CONTENTS OF VOLUME XxXV

Page

LIE oO rae SS Sl ie oe aes BL oe See oc UO SE on oe ee i

BRCIECH ES ene einen enh ok rs Rane km LBRO Lok he Me EE ee eats ag ill

Dates of publication and editions of the brochures......................... ili

LTS}. TLRS NPIS TS 71 105 1s HR eR Gr a RAO en, Me ak TR Ua lv

A Study of Bagobo Ceremonial, Magic and Myth. By Laura Watson

| BSD (Cae OURS 1 aR ak Ree rete ra Ai eta, fn eS oP 1

EPG PESS 2 Page yg eed ip RE a Rr tL AS I A ea eet 283

Tepecano, a Piman Language of Western Mexico. By J. ALDEN Mason...... 309

(No Index has been prepared for ‘“‘Tepecano,”’ the detailed contents being

deemed sufficient for the reader’s guidance)

DATES OF PUBLICATION AND EDITIONS OF THE BROCHURES

Edition

Pp. 1—308, 15 May, 1916 1200 copies

Pp. 309—416, June, 1916 1500 copies

ili

iv ANNALS OF THE NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Plates

I.—Group of Bagobo people and typical Bagobo house.

Fig. 1.—Group of mountain Bagobo in festival costume. In the foreground

are Datu Auga of Bago (left) and Datu Tongkaling of Sibulin. The

women (left to right) are Otik, Sipa, Ubing, Ingan and Sagomayan.

Fig. 2.—Typical Bagobo house with walls and thatch of nipa palm.

Il.—Datu Tongkaling of Sibuldin holding spear and warshield.

I1].—Ceremonial kerchief and carrying bag of the Bagobo.

Fig. 1.—Ceremonial tankulu, which may be worn only by those Bagobo men

who have killed other men.

Fig. 2.—Man’s carrying bag (kabir) worn on the back to hold medicine-case,

lime tube, betel box and other necessaries.

IV.—Bagobo medicine case and woman’s basket.

Fig. 1.—Old man’s medicine case of woven rattan, with telescope lid, for

holding charms, native drugs, flint, stones and tinder.

Fig. 2.—Specimens of the Bagobo woman’s basket, which is hung on the

left shoulder and contains areca-nuts, medicine, a little knife, beads and

materials for embroidery.

V.—Bamboo tubes decorated with incised patterns.

(These tubes (tagan) are used by the Bagobo to hold the powdered lime

that is chewed with areca-nuts.)

VI.—Strip of finely woven hemp textile.

(In this type of textile the crocodile charm design appears. The border

shows conventional representations of birds, snakes, frogs, human

figures and motives drawn from still life.) .

V1II.—Ceremonial shirt.

(Ceremonial claret-colored hemp shirt worn by old Bagobo men and

women. The decoration is of mother-of-pearl shell discs, with a border

of embroidery done by a Bila-an or a Tagakaola woman.)

VIII.—Festival jacket worn by the Bagobo.

(Young man’s festival jacket of hemp beaded in the “eagle’s wing”’ design.)

Text Figures

Page

Leaf dishes used in the rite of preliminary Awas...............-..++++++05: 109

Antler of Buso: deers sin: sgccle £5:.%. div eleng brateeeie eke tata ene ery eae tee We eee 113

Agongs at Datu Oleng’s long house ..........-...2 eee eee eee eter eee e eens 147

err

ANNALS OF THE NEW YORK. ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

, Vol. XXV, pp. 1—308, pll. I—VIII

Editor, Epmunp Otis Hovey

A STUDY OF BAGOBO CEREMONIAL,

MAGIC AND MYTH

Lavra Watson BENEDICT

NEW YORK

PUBLISHED BY THE ACADEMY

15 May, 1916

Orricers, 1916

I President —MICHAEL Ipvorsky Pupry, Columbia Ciniveniny.

oe . ee Exsrse E. Situ, J. McKeen CATTELL,

s Dovetas W. Jonnson, Hermann von W. Scuure

fe, SB texponding Secretary—Hunry B. Cramproy, American Museum

: Recording Seeretary—Epmunp Otis Hovey, American Museum me

. a Treasurer—Hounry J. Cocuran, 389 Fifth Avenue

ey -— Librarian—Raren W. Towrr, American Museum

_ Editor—Evmunp Oris Hovny, American Museum

“SECTION OF ASTRONOMY, PHYSICS AND CHEMISTRY

~Chairman—Exyust EB. Surru, 50 East 41st Street

Secretary—Victor E. Lryine, College of Physicians and Surgeons

SECTION OF BIOLOGY

| Chairman—HerMaxn vox W. Scuvurr, College of Physicians and

Surgeons .

; Wor K. Grucory, American Museum

SECTION OF GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY

— Charman—Doveras W. Jounson, Columbia University

3 Pi Secretary—Curster A. Reeps, American Museum

SECTION OF ANTHROPOLOGY AND PSYCHOLOGY

: i —Chairman—J. McKeen Carrert, Columbia University

Bee tary —Ropenr H. Lowtr, American Museum

The sessions of the Academy are held on Monday evenings at 8: 15

. y o’clock from October to May, inclusive, at the American Museum of

Natural History, 77th Street and Central Park, West. |

fAnnats N. ¥. Acap. Scr. Vol. XXV, pp. 1—308, pll. I—VIII. 15 May, 1916]

A STUDY OF BAGOBO CEREMONIAL, MAGIC AND MYTH '

By Laura Watson BENEDICT

(Presented by title before the Academy, 20 April, 1914)

CONTENTS

Page

ee raa m TMA a arc See best atalet se asyehs: ot vhf stella ean a tin were ais a 98,9 wee 3

Introduction. General characteristics of the religious attitude of the

eee a 2 rch iete remains a ace cierto SS Ly ITea) sl hehe niaseie «\n\ Sowvayse aie) A aid we 8

PAL lei NEUE NOLO OTGAL COMGEIESi . \ia.ciesc vie oa sian po nieioe Hale's ols yaw e eee ae a 13

SagCmaE Yee R ECAR AG TUE LEUVEN 24) 9) a Bonen nya Ser sian, oka wn wl Bee wie larval iw! 9s oin 13

Myth-gods: of the nine heavens... 1.2.06... 16. c ee eee pe eee ee eee 15

Gods associated with human interests ...0....000 0c ce See ce ween 18

SPACER SITEMAP SO ic See een hn wine iain wah «, xB ore ee Mew arsrea ne qo gece 29

interpretation of physical evironment .... +... 56. sess tact eee 43

Piescaiie. Of man and life after deaths 2... screecc.6 5s sas dels ss. ae 's's 49

Gharmeterizavion: Of RHE. GwWO SOUIS {.\5). iejsielese, cess 0S -< vielen ese eles aie’ os 49

Right-hand soul or Gimokud Takawanan .................-eeeeee 50

BSS OlW GEM EM cat me rcfe cig oes osaie A wegen sp lsla geo + osghqehetmierene wie les 54

rare Rie SEMC UU LINEA as. she att ~ gichegs) vest wianaya ate ePagelates ra reese apehe 51

