The rainy season had made the waves enticing to them, and they thought it would be a good chance to try them. For some, it would be the last decision they ever made. The bodies still haven’t been found and the resorts have all issued a warning for people to stay out of the water.

I was there for each of the disappearances. I mean I was by the sea, and I could swear upon my mother’s grave that I saw a glimpse of the fins in the areas where those people disappeared.

I may be crazy to think that some kind of fish has something to do with missing people, but my instinct is shouting in my head. There has to be some connection between them.

I don’t think I’ll make the trip back home, because I keep seeing more and more of the fins around the waters.

I’ve even stopped fishing, I don’t want to end up like those people, and no one will listen to me. I keep trying to warn them, trying to say that the waters are too dangerous for anyone to go in. The resorts wouldn’t listen, they were losing too much money and they reopened the waters for divers and fishermen.

I won’t stop though. These people need to be warned.

There are more than one set of fins.

=———————————————=

Surigaonon is a Philippine regional language spoken by Surigaonon people in the province of Surigao del Norte, Dinagat Islands, Surigao del Sur, and some portions of Agusan del Norte especially the towns near the Mainit Lake, Agusan del Sur and Davao Oriental.

Written by Karl Gaverza
Surigaonon Translation provided by Ara Conza
Copyright © Karl Gaverza
Translation Copyright © Ara Conza

Story inspired by the Siyokoy entry in Creatures of Philippine Lower Mythology. Ramos. 1971.

Illustration by Leandro Geniston from Aklat ng mga Anito
FB: That Guy With A Pen

Watercolor by Mykie Concepcion
Tumblr: http://mykieconcepcion.tumblr.com/

The post Siyokoy – Surigaonon Translation appeared first on Philippine Spirits.

*Note this story is in Cebuano

Dunay usa ka bata nga ginganlan og Edgardo. Gamay siya ug hilomon ug mas gusto niya nga magbasa og mga libro imbes nga makigdula sa ubang mga bata. Lisod makakuha og mga libro sa iyang gamay nga komunidad sa kabukiran ug iyang gipalabi ang mga higayon nga moadto siya sa siyudad, motan-aw sa iyang amahan nga ibaylo ang bulawan nga ilang gimina ug paliton ang mga libro nga iyang gusto.

Usa ka adlaw niana giduol siya ni Faustino, usa ka batang lalaki nga kasagarang molikay niya. Usa ka butang ang pagkalahi og kinaiya, apan ang pagkalahi og kinaiya sa usa ka komunidad sa pipila ka gatos ka mga tawo lamang nagpabati kang Edgardo nga mora siyag naa sa ilawom sa mikroskopyo.

“Mahimo ba ko nga molingkod dinhi?” Gipangutana siya ni Faustino.

“Sure, way mopugong nimo,” tubag ni Edgardo.

“Nakadungog ka ba sa nahitabo?” Gisuwayan ni Faustino nga motutok apan nahimo lang niya ang pagduko sa iyang ulo ug pagtutok sa iyang dili mahimutang nga mga tiil.

“Dili ba ang tanan?” Matod pa ni Edgardo nga wala man gani gipahilayo ang iyang mga mata sa panid nga iyang gibasa.

“Apil si Veronica, nahimo nang 3 sukad sa Pebrero.” Milingkod tupad niya si Faustino.

Kasagaran na nga panghitabo nga mawala ang mga bata sa kabukiran. Bisan asa naa ang kapeligrohan. Mahimong makabayad ka og mahal sa usa ka gutlo nga pagkadanghag.

Usa sab ka isyu ang mga minahan. Kasagaran ang ilang mga amahan o mga igsoon dili na makapauli ug ang mga kompanya sa pagmina magpadala nalang sa ilang mga pahasubo – kon aduna man niy bili.

“Nag-ingon sila nga dunay nagdagit sa mga bata.” Si Faustino, pag-usab, misulay ug napakyas sa pagtutok niya.

Gibutang ni Edgardo ang iyang libro ug mitubag, “Kinsa man kaha ang gustong modagit sa mga bata? Kon tungod ni sa kuwarta dili ba sila magpadala og sulat? Ting-ulan karon, ang mga tawo maglibot-libot sa bukid ug dili na mobalik. Ayaw na pagtagad kaayo niini.”

“Dili.” Gitungtong ni Faustino ang iyang mga kamot sa mga abaga ni Edgardo. “Mabati nako nga lahi ni. Kinahanglan nga mag-uban ta. Gihangyo nako sila si Melinda, Pepito ug Belen. Kitang lima makabantay kon unsay mahitabo sa usag usa.”

“Luwas ka uban kanamo,” ingon ni Faustino nga nagpahiyom.

Mikunot ang agtang ni Edgardo. “Kon ingon nimo.”

Dili ni ang unang higayon nga dunay mihimo niana nga saad. Nahinumdoman niya pagbalik ang iyang magulang nga lalaki. Niadtong mga gabii nga miadto sila sa mga langob aron mangitag bulawan alang sa ilang kaugalingon. Niadtong usa ka higayon wa siya mag-amping. Mahitabo lang ang mga butang ug kinahanglan nimong pasagdaan ni.

Usa ka gabii nahigmata si Edgardo sa hunghong sa laing bata.

“Edgardo —- psssst —— pagmata, importante ni,” matod sa tingog.

Nilanat og pipila ka minuto sa wala pa nahibalik si Edgardo sa reyalidad. Tin-aw kaayo ang damgo nga iyang nabatonan bag-o lang: usa ka balay nga puno sa mga libro para sa iyang kaugalingon. Tin-aw kaayo ang iyang damgo ug nanumpa siya nga usa ka adlaw matuman ni.

“Belen?!”

“Sshhhhhh—paghinay aron walay makadungog nimo.” gitabonan niya ang iyang baba sa iyang kamot.

“Unsay imong gibuhat dinhi?” nakahimo siya sa pagsulti bisan og nagtabon ang iyang mga tudlo.

“Si Faustino.” Seryoso ang iyang nawong. “Nawala siya.”

“Sigurado ka?” Mas hilom si Edgardo ning higayona, “basin ningla-ag lang siya?”

“Tunga-tunga na sa gabii! Wala siya sa iyang balay. Kuyog nako. Si Pepito ug Melinda naa sa daplin sa dakong kahoy duol sa balay ni Faustino. Kinahanglan natong siyang pangitaon.”

Gilugod ni Edgardo ang iyang mga mata ug mihuy-ab pag-usab. “Na hala, mokuyog na lang.”

Sila si Melinda ug Pepito didto sa giingon ni Belen nga ilang adtoan, ang mga aninipot naghatag sa kahoy og makalilisang nga kahayag.

“Maorag nakakita kog agianan,” ingon ni Pepito. “Dunay mga tunob paingon sa mga langob sa mga bungtod.”

Ang tanang mga bata nangislo. Kadto nga mga langob duol sa mga minahan ug peligro man gani alang sa mga hamtong, ug labi na gayod alang sa usa ka grupo ka mga bata.

“Kinahanglan moadto ta,” mi-ingon si Belen, “buhaton usab ni niya alang kanato.”

