Igorot Children Should Know Their Forefathers have Tails

We attended a wedding of a cousin’s child who married “outside the house.” It means the child married a child of another “tribe.” It is not Igorot, thus she has another belief, tradition and culture.

For us it is perfectly right because we also want to know others’ culture.

Few decades ago, marrying outside the tribe was not that easy and usually parents dictate what their child should marry. Almost everything parents and elders say were treated like it’s the law.

However, today is a different story, I believed characters and attitudes of people changed very fast that almost no one had even noticed the big change.

Back to the marriage topic, it is amazing to see and know others’ culture and tradition in celebrating their weddings. Their dances and kinds of programs are completely different from our own Igorot tradition and culture.

Theirs is with bands and singers performing. For good luck and to raise funds for the new couple to start with, the newlywed were asked to dance to a love song while their relatives, sponsors, friends, and visitors pin cash to hang on their dress; in addition, some boxes containing food(lechon manok or grilled chicken) and drinks were sold through bidding. A bidder can get a lady from one of the visitors to dance with and others will try to outbid him until the seller-announcer put a maximum price for the box then end the bidding. There were about ten boxes sold in my opinion and to show our support we bought one. There were also other side shows we didn’t notice because they were done a distance from us, and a slightly hidden from the decorations. The main part of the program everybody likes is for the visitors, especially, youth to spend the night dancing together with the music they like to play using today’s latest technology.

Well, we are normal people so we compared our native practice to theirs and we look at theirs as somewhat “Showy” specially the pinning of money in the dress.

Of course we did not want to be outdone; we also presented our own native music and dance using the gongs as our own music instrument during wedding festivities. Also, we fall in line and gave our own financial contribution to the couple while they are sitting in their chair( We don’t like to be showy so we didn’t pin the bills in their garments). This way we have a chance to know them more and congratulate them and they have the chance to see us face to face, specially, relatives whom they see for the first time.






The celebration went well to their plans, I believed, because all the scheduled programs were done before an hour before midnight, thus, it’s a free for all dancing and drinking for those who wanted to remain through the night.

But there was one thing I observed during the wedding. While our women were wearing their traditional colorful dresses, not even one of us men was using a sign of our own being an Igorot - the G-string. The reason was obvious, our own traditional native outfit is no longer “suitable” in today’s modern kind of culture, because if we use our own G-strings outside our home we might be called as “still barbarians or uncivilized” or any names that will diminish our pride. Really?

And this is what the title is all about. Because of our native attire in the old days the people in the lowlands believed Igorots have tails. I believed someone explained or probably joked to them our G-string attire as “like tails” behind our butts - and either the listeners took it literally or made joke about it until it was believed as true story.

In fact, until now there are still ignorant people who do not know how a genuine Igorot looks like. There are many of them asking people who visited Kaigorotan (specially, Baguio City) if they have seen an Igorot and how do an Igorot looks like. The irony is the person they’re asking the question is a pure blooded Igorot.

Okay, sorry for telling side stories, but what I mean in the title is that, because it is now seldom Igorot men use their traditional custom attires it will not be long and the next Igorot generation will forget one of the important piece of their history is that their forefathers was known to have tails.

For this to not happen, Igorot men should make it a point to always wear their attire on every occasion so that today’s children and the next generation know our forefathers have tails.

Flies Helped Rescuers found Dead Bodies, and Why the Igorot tradition Daw-es is Very Important to the Psyche of the Rescuers

How flies can help rescuers retrieve bodies of victims- days after a disaster? And the importance of dog to be used in the ritual daw-es to prevent losing one’s intellect after such kind of work?

Figure 1.  Dog being used for a ritual as depicted in one of the arts found in a building along Abanao road, Baguio City

Figure 2.  An image found in Burnham Park, Baguio City, showing a chicken is being killed for a ritual. 

One of my patient’s now of therapeutic Ilot was one of the miners from Philex Mines in Padcal, Tuba Benguet who did a great job of rescuing victims of the July 16, 1990 Baguio city killer earthquake at collapsed Hyatt Hotel.

Well, I got thrilled when he told me he was one of those miners who were tasked to retrieved bodies from the Hyatt Hotel.

It’s still fresh in my mind that in that historic afternoon of Monday the school organization decided to boycott school due to some students-administration’s conflict…I guess about tuition fee. The school was shrewd that they suspended classes in the afternoon which saved probably major injuries and lives of its students when the earthquake struck at about 4pm(Daylight Saving time).

