The Igorot in Philippine Literature: Bone Talk by Candy Gourlay

Courtesy of this blog, every now and then I would receive an email, mostly from university students, asking for recommendations with regards to books about Igorots. These requests are usually due to them burdened with an assignment or a research project the completion of which requires them to accumulate knowledge about certain aspects of "the Igorot". When it comes to non-fiction books about Igorots, I have quite a pile to recommend. There's a good number of non-fiction books out there that cover Igorot-related topics from our history starting from the arrival of the Spaniards to our cultural traditions (then and now).

Want to read about pre-colonial and colonial Igorots? Read the books by William Henry Scott and Albert Jenks. Want to read about the art of Kalinga tattooing? Analyn Salvador-Amores has you covered. To anyone looking for reading materials about the Igorots, I highly suggest he/she visits the library of the University of the Philippines in Baguio or the bookstore at the Museo Kordilyera (also inside the UP Baguio campus).

Around November of last year, I received an email from a student currently studying at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines. She introduced herself as a half-Igorot and half-Tagalog. Kristine is her name. Her father is from Angono, Rizal and her mother is from Tadian, Mt. Province. She explains that she is very proud of her Igorot origin but she adds that she rarely brings it up to people because aside from having 50% Igorot blood, there's not much else that would identify her as Igorot. She was born and raised in Angono. She doesn't speak nor understand Kankana-ey, the language of her mother. She is completely clueless about the traditions and cultural practices of the Igorots.

She emailed me because she wanted help in looking for reading materials about the Igorots. She specifically asked what books should she read. I sent her a patented reply. I recommended the usual books by Salvador-Amores, Jenks, Scott, and a few others. She thanked me for the recommendations. I didn't hear from her for a couple of months. Then this February, I received another email from her. She enthusiastically narrated that she read all the books I've recommended and that she found them engrossing and eye-opening. She then noted that all the titles are non-fiction. She also wanted another set of recommendations from me. This time, she asked for fiction books about Igorots. Now that she has knowledge about the Igorots and their history, she wanted to move forward and read how they are depicted in works of fiction. How are Igorots portrayed in literature? Do their portrayals in literary works jive with the words and observations of Scott, Jenks, Salvador-Amores, and company? These are questions she wanted some answers to.

At this point, I realized that I haven't read a single fiction book which feature the Igorot as a character. It has never occurred to me to go looking for one. So I told Kristine that I have nothing to recommend because just like her, I haven't read a single fiction book featuring Igorot characters. But I also told her that I'll help her find one. This sent me into a little journey looking for novels with Igorot characters.

And I found out there's very few of them. The one that got the bulk of my attention is Bone Talk by Candy Gourlay. I chose to read Bone Talk first for several reasons. One, the novel's author is a known name in the Philippine writing community. Two, it was published by Anvil which is one of the more prestigious (or should I say reliable) publishers in the country. So far, my experience with Anvil-published books has been within the realms of good to excellent. And three, the book has mostly good reviews with several influential Filipino authors vouching for it.

So for a couple of nights, I had to forego bingeing Trailer Park Boys on Netflix to devour the book. Bone Talk was marketed as a YA (Young Adult) novel. The style and flow of the prose definitely stayed close with the genre. Set in 1899 in a village in Bontoc, the novel is basically the coming-of-age story of an Igorot boy named Samkad. Serving as a backdrop for Samkad's transition from boy to man are real historical events like tribal conflicts and the arrival of American colonizers.

The plot is pretty simple. There are no grand twists and turns. But that doesn't matter because it's a well-written tale made colorful and engrossing with the way Gourlay weaved aspects of Igorot culture and history into the story. I also liked the pace of the story. It wasn't too slow. Gourlay didn't rush things either. So many YA authors these days have this annoying habit of rushing the plot forward in an attempt to drum up excitement. Fortunately, Gourlay didn't commit that grave error here. The pace of the story was close to perfect. Not too slow. Not too fast.

With historical novels like Bone Talk, it's expected that readers inquire about its accuracy. I grew up in Besao, a town in Mt. Province. Besao and Bontoc are neighbors. This should give me a tiny bit of authority to judge the accuracy of the book with regards to its depiction of the Bontoc Igorots and their culture/traditions. I think the book was mostly fair and on point. However, there are certain parts of the story that are not historically accurate. A lot of these are on the culture/traditions front. I am not going to divulge these in this article because I don't want to ruin the story for those who haven't read the book. Suffice it to say that Gourlay used her artistic freedom in crafting her tale to give it more color. To give it more sting, if you may.

To be fair to Gourlay, she doesn't claim her book to be historically accurate. In fact, she is very straightforward in saying that Bone Talk is not a history book. In notes at the end of the book, she wrote: "This story is not history though it is set during a real time, in a real place." It's also worth mentioning that Gourlay is not an Igorot. Some readers especially Igorot readers may feel some doubts after knowing this important fact. But at the end, whether Gourlay is or is not an Igorot is a non-issue. She did her research, she wrote the story, and she used her artistic freedom to craft the final product. It's what writers do.

Still, probably to appease those who might still be harboring doubts because of Gourlay's non-Igorot roots, she has this to say in her notes at the end of the book: "I do not hail from the Cordillera and I beg the forgiveness of its many and diverse peoples for any misreading of their culture. As a storyteller I can only spin a pale imitation of any reality. I hope that this story awakens the world's curiosity about this extraordinary time and place. With utmost respect to the people of the Cordillera."

Gourlay has been more than fair in depicting the Igorot in her book. And she's been more than humble in addressing those who might think otherwise. That's more than good enough for me. So dear reader, read this book.

And lest I forget, Kristine, you should read this book. This serves as a recommendation.

Bone Talk by Candy Gourlay

The Roofless Arts Studio Of Artist Jordan Mang-osan In La Trinidad, Benguet

Tucked within the close-knit community in Bayabas, La Trinidad, Benguet is a unique three-story building. It stands out from the rest of the landscape. Colorful banners fly on its rooftop. Totem poles adorned with animal skulls and dreamcatchers stick out to meet the cloudy Cordilleran sky. If you enter the building and take the dozens of steps to the roof, you’ll find a replica of a “dap-ay.”

The building is home to artist Jordan Mang-osan and his Roofless Arts Studio. Inside is a huge collection of his works (completed paintings and those still in progress). Down-to-earth and hospitable almost to a fault, Mang-osan welcomes his visitors with a ready smile and cups of brewed coffee.

Mang-osan is mostly well-known for his meticulously rendered solar paintings. His subjects and themes usually revolve around Cordillera landscapes, Igorot culture, Igorot public figures, and national celebrities. Adorning the walls of the studio are portraits of Whang-od, Dulag Macliing, Carrot Man, martial artists of Team Lakay, Pia Wurtzbach, Manny Pacquiao, and President Rodrigo Duterte.