“Unsa may atong buhaton kon makit-an nato siya? Duna gayoy butang nga responsable sa mga pagkawala. Unsaon man nato ang pagpakig-away niini?” Kahilakon si Melinda.

“Dili kinahanglan nga awayon ni, kinahanglan lang naton pangitaon si Faustino ug ibalik siya dinhi, diin luwas siya,” ingon ni Pepito.

Nagtinan-away silang tanan ug gikuptan nila ang kamot sa usag-usa.

Ang matag usa dunay determinasyon sa pagpangita sa ilang higala, si Edgardo hinuon wala kaayo. Nalingaw pa gihapon siya sa iyang damgo.

Ilang gisundan ang agianan kutob sa ilang mahimo, bisan og nagkapangos-pangos ilang mga panit sa mga bato ug sa mga gamot. Ug sa dihang hapit na silang mangatumba tungod sa kakapoy, nakaabot sila sa ilang destinasyon, usa ka dili mahulagway nga langob nga nahibal-an nila nga agianan sa gasumpay-sumpay nga mga tanel nga mahimong dili na nila matultolan unsaon pagbalik.

Si Belen maoy nangulo sa grupo. Nagdala siya og lampara nga gikan sa iyang mga ginikanan ug nga mao usab nga lampara nga gidala sa iyang mga igsoon niadtong nangadto sila sa mga langob. Dili kaayo siya angayan nga mangulo, apan kinahanglan niyang siguroon nga dunay giya ang uban. Kinahanglan niyang buhaton ni, para kang Faustino.

Si Melinda ang nag-una.

Wala man gani siya ningsiyagit. Sa usa ka gutlo si Belen nagdan-ag sa lampara sa entrada sa laing tanel ug unya sa sunod, nagpanawag na siya sa mga ngalan sa iyang mga kauban. Wala gayod niya nabati ang kahadlok sa kahilom hangtod niadtong higayona, mao ni ang usa sa iyang mahinumdoman sa tibuok niyang kinabuhi.

Gisulayan ni Pepito nga magpabilin sa agi-anan. Nagkuptanay silang tanan ug nabati ni Belen ang iyang pagkurog. Naningkamot siya sa paghupay niya.

“Mamaayo ra ang tanan. Makit-an ra nato silang duha, pramis.”

Misulay Si Pepito sa pagpugong sa iyang mga luha samtang siya miyango, apan gidaog na siya sa iyang kahadlok.

“Dili!” Misinggit siya. “Kinahanglan nga mamauli na ta!”

Gipaningkamotan ni Edgardo nga mapugngan siya.

“Pepito, kinahanglang magkuyog ta, mao lang ni ang paagi nga makalingkawas ta dinhi!”

Wala siya naminaw, iyang gitukmod si Edgardo palayo ug midagan siya ngadto sa kangitngit.

Bug-at ang kahilom sa duha nga nahibilin.

“Tonto kaayo ko sa paghunahuna nga magsilbi ni.” Misugod pagkusog ang hangos ni Belen ug iyang gibutang ang lampara. “Unta to nagkuyog ra ta. Karon dili lang si Faustino ang nawala. Pasayloa ko. Pasayloa ko, Melinda, Pepito! Kinahanglang mamalik ta, basin kon sultihan nato ang atong mga pamilya, unya sila pod ang manganhi dinhi ug kitang tanan mangita nila. Pangitaon nato sila. Kinahanglan natong pangitaon sila.”

Gikuha ni Edgardo ang lampara ug miingon, “Uban nako”.

Wala nay laing mahimo si Belen gawas sa pagsunod sa iyang bag-ong higala.

Ang kahayag gikan sa lampara hinay-hinay nga nahanaw ug ang agi-anan nagkadanlog samtang sila naglakaw. Gisulayan niya paggunit ang bungbong aron makabalanse, apan iyang nabati nga basa usab ni.

Sa kataposan iyang nakita kon unsa ni dihang gitunol ni Edgardo kaniya ang lampara.

Makit-an ang pula bisan asa. Namantsa niini ang iyang mga kamot ug sinina ug dunay nagtulo gikan sa ibabaw.

“Wa ko kasabot—-” misulay sa pagsulti si Belen.

Apan laing kahayag ang misidlak tapad ni Edgardo, nga nagdan-ag sa usa ka binuhat nga nagbitbit og dakong sako nga bulawan.

“Namati ka unta ka nila. Kon namati pa ka tingali si Faustino lang ang nawala.”

“I—-I—-” Naparalisar si Belen, misulay siya sa pagsinggit samtang gidala siya sa binuhat sa lawom nga bahin sa tanel.

Ug sa pagsidlak sa adlaw ngadto kang Edgardo samtang nanglimpyo siya sa iyang kaugalingon sa suba, naghunahuna siya: “Pila kaha ka libro ang akong makuha niini.”

=——————–=

English Version

There was once a child named Edgardo. He was small and quiet and preferred to read books instead of playing with the other children. Books were hard to get in his small mountain community and he treasured the moments when he would go to the city, watch his father exchange the gold they mined for money and buy the books he wanted.

One day he was approached by Faustino, a boy who would usually avoid him. It was one thing to be different, but to be different in a community of a few hundred people made Edgardo feel like he was under a microscope.

“Can I sit here?” Faustino asked him.

“Sure, no one’s stopping you,” Edgardo replied.

“Did you hear about what happened?” Faustino tried to look him in the eye but only succeeded at putting his head down and staring at his shuffling feet.

“Didn’t everyone?” Edgardo said without moving his eyes away from the page he was reading.

“With Veronica that makes 3 since February.” Faustino sat beside him.

It wasn’t uncommon for children to go missing up in the mountains. Danger was everywhere. One moment of absentmindedness could cost you dearly.

The mines were also an issue. Too often their fathers or brothers would just not come home and the mining companies would send their condolences – for whatever that was worth.

“They say someone is taking the children away.” Faustino, again, tried and failed to look him in the eye.

Edgardo put down his book and replied, “Who would possibly want to take the children? If it was for money then wouldn’t they have sent a note? It’s rainy season, people walk around the mountain and don’t come back. Just leave it be.”

“No.” Faustino put his hands on Edgardo’s shoulders. “This is different from that, I can feel it. We have to stick together. I asked Melinda, Pepito and Belen. The five of us can watch what happens with each other.”

“You’ll be safe with us,” Faustino says with a smile.

Edgardo frowns. “If you say so.”

This wasn’t the first time someone made that promise. He thought back to his elder brother. Those nights when they went to the caves together to find gold for themselves. That one time he wasn’t careful. Things would happen and you just had to let them be.

One night Edgardo was awakened by the whispers of another child.

“Edgardo —- psssst —— wake up, it’s important,” the voice said.

It took a few minutes for Edgardo to snap back into reality. The dream that he had was so vivid: a house filled with books all to himself. He was lucid in his dream and he swore that one day it would come true.

“Belen?!”

“Sshhhhhh—don’t let anyone hear you.” She put her hand over his mouth.

“What are you doing here?” he managed to say through her fingers.

“It’s Faustino.” Her face was grim. “He’s missing.”

“Are you sure?” Edgardo was quieter this time, “maybe he just went out for a walk?”

“It’s the middle of the night! He’s not in his house. Come with me. Pepito and Melinda are by the big tree near Faustino’s house. We need to find him.”

