Tikbalang?

One of the most popular and enduring mythical creatures in Filipino lore. The tikbalang is said to be a half human, half horse creature in the mold of the Greek Pan, that is, having an upper body of a human and lower limbs of a horse (check out my original drawing above ^). There are two known versions of the creature's appearance: the more popular and oft portrayed version has the tikbalang with the head of a horse while the lesser known version has it sporting a human visage. Both versions however agree that the tikbalang has unusually long, powerful legs that resemble the rear quarter of a horse, hooves and all.

Legend has it that whoever can ride the tikbalang and pluck the golden hair from its nape can tame the beast and make it a willing slave. In its element however, the tikbalang, powerful as it is ,does not hurt or kill people. At worst, it leads people astray and plays mischievous tricks on their senses.

As far as I know, the word tikbalang is universally understood throughout the Philippines although there might be other regional variations of its name that I don't know of. As for the etymology of the word, I'm not that sure, really. In tagalog, a balang is a locust. Of course, we all know that locusts have relatively long hind legs so I'm wondering if this has got something to do with the portrayal of the tikbalang as hunched over with legs folded, knees taller than its shoulders. It would sure look like an oversized locust somehow.

I know a couple of people who had tikbalang stories. One of them is my father. When he was a teener living in Antique he mentioned one particular night when two of his brothers were quarreling and socking each other outside their hut after a late evening drizzle. You can hear shouts and a dull thud here and there. After sometime, their mother broke up the fight and asked them to sleep away their tempers and change their clothes for the night. The two grudgingly obliged. A few hours later, there were dull thuds all over again, this time however, the sound shifted from one side of the house to the other. Father said the last time he checked, both his elder brothers were fast asleep, tired from their fisticuffs earlier. Who or what could be making the sound outside? He tried to sneak out of the back door to check but his mother, who was still awake and sitting near the window, stopped him and told him nonchalantly that he should stay inside as "there's a tikbalang outside". He obeyed and made sure that everyone was inside at the time. My father was the 7th of nine siblings by the way, and everyone except for himself and my grandma was fast asleep already.

Still the dull thud-thud-thud continued, one at a time on each side of the house. He describe the sound as akin to the sound of the heavy pestle used for separating the rice chaff from the grain. He was forbidden even to sneak a peak at the window so he can only imagine what it looked like. Apart from the dull thuds, there was no other sound to hear except the stridulation of crickets and cicadas. He fell asleep to the sound of the "tikbalang" jumping like crazy outside.

The next morning he woke up to find that their neighbors and relatives were all milling around a strange sight: huge hoof impressions, each the size of ripe coconut littered each side of the house. the impressions came in pairs and overlapped each other. Each mark was several inches deep and filled with rainwater from last night's drizzle. No one owned a horse in the barrio and not even a thoroughbred bronco can make impressions that big. It's clearly not a buffalo's since the hoof is not cloven in the middle. Whatever made those impressions would be immensely bigger and heftier than a carabao or a horse judging from the depth and size of the impressions. The fact that the impressions came in pairs suggest a bipedal creature left those marks. Granting that this thing had legs proportionate to a horse and the torso of a human relative to its legs, it could've easily scraped the ceiling at around 10-15 feet tall.

Unfortunately, no one had a camera at the time. Which was understandable considering that the area was so poor at the time some students had to walk unshod to and from school just to make their precious "bakya" last longer. Umbrellas were expensive and were almost unknown so if it rained, people used banana leaves instead. The blessings of Tesla's electricity still hasn't reached those parts yet (this was in the early 60's).

What was the tikbalang's business jumping over the roof at those late hours? What it did was similar to the Filipino chidren's game called "Luksong Tinik" lit. "Jumping Thorns" but its motives were never known. Tikbalangs have been known to be playful and mischievous so it's anybody's guess.

I only wish I was there. I could've punched a small hole on the wall and taken a peek, but after a night of rains (cloudy sky, no moon, no electricity) I don't think I can make out much, if anything at all.

