Kankanay Ceremonies Part 8

Then they lay down and watched to see who had eaten the meat. They saw a snake above where they were standing, and said to it, "Probably you ate the meat." The Snake answered, "Yes, I ate it." The two brothers said, "We shall certainly kill you." The Snake answered, "Do not kill me; I will teach you how to cure wounds, and you can make your father alive again." The Snake said, "Give me your spears, bolos, sticks, and sharp stones." They gave them. The Snake put the spears, bolos, sticks, and rocks near the wound and prayed. Boliwan became alive again.

The brothers said to the snake, "We think you are a G.o.d (anito)." The Snake answered, "Yes, I am a G.o.d." The brothers said, "We will tell the children of the people, so that if there is something like this they may cure it, and may call our names when celebrating the sibisib."

The story related in Buguias is substantially the same as the one related by the Kabayan Nabaloi in the same ceremony.

The sibisib is celebrated in the town of Bacun in Amburayan, and in Ampusungan of Lepanto, but I do not know whether it is made in other Lepanto towns.

GAYSING

The larger number of the Benguet Kankanay are betrothed while children by their parents. The betrothal ceremony is called gaysing. As a rule this canao is celebrated when the children are very young; frequently while they are infants; and occasionally before one of them is born.

One of the primary objects of the gaysing is to cement friends.h.i.+p between the parents, and it is frequently held after they have quarreled and pressure has been brought to bear to cause them to become friendly again.

An animal, generally a cow, is killed and tapuy is furnished, but there is no spoken ritual.

The Nabaloi custom of betrothal is the same, and the same ceremony is celebrated.

GALON

The betrothal ceremony celebrated by the young people themselves without the intervention of their parents is called galon. It is held only in the instances where there has been no gaysing, or where the parties for whom the gaysing has been celebrated refuse to marry. Except in the case of the rich, refusal to marry is rare, since the one who refuses must pay all expenses incurred for the gaysing.

The galon is celebrated exactly like the gaysing.

The corresponding Nabaloi ceremony is called kalon.

MANGILIN

The marriage ceremony, called mangilin, is similar to the mangidin of the Nabaloi.

A hog is always offered for sacrifice, and the mambunong prays, calling the names of the sky deities and asking them to witness the marriage. They are also requested to cause those marrying to treat each other properly, to cause them to have many children, to cause everything which they plant to grow well, to cause them to have luck with their livestock, and to give them long life and riches.

After the prayer the Mambunong pa.s.ses a cup of water to the bridegroom, who drinks, and then gives the cup to the bride.

A taboo is effective against both the bride and groom for three days after the ceremony. At the end of this time they go to the brook to bathe, the man taking his ax and the woman her camote basket. While bathing each one repeats a short formula, after which they are husband and wife.

MANSIYANUN

In case of divorce the mansiyanun, which is the same as the pansijanun of the Nabaloi, is made. There is no spoken ritual, but a hog and tapuy are furnished the people.

The engagement, marriage, and divorce ceremonies are similar throughout Benguet, eastern Amburayan, and southern Lepanto.

SILING

The siling, or funeral ceremony, is celebrated in all Benguet Kankanay towns, and, indeed, under various names, by the majority if not all of the Igorot tribes.

Except in the case of infants or very small children the dead are not buried immediately, but are put into a death chair around which funeral rites are held. In the meantime animals belonging to the dead person or his relatives are killed and eaten, while the burial is delayed.

The interval between the death and the burial varies according to the wealth of the deceased, sometimes lasting for months in the case of the very wealthy. Even when the health authorities force immediate burial on account of danger from infectious diseases, the siling continues just the same with a dummy corpse in the death chair.

Before anything is killed, the mambunong prays, asking that the food eaten at the siling may not cause sickness. A female relative then leans on the death chair and says the following:

"You are dead, ----. We are giving everything we can for your siling. Do not come back for us, but let us live long."

After the siling ends the corpse is put into the coffin and buried in the ground, or placed in a natural cave. The burial takes place either in the afternoon, between sunset and dark, or in the morning before the sun rises.

PUGAS

After a dead person has been buried, the people gather in his yard. They get a vessel of water, and the mambunong puts gra.s.s in it and sprinkles them, while saying the following:

Wada, kano, san dua sin agi. Daeda Balitok un Obog. Nananakda ut napno san kabilibilig. Asida naatui san kayilianda. Natui payan inkapotda. Asida matapog nan kayipupugau at alanda san usay pingan ya lima ay tabon di pao, ut manpagasda. Manpagasda pay, kano, yan laton utay magay mamatui un daeda. Ingayan duiay ya lida ut ipugasdasnan kayi ipuipugau ut sianan moada matui, maagum san ipugau ut manpagasna.

There were two brothers. They were Balitok and Obog. They had children, and the mountains fell. Then their neighbors died. When they died they buried them. Then the people gathered together, and took one plate and five leaves of cogon gra.s.s and made a ceremony. They made the ceremony then so that none of them would die. Then they handed it down to the people so that when there were deaths, the people would gather together and perform the ceremony.

The pugas corresponds to the Nabaloi okat.

KIAD

The kiad is a ceremony celebrated by the Kankanay of Kapangan and Kibungan to cure sickness inflicted upon the wealthy by the souls of their dead relatives.

A carabao, a cow, or a horse may be killed when the kiad is celebrated.

The people first take a jar of tapuy to the grave of that dead relative of the sick person who is indicated by the anap as having caused the sickness. A hole is made in the grave, and the mambunong prays as follows:

Amud, omalika ta yaanaka si noang, gale; ya maninommi tapuy.

Soul of dead relative, come because you are given a carabao, a blanket; and we will drink tapuy.

The blanket is put into the grave, after which the people go to the house of the sick person. They tie the animal to be killed, and give the rope to the mambunong. He then prays as follows, while holding the rope: