You’re PINOY If…

Also known as All Saints Day, Todos los Santos and Araw ng Namayapa, the Undas is celebrated by Filipinos throughout the country. This is the time of the year when everyone goes to the cemetery to honor the departed friends or relatives. Originally intended to be a solemn day, Filipinos have transformed this day into a day of celebration.

Every year, millions of Filipinos would flock cemeteries throughout the country to clean and visit the tombs of their loved ones. After that, families would hold a picnic above the grave. It has also been a tradition for some to hold a family reunion and general merry-making on what is supposed to be a solemn day. Drinking and gambling has also been a tradition for some families, especially in provincial cemeteries where the bantays (guards) are more lenient.

Aside from visiting their kin, Filipinos would also visit the graves of their movie idols in the hopes that they would catch a glimpe of other famous actors and actresses who are also paying their respects.

When visiting the cemetery, one should always bring a first aid kit and lots of patience. Expect heavy traffic and candle and flower peddlers who sell their goods for five times the original price. Food won’t be much of a problem as some cemeteries even have fast food stalls that offer cold drinks, burgers and pizza.

No matter how much the government pleads for a solemn celebration, it always falls on deaf ears year after year.

Aswang is a generic term for any evil supernatural being in Filipino folklore. Aswangs include the manananggal, mangkukulam (witch), tikbalang, taong-lobo (lycanth), tik-tik, and the kapre (giant) to name a few. A lot of aswangs have similar descriptions and varies from Filipino to Filipino. Their names are also often interchanged with each other.

Some descriptions of aswangs, however, are universal among Filipinos. A mangkukulam is a witch who practices all types of hexes and voo-doos. A tikbalang is a half-man half horse. It is said that if it rains while the sun is shining brightly, a tikbalang is getting married at that moment. A kapre is a giant that is perched on a (usually Balete) tree and smokes tabaco.

A manananggal is a type of aswang who is usually female. She grows wings during midnight and separates her upper body from her lower body. Her upper body will hunt for victims while her lower body will stay hidden in her home of any place she deems safe. Some say that to kill a manananggal, one has to put salt on her exposed organs on the lower part of her body. When she attaches her upper body to her lower body, she will melt and die. Sunlight will also kill her if she fails to transform back to her human form by dawn.

The popular trait of the aswangs that differentiate them from other supernatural or mythological beings include eating small children, sucking a fetus from a mother’s womb through their needle-like tongue, have a taste for livers and hearts, have bloodshot eyes, and come out only at night.

Anything or anyone with monster-like qualities or abilities will (falsely) be accused of being an aswang: man with red eyes that one met just before dawn (who is probably just another drug-addict neighbor); a cat that has been following you from the bukid to your house is probably a shape-shifter; an old lady who lives all alone in the forest is definitely a mangkukulam; or a young (and often pretty) lady with a taste for blood is likely a manananggal.

Filipinos are a very superstitious lot. Anything that might hint of aswang will send them scampering away while making the sign of the cross, mentally locating where they stored their garlic necklace or buntot ng pagi (Stingray’s tail). Other anti-aswang talismans include a cross, holy water, and a special oil made from coconut.

Aswangs are not to be confused with halimaws and other mythological creatures. These types of creatures do not eat people’s organs or children. Stories about them revolve around abductions or possessions. Examples include shokoys (merman), dwendes (dwarves), diwatas (fairies) or diablos (devils).