Filipino shamans

Shamans of ethnic groups in the Philippines

[[File:An Itneg shaman renewing an offering to the spirit shield (1922, Philippines). jpg|thumb|1922: a shaman of the Itneg people renewing an offering to the spirit (anito) of a warrior's shield (kalasag) They were almost always women or feminized men (asog or bayok). They were believed to have spirit guides, by which they could contact and interact with the spirits and deities (anito or diwata) and the spirit world. Their primary role were as mediums during pag anito séance rituals. There were also various subtypes of babaylan specializing in the arts of healing and herbalism, divination, and sorcery.

thumb|Itneg shamans (the two women in the foreground) conducting a sayang ritual (c. 1922)
Most babaylan inherited their status from an older babaylan they were apprenticed to, usually a relative. In some cultures, like among the Isneg people, older shamans can choose apprentices from among the eligible young women of the village. A few, however, become babaylan after experiencing what has been termed a "shamanistic initiatory crisis" (also "shamanic illness" or "shamanic madness"). This includes serious or chronic illnesses, near death experiences, sudden seizures and trembling, depression, strange events or behavior (including climbing balete trees or disappearing for several days with no memory of the events), bouts of insanity (including those induced by psychological trauma from a past event), and strange visions or dreams. These are regarded as encounters with the spirits, where the soul of the person is said to be journeying to the spirit world. In cases like this, it is said that a spirit chose the person, rather than the other way around.

[[File:Potters at work. The one on the right is a man in woman's garb (Itneg people, 1922). jpg|thumb|Itneg potters, the person on the right is a bayok in female attire (c. 1922) Among the minority of males, most belonged to a special class of shamans—the feminized men known as asog in the Visayas and bayok or bayog in Luzon. The asog assumed the voice, mannerisms, hairstyle, and dress of females. In Historia de las islas e indios de Bisayas (1668), the Spanish historian and missionary Francisco Ignacio Alcina records that the asog became shamans by virtue of being themselves. Unlike female shamans, they neither needed to be chosen nor did they undergo initiation rites. However, not all asog trained to become shamans. Historical accounts suggest that during the precolonial period in the Philippines, female shamans predominated in the religious realm. While Brewer (1999) agreed that it is naïve to dismiss the existence of a principal male shaman during the precolonial era, she also argued that such cases were unusual rather than the norm, and that the statistical imbalance in favour of principal male shamans occurred as a result of the influence of the male centered Hispano Catholic culture, such that in the late nineteenth century and in the early years of the twentieth century, in some areas like Negros, all the babaylan were male. Lachica (1996) has also hypothesized that the disappearance of female babaylan during the late Spanish colonial period was probably the influence of the male led Catholic church that "ousted" the female babaylan since the people were looking for parallels to the male clergy. Babaylan can freely marry and have children, In some ethnic groups, marriage was a prerequisite for gaining full shaman status. The change in women's status and the ostracization of the asog, however, did not immediately change the originally feminine role of the shamans. Male shamans in the late 17th century still dressed as women during rituals, even though they did not do so in their day to day activities. Unlike the ancient asog, they did not have sexual relations with other men, and indeed, were usually married to women. There are two general types of spirits usually interacted with in séance rituals. The first are the environmental or nature spirits "bound" to a particular location or natural phenomenon (similar to genii loci). They "own" places and concepts like agricultural fields, forests, cliffs, seas, winds, lightning, or realms in the spirit world. Some were also "keepers" or totems of various animals and plants. They have inhuman and abstract qualities, reflecting their particular dominions. They do not normally appear in human form and are usually gender less or androgynous. They rarely concern themselves with human affairs. Rituals involving these spirits are almost always conducted outdoors. The second type of spirits are the "unbound" spirits that have an independent existence. They appear in animals (usually as birds) or human like forms, have gender differentiation, and have personal names. They are most similar to the fairies of European folklore. These are the most common types of spirits to become abyan, as they are the most "sociable" and can take interest in human activities. These spirits are usually referred to as engkanto (from Spanish encanto) in modern Filipino folklore. Unlike the "bound" spirits, these spirits can be invited into human households, and their rituals can take place both outdoors and indoors. Like in other Austronesian cultures, animistic Filipinos believed in the concept of soul dualism (sometimes referred to as "twin souls" or "double souls"). A person is believed to be composed of at least two souls—the breath of life (ginhawa or hininga, which stays with the living body) and the astral soul (the kalag or kaluluwa, which can travel to the spirit world). The ginhawa is believed to reside in the pit of the stomach (usually the liver), while the kalag resides in the head. The ginhawa represents the person's body and bodily urges; while the kalag represents the person's identity, mind, and strength of will. Both are required in a living person. Shamans may also perform rituals to heal and strengthen the kalag of a person. These include the ritual of batak dungan or batakan among Visayan shamans. It strengthens and empowers the kalag of a person to prepare them for challenges, problems and obstacles. This ritual also protects the person from possible spiritual attack caused by malevolent spirits and sorcery.