Also inside the studio are Mang-osan’s work tables and the tools of his trade. Hanging on a wall at the roof are the various glass lenses he uses to create his unique art. Sitting idly nearby is a huge block of plywood featuring a yet to be completed landscape painting.

Mang-osan says that he isn’t always at his Roofless Arts Studio. Groups who want to visit will have to make an appointment to make sure that he’ll be there when they visit.

Yet Another K-To-12 Book Teaching Erroneous And Misleading Information About Igorots

Here we go again. Another textbook being used by the Department of Education in their K-to-12 program contains a nugget of erroneous information about Igorots. An illustrated lesson in the textbook makes the assertion that Igorots live in the province of Zambales. The illustrated lesson shows a drawing of an Igorot boy with the following caption: "Magandang araw sa inyo! Ako si Gambo. Nakatira ako sa Zambales. Mahilig akong maglaro kasama ang aking mga kaibigan". English translation is as follows [my own translation]: "Good day to all of you! My name is Gambo. I live in Zambales. I enjoy playing with my friends".

Whoever wrote the lesson was probably thinking about the Aeta people, a completely different indigenous group living in the provinces of Zambales, Bataan, Pampanga, and Tarlac. The book in question is an Araling Panlipunan (Social Studies) textbook for Grade 3 students titled Tuklas Lahi 3. This is what I find to be rather damning about the textbook. It's a social studies book that's supposedly penned with the intention of educating students about the various ethnic groups in the country. So how come a huge blunder like this was able to pass through the editorial net. Was there even an editorial net?

I did a bit of digging about the book and I found out that it was produced by a Quezon City-based local publisher called Brilliant Creations Publishing, Inc. I also learned that the textbook was published in January of last year. So I'm sort of surprised the error didn't come out in the open much sooner. Criticism of the error gained traction only when a photo of it was posted on Facebook by a certain Peewee Bacuno (a copy of the photo is posted below). Three names were listed as authors of the book: Mario L. Flores II, Jessica Mariz R. Ignacio, and Rowel S. Padernal. Again, you have to wonder how the error was able to make it to final printing considering the fact that the book had three writers. And let's not forget the editors (if they had editors).

Where DepEd Get Their Textbooks
I'm not 100% sure about this but I'd like to believe that DepEd has two main sources for their textbooks. There are the textbooks that they produce in-house. These are books written and edited within the department. And then there are the textbooks they purchase from independent publishers. Brilliant Creations Publishing , Inc. which produced the Tuklas Lahi 3 textbook is one of these outside publishers. In a way, this takes away some of the blame being lodged against DepEd. However, purchasers from DepEd should've browsed thoroughly through the books before they rolled these into the educational system. If they had gone over the books, they shouldn't be contending with this mess right now.

Image credit: Peewee Bacuno

It's worth mentioning here that this isn't the first time that erroneous information about Igorots were found in DepEd textbooks. One textbook claimed that Aetas are from Mt. Province. Another textbook asserted that Igorots are found in Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union, Pangasinan, and a place called "Italia". To be fair, this is partly true since certain groups of Igorots live within the borders of the Cordillera Region and Ilocandia. However, that part about a place called "Italia" was a complete head-scratcher.

By our record, that's three huge errors about Igorots in our textbooks. And these are only the reported ones. What if there's more? This is really saddening especially if we are to take into account the fact that Igorots are among the most misunderstood ethnic groups in the country. There's a lot of misconceptions about us Igorots out there. And these errors in our textbooks are making the problem worse. DepEd needs to step up its game in ensuring that the textbooks they use are factual and free from misleading information.

Quick Thoughts on Cordilleran Culture in the 21st Century

I was at an obscure and fairly deserted bar in Baguio City a few nights ago, having a heated conversation with an old friend from college. We were in the thick of discussing the main arguments I've put forth in the book about Igorot history and culture that I'm currently attempting to write. We've met that night with the sole intention of trying to iron out some of our differences when it comes to our views on Cordilleran culture. I'm her most ardent critic. She extends to me the same courtesy.

Our exchange of cultural ideas has always been fervent ever since we met at a philosophy class in Saint Louis University over a decade ago. She has always been and will always be a good friend. But when it comes to certain ideologies and thought movements, we are the worst of enemies. I lost count how many times we've called each other "tabbed". That's the Kankanaey/Ilocano term for "idiot" or "moron". This is one of the things that I truly admire about her aside from being too smart (sometimes too smart for her own good). She's not afraid to call me an idiot if she catches me saying something idiotic. She is always quick to cut me off when I attempt to misdirect the conversation with another white lie.

One time, I joined her and her husband, and their immensely cute little daughter for lunch. I was with the impression that she won't be that harsh with her critique of me in the company of others. I was dreadfully wrong. She called me "tabbed" numerous times in front of her husband and child while we conversed over steamed pork and carrot cake. That’s how uncensored and unguarded she is when it comes to topics she is very passionate about. I’ve always taken her outbursts as compliments because if I said something that jolted her brain, that means I’m making her think. I’m making a mark. This unique habit of hers amuses me sometimes. Her husband tried to apologize. I chuckled and brushed it off. I told him I’m more than used to it. We all had a good laugh before we called it a day.

In a nutshell, she and I disagree more than we find common ground with regards to culturally-charged ideas and concepts. Most times, we find ourselves on opposite sides of the street. The conversations we have often have the same ending – we simply agree to disagree. Culturally speaking, she’s a purist. I, on the other hand, take a more flexible stance. For example, she loses her wits when she notices someone wearing the traditional Igorot attire wrong. She rattles her head as she starts another diatribe about women wearing the “bakget” or “ingay” wrong.

Her attention to detail is beyond phenomenal. She knows the specific designs of traditional textiles woven within the confines of Kalinga, Mt. Province, Ifugao, and Benguet. She often sends me links to YouTube videos of people claiming to be dancing an Igorot dance when in fact the steps and the music are an "unbelievable mess" (her words, not mine). She thinks that the old Igorot folks at the Botanical Garden are giving the tribe a bad name. In essence, she wants our culture and our traditions to be where they were before western civilization came marching in and injected all sorts of influences and modifications.

I understand her purist stance. In fact, I have the feeling that majority of Igorots today share her sentiments especially on the issue of preserving our culture and traditions to the exact letter. The consensus, I believe, is that nothing should get out nor get in. Keep the dances as is. Keep the indigenous attires as is. Keep the songs as is. To a certain degree, I agree with these purist tactics. However, I also believe that culture should evolve. It should be subject to change. Let us not forget how our ancestors danced, how they sang, how they dressed, and how they performed rituals. In fact, let’s record and put all of these original things into paper, into digital files, into moving pictures so that we can remember and celebrate them. Let’s practice and observe them for as long as we are able to. But at the same time, let us not allow this purist attitude turn into an impregnable wall that prevents our culture from evolving into something else.

Photo credit: scion_cho via Flickr. [CC BY-NC 2.0]

In pursuit of fairness, I have to admit that I used to have these purist tendencies with regards to Cordilleran culture. However, after soaking up the limited but data-rich historical records and papers on the region’s history, my reluctance to change slowly crumbled and ebbed away. It’s not completely gone, of course. Change has its limits, at least as far as cultures and traditions are concerned. A perfect example would be cultural misappropriation. Both non-Igorots and Igorots are guilty of this sin. It’s bad because it wants to affect change through ignorance. The kind of change we can accept should be the ones that are done with respect, with class, and in good taste.

Lest the reader makes the assumption that I look down on purists, I do not. I’m simply offering these ideas as things to think about. I'm also not saying that I carry the right stance and that those who oppose it are wrong. Like I always do with my old friend from college, I'd be more than willing to agree to disagree.

Erroneous And Misleading Information About Igorots In K To 12 Educational Book

If you are to visit the official website set up by the Philippine government for its K to 12 basic education program, there's a section there that goes into details about the "salient features" of the program. Two of these "salient features" involve contextualization and enhancement [making lessons relevant to the learners by using examples and illustrations based on local culture, history, and reality] and mother tongue-based multilingual education [using the local language as the medium of instruction inside the classroom]. This is why public schools nowadays make use of textbooks that utilize contextualization and that are written in local languages. These are good concepts. They make complete sense.

However, it becomes very problematic when some of the information in the books are erroneous or are totally untrue. Take for instance the recent discovery of another error in an Ilocano-language K to 12 book. In a lesson about various indigenous groups in the country, the book committed at least two errors in its description of Igorots. One, the book claims that Igorots live in the mountains of Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union, and Pangasinan. Two, the book further claims that Igorots in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) can be found in "Italia". What is this "Italia"? Where can it be found? Are the writers of the book referring to the European country or are they alluding that there's a place within CAR called "Italia"?

Here's the description as found in the book: "Dagiti tattao nga agnaed kadagiti il-ili a masarakan kadagiti probinsia to Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union, ken dagiti ili iti daya a paset ti Pangasinan. Iti CAR, makita dagiti Igorot iti Italia."

Here's a rough English translation: "Igorots are the people living in the mountains within the provinces of Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union, and some areas in Pangasinan. In CAR, the Igorots can be found in Italia."

Errors of this nature shouldn't even be possible given the available resources out there. It makes one to wonder if the writers behind these books consulted with people knowledgeable about the different indigenous groups in the country. Did they even perform standard research? Just a quick Google search will lead you to a fairly accurate resource about Igorots on Wikipedia. There's not a single sentence there mentioning "Italia".

Looking back at the erroneous description on the book, it seems that the writers were referring to the Bago tribes. These are tribes that occupy the borders between the provinces of Region 1 and the provinces of CAR. There's no consensus as to whether they can be called Igorots or not. Some of them refer to themselves as Igorots while others prefer calling them Bagos.

Photo courtesy of Rose Bacaoat via Facebook.

This is not the first time that wrong information about Igorots was found in a K to 12 book. Several months ago, a grade 4 workbook called Edukasyon Sa Pagkakatao said that Aetas are found in Mountain Province. The writers obviously got confused in the differences between Aetas and Igorots. What's so damning about this error is that the book had a consultant, three editors, thirteen writers, and two examiners. So it's mind-boggling that this army of writers and editors didn't  spot the error before publication. After the discovery of the error, we sent an email to the Department of Education. We still don't know if the error has been fixed or if they're doing something about it. We are yet to receive a reply from them.

Music And Dances Of The Kalinga And Ga'dang Tribes To Be Featured In San Francisco Dance Festival

The Parangal Dance Company, a folk dance group composed of Filipino-Americans and based in the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California is set to participate in an annual festival that will feature dancers and musicians from more than 20 different world cultures. Called the San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival, the performances will run from June 3 to 19 at the Palace of Fine Arts Theater.

The Parangal Dance company will be performing on the first weekend (June 4 and 5) of the festival at the Palace of Fine Arts Theater. The group will be performing a piece they call Kopyan chi biyeg. According to the group, the performance is composed of "traditional dances from the rugged Cordillera Mountain Range, showcasing the culture of indigenous Ga'dang from Paracelis, Mountain Provice and Kalinga from Lubuagan, Kalinga." The group added that "these dances and rituals pay homage to the gods, connect with the spirit world, and honor traditions on Earth."

For their cultural resources, the dance group consulted with several members of the Ga'dang and Kalinga tribes. From the Ga'dang, they sought help from Amparo Mabanag and Margareth Balansi. From the Kalinga, they had Cirilo Sapi Bawer, Jenny Bawer Young, and Ophelia Bawer Addom as cultural resources.

Parangal will be performing on June 4 (Saturday) at 2 pm and 8 pm. They will again perform the next day at 4 pm. For tickets to the events, visit City Box Office. Discounts are available for those who are attending in groups. For more information about the Parangal Dance Group, check out their official website here or visit their Facebook page here.

Image credit: the Parangal Dance Company

Another Filipino group, the LIKHA - Pilipino Folk Dance Company will also be performing in the festival on its second week. For the full line-up of events and performers in the festival, go here.

This K-To-12 Book Is Teaching Students That Aetas Are From Mountain Province

It's not exactly a secret that Igorots are among the most misunderstood indigenous groups in the Philippines. A lot of non-Igorots harbor several misconceptions about us. We have tails. We live in trees. We have flat noses. We attend to our daily chores wearing our traditional g-strings and skirts. We have feet that are bigger than everyone else's. We have dark skins, We have curly hair. There's nothing wrong with having a dark complexion or curly short hair. But the fact remains that these are not typical features of Igorots in the same way that almond-shaped eyes aren't typical features of Americans or the Brits.

These misconceptions can be attributed to several factors. However, I strongly believe that the biggest contributor to these erroneous ideas is what's being taught about us in our educational system. I can still remember the textbooks we used when I was in elementary school (the 90s). The Igorot is often portrayed as a grizzled and half-naked man puffing on a pipe. If it's an Igorot kid, he's short, he has bulging muscles disproportionate to his body, and he has feet that equal that of Bigfoot. And yes, there's the ubiquitous bowl-cut haircut.