Edgardo rubbed his eyes and yawned again. “Fine, might as well.”

Melinda and Pepito were where Belen said they would be, the fireflies giving the tree an eerie aura.

“I think I found a trail,” Pepito said. “There are footprints leading to the caves over by the hills.”

The children all grimaced. Those caves were near the mines and they were dangerous enough for adults, much less a group of four children.

“We have to go,” Belen said, “he’d do the same for us.”

“What are we going to do when we find him? There must be something responsible for the disappearances. How do we fight it?” Melinda was close to tears.

“We don’t need to fight it, we just have to find Faustino and bring him back here, where it’s safe,” Pepito said.

They all looked at each other and put their hands together.

Each had a resolve to find their friend, Edgardo less so. He was still enraptured by his dream.

They followed the trail as best as they could, scraping their skins against the rocks and the roots. And as soon as they were about to fall from exhaustion, they reached their destination, a nondescript cave that they knew was an entrance to a network of tunnels they might not return from.

Belen lead the group. She had taken a lamp from her parents and her siblings had taken her to the caves once. Leadership was not her strength, but she had to make sure the others had a guide. She had to do it, for Faustino.

Melinda was the first.

She didn’t even scream. One moment Belen was shining the lamp on the entrance to another tunnel and the next, when she called out for the names of her companions. She had never feared silence until that moment, it was one she would remember for the rest of her life.

Pepito tried to stay the course. They all held hands and Belen could feel his shaking. She tried to console him.

“It will be alright. We’ll find both of them, I promise.”

Pepito tried to hold back tears as he nodded, yet fear had overtaken him.

“No!” He shouted. “We have to go back home!”

Edgardo tried his best to hold him down.

“Pepito, we have to stay together, it’s the only way we can make it out of here!”

He didn’t listen, he pushed Edgardo off him and ran into the darkness.

The silence weighed heavy on the remaining two.

“I was so stupid to think this would work.” Belen’s breath started to become rapid and she put the lantern down. “We should have stayed together. Now it’s not just Faustino. I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry Melinda, Pepito! We have to go back, maybe if we tell our families they can go here and we can all search for them. We’ll find them. We have to find them.”

Edgardo took the lantern and said, “come with me”.

Belen had no other choice but to follow her new friend.

The light from the lantern was slowly fading and the path was getting more slippery as they went along. She tried to grab the wall to balance, but she found that it was damp as well.

She finally saw what it was when Edgardo handed her the lantern.

It was red everywhere. It stained her hands and clothes and drops fell from the ceiling.

“I don’t understand—-” Belen tried to say.

But another light glowed by Edgardo, illuminating a creature carrying a hefty bag of gold.

“You should have listened to them. If you did maybe it would have just been Faustino.”

“I—-I—-” Belen was paralyzed, she tried to scream as the creature carried her deeper into the tunnel.

And as the daylight shined on Edgardo as he cleaned himself in the river, he thought:

“I wonder how many books I can get with this.”

*The Cebuano language, alternatively called Cebuan and also often colloquially albeit informally referred to by most of its speakers simply as Bisaya (“Visayan”, not to be confused with other Visayan languages nor Brunei Bisaya language), is an Austronesian regional language spoken in the Philippines by about 21 million people, mostly in Central Visayas, western parts of Eastern Visayas and most parts of Mindanao, most of whom belong to various Visayan ethnolingusitic groups, mainly the Cebuanos. It is the by far the most widely spoken of the Visayan languages, which are in turn part of wider the Philippine languages. The reference to the language as Bisaya is not encouraged anymore by linguists due to the many languages within the Visayan language group that may be confused with the term.

Written by Karl Gaverza
Cebuano Translation by Joanalyn P Gabales
Copyright © Karl Gaverza
Translation Copyright © Joanalyn P Gabales

Inspired by the Sagay description in Creatures of Philippine Lower Mythology. Ramos. 1971.

Sagay Illustration by Christian Bitao

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anegs.gg/

The post Sagay – Cebuano Translation appeared first on Philippine Spirits.

*Note this story is in Hiligaynon

“Akun ni tanan sala.”

Ginbalikan sang lalake kung san-o ini nagsugod. Tama ka klaro ang mga senyales, apang may pagbanta na nga magagiya subong. Adlaw-adlaw niya ginapangamuyo nga luwason siya sang Ginoo sa sini nga kabudlayan.  Pero indi ini matu-od syempre, maski silingun sang makaaku nga mag-untat, nahibalu-an niya sa iya tagipusuon nga indi siya makapadayon asta matapos niya ang iya penitensya.

Isa ka malinong nga hapun, sang ang babaye nagbalik. Mainit ang pagbatun niya sang ini gintabo niya sa airport.

Sang ara ang babaye sa iban nga pungsod, permi ini nagasulat parti sa katugnaw nga iya nabatyagan. Ini iya ginkumpara nga kaangay nga daw gapalanupsup sa iya nga kaugatan.

Ginsilingan niya siya nga indi ini importante. Daku nga kabudlay ang inagyan sang babaye, kag ang gusto lang niya makapahuway ini sa ila balay. Wala pa niya nabati-an ang bug-os nga istorya halin sa asawa, pero makita niya sa mga mata sini, nga gusto na lang sini malipatan.  Sa ulihi nga sulat sang babaye, iya ginsaysay kung paano sini indi na masarangan pa nga mapalayo sa ila pamilya.  Nag-ugyon siya, pabay’i da ang kwarta.  Paga-unungan niya ang iya asawa, kag malampuwasan nila ini kag mas mangin mabakod.

Sa subong, amu ina ang iya ginapatihan.

Daw naga-pangpasu ang singsing pangkasal. Katingalahan nga ginasuksok niya pa ini, maski nagapadumdum ini sang mga nagligad sang naigu sang repleksyon sang bulan.  Naglungo na lang siya kag ginhatag ang atensyon sa iya tuyo.

Dira siya niya nasundan, paagi sa mga nagkalain-lain nga apat ka baryo, kag nagalaum siya nga maabtan niya antes ini makapalagyo.

Sang una, iya ginpaminsar nga mapauntat niya ini antes pa makapang biktima, kay madali ini siya makilal-an.

Sa tunga sang nagabiti nga init sang adlaw, pagkatapos sang isa ka bulan nga paglagas – lagas sa asawa, gin-aku niya sa iya kaugalingon.

Mas makusog. Mas madasig.

Mas baris nga indi niya maintindihan.

Mabug-at ang singsing sa iya tudlo, pero ang inggat sini nagpadumdum sa iya sang pila ka butang. Amu ini ang iya kalbaryo, kag duha lang ka butang ang makapauntat sini.

Pagkatapos sang isa ka semana nga pagpahuway halin sa pagka-jetlag, gilayon na ini nagbulig sa sulod balay.

Ang mga bata nila nga lalaki, nalipay gid nga nagpauli ang ila iloy. Wala siya nahadlok nga aku-on nga, daw mahibi siya, sang makita niya gahampang ini kaupod sa ila mga kabataan.

