In between Quezon and Laguna was Mount Makiling, which belonged to the mysterious Maria Makiling. People wondered if she was a fairy or a mortal woman. Some people, who encountered her in the forest, lost their way home or turned into bubbles and completely disappeared. A servant could not believe her eyes when she saw Maria floating like the wind. According to some, Maria was a farmer who lived on the mountain. She planted rice and vegetables, and plucked all types of fruit from the trees. Creation story from Luzon:
Time went on and the children became so numerous that the parents enjoyed no peace. One day, in desperation, the father seized a stick and began beating them on all sides. This so frightened the children that they flee in different directions, seeking hidden rooms in the house, some concealed themselves in the walls, some ran outside, while others hid in the fireplace, and several fled to the sea. Now it happened that those who went into the hidden rooms of the house later became the chiefs of the islands; and those who concealed themselves in the walls became slaves.
Those who ran outside were free men; and those who hid in the fireplace became Negroes; while those who fled to the sea were gone many years, and when their children came back they were the white people. The Monkey and the Crocodile: There was a tree on which many monkeys lived. In the nearby pond, a pair of crocodiles lived. One day, the female crocodile fell ill. The doctor said that only the heart of a monkey could cure the crocodile. The crocodile offered each of the monkeys to accompany him for a joy ride in the pond. None of them agreed. Lastly, an old monkey agreed. The monkey enjoyed the ride.
When they were in deep waters, the crocodile told him his purpose. He said that he wanted the monkey’s heart. The monkey said, “Please take me back. I have left my heart on the top of my tree. I can give it to you there”. The crocodile took him back to the bank. The monkey went up the tree and disappeared. Old Man of the Mound: Human beings learned from experience. When they walked across a place that they suspected there were mounds belonging to the duwende and the nuno, they asked for permission to pass – “Tabi, tabi po, apo” – which meant, “Please move aside, old man; may Ihave permission to pass”.
Life in the underground replicated life above ground. The duwendes and the nunos worked using ants and termites as their beasts of burden. The women sewed clothes and cooked. The men gathered foods and woods for the fireplace. They were good carpenters and mechanics. They built houses and pieces of furniture, small motors and gadgets. The community or colony knew how to enjoy. They had feasts and traditions, holidays and sports, dances and concerts, social drinking and mirth. Pilandok became a sultan: Pilandok is a story from Filipino folklore.
A young servant boy convinces a rich prince that a beehive is a special gong. The boy charms the prince to pay him to hit the “special gong” but to wait until he is gone. The prince hits the beehive and is almost dead before he is saved by nearby servants and soldiers who came to his rescue. Indarapatura at sulayman: A long, long time ago, Minadanao was covered with water, and the sea covers all the lowlands so that nothing could be seen but the mountains jutting from it. There were many people living in the country and all the highlands were dotted with villages and settlements.
For many years the people prospered, living in peace and contentment. Suddenly there appeared in the land four horrible monsters which, in short time has devoured every human being they could find. When they found out what Indarapatra had done for them, the headman gave his daughter to him in marriage, and she proved to be beauiful girl whom Indarapatra had seen at the mouth of the cave. Then the people all came out of their hiding places and returned to their homes where they lived in peace and happiness.
And the sea withdrew from the land and gave the lowlands to the people. Bantugan: In the play, Bantugan, after courting the beautiful but evil sorceress of Bambalay Anonan, Maginar , decides to return home to Bumbaran. Upon his return he finds out that his brother and king of Bumbaran, Agaanon Dalinan, driven by his jealousy over the prince warrior’s fame, has ordered out a proclamation which forbids all the people of Bumbaran from speaking to him. Deeply saddened, Prince Bantugan departs from his beloved land.
Successful with the bottle of Bantugan’s soul in hand, the two princes race back to Bumbaran just in time fro Bantugan’s funeral. They open the bottle and almost instantaneously, and much to the amazement of those present, Bantugan awakes from his lifeless slumber. Mourning quickly turns into celebration as everyone greets Bantugan’s return to the land of the living, including his brother, the king, who asks for his forgiveness. Bantugan is also greeted by Princess Datimbang, who he vaguely remembers as the beautiful woman who treated him kindly before his death.
Their eyes meet, and Bantugan quickly falls in love. Hinilawod: Hinilawod is an epic poem written by the early inhabitants of a place called Sulod in central Panay. The word means tales from the mouth of the Halawod River. Hinilawod is not just a literary piece but also a source of information about culture, religion and rituals of the ancient people of Sulod; showing us that ancient Filipinos believed in the “sacred,” in the importance of family honor and in personal courage and dignity. Daramoke-a:
Is a sequel to Bantugan. It recounts the bravery and might Bantugan. In the battles, no one equals his courage and fighting skills. His Bravery led him to countless victories. Biag ni Lam-Ang: Lam-ang was an extraordinary being, manifesting in his early years when he started to speak, thus enabling him to choose his own name. His adventure began when his father, Don Juan, set out for a battle but never returned. At barely nine months, he went to search for Don Juan in the highlands where the latter was said to have gone.
Aware that her child was a blessed, exceptional creature, his mother Namongan allowed him to go. Lam-ang then went off to search for his father, leaving his grieving mother behind. When Lam-ang reached the area his father purportedly disappeared to, he was enraged upon seeing Don Juan’s severed head atop of a bamboo pole that was planted in the ground; the scene came to him in a dream prior to reaching that place. Lam-ang then demanded to know the reason as to why that had appened to his father, but did not receive an answer from the locals. Instead, the chieftain of the village demanded that he leave under pain of suffering the same fate as his father. Lam-ang defied the caveat and bravely fought with the chieftain and his tribesmen. The hero emerged victorious from the battle with little effort, finally avenging his murdered father. Hudhud and alim: “Hudhud” features the characters Aliguyan (Aliguyon), Bugan and their families, and the elements of the early civilization which rose in the mountain province.
Alim explores the character of their god-bathala called Makanungan, the lives of their several gods, and deities, and their idea of “heaven. ” Alim is sung as part of their ritual religious songs. One famous episode tells about a great flood. It is said that after the flood, the heroine Bugan, started a fire which Wigan from Amuyaw sees. Wigan and Bugan, thinking that there are only the two of them left on earth, traveled far and wide in search of people. Bugan later discovers that she is with a child. In fear of disgrace, she decides to commit suicide by jumping into the river.
However, an old man with white beard appears and stops her from killing herself. This old man is actually their bathala, Makanungan, in disguise. Bidasari: Bidasari,the most beautiful lady in the kingdom of Indrapura and her love with the generous and attractive prince, Jamil. Torn by war, the wicked sultana, Lilagretha, tries to sort things out in the sultanate by getting rid of the rebels led by Armilo. After hearing the oracle, Lilagretha plots Bidasari’s death as the latter poses the greatest threat to her power.