Onong or travel outfit for the soul i... 60.6 .. eee te ee tees 53

ie one country of therdedd. 2. So «ja. sigue see s eich «retaee coesoueiyy sis < =i 54

Manzen of-existence in-Gimokudann <o.° sce Sierae scspe oe Fame = Se 55

Topography of the one country .............-..eseeeeeeeeeees 56

petting, AWE ra OE HIS eae tel ee A Ra Ra oa Tei a LE 58

fem tanned soul-om Gimokud Tebang ss. 2 cc soc oe nse Senne eu cee 58

Mra OM MUU agit g Sieh ace, Based e¥. rte slsyarste Saas ¥ elms wlni8 fae Be syepeee® ole 58

PEERED IE: Sorat eee. eA tea. Fiesta ane a c's garmin © win petlege ay Sis ae 3 60

Peer a CONST EL ALON oli ai. diac 4 tea Gl aoles errs vias ain oP chanel ieetehinge Sn 8 61

SredvoramoneGr the- Ged. BO. MCE ts. clue. \ wie acs wg 'cte al eieieis weyers sis, & 61

ELE REE LCA iam cic. Ota ve aes heal o wictauaiarsialek Oe, cramtye aise Cals 62

MAHL pn CHCHLLL ES otters ok usta nk ek Rk ach ale eiereae ns els Co ca quis ie ae 63

Souls of animals and of manufactured objects................... 64

Peatunons of taythical ancestors... oo. a. we. okie Me wae ce ete ee 88 65

Parrett, & bite: torial: ceremonial! 4. Sok... ap ole Se eawsle Seaweed ae eT O

Typical ceremonial behavior ............. ee cece eee cece eee e een nee 75

oer Re rt ACLEL Giri CereMOMinl:, 5 Ga. eis an Share w eee Cae where's whe a8) 0 a's © 75

pundamental Glements of ceremonial. «ii... voiste sce e we eres te ces 78

EDTA A ACERCO Oot crohns 2 EBV Sect ee ae eietts wear renee cue rha5)e sv 78

RRM TCRIA TER SIL Sad ace favs) Shaw ooh, ante n, KARR oyel oacel ore Mi cates aloes ehh wl as 79

MSE TURE RPQUILON See 0-20. .Jahe: «1h. clot e aim matelel eae oie Cia Le Aa apie ae wth 0d = 19

Marea TEL MASE chs C ive die.s °c oF Rae ana ater daley ds ha MRIS PES a aaa 80

Offerings of manufactured products............ee eee eee ence eee 81

1 Manuscript received by the Editor, 8 April, 1914.

ANNALS NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Page

ParvicHtionss [540 chs dg tees so ep eee CEP sie atom eee 81

Reeitation. of ritual avords. 2. eer. 4. ceee anes alate ain Vie se ree 82

Cerenionial .chant, 7.,.\. 8% Ge. < cpio tale h pes ate rein te. eres 82

AS ONE“ INIESIC ss. 05: Be Scot ete eelm Sethe Get ie = = he conte ae eee ee 83

Mancime’ and) cOSbUMies fee <n son fete dhe oct eae tae So ee 85.

The feast 26.05. 6 Tos ete ee ON Ee ee State Cals ae ge OO a ee 87

Mariganito 226 c/s. eta Sta cee teria ye dine a oe tial eae 87

Various’ types Of Ruan vino a. oes bere weet ee eee eee 87

Bamboo prayer stands called tambara......... 0: .0scssc0esseces 87

Hanging altars. ch cium sie cite ones atatersiyemp aetna oie ee 90:

Tie yawia. i. Hedy cyte date Rie te ee cele pies FS eae eee 90

Balekati. :..ccstets create ois olslotetene Sry « eesie ets S12] se pleis peat eee ee 90

Agony altars ‘called sonaran<. 52g. fcc = « <sh Se eee e 91

Hat shrines. jc.<5 2.00). ett Se emegh ete oe aisle = hos Ooi 92

Buis. or ‘biiso shouses i275. oes. toes ce 3c ot ee 92.

Parabunnian or rice-sowing altars...>...... “1, «21th ee See 92

Ceremonies*in details.4..0 Sac... re iced c Ae UY oe ae Oe ee 93

Kestival’ of drinking called’ Ginuth 322). «ne: oe ee 93

Introductory remarks: 2.5% SA 20sec neers Seine ee phe aie ee 93

Chronology of the preparation and of the four main days of the

festival hc Se se Face eee ty Sie capete soe Oh Ge eee eee 96.

Birst day of the Gimum. ti)... csigat air says ie ten 101

First night called tig-kanayan or the beginning............... 101

SOCOMG, ay. crattvsrtecardite sv se ee hele ae eee ee ee ee 101

Second nicht called ta dua dukilume.... A... S250. eee 102

Pbird: (day. Asin nyced weet ce cey es a) areas Sea ei a a ~ 102

Third Mights;6. ssf80% sae cia Wee wae aim i eee ee 103

Fourth ‘Sand vrata ay... oes atvae sicjeres es iece 5 eeu 103

Fourth and ast nip htste oavenli ac oe a 5s one erase ee eee 103

Ceremony of Awas or offerings of areca-nuts to spirits.......... 104

Preliminary, Awas wig = «els bet a otro cies oie Ren ieee ee 105

Misia ANWR ae 6st SE 5 ante Peact oh aC oy= Seael'e- eye ts eae otiake eC ae 411

Ceremony of Tanung or magic rites against Buso............... 1138

Preliminary Tamuug 2s 2020 hen ok ke ees esas Oe Cee 3h ee

Main. Tanung. o..:65 2a. shir eta ek hee cla le = cre 115

Ceremony of Pamalugu or purification, 72. 0.25.20. a ee 137

Ceremony of Lulub or washing of water flasks.................. 124

Ceremony of Sonar or offering on the agongs of manufactured

PPOMUCHS. 5. 6... 5 nis see itlaen sie «nba bele Res lee eee ete as pa ee ee 125

Offering of manufactured products to the gods................ 126

Ablutions’ called Sagmo..:s.-cisiawe sens s Ore nee ee tee 128

Visitation of Anito. 01.00: Tis ogtat eee ee cere es oe 128

Rites with balabba.. .. <. 2.0 .Sckcee wee ears once a Pee cr 129

Ceremonies on the main day of Ginum:. 2%. Rub. siwaganeaes 131

Arrangement of the long HOWSGsi ws aos ns + tte Cans vc es aes 151

Festival of Ginum at Tubisons 5). sacan ae wee ys aia veto vay 153

Question of head ‘hunting... . 0... cise sal pp eee ae Ee vines so eratrepa tee 158

A few ceremontal chants . (5. vesse on ee eee ee er ee 162

BENEDICT, BAGOBO CEREMONIAL, MAGIC AND MYTH 3

Page

futeror himam sacrifice called Pag-huagan. 2 sei ss.00 cs ceed ee hoes 166

Ceremonial at rice-sowing called Martimmas....................0. 171

Ceremonial at harvest called Ka-pungaan.............0.5..¢s00005 174

EPIRA ED TNL a fetee ey sicg 3g PPA es, TMG cosa Sik eke aera are eee wade arcs 38 oe 180

