#diwata
Deity of the day is Anitun Tabu/Tawo/Tauo!
This deity is one of the Sambal deities that is the deity of the wind. They were in particular one of the deities associated with the process of rice according to the Relation of the Zambals by Domingo Perez (1680).
According to the text, people would offer pinipig to Anitun Tawo for favorable winds. They would also set up an altar and hang some of the rice as an offering, which this practice was called “mamiarag”.
Pinipig is the green, immature grains of rice which is flattened and toasted. It is commonly used in dishes such as making halo-halo and pinipig polvoron.
The other deities associated with rice was Dumangan, Kalasakas, Kalasokos, and Damolag.
Currently, Anitun Tawo has been associated as a Tagalog deity, but like many other deities, there is no record of the Tagalog having this as a deity. It’s important to acknowledge that many deities claimed as Tagalog are not Tagalog. This gives a Tagalog centric way of thinking and like other instances, erases the identity and culture of other ethnic groups.
While I don’t rule out that Anitun Tawo may have been also known to the Tagalog, along with Dumangan, Apo Laki, Ana Golay, etc (though Si Dapa which apparently is also now being spread that he was a Tagalog god when he’s Bisaya irks me to no end), and others, this erasure and claiming of everything being Tagalog is an ongoing issue.
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For those interested in / and in general, I will be interviewed next week! This interview is the first of two separate interviews that will be taking place. The 2nd interview will be with another Filipino Reconstructionist who some of you already may know of, Lukayo of the @anitoanum blog. Lukayo is a spiritworker and Reconstructionist who works with the Tagalog and Bikolano beliefs. More details on the date of Lukayo’s interview with dealing more with spiritwork will be posted soon.
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Anito or Anituo is a Filipino Polytheistic Reconstructionist religion that aims to bring back the precolonial beliefs and practices of our Filipino ancestors. Today, it is a growing community of people who want to bring back our identity in spirituality that has been lost due to centuries of Christian hegemony and Spanish and American colonization.
Join us as we interview ate Ligaya, a Filipina Polytheistic Reconstructionist, known for her many works on Anituo! Three questions will be allotted for the audience! Link to the Zoom room will be sent through email.
The interview will be live on FB as well and you can watch it here.
Just a few of the Tagalog & Bisayan goddesses.
Laon was the Supreme Bisayan goddess of agriculture, harvests, and of Mt. Kanlaon. She would send a swarm of locusts to the crops if angered.
Lakan Pati was the Tagalog intersex deity of sown fields and fertility. According to the Boxer Codex, they were also prayed to and given offerings by fishermen for a good catch. The manuscript also mentions that Lakan Pati was the giver of water to the crops.
Ina Gunid was the Bisayan goddess of war and one of the trinity of war deities along with Balangaw (god of the rainbow) and Makanduk (god of war and plunder). according to Miguel de Loarca in his Relacion de las Yslas Filipinas (1582) they were invoked for success in war and in the mangayaw raids. She was also associated with another trinity of deities, the other two being Arapayan and Makbarubak, when working with and concocting poisonous oils and charms, one involving a charm made of coconut oil and crocodile teeth.
Diyang Masalanta is the Tagalog goddess of love & childbirth. It is highly possible that she was once associated with the Obando Fertility rites along with the god Linga & Lakan Pati.
Magwayan was the primordial goddess of the sea mentioned in the Bisayan creation story. They are also the one who ferries the dead on her boat across the spiritual river, Lalangban to Sulad, purgatory. There she delivers them to the god Sumpoy, God of the Underworld.
Contrary to popular belief, Mayari is not the actual name of the Tagalog moon goddess, it’s Kulalaying (according to the Noceda-Sanclucar Vocabulario de la Lengua Tagala (1754))also called Dalagang nasa Buwan (according to the Carta sobre la idolatria de los naturales de la provincia de Zambales, y de los del pueblo de Santo Tomas y otros circunvecinos by the archbishop of Manila, Felipe Pardo (1686-1688). She was prayed to during the new moon for life and prosperity. A chant sang to her during the new moon was written down in the San Buenaventura dictionary (1613) which went as “Buwang Panginoon ko, payamanin mo ako“which translates to “Moon, my Lady, make me rich.”
List of Artists:
- Lakan Pati @ samsum.art on IG
- Ina Gunid @ michelecdraws on IG
- Diyang Masalanta @ caldatelier on IG
- Magwayan @ squeegool on IG
- Kulalaying (artist drew them as Mayari) @ littlestpersimmon on Tumblr.
It’s another full moon tonight and the last one of 2021. Our ancestors celebrated the full moon, seeing it as a time of rest and admiring it’s beauty and the connection with the spirits and diwata. ✨
Here are some beliefs and practices on the full moon.
The Diwata Collection
There are currently 6 diwata candles specifically dedicated to a specific deity from the Philippines.