Sang ginbatun sang babaye ang oportunidad nga mag-ubra sa iban nga pungsod, tam-an pa ka gagmay ang ila kabataan para maintiendihan ang pagsakripisyo sini. Sadto nga adlaw, ginhakus niya sila sang hugot kag nag-promisa nga magabalik ini gilayun. Nagsiling ini nga palangga niya gid sila asta sa katubtuban.

Ang ulihi nga ginhingyo sang iya asawa, amu ang promisa nga iya pagatatapun ang ila mga kabataan.

Wala sang pag-alang-alang nga nagpromisa siya.

Naglakat na sila, kag nagbalik sa ila bag-o nga pangabuhi, nagahulat sang adlaw nga mangin kumpleto liwat sila.

Basi amu na sadtu ang ulihi nga adlaw nga ang iya asawa isa ka tawo.

Sang una nga nagpalagyo ang iya asawa halin sa ila balay, ginhimu niya ang tanan para mahibalu-an kung ano gid ang natabu sa iban nga pungsod. Indi siya makalakat didto nga siya mismo, apang may komunidad sang mga Pilipino nga nakahibalu kung sa diin gatinir ang iya asawa.

Nagsulat siya sa ila kag ang ila mga sabat daw makatilingala.

Suno sa ila, wala gid gaistorya ang iya asawa parte sa iya amo. Sa ila mga pagtipon, nagahimu man lang ang iya asawa sang lumpia, kag maga-istorya sang iban nga bagay pareho sang iya nabilin nga pamilya kag kung ano nga kahidlaw sang iya asawa sa ila. Isa sa mga Pilipino didtu amu ang tigulang nga nars, kag nagmuno sa iya nga daw may lain sa mga mata sang babaye.  Bisan ano katagu sang iya asawa, makita nga nahadlok ini.

Nagbalos sa sulat niya ang nars kag ginsugid lang ang nabal-an sini parte sa amo sang babaye. Ini isa ka man ka Pinoy nga nangin madinalag-on sa iban nga pungsod, sa kung paano nga paagi, wala sini mahibaluan. Suno sa istorya sini, ang amo gid sini ang naghingyo nga isa ka Pinay ang magatatap sa iya kag magabayad ini sang daku nga balor para diri.

Liwan sa amu ni nga detalye, ang iban mga kuno-kuno na lang nga istorya nga indi man makabulig. Suno sa iban, kilanlan sang iya amo nga lalake, nga maghalin sa Pilipinas tungod sa mga ilegal nga ulubrahon. Siling naman sang iban, ang iya mga asawa wala gadugay sang duha ka tuig pagkatapos niya pakaslan, kag siya naghalin para indi pagsuspetsahan. May mga maayo man nga istorya, pareho sang,  siya naglakat para mahatagan sang maayo nga pangabuhi.

Ini tanan nga mga wala gakaangot nga istorya, wala sang pulos.

Wala sang pulos ang natabo.

Paano ini nahimo sang iya asawa sa ila pamilya nga pinalangga?

Ulihi na siya.

Ulihi na lang siya permi.

Subong, isa naman ka bata-on nga mag-asawa kaupod ang ila anak, may masanag nga bwasdamlag kung tani. Ang mga kinan-an kag natunga nila nga bangkay nagalinapta sa ila nga sala. Nagapakita nga siya tuyo batu-an sang isa ka amay, apang ang iya mga kuko dasig nga nagisi ang kaundan sini.

Pagkatapos sang tinuig sa hampang nga ini, tig-a na ang iya balatyagon sa tanan luwas diri.

Gin-isip niya liwat kag gindugang sa nagadaku nga numero.

Siento kuwarenta y siete.

Siento kuwarenta y siete ka inosente nga mga kabuhi.

Siento kuwarenta y siete ka tawo nga ang dugo yara sa mga kamot niya.

Nahibalu-an niya nga ang ini nga numero magadaku pa, kung indi niya ini mapunggan.

Makahalam-ot nga madali niya maobserbahan ang asawa. Wala sini ginatago ang pilas.

Ang ruta sini sa mga banwa sang Panay kag lampas pa. Nakita ini sa Tuguegarao, Cagayan de Oro, Mindoro kag Puerto Princesa. Ang istorya sang babaye permi mabati-an sang mga bata gikan sa ila ginikanan, sa kung diin sila ginapahog nga kuhaon sila sang babaye sa gab-i kung indi sila mangin mapinatihon.

Balan sang lalake nga maski siya magdaug, ang istorya sini magapabilin.

Apang indi nila mahibalu-an ang istorya sa likod sang karakter nga ini.

Ang amay nga tuyu lang masalbar paagi sa paghimalos, ang bana nga wala ginsapak ang mga pag-andam, ang lalaki nga ang gusto lang mangin kumpleto ang ila pamilya.

Samtang nagatindug ang lalaki sa dugo sang pinaka bag-o nga biktima sang babaye, siya natingala kung sin-o ang magapangibabaw?

Ang kadalag-an niya?

Ukon ang kadalag-an sini?

=—————————=

Engilsh Version

It’s all my fault.

He thinks back to when it all started. The signs were obvious, but he had the benefit of hindsight to guide him now. He prayed every day that God would deliver him from this labor. That was just for show of course, even if the lord told him to stop, in his heart he couldn’t go on until he fulfilled his penance.

It was a quiet afternoon when she came back. He met her at the airport with all the warmth he could muster. During her stay abroad, she would always write about how the cold made her feel. She described it as the chill becoming a ghost, doing everything possible to find a way into your veins.

He told her it didn’t matter. She had gone through a great ordeal and he wanted to get her settled in their home. He still hadn’t heard the whole story from her, but he could see in her eyes that she just wanted to forget. In the last letter she sent she wrote about how she couldn’t be away from her family anymore. He agreed, money be damned. He would see his wife through this and their family would come out stronger.

At least that’s what he believed.

The wedding ring on his finger burned. He wondered why he still wore it, considering the memories that played through his mind when it reflected the moonlight. He shook his head and tried to focus. He tracked her here through four different barrios and hoped that he could get to her before she ran away.

In the beginning, he foolishly thought that he would be able to stop her before she claimed another victim, after all she was easy to spot. In the harsh light of day that followed his first month of pursuing her, he had to admit to himself.

She was stronger. She was faster.

She possessed more cruelty than he could ever understand.

The ring felt heavy in his hand, but its glint reminded him of something else. This was his cross to bear, and there were only two ways it could ever end.

After a week of readjustment, she had fixed her jet lag and began to help around the house. The boys were thrilled to have their mother back. He wasn’t afraid to admit that the sight of her, playing with the children she had left, brought tears to his eyes.

When she accepted the offer to go abroad their children were too young to understand the sacrifice she was about to endure. That day, she hugged them tight and promised them that she would be back as soon as she can. She told them she would love them forever.

The last thing that she asked of him was to give his word that he would take care of their children.

There was no hesitation when he made that oath.

They waved goodbye and settled into their new lives, waiting for the day they would be complete again.

Maybe that was the last time she was truly human.

When she fled the first time, after the incident, he did all he could to find out what really happened abroad. He couldn’t travel there himself, but he knew that there was a community of Filipinos where she had stayed.

He wrote to them and their answers were troubling.

They said she never talked about her employer. During their gatherings she would make lumpia and talk about other things like her family back home and how much she missed them. One of the Filipinos there was an old nurse and she mentioned that there was something in her eyes. No matter how hard she tried to mask it, she was afraid.