Anyway, we're marching through the 21st century and it's sad to say that these misconceptions still abound. And making matters worse, the Department of Education is still spreading inaccurate information about us. Take for instance an erroneous paragraph found in a book for Grade 4 students under the K-to-12 program.

The paragraph in question goes: "Tinatayang may humigit kumulang 180 pangkat etniko sa Pilipinas. sa Luzon, ilan sa mga kilala ang mga Aeta sa Mountain Province, Bikolano sa Kabikulan, Gaddang at Ibanag sa Gitnang Luzon, Ivatan sa Batanes, Mangyan sa Mindoro, Tagalog sa Kamaynilaan, at iba pa. Sa Visayas at Mindanao ay kilala rin ang mga Subanon sa Zamboanga Peninsula, Bisaya sa Kabisayaan, Zamboangueno sa Kamindanawan, at marami pang iba."

The book just directly stated that Aetas are from Mountain Province. That's the very definition of false. Aetas are found in Zambales, Tarlac, Pampanga, Panay, Bataan, and Nueva Ecija. The authors of the book have made a very common mistake. And that is equating Igorots to Aetas when in fact they are completely different groups.

The book in question is a grade 4 student's workbook titled Edukasyon sa Pagkakatao. The erroneous paragraph I quoted above is from a lesson from the book titled "Kultura ng mga Pangkat Etniko, Mahalagang Malaman". So yeah, the lesson is about ethnic groups in the country and their cultures. So this begs the question: Why does a blatant error like this happen in a lesson about ethnic cultures? This is like writing a lesson about classic English literature and claiming that Leo Tolstoy is an English writer.

I dug deeper into the book (thanks to Google) and found out that it's a first edition book published in 2015. And here's the shocker:
- it had one consultant
- it had three editors
- it had thirteen (13) writers
- it was examined by two people

I would like to think that these people at least consulted with someone who is knowledgeable about the different ethnic groups in the country. I'm also hoping that this is an honest mistake. Because if the writers truly thought that Aetas are in Mountain Province, then they have no business writing lessons about ethnic groups and cultures.

A mural painting of an Igorota during the La Trinidad Strawberry Festival.

Anyway, I sent an email to action@deped.gov.ph informing them of the erroneous paragraph. Here's to hoping that they do something about it. If you have time, send them an email as well. The more emails they receive, the more pressured they will be to correct the error. You can read the complete workbook here.

Igorot Dances, Music, And Rituals To Be Featured In Production By California-Based Dance Company

The Cordillera region is a cradle that serves as a home to indigenous groups collectively referred to as Igorots. The thing that differentiates the Igorot people from most other indigenous groups in the Philippines is that a large part of their cultural traditions which include songs, dances, and rituals are still widely practiced or observed.

However, there's the undeniable fact that as older generations give way to newer ones, we start to lose our unique identity. A candle burning itself to oblivion, if you will. The number of Igorot youths knowledgeable of our cultural songs and dances dwindles every year. It's an unfortunate thing but it's a trend that would be impossible to stop.

But amidst this breaking down of our culture, flickers of hope for momentary swells and revivals rear their heads every now and then. And in a lot of times, the flickers come from the most unexpected places. Take for instance an upcoming stage production cooked by a folk dance group based in California. Titled Alamat (Legends), the show will feature songs, dances, and rituals from several indigenous groups in the Philippines including those of the Kalinga and Ga'dang people. Also covered in the production are music and dances by the Tboli, Bagobo-Tagabawa, and Maranao indigenous groups.

The group behind Alamat (Legends) is the Parangal Dance Group which is composed of Filipino-American artists in the San Francisco Bay Area. In its mission statement, the group says that it aims to "give tribute to Philippine heritage by preserving and promoting ethnic attire, music, and dance through research, workshops, and performances." The group said that for the Kalinga and Ga'dang segments of the production, they sought input from Jenny Bawer Young, Amparo Mabanag, and Margareth Balansi.

Showtime for Alamat (Legends) will be on October 3, 2015 at the Skyline College Theatre in San Bruno, California. The first staging will happen at 2 pm with a replay at 7 pm. For more information about the dance group and their projects, visit their website here. Below are two videos that will give you an idea on how the production presented the Kalinga and Ga'dang bits. The first one is a teaser trailer for the production. The second is footage from the group's recent performance in the television program Asian Pacific America.

Image credit: This Is It Photography via the Parangal Dance Company Facebook page.

Story: Igorots Used To Offer Human Heads As Burnt Offerings For Kabunyan

[This piece which you are about to read is a contribution from one of our readers, John Tamale. John recounts some of the stories he had heard from his late mother who hailed from the town of Sabangan in Mt. Province.]

By John Tamale - Recently, I was searching for images, stories and things concerning the Igorot tribe in the internet. I felt frustrated finding out that nothing really wrote on the activities that Igorots had been engaged with before pen and paper came. This gave me the idea to write the stories told by my mother who hailed from Sabangan, Mt. Province. Her name was Giyeb and she died on her old age last 2002.

During the days before we sleep at night, it was fun for me to ask my mother on how her old folks lived their life in their olden days: What were their food and how did they produce it, how was their living condition, how did they travel, how was their house made of, what were their utensils, instruments and tools, how did they hunt and what usually were their catch, how did they celebrate marriages and where did they got their animals…etc.

According to my mother, her parents migrated from Gonogon, Bontoc to Sabangan proper because they wanted to avoid being attacked by “Buso” (which means men from other Igorot village coming to get human head for ritual purposes). Apparently, Sabangan is a bigger, better and safer place than Gonogon. She said that in earlier time, when “Buso” tries to enter the town of Sabangan, all passages seemed to be impassable. The normal path turned to steep precipice or the night becomes very dark that the “buso” can’t find the passageway to enter the village.

This mysterious thing happens because every full moon, Sabangan people butchered four pigs and make the head as burnt offering to “Kabunyan” (their God who created heaven and earth), asking “Kabunyan” to protect and cover them from enemies. During this occasion, the village leaders pray while the people feasted on the pig’s meat. They needed four pigs because there were four passages going into their place. On those events, everybody is obliged to go to “At-atowan” (village’s center) and join the feast so no one is allowed to go to the fields.

Image credit: Tanya Umawing via Flickr

They had seasons to observe; (1) “Tengaw” before planting season. Tengaw means no one is allowed to go for work. Everybody in the village has to attend the feast in the At-atowan or Dap-ay a day prior to the start of planting season. They do the announcement by “Bugaw” (shouting around the town’s vicinity) done by the appointed shouter early in the morning when almost all people starts to do their daily chores.

Along the days in preparation for the tengaw day, brave men secretly and villainy enters other village to get a human head. Other men go to hunt for wild pig. When they had gathered human head and “laman” (wild pigs), it signals that they are ready for the “tengaw”. On the feast day, the older men offer the human head as burnt offering to “Kabunyan”.