The Manananggal or Wakwak

The subject of countless movies here in the Philippines, the Manananggal is another type of evil creature in the same league as the Aswang. Legend says the Manananggal is a pretty woman by day that transforms into a vicious, half bodied, viscera-eating monster by nightfall. It is said that the Manananggal will sneak out of her house near midnight to hide in the bushes, or maybe a grove of banana trees. There she rubs her body with a certain type of oil and minutes later, she will sprout bat-like wings and her body gets cut at the waist. The body from the navel down will stay rooted on the spot while the top half will fly around looking for something to eat. With its acute sense of smell, it can smell a sick person or a pregnant woman even miles away.

In some areas in the Philippines particulary the Visayas, the locals call it the Wakwak. The Wakwak is so named for the sound its wing makes while hovering or flying. In the movies it is normally portrayed as flying in an upright position. My father who grew up in Antique, in the island of Panay, says this is not so. He has a relative who saw a Wakwak flying over a bamboo grove. Dad's kin says with all lucidity and sobriety that the thing flew upside down. I just can't imagine the aerodynamics involved with a position like that but it does make sense if you think of a bird out to hunt in the night. It woud be easier to see the big picture if your head hangs below like the gunsights of a bomber plane.

My wife told me that some time ago a group of kids and some elderly menfolk saw what they think was a manananggal here in our little municipality of Pateros. The thing, they said looked like a big umbrella hanging from one of the electrical posts around 7 in the evening. One of the kids saw it and threw stones at it. One of the elders cautioned the kids to stop throwing lest they broke a neighbor's window. When the man looked up, he was terrified as the "umbrella" unfolded to reveal a face and arms. The thing quickly flew away and the kids (and the men) ran in the opposite direction.

I haven't seen a Manananggal (Heck , I'd give everything to see one) nor did my father but my mother has seen one in her teens, out in the rice fields, back in her hometown of Dulag in Eastern Leyte. I can still remember my mother talking about it matter-of-factly. She said she worked alone on the fields and lost all track of time until it was dusk. She was then preparing to untether the buffalo so they can both go home - which was about a kilometer of thick bushes and rice paddies away. She said she had just lit her bamboo torch when she heard the sound that went "Wak...Wak...Wak...Wak..." She unsheathed her bolo (a long machete-like knife) and looked up and around. My mother is a strong woman even at a young age but what she saw unnerved her. She said she saw what she thought was a large, tawny looking bird with sharp, black talons just a few feet above her head. Its flapping wings disturbed the leaves and brushes for yards around. That would've been scary enough when you are alone and it's nightfall and you still have to walk through unlit parts to get home. What struck her though was the looks of the creature's head. She says the thing had a pretty humanoid and feminine face with yellow curly hair. She described its face as looking "like a doll." Its wings were that of a bird, not a bat. And she says by the dancing light of the torches she can tell the thing is staring at her with cold, grey eyes. Mustering all her courage she tried to shoo it away using the torch and bolo. The Wakwak flew away.

That was the first and the last time she saw a Manananggal/Wakwak but to this day, she insists that a Manananggal is different from a Wakwak.

I wouldn't know. I just hope I can see and photograph one nowadays. That'll give the Enquirer a run for it's money hehe.

Philippines - A Cryptid Farm

The Philippines has a colorful menagerie of cryptids that have endured over the ages. From orb-like beings to humanoid creatures, name it, we have it. Here's a partial list of some of the cryptids and mythological beings that I can recall from the top of my mind:

• Aswang
• Mananggal/Wakwak
• Tikbalang
• Kapre
• Tiktik
• Mandurugo
  
• Maranhig
• Batibat
• Angab
• Tiyanak
• Kugtong
• Tika
• Nuno sa Punso
• Engkanto
• Laman Lupa
• Duwende
• Ekek
• Pasatsat
• Santelmo
• Aghoy
  
• Sirena
  
• Siyokoy
• Manaul
• Sigbin
• Amomongo
• Alan
  

It is worthy to note that to some extent, some of these cryptids seem to share a common linguistic, if not cultural origin with those of our Southeast Asian neighbors. Although the meaning might be different, there are some near-cognates among the many words used for some of the famous cryptids we have here and elsewhere in Southeast asia. Our very own manananggal has a counterpart called Penanggal or Penanggalan in Malaysia. The root word of both words would be the Filipino "Tanggal" and Malaysian "Tanggal" which means "to detach." Other phonetic parallels would be the Philippine "Tianak/Tiyanak" and the Malay "Pontianak."

