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Philippine Folklore: The Legend of Daragang Magayon and Panganoron and Mount Mayon

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Mount Mayon – Image By Ezra Acayan [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons

Daragang Magayon

In Philippine folklore two lovers named, Daragang Magayon and Panganoron,  feature in a folktale that explains how Mount Mayon, a active stratovolcano on the island of Luzon in the Philippine archipelago was formed and was named.  The volcano and story of the two lovers hit the headlines in January 2018 when an eruption spurted forth lava and smoke. Many people believed they saw an image in the fumes that resembled two lovers. Another image appeared in the lava flow that resembled the figure of a woman.  Many people associated the perceived images with the story and presented here is a version of the legend.

Daragang Magayon the Beautiful Maiden

A chief of the Rawis people named Makusog had a lovely daughter who he named Daragang Magayan, which means beautiful maiden in English.  She was his only child because her mother whose name was Dawani, which means fairy, had died shortly after giving birth to her and he never wanted another wife.

Magayon grew into a beautiful  woman with a sweet nature, who was much sought after by young men far and wide who competed for her affections.  However she showed no interest in any of them, or even the handsome Pagtuga who was a great hunter and chief of the Iniga people.  He would shower her with expensive gifts and although she politely thanked him showed no romantic interest in him at all.

Panganoron

One day as Panganoron, the son of a chief from the Tagalog region of the country, was passing along the Yawa river he spied Daragang Magayon going into the water to bathe.  He was enthralled by her beauty but as he watch she slipped on some wet rocks and fell into the river. At first he thought it was funny, but as she began to splash and struggle he realized she could  not swim and was in danger of drowning.  With no regard for his own safety he ran into the river and pulled her out saving her life.  From then on the two became friends and their friendship blossomed into romance. After what he hoped was an appropriated time Panganoron proposed marriage to her and she accepted and her father gave them his blessing.

Death

When Pagtuga found out about their impending marriage he became jealous and took Magayon’s father hostage, demanding she marry him in exchange for his life and freedom.  As soon as Panganoron learnt of this he called together the warriors of his people and led them to war against Pagtuga. The two sides clashed in a spectacular and bloody battle and the people and Magayon watched in awe and fear as they fought. Eventually, Panganoron defeated and killed Pagtuga and in her joy at his victory Magayon ran to embrace and kiss him.

However, because of the death of Pagtuga, in anger, one of his warriors fired a final arrow at Panganoron piercing his back and entering into his heart and killing him as the two lovers embraced.  In shock and horror, Magayon held him in her arms as people rushed to help, but before they could do anything she took a knife from Panganoron’s belt and plunged it into her own heart, crying out his name as she died.

Two Lovers

Her father had seen what had happened and buried them together in the same grave.  From their grave there grew a great mountain of fire and Makusog named it Mount Mayon, after his daughter.  Many people say that Mount Mayon is as beautiful as his daughter, saying that Daragang Magayon is the volcano and the clouds that are surround it are Panganoron.  Smoke from an eruption of the volcano in January 2018 appear to show the two lovers in the image above and in a video what appears to be a woman is seen on the peak.

© 16/05/2018 zteve t evans

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Copyright May 16th, 2018 zteve t evans

 

 

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Philippine Folktales: The Legend of Harisaboqued of Mount Kanlaon

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Mount Canlaon – By Studphil (Own work) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

On the island of Negros in the Philippines is a massive volcano called Kanlaon, or Canlaon. It is still active and steam and smoke can sometimes be seen rising from its crater.  In fact it is the most active volcano in the Philippines and part of the Ring of Fire series of volcanoes around the rim of the Pacific Ocean.  It is a dominant feature of the landscape and associated with several legends and myths that have evolved around it over the centuries.

The Legend of Harisaboqued

The legend presented here is a retelling of a story that originated long before the arrival of the Spanish ships that brought the Christian religion to the people of the Philippines.  It tells that there was once an old man who lived on the top of Kanlaon whose name was Harisaboqued. He was believed to have great powers over the Earth and was known as the King of the Mountain.

The people who lived around the volcano knew and respected him and he brought them many benefits and helped them in many ways.   Whenever there was a task to be done he would strike the ground three times with his staff and a troupe of dwarf people would leap out of the ground to obey his commands.  Although these dwarfs obeyed his slightest whim the local people never felt threatened by them because old Harisaboqued was kindly and never ordered his dwarfs to do wrong or misbehave.   One of the main crops of the people was tobacco and they grew much of this on the slopes of Mount Kanlaon and it made them very prosperous and happy.  Tobacco is a product grown in many countries and although many people depend on it to make a living its use is known to damage the health of users and those exposed to it and is not recommended.

Although the tobacco grown around the mountain grew very well the tobacco on the slopes of the volcano grew better.  These tobacco plantations were said to have been cultivated almost to the top of the mountain producing bumper crops because of old Harisaboqued and his dwarfs.  All he asked of the people was to not encroach an invisible line around the top of the volcano. This area he wished to keep for the privacy of himself and his dwarfs.

