The earth began with nothing.
Desolation ruled the land with only the waters that stood testament to the passing of time.
In the center of the world was a pit where the giant crab Gaki stayed, overseer of the great god Lumawig. The flowing waters raced here, draining towards Gaki.
There were people then that dotted the face of the earth. Nomads by nature, they traveled around the concave surface of the earth, hunting animals. Because their environment was featureless, they would lose track of their surroundings, becoming lost for there were no landmarks to guide them.
They resorted to shouting, and that disturbed Lumawig’s slumber.
That would not do.
Lumawig became angry at the noisy humans, in his eyes they were unfit for the world. He dreamed of new humans, a generation that would inherit a more beautiful world.
To that end he called upon Gaki. He ordered the giant crab to plug the pit with its body. Lumawig wanted to purify the earth with the ensuing flood.
And out of the flood, two mountains rose: Polis and Calawitan.
The flooding was swift, no human had survived the deluge. From the flood waters Lumawig lifted two bodies, a male named Gatan, which he placed on top of mount Polis and a female, Bangan, which he placed on top of Mount Calawitan.
The night chill awakened Gatan and he found himself in unfamiliar surroundings. Try as he might he could not remember what had happened to him, all memory wiped from his mind. He could only focus on a flickering light that twinkled in the distance, a sure sign that there was another living being.
He waited until dawn.
While Gatan was searching for food, he found a raft floating. On the right side of the raft was a dog while on the left was a rooster.
Gatan took this as a sign from the gods and headed towards the direction of the light that he saw.
His animal companions were of invaluable help. Whenever the raft went too much to the right the dog barked and Gatan corrected their course and when the raft swept to the left the rooster would crow and Gatan again charted their course.
He did not know that his companions were gifts of the god, Lumawig, and even if he did know, it wouldn’t have mattered.
Gatan landed on the shore of Mount Calawitan.
He saw that there was a pit filled with live embers. On sticks beside the pit were a belt and a woman’s skirt. Gatan searched the area to find the woman and when he saw her he was dismayed. Memories came flooding back.
It was his sister, Bangan.
They locked eyes and did not know what to do. Surely they could not copulate as they were brother and sister.
But the god Lumawig gave his blessing. They were the only two humans left on earth and had the responsibility of creating a new generation to flourish among the lands.
Lumawig ordered Gaki to crawl out of the pit and unplug the hole. The receding waters gave rise to a world of hills and valleys, mountains and rivers. No more did desolation reign, for this was a new beginning.
As a gift to the new peoples of the earth Lumawig took from his face a knot of beard and scattered it throughout the earth. This knot transformed into what are now plants, populating the earth.
And it was thus the world as we know it came into being.
Written by Karl Gaverza
Copyright © Karl Gaverza
Adapted from the legend of Gaki and Lumawig from the Bontok Igorot found in The Soul Book. Demetrio & Cordero-Fernando 1991.
Gaki Illustration by Daniel Decena
Instagram: @thepenslinger
Color by Patricia Pria
Instagram: @meowtricia_