Aswang - a primer

The Aswang is one of the more pervasive folkloric concepts in Philippine culture. In terms of popularity, it is the Philippine equivalent of the Western Werewolf/Vampire. It is difficult to encapsulate in one sentence what an aswang is but a lot of people across different ethnicites agree on a lot of things about it : (1) that its diet consists mainly of human liver and blood, (2) that it has an unholy preference for unborn children. (3) that it is also known to prey upon children and sick people. On a broader sense, the term Aswang can be used to denote the entire menagerie of evil beings in Philippine folklore. On a stricter sense however, the Aswang is a human being that can change shape at will without severing any part of its body. Thus, the half-bodied flier called the Manananggal is strictly different from the Aswang. A subspecies perhaps?

As a shape shifter it can take any of the following forms:

• Humanoid - Mostly upright but sometimes crawls on all fours. The body can be covered by black, coarse, quill like hair. Skin color can be black to ashen gray. The body can be oily as well due to the application of an unknown kind of grease or coconut oil concoction usually before stalking their prey. In this configuration, they normally crawl on the floor or the immediate space outside or they lay prone on the roofs or gables, looking for a peephole or "lick hole" where they can drop their highly prehensile tongue/proboscis that reportedly has the looks and consistency of vermicelli and the dexterity of a human hand. This tongue can inflict sickness or death on its victims which are usually sick people, children and pregnant women.
  
• Canine - An aswang can appear as a large, menacing dog with coarse, black hair and flaming red eyes. They normally stalk the roadsides but has been reported to roam the cities on occasion. Its huge size and wild hair reminds one of a jackal out for a kill. Normal house dogs normally hide, howl or flee when they see an aswang in this form. Animal senses are way sharper than ours.
  
• Porcine - By far the most common aswang configuration in the Philippines (most aswang witnesses reported seeing them in this form), essentially just a scaled up pig with the basic characteristics of the first two forms of aswang. Their arrival is heralded by snorting and gnashing of teeth characteristic of a domestic speed. Only their sheer size gives them away.
  
• Avian - Sometimes called Tiktik, this is one of the most sinister looking configurations of the Philippine aswang. Outwardly, it will looke like a large, man-sized vulture or raven. Apart from its great size, a dead give away would be its unusual ability to fly low and slow, without the wings visibly flapping, even when the wind is still. This was the exact observation of a compadre of mine who saw what he thinks was an aswang flying low over a public schoolhouse in Bulacan several years back. He was with his schoolmate at the time.
  
• Feline - one of the least common aswang forms. An aswang in cat form can range in size from that of a Siamese Cat to that of a Ocelot or Jaguar. A suspected aswang in this form was reportedly caught many years ago in a town in Antique, according to my father. It was tied up, placed in a sack and beaten up and speared and hauled to the town plaza. When the folk opened the sack to show it to the townspeople, they saw a dead mestiza/creole woman wth long flowing brown hair. Apparently a scion of a wealthy family of European extraction from the next town.

For many years, the province of Capiz, has earned the unflattering reputation of "aswang country." Much of the reason for this will be the ethnolinguistic spats between inhabitants of Capiz and nearby Iloilo province. For the most part, some Filipinos claim that the "real" hub of aswangs is Duenas town in Iloilo which is a geographical neighbor of Capiz. Duenas is reputed to be the home of one "Tinyente Gimo (Lieutenant Gimo)" whose clan was the oldest and biggest clan of aswang in the province and perhaps, the Philippines. None of these stories have been fully substantiated, however.

Fabrication or not, this story serves to illustrate the enduring belief that being an Aswang runs in the family or bloodline. It is also said that an old Aswang cannot die unless his ability is passed on to the next generation. That's because the Aswang's power is a black chick or stone that they puke out just before death. The successor is supposed to swallow this chick/stone to spare his elder from the agony of perpetualy hovering between life and death. A successful turn over of the Aswang "amulet" ensures a speedy peaceful death for the older Aswang.