GRA ELIAS S Aho rhtiens, ter crete, «soa as a aie SRT eR Sere Rat aaa at oft 181

Permab Coremony called Validame, ...ac- sa oss oe we tine ote ee ec 181

PLoS aotendine. Geauh aiid, DUBAI). oak icaie clan siet wee settee tie ce 186

Pari. «Everyday forms: of religious responses... .... 022 de ds. cee ce 193

Interviews with the gods called Manganito. .... 2.22... 22s.cese seuss 193

SL RENRET Seg 0d 0G EAT Ge MS RRNA a Ree, coo 203

UlrtnseDy, ACUUML CELEMSE 5 cis sik See aia ae sini bhe, 31S Sse 0s Sines wince ene 206

Charms by substitution. <<... 0.5.6... Df is ois S PNEa ace See Oe 208

Charms through association by contiguity.............00..0....0% 213

ChacmMaphavinc AMheReNes VIELE 2% 2 2y eisai whys sAleys aredee @eceadoowe 217

BeOS eS crt Cet e i Sore heat ao arets ON a. anlar interned he te 222

Disease and healing in their supernatural aspects................... 223

Diseases thattresult. from ‘breaking taba... . 2... 5... bowen ewe See 223

Sea Se se GAUSCE! (Dye CMI copra te se. GOs tlre nore hin Dede oteretbee Sask ote 225

Diseases: caused by the left-hand soube. 025. oe. ee ds ces 227

sPRe MRMMCN CR DECUMNIES SCHEIOSS © 02 02 6.5 toteals 9.0 1s oa5 SS emai Dadam 229

RpEMEE AH Ul OVORION coo oie Shia 5 ones wey ei ome ere gel aie be SG aly 854 229

OIA Leg Par eM ae Ne eal Pend 9 oa sES Sena. Sars <b sbehe-ae sae eset) 4) Bee 230

Ege MALE MCP EBRERCI CE: RRETICA 20). os cc oe 25k ss cre jos poe oho vot aie gitie eb stoes 230

Merc OLY DUET o ty LS arpa ote We ara Oa nti ey ates ols ele Ss oR SPATE 232

Method .of external-use without, burning: . 3... 22. sacs ee oo 233

Method of imternal use: without burning... 05.2250. i. dele ness 234

Method of wearing or of carrying medicine on the person..... 234

Muameatcen isecor OF tae reliciouSs Hie. 2.8. <tc. mteee as bom aye Sen oes 235

ISR ENTER ADDIE ere eia tad ae Set rat AGAR lores ahe eins Shape Gata sala ee ae AG 236

MU GENNG En LAMA ces oy tei. See atclatoprcc f sveustagpeds a Lacks hotpaleie ake 238

Pee emt ACD eat etc ot rks NG (ease. ed iaye 4is)6" os x! = din vichans' s95 @ yale epee 240

PUTS RICM AU yee ores are one er aevs a. < oi snpkors sae’ Big se eee. 2, ME aud slogan tar 243

RRP OMSe AYN CELE HINES uses tes a cals Mahe otal 6: seo) wera. a ara ow the Ws wafer eval) eels 245

OENISR afer iaisyate ons BEB eee! ah a oe PNM crs aed he Jose. sah ged Seatac sae ee! 245

DUEL eeeten es A he Ceca a, Mere Maina Sic tocs, Paar e gicautrs ddl Seahel eMNS BRUAS sot cee 248

Part IV. Problem of sources of ceremonial and myth................. 250

eT ea res ee [MUM ceca tor ay Seer ais shane Steen ok Sea ays, « a aharpSetade “ee Pater e's oe! Shs: Aa re cid Manas. ake 279

MAC aT eB a hn Osher a Foe enn soles «wis «is « Peis su ahie eels se-eeeind fopenon ete eee 283

PREFATORY REMARKS

The Bagobo form one of those Malay cultural groups in the

mountainous country of southeastern Mindanao which have retained

their pagan faith in its entirety and have never accepted the religious

dictates of Islam. During the period when the Moro dominated

4 ANNALS NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

the southern coast? from Point Tagubum to Zamboanga, the Bagobo,

like the other wild tribes of the Gulf of Davao, doubtless paid

tribute to the Mohammedan conquerors, but they retained their

independence in customs and in worship. Unlike the lowland

peoples of the west, they would not fuse by conversion and by

intermarriage with the Moro, though they came into trading rela-

tions with Moro groups at the coast. In their remote homes on

mountain peaks, which could be reached only by hard climbing

through dense and thorny forest growth, the Bagobo remained safe

from attack, except as, now and then, a few of their number were

caught and pressed into slavery by the Moro.

Within the last sixty years, — that is to say since the Spanish

conquest of the gulf of Davao, — the Bagobo have begun to build

little villages on the west side of the gulf, and there to establish

their own cultural conditions. When Datu*® Ali, a chieftain of

great distinction, died in 1906, he had lived for fifty years in Liubu,

the old Bagobo name for the present village of Santa Cruz.

While a coast culture developed that was modified somewhat by

Visayan and Moro customs and by new elements from Spanish

sources, yet, on the whole, the Bagobo at the coast appear to have.

been but superficially influenced by these various contacts. They

have clung tenaciously to the old industrial processes and to the

ancient forms of worship. There is not to be found that sharp

dividing line which one would look for between mountain culture

and coast culture; and particularly is this true on the religious

side. While there is a considerable range of local variation, not

only between coast and mountain but also between different moun-

tain groups, yet, as a general characterization, it may be said that

* For a discussion of the Moro conquests in Mindanao, see N. M. Sarerby: “Studies in

Moro History, Law and Religion,” pp. 50—61. 1905.

* Datu, 2» Malay word for grandfather, is now, as applied to the chiefs, restricted

to the Moro and the wild tribes; but formerly it was in wide use among the Filipino

as well, Brarr and Rogperrson (The Philippine Islands, vol. 16, p. 157. 1904) quote

Pardo de Tavera as saying that the word datu or datuls, though not in the present day

vocabulary of the Tagal, primitively signified grandfather or head of the family, the term

being equivalent to the head of the Jarangay. The reference is given to ‘I’. H. Parvo de

Tavera: Costumbres de los Tagalos, p.10, note 1. 1892. Cf. also, Buatr and ROBERTSON:

op. cit., vol. 4, footnote, pp. 184—185, for a discussion of the Jdarangay, as meaning:

(1) the slender craft, pointed at both ends and put together with wooden pegs, that

formed the distinctive vessel of the Philippines; (2) the small social community of related

individuals directed by the same cabeza, or datu, who had been captain of the same

family group on the barangay in which they had crossed the water to the new home,

BENEDICT, BAGOBO CEREMONIAL, MAGIC AND MYTH 5

the same rites are celebrated on mountain tops and beside the sea,

the same tabus are respected, the same precautions taken against

ghosts and demons. Although the new doctrines and the new

rites suggested to the Bagobo fresh safeguards against evil spirits, —

safeguards which might well be added to their already ample collec-

tion of magic spells and of charm objects, — although they eagerly

accepted foreign amulets and untried formule that might, per-

chance, subdue a feyer or expel a cough, there are unmistakable

signs that even those coast Bagobo who have felt most strongly

the impelling force of the new forms of worship are at heart as

sincere pagans as they ever were. In all essentials, they believe

and think and behave like those remote mountain Bagobo who

have been scarcely touched by foreign influences.