While burning the human head, the young men butcher the “laman” for the people to feast. They do this in order to please “Kabunyan” who in turn will stop pests in attacking their plants, cover them from disastrous typhoon and blinds the “buso” or hides the entrances so no “buso” could enter their place. They do this from the start of the day until sun set. The very day after the “tengaw”, they then start the planting season.

(2) “Tengaw” after harvest season. When all the rice was harvested, they end it with a tengaw. This time they feast together to thank “Kabunyan” for the peace and bountiful provision. They offer a human head for thanksgiving, eats laman then dances for joy with their gongs until sun set. This is merrier than the pre-planting tengaw. Here, they include “Kadungyasan” where boys and girls grouped together and piled facing each gender.

The girls had a swing where a maiden rode and at the boys‘swing is her suitor. The play was when the boys pushes the swing, the suitor sings telling his love-promises to the maiden while everybody is listening. After that, he pauses to listen to the maiden. The girls push the swing and the lady sings also trying to combat the flaw she heard from the man’s song. This usually ends up into marriage celebration when the demand of the lady’s clan is modestly performed by the man’s clan.

Library of Congress

Hunting was their major food source to pair the rice. Every time before they go hunting, they have to kill a lady chicken to see if its bile shows a good sign of catch. If the chicken bile shows a good sign, the hunting is approved but if the bile shows a bad sign, no hunting will be done. They also believed that there were spirits in the forest guarding the wild animals. This spirits are invincible but their presence is acknowledged by the villagers so they have to avoid offending the spirits. This belief is sealed true by the experience of an early hunter. The tale was told and was mouth to mouth preserved that even up to now is still being told.

Accordingly, one hunter was presumed killed by wild animal in the forest so the relatives mourned for his death. After plenty morning cock crows gone from the day of mourning, the missing hunter appeared unexpectedly. He was very frail. When the hunter ate and slept, he regained his strength and he related his experience in the forest. He said that when he was following a fat good deer, it went into a very thick bush and he can’t make his way to follow. He went on circling the bush and assuring that the deer was hiding there; he hid and prepared himself to wait. As he peeps, the bush moves as the deer moves.

Guarding the place for a long time, the hunter felt hungry so he ate his baon. Feeling that he is falling asleep after eating, he gathered vines and laid it surrounding the bush. He tied the vine’s tip on his arm then he fixed himself on his hiding place. When the deer goes out, the vine would strangle it and if it struggles, the vine would move his arm and wakes him. After enough nap, he felt disemboweling so he went under a tree and released his bowel there.

When he went back to his watch place, he noticed that the sun is going down. He decided to shoo the deer so he could catch. He pulled the vine and formed it as a whip. He whipped the bush and the deer sprang out and run as fast as it goes and the hunter lost it. Dismayed, the hunter has to go home and decided to try his luck in the morrow.

When he threaded his way home, he was amazed and puzzled for he reached the same place where his bowel was. He left and made sure that he will follow the exact path home but after a long walk, he ended up again to where he left his bowel. He tried another route, but again he went back to the same place. He then slept there where he made a watch for he was caught up by the dark.

The next day, he kept on trying walking home but always ended up on the place where he comforted himself. This took him days trying to leave the place but never had he succeeded in going home. He fills his stomach with whatever he found edible and drunk on the stream flow he passes by. It came to pass that all edible ones were consumed on all the routes he kept on passing through. He was only fed by the water flow until he fainted for starvation.

On his sleep, a spirit appeared on his dream. He asked the angry spirit how he could be able to go home. The Spirit harshly replied saying “you foolish human, I always let you go back to your bowel thinking that you are wise enough to take your smelly thing with you, but you never do it. Now you carry that away so you can find your path home.” When the spirit disappeared, the hunter woke up. He then took leaves and wrapped his smelly drying bowel, carried it and forcefully inched to the spring and drunk a lot of water then rested for a while.

As he gained little strength, he rose and went on homeward and finally he reached the path homeward. He struggled on one resting cogon hut and found a shovel and there he buried his thing. He was so weak that he kept on resting until a man on the field saw him and helped him reached his home. This story gave warning to the villagers not to make the forest dirty and that was carried on from generations.

The headhunting activity ceased little by little when Christian Priests penetrated the Mt. Province. My mother on her tender years witnessed Tengaw activities, but no more human head burnt offerings. She only heard rumors that some members of her village working in the far field were found dead and decapitated. That is why when they go to the rice fields, their “Apongs” brought with them “bagsay” and “kasag” and dogs. These strong men just roam around watching and guarding the women, young girls and boys working in the field.

The continual Christian teachings by the Missionaries modified their way of living and big change took place when the Japanese came and took control of their place. Americans came after and chased the Japanese. Planes came bombarding every community. The Igorots fled to the mountains to hide. No one was allowed to make fire because once the planes saw a smoke; they come and bomb the place. They called that certain period as “blackout”.

When the war ended, the villagers went back and built their houses with modified structures already.... Most of the men then went to work as miners at Lepanto Mines, Balatoc Mines, Antamok Mines, Philex Mines and other small mines. Others went to Baguio City and worked as “cabiteros” or stone excavators. That gave way for great changes in the culture of the igorots. They bought clothings and sent it to the villages until the “Tapis” and the “g-strings” were left behind.

In 1966, I remember that year, because Ferdinand Marcos won as President that time, when I went as grade one in Saint Joseph Elementary School at Sabangan. President Marcos came by giving thanks. He let us formed a line and gave ration to each of us. Few men still wore g-string those times but when I finished elementary, I can’t see any more men in g-string in Sabangan. There were only about few houses already that were left made out of cogon grass. Changes came very fast as modernization crept along the Mt. Province.

*That was a story on head and hunting. Being a fifty-niner, the only evidences I saw during my younger days were the human jaws used in the handles of Gongs. There was also a cave above the sitio Sao, where we used to gather firewood. This cave was filled with wooden coffins along with many skulls. 

Old folks told me that after the burning of the head in the Dap-ay, only the flesh were burned and the skull were carried by the shouting men chanting and banging their gongs paraded to pile the skull in that cave. One day, I remembered that a strong typhoon eroded the cave during my elementary and the skulls were carried by landslide to the river crashing the center of Sao. They claimed that plenty people died at that incident. Now the cave was gone. - John Tamale

The 6 Most Common Misconceptions About Us Igorots And Our Way Of Life

Before anything else, allow me to reiterate the fact that indigenous peoples/groups in the Philippines are often awfully misunderstood. We, the Igorots of the Cordilleras, are in the same boat as the Aetas of Southern and Central Luzon, the Mangyans of Mindoro, the Lumads, Manobos and Subanons of Mindanao, and other groups I've failed to mention. Other people just keep on getting things wrong when they talk about us.

