*Note this story is in Hiligaynon

“Isa ka sigrab sang kalayo ni Gugurang.”

Kahibalo ang lambana nga may disgrasya gid nga matabo kung indi ya pag sundon ang intsakto nga proseso. Ang ulihi nga insidente kung sa diin may ara nag testing nga kwaon ang kalayo ni Gugurang nga wala nag lisensya amo ang na palpak nga pag girinamo sang mga asuang, kag indi niya gusto nga ma-lliwat ang amo to nga natabo. Ginpalapitan ya ang mga suluguon ni Gugurang kag nagpangabay nga mangayo sa kung tani sang sigrab. Ang lambana nagarepresentar sa iya Diwata, kag ina nga pangabay halin mismo sa Iya. Pila lamang ka tuig ang gin hulat niya para ma aprubahan ang iya hangyo, kag nagakalipay gid ang lambana nga madasig ini natuman.

“Ang lubi nga halin sa kahoy ni Galangkalulua.”

Ang paglabay ya sa tunga sang mga kabataan ni Ulilangkalulua, indi sa mahapos. Kinahanglan gid maghalong ni lambana nga indi siya makita. Maayo lang kay ginhambalan sa sang iya Agalon nga pwede na miski isa lang ka gamay nga lubi, amo man sa pag-intsindi ya. Sa ka gamay ni lambana, wala na sa may masarangan pa nga bitbiton kundi magamay lamang nga lubi. Nagkamang sa sa mga panganod sa kagab-ihon kag gin kuha ang ina nga lubi antes pa sa maunahan sang iban.

“Ang hutik ni Saragnayan.”

Kabalo ang tanan sang natabo kay Saragnayan, kung paano niya ginhigugma ang iya asawa, si Malitung Yawa Sinagmaling Diwata, kag kung paano sia ginperde sang mga kabataan sang bayani nga si Labaw Donggon. Pero ang wala nila mahibaluan nga  ang espiritu ni Saragnayan nagakabuhi gihapon. Ang iya mga hutik naga lanog sa hunahuna sang mga tawo nga nagaka tintar maghimo sang malain kag magsabwag sang kalainan. Ang lambana indi na kinahanglan magpalayo para makabati sang mga hutik, tungod ang hutik sang tingog ni Saragnayan mabatian sa tanan nga mga lugar nga gina istaran sang mga tawo. Gin hablot ya ini sang makita ya nga manug sulod ini sa dalunggan sang isa ka bata nga lalaki nga naga paminsar kung sa diin sa mangawat sang bag-o nga hampanganan.

“Isa ka butil sang dugo ni Sappia.”

Amo ini ang pinakahapos nga kwaon sa iya listahan. Madamo ang butil sang mga pula nga bugas sa uma kag si lambana, samtang naga kuha, gin paminsaran man ang misyon nga gin hatag sa iya. Wala ya naintsindihan kun ngaa gusto sang iya Agalon nga babaye ining nagkalain-lain nga mga butang, pero kabalo sa nga ang iya Agalon mahilig mag kolektar sang mga kung ano-ano, kag kabalo ang lambana nga wala sa karapatan mag hukom sa mga kapritso sang iya Agalon.

“Yuta halin sa pagkatawo sang kalibutan.”

Sa sinugdan, may apat ka espirito nga naga istar sa isa ka isla nga parehas kadako sang kaló. Wala sing may naga tubó sa isla, maliban sa apat ka tinuga kag isa ka pispis.

Isa ka adlaw ginpasugtan nila ang mga pispis nga mag lupad sa kadagatan kag nagbalik ini nga may bitbit sang gamay nga duta, rattan, kag mga prutas. Kahibalo ang lambana nga ini nga yuta mangin kalibutan nga tindugan sang tanan nga mga tinuga. Kinahanglan ya magkadto sa dako nga ginoo nga si Melu para magpetisyon sa hangyo sang iya Agalon. Pila ka tion ang nag-agi, tapos tinuig, basi nakalab-ot pa pila ka  siglo. Ang oras dire lain kumpara sa iban nga mga lugar. Sa ulihi, nakuha ni lambana ang iya nga hangyo.