The nurse wrote back about what she knew about the employer. First that he was a fellow Filipino that gained success abroad, though through which channels she wasn’t sure. He had specifically requested a Filipina be his caregiver and he was willing to pay a good amount of money for it.

Apart from that the nurse only had rumors that weren’t much help. Some said that he had to leave the Philippines because his family was involved in illegal ventures. Others say his wives never lived past two years of marriage and he left to avoid suspicion. There were kinder stories where he left to give his family a better life.

All these conflicting stories made no sense.

What happened made no sense.

How could she do that to the family she loved?

He was too late.

He was always too late.

This time it was a family of three, a young couple that had a bright future ahead of them. Their half-eaten corpses scattered around what remained of their sala*. It looked like the father tried to fight her off but her claws ripped through him easily.

After years of this game he was already numb to all emotions but one.

He counted again and added it to the growing number.

147.

147 innocent lives.

147 people whose blood was on his hands.

He knew that number would not stop growing, not until he finished what she started.

It was almost funny that she was so easy to track. She didn’t even try to hide the scar. Her path cut through the towns of Panay and even beyond. She was seen in Tuguegarao, Cagayan de Oro, Mindoro and Puerto Princesa. Her story was heard by children whose parents warned them that she would take them in the night if they were disobedient.

He knew that even if he succeeded, her legend would live on.

But they would never know of the forgotten character of the story.

The father seeking redemption in revenge, the husband that ignored the warnings, the man that only wanted his family to be complete.

As he stood over the blood of her latest victims, he wondered which ending would prevail?

His triumph?

Or hers?

*Living room

*The Hiligaynon language, also colloquially referred often by most of its speakers simply as Ilonggo, is an Austronesian regional language spoken in the Philippines by about 9.1 million people, mainly in Western Visayas and SOCCSKSARGEN, most of whom belong to the Visayan ethnic group, mainly the Hiligaynons. It is the second-most widely spoken language and a member of the so-named Visayan language family and is more distantly related to other Philippine languages.

Written by Karl Gaverza
Hiligaynon translation by Pauline Brooks Dalisay
Copyright © Karl Gaverza
Translation Copyright © Pauline Brooks Dalisay

Inspired by the Maria Labo Urban Legends

Maria Labo Illustration by Sandra Sison

The post Maria Labo – Hiligaynon Translaiton appeared first on Philippine Spirits.

*Note this story is in Tagalog

July 17, 1961, ganap na ala-una ng hapon, nawala ang isang grupo ng mga kabataan at mga guro sa Orang National Park. Masusi ang paggalugad ng mga Ranger sa lugar na umabot nang ilang oras bago mahinatnan ang nangyari sa nawawalang pangkat.

Ang sana ay masaya at ordinaryong field trip, at paggawa ng sanaysay sa naging karanasan ay nauwi sa malagim na trahedya.

Tatlong nakatatanda ang nagbabantay sa pangkat ng mga kabataan. Unang nakita ng mga Ranger ang katawan ng isa sa mga guro. Ayon sa pagsusuri, marahil pananakal ang ikinamatay ng biktima. Hindi pa natutukoy ang sanhi nito ngunit may katibayan ng matinding pananakal sa kanyang leeg at galos mula rito. Walang tinamong pinsala ang ibang bahagi ng katawan nito. Tila namatay din ang guro sa pagitan ng ilang minuto.

Sa mas mabusising pagsisiyasat, nakita ang mga malalambot na hibla ng buhok sa leeg ng biktima na magsisilbing palatandaang iniwan ng salarin sa iba pang biktima.

Natagpuan ang lahat ng mga biktima sa iisang lugar, sa kakahuyan na puno ng *bagras. Bakas sa bawat biktima ang pinsalang tinamo ng unang katawan na nakita sa imbestigasyon. Ang lahat ng mga biktima ay mayroong pahiwatig ng pagkabigti. At sa lahat ng katawan, muling nakita ang mga malalambot na hibla ng buhok sa kanilang leeg. Ang mga kabataang biktima ay natagpuang may mga bali at galos ngunit natamo matapos silang mamatay. Batay sa autopsya, minuto lamang ang pagitan ng pagkamatay ng mga biktima.

Limang batang babae, siyam na batang lalaki, at tatlong babaeng guro. 17 na buhay ang naputol sa kakahuyan ng bagras.

Habang nagpapatuloy ang imbestigasyon, isinara ang liwasan at matiyagang sinuri ang bawat papalabas na sasakyan. Ngunit sa kabila nito, hindi natagpuan ang kagamitan, o sa halip, bahagi ng katawan na ginamit sa pagpaslang. Wala sa mga bumisita sa liwasan ang tumugma sa mga hibla ng buhok na natagpuan sa mga biktima.

Hanggang sa ngayon, nananatiling bukas at hindi nalulutas pagkamatay ng grupo.

*Bagras – rainbow eucalyptus

=—————————————=

English Version

Case # KGMJ4852

The children went missing July 17, 1961 at about 1pm. Rangers searched the Orang National Park for hours before they discovered what had happened to them.

It was supposed to be a routine field trip, a bunch of grade schoolers and their teachers going through a park and making papers about it after. The children were lead by 3 chaperons.

The first body was of one of the teachers, she looked like she had died from strangulation. The cause was unknown, but there was evidence of violent compression on the neck as well as presence of bruising. It seemed that death was within minutes with no disfiguring physical findings. Strands of soft hair were found on the victims neck, mirroring later findings.

The rest of the victims were found all in the same place, a rainbow eucalyptus grove. Each victim had the same marks as the first body and all showing signs of strangulation, with the presence of the hair on their necks. The child victims show fractures and bruising that were found to be postmortem. Autopsy showed the times of death of all the victims were within minutes of each other.

In total there were 17 victims. 9 boys, 5 girls and 3 female teachers.

The park was put on lockdown and all exiting vehicles were searched but nothing was ever found that would match the presumed murder weapon. No hairs that matched the ones found were present on any of the other park visitors.

The case remains unsolved to this day.

————————–————————–———————

*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 Mathew Juganas
Copyright © Karl Gaverza

Translation Copyright © Mathew Juganas

Story inspired by Ikugan entry in Creatures of Philippine Lower Mythology. Ramos. 1971.

Ikugan Illustration by Leandro Geniston from Aklat ng mga Anito
FB: That Guy With A Pen

The post Ikugan – Tagalog Translation appeared first on Philippine Spirits.

*Note this story is in Chabacano / Chavacano Caviteño

Entre na mana cenizas del monte Bita, Sulayman tá de pie firmament, ele ya pasa todo de mana casas vacíos na su camino y su corazón ya queda lleno con tristeza. Había mana juguetes pero no mana criaturas. Había mana campos pero nadie para man hace caso, había mana familias allá guna vez , pero no agora.

Sulayman ya maldecí na cielo, “ Di pagá cosa man bestea que ya hacé esto ! ” ya quedá oscuro el cielo , y ya parecí concedido su deseo.