Recent history accounts easily for this situation. The Bagobo

who have settled at the coast during the last half century have

come with a religion well organized, and fixed by centuries of

tradition. Furthermore, there has been continuous and unbroken

intercourse between the mountain people and the coast people,

particularly on occasions of ceremonial gatherings and for purposes

of trade. Intermarriage between mountain Bagobo and coast Bagobo

has not been lacking. More than this, there has occurred an inter-

mittent flow of whole families from the hills and from the nearer

mountains to the coast, and from the sea back to the upland villages,

in regulated response to a varying pressure of conditions both

ecclesiastical and economic. Particularly has this pressure been

operative since the American occupation, on account of the demands

of labor. Many houses at Santa Cruz, for example, which were

built and occupied by the Bagobo early in the present century

were deserted as soon as a return to their little hemp fields on

the mountain slopes was made possible by a change in the local

administration.

Throughout these fluctuations, the presence of the older chieftains,

like Ali, Tongkaling, Imbal, Oleng, Yting, and others of no less

dominating personality, as well as the existence of such permanent

centers of influence as Talun, Sibuldn and Tubison, has operated to

preserve the old traditions and the integrity of the tribal religion,

so that no group at the coast has been swamped by foreign in-

fluences. During the last few years, however, the death of several

leading datu, and the transference of entire mountain groups to

provide native labor for American plantations have been operative

6 ANNALS NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

factors tending, unquestionably, to bring about marked modifications

in Bagobo culture, such as to affect the mountain area almost equally

with the coast. The disintegration of the whole body of Bagobo

custom and Bagobo tradition cannot long be held off.

The material culture of the Bagobo is of a primitive agricultural

type. The food staples are rice, corn and sweet potatoes; fields are

cultivated without the aid of animals or of hand plough, for the

mere burning over of the land gives a soft soil in which holes

may be made with a digging-stick. In addition to garden products,

some wild food is secured by hunting and by gleaning.

The horse and the dog are their domestic animals, while the

coast Bagobo make use of carabao, or water buffalo, for dragging

loads and, to some extent, for riding bareback; they snare and

tame jungle fowl. They make a rough pottery and fire it without

the use of an oven; they weave baskets and traps and scabbards ;

they do highly specialized forms of overlacing and coloring of

hemp, a plant that has been cultivated by the wild tribes since

prehistoric times, and almost as far back as Bagobo tradition goes.

At the coast, the women have learned, in addition, to weave im-

ported cotton in the Visayan manner. —

One would say that the material culture, as a whole, suggested

that of the pile-dwellings of the Neolithic age, were it not that the

use of iron (of how recent introduction we do not know) has com-

pletely supplanted stone implements, and that the industry of casting

various bronze and brass objects from a wax mould has reached a

high degree of artistic skill.

With this brief introduction, we may pass on to our discussion

of the Bagobo religion. The ceremonial is closely associated with

the everyday interests of the people — interests which find expres-

sion in the ceremonial use of bamboo and of betel, of the fruits of

the field, of products from loom and from forge.

The religious material here presented was gathered in 1906—(,

during a personal expedition undertaken for the purpose of investi-

gating the culture of this tribe. The bulk of the description of

ceremonial, contained in Part II of this paper, was recorded in the

native district Of Talun, at the village of Mati,* which was situated

on the summit of Mount Merar, and which could be reached by ¢

steady ride of about fourteen hours from the coast, or on foot in

“ Not to be confused with the town of Mati on the Pacific coast.

BENEDICT, BAGOBO CEREMONIAL, MAGIC AND MYTH 7

the same time; since the steep grade, as well as the thick jungle,

made progress by horse as slow as that of the pedestrian. At that

time, a very primitive culture flourished in those isolated villages

of Talun, a culture which, in large part, has now passed away.

It was but a few months after my visit there that the entire group

composing the village of Mati moved down to the coast.

Much of the folklore and mythical material was recorded at

Santa Cruz, a village to which the Bagobo resorted in great num-

bers, coming from long distances to exchange their hemp for dried

fish and rice and salt, and to enter their cocks at the little pit.

There, in the small nipa hut that I occupied, were gathered, day

by day, Bagobo men and women and young people in considerable

numbers, representing a large part of the rancherias® of mountain

and coast where Bagobo settlements existed. Some came occasionally ;

others, every two or three days. The method of securing material

which seemed to work most satisfactorily was to reduce questioning

by a set schedule to a minimum, and, following out the most

promising lead that presented itself at the moment, to let any

Bagobo talk on whatever subject pleased him. As a result, my

material is scanty in some directions; in others, very abundant,

but there is a compensating advantage for such lack of balance in

view of the spontaneity with which the information was given me,

in the pleasant intimacy of frequent intercourse during my stay

of fourteen months.

The collection of Bagobo stories recently published in the Journal

of American Folk-lore® form properly a part of the plan of this

discussion, if the mythology, the ceremonial behavior and the folk-

tales are to be examined as a unit.

The ceremonial texts were repeated to me either by the same

men who had sung or said them, or by other Bagobo who had

heard them often; the recitations were recorded by me, in Bagobo,

directly from their lips and have been translated as nearly as

possible word for word. The prayers at the shrines and the inter-

views with the anito were given me at the conclusion of the

respective devotions or the morning after a night seance, by Islao,

grandson of Pandia, the mantaman‘ of Bansalan in Talun, and the

* A name given by the Spaniards to the little hamlets of the pagan peoples.

° Vol. 26, pp. 13—63. Jan.—Mar., 1913.

7 The assistant datu to a head datu.

8 ANNALS NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

son of a Tuban man. He was a boy well versed in tradition and

in ceremonial material, a close observer, and possessed of a fair

knowledge of English. He was present with me at the aboye-

mentioned rites, and listened carefully to the formule, already

familiar to him from many previous hearings. For purposes of

checking, I often took the same texts from him both in English

and in Bagobo. Although the festival at Talun took place after

I had been for several months with the Bagobo, and could make

my way fairly in the language so far as everyday conversation

was concerned, yet, when listening to devotional exercises, it was

impossible for me to record more than small portions of the text.

This difficulty was due, in part, to a difference in ceremonial vocab-

ulary from that used in ordinary affairs; in part, to the necessity

of giving attention to various ritual activities that were going on

at the same time.

It would be ungracious to omit mention here of my great

indebtedness to many Bagobo friends who gave me, freely, stories

and magical devices, as well as explanation of the ceremonies; who

entertained me at their homes; who excused my blunders, and who

helped me in a hundred ways. Chief among these native friends

are my hosts at Talun: Datu Oleng, Datu Ido, Miyanda and all

of the members of their large families; Sambil of Talun, her mother

and her brother, and others of the village of Mati; my hosts at

Tubison: Datu Imbal, his wife, their sons and their daughters;

Datu Yting of Santa Cruz, his wives Soleng and Hebe and his

son Melanio; Ayang, Liwawa, Simoona and many other old women ;

Egianon’s family; Kaba and his wife Sugé, and their five sons —

Tungkaling, Gayo, Uan, Baya and Balusan; and also a great

number of young people, both girls and boys, who brought me,

with joyful alacrity, the songs and folklore and traditions that

they had learned from the old people.