It was at his command that his dwarfs cared for and attended to the tobacco plants and these grew much faster and were of far superior quality than any tobacco anywhere. Consequently it was much sought after and gave the people a good living from trading it.  All the people were very grateful to Harisaboqued and would readily have done anything for him.   All he ever asked of them was that they respect the  boundary be had set around the top of the mountain.

All the people respected his wishes and no tobacco was grown on the volcano beyond that line.   In those days, from afar the mountain was an amazing sight with the tobacco plantations of the people cladding the slopes right into the boundary around the peak drawn by Harisaboqued.

Harisaboqued Leaves the Mountain

In this way everything went well for the people.  They were given magnificent crops of the finest tobacco and it was the dwarfs of Harisaboqued that did all the work.  He and his dwarfs kept their privacy and everyone was happy.  There came a day when Harisaboqued called a great meeting of the people and told them that he was going away for a very long time.  He reminded them of the agreement not to encroach upon the boundary and warned them if they should for any reason break this agreement he would take away all of their tobacco from the mountain.  If he had to do that then no more would grow there until he had smoked all that he had taken.  Without a single word more he tapped the ground three times with his staff and the Earth opened up and he walked inside.  Then the Earth closed over again and he was gone.

Many, many years went by and still Harisaboqued did not return and people began to think that he would never come back.  With the exception of Harisaboqued’s private area at the top of the mountain the entire mountain was covered in tobacco plantations which continued to grow as productively as they had always done.  Some people saw the bare, empty ground beyond above the boundary and thought that surely that could be cultivated too but they feared to break their promise they had made to Harisaboqued.

Then one greedy man decided that he would take a chance and planted tobacco above the line.  He got a fine crop of tobacco and nothing bad happened.  Seeing this others followed his lead and soon tobacco grew over the entire mountain from top to bottom including Harisaboqued’s special place at the top.  The tobacco was good and the people became very prosperous trading it.  They were very happy and because nothing bad had happened they ignored the promise they had made and continued to plant more tobacco.

The Return of Harisaboqued

Then one day while they were celebrating a  bumper crop of tobacco the ground suddenly opened up and out sprang Harisaboqued into their midst.  This shocked the people and terrified they ran down the slopes to the foot of the mountain.  Looking back they saw a most fearful sight.   Every single one of their tobacco plants had vanished and the slopes of the volcano were barren and bare.   Then a terrifying thunderous explosion shook the mountain and its entire peak flew into the air and burst into fragments and smoke and flames issued from the great hole that was left.  In fear and terror the people fled and did not stop until they were a long way away from the terrible scene.

They knew that Harisaboqued had kept his promise.  After many years had passed and the fires and eruptions had settled down the people returned to build villages around the bottom of the volcano.  Even though the people remembered the good days when the tobacco was plentiful and they were prosperous no tobacco was grown upon the mountain.  Although they look with longing at the slopes where their tobacco plantations had once been smoke still occasionally floats from the mountain and sometimes it still erupts,  This reminds the  people that they must wait for Harisaboqued to finish smoking his tobacco.

© 04/10/2017 zteve t evans

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Copyright October 4th, 2017 zteve t evans

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Philippine Folklore: Maria Makiling of Mount Makiling

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By kellepics – Pixabay – CC0 Creative Commons

Maria Makiling

As is often the case in many parts of the Philippines and around the world, mountains and volcanoes became associated with legends, myths and ancient traditions and Mount Makiling is strongly associated with a mythical female entity named Maria Makiling. She is also known as Mariang Makiling and is considered to be a spirit or forest nymph known as a diwata or lambana in Philippine folklore. Before the Philippines were colonized she was known as Dayang Masalanta or Dian Masalanta who could be called upon to stop or prevent natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods, or storms. She is also identified with the amount of fish caught in Laguna de Bay which is part of her realm and appears to be a spirit of abundance influencing the functioning of the natural world. She was seen as a benign spirit of nature that poor people could approach and ask for help whenever they needed it.

It is said that it is Maria who goes through the forest after a storm fixing broken branches and trees and repairing the nests of birds that have been damaged. She walks through the forest healing the broken wings of butterflies and clearing away debris from the forest floor and streams. Wherever she walks the sun shines and the birds sing and the flowers bloom and the animals frisk and play as she tidies up the forest after the storm.

Maria and the Mountain

It is not known whether Maria Makiling was named after the mountain, or whether the mountain was named after her. However, some people think that when seen from different locations Mount Makiling looks like the profile of a sleeping woman and this is said to be Maria.  In Philippine mythology, there are other similar supernatural entities who are also mountain goddesses or spirits such as Maria Sinukuan who are found on Mount Arayat, Pampanga and Maria Cacao of Mount Lantoy, Cebu.