So, I did not bypassed the chance to asked him questions specially about news in the TV during the time about those miners using flies as their guides to find bodies still inside the collapsed building few days after the major quake. How did they know that flies can help?

He said one of the men who were rescuing with them had an experienced years back when they went to find the body of a man who was lost during a land slide in Ifugao. They only found the body, after many days of looking for it in the thick soil that covered the ground, when they noticed flies flying back and forth into a very small hole. When they dig the part the flies are going in they uncovered the body of the person they were looking for days.

That experienced, he shared with his buddies and they followed flies where they go and come from. The flies sometimes get into even very small openings and when they clean the part it’s 100% percent there was a cadaver.

Then he said about some of their companions founding money, and about three who’s minds became unstable months afterwards. The last information I got interested more so I asked what could be the reason, “They became like that because they had not done the ritual of “Daw-es” to help them cope up with the images they saw during the rescue” he explained.

I heard word many times before about daw-es being used to heal people who were sick of unknown reasons. In fact the older brother of my father(RIP) was done the ritual after he just cannot stand up to walk. There was a suspicion he was hurt by the black magic spell of one person known to have the power of inflicting sickness to a person he hate by ritual incantation using chicks. So, they tried to heal my uncle but failed even after doing it three times. Some old men said the rituals were not successful because they used the wrong animal which was dog.

What is daw-es all about?

Daw-es is a traditional Igorot’s way of sacrificing dog for the purpose of cleansing and healing the psyche of troubled individual caused by shock or trauma from an experience, like:  from a war, seeing dead body alone, first time to kill, or like in the case of the 1990 earthquake when the miners were asked for their help to rescue people trapped at the collapsed Hyatt Hotel dead and alive.  However, daw-es is also required by the elders that it must be done for preventing the problem to occur.  The Igorot elders believed Daw-es can counteract the bad effects of such experiences.  It’s also believed that it can stop a person from doing bad things like committing theft but must follow stricter guidelines for the ritual to be effective.

According to him, a chicken was first killed then followed by a dog.  The dog meat is going to be eaten only by the old men who did the ritual but not the person/s who are subject of the ritual.

Though it was not the first time he rescued victims of accidents or calamities, he said that each time, when the ritual of daw-es was not yet done he cannot forget the images of and smell of dead bodies they rescued, and he cannot sleep and he cannot eat well.

After the daw-es he felt like he was released from heavy burden in his mind and chest. His thoughts were no longer filled with the images of the victims they retrieved.

But why use only dog and not other kinds of animal like pig which is being generally used for weddings and deaths?

“It’s because dog has stronger effect capability to do the job of suppressing the negative energy or bringing back the positive energy” he said. In short, it’s the only animal that when used for such purpose will do the magic and no other animal fits the ceremony than dog.

I am not so convinced, but…Maybe, because there are no other rituals where dog is being used. Chicken is used, in general, in support to all rituals. Pig is used for weddings, deaths, and all the rituals that follows them with chicken, then dog is used for treating the psyche of a person who’s mind cannot handle the shocked of being involved with killing(like warriors, soldiers), founding dead body, or involved in rescue operations during calamities, also with chicken.

Bongsos: Another Special Igorot’s Food Delicacy

One of the Igorot’s favorite is a salted pig’s intestines, lungs, liver, and heart. This delicacy is only prepared occasionally during weddings, house blessing the traditional way, and other traditional practices that require the butchering of pigs.

On the first day of the occasion when they butcher pigs, the large intestines to the rectum(The part called Bongsos) and some small intestines are salted, with some liver, and also the lungs.

Cooked Bongsos

On the third day, a native chicken(chicken that ate natural foods on the ground) is butchered and cooked together with the salted intestines and etag(salted fats of pigs cured under the sun or over a cooking place where firewood is used, for many days or months).

Etag = Pig fatty parts being dried using heat and smoke from a firewood

Family members, relatives, neighbors, and friends come to partake at breakfast, and lunch during the bongsos day.  When there are plenty of it, everyone who came will be given some pieces of the cooked intestines to take home.

Meticulous salting of the intestines is essential to achieve the taste and smell required for a perfect bongsos. Not enough salt will result to a decaying smell destroying its lovable aroma and tastes, and excessive salt will make it lost its softness and good touch when it’s chewed.

If you ask me which to compare the aroma and taste, I will give the fresh salted “labahita”  or unicorn fish as the closest to compare with.