InrRopUCTION. GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE

Reticious ATTITUDE OF THE BaGosBo

The religion of the Bagobo is characterized by the highly sacri-

ficial nature of public and private ceremonial; by the composite

make-up of the rites, in which are blended both offerings of the

blood of slain victims and agricultural products; by the non-esoteric

character of the religious life of the community, where the people

BENEDICT, BAGOBO CEREMONIAL, MAGIC AND MYTH 9

— women, young men, children — are freely admitted as specta-

tors of almost all ceremonies, and as valued participants in many

of them.

Of prime importance are those irregularly periodical assemblages

of neighboring groups of villages for the celebration of the festival

known as Ginum,* at which event sacrifices of human victims or

of fowls are presented to certain gods; sacred liquor is ceremonially

drunk; formal lustrations in the river for the expulsion of disease

take place; rites magically protective against ghosts and demons

are manipulated; material wealth in garments, ornaments and

weapons is offered up with the primary intention of obtaining an

increase of riches; special types of chant and of percussion music

are performed; festival dances are in order, and social feasting is

shared in by all present.

Other ceremonial occasions are incident upon the annual rice

sowing and the harvest; while still others are associated with in-

dividual events, such as marriage and burial. It is specially at

the night gatherings called Manganito® that the Bagobo may come

into a more nearly direct and personal relation with the gods.

Here, various divinities collectively known as manganito speak to

the people; ask and answer questions, and issue oracles through

the mouth of some recognized individual — usually a woman — who,

in the capacity of medium, speaks or sings as she is prompted by

the spirit for the moment possessing her.

While group assemblages are of fundamental value in obtaining

benefits for the participants and in averting from them all disease,

yet it is noteworthy that the parents of every family, at their own

house-altar, are accustomed to perform devotions and to make offerings

for the health and well-being of the members of the household.

The priesthood is not closely organized, but there are recognized

several classes of official functionaries among whom ceremonial

activities are distributed with a fair degree of distinctness. (a) The

chieftain, called datv, who is both civil and ecclesiastical head of

his village or group of villages. It is he who repeats the central

liturgies of the Ginum festival and offers the sacrifice, and who,

® The word imum means “to drink,” or “a drinking;” g- is a particle used before

initial vowels, and appears to have a purely formal or a phonetic value.

® Manga-, a nominal element with a plural force; azito, a god who communicates with

the people through a medium.

10 ANNALS NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

assisted by prominent old men and a few old women, !° deliberates

in informal council when any problem arises with respect to religious

behavior or to secular activities. The datu is thus preéminently

the official functionary of the people. (b) The group of brave

men called magani, each of whom has killed one or more persons

on such occasions and in such manner as is regarded by the com-

munity as orthodox and justifiable ;'°* these men only may cut the

ceremonial bamboos; they alone are permitted to lay hold of the

bamboo poles while they recite their exploits, and it is their prerogative

to wear the chocolate-colored kerchief as a mark of distinction.

by the use of native vegetable products commingled with magic

spells. Many of these persons are old women, he are Sieanitened

in cases of sickness, accident and childbirth; certain women of

distinction officiate as chief priestesses at the Bare ceremonies ;

while others conduct the anito seances, at which times they both

reply to the questions of the spirits and draw responses from the

medium to the queries of the people, and afterwards prepare any

medicine or offering that may be divinely ordered. A few men are

priest-doctors, and either a man or a woman from this class may

be called upon to perform the marriage rite. In recognition of such

an office, a small gift is made to the priest, but the Bagobo are

in no way burdened by the imposition of heavy ceremonial fees.

There is to be found in their communities no sign of an autocratic

shamanistic control '! on the part of a functionary belonging to any

te The Recollect fathers wrote of the natives of the Visayas: “The duties of priest

were exercised indifferently by both men and women...” Brain and RoBERTSON: op. cit.,

vol. 21, p. 208. 1905. ‘The situation among the Bagobo is not quite parallel to this;

for with them the men-priests have certain functions, the women-priests have certain

other functions, while still other offices may be performed either by men or by women

or by both sexes in codperation.

‘ea The following are recognized as occasions when killing is justifiable:

a) Human sacrifice, ceremonially performed; cf. under this caption.

b) The blood-feud.

c) Slaying a man in a fair fight between two.

d) The killing of foes in war.

e) Slaughtering the women of a village when the men have all failen in battle.

f) A private assassination of an undesirable individual, at the hands of a deputed

agent acting under commands of his datu.

11 Skeat calls attention to the fact that the shaman among peninsular Malays enjoys

an exalted rank aad a political influence not accorded to him by the wild tribes of the

islands, Cf. Malay magic, p. 59. 1900.

BENEDICT, BAGOBO CEREMONIAL, MAGIC AND MYTH 11

one of these official religious classes. (d@) Mediums, by whose

instrumentality alone messages from the unseen beings can be

regularly transmitted. A medium may also have ceremonial offices

of a more formal character to perform, such as effusing candidates

with water shaken from medicinal twigs in the rite of pamalugu.'*

If all the intermediaries with the spirits were old people, we might

simply call them a specialized variety of priest-doctors; but the

fact is that some young men give oracles at the seances, and young

men are not ordinarily called upon to perform priestly offices.

Formal worship of the gods is carried on at fixed altars or at

temporary shrines of recognized types, where fruits of the field and

manufactured products are placed, or the slain victim is ceremo-

nially offered up. But acceptable devotions may be performed by the

wayside or in the forest, merely by laying on the ground an areca-

nut'? and a_ betel-leaf,'* with a word of prayer to some divinity.

The gods!® of the Bagobo may be roughly grouped, in part,

with reference to traditional concepts associated with them and,

in part, as touching those human interests to which their charac-

teristics make appeal, namely: (1) Gods of exalted rank who are

felt to be remote from human affairs, from whom neither help nor

harm is to be looked for, and to whom, therefore, no devotions are

addressed; (2) Divine beings closely associated with man’s interests

and the objects of his worship, among whom are nature spirits and

war-gods and protectors of home and field and industry. At this

point, it will suffice to mention briefly the names of Pamulak Manobo,

creator of the earth; Tigyama, guardian of the home; Tarabume,

god of the crops; the Tolus, a class of omniscient beings who are

in charge of special forms of worship and of particular industries ;

the Malaki t?Olu k’Waig,!® a divine man whose home is at the

mythical source of all the mountain streams, and to whom the

Bagobo may freely turn in sickness and in perplexity; and the

Mandarangan, who inspire men with fierce courage and who love

to drink the blood of the slain.

Yet less concerned is the Bagobo with gods than with. demons,

so far as the routine of daily life is involved. Countless. pains and

12 For an account of the ceremony of Pamalugu, see Part IJ, p. 117—123.

*3 4reca catechu. See footnote 165.

