Ritualistic and Explanatory Myths
32[1]
The Īpogau[2] are making Sayang.[3] “Why do not those Īpogau who are making Sayang start the balaua[4] correctly?” said the spirits above. Those anitos[5] who are married, who are Kadaklan and Agᴇmᴇm,[6] say, “It is better that you carry the pig.” Then truly they carried the pig up the river, those two Īpogau who are married. “Ala! you walk and walk until you arrive at Sayau, for a person who lives there is making Sayang,” said the spirits. After that they arrived, those who are married who carried the pig, at the place of the man who made Sayang. “Where are you going?” asked the man of Sayau of those who carried the pig. “We came to see how you make Sayang, for we have not yet learned how to make Sayang correctly,” said those who are married. “Ala! watch what I am doing and imitate.” They watched what he did when he made Sayang, and he did everything. He made balag, sagoyab, aligang, they made also tangpap, they made adagang, balabago, and what is needed for al-lot.[7] After that, “You go home, and when you make Sayang you do as I did,” said the man from Sayau. They went home truly, those Īpogau, and they imitated the man who made Sayang in Sayau; then those who are married—Kadaklan and Agᴇmᴇm—caused the spirits to come whom they called, those who made dīam when they built balaua. (Here the medium names the spirits which cause sickness.)
Now you get better, you who build balaua.
33[8]
“Those who knew to make dawak, went to make dawak, but they did not prepare the pig correctly. Not long after Kabonīyan,[9] above, was Page 172looking down on those who make dawak. Kabonīyan went down to them, he went to tell those preparing the pig, because they did not prepare it correctly—those two who make dawak. After that they prepared the pig correctly and the sick person got well of the sickness.
“Ala, when there is again the repetition of the sickness to the person for whom you go to make dawak, do not neglect to prepare the pig correctly, so that the sick person may get better, whom you try to make well. I also, Kabonīyan, prepare correctly when there is a person for whom I make dawak, and you, Īpogau, do not prepare correctly when you make dawak.” After that when there is the person they go to cure who is sick, they always prepare correctly because it was Kabonīyan who told them to do always like that. When some one is ill whom they go to cure, they prepare correctly.
34[10]
The spirit who lives in Dadaya[11] lies in bed; he looks at his īgam[12] and they are dull. He looks again, “Why are my īgam dull? Ala, let us go to Sudipán where the Tinguian live and let us take our īgam, so that some one may make them bright again.” After that they laid them (the īgam) on the house of the Īpogau[13] and they are all sick who live in that house. Kaboniyan[14] looked down on them. “Ala, I shall go down to the Īpogau.” He truly went down to them, “What is the matter with you?” “We are all sick who live in the same place,” said those sick ones. “That is true, and the cause of your sickness is that they (the spirits) laid down their īgam on you. It is best that you make Pala-an, since you have received their īgam, for that is the cause of your illness.” After that they made Pala-an and they recovered from their sickness, those who lived in the same place. (Here the medium calls the spirits of Dadaya by name and then continues.) “Now those who live in the same place make bright again those īgam which you left in their house. Make them well again, if you please.”
35[15]
Those who live in the same town go to raid—to take heads. After they arrive, those who live in the same town, “We go and dance Page 173with the heads,” said the people who live in the same town, “because they make a celebration, those who went to kill.” “When the sun goes down, you come to join us,” said the mother and baby (to her husband who goes to the celebration). After that the sun truly went down; she went truly to join her husband; after that they were not (there), the mother and the baby (i.e., when the father arrived where they had agreed to meet, the mother and child were not there).
He saw their hats lying on the ground. He looked down; the mother and the baby were in (the ground), which ground swallowed them. “Why (are) the mother and the baby in the ground? How can I get them?” When he raises the mother and the baby, they go (back) into the ground. After that Kabonīyan above, looking down (said), “What can you do? The spirits of Ībal in Daᴇm are the cause of their trouble. It is better that you go to the home of your parents-in-law, and you go and prepare the things needed in Ībal[16],” said Kabonīyan.
They went truly and prepared; after that they brought (the things) to the gate. After that the mother and child came out of the ground. “After this when there is a happening like this, of which you Īpogau are in danger, you do like this (i.e., make the Ībal ceremony) and I alone, Kabonīyan, am the one you summon,” said Kabonīyan.
After that they got well because they came up—the mother and the baby.
36[17]
There is a very old woman in the sea who says to her spirits—Dapeg (a spirit which kills people) and Balingenngen (a spirit which causes bad dreams) and Benisalsal (a spirit which throws things and is unpleasant), “Go beyond the sea and spread your sicknesses.” The spirits are going. They arrive and begin their work, and if the people do not make Sangásang many will die. Now it is morning and the spirits are going to the river to see what the people have offered to the old woman, who is Ináwen (mother). If they do not find anything, they will say, “All the people in this town shall die,” and then they will go on to another place.
Ináwen, who is waiting, sends Kideng (a servant) to search for the spirits who are killing people, to tell them to return. Dapeg leaves the first town. He goes to another and the dogs bark so that the people cannot sleep. A man opens the door, to learn the cause of the barking, and he sees a man, fat and tall, with nine heads and he carries many kinds of cakes. The man says, “Now take these cakes, and if Page 174you do not make Sangásang for my mistress, at the river, you shall die. You must find a rooster with long tail and spurs; you must mix its blood with rice and put it in the river at dawn when no one can see you.”