Tradition says that Maria Makiling is a beautiful young woman in the prime of life and never grows any older. She is said to have long black shiny hair, bright sparkling eyes, and a light olive complexion. Her personality mirrors the enchantment and serenity of the mountain environment she is found in and she is also associated with the mists that often appear on Mount Makiling. In some traditions, her skin or hair is said to be white but in most stories, she wears radiant white clothes confuses people into believing the wisps of mist they saw through the trees on the mountain was Maria. According to tradition she lives in a small hut sometimes situated in a village while other traditions say her hut is on the mountain and can only ever be found if she allows it.

Tradition and Superstitions of Maria Makiling

Maria Makiling stories were part of the Philippines oral tradition long before they were written down. Some are not actual stories but more like superstitions which abound about her. One tells how that every now and then men who went into the forests on the mountain would not return. It was believed Maria had lured them away to her home hidden somewhere in the mountain wilds to be her husband. There they would spend the rest of their days in happiness and marital bliss alone with Maria in her hut hidden on the mountain.

There is another tradition that says that although anyone can go into the forest to pick and eat fruits no fruit should be taken home because this may anger Maria. Offenders have been known to lose their way and this is believed to be caused by Maria changing the paths to take them into thick thorn bushes, or become beset by stinging insects she has sent or led them into. If this happens the only thing the victim can do is leave the fruit in the forest and reverse all clothing which is seen as proof that they no longer carry the fruit of the forest with them.

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Mount Makiling – By Ramon FVelasquez (Own work) [CC Mount Makiling – BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons

Transforming Ginger into Gold

One of the best known stories about Maria Makiling is that she can transform ginger into gold which she does usually to help someone. In these stories, she often lives in a village as one of the community and is called upon to help one of the community in some way. Sometimes it is a mother with a sick child, or perhaps a husband may be seeking a cure for his sick wife.

However, when diagnosing the problem Maria recognizes the signs of malnutrition and poor diet rather than a disease or sickness and gives them ginger to take home. Invariably, by the time they get home the ginger has turned to gold which they can then sell or exchange. One foolish villager finding the ginger becoming heavy threw it away rather than carry it home.

In some traditions, Maria is a well-loved and respected part of the local community for her kindness and help. However, there is also a tradition that says that the villagers became greedy and went to her garden pulling up plants to see if they were gold. This distressed her so much that she ran away to live on the mountain.

A Loser in Love

In many legends, Maria Makiling is cast as a rejected lover. One story tells how she had fallen in love with a hunter who had wandered into her territory. The two soon formed a relationship and became lovers and the hunter would climb up the mountain everyday to see her and they promised eternal love to each other.  However, Maria was shocked to discover that her lover was being unfaithful and had married a mortal woman.

Naturally, Maria was devastated and concluded she could never trust the local people again realizing she was so very different to them and came to believe that they were just taking advantage of her good nature. Therefore, she withdrew her consent which allowed the trees and bushes to bear fruit and she stopped the animals and birds roaming the forest for the hunters to catch and stopped the fish from breeding in the lake. From then on she withdrew to the mountain and was seldom seen except occasionally by the light of the pale moon as she wandered through the forest alone.

Another legend tells how Maria would watch over a farmer she had fallen in love with. Because of this protection, the people said the farmer was living a charmed life or had a mutya that protected him. He was a young man of good nature though rather shy and reserved.  He would never reveal anything to his family or friends of his visits to Maria. Then one day the army came into his village recruiting single young men to fight a war. So that he would not have to enlist he decided he would marry a village girl.

Visiting Maria for the last time he tells her of his decision. She tells him,

“I believed you to be devoted and in love with me. I have the power to protect you and your family, but I now see you lack faith in me and need and earthly woman for your earthly needs.”

After telling him this she left and was never seen by the villagers again and no trace of her hut could ever be found.

The Curse of Maria Makiling

Another version of the story was supposed to have happened during the later years of the Spanish occupation. This tells how Maria was wooed by three suitors. One was a Spanish soldier named Captain Lara. Another was a student named Joselito who was studying in Manila and the third was a poor farmer named Juan.

Of the three, Maria Makiling preferred Juan despite his humble status. The two rejected men plotted together to frame Juan for the crime of setting on fire the Spanish barracks. Juan was taken and tried and sentenced to be shot as an enemy of the Spanish. As he was about to be shot he called out Maria’s name.

High up on the mountain she heard his cry but was too late to save him. Fearing her anger Joselito and Captain Lara fled to Manila. On discovering how Juan had been framed and shot she placed a curse on Joselito and Captain Lara and all men who cannot accept rejection in love. Maria’s curse quickly took effect and Joselito fell sick with an incurable illness and died and Captain Lara was killed fighting revolutionaries.

According to the legend from that time onwards Maria was never again seen by humans and whenever someone loses their way on the mountain they remember the curse of Maria Makiling and also of the great love she had for Juan.

© 30/08/2017 zteve t evans

References, Attributions and Further Reading

Copyright August 30th, 2017 zteve t evans