** Piper betel. See footnote 166.

1S For a characterization of the various classes of divine beings, see pp. 15—29.

*° For the etymology of this name, see footnote 4l.

42 ANNALS NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

miseries come to him through the direct manipulation of those fiends

called buso'’ who, in all events, must be propitiated by offerings,

tricked by subterfuges, banished by magical rites. These evil beings,

some anthropomorphic, some zodmorphic, dominate the Bagobo’s

attitude toward life and toward death, and keep him constantly

on the watch lest he be out-maneuvred, and thus become a prey to

bodily suffering.

Of the two souls that are recognized as inhabiting every human

body, the one on the left side, called gimokud tebang,'> becomes

a buso at death; this is the bad soul. The right-hand or good

soul, called gimokud ta-kawanan,'* goes to the Great Country

below the earth and there lives forever, engaged in the same actiy-

ities as those of earth and, except for the shadowy nature of all

phenomena, in a like environment to that of this world.

Disease is always referred to a supernatural agent who attacks

the human body, either through direct possession or by means of

a baneful influence which, though often working at a distance, is

transmitted by some potent force. To forestall the chances of sick-

ness, the behavior of a Bagobo is checked or re-directed by rigid

prohibitions at many points, each of which prohibitions has come

to be associated with a specific penalty attached to a hypothetical

transgression. The central motive in a large number of the religious

ceremonies performed by the Bagobo is the expulsion of disease and

the prevention of death, such matters being subject to control

and to influence along definite lines.

The character of individual existence after death, on the other

hand, cannot be determined or modified by ceremonial behavior,

however scrupulous the exactness with which the rite is performed.

Traditional accounts of what goes on in the country of the dead

form simply another chapter in the annals of mythical narrative,

which is accepted without question as familiar truth.

‘7 For a discussion of the buso, see pp. 29—42.

‘© Gimokud, “soul;” t(to), “the;” ebang, “left, left-hand.” See pp. 58—61.

1° Ta-(to), “the;”’ kawanan, “right, right-hand.” See pp. 50—58.

Part I. MyrnonoeicaL Concepts

THE BAGOBO PANTHEON

The number of supernatural beings that figure in Bagobo mythology

and that form the main source of stimulation for ceremonial rites

must reach an extremely high count. At present we know but

few of these mythical personalities, even by name, and only a very

long and intimate acquaintance with the people, with their cere-

monies, and with their oral literature, would enable one to make

a satisfactory analysis of the polytheistic system. In reply to a

question touching this matter, any well-informed Bagobo will prob-

ably give the names of several gods, and remark that there are

“no more.” Presumably, at the moment, there are no more present

in his consciousness. Yet, when the investigator has even limited

opportunities of assisting at Bagobo ceremonies; of listening to

mythical tales; of learning little songs; of joining in the spontaneous

talk of the young people, the mention of one and another divine

being, each in a natural setting, gives something like familiarity

with a few of the gods, and suggests that the larger number of

them still await discovery.

What we do find is a number of divine personalities whose in-

dividual characteristics can often be identified with such associations

as would be made, perhaps non-reflectively, by the Bagobo in the

daily activities of work and combat and worship, or in connection

with those emotional responses that natural phenomena would draw

forth. We have here a people whose simple agricultural existence

spent in the care of hemp and rice and corn, and in the enjoyment

of family relations that are remarkably pure and tender — is varied

by sacrificial acts of (to us) relentless cruelty and of not infrequent

oceurrence. We find, correspondingly, supernatural individuals who

14 ANNALS NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

seem to be identified, more or less completely, with these wide-

ranging interests of the Bagobo. Yet many of these gods may be

of foreign origin, for the chances for the diffusion of religious cul-

ture in this entire area have been considerable for a long period;

and gods borrowed from other peoples drift easily into places where

they hold a permanent relation to the native gods and to the

native worshipers. At the same time, a simple ritual while growing

slowly into an organized scheme stimulates the appearance of

newly-created beings with the functions of supernatural agencies, as

soon as the need for them rises into consciousness. It is clear

enough that investigations into the native cultures of the Islands,

and of their relations to adjoining cultures, are as yet in too rudi-

mentary a stage for us to determine definitely which of the unseen

beings reverenced by the Bagobo are exotic and which are indig-

enous.

The Sanscrit-Malay word diwata, which has long been in wide

use by many tribes throughout the Philippine Islands, is employed

by the Bagobo in reference to all of the gods, or to any one god,

but it has no specific content.*° On hearing casual remarks like

the following, from various persons, one is led at first to infer

that diwata is some particular divine being: “Diwata cares for the

rice; “Diwata watches over the sun, the moon, the stars, and all

the people; “Diwata is a good manobo who lives in the sky;”

“Diwata is the highest god.” In the first statement, however, the

diwata meant is Tarabume; in the second, Pamulak Manobo is very

possibly referred to; the “good manobo” in the sky may be one

of several deities, while the “highest god” suggests Salamiawan or

Lumabat or, perhaps, Pamulak Manobo.

[ should take with some caution any statement that assigned one

or another of the supernatural personalities to the rank of “the

supreme god of the Bagobo.” It all depends upon the point of

view of the Bagobo who happens to be talking. The story-teller

** This seems to be the ordinary Malay connotation of the word. Favre defines

dewata as, “condition divine, Jes dieux.”” Dictionnaire malais-francais, vol. 1, p. 848. 1875,

Mr. Cole, on the contrary, has reached the conclusion that the diwata are “a class

of numerous spirits who serve Eugpamolak Manobo.”’ “The wild tribes of Davao district,

Mindanao.” Field Museum of Natural History: Publication 170, Anthropological series,

vol. 12, no. 2, p. 107. 19138.

This very interesting work has come to hand too late for discussion in the body of

my paper; but in time, fortunately, for the incorporation of a part of Mr. Cole’s valuable

material in the form of footnotes, so that a wider comparative viewpoint may be gained.

BENEDICT, BAGOBO CEREMONIAL, MAGIC AND MYTH 15

who gave me the myth of Lumabat wound up by saying that,

after entering heaven, “he became the greatest of all the diwata.”

At another time the same young man mediatively proffered the

remark that he thought Salamiawan was the highest god. That

many Bagobo regard Pamulak Manobo, in his function of creator,

as the supreme divinity, is undoubtedly true; but I have been

present at a ceremony when the aged celebrant addressed the Malaki

t’Olu k’Waig as “the head of all the anito,” and this god is appealed

to, again and again, as the all-knowing and the all-powerful helper.

Yet it is not to any one of the above-named spirits, but toward

Mandarangan and the Tolus ka Balekat that the central ritual acts

of the fundamental ceremonies are directed.

Therefore, in speaking of the composition of the Bagobo pantheon,

I shall make no attempt to place the supernatural beings according

to rank, but shall try to cluster them with a view to their special

functions as determined by the interests of the Bagobo, or in relation

to mythical associations. ‘two main groups may be recognized: —

A. The myth-gods of the nine heavens; |

B. Gods associated with human interests.

Myth-Gods of the Nine Heavens

Above the sky is a region of indefinite topography in which lie

nine heavens, perhaps one directly above another, perhaps spread

out more or less irregularly in space. They are inhabited by a

considerable number of diwata and are ruled over by nine deities,

some male, some female, of whom one hears occasionally in the

songs and in mythical romances. Two or three of them were once

mortals.?4_ All of the diwata in these upper regions exist bliss-

fully, without ever experiencing hunger, yet able to summon food

magically by a word; chewing betel like the Bagobo; riding on

horses and sailing in boats; living in houses built on the con-

ventional Malay pattern. The manner of this celestial life is not

very clearly visualized by the Bagobo, nor does it at all concern

them, for the diwata of the nine heavens have only an abstract

21 The Sarasin brothers note that in Minahassa the gods who have their dwellings on

mountain-tops, in water-falls, among great trees or under the earth, are simply deified

herous of antiquity. Cf. Reisen in Celebes, vol. 1, p. 44. 1905.

16 ANNALS NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

interest for man. So far as my observation goes, worship is not

directed toward these myth-gods, °? and sacrifices are not offered

to them. Of gifts of rice and sugar cane wine they apparently

have no need, for they are without bodily wants; perhaps worship

would be wasted on them, since they pay so little attention to the

affairs of man, and seem to exert no influence, either malign or

friendly.

‘ The god of the first heaven is Lumabat, one of the first of

mortals to achieve the sky. A myth relates that he alone, of a

large family who started for the sky-country, sueceeded in jumping

between the sharp edges of the horizon as it opened and closed in

rapid sequence; and that one of the diwata above the sky changed

him into a god by cutting out his alimentary canal, so that he

hungered no more.*? One tradition says that he became the greatest

of all the diwata.** The second heaven is presided over by Sala-

miawan, who, in his turn, is sometimes called “the greatest god of

all.” His home is in “the shrine of the sky” (tambara®> ka langit),

which is mentioned in one of the mythical romances that I have

heard Bagobo women recite. A quotation from this story will be

found below, in connection with the reference to Pangulili. Sala-

miawan married Bia-t’odan of the fifth heaven. Ubnuling rules

over the third heaven; he is the father of Pangulili of the ninth

celestial region. ‘The divine rulers of the fourth, the fifth, the

sixth and the seventh heayens are women. ‘Tiun is goddess of the

fourth heayen; she is a virgin (daraga) and is elder sister to

** According to Rizal, the chief deity of the Tagal people was not the object ot wor-

ship. He says, “it appears that temples were never dedicated to bathala maykapal, nor

was sacrifice ever offered to him.” Bratr and Ropertson: op. cit., vol. 16, p. 122. 1904.

** A similar episode occurs in Indian myth, in the story in which the hero says of

himself that ‘when he had attained the divine nature, from that moment his hunger and

thirst disappeared.’ Cf. Somadeva: The Katha Sarit Sagara; tr. by C. H. Tawney, vol. 1,

p. 36. 1880.

*“ Yor the details of Lumabat’s adventures and of his deification, see L. W. BENrpicr:

“Bagobo myths.” Jour. Am. Folk-lore, vol. 26, pp. 20—24. Jan.-Mar., 1913.

According fo one of the traditions collected by Spanish missionaries, Lumabat “represents

the divine name of this hero, who, on earth, bore the name of Tagadium.” According to

another story, Lumabat and Tagadium were two different individuals. Cf. F. BLuMEN-

tritt: Vocabulario mitologico, pp. 73—74, 1895. (Bound with W. E. Retana: Archivo

del biblidfilo filipino, vol. 2, 1896).

*° Tambara, a house altar consisting of a bamboo standard and a white bowl —a shrine

which is fully described in Part I, pp. 87—90; sa, prep. “of;” dangit, “sky,” “heaven.”

See p. 17 for further mention of Salamiawan.

BENEDICT, BAGOBO CEREMONIAL, MAGIC AND MYTH ai

Kadeyuna. In the fifth heaven reigns the divine lady, Bia-t’odan,?°

spouse of Salamiawan, who himself is sometimes assigned to the

fifth heaven. This apparent confusion is easily explained in view

of the Bagobo custom requiring a newly married man to take up

a temporary residence, at least, at the parental home of his bride.

There is a little song containing the lines: “Go to the city far

away, to a sky above this sky.... where Diwata rides the heavens

in ,a banca’*' — a reference which is said to indicate the fifth

heaven. The sixth heavenly region is ruled by one whose name

is Bia-ka-pusud-an-langit,** a word-cluster which means, “Lady of

the navel of heaven.” Kadeyuna, queen of the seventh heaven, is

the younger sister of Tiun, and wife of Malaki Lunsud, one of the

heroes of romantic tales. Malaki Lunsud presides over the eighth

heaven. The name Lunsud is that of a great town known in the

prehistoric days of fable, and in the old story, “Adventures of

the Tuglay,”*’ there are many men bearing the name of Malaki

Lunsud that figure as characters in the action. The one who

presides over the eighth heaven married the goddess Kadeyuna,

but the myth of how he achieved divinity for himself is yet to be

unrolled. Pangulili is god of the ninth heaven; he is the son of

Ubnuling, the ruler of the third heaven. In the romance above-

mentioned, we find the following reference to Pangulili and Sala-

miawan.

“After these exploits, the Malaki t’Olu k’Waig went on his way... From

the mountain peaks, exultant over his foes, he gave a good war cry that

re-echoed through the mountains, and went up to the ears of the gods.

Pangulili and Salamiawan heard it from their home in the Shrine of the

Sky (Tambara ka Langit), and they said: ‘Who chants the song of war... ?

Without doubt, it is the Malaki t’Olu k’ Waig, for none of all the other malaki

could shout just like that’.’” 3°

The attitude of the Bagobo toward the myth-gods of the nine

heavens suggests that these gods are not of native origin,*' but

26 Bia, “lady;” ?¢’(to), “the;” odan, a word which sometimes has the meaning of “a

shower;” but it is questionable whether this divinity is associated with rain.

27 Boats of the dug-out type, some of which have out-riggers.

28 Pusud, “navel”; -an, a locative particle; /angit, “heaven.”

2° Of. Jour. Am. Folk-lore, vol. 26, pp. 33—34. 1918.

3° Thid., p. 28.

31 For Skeat’s discussion of this question in connection with the peninsular Malays,

cf. his*Malay magic, p. 85. 1900. “The evidence of folk-lore, taken in conjunction with

that supplied by charm-books and romances, goes to show that the greater gods of the

20 5 ANNALS NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Bagobo dialect carries the idea of “something to be taken care of,”

“a pet,” like a tame bird. I have seen a boy pull from a snare a

little wood-pigeon and hold it to his breast with a caressing touch,

as he murmured, “It is my yama.” He had caught the bird in

order to cage, to tame and to care for it. Tigyama means “One

who takes care of or protects.” Like Pamulak Manobo, Tigyama

is lovingly summoned to come and be present at a ceremony;*' a

little hanging altar, also called tigyama,is placed in many Bagobo

houses, and on it betel is laid for this god when anybody in the

family falls sick.** It is possible that Tigyama is a divinity

borrowed originally from Indian myth and given somewhat different

attributes, for, in the Vedas and in the Sagas, Yama was god of

the dead.*’ The character of the Bagobo Tigyama seems more

nearly identical with that of Yima of Mazdeism,*° the protector of

the Iranians and the mythical founder of their postdiluvian culture.