Y el pájaro ya queda llamao Pah. Por casa na enorme figura del gran pájaro ya queda oscuro el cielo, no ansina que ya vé de nadie antes. Con rapidez ya sacá Sulayman su espada y  ya lográ corta ele uno de mana alas del bestea. El gran pájaro ya girá hacia Sulayman, y ele ya esquivá el enorme cuerpo del bestia pero ya olvida ele, el ala que ya cortá ele, aquel parte del bestia ya plastá Sulayman, este ya sana el que ta cabá su aventura, pero hay un otro.

Datu Indarapatra ya mira con agonia , cuando un pimpollo na lado de su ventana ya secá y morir, ya reculdá ele cuando su hermano Sulayman ya embarcá na su adventura na Mindanao. Ele ya articulá el mana palabras que ele ya bisa cuando ya salí Sulayman. “ Na este ponu ta sabe yo vos destino, si vos viví , si vos morí. Si vos di viví, el ponu tambien di viví, si vos di morí di morí tambien ese.

El corazón de Datu Indarapatra ya queda llenung llenu de venganza, y ele ya recogí todo de sus mana pertenencias , incluido su espada más confiable, y ele ya embarcá na un búsqueda para di buscá su hermano.

Como su hermano Sulayman , Datu Indarapatra ya viajá a través del aire , y ya buscá su mismo na montaña si onde ta crecí el mana rattán.ya vé ele el evidencia del victoria de su hermano na batalla contra na mana Kurita. El mana huesos de maná monstruo  tá llenao el suelo, y ele ya queda llenung llenu de orgullo

El seguida queda monte Matutana, el mana cadavers de mana Tarabusao podrido na suelo ta bisá con ele cosa ele nescesita di sabí. El maná lado lado , tá desprovisto pa del vida , pero el maná monstruos no ya podí man lastimar con alguien otra vez. Datu Indarapatra ya continuá na su búsqueda con maná pensamientos de maná monstruos, ta plagando su mente.

El grand muerte que ya causá de este mana criaturas queda sabido na mana tierras lejanos, incluso na su corte na tierra de puesta del sol dorada. Datu Indarapata es el que ya pedí con su hermano Sulayman para di cruzá el mar pa anda na tierra de Mindanao y hace vencé este mana gran bestias. Raja Sulayman ya andá na mindanao con su propio voluntad, para di vengá sus habitantes, si este es verdad, pero Datu Indarapatra ta sentí un punzada de la culpa, na hecho que ele es responsable na pag morí de su hermano. Ya sacudí ele esos mana pensamientos de su mente, a medida ele ta cercá na monte Bita.

El cuerpo del gran pájaro Pah ta acostá na suelo, ele ya fijá el grande ala cortada del pájaro, y ele ya alzá la,  y tallá ele ya buscá el mana huesos de su hermano. Datu Indarapatra ya llora por el sangre de su sangre, y ya queda ele consumido por el dolor.

El Cielo ya dale respuesta na su oración silenciosa. Mientras ele ya mira hacia arriba ele ya ví un bote chiquiting lleno de agua. Sabiendo cosa ele debe di hacé, ya verté ele el agua sobre na mana huesos de Sulayman, y su hermano ya queda vivo otra vez.

El monte ya queda lleno de alegria, cuando se reuní el man hermanos. Sulayman ya explicá, no ele ya murí completamente, sino durmiendo nomas. Datu indarapatra no le importaba, su corazón ya queda llenung llenu de feliz, por casa su hermano ya queda vivo y bien.

Sulayman ya volví na tierra del puesta del sol dorada, pero Datu Indarapatra ya queda. Quiere ele di cabá el que ya empezá su hermano. Tiene pa el cuarta gran bestia na monte Guryan. Datu Indarapatra ya saludá su hermano adios y ya afilá su espada. Indarapatra ya jurá ele el mismo juramento que ya hace Sulayman na su Reino. Y di ví ele ese cumplido.

=——————=

English Version

Among the ashes of Mount Bita, Sulayman stood resolute. He passed the empty homes and his heart was filled with sadness. There were toys but no children, there were farms, but no one to tend them, there were families here once.

But no more.

Sulayman cursed at the sky. Whatever beast did this would pay. The sky darkened and seemed to grant his wish.

The third was Pah.

The sky was blotted out by the enormous frame of a great bird, like nothing that was ever seen before. Sulayman was quick, he drew his sword and managed to hit its wing. The great bird spiraled towards Sulayman, and he was able to dodge its massive body, but forgot about the wing he had cut off. That part of the beast crushed Sulayman and would have ended his journey.

But there was another.

King Indarapatra watched in agony as the sapling by his window withered and died. He recalled the day his brother, Sulayman, set forth on his journey to Mindanao. He mouthed the words that he said when Sulayman left: “By this tree I will know of your fate. If you will live, it will live, and if you die, it will die also.”

King Indarapatra’s heart was filled with revenge. He gathered his belongings, including his most trusted sword and went on a quest to find his brother.

Like Sulayman, he traveled through the air and found himself on the mountain where the rattan grew. He saw evidence of his brother’s victory against the Kurita. The bones of the monster littered the area and he was filled with pride.

Next was Mount Matutun. The rotting corpse of the Tarabusaw told him all he needed to know. The surrounding areas were still barren of life, but the monster would never be able to hurt anyone again. King Indarapatra continued on his journey and thoughts of the monsters plagued his mind.

The great deaths caused by these creatures were told of in faraway lands, even reaching his court in the land of the golden sunset. It was King Indarapatra that pleaded with Sulayman to cross the seas and rid the land of Mindanao of these great beasts.

It was Sulayman’s choice to go to the distant land and avenge her people, that much was true. But King Indarapatra felt a pang of guilt that he had lead his brother to certain death.

He shook those thoughts away as he approached mount Bita.
The body of the great bird Pah lay on the ground. He noticed the severed wing of the bird and lifted it up, revealing the bones of his brother. King Indarapatra wept for the blood of his blood, so consumed with grief was he.

The heavens replied with an answer to his silent prayer. As he looked up, he saw a small jar filled with water. Knowing what he must do, he poured the water over Sulayman’s bones and his brother lived again.

Joy filled the mountain as the brothers reunited. Sulayman explained that he was not completely dead, but sleeping. King Indarapatra didn’t care, he heart was filled with great happiness that his brother was alive and well.

Sulayman returned to their home in the land of the golden sunset, but King Indarapatra stayed. He wanted to finish what his brother started. There was still the matter of the fourth great beast on Mount Gurayn.

King Indarapatra bade his brother farewell and sharpened his sword. He swore the same oath that Sulayman did and upon his kingdom, he would see it fulfilled.

————————–————————–————————-

*Chavacano or Chabacano is a group of Spanish-based creole language varieties spoken in the Philippines. The variety spoken in Zamboanga City, located in the southern Philippine island group of Mindanao, has the highest concentration of speakers.  Currently existing varieties are found in Cavite City and Ternate, located in the Cavite province on the island of Luzon. Chavacano is the only Spanish-based creole in Asia.

Written by Karl Gaverza
Translation by Stacy Paredes Foote
Copyright © Karl Gaverza
Translation Copyright © Stacy Paredes Foote

Continued from the Tarabusaw’s tale

Written by Karl Gaverza
Copyright © Karl Gaverza

Adapted from “Mythology of Mindanao” in Philippine Folklore Stories. Cole. 1916. (Full text can be accessed at http://www.sacred-texts.com/asia/pft/index.htm

The post Pah – Chabacano / Chavacano Caviteño appeared first on Philippine Spirits.