Now, I don't know the experiences of our Aeta and Lumad brothers. I leave it up to them to write about the many wrong ideas that other people have about them. But as an Igorot who lived all of my current life in the Cordillera, I've had my own share of experiences with people who carry the belief that Igorots live in trees. That Igorots are stuck in the 1920s while the rest of the world march on in the 21st century. Believe me, these just compose the tip of the iceberg.

People who do not belong to our group often have ideas about us that are either not true or grossly exaggerated. The roots of these misconceptions can be attributed to a lot of things, the two most logical of which are the lack of accurate information concerning us and the spread of faulty descriptions about us.

I'm sure you remember looking at a textbook when you were in elementary school and there in its pages is an Igorot man with a pipe stuck in his mouth, a moronic grin on his leathery face, and a haircut that seems to have been patterned after a halved coconut husk. Completing the picture is a soiled Igorot kid running around with nothing on except for the bahag that covers his most private part. This was when I was in elementary school. Unfortunately, such stereotypes continue to this day.

With that said, I've decided to try and compile the most common misconceptions that non-Igorots have about us. So here we go.

1) Igorots wear their g-strings and other traditional clothes at home.
To be fair, there's a bit of truth to this. There are still Igorots in some communities in the Cordillera region who prefer wearing the wanes (g-string) and ingay (wrap-around skirt for women). Most of them are elderly, folks who were born during a time when wearing the native attire is common practice. For a long time now, however, traditional attires are stored in bauls and used only during community gatherings, festivals, and events like weddings, baptisms, etc.

The biggest reason why many people think that Igorots still wear their traditional attires in their daily lives is the way we are shown in popular media. Every time an Igorot is shown on television, plastered on a newspaper, or presented in a book, he/she is always wearing the native attire. This creates the impression that it's what we wear when we go to the farm, when we walk down the street, when we go to work, or when we go to the beach.

2) Igorots are short and have dark skins.
We are often mistakenly believed by other people to have the salient features of our Aeta brothers. Some even go as far as saying that Igorots and Aetas are from the same tribe. That Igorots also have curly and kinky hair.

There's nothing wrong with being short. There's nothing wrong with being dark-skinned. And there's nothing wrong with having crisp and curly hair. I'm simply stating the facts here. These are the recognizable features of Aetas, not Igorots. There are Igorots who are short. There are Igorots who have dark skins. And there are Igorots who have curly hair. But these are not our salient features in the same way that the Caucasian race doesn't have "almond-shaped eyes" as a recognizable feature.

This misconception is wrong and can cause serious harm. I remember a year or so ago when a local television station posted a photo of one of its celebrity stars posing with what it then called Igorots. The people in the photo weren't Igorots. They were Aetas wearing Igorot garb. This sloppy portrayal breeds even more ignorance in people.

Igorot girl in Coney Island in 1905. [Context]

3) Igorots have tails.
This is a classic one. We Igorots hear it with such regularity that we often joke about it among ourselves. To state the obvious, a human having a tail like that of a monkey's is a physical impossibility. We didn't go through hundreds of thousands of human evolution to get rid of the tail only to take it back in the snap of a generation.

There are several theories why this misconception abounds. One is that our native attires look like tails when we wear them. The wanes for men can look like a tail to an outsider. The skirt for women has with it a woven belt that extends to the length of the skirt. It does also look like a tail when observed from a distance. The Ilocanos, Tagalogs, and Spaniards of old may have seen these and spread rumors (either seriously or jokingly) that Igorots have tails. Suffice it to say that the joke was passed down through generations.

In this age and times, only a person who has never read a science book can believe the proposition that a man (a tribe for that matter) can grow a tail similar to that of a baboon.

4) Igorots have huge feet and gnarly toes.
This misconception had its roots generations ago. In the olden times, we hunted in the mountains of Benguet, fished in the rivers of Kalinga and walked down to the lowlands to trade with the Tagalogs and the Ilocanos with nothing on our feet. Naturally, our toes sort of stretched themselves to the left and to the right. The corns and calluses on our feet grew making our feet look much larger than normal. But do we have huge feet? No, we have the same feet that our Ilocano and Tagalog neighbors had.

Historians and anthropologists like William Henry Scott who came to the Cordillera region to study us and our ways of life brought more fire to this misconception by detailed studies about our feet. The studies came with great pictures too. These scholars are not to be faulted of course. Their research were often sound. It was the wrong interpretations of some readers that led to the misleading information about our feet.

5) Igorots eat dogs as regularly as they eat pork and chicken.
To be fair, some of us do eat dog meat. But the vast majority of us don't. And the way other people say it, they seem to imply that we eat dog meat the way we eat rice. As a staple presence in our dining tables. That is just not the case. I for instance have a taste of dog meat for like twice or once and sometimes never in a year.

As to the root of this misconception, it dates back to colonial times. Spaniards have always described us as eaters of dogs. Then the Americans came. In the early 1900s, one particular business-minded American named Truman Hunt brought Igorots to the United States and displayed them in a human zoo.

The Igorots replicated a typical Igorot village and was told to go on with their lives the way they always did back home. Dogs were brought to them on a regular basis which they butchered and ate in front of shocked Americans. From there on, Igorots have always been looked upon as dog-eaters.

Igorots for show in Coney Island in the summer of 1905. [Context]

6) Igorots still live in cogon huts and tree houses.
Many people still think that we are very behind when it comes to being civilized and modernized. Many people harbor ideas that we still run around in forests in our bahags and climbing into our tree houses when the days end. The fact that our mountains are teeming with pine trees, in a way, gives a bit of a push to this misinformed idea.

Your turn.
If you have anything to add to what we already discussed above or you simply wish to chime in, feel free to leave your reactions and responses to the comments section below.

He's Not An Igorot But He Proudly Ran In The Chicago Marathon Wearing Igorot Attire

A man ran the Chicago Marathon in America last October 12, 2014 in Igorot attire. Levi Aliposa, a Filipino who hails from Tacloban City, Leyte and currently resides in Chicago ran in the annual race wearing a g-string, a sash, and Cordilleran accessories. Aliposa joined the marathon for Trilogy Behavioral Healthcare, an agency where Aliposa works as a Community Integration Specialist.

Trilogy Behavioral Healthcare is a "not-for-profit community behavioral healthcare agency whose mission is to serve people with serious mental illnesses." Aliposa posted photos from the race on his Facebook page. Check out some of the photos below. For more photos, visit Aliposa's album here.