Among the chief of those unseen beings that care for the Bagobo,

there is a divine man called Malaki t’Olu k’Waig*! who, unques-

tionably, represents the highest ideal of goodness and of purity, as

the native visualizes that ideal. He figures as a hero in mythical

romance, where, indeed, one finds many malaki tolu k’waig, who

go through remarkable adventures and achieve distinction. On the

deyotional side, however, all of these fabulous characters are fused

into the impersonation of one beloved individual, whose home is

associated with a legendary spring far up in the mountains which

is called “the source of the waters.” Here two rivers are said to

take their rise, and it is just at the point where the two streams

separate that the Malaki t’Olu k’Waig lives. He is the great

*7 See Ceremony of Pamalugu, Part II.

*® See Various types of Altar, Part IL.

°° Cf. Somadeva: Katha Sarit Sagara, tr. by C. H. Tawney, vol. 2, p. 188. 1884.

In the story, Sinhavikrama is led off by Death to the hall of Yama, where he is to be

judged. See also “A funeral hymn,” in the Rigveda, where the following lines occur.

“To him that passed along great heights and sought out a path for many, Vivasvant’s

son, the gatherer of men, Yama the king, to him bring worship and offering.” Peter

Peterson (tr.): Hymns from the Rigveda, p. 288. 1888. In the same hymn, the by-

standers are thus addressed: “Stand aside, go away, disperse, the fathers have made this

place for him, furnished with days and waters and nights: Yama will give him rest.”

Ih. p. 289.

“° Cf. James Darmesteter (ed.): The Zendavesta; part I, The Vendidid, pp. lviii—lix.

1895. (Sacred books of the Hast, vol. 4).

“* Malaki, “good man;” ?’(to), “the;” k (ka), “of;” waig, “water: the Divine Man

(or the god) at the Source of the Waters.

BENEDICT, BAGOBO CEREMONIAL, MAGIC AND MYTH 214

healer, and to his home are carried all the diseases which the

Bagobo, by magic rites, have coaxed into leaf-dishes or into little

manikins. Here, at the mythical spring, the Malaki destroys all

sickness that is sent to him. He winds one end of a string, or

fibre, around the neck of each disease, ties the other end to some

post or tree, and quickly strangles the disease. The Malaki t’Olu

k’Waig is believed to know the whole world; he never sleeps;

he answers prayer wherever offered. The range of his influence

is now generously extended to include even recently-known foreign-

ers, for I was) told that if I, while praying in the United States,

should ask anything of the Malaki, he would give me an answer.

In ceremonies*? on the mountains, this god is invoked again and

again — indeed, there is no other divine person who is so often

appealed to for help, who is so frequently mentioned in song and

story, or who is so affectionately regarded by all of the Bagobo.

There is also a family of gods — a male deity, his wife, and

two children — known as Olu k’Waig, and associated with the

mountain streams. All of them are said to be extremely small in size,

but otherwise they are not definitely described, although it is

currently reported that Datu Yting once caught sight of them on

the mountain trails. In spite of the identity in name, they do not

appear to be traditionally associated with the Malaki t’Olu k’Waig.

There is said to be “a Bagobo god who lives everywhere” and

is called Tambara. This is the name given to the bamboo prayer-

stand found in many Bagobo houses, yet I have heard but a single

mention of a divine personality called by the same name. While

possibly this extremely common type of altar was once associated

primarily with the worship of the god Tambara, it is certain that

its use is not now so limited, for tambara are set up in honor

of many different spirits.

A supernatural protector to whom at least one ceremonial chant

is addressed is Duma-Tango, who is otherwise called, “the god

who keeps the people,” and a shrine is sometimes set up in the

festival house for this divinity. The word duma is variously used

to mean companion, wife, or husband, and it is possible that Duma-

Tango will eventually be found to be related to one of the

other Bagobo deities, for we have to bear in mind, continually,

the Malay fondness for paraphrase and for indirect allusions.

*2 See Part II.

20 ‘ ANNALS NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Bagobo dialect carries the idea of “something to be taken care of,”

“a pet,” like a tame bird. I have seen a boy pull from a snare a

little wood-pigeon and hold it to his breast with a caressing touch,

as he murmured, “It is my yama.” He had caught the bird in

order to cage, to tame and to care for it. Tigyama means ‘One

who takes care of or protects.” Like Pamulak Manobo, Tigyama

is lovingly summoned to come and be present at a ceremony;*' a

little hanging altar, also called tigyama,is placed in many Bagobo

houses, and on it betel is laid for this god when anybody in the

family falls sick.*% It is possible that Tigyama is a divinity

borrowed originally from Indian myth and given somewhat different

attributes, for, in the Vedas and in the Sagas, Yama was god of

the dead.*® The character of the Bagobo Tigyama seems more

nearly identical with that of Yima of Mazdeism,*° the protector of

the Iranians and the mythical founder of their postdiluvian culture.

Among the chief of those unseen beings that care for the Bagobo,

there is a divine man called Malaki t’Olu k’Waig*! who, unques-

tionably, represents the highest ideal of goodness and of purity, as

the native visualizes that ideal. He figures as a hero in mythical

romance, where, indeed, one finds many malaki tolu k’waig, who

eo through remarkable adventures and achieve distinction. On the

devotional side, however, all of these fabulous characters are fused

into the impersonation of one beloved individual, whose home is

associated with a legendary spring far up in the mountains which

is called “the source of the waters.” Here two rivers are said to

take their rise, and it is just at the point where the two streams

separate that the Malaki t’Olu k’Waig lives. He is the great

*7 See Ceremony of Pamalugu, Part II.

*®See Various types of Altar, Part IL.

9° Cf. Somadeva: Katha Sarit Sagara, tr. by C. H. Tawney, vol. 2, p. 188. 1884.

In the story, Sinhavikrama is led off by Death to the hall of Yama, where he is to be

judged. See also “A funeral hymn,” in the Rigveda, where the following lines occur.

“To him that passed along great heights and sought out a path for many, Vivasvant’s

son, the gatherer of men, Yama the king, to him bring worship and offering.” Peter

Peterson (tr.): Hymns from the Rigveda, p. 288. 1888. In the same hymn, the by-

standers are thus addressed: “Stand aside, go away, disperse, the fathers have made this

place for him, furnished with days and waters and nights; Yama will give him rest.”

Ih. p. 289.

“© Of. James Darmesteter (ed.): The Zendavesta; part I, The Vendiddd, pp. lviii—lix.

1895. (Sacred books of the Bast, vol. 4).

* Malaki, “good man;” ?’(to), “the;” k (ka), “of;”? waig, “water:” the Divine Man

(or the god) at the Source of the Waters.

BENEDICT, BAGOBO CEREMONIAL, MAGIC AND MYTH 21