Again, the trick to make a perfect bongsos is to clean the intestines very well with running water to remove all the solid wastes and dirt and be careful to not let it drop on the ground else you’ll have a gritty bongsos. Next, put in a wide basin, large enough to mix salt well with the intestines. Reminder:  Do not cut the intestines; just leave it like when it was washed.  Cut it only when it is cooked and ready to serve.

The salt must be enough to get the saltiness needed and to avoid the intestines become spoiled. 1/4 - 1/2 kilograms of salt I think is enough for the intestines of one large pig (enough practice can make it perfect). After mixing with the salt, put inside a big container, size is according to the amount of salted intestines.  Then cover it tightly and put it in a corner away from the light of the sun or heat. Wait for the third day or at least 48 hours before opening it.  I say on the third day because the elder leaders said so, that, the day the pig was butchered is counted as the first day, the following day as the second, and the following day as the third day.

Leaving the bongsos longer than three days or 60 hours will make it become very soft and easily fall to pieces when cooked which make it not so desirable to eat. Thus, aside from the preparations, the timing of opening and cooking the bongsos is very essential for its perfectness. Also, the parts that taste best are the large intestines, rectum, and the stomach.

To cook it, just put a lot of water in a large pot depending on the amount of intestines and chicken meat, and the etag will be cooked. Don’t worry about putting so much water because the bongsos is very salty. There’s no need to wash it again, though it can be done to reduce its salt. Some cook, let it boil for five minutes then throw away the water to remove some of the salt, then they add a new fresh water as the soup.

Now, put in the etag, salted intestines into the water and bring it to a boil. When the chicken is ready you can also put it at the same time. Boil for 20-30 minutes or more until all the meat are tender. Just check it once in a while to not overcook.  

The Tribal War: A Headhunting Story Told by an Artist’s Art at Melvin Jones, Burnham Park

I found this story told in a series of images made by an artist as a decoration on the sides of an old stage found at the Melvin Jones at Burnham Park, Baguio city, Philippines. The carved images are already old and one can see the images are not being taken care of as grasses, dirt and dusts covered them. People seem do not know the significance of such art in the history of the Igorot people of my place of origin – Kaigorotan country, or locally known as the Cordillera region. If that’s in Israel, I believe everyday tourists are there gathered around listening to their guides, or students listening to the lectures of their teachers.

The first scene of the story, showed a man found without a head. On the scene, one man is raising his hands which show he must be shouting for revenge. While two people bowed their head which could signify they are grieving for the loss of a brother or member of a family or a friend.

Fig.  1. A headless body is found. The right side shows a clearer picture of the body

The scene followed by a picture of two men carrying the headless body that was positioned like a fetus. The hands and legs are bent and tied, so that, a long pole made up of wood or probably a hard bamboo pole was inserted between the legs and between the tied hands; the two men carried the body by putting the ends of the pole on their shoulders while a man is walking ahead and third man was following them; the others might have walked ahead already to warn the village about a dead member being brought home. In this case, a ritual is done before any corpse is entered inside the village.

Figure  2.  The headless body is now brought home

The next picture shows the men of the village, lead by their elders, had a meeting with all their men to decide what they have to do. In this case, they decided to take revenge as proven by the next image.

Figure 3.  The men decide what to do

The next scene is showing the men marching to war.

Figure  4.  Going to war

The next image is showing them to have reached the entrance of the village of the culprits. In the image, we can see the people presenting peace offerings as shown by two people on their knees while bowing their heads; one is doing the negotiations. The invading party tried to listen as demonstrated by the others sitting on their knees.

Figure  5.  Negotiations

However, it is clear the invading party did not accept the peace offerings, as a gruesome image of killings shown by the next scene.

Figure 6.  The negotiations failed, so, war errupted

As a result of every war, the children and women are the parties most affected by it. Here we can see mothers with their children fleeing away from the fight, while one woman in the picture is probably helping her wounded son or husband.

Children and women fleeing the for their lives

Related stories: Art of Traditions, Culture and Life of the Igorots Found at Burnham Park(Part 1)

Art of Traditions, Culture and Life of the Igorots Found at Burnham Park (Part 2)

This story is true. I heard the same stories, since I was a kid, from my father and old men from Mountain Province. My father always told us about how the people of the old days were living in war. And how head hunting was rampant because it was part of some tribes culture and tradition. Men who reached the age of manhood go hunting for head and bring it home to their village to show they were real men or had already reached manhood. Others do it for the joy of doing it.