It is heartwarming to think that there are people out there who appreciate our culture so much that they go beyond their way to hold it up in front of the world.

Igorot Men Are Not Sweet Lovers. True Or False?

About a week ago, I was browsing through one of the many Cordilleran groups on Facebook when I came across a thread wherein the main post said something about Igorot men being not expressive enough when it comes to professing their love to their girlfriends or wives. Apparently, they fail miserably in the sweetness department. It was of course posted in a joking manner but still it had me thinking.

To answer the question "Are Igorot men sweet lovers or not?", first we need to define what is meant by the term "sweet" in the context of a man having feelings towards a woman. The common understanding of the term is that a sweet man is someone who is rather generous or bold when it comes to expressing his affections. He holds the girl's hand in public. He buys her flowers. He sends her boxes of Toblerones. He ends his text messages to her with mwuah's. He serenades her at her place of residence. He picks her up at school and accompanies her home. These are just among the instances that would make an observer exclaim "Wow, ang sweet naman." It's therefore safe to say that this is how most of us define the expression sweet.

Calling Igorot men not that sweet is a form of stereotyping but as we all know stereotypes carry some truth to them. There's basis to them, a foundation if you may. Like Ilocanos are often tagged as kuripot or taga-Kiangans are deemed pilosopo. People did not just come up with these conclusions out of thin air.

Photo from sariasknitncrochet.com. Credits to the owner/photographer.

Based on how we defined the term sweet above, let's go back to the question "Are Igorot men sweet lovers or not?" It's not of course black and white so the question can't be answered by a definitive yes or no. However, if we are to compare Igorot men with men from other groups, say the Tagalogs or the Ilocanos or the Bicolanos, I think most of us would agree when I say that Igorot men's "level of sweetness" pales in comparison  to the other groups mentioned.

Why is this the case? Why are Igorot men not that expressive when it comes to matters of the heart? Is it because of our cultural and traditional roots? We'll try to answer these questions in Part II of this planned three-part article series. We'd like to hear your thoughts and reactions so please feel free to leave your comments in the comments section below.

Related story: What Does The Common Cordilleran Word "Taraki" Mean?

The Best Igorot-Inspired Digital Art You'll Ever See (Photos)

These digital artworks by a Manila-based artist are nothing short of amazing. You have got to respect the impeccable attention to details. Hats off to the artist who goes by the username squeegool on Deviant Art. All these great pieces of work are his and you can check out more of his awesomeness here. Get more updates about his work from his Tumblr blog here.

There's not a lot of artists out there who choose to use the Igorot culture as themes in their works. There's only a handful of them. One of them is Jeff Cablog, an artist who hails from the town of Barlig in Mt. Province. There's also Jordan Mang-usan, a Cordilleran artist currently based in La Trinidad, Benguet. You can see many of Mang-usan's work at the Tam-Awan Village in baguio City.

Mang-usan is a unique artist with the fact that he uses the sun and a magnifying glass to create his masterpieces.

Team Lakay's Mark Eddiva Makes Weight For Tonight's Fight With China's Jumabieke Tuerxun

Mark Eddiva and his opponent, Jumabieke Tuerxun of China both weighed in at 145 pounds at the official weigh-in held yesterday. The two mixed martial artists will be facing each other in the opening bout for tonight's The Ultimate Fighter China Finale which will be held at the Cotai Arena in Macau, China. The event starts at 6 p.m.

Wearing a Team Lakay shirt and the now ubiquitous Team Lakay red shorts, Eddiva got on the weighing scales first. He was accompanied by his trainer and coach Mark "The Machine" Sangiao. Eddiva and Teurxun will be fighting in the UFC's featherweight division, the stacked division where Jose Aldo, Frankie Edgar, Chad Mendez, and Cub Swanson fight.

Eddiva is the second homegrown fighter from the Philippines to enter the UFC's arena. The first one is Dave Galera (also a Team Lakay fighter) who fought just last month albeit in a losing effort against Malaysia's Royston Wee. Eddiva is also the first Igorot to fight in the UFC.

From the weigh-in:

Here's the weigh-in video:

Get To Know Mark Eddiva And Jumabieke Tuerxun, His Opponent This Weekend

Something historic is happening this coming weekend at the Cotai Arena in Macau, China. Mark Eddiva, a mixed martial arts practitioner from Team Lakay's roster of professional fighters will be facing Jumabieke Tuerxun of China in the opening bout for UFC Fight Night 37. Eddiva is the first fighter with Igorot roots to ever fight in the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship), the largest and most influential mixed martial arts organization in the world. He is also the second homegrown Filipino to fight for the organization. The first was Dave Galera who also happens to be a Team Lakay talent.

Eddiva is a decorated wushu athlete. Among his accomplishments are two gold medals from the Southeast Asian Games. He turned pro as a mixed martial artist in 2006. He currently holds an unblemished record of five wins with no losses. Three of these victories came via knockouts, the remaining two came via submissions.

Eddiva will be entering the octagon as a huge underdog. This is understandable. Compared to his opponent, Eddiva has less experience, he has fought lesser quality fighters, and he has been inactive for over three years. When it comes to professional fighting, ring rust is a very serious matter. There's a reason why the best and most well-known fighters out there often take warm-up bouts after taking long vacations off the canvas. They wouldn't risk their careers fighting the top dogs in their division because there's always the possibility that they will fail to perform as good as they used to, thanks to ring rust.

Eddiva last entered the ring three years ago in January of 2011. It was an impressive winning effort wherein he submitted Alex Lee with a rear-naked choke. It's worth pointing out, however, that Eddiva's five fights were against losers. This is not to give offense but to merely state the facts. Four of Eddiva's previous opponents don't have any wins in their records. Alex Lee is 0-2. Engie Piloto is 0-2, Alvin Clerino is 0-2, and Duke Villanueva is 0-1. Andrew Benibe, the only fighter that has a mark in the winning column is 5-7. In the parlance of fight game aficionados, "Eddiva has been fighting bums".

Ring rust, less experience, and an abominable list of previous opponents. These are the three main barriers stacked up to prevent Eddiva from having his hands raised at the end of the fight, besides of course Jumabieke Tuerxun, a fighter who carries the nickname "The Wild Wolf".

Like Eddiva, Tuerxun is undefeated. He turned pro much later than Eddiva but he has stacked fourteen wins, four of which were submissions and three were knockouts. The rest came via decisions. This is just his existing record. There are reports going around that he has a lot of undocumented fights which means he is much more experienced than what his official record shows.

If you watch Tuerxun's fights (some of these can be viewed on YouTube), he is a fighter who has more than decent skills whether he's fighting standing up or grappling on the ground. He may not be a knockout artist but he can easily adapt to win fights. And he has good endurance. He's more than willing to take his time and go the distance as evidenced by his seven wins via decisions.