Most academics and westerners believe that the Aswang can be rationally explained in historical and sociological terms. Some say that in the process of conquering these islands 400 years ago, the Spaniards demonized and anathemized those who refused to abandon their old belief systems in favor of Christianity. These pagans who avoided the conquered coastlines and went up the mountains were easily stereotyped and this became the root cause of the Aswang belief. The funny thing is, the same belief systems seem to be endemic in non-Spanish conquered Southeast Asia where the Aswang goes by a plethora of different names with eerily similar descriptions. Can this be a product of colonialism then? I guess that's what we're here to find out.

In most parts of the Visayan islands, however, they are treated as one of the realities of living in the countryside. Well into the 21st century, people still keep garlic and sharp bronze implements inside their homes to ward off Aswang attacks. Some sleep with knives under their pillows while some keep a Stingray tail whip handy just in case.

I am hoping to complie more material on this topic as we go along.

Sorry if I don't have drawings, much less pictures to accompany this article, I'll make some drawings as one as soon as I get hold of a good graphic tablet. If you guys have any additional information or Aswang pictures feel free to email me @ magnusatthva@gmail.com or post your thoughts below:)

Growing up in the shadows

Although I was born and raised in Manila, I grew up hearing a lot of creepy stories from people around me, mostly my parents and neighbors who immigrated from the provinces. Superstition was as much a part of Philippine culture as the ubiquitous jeepney and I've had my fair share of superstitious beliefs I acquired during those times. Belief in the supernatural runs in our family just like most other people I know yet I never spoke about it outside the house. Back in those days when the slumping Philippine economy meant 12 hour blackouts were the norm, listening to creepy stories by candle light was one of my more engaging past times, well that is, after the brownouts made a fishkill out of my humble, oxygen deprived aquarium fishes.

It wasn't all new age for me though. I also grew up reading science books and watching David Attenborough's  Life on Earth series since I was 4 or 5 I think. For some weird reason, I did not believe this conflicted with our belief that we had little friends inside the house. Crazy as it sounds, my parents, with the suggestion of a medium-friend named Rose, told us that we have 2 little white dwarves living with us. A boy and a girl. Me and my siblings were told that we should invite those two little people whenever we're eating, and that having them on our side would bring us good luck. Sometimes, we were encouraged to actually leave food on strategic places inside the house to appease the dwarves when someone gets sick. If the dwarves accepted the offer, you'd know it because the food will be gone when you come back to check it. One time though, my mom caught Rose eating the food offerings. That was the last time I saw her.

That was also the last time I whispered an invite to our "dwarves."

In retrospect, the whole affair was a sham but getting to know Rose and other faith healers/medium introduced me to the world of the supernatural -- and Fake Healers. This was the first time I heard about the "Third Eye," the "Laman Lupa(s)" (nature elementals), "Duwende(s)"(dwarves), "Aswang(s) ( Vampires / ghouls / shapeshifters ) and "Kulam" (witchcraft). All throughout the whole experience, I was going to a Catholic School and we went to church every Sunday just like every good Catholic. There never was a conflict between our chosen faith and the strange things we believe in. As for me, I believed some of the stories but I questioned most of them, especially those dwarves because I never saw them or felt their presence unlike what the people around me claim. Sure, I have poor eyesight but that shouldn't stop me from experiencing them if they really exist, thinking in retrospect.

As for the other stories, some of them are first hand accounts from my parents, which I always questioned from a rational perspective. even though all through the years, their stories never changed in the slightest. Most of these stories would range from encounters with strange cryptids like "Kapre"(ogre), "Manananggal" (half-bodied viscera sucker) to strange phenomena like the "Santelmo" (Saint Elmo's Fire), demonic apparitions and spirits and ghosts. Their stories were mostly mentioned in passing but some were only revealed after intense cajoling from me and my two elder sisters. I would never be in a position to judge whether what they experienced was true or not but some of their stories would send a chill up my spine even now that I'm older and a lot more skeptical. If only for purposes of entertainment and cultural insight, I'd preserve these myths and stories in this blog.

And did my parents believe what they saw? They say they did, but they told us to be more afraid of people with guns because they're infinitely a lot more dangerous.

Makes practical sense.