• Mayari: The one eyed goddess of the moon
• Apo Laki: The sun and war god
• Naginid: The Bisayan goddess of war, poisons, oils, and charms
• Lakapati: The Tagalog intersex deity of agriculture, fertility, and giver of food
• Magwayan: The Bisayan primordial goddess of the sea and the one who ferries the souls to Sulad (purgatory)
• Diyan Masalanta: The Tagalog goddess of love, conception, and childbirth.
Each candle is ritually cleansed with guava leaves and has betel leaves, along with other herbs, as an offering to said deity.
As most of you know from running this blog over the year and @diwatahan , I am a Filipino Reconstructionist whose spirituality is based on our ancestral animistic and polytheistic beliefs and practices.
I started Hiraya Botanicals in part to create candles, bath soaks, oils, and more inspired by our mythology and folklore.
The other candles currently available are dedicated to the anito (ancestors and spirits) and umalagad (ancestral guardian spirits).
➡️ Get yours today at https://hirayabotanicals.com
❓What diwata do you want to see in the collection?
Water is life. It is death. It represents a cosmological cycle of both in many ethnic groups in the Philippines.
Today we are going to discuss and learn about some Ilokano folklore on the sea and water. From the Ilokano god of the rivers and sea, Apo Litao, to the cosmological beliefs involving the water and sea.
RECOMMENDED READING:
For more on Ilokano folklore and practices, I highly suggest reading El Folk-lore Filipino by Isabelo de los Reyes and Way of the Ancient Healer by Virgil Mayor Apostol @ virgilmapostol on IG . (Both books which I credit and gained all the info listed here).
The lovely sirena artwork pictured on the second photo is by Sarah DeMonteverde @ ilandtuitles on IG (go follow her because her artwork is amazing!) ❤
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Labels finally arrived yesterday! Finally I can take some proper pictures of all the products that is up on the shop and will be.
Update on preorders timeline:
Candles for all preorders so far are half way done! I will finish the rest of the batches tomorrow and Friday. The rest of the items in the Christmas boxes will be finished by next week. We are right on schedule for shipping all preorders the first weekend of December!
❗15% OFF BLACK FRIDAY SALE IS CURRENTLY UP ON THE SITE!
The early bird Black Friday sale will be available until Nov 26! It’s the perfect time to get those Pasko or Yuletide Magic gift boxes if you’ve been deciding to get one!
Remembereach Pasko Gift Box will receive a deity candle, anito candle, and a Pasko candle. There will also be a pag-anito anointing oil, an anito or likha/tao tao/larawan clay figure, guava leaves to cleanse your space, an herbal tea, & bath soak.
Hey y’all! So I wanted to let any of my followers on this blog and those who come across it while researching our precolonial beliefs, that I created a Facebook group specifically dedicated to those who are Filipino Reconstructionists, Animists, and Polytheists.
The group is called Anituo: Reviving the Animistic & Polytheistic Beliefs of the Philippines.As the group name says, its purpose is to have a space for Filipino Reconstructionists reviving and practicing our ancestral animistic and polytheistic beliefs to the modern day. It’s a place where we can post our altars, any offerings, discuss our ancestral beliefs based on historical records and academic research, and so forth.
Keep in mind, while some of us may practice witchcraft, this group isn’t focusing on that. For those interested in Filipino witchcraft, there is a Discord server for this called Diwatahan. Whereas the Anituo group is more on the spiritual aspect and of the revival of our ancestral beliefs based on academic research.
So if you are currently practicing our ancestral beliefs as a Reconstructionist or are interested in learning, come join us!
-Ligaya
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Tres Marias: The Mountain Diwatafolk of Las Islas
Maria Sinukuan
The eldest of the Three Diwata sisters and protector of her domain, Mount Arayat. One of her legend tells that she had a demon suitor who desired her hand. She gave him a test to prove his worth – to build a stone bridge without any support overnight. When the demon has almost accomplished his task, Sinukuan sabotaged the test by telling the rooster to crow early before dawn. The demon gave up, thinking that he failed.
Maria Cacao
The second of the Diwata sisters and protector of the Visayan dark woods where Chocolate Trees grow. It was believed that when the river overflows, Cacao is travelling through the river on a golden barge to personally deliver dark fruits to the river gods.
Maria Makiling
The protector of her domain, Mount Makiling and the youngest among the Diwata sisters. She was also the most popular because she was more benevolent and curious of people than her sisters. She once fell in love with a hunter that caused wrath from Sinukuan. Her eldest sister reminded her of their duty as a Diwata and falling in love means leaving their mountain domains vulnerable. After realizing that the mountain needs her more, she appeared to the hunter one night – to break his heart. The unbearable pain in her heart caused her to vanish and never appeared to anyone from then on.
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