Folk Songs - Song Number 3

Song No. 3

Ang Gugma Sang Mga Tigulang

Ang gugma sang mga tigulang

Daw sa igi nga nagakamang

Nga bisan anhon sang tikwang

Makapyot gid sa kabataan.

Ay, Inday sang pagkabati ko

Pinakagunan ka sang balo

Ang linugaw sa baba ko

nahimo gid nga kalu-kalo.

Ang gugma sang pamatan-on

Daw sa bayo nga linugom,

Nga bisan anhon sang halong

Malubad kay malubaron.

Ang bug-os ko nga sinaysay

Talandaan sang dalaga

Agud dili manag-angay

sa langka langka.






English  Translation


The Love Of Elders


The love of the elders
Is like the edible mini snails that crawls
No matter how you push
Really sticks or attached to the youth.

Ay Inday as what I heard
You were afforded a *pamamanhikan by a widower
Gruel in my mouth 
Was turned into fried rice.

The love of the youth
Is like a dyed clothe.
That no matter how you care for it
It will fade because it is fading.

My whole statement
Are the signs / reminders of a lady
So that she will not be compared to
A crazy person. 

*pamamanhikan (or kagon, pangagon or pamalaye in Hiligaynon local term) is a formal and traditional way of asking a maiden's hand for marriage. 

Folk Songs - Song Number 2

The following folk song and notes arrangement is taken from the book Mga Ginto sa Iloilo (Golds of Iloilo) by Felicisima Torres Campos. Together with its original lyrics is its English translation below.


Song No. 2

Iloilo Ang Banwa Ko 

Iloilo ang banwa ko ginahingadlan

Matam-is nga pulong nga akon ginmat-an,

Dili ko ikaw bulagan, banwa kong nalulut-an.  

Ikaw ang ginkuhaan sang kalipayan.

Ilonggo ako nga tunay

Nga nagapuyo sa higad sang baybay

Manami magki-ay, ki-ay

Sa tagipusuon bug-os ang kalipay.

English Translation

Iloilo my hometown so named
Sweet words I used to live,
I won't forsake you, my beloved hometown.
You are the source of happiness.

I am a genuine Ilonggo
Living by the sea shore
Dancing gracefully, daintily
In my heart full of happiness.

Folk Songs - Song Number 1

The following folk song and notes arrangement is taken from the book Mga Ginto sa Iloilo (Golds of Iloilo) by Felicisima Torres Campos. Together with its original lyrics is its English translation below.


Song No. 1

Dutang Hamili

The local Hiligaynon version of the Philippine National Anthem is translated from the original Spanish version "Marcha Nacional Filipina" by Jose Palma. This translation in Hiligaynon was made possible by SUMAKWELAN Society - an organization of literary writers and journalists in Hiligaynon and Kinaray-a language in a meeting held at the now defunct Dainty Restaurant, Iloilo City on December 16, 1989. The meeting was presided by the former Sumakwelan National President Conrado J. Norada, former governor of Iloilo. 

Notes Arranged by: Professor George C. Canicula

Dutang Hamili

Dutang hamili

Mutya nga sidlanganon

gugmang ga-dabdab

Kami gapalangga

Duta sang gugma

duyan sang baganihan

Sa  manunulong

dili magpalupig

Sa tagumon mong langit

Harupoy dagat kag kabukiran

gasili nagasilak

Ang binalaybay sang kahilwayan

Sa imo nga hayahay

Nagasiga ang kadalag-an

Bituon mo kag adlaw

tubtub san-o di gid makulapan

Dutang maanyag sang kapawa

kag gugma matam-is

magpuyo sa sabak mo

Kahimayaan sang imo kaanakan

Manginmatay pagdampig sa imo.

Superstitions, Beliefs and Customs XIII

About Different Kinds of Beliefs:

1. The howling of the dog at night indicate the evil spirits wandering around. Responding to their strange call at night means death to someone who answered back.

2. About clothing and garments, it's a belief and practice that the new dress is worn first for the church before anything else or before any other occasion so that it will last.

