*Note this story is in Bicol-Albay
Mas magaan ang yapak niya kaysa sa paripong nakapalibot sa Laguna de Bay. Namuyahan kang babaeng magayon huruphurupon ang saiyang mga nakaaging lakaw-lakaw, lalo na sa palibot kang saiyang kakusugan na lugar. Nangalas ang ibang mga espiritu saiya kung niyata pipilion niya ang sarong lugar kung sain dakol na tawo sa palibot ang magiging lokus niya, kung sain dai ninda maaraman ang kaugmahan na pwedeng makua dara kang pagkakaraw sa mga tawong nakairistar sa lugar. Ang pagkalangkag dangan ang buhay na daing-kagadanan magkasurugpon, kaipuhan niyang hampangon ang mga dati maski papawnu.
Mas magaan ang mga water lily munyan. Ang malipot na parus ang nagtaram saiya na nagahihibi na naman si Larina. Narumduman kang engkanta ang krimen kung sain pinasakitan niya ang madunong na babaye, mga pirang buhay na kaito.
Narumduman niya kaito kang si Larina na sarong magayong daraga na may bulaw na buhok dangan mahuring boot. Kabaliktaran man kaini ang tugang niyang babaye, na ang buhok kasing itom kang banggi kung nuarin ang Laho gigiguhon ang mamuyahan saka mas maboot kaysa sa sarong Kamanan Daplak. Si Mara baya ito? Maria?… Mangita, siyempre, sa kahaluyan halos nalingawan na niya ang pangaran kaini.
Huminuyop giraray ang malipot na parus saka pinugulan kang engkanto ang sadiring mapa-ulok. Igwang arug kaining parus na tuminabang saiyang ipalakop ang kasakitan na nadakop ni Mangita, na nagtao saiya ki kadahilanan para isalbar ini dangan pasakitan man lugod ang saiyang tugang.
Dai man narahay kang mga pisog si Mangita syempre, nyaon lang sinda para magpalakop ki sumpa sa pagbalik kang engkanta. Dapat makainom ki doseng pisog, doseng beses kung sain imbes na tawanan kaini ki kamarahayan ang saiyang tugang, si Larina kinaganan ki pisog ang buhok kaini. Naumawon ang engkanta, bagayon ang arug kaining kahurian sa sarong dalaketnon. Itatao kuta niya ang daraga sa mga espiritung ito kung bako sana dahil sa paghihiganti na pighahagad kang engkanta.
Baku ang kahurian na ipinahiling ni Larina kay Mangita an kinasusuklaman kang engkanta, maski na ang kamaturan na daing nirerespeto ni Larina ang espiritu sa paagi kang dai pagtulod ki pagkaon saiya. Iyo ini so kaitong igwa pang kusog ki boot ang daraga na ituklang ang engkanta sa daga.
Igwang dikit na leksyon para sa mga tawo ang gabos na ini:
Dai magduotan ang sarong engkanta.
=—————-=
English Version
Her footsteps were lighter than the mist surrounding the Laguna de Bay. The beautiful woman liked to reminisce about her previous adventures, especially around her place of power. The other spirits wondered why she would choose a place with so many humans around to be her locus, they would never know the joy that one could acquire through toying with the denizens of the earthrealm. Boredom and immortality were intertwined, and she had to deal with the former somehow.
The water lilies were lighter today. A chill in the air told her that Larina had been crying again. The engkanta remembered the crime for which she had punished the spoiled girl, it was many human lifetimes before.
She remembered when Larina was a beautiful maiden with golden hair and cruel intentions. The sister was the complete opposite, hair as black as a night when the Laho would do its business and kinder than a Kamanan Daplak. Was it Mara? Maria?… Mangita, of course, it had been so long she had almost forgotten her name.
The cold wind blew again and the engkanto stopped herself from laughing. It had been a wind like this that helped her spread the sickness that Mangita caught, which gave her an excuse to save her and punish her sister.
The seeds would have never healed Mangita of course, they were just there to spread the curse when the engkanta returned. It had taken twelve seeds, twelve times when instead of giving a cure to her sister, Larina put a seed in her hair. The engkanta was impressed, that kind of cruelty befitted a dalaketnon. She would have given the girl to those spirits had it not been for the revenge the engkanta craved.
It wasn’t the cruelty that Larina showed to Mangita that the engkanta loathed, not even the fact that Lariana had disrespected the spirit by not offering her food. It was when the girl had the audacity to push the engkanta to the ground.
There was a small lesson for the humans in all this:
Never touch an engkanta.
=———————-=
*Albay Bikol, or simply Albayanon is a group of languages and one of the three languages that compose Inland Bikol. It is spoken in the southwestern coast of Albay, (Pio Duran, Jovellar) and northwestern Sorsogon. The region is bordered by the Coastal Bikol and Rinconada Bikol speakers.
Written by Karl Gaverza
Bicol Translation by Chai Mendi
Copyright © Karl Gaverza
Translation Copyright © Chai Mendi
Story continued from “Mangita and Larina” http://
Story inspired by Philippine Folklore Stories. Miller. 1904. (Full text can be accessed at http://
The Engkanta of Laguna de Bay Illustration by Marc Samuel Magpantay
FB: Murcy Murc Art
Tumblr: Glassy-draws.tumblr.com