*Note this story is in Tagalog

Ang buwan, na natatakot pasikatin ang sariling liwanag, ay tuluyan nang nagtago sa likod ng mga ulap. “Magaling!” Siyang naisip ni Sonja. “Sana naman ay hindi sila nagsimula ng wala pa ako.”

Ang mga impit na boses na nagmumula sa loob ng sisidlang sako ay nagsisimula nang lumakas nguni’t isang mabilis na sipa lamang ang solusyon dito. Alam niyang mayroong kulam siyang maaring gamitin ngunit hindi na lamang niya inaksaya ito. Naisip niya na ang kaunting takot ay minsan nakadadagdag sa kasiyahan. Ang tagpuan ay nasa isang gubat sa labas ng lungsod. Mula pa noong panahon ng mga lumang kaharian, gawi nilang magkita-kita at makibahagi sa kapistahan.

Nakatatawang isipin na ang kapistahang ito ay nagaganap sa mismong araw ng kapanganakan ng Anak ng Mahal na Birhen.

Kinaladkad ni Sonja ang sako sa bukana ng kakahuyan. Ang kapistahan ay magtatagal ng buong gabi at ayaw niyang makipagsapalaran. IIwanan niya ang kanyang mga paasa loob ng kakahuyan at makikipagdiwang sha magdamag.

Ang kasalukuyang nagbabantay sa bukana ng gubat ay isang ‘mangingilaw’
”Tila malayo ka sa iyong tahana.” wika ni Sonja.
”Puumupunta lang ako sa kung saan ako ay iniimbitahan.”sagot nito. “Anong dinala mo?”

Hinagis ni Sonja ang dala niyang sako at winika: “May dala akong tiyak na gusto mo ant ng iyong mga kauri.Huli na ba ako? ”

“Pumasok ka na , mananaggal, hindi pa tayo nagsisimula.”

Nakahinga ng maluwag si Sonja.

Pinakamaganda ang paunang bahagi ng ritwal. Iniwan niya ang kanyang mga paa sa isang malapit na puno at pumailanglang pataas. Doon niya kinatagpo at sinamahan ang kanyang kawan na kasalukuyang umiikot sa itaas ng mga puno.

Hindi mabilang na mga alibadut, abat, kubot, alan, bannog, magkukutud, kalibadut at iba pang nakahihindik na lumilipad na mga nilalang ang nagkakaisang lumilipad. At dahil nga walang liwanag ng buwan, tanging intuwisyon lamang nila ang kanilang gabay sa pagpaptuloy ng  kanilang sayaw na nababalutan ng kasamaan.  Kasabay nito ay ang malakas na dagundong ng mga lamang lupang panauhin ng gabing iyon.

Ang mga bungisngis, kiwig , kulukupap at marami pang iba ay nagpahiram ng kanilang mga tunog at boses sa naturang piging. Ang seremonya ay natapos nang dumating ang Hari ng mga Mangkukulam at naupo sa trono ng buto at dugo.

Nagulat si Sonjya sa kung gaano kaayos ang lahat; bawat pangkat ay may kanya kanyang lugar sa kakahuyan upang mangalap ng mga karne para sa handaan. Nais sana niyang tikman ang iba’t-ibang mga inihandog nguni’t hindi niya alam kung alin ang uunahin.  Naglaway siya sa amoy ng dugo sa isang sulok kung saan naroon ang mgamandurugo;  ang kalembang ng kawa ng mga pirotso ay nangahulugan na mayroon ding mga sariwang bataw; mayroon ding mga ulong nakadikit pa ang mga laman na ambag naman ng mga saga-ih. Mayroon ding mag makabagong putahe: malutong na dinuguan na may piniritong lamang loob, daliri, matang bulalo, sinangkutsang puso at sarsang utak. Pagutom na ng pagutom si Sonja kada minutong lumilipas kaya’t pinili nyang tumayo sa tabi ng isang tigabulak. Ang tigabulak ay nakatayo sa harapan ng isang  tagaan at malaking pang-itak.

Mga hiyaw na humihingi ng saklolo ang umaalingawngaw mula sa sako sa likod niya na siya namang nagpaligaya ng lubos kay Sonja. Ang sariwang karne na inihanda ng isang tigabulak ay paniguradong sadyang napakasarap ; hinayaan pa niya si Sonya ang pumili ng bata.

Habang tinuturo ni Sonja ang napiling bata, mga limang taong  gulang ang edad, isang kaguluhan ang biglang naganap malapit sa kanya.

Ang tigabulak, na halatang inis, ay nagwika, “Sino nag-imbita niyan dito?”

Lumipad si Sonja upang makita kung ano angnagnyayari at kaagad niyang nakilala ang Mamam, na sapilitang  itinutulak ang sarili papasok sa kapistahan.

Mula ng maganap ang insidente maraming buwan na ang nakalilipas, lahat ng mga maligno ay nagpasya na itago na nila sa Mamam ang mga susunod na mga pagtitipon kundi ay mauuwi lamang sa kapahamakan ang pagdiriwang.

Ang ibang mga higante gaya ng mga mangingilaw at timu-timu ay sinubukang pigilan ang nilalang na makapasok   nguni’t  wala silang magawa lalo’t may pagkain  nang nakaharap dito. Hindi man lang ito titigil kahit sabhan ng kapwa niya halimaw.

Nakita ni Sonja na karamihan ay ngsimula nang magsitakas habang bitbit ang kanilang bahagi sa kapistahan.  May isang alam pang dumaan sa harapan niya na may kargang maliit na bata.

May kutob na din si Sonja na dapat ay tumakbo na din sha ng mabilis papalayo nguni’t hindi niya mapigilan angpanonood sa kagimbal-gimbal na panoorin.

Isang oras na ang nakalipas ng magsimulang manggulo ang Mammam. Ang mga duguang bangkay ngmga bungisngis at ogro ay pumapalamuti sa patayang naganap. Ang mga nanatili upang bantayan ang kanilang mga pagkain ay mistulang lumalaban na papunta sa pagkatalo.

Hindi kinikilala ng Mammam ang katapatan maliban lamang sa gutom. Aswang o tao, pareho niyang kinain ang mga ito. Nakakita pa si Sonja ng mga matatalinong tao na sinamatala ang kaguluhan at tuluyan nang tumakbo para sa kanilang buhay. Mayroon pang isang buntis na nakatakas papasok ng gubat habang ang nanghuli sa kanya ay nakalingat.

Walang kapangyarihan o mahikaang makapipigil dito. Ang mga galamay ng Hari ng mga Mangkukulam ay sumubok na saktan ang Mammam ngunit parang lalo lamang nagutom ito. Dalawang mangkukulam pa nga ang nasawi matapos silang lunukin ng buo ng Mammam.

Matapos ng lahat ang Mammam ay tumayo. Walang mga bangkay, walang mga buto bilang tanda sa mga landas na dinaanan nito.

Pinagmasdan ni Sonja ang lahat ng patayan at tumakas siya papabalik sa kanyang mga binti nang walang laman ang kanyang tiyan sa gabi ng kapistahan.