3. If Friday falls on the 13th day of the month many accidents or disaster might happen.

4. Sitting on a mortar hampers or slows down growth.

5. The lending of money, rice and salt to the neighbors after 5 o'clock in the afternoon will hamper or stop the prosperity of the owner's residence or household. The lending of money, rice or salt at night is not good because bad luck will happen to you or you will not get paid immediately or they will permanently forget their debt.

6. A lady who is on her menstruation period should not pick up fruits.

7. If a child has a mole on its face under his or her eyes, and in the tear's path, a tragedy will come on his or her life or if not, he or she can easily get widowed if they will marry.

8. It was believed that some animals, circumstances, situations, objects in having luck or fortune and bad luck or misfortune.

9. Seven years of bad luck will befell a person who breaks a glass or glass objects.

10. If someone killed a cat, one will put in a situation full of bad luck for seven years.

11. The number 13 is still considered as the number to be avoided.

12. Whoever among the 13 people partaking in a meal in a table or taking a picture will face death or misfortune or mishap.

13. The beautiful or fortunate fate is present and coming in the form of horseshoe, coins and talisman owned by the people.

14. The entry of a snake in a house is a sign of rainfall of riches and fortune to the family.

15. Never winnow some rice outside the window because the spirit of the rice will fly.

16. In order to be lucky the whole day, wear first the shoe on the right foot.

17. It was considered to be lucky the cramps on the right ankle while it's bad luck if the cramp is on the left ankle.

18. Picking up a horseshoe is being considered as a good fortune. Put it on the stairs of the house.

19. The dreams often means the exact opposite of it.

20. If a person dreams of a huge fortune, he will become poorer.

21. However, the dreams in the first hours of the morning is believed to come true.

22. If a man dreams of his girlfriend, he just needs to reverse or flip turn his pillow so that his girlfriend will also dream about him.

23. If someone dreams of many birds, it means the coming of many friends and of good fortune. If the bird in your dream is captured or caught, it means you are about to marry. However if the bird in your dream was shot, someone will betray or is being unfaithful to you.

24. If a person will give a piece of ginger to someone, he or she should NOT hand it over directly through their hands to someone. The ginger should be put to any surface objects (eg. tables, chair, bed, stand etc.) by the giver and from there, the receiver or recipient will get it else the recipient will have an intense stomachache. Ilonggos call it as "usog" or "osog". For the remedy of the illness, the giver of the ginger is called and he should touched the victim / recipient stomach to get rid of the pain. It is unbelievably strange that by touching the stomach could relieve pain. It is a reminder for someone handing over a ginger not to pass it directly to avoid this malady.

25. The cooked calabaza or big winter squash with chicken is usually blamed for or the main culprit cause of the leprosy for those who eat it.

26. In passing by the dwarf's mound or punso in Tagalog or in Hiligaynon it is called "bungyod",  one should make an excuse to the supernatural beings by saying "tabi-tabi" so you will not contracted by a strange illness. The bungyod or dwarf's mound is treated with respect or care not disturbing or stepping on it.

27. Never express any statement or gesture of surprise or wonder to any properties of the tamawos or fairies and diwata or deities and you might encounter some misfortune or mishap for those who mention or who took notice of it.

28. The balete tree is the dwellings of the tamawo or fairy. Getting close to it or cutting it would cause a mishap or disaster or even death. Balete is called Lunok in Hiligaynon. The same goes with the Terminalia Catappa or Indian Almond tree, Bubog tree or Sterculia foetida tree or wild almond or bastard poon tree in English and Dapdap or Erythrina Variegata or Eythrina Orientalis tree were believed to be inhabited by the tamawo or fairies.

29. If a farmer has done kaingin or the slash and burn farming and one of its child got sick, the family presumed that the house or dwellings of the tamawo or fairy was destroyed, ruined or badly damaged that's why they take some revenge by inflicting some illness or sickness to a member or members of the family.

30. Taking a bath is avoided every first Friday of the month or cutting the nails every Tuesday or Friday. Taking a bath or cutting the nails on this day is calling for sickness or illness.

31. The children were not allowed by the elders to take a bath on the feast day of Saint Lazarus in the fear of being contracted by leprosy.

