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Popol Vuh: The Definitive Edition of the Mayan Book of the Dawn of Life and the Glories of Gods and Kings by Dennis Tedlock

This volume can be divided into two parts. First is the introduction of the Popol Vuh; second, the translation of the work itself. It is...

Sunday, September 30, 2012

Deities and Mythical Beings of the Davao Tribes

Note: I don't claim to be an expert in the mythology and religion of the six tribes featured here. My source for this information is Fay-Cooper Cole's The Wild Tribes of Davao District, Mindanao. This entry is solely a list for future references.

The deities and mythological creatures here are from Fay-Cooper Cole's The Wild Tribes of Davao District, Mindanao. This is a list of the gods, goddesses, and spirits/spirit classes of the Bagobo, Bila-an, Kulaman, Tagakaolo, Ata, and Mandaya. I retained the spelling of the names found in the book. For full accounts of the myths and customs of the tribes, I recommend reading the book.

BAGOBO

Eugpamolak Manobo/Manama/Kalayagan  - first and greatest creator whose home is in the sky. Offerings for him should be white.

Tolus ka balakat - name means "dweller in the balakat"; loves blood but not the flesh of humans and is one of the three deities for whom the yearly sacrifice is made.

Mandarangan and Darago - husband and wife who look after the fortunes of the warriors and demand yearly sacrifice in return.

Taragomi - owns all the food and is the guardian of crops.

Tolus ka towangan - patron of workers in brass and copper.

Tolus ka gomanan - patron of smiths.

Baitpandi - taught the women to weave and presides over the looms and weavers.

Toglai/Si Niladan, Maniladan and his wife Toglibon - first man and woman; gave the people their language and customs.

tigyama - a class of spirits that look after the family.

diwata - a class of spirits who serve Eugpamolak Manobo.

anito - a name applied to a great body of spirits some of whom are formerly people; it is from them that the mabalian secures her knowledge and power.

buso - mean, evil spirits who eat dead people and sometimes injure the living.

tagamaling - evil spirits dwelling in big trees.

tigbanua - evil beings inhabiting rocks and cliffs in the mountains.

tagareso - low spirits who cause people to become angry and do evil deeds or cause insanity.

sarinago - spirits who steal rice.

tagasoro - cause sudden anger resulting to quarrels and death.

Balinok and Balinsogo - husband and wife who love blood and cause people to run amok.

siring - spirits inhabiting caves, cliffs, and dangerous places and who also impersonate family members.

*****

BILA-AN

Melu or Meie - used his skin to create earth and the two beings like himself. He created Tau Tana (Funtana) and Tau Dalom Tana. These two angered Melu when they had a child.

Melu and Fiuweigh, Dwata and Sawegh (or Sewe or Seweigh) - another version of the creation myth relates that these two pairs created people first out of wax (which failed) and then dirt. This time it was Fiuweigh who had an argument with Melu about the position of the nose. The couples also created the earth out of the things that the bird Baswit brought to them. Baswit brought earth, fruit of rattan and trees.

They made Adnato and Andawi. These two had children, namely; Tapi/Mastafi and Lakarol (in other versions the offspring were Mesa, Lakbang and Mangarang). Their descendants were Sinudal, Moay, Limbay, Madinda, Sinnamoway, Kamansa, Gilay, Gomayau, Salau, Slayen, Baen, Kanfal, and Latara.

Melu and Sawegh live below while Dwata and Fiuweigh lived in the sky.

In still another version Melu and Dwata created Fiuweigh and Seweigh. The  first people made were Otis and Lakbang who were the parents of Mastafi and Lakarol (Landol). The Bila-an were descended from Mastafi and Lakarol.

Duwata (Duata, Dwata, Adwata, Diwata) - identified with a female spirit called Kalalokan and is generally considered Melu's wife.

Lamot ta Mangayo/Mandalangan - patron spirit of warriors.

busau - class of spirits living in the mountains. To this class belong Bakay the owner of the deer and pig; Bawi, who owns the rice; and the flau, the spirit of an unborn child whose mother died in pregnancy.

*****

KULAMAN

Tomanen and wife Diwata - are considered above all the other spirits.

Mandalangan/Siling/Manobo Siring - the god of war.

magintalonan - spirits that inhabit rocks and trees.

Tama - owns the deer and wild pig.

maniokan - generally evil spirits that resemble snakes.

*****

TAGAKAOLO

Lakbang, Mengedan and wife Bodek - Mengedan and Bodek are the parents of Linkanan and Lampagan.

Linkanan and Lampagan - parents of kalau and sabitan (birds). They were sent to look for bits of soil which their parents used to form the earth.

Diwata and Timanem - watched the creation of the earth.

Siling - confuses travelers through the forest.

mantianak - spirits of unborn children or busau.

Tama - owns the deer and wild pig.

Mandalangan (Mandangan) - closely interwoven with Timanem.

kawe - shades of the dead.

*****

ATA

Manama - made the first men from blades of grass, weaving them together. He made eight people who became the ancestors of the people.

A flood drowned the people but two men and a woman were saved by an eagle and brought to Mapula.

Mandarangan - god of war.

Malalayug - god of agriculture.

Mabalian - spirit who presides over childbirth.

Tarasyub and Taratuan - guardian spirits of brass iron workers.

Boypandi - guardian of weavers.

*****

MANDAYA

Moon and Sun - They were married but later quarreled. Moon left and soon after their children died. Moon cut their bodies and threw them away; those that fell into the water became fish while those that fell on land became snakes and animals; those that 'fell' upwards became stars.

In another version the children were not cut. One of them was a giant crab named Tambanokaua who causes tides, high waves, lightning, and eclipses when he devours his mother.

Other versions:
(1) Only one great star with the appearance of a man existed. He wanted to usurp the sun and succeeded. He cut his rival into small bits and scattered them over the sky.

(2) The flat earth was pressed up into mountains by Agusanan. It rested on the back of an eel that caused earthquakes.

(3) A woman survived the flood which killed all the inhabitants of the earth. She gave birth to Uacatan who married her. From the sprung the Mandaya.

(4) From the limokon's eggs were born Mag and Begenday from whom came all the Mandaya (also Mag/Manway and Begenday/Samay). The limokon bird is considered a messenger of the spirit world.

wakwak - a bird which foretells ill fortune.

Diwata - a good spirit who aids against evil beings.

asuang - a class of malevolent spirits that inhabit trees, cliffs, and streams. They trouble or injure the living. The most powerful asuang are Tagbanua, Tagamaling, Sigbinan, Lumaman, and Bigwa.

Busau/Tuglinsau/Tagbusau/Mandangum - looks after he welfare of the bagani (warriors).

Omayan/Kalaloa Nang Omay - spirit of the rice.

muntianak - spirit of a child whose mother died while pregnant.

Magbabaya - the name given to the first man and woman who emerged from the limokon eggs.

Likedanum - creator and chief spirit.

Dagpudanum and Macguliput - gods of agriculture.

Manamoan - a female spirit who works the soil and presides over childbirth.

Ebu - made all the people from the hairs on his head.

Other deities: Mangkokiman, Mongungyahn, Mibucha, Andepit, and Mibuohn.