Aside from rituals and herbal medicine, an ubiquitous traditional healing method done by shamans and healers is massage with oils (lana) known as hilot or haplos. It is still commonly practiced to this day.

Some shamans were believed to be able to control the physical world through incantations, talismans, potions, or their spirit intermediaries. Healers are more strongly associated with sorcerers than mediums. In most cases, a healer is also a sorcerer. In order to cure or counteract sorcerous illnesses, healers must themselves know sorcery. In some cultures like the Manobo people, shamans are entirely differentiated from sorcerers. Shamans deal with the spirit world and supernatural beings but do not have magical powers of their own; while sorcerers were regarded as human beings with powers gained from magical spells or objects. Illnesses believed to be caused by sorcery are treated differently from illnesses caused by spirits. The former are treated with counter spells, simple antidotes, and physical healing; while the latter requires the intervention or dialogue with the spirits and thus a shaman ritual. Their alleged powers include conjuring fire or water, flight, shape shifting, invisibility, invulnerability, and the ability to call down disasters. The dios dios leaders of the Visayan peasant revolts in the late 19th century often claimed to possess these kinds of powers. A more common use of the power to command elements is rainmaking. A notable example was Estrella Bangotbanwa, a Karay a ma aram from southern Iloilo. According to local legend, she alleviated a three year drought by performing a ritual that summoned a rainstorm. Sorcery was not restricted to shamans, but were also a common claim for leaders and warrior heroes. In the pre Islamic Maranao society depicted in the Darangen epic poem, heroes are born with "twin spirits" (tonong in Maranao) that grant them superhuman abilities. King Awilawil o Ndaw of the kingdom of Kaibat a Kadaan for example, has a tonong named Salindagaw Masingir that can take the aspect of typhoons, floods, and pillars of fire; while King Dalondong a Mimbantas of the kingdom of Gindolongan Marogong has a tonong named Mabokelod a Romba which took the form of a giant crocodile.

Numerous types of shamans use different kinds of items in their work, such as talismans or charms known as agimat or anting anting, curse deflectors such as buntot pagi, and sacred oil concoctions, among many other objects.