32. If a person is wounded and it bleeds profusely, presently the water level in the ocean or sea is high.

33. If a person bit his own tongue, it means that the person is being talked about by other people or being gossiped by other people.

34. The elders avoid sitting in a chopping board (sangkalan in Tagalog and tapalan in Hiligaynon) or else they will be blamed for anything or will be held liable to anything even those they did not commit in the house.

35. In celebrating a fiesta in the house, never forget to drop to the floor a piece of the cooked dish before it will be served. In this way, any disaster or mishap is avoided.

36. If someone is eating and the spoon has dropped or fell, it means that you will have a female visitor or guest and if a fork has fallen or dropped, you will have a male visitor or guest.

37. Other people are called by the name of a fish which possesses the following traits, characteristics or attributes:

pantat (eel) - name of a lady who has an ugly face;
sureb (Yellow Tail Fusilier Fish) - greedy
bilong-bilong (Moonfish) - white
tamasok - filthy looking 
laway-laway - talkative 
bangrus (milkfish) - beautiful and nice

 

Superstitions, Beliefs and Customs XII

About Different Occasions:

1. New Year - All the basic necessities, good and supplies should be complete and full so that there will be no missing, lacking or scarcity of anything throughout the whole year. The paminhe is the first step in planting. Different kinds of seeds or grains were collected and put in a plate covered properly by a coconut shell or anything. The location, site or area where the seeds are planted were properly noted, remembered or memorized. In the following day or last day of the year or eve of the New Year, the first thing to do is to see if there's some seeds that changes or switch places or area. It was said that the seeds are moving. The seeds which switches places or position will become deficient or inadequate the following year. So, one can prepare well for this kind of scarcity or inadequacies. Prepare also a lot of food so that there will a plenty or bounty of food throughout the whole year.

2. In Dumangas and in other towns in Iloilo, at around 12 midnight of the new year, the people jingles some twelve (12) coins. Each coin represents a month. The twelve coins were kept for a year to bring some abundance and prosperity to the owner.

3. In Guimbal on the other hand, on the midnight of the New Year, one should wake up and listen carefully to the first sound or noise created by the farm animals. If the sound heard was that of a dog barking, it is a bad omen. If it's a carabao or cow, it foretells of a good harvest.

4. In Balasan, if the carabao cries unga-unga, the harvest will not be good; if its a cattle crying, the harvest will be good.

5. If the church bells are ringing that signals the New Year, the elders are starting to gaze at the sky because they pray it will separate finally as a sign of the coming of the new year.

6. The wearing of dotted clothes or any dress or garments with circle designs in it is also practiced because it symbolizes the coins which is a money.

7. Many people believed that if the first day of the year will start on a Tuesday or Friday, the year will be full of misery, hardship and calamity. If the first day of the year will fall on any other days, the year will pass as great.

8. One should wake up early on the first day of the new year. If this is not done, one will not receive the blessings of the year.

9. From the first day to the twelfth day of the year or of the month of January, people observe the weather conditions. Each day represents each month of the year. The weather condition in each day foretells the weather condition of every month of the year; for example, if its a sunny day on the first day, most days of January will be sunny, if its rainy on the fifth day it means that it will be rainy for the whole or most days of the month of May and if it rains, farmers can start to plant rice, if its windy and rainy on the ninth day, the month of September will be very windy aside from being a stormy month and so on and so forth for other days.


About All Soul's Day:

1. On this day, people believed that the souls or ghosts of the dead returns or go back to the Earth.

2. People prepare local or native delicacies like pancit, suman, baye-baye, muasi, ibos, kalamay-hati etc. for the ghosts or soul some of them are favorites of the ghosts when they are still alive. They do this to appease the ghosts of the dead. A portion of what they prepared is set aside for the ghosts to partake while the rest is shared by the people and their family members.

3. The food is put in a table or set aside in a secluded or isolated room with a lighted candle and drinks (eg. water, coffee, soda, juice etc.) for the ghosts to eat and partake with.