In conclusion, there isn't a huge disparity between Eddiva and Tuerxun when it comes to the skills they bring to the table. They look evenly matched, skill-wise. However, there's the issues of ring rust, experience, and quality of opposition to be considered. Needless to say, Eddiva has the shorter end of the stick in all three issues. As expected, the consensus among fans and critics in the sport is that the Chinese fighter will emerge victorious. A preview by Sherdog has Tuerxun eking out another decision victory. But this is the fight game where upsets happen all the time. Maybe Eddiva has what it takes to deliver an upset. We'll know this weekend when the bell finally rings.

In the event that Eddiva takes home the bacon, he'll get the chance to be considered for future fights under the UFC banner. And he better start making an impression because the division (featherweight) he fights in is stacked with some of the most talented fighters in the UFC. Jose Aldo, yes, that Jose Aldo is the current champion. Below him are Chad Mendes, Frankie Edgar, Ricardo Lamas, Cub Swanson, and Chan Sung Jung. Right now, it would be impossible to imagine Eddiva sharing the Octagon with any of these guys. But if he wins impressively this weekend, he'll make a statement and hopefully get the attention of the Big Boss himself, Mr. Dana White. Who knows, Eddiva might make history yet again by becoming the first Igorot to hold a UFC championship belt.

The ABS-CBN Sports and Action channel will air UFC Fight Night 37 this Sunday starting at 9 p.m. However, we aren't sure if all the bouts in the card will be televised. Eddiva vs. Tuerxun will be the opening bout in the card.

Sorry But This Is NOT The Real Royal Family

Yesterday, in a blog post I wrote about the HUGE lie regarding Jessica Soho's alleged comments about looting in the doomed bus in Bontoc, I touched on the knee-jerk reactions that most people make when commenting on things posted online. People are so fond of jumping into conclusions. They jump into bandwagons without asking first where the wagon came from or where it's headed.

I can go on forever about this but the bottomline is most people seem to throw critical thinking out of the window when it comes to their treatment of the things they see online. They see someone post something, they treat it as true without ever questioning it.

I'm writing this post because yet again, I'm seeing a photo circulating on Facebook being treated by people as if it's the REAL thing. I've reposted the photo in question below. I've seen a lot of different people post the photo on different groups so I don't know to whom I should attribute it to. [Updated February 23: I've taken down the photo because I don't want trouble. It never was my intention to infringe on anybody's privacy or copyright. I was merely trying to point out the tendency of people to believe EVERYTHING they see online. But here's a link to the photo as was uploaded by the Cordillera Community Page.]

Here's a photo of the same wax figures from the museum from which the said photo was taken:

Yes, the photo is real. The people in Cordilleran attires are real. However, the Royal Family are not. Those are merely wax figures. The photo was taken from the Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum in London. It's a really cool photo and there's nothing wrong with it. As a Cordilleran myself, I like it, I appreciate it.

However, my problem is that people are posting the photo on Facebook with captions that are rather misleading. Here's an example: "Igorot family poses with the Royal family. Thank you Prince William for accommodating my fellow Igoys."

See what I mean? People are circulating the photo as if they actually met the Royal family in the flesh. Once again, people are feasting on the photo with self-ingratiating comments such as this one: "Yan makita sana ng mga nanlalait sa mga igorot ito..kaya ba nilang maging proud gaya ng igorot."

To be honest, I cringe when I read such comments. Being a Cordilleran myself, I'm proud of my roots but I don't see it as necessary to resort to such types of comments. Let's take pride of our ancestry. Let us be patriots. But let us refrain from making snide comments about other peoples/groups. Enough of this I'm-Igorot-and-somehow-I-think-I'm-better-than-you nonsense.

Update 1: The original uploader of the photo, according to a comment, clearly identified that the photo was taken at a museum. That key information was lost as people re-shared the photo. In a way,  this proves my point when it comes to the tendency of people to hastily take something as real just because a lot of people are sharing it.

Update 2:  I would like to address the people sending me emails and messages. As much as I would like to respond to you one by one, I just don't have the means to do so. So I'll just respond to you in mass here.

Needless to say, the reactions to this article are rather negative. I'm receiving emails calling me an idiot, a stupid blogger, a "tanga", a "walang magawa sa buhay kundi manlait ng iba". To be honest, I don't know where these angry reactions are coming from. I admit, the tone of the article is a bit nasty (condescending even) but nowhere in it did I belittle anyone. As I say, again and again, I was just pointing out the fact that people are so quick on grabbing onto things and spreading them without any sort of verification. Call me paranoid but that's how I deal with things. If I see you posting something which I think is misleading other people, I'll try to point it out. And that's what I did with this article. So I'm asking those sending me these negative emails, am I wrong in pointing out something that I think is misleading? The issue may look too trivial to you but I wouldn't treat it so.

And enough with the name-calling. Resorting to the act of calling a person "a pig" because he doesn't share your opinion is something that only immature people do. I thought we Igorots are thick-skinned. Because the way we are acting, we are the exact opposite. One small criticism of us and everyone goes crazy. Somebody calls an Igorot panget and we bully him/her to the point of killing him/her. At the end of the day, the contents of this article are my OPINIONS and nothing can change them. If you disagree, that's your opinion and I respect that.

Update 3: The owner of the original photo has left the following comment. And I'm thanking her for doing so. Here's the comment in full. And here's a link to the full photo set taken from the Museum .

"Thanks very much for taking the time and trouble to write an article about our photo. Just to inform you, this photo belongs to me and posted by my friend who came to visit us in London and was our (Benguet Org UK)guest during our 6th Adivay London celebrations back in November 2013. It gives us great pleasure to be able to celebrate such an important cultural event so far away from home and we are indeed very proud of what we do here.

The original post for this photo clearly says it was taken at Madame Tussaud and we don't pretend it to be otherwise. That's what you do when you visit madame tussaud, you take photos of and with famous people's wax figures. It was also with great pride that we wore our benguet attire to this world famous tourist attraction. This was my 10th visit to madame tussaud and it was my first ever to don my devit to the museum. we didn't realise it would create such a stir and shared by many people and groups and irked some too.but for us 3 Benguet lass, we enjoyed every moment with these wax figures of famous people and stamping the visit with our very own identity too. And I thank auntie judy and jules for sharing this visit with me.

I understand your point in your article but i also understand people will always find a reason to defend themselves, their families, their culture, etc..... From oppression and perceived discrimination. And with social networking, it is sometimes difficult to know what is real."

Thanks a million for the comment. It sure clears up a lot of things. Thanks again.