Sorcerers are also believed to have powers that cause harm to other people covertly. Healer sorcerers who practice this kind of sorcery usually justify it as a form of criminal punishment, as a widespread belief is that black magic does not work on people who are innocent. Their targets are usually "wrongdoers" like thieves, adulterous spouses, or land grabbers. Sorcery of this type is seen as a kind of "justice", especially for people who can not (or failed to) legally prosecute a wrongdoer. There are also "true" sorcerers who are said to have hereditary sorcerous powers. Unlike healers, they do not consider the justice of their actions. The latter type of sorcerers are often conflated with the aswang, evil vampire like supernatural beings capable of appearing human (or were originally human). In the absence of the datu (head of the community), the babaylan takes in the role of interim head of the community. Their influence waned when most of the ethnic groups of the Philippines were converted to Islam and Catholicism. Under the Spanish Empire, babaylan were often maligned and falsely accused as witches and "priests of the devil" and were persecuted harshly by the Spanish clergy. The Spanish burned down everything they associated as connected to the native people's indigenous religion (including shrines such as the dambana), even forcefully ordering native children to defecate on their own god's idols, murdering those who disobey. In modern Philippine society, their roles have largely been taken over by folk healers, which are now predominantly male, while some are still being falsely accused as "witches". In areas where the people have not been converted into Muslims or Christians, notably ancestral domains of indigenous peoples, the shamans and their cultural traits have continued to exist with their respective communities, although these shamans and their practices are being slowly diluted by Abrahamic religions. These flourished as they were tolerated by the Spanish clergy as "white magic". Nature spirits (diwata) during this period were also syncretized with the friars themselves, becoming known as engkanto and being described as having European features, along with a propensity for deceiving, seducing, and playing tricks on people. These include the beata movement in the 17th and 18th centuries, the messianic (and usually revolutionary) dios dios movement of the late 19th century, and the espiritista (or spiritista) movement of the 20th century. However, their methods of worship remained basically the same. The faith healers were still, in essence, mediums; but instead of channeling anito, they instead claimed to channel saints, angels, or the Holy Spirit. midwives, and practitioners of traditional hilot massage therapy with oils. These modern versions of babaylan are now usually male (except midwives). They are sought out by those with minor ailments or illnesses that modern medicine can not diagnose or cure. Like ancient babaylan, modern babaylan distinguish between "spiritual diseases" and "natural diseases"; the latter they will usually refer to a medical doctor. A version of the traditional massage therapy conducted by folk healers also exists, known as agud or agod among the Maranao and Maguindanao people. Most strongly affected by this religious shift to Abrahamic religions were the feminized male asog shamans. During the 17th to 18th centuries, Spanish administrators in the Philippines burned people convicted of homosexual relations at the stake and confiscated their possessions, in accordance with a decree by the president of the Real Audiencia, Pedro Hurtado Desquibel. Several instances of such punishments were recorded by the Spanish priest Juan Francisco de San Antonio in his Chronicas de la Apostolica Provincia de San Gregorio (1738–1744). Feminized men were also persecuted harshly in the (then recently) Islamized ethnic groups in Mindanao. In Historia de las Islas de Mindanao, Iolo, y sus adyacentes (1667), the Spanish priest Francisco Combés records that their "unnatural crime" was punished by the Muslim peoples in Mindanao with death by burning or drowning, and that their houses and property were also burned as they believed that the behavior was contagious. Tamblot's revolt inspired another rebellion in neighboring Carigara, Leyte in the same time period. The Bankaw revolt was led by a datu named Bankaw and his son Pagali who was a babaylan. Bankaw's rebellion was notable as Bankaw was one of the first converts to Catholicism in the Philippines. As a young man, he had formerly welcomed the conquistador Miguel López de Legazpi in 1565 when their expedition first landed on the islands. Like Tamblot, Bankaw and Pagali both wanted a return to the old ways. Bankaw renounced his Catholic faith and built a temple to a diwata. The Tapar rebellion was an uprising in Iloilo, Panay led by a babaylan named Tapar in 1663. Tapar syncretized native shamanism with Catholic terminology and declared himself "God Almighty" of a new religion. He also emulated the ancient asog by dressing up in women's clothing. He and his followers killed a Spanish priest and burned the town church before escaping to the mountains. Tapar and other leaders of his movement were captured and executed by Spanish and Filipino soldiers.

Concurrent with Papa Isio's rebellion in Negros Occidental against American rule, the dios dios movement in eastern Visayas turned their attention to the new American colonial government. Calling themselves the Pulajanes ("those who wear red"), they were led by Faustino Ablen ("Papa Faustino") in Leyte; and Pablo Bulan ("Papa Pablo"), Antonio Anugar, and Pedro de la Cruz in Samar. Like their predecessors, they claimed supernatural powers and used fetishistic amulets, holy oils, and magic spells in battle. They attacked both American troops and local Filipinos cooperating with the American colonial government. The last Pulajanes leader was killed in 1911.