The Footprints of Kabunian Embeded on a Rock in Tadian, Mt. Province

by: Felisa Daskeo

Tadian, Mt. Province is one of the very quiet towns in the northern part of the Philippines, this is the place where Kabunian- the Igorot God was believed to have stepped down because he left footprints on a big rock.  Just like the many other towns in the Philippines, Tadian has also its share of folktales, beliefs and practices.  Because the olden times were primitive times, people didn’t write stories.  They were merely related from mouth to mouth.  Most of the stories were told by the old men and women and nobody dared wrote them and made books about them.

Look closely at the center part and you can see the a pair of footprints.  The left footprints have the holes on the toe part.

The Footprints of Kabunian (The Igorot God), has been told and retold several times by the old folks of Tadian Mt., Province.  

The story goes that, in the very olden days some old men who were gathered in a place called Bimmukod witnessed a very strange sight.  The old men gathering in a certain place is a normal situation in Tadian as the old men often gathered together in a certain place in order to settle disputes or talk about some very important matters because in those olden times, the old men were the law and they were the wise men who talked about problems in the community and offered solution or else settled them.

If you look closely, the footprints are there but they are obscured by the dirt.

It was told that suddenly, the men were disturbed by the sudden appearance of a man from out of the blue.  He was a very strange man; described by the old men as foreign looking, tall, huge with a very fair complexion.  The man just came out from a place they called “Liang”.  Liang means a very shallow cave.  There is a big rock here and below it is a very shallow cave. 

Look at the little holes.  Those are the toes.

No one saw where the stranger came from, but they spotted him first in Liang.  The men merely watched in awe and shock as they were blinded by the glittering hair of the man and his shining clothes.  With a walking cane and a dog, the men recognized him as Kabunian.  The stranger walked to the rice paddies with fast strides, then disappeared in the woods and was never seen again.

Shocked but still conscious, the men went to see the big rock where the man was first spotted and to their amazement; they saw fresh footprints embedded on the rock.  The man left footprints on the hard rock, which was impossible for an ordinary man to do.  This time the men have proven that the man was no ordinary man and that he was Kabunian because what normal man could leave footprints on a rock?  Only Kabunian, their God, is capable of leaving an indelible sign.  There were big footprints embedded on the rock with the traces of the dog's footprints too and the cane being stuck on the rock.  All these were tangible signs of Kabunian's visit to the place.

And so the story of the old men who witnessed the passing of Kabunian and his dog in Tadian was handed down from generation to generation until I heard it and I thought it was worth writing for the people to learn that there are some events that are like fairy tales but there is proof that the story of the strange man has really happened a long time ago.

The footprints on the rock are still there, ; embedded and had stood the harsh times but marred by the passing of time.  When we were small kids, we always went to play on the big rock and I can still remember clearly that the footprints then were still clearly embedded on the rock.  The last time I visited the place in May 2012, the footprints were not any more prominent.  They were obscured by accumulated dirt and weathering, but the big footprints are still there and you can notice them when you look closely.  The sizes of the footprints are too big for a normal Igorot man.  The footprints are too large.

Kabunian who was believed to have stepped down in Tadian, Mt. Province may have been watching the place for a long time until he finally left the place for good.  Where?- nobody knows but the people believe that Tadian, Mt. Province is a blessed place visited by Kabunian.  

The strange man was never spotted again and the people concluded that it was really Kabunian who passed by the place.

Basing from the many stories that circulated for perhaps hundreds and hundreds of years, Kabunian always held a cane and was always accompanied by his dog.  

Copyright 2012 Felisa Daskeo

The Enchanted Eels of Cagubatan

by: Felisa Daskeo

The place looks like the place in a fairy tale with fogs usually covering the place especially during cold days plus a mountain peak towering it.  Cagubatan, Tadian Mt. Province is one place that you should go and visit for a change.  A peaceful Igorot village in an equally nature-rich place, this is the perfect place to unwind and be closer to nature.  Now that it is 2012 it is easy to reach the place through land transportation; unlike when we were kids when we needed to walk to reach the place.

Mugao- Cagubatan, Mt. Province

 

Cagubatan is what we call Sunnyside.  It is where Mr. Sun shines first and where rain often comes from before it reached our town.   When I was a kid, we often raced with the rain coming from Sunnyside. Once we heard the sound of rain rushing to our town, we ran as fast as we could to our homes before the rain-soaked us. Sometimes the rain came but sometimes it just stopped and didn't reach our place.