Madinalag-on siya nga nagbalik sa iya Agalon, bitbit ang tanan nga mga butang nga gin sugo sa iya nga kwaon ya. Biskan isa lang iya makuha dako na nga paglab-ot, pero iya Agalon gin kuha lang ang mga butang nga wala sa gin tagaan biskan ika duwa nga tulok.

“Maayo nga buhat, matutom nga alagad” siling sang iya agalon.

“Nagakabuhi ako para mag serbisyo kag naga serbisyo ako para mabuhi,” sabat sang lambana.

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English Version

“A spark of Gugurang’s fire.”

The lambana knew this would end badly if she didn’t follow proper procedure. The last time something tried to take the fire of Gugurang without permission was the whole Asuang debacle, and she didn’t want this to be anything like that. She approached his servants and made a formal request for the spark. The lambana was representing her Diwata, and it was a request directly from Her. It only took a few years’ wait before the request was granted and the lambana was overjoyed that it was so fast.

“A coconut from the tree of Galangkalulua.”

Working her way through the children of Ulilangkalulua was no small feat. The lambana had to be very careful to be sure she wasn’t seen. Thankfully, her mistress told her that one of the small coconuts would suffice, thought it had to be. With the lambana’s small size, she couldn’t carry anything else. She crept among the clouds in the cover of night and snatched the coconut away before anyone was the wiser.

“A whisper of Saragnayan.”

Every creature knew of what happened to Saragnayan, how he loved his wife, Malitung Yawa Sinagmaling Diwata, and how he was defeated by the sons of the hero, Labaw Donggon.  What they didn’t know was that Saragnayan still lived in the form of his spirit. His whispers echoed in the minds of those tempted to do evil and sow chaos. The Lambana didn’t have to go far to find a whisper, for Saragnayan voice could be heard in all places where humans lived. She snatched it as it was about to enter the ear of a young boy wondering whether he should steal a new toy.

“A grain of Sappia’s blood.”

This was the easiest thing to get on her list. The grains of red rice were plentiful in the field and the lambana took a moment to think about the mission that had been given to her. She did not know why her mistress wanted these diverse items, and the lambana had not known her mistress to be a great collector of oddities, but the lambana knew that it wasn’t her place to make judgments on the whims of her mistress.

“Soil from the birth of the world.”

In the beginning, there lived four beings on an island no larger than a hat. Nothing grew on this island, there were only those three beings and one bird. One day they sent the bird out across the waters and it returned with some earth, a piece of rattan and some fruit. The lambana knew that that soil would eventually become the earth that every being was standing on. She would have to go to the great god Melu to petition her mistresses’ request. It took moments, then years, maybe even centuries. Time was not what it was in other places. In the end, the lambana got her request.

She returned triumphantly to her mistresses’ side, clad in all the items she was sent to procure. Even getting one would have been a great accomplishment, but her mistress just took the items without giving the lambana a second glance.

“Good work, faithful servant,” said her mistress.

“I live to serve and I serve to live,” was the lambana’s reply.

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*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 Rvie Macalisang – Santillan
Copyright © Karl Gaverza
Translation Copyright © Rvie Macalisang – Santillan

Rvie Macalisang – Santillan is a pure blooded Negrosanon and is an advocate of the growth and development of Hiligaynon language (also known as Ilonggo). As a hobby, she translates academic and literary texts from English to modern Hiligaynon. You can read more of her translations in her blog: Simplified Literature PH.

Inspired by the Lambana myths and

“Asuang steals fire from Gugurang” in  Philippine Folk Literature: The Myths. Eugenio. 2001.

“The First Coconut Tree and the Creation of Man” in  Philippine Folk Literature: The Myths. Eugenio. 2001.

“The Rice Myth” in Philippine Folk Literature: The Myths. Eugenio. 2001.

“The Epic of Labaw Donggon.” in Philippine Folk Literature:The Epics. Eugenio. 2001.

“IN THE BEGINNING” Philippine Folklore Stories. Cole. 1916. http://www.sacred-texts.com/asia/pft/pft42.htm

Lambana illustration by Dyani Lao:
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