绿帽换妻

Omens

Omens abound in Filipino life. A tree falling to the ground, or a ring about the moon, portends a death; certain animals crossing the trail demand the postponement of a trip; an earthquake requires cancellation of a planned ceremony. Many omens have prescribed remedies, and certain procedures are de rigeur for the sake of soliciting an omen from the anitos before undertaking major ventures such as a marriage, or warfare. Often a form of question-and-answer is used, as with a Ouija board, and the gods respond by making a balanced stick fall in a certain direction. Since the spirits will supposedly lend support to the wronged party in a dispute, certain types of trial by ordeal, such as placing the fists in boiling water, are prescribed in law, although currently seldom used.

Taboos

The death of a loved one is occasion for a number of taboos, lest the soul of the departed be hindered in the process to the spirit world. These generally proscribe various types or work or pleasure for a certain period, and are formally lifted by a ceremony.

The idea of taboo is not as prevalent in the Philippines as it is in many other places.

Magic

People become priests or mediums because of a demonstrated ability to communicate with the spirits; this generally means an ability to become possessed. Often priests are women. After the disposition is noticed, the person is trained in prayers and rituals by more experienced priests, but being one never becomes a full-time vocation.

In Tagalog they are called katalonan; in Visayan bailan.

Certain forms of divination can only have appeared in the Philippines as a result of transmittal across long distances and times. Most Filipinos practice augury based on the flight patterns of birds after the fashion of Odysseus; and haruspicy, or divination by the inspection of animal entrails, can only be a reflection of an ancient Mediterranean source.

The Bagobo and other tribes of Mindanao also practice a form of palmistry which has many resemblances to that with which we are familiar, and was probably brought by the Moslems.

All sacrifices and magical practices are thought to effect a certain suasion on the behavior of the spirits (anitos), and there is no magic apart from this context: it is the spirits themselves that actually help or harm human beings.

The Bagobo believe that most serious diseases are caused by evil spirits called buso, who want to kill people so that they can then feast on their flesh. Proper treatment of disease, then, consists in coaxing or compelling the buso to leave the body by various magic treatments such as wearing a necklace of human figurines to fool the buso, or drinking snake bile. Other diseases may be caused by breaking a taboo, such as inappropriate dress, laughing at one's reflection in water, or selling a piece of cloth before it is completed. Afflictions can also be caused by the left hand soul injuring itself when it goes out of the body during dreams. In these cases gods are appealed to by sacrifice or synthetic magic.

The Tinggians recite formulaic tales called diam during rituals; these are meant to remind both spirits and humans of the manner in which the spirit is supposed to behave as a result of the rite.

The Ifugao perform as a part of ceremonies something called tulud, which involves speaking the names of a number of places. By this, and by repeatedly directing the anitos' attention to the present situation, they hope to attract them from their faraway homes to the ritual at hand.