Visayan Myths and Urban Legends

Bakunawa

In most of the Visayan areas and even in Bicol, the serpent-dragon
known as Bakunawa or spelled alternatively as Bacunawa comes every so
often to take a bite out of the moon. This was the way our ancestors
explained lunar eclipses. The only way to save the moon from being
eaten entirely is to make a loud ruckus to drive away the Bacunawa from
its feeding frenzy. It works every time since the moon is still here!
hehe



Agta

Unsa man ning agta? Suma sa atong mga katiguwangan, usa ni siya ka
"dili-ingon-nato". Nagpuyo kini siya sa mga punu-an sa mga dagkong
kahoy ug nag-yopyop ug tinostos. Sulti sa mga katiguwangan, lapas og
napulo ka pulgada kining agta ug itom ang panit, balhiboon sab kuno.
Duha ka epekto kon ang kahoy ninyo naay agta, usa, ma-bwisit ang inyong
banay kon inyo kining mapalagot, o, makadala ni siya ug swerte sa
inyong banay kong mahimo ni siyang higala ninyo.



What's an Agta? According to the old folks, he is a engkanto or a
mythological creature. He usually lives among the branches of trees and
loves to smoke cigars, locally known as tinos-tos. He is appoximately
10 feet in height, dark colored complexion and hairy (a local version
of bigfoot perhaps?) People say that there are two possibilities as to
what might happen if ever you have one in your own backyard, either, it
will bring you misfortune or great luck if you are able to gain his
trust and friendship.





Balay sa dwendi.

These are now known as termite mounds but in the days of yore, our
ancestors claimed it was the home of the dwendi and the gate-way to
their dimension.





Ah-po.

Remember the time when we were young, our grandfolks would tell us to
say "Tabi, Ah-po" whenever we spit, piss or throw something at night?
That was one way of protecting oneself from the wrath of the dili-ingon
nato.



Dili Ingon Nato (Those who are different from us)

This was a common term to denote those of paranormal origin.



Kikik.

Binuhi sa usa ka aswang. Mao ni siya ang magpahibaw nga naay aswang umaabot.



An aswang's familiar. Tells of the coming of an aswang.



Kabog

Dako kaayo nga kwaknit.

A huge bat. Probably a giant flying fox.







Para sa mga naka-eskwela ug USC South Gradeschool/Girls High School.



MINDA MORA.

Usa daw ni siya ka-stage actress na gi-rape ug gipatay sa mga guards sa
sulod sa USC Cultural Center. Ang iyang kalag naa pa daw didto. This
may be classified as an urban legend.



Para sa mga naka-eskwela ug USC Boys High SChool.

Pari na walay ulo. Maglakaw lakaw kilid sa Gymn sa boys high, samtang dili pa ni siya makit-an, naay itom na iring na imong mga kit-an una.





Para sa naka-eskela ug Cebu Doc ug naka-estar sa Cebu Doc Hospital.

This is a variation of the story I heard from a nurse friend:

Naay usa ka-doctor na musakay unta sa elevator, kanang duol sa clinic
ni Yong Larrazabal (I once taught at CDC, I know this story by heart),
kilid lang sa ER ba. Anway, pag-abli sa elevator naay duha ka-tawo sa
sulod. Ang usa nag-tindog ug nag-sul-ob ug laboratory gown. Ang usa naa
sa sawog, kay nakuyapan. Gidagan ni Doc ang taw na nakuyapan sa ER na
naa ra kilid. Kadtong na-uli-an na ang tawo, iyang gipangutana na-unsa
to siya, nisulti siya na naa siyang nakit-an nga patay na pero
naglakawlakaw pa, ug nag-sul-ob ug orange tag. (this orange tag means
you're dead and your body is now in the morgue waiting for disposal).
Nagkatawa ang doctor kay basin nag-binuang ra. Mibalik siya sa may
elevator ug misakay pag-abli. Naa tong tawo na kuyog adtong nakuyapan.
Nagstorya sila bahin adtong nakuyapan ug nakakita daw ug ungo tong
tawhana. Pagsulti ni doc na nag-sul-ob daw ug orange tag ang iyang
nakit-an, gisaka sa tawo sulod sa elevator ang iyang kamot ug misulti,
"parehas niini?" Namugnaw siya kay mao tong tawhana na iyang gi-declare
na Dead on arrival pipila ka oras na nilabay. Ug siya, nakuyapan.



Para sa naka-eskwela ug USJR Main Campus sa Magallanes.

Sa 5th floor (murag San Agustin Building man tingali o dili sa San
Nicolas Building, kalimot na ko), ni-adtong mga 1950s, gidunggab sa usa
ka lalaki ang iyang uyab gamit ang usa ka ballpen sa sulod sa CR.
Mulagobo gyapon daw ang CR hangtod karon sumala sa akong amahan nga
nag-high school didto. Adtong panahona, wala pa ang Basak Campus.



Sa San Agustin Building sa USJR, naay usa ka babaye na milukso padulong
sa iyang kamatayon diha sa usa ka bintana. Mga 1960's daw ni, sumala ni
Atty. Job Pagusara.





Robinsons

Sa pagkahuman na gitukod ning Robinsons, naay mga istorya miguwas nga
naay binuhi nga Bitin (halas) ang mga tag-iya sa Robinsons ug ang mga
customers na mugamit sa mga dressing rooms, i-flush padulong didto sa
halwa na gipuy-an sa bitin ilawm sa building.