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English Version

The moon, afraid to shine its light, retreated behind the clouds.

Perfect. Sonja thought. I hope they didn’t start without me

The muffled voices inside the bag were starting to get louder, but nothing a swift kick wouldn’t fix. She knew there was magic that she could use to put them to sleep, she decided against it though. Sonja always thought that a little fear did wonders for flavor.

The meeting spot was in a grove in the outskirts of the city. Since the days of the old kingdoms they would meet and share in the feast. It was an amusing irony that the feast was on the same day as the birth of the virgin’s child.

Sonja dragged the sack to the entrance of the grove. The feast would take all night and she didn’t want to take any risks. She would leave her legs inside the grove and celebrate throughout the night.

Guarding the grove this time was a mangingilaw. “You’re far from home,” Sonja said.
“I go where I am invited,” he replied.

“What did you bring?” Sonja tossed the bag to the giant’s feet.

“Something raw.”

“Of course, that’s what your kind likes. Am I late?”

“Enter, mananaggal, we have not yet started.”

Sonja sighed with relief. The opening ceremony was the best part. She left her legs by a nearby tree and soared upwards.

There she joined the flock, swirling above the trees.

Countless alibadut, abat, kubot, alan, bannog, magkukutud, kalibadut and other flying horrors moved in tandem. Without moonlight they only had their intuition to guide their sinister dance.

Accompanying this was the raucous roar of the terrestrial guests of the night. The bungisngis, kiwig and kulukupap, among many others, lent their voices to the celebration.

The ceremony ended as the king of the mangkukulam took his place on the throne of bones and blood.

Sonja was surprised how orderly everything was, each group had their own space in the grove to gather meat for the feast.

She wanted to try the different offerings and didn’t know where to start. The scent of blood from the mandurugo corner made her salivate, the clang from the pirotso’s pot signaled fresh children, there was a collection of heads by the saga-ih complete with the flesh intact.

There were also more ‘modern’ takes on the classics: Crispy dinuguan with deep fried lamang-loob, finger and eyeball bulalo and sizzling hearts with brain sauce.

Sonja was getting hungrier by the minute and she chose the spot beside her where a tigabulak stood. He was standing in front of a table with a large cutting board and a cleaver. Cries of help were echoing from the sack behind him, filling Sonja with glee. Such fresh meat prepared by a tigabulak would be quite a delicacy, he even let Sonja choose which child.

As Sonja was pointing to a small girl, about five years old, a commotion was thundering near her.

The tigabulak, visibly annoyed, said, “Who invited that here?”

Sonja flew up to see what was happening and she immediately recognized the mamam, pushing its way through the feast.

Ever since the incident many moons ago, all of the horrors decided to hide the feast from the mamam, lest the celebration turn into disaster.

The other giants like the mangingilaw and timu-timu were trying to hold it off, but the creature was unstoppable once food was placed in front of him. It would not even stop against a fellow halimaw.

Sonja could see that most were already trying to escape, taking their share of the feast with them. An alan even darted past her, carrying a small child.

Instinct told Sonja that she should run far and run fast, but she couldn’t take her eyes away from the spectacle.

It had been an hour since the mamam started its rampage. The bloodied corpses of the bungisngis and ogro decorating the slaughter. Those that stayed to guard their food were fighting a losing battle.

The mamam knew no allegiance apart from hunger.

Aswang or human, it ate them all the same.

Sonja could see clever humans taking advantage of the chaos and running for their lives. A pregnant woman even managed to slip into the forest while her wak-wak captor was distracted.

No might or magic could stop it. The king of the mangkukulam had his witches try inflicting pain on the creature but that only seemed to make it even hungrier. Two mangkukulam met their end when the mamam swallowed them whole.

In the aftermath the mamam stood. No corpses, no bones to mark the trail of its passing.

Sonja took in the carnage and fled to her legs, her stomach empty on the night of the feast.

*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 Sheila Rose Vidanes Santiago
Copyright © Karl Gaverza

Translation Copyright © Sheila Rose Vidanes Santiago

Inspired by the Mamam description in Bikol Beliefs and Folkways: A Showcase of Tradition. Nasayao 2010.

Mamam Illustration by Jesus Miguel Ofalsa

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*Note this story is in Kapampangan

Case # KGMJ4852

Ating mengabating a anak anyang July 17, 1961, ala una na ning ugtu. Miglawe la reng Rangers king Orang National Park oneng pilang oras na ing milabas bayu da abalu nung nanu ing milyari karela.

Dapat normal a field trip yamu naman ita. Pipilang gradeschool titser ampong estudyante a papuntang park para gawang paper tungkul king park. Atin lang abeng atlung bante detang anak.

Itang mumunang bangke, metung ya karetang titser. Balamu mete ya king sakal. E pa balu nung nanu ing kemate na oneng ating pruebang mete ya dail king “violent compression on the neck as well as presence of bruising.” Balamu pilan mung minutu ing kemate na oneng ala naman meg-aliwa king itsura na o king katawan.

Detang mitagan, ikit dala ketang metung tanaman. Ketang “rainbow eucalyptus grove”. Balang metung, atin lang pasa kalupa na nitang minunang bangke a atin pasa a balamu sekal. Atin din buak-buak a ikit da king batal da. Linto naman king post-mortem, atin lang balamu pile o “fracture” detang anak. Sabi king Autopsy, pilang minute mu, mete la agad deng biktima.

Suma total, disisyete la deng mete. Siyam anak a lalaki, limang anak a babai, ampong atlung babaing titser.

Ni-lock-down de ing park saka dala ininspeksyun deng egana-ganang kotse a lulwal oneng ala lang ikit na magpatune na atin ginamit ”murder weapon”. Alang migtugma a buak kareng bangke saka kareng “visitors” a linub king park.

Angga ngeni, ali ya pa din “solved” in kasu.

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English Version

Case # KGMJ4852

The children went missing July 17, 1961 at about 1pm. Rangers searched the Orang National Park for hours before they discovered what had happened to them.

It was supposed to be a routine field trip, a bunch of grade schoolers and their teachers going through a park and making papers about it after. The children were lead by 3 chaperons.

The first body was of one of the teachers, she looked like she had died from strangulation. The cause was unknown, but there was evidence of violent compression on the neck as well as presence of bruising. It seemed that death was within minutes with no disfiguring physical findings. Strands of soft hair were found on the victims neck, mirroring later findings.

The rest of the victims were found all in the same place, a rainbow eucalyptus grove. Each victim had the same marks as the first body and all showing signs of strangulation, with the presence of the hair on their necks. The child victims show fractures and bruising that were found to be postmortem. Autopsy showed the times of death of all the victims were within minutes of each other.

In total there were 17 victims. 9 boys, 5 girls and 3 female teachers.

The park was put on lockdown and all exiting vehicles were searched but nothing was ever found that would match the presumed murder weapon. No hairs that matched the ones found were present on any of the other park visitors.

The case remains unsolved to this day.

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Story inspired by Ikugan entry in Creatures of Philippine Lower Mythology. Ramos. 1971.

Ikugan Illustration by Leandro Geniston from Aklat ng mga Anito
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