Superstitions, Beliefs and Customs XI

About Building and Moving The House:

1. In erecting the first post that is called "pasag-ang," the position of the so-called "bakunawa" is referred in a book of astrology or local almanac. The post passes through the near center of the head of bakunawa. In following this, the house to be built will be safe from any catastrophe or misfortune.

*bakunawa - A fabulous, mythical large snake or dragon believed to devour the moon at the time of an eclipse; lunar eclipse.

2.  Prior to filling any holes, gap or opening of the first post with cement, a comb, 10-centavo coins or any coins, rice and ramos (holy week palms blessed with holy water) are put in the depth of the hole or opening dugout together with a lighted candle and offered with a short simple prayer. These objects and simple ritual is said to secure peace and triumph to the family in anything that they will face and it also provides protection from evil and harm.

3.The stairs of the house should be fronting the east where there is a sunrise. In this position of the stairs, the family who will settle in the house will have a blissful or happy and  comfortable living everyday.

4. In moving into a new house, the shape of the moon is considered. The transfer or move to the new house happens three days after the full moon or eight days after the new moon.

5. A ceremony like ritual called "himatay", is  being held by many people before transferring to a new house. The relatives and friends were invited to the ceremony. At the start of the ceremony, the chief carpenter or foreman kills a chicken and its blood drippings is dropped on the tools and equipment used in building the house and the posts of the house. Sometimes the blood used is from a pig or boar. It was believed that the blood drives away any accidents, catastrophe or disaster that may happen to the carpenters, their tools and equipment may not harm the carpenters in the next houses they will build and the supernatural beings or creature will not give or brings damage, harm or injury to those people who will reside in the house. The chicken or sometimes the pig is cooked and festivities will start.

6. In Mandurriao, the best day of moving or transferring to a new house is on Saturday.

Superstitions, Beliefs and Customs X

About Anting-anting or Amulet, Charms, Potion and Unusual Power or Strength:

1. People who are living near the sea are usually believing in anting-anting or amulets.

2. On the midnight of Good Friday of a Holy Week, the people are doing all the way to get a piece of the cloth,  hair or any objects used in Santo Entierro. This is mixed with other ingredients and fumigate the nets or fish hooks.

3. For the babaylan and albularyo, the Good Friday is the busiest day because they go to the caves and mountains to get some herbal or medicinal roots or tubers and the skin of the trees or wood. It was believed that these plants were effective.

4. Every Good Friday, the siruhano (Spanish word equivalent is cirujano) or albularyo goes inside the cave to search for anting-anting or amulets.

5. There is a belief in the mountains that if a deer with only one horn called “Ibarra” was killed,  and if a person was stricken with hunger he or she can eat any roots or root crops because Ibarra is considered effective antidote to poison.

6. If one has shot a monkey and is about to die, hold tight both the monkey’s hands. Stomp or step on its mouth so it can no longer bite. In this way, the tari (the ability to sense or see any danger) of the monkey will be transferred to you.


About Gambling and Cockfighting:

1. While walking on the street or road and saw a steel or metal part of the shoe, this is a lucky or fortunate sign when you gamble you will surely win.

2. Any objects that are twins should be put inside the clothes pocket to win in a gambling, or betting.

3. If you are standing and a lizard suddenly jump into your pocket, it is presumed that this is an omen of a good fortune in gambling or betting.

4. For the people who plans to cockfight, they should always sense or feel their roosters.  If its crows alone, it means it will win in the cockfight.

5. All people in the house agrees, wants and at their will for the person who will have a cockfight so that the win would easy and conveniently light.

6. If the rooster crows for seven times at around 9 o’clock or 10 o’clock in the evening and it was not resonated by other roosters, this is a sign that the rooster will be the king of the arena.

7. At night when the rooster is bending its head to reach out from the outside its food in the throat (storage area of the food), it foretells winning in the cockfight.

8. If the rooster is also not sleeping at night, there is a big chance that this rooster will win in the cockfight.

9. A person going to the cockpit arena who has stepped on human or animal feces will surely lose in the betting or cockfighting.

10. A person postpones his going to a cockpit arena when he meets or chance upon a funeral procession because he will only lose in the game for sure. The omen pulls a bad luck.