The man makes Sangásang the next night, and puts the blood mixed with rice in a well dug by the river, so that the spirits may take it to their mistress. Kideng also arrives and says, “You must come with me now, for she awaits you who are bearing this offering.” They go and arrive. Their mistress eats and says, “I did not think that the blood of people tasted so badly, now I shall not send you again, for you have already killed many people.”
37[18]
“You whom I send, go to the place where our relatives live in Sudipán,”[19] said Maganáwan of Nagbotobotán, “because I desire very much the blood of the rooster mixed with rice.” He gave his cane and sack, “When you arrive at the place (of those who live) in Sudipán you wave my cane and the husks of betel-nut which are here in my sack.” They truly waved when they arrived: many snakes (were creeping) and many birds (flying) when they waved there by the gate.
“How many snakes and birds now,” said the Īpogau.[20] “Go! command to make Sangásang” said the married ones.
“We shall wait the blood of the rooster mixed with rice, because they remember to command to make Sangásang” said those who Maganáwan of Nagbotobotán commanded. They took the blood of the rooster mixed with rice, which was put in the saloko[21] in the yard; they arrived to their master. “How slow you are,” said Maganáwan. “We are only slow, because there was no one who listened to us where we arrived first,” said those whom he commanded; “we went up (the river) until there was one who remembered to command to make Sangásang, which is what we now bring to you—the blood of the rooster mixed with rice.” They gave; he put in his mouth—the one who commanded them—he spit out. “Like this which is spit out (shall be) the sickness of the Īpogau who remember me,” said Maganáwan of Nagbotobotán. After that it is as if nothing had happened to the family. Page 175
38[22]
The Īpogau are digging where they make stand the poles of their houses. “You go to give the sign,” said the master of the sign to the sīkᴇt.[23] Sīkᴇt went. “Why do we have a bad sign? We remove the poles,” said the Īpogau, and they removed that there might be no bad sign. The deer went to call when they were digging where they removed those poles which they made stand. “We remove again the poles,” said the Īpogau, and they removed again. When they were digging, where they made to stand those poles which they removed, the wild pig went to grunt. They removed again the poles which make the house.
As before, the snake went to climb the pole with which they made the house, and they removed again. When they were digging again where they made the poles stand with which they made the house, the labᴇg[24] skimmed over, and as they had a bad sign the Īpogau moved again the poles with which they made the house. “Koling,” and “Koling” and again “Koling” (the bird cried); they removed again the log which they made stand, with which they made the house. The salaksák clucked, who flew where they dug, where they made those poles stand, with which they made the house.
Since they have the bad sign again, they say to the others—those who make the poles stand—“We are very tired always to dig and dig, and to make stand and make stand those poles, we go ahead to make the house,” and they placed their lumber and they went—one family of the Īpogau. Then they finished what they built, their house. There was nothing good for them, and there was nothing which was not their sickness (i.e., they had all manner of sickness).
“My wife,” said Kabonīyan, “give me the coconut oil, that I oil my spear, for I go to see those Īpogau who are sick.” When those Īpogau who were sick were in their house, his spear fell in their house. “What is the matter with you, Īpogau?” said Kabonīyan. “What is the matter with you, you say, and there is nothing which we do not do for our sickness, and we are never cured,” said those Īpogau. And Kabonīyan answered, “How can you become cured of your sickness when you have a bad sign for that which you made—your house? The reason of your sickness is because you do not make Sangásang. The good way (is) you find a rooster, and that you command the one who knows how to make dīam of the Sangásang to make Sangásang. Page 176I (am) always the one for whom you make dīam,” said Kabonīyan. And truly, before they had finished making Sangásang, it was as if there had been nothing wrong, that family was cured of their sickness.
39[25]
The poles of the Īpogau's house were quarreling. Said the floor supports to the poles who were quarreling, “What can you do if I am not?” “What can you do if I am not?” said the foot-boards to those floor supports who are quarreling. “What can you do if I am not?” said the cross supports to those floor supports who are quarreling. “What can you do if I am not?” said the cross supports to those foot-boards who are quarreling. “What can you do if I am not?” said the floor to those cross supports who are quarreling. “What can you do if I am not?” said the wall to the floor boards who are quarreling. “What can you do if I am not?” said the beams to the wall boards who are quarreling. “What can you do if I am not?” said the pongo[26] to the beams who are quarreling. “What can you do if I am not?” said the daplat[27] to the pongo who are quarreling. “What can you do if I am not?” said the end pole to those daplat who are quarreling. “What can you do if I am not?” said the salabáwan[26] to those end poles who are quarreling. “What can you do if I am not—who am legpet?” said those legpet to those salabáwan, “Though you are legpet, you can do nothing if I am not,” said the gakot, “because you fall,” said the gakot to the legpet who are quarreling. “And what can you all do if I am not, who am grass? you all decay if I am not,” said the grass (roof) to those who are quarreling. “Therefore we are all the same use to the house of the Īpogau; we will unite our thoughts and breath, so that in the same manner the thoughts of the Īpogau are united, who live in us,” said those who are quarreling. And they united their thoughts and breath. After that the Īpogau who were sick were cured, those who lived in the house. It was as if there was nothing bad for that family.
40[28]
The great spirit lives in the sky, and he is carrying the goods of the people. He says to himself, “To whom shall I give these goods which I am carrying? I shall take them to the earth.” He looked down on Page 177Bisau, for the people there promised to make Ubaya. Soon the people saw a man entering the town and they sent a man to prevent him[29]. He said, “Let me come in, for I bring goods for you. Your food and animals and other things which you need shall be increased.” After that he said, “Let all the people in the world know of this so that they will make Ubaya for me, and I will aid them also.”