Rice Terraces

Towering the place is a mountain peak called Mugao believed to be once upon a time an active volcano.  It has died and been extinct for perhaps hundreds or thousands of years- nobody could tell even the oldest man that I have spoken to said that Mugao was already there when he was born.

Read what the Cagubatan people have to say about the eel or DALIT.

 In this high-tech world nobody would believe in superstitious beliefs and tales from the old men and women.  Back then, I have always heard of stories from my grandparents, my father and other old men and women.  These stories had circulated for perhaps hundreds or thousands of years and had been handed down from generation after generation perhaps some were true- who would have known, all those who have told the stories were already long time dead and silent in their graves.  But Mugao is still standing as powerful as it used to be like a monument guarding the place.  

You can poke a stick with a bait to let the eel come out.

Back home, when I was a little girl, I often watched Mugao in our window.  It was like a painting on the wall and I loved it.  

There, you can see how big it is and how healthy.

What’s more interesting is that at the foot of Mugao, there is a creek inhabited by eels that people believe are enchanted eels.  When I was a young girl I heard a story about a man who tried to catch one of the eels and ended up only hurting the eel. The eel survived but became blind in one eye.  The man who hurt the eel they said died.  Another story goes that there was a family who ate an eel from the creek and they also died.  From then on nobody ever attempted to hurt or catch the eels for food.  The creek was opened to the public for eel viewing only.  If you poke a stick with a bait, the eels come out and show themselves to the viewers. 

Have fun viewing.

Some people believe that the eels have wings and that they travel at night to other places.  There was one time when one eel was found in another village which was several kilometers away from the said creek.  The question is, how could the eel have possibly traveled that distance when it has no wings?  This is the reason why people strongly believe that the eels have wings and that they are enchanted.  The scientific explanation of the event is the possibility of the eel having traveled that far through the water table.  Whatever is the answer, the folks around the creek strongly believe in the eels being enchanted.  The eels are believed to have lived hundreds of years, which validates their being enchanted.

Cagubatan’s eels will live years and years and people will keep visiting them.  Enchanted or not, the truth remains that the eels of a long time ago are still there and alive.  The strong belief of the people around that these eels are enchanted and must be left alone to breed in the creek is what is making the enchanted eels safe and alive forever.

Copyright 2012 Felisa Daskeo

Nature at Its Best in Mt. Province

As the name implies, Mountain province is a mountainous region rich in natural resources.  The forests are thick with pine trees and other shrubs.  Most of the mountains are still unadulterated.

In my home town, Tadian, Mt, Province, logging is strictly prohibited.

When I visited my hometown in May, 2012, I was amazed to see that it has maintained its green environment when I left it more than thirty years ago.  The pine trees have become thicker and the place was green with vegetation. 

Payew, Will the New Generation Continue To Build Them?

Demang Rice Terraces in Tadian, Mt. Province.

The “payew”- rice terraces, have been built by the Igorots long before the modern tools have been invented.  With only the crude tools, the Igorots have managed to build the rice terraces that have supplied them with rice and other crops for hundreds of years.

What make the rice terraces so amazingly beautiful is the fact that they have been built so perfectly hugged around the mountains, plus the fact that they have been built with the sweat and blood of the Igorot ancestors adds to its significance.
 

Some of the rice terraces are left to regenerate lost fertility.

In summer when the rice turn golden brown, the rice terraces look like a gold mine with the rice grains as the gold nuggets.  Rice is the staple food of all Filipinos and Igorots are not excluded. Igorots are heavy rice eaters because of the nature of their work.   Men especially are committed to their manual work in the fields from dawn to sunset and it is not with naps and breaks.  As soon as they start working, their only rest is the lunch break.  Igorots are known as hard working people.

Today, the modern lifestyle has taught the younger generations to shy away from farm work. Each child wants an executive position when college days are over. Nobody wants to go back to the field and farm. Farming is considered hard work with the least ROI. Nobody wants to work in the mud anymore and remain poor.  The young generation has invaded the modern world and they are out hurdling with the other people all over the world in order to achieve more and taste what life could offer.

Amidst the drastic change of technology lies the rice terraces awaiting hands to toil the soil.   But is there anyone from the new generations who is interested to go back to the mountain and build another terrace to add to the stairways to heaven?  .