Sigbin (in leyte and samar, it is known as the Amamayong)

Sumala ni Budoy, AW! Dili lang si Budoy! Sumala sa mga taw, kining
sigbin muguwas ra ni inig gabii aron musupsup ug dugo sa ilang mga
biktima. Ang kakuyaw lang kuno ani, kay ang imo mang shadow ang iyang
trippingan apan ikaw ang mahutdan ug dugo! sumala sa mga taga-bukid na
nakakita na aning sigbin, mura daw ni siya ug kanding nga walay sungay,
ug pwerting baho-a na makasuka gud ka, dako sad diay kaayo ni ug
dunggan na mag-pakpak. Mao na, sumala sa mga taga poblacion, mura daw
ug kangaroo ang hitsura. Muguwas daw ni siya inig Holy Week para
mangita ug mga bata na iyang patyon-nonon. Ug ang ilang mga
kasingkasing himu-on ug kalaki (anting anting for our tagawg brethren)



Sigbinan

Naa kunoy mga banay na naay binuhi na sigbin, ang tawag nila kay mga Sigbinan na naay gahum sa pag-controlar nila.





Para sa mga taga Talisay, Campo 4, 6, 7 ug 8 ug tanang mga taga Salot (South of Cebu). MARIA CACAOSi
Maria Cacao, usa ni siya ka diwata na nagpuyo sa usa ka langob diha sa
bukid sa Lantoy. (I really forgot where this mountain is located,
somewhere in the vicinity of Talisay), guwas sa iyang langob, daghan
kaayong mga punu-an sa Cacao. Ilado ni siya ug ang iyang bana na si
Mangao, na naa silay barko na gold. Sa una, ang mga tulay diha sa sapa
sa Mananga, kalit lang na maanod sa sapa, sulti sa mga lumulupyo dihang
dapita sa Mananga, ni-agi ang barko nila ni Ma. Cacao ug ang iyang bana
aron mamaligya sa ilang mga porcelana diha sa lungsod, masangit man
ilang barko sa mga tulay, hala, idasdas man kuno ni Mangao, mao na,
manga-anod ning mga tulaya!



Anak sa Liking Kawayan.

Kon wala kay amahan, (in other words, a bastard), kon natawo ka sa
in before the 1960s, tawgon ka ug Anak sa Liking Kawayan. Kay ang unang
mga tawo sa piliipinas wala man dauy mga ginikanan, gi-anak sila sa
LIking kawayan.



If you are an illegitimate child, you were called the Broken Bamboo's Child.



Manoktok (in english, Door Knockers, this time, this story would be in English)

Before World War II, our grandparents would claim that in the middle of
the night, 2 old people and 1 young woman, clad in robes, would knock
at your door in the middle of the night. These three bear news that
someone in the household is about to die, usually the eldest member in
the household, or an ill family member. Their visits are more prevalent
during times of outbreaks of Cholera and other infectious diseases. In
the Visayas (not necessarily Cebu) homeowners would paint white crosses
on their doors to stop these three from knocking thereon, hence, these
three started knocking on government buildings, churches and hospitals.
They claimed that after the war, their visits diminished or stopped
altogether. This was explained in this manner: after the war, most of
the buildings and houses were destroyed, hence, they had no more doors
to knock on.



Gaba (dharma/karma)

Gabâ or gabaa, for the Cebuano people, is the concept of a non-human
and non-divine, immanent retribution. A sort of negative karma, it is
generally seen as an evil effect on a person because of their
wrongdoings or transgressions. The word has later been recycled for
translating "divine retribution" or "divine fury" in the Cebuano
edition of the Bible. It is also translated as nemesis.



Barang

A witch (Bruja) paid to cause sickness and death. In Lapulapu, I heard
there is one such woman who does this job quite well. In Cebu City,
there used to be one in Labangon and in Mabolo. So far, I have not
heard anything about them, except for the one in Lapulapu. From what
I've gathered, the client is expected to supply the barang with a
picture, strands of hair, or anything that belongs to the person to be
victimized. After babbling a few oraccions (incantations, in latin,
supposedly) and with the use of black candles and spirit guides, the
victim would succumb to sever sickness and possibly die, depending on
the request of the client. This is of course done for a fee. Last time
I heard, it's Php5,000.00, now, it may be higher. The way to combat
Barang is to seek the services of another Barang. If the victim's
Barang wins, the deathdealer's Barang would succumb to his/her own
sorcery. Another form of safeguarding oneself from the powers of the
Barang would be to wear something that has a diamond, I don't know why,
but that's how it works, or so I've been told.



Urom

When you're asleep, you feel pins and needles all over your body, you
are aware of your surroundings and feel as if a presense is in your
room or somebody or something is sitting on top of you and pinning you
down. You cannot move, you cannot scream. Some people do actually die
from it. Americans call it night terrors. We call it in Cebu as Urom.
People claim uromon ka if you had too much to eat before going to bed.



Daman

Sleepwalking or sleep talking. Usually brought about by stress.



Kalag mu-sud sa Ku'un(Kulun)/Kaldero.

Our grandfolks would tell us to eat dinner otherwise, at night, when we
are asleep, our spirits would go the kitchen to look for food in the
Ku'un (clay pot, back then) or in the pots and pans, sometimes, the
spirit would get trapped under the pot while looking for food. When day
breaks and your spirit is not back in your body, you'll be found dead
in your sleep.





Tabonan ang samin kon mag kilat

It is said that when we have thunderstorms we should cover all our
mirrors, otherwise, you're inviting lightning to strike the mirror or
your house.

Spoiler: