Imagine yourself living in ancient Philippines.

No Christianity, Islam, or any of the modern-day religions. Everything you need to survive is literally
in front of you–food, clothes, a roof over your head, you name it.

But while things around you seem to be in perfect order, a tidal wave of confusion starts forming in
your mind.

You’re now questioning your very own existence. Questions you never knew you needed to
answer are flooding your brain: Why is the sky blue? Where did we come from? Who controls
everything? But with no religion to rely on, how can you possibly make sense of everything?
The answer, according to our ancestors, is Philippine mythology.

WHAT EXACTLY IS PHILIPPINE MYTHOLOGY?

Philippine mythology is a collection of stories and superstitions about magical beings a.k.a deities
whom our ancestors believed that the deities controlled evrything
1. Bathala

Also known as Abba, this highest-ranking deity was described as “may kapal sa lahat,” or the
creator of everything. From his abode in the sky called Kawalhatian, this deity looks over
mankind. He’s pleased when his people follow his rules, giving everything they need to
the point of spoiling them (hence, the bahala na philosophy). But mind you, this powerful

2. Idianale
If Bathala was the boss, the other lesser deities who lived with him in the sky were his assistants.
Each of these lower-ranking gods and goddesses had specific responsibilities. One of them
was Idianale (Idiyanale or Idianali in other sources), the goddess of labor and good
deeds. Idianale married Dumangan, the god of good harvest, and later gave birth to two more
Tagalog deities: Dumakulem and Anitun Tabu.

3. Dumangan
Dumangan was the Tagalog sky-god of good harvest, the husband of Idianale, and father
to Dumakulem and Anitun Tabu.

4. Anitun Tabu
Among ancient Tagalogs, Anitun Tabu was known as the “fickle-minded goddess of the
wind and rain.”She’s one of the two children of Dumangan and Idianale.
In Zambales, this goddess was known as Aniton Tauo, one of the lesser deities assisting their
chief god, Malayari. Legend has it that Aniton Tauo was once considered superior to other
Zambales deities.

5. Dumakulem
Dumakulem was the son of Idianale and Dumangan, and brother of wind goddess Anitun
Tabu. The ancient Tagalogs revered him as the guardian of the mountains. This
Tagalog sky-god later tied the knot with another major deity, Anagolay, known as the goddess
of lost things. The marriage produced two children: Apolaki, the sun god, and Dian Masalanta,
the goddess of lovers.
 6. Lakapati
Probably one of the most intriguing deities of Philippine mythology, Ikapati (or Lakapati) was
the Tagalog goddess of fertility. Some sources describe Lakapati as androgynous,
hermaphrodite, and even a “transgender” god. Lakapati is described as a major fertility
deity represented by a “hermaphrodite image with both male and female parts.

7. Mapulon

Mapulon is one of the lesser divinities assisting Bathala.

Not much is known about this deity, aside from the fact that he married Ikapati/Lakapati, the
fertility goddess, and sired Anagolay, the goddess of lost things.

8. Anagolay

Pre-colonial Tagalogs who were hopelessly looking for their missing stuff prayed to Anagolay, the
goddess of lost things. She was the daughter of two major Tagalog deities–Ikapati and Mapulon.
When she reached the right age, she married the hunter Dumakulem and gave birth to two more
deities:Apolaki and Dian Masalanta, the ancient gods of sun and lovers, respectively.

9. Apolaki

Arguably the Filipino counterpart of the Roman god Mars, Apolaki appeared in several ancient
myths. The Tagalogs revered Apolaki as the sun god as well as patron of the warriors. He shares
almost the same qualities with the Kapampangan sun god of war and death, Aring Sinukuan.

10. Dian Masalanta

If the Greeks had Aphrodite, our Tagalog ancestors had Dian Masalanta. The patron goddess of
lovers and childbirth, this deity was the brother of the sun god Apolaki to
parents Anagolay and Dumakulem. Sacrifices were offered to Dian Masalanta to ensure
successful pregnancies.

11. Amanikabli
He was described as “the husky, ill-tempered ruler of the sea,” whose hatred towards mankind
started when a beautiful mortal woman, aptly named Maganda, rejected his love.
Since then, the sea god had made it his personal agenda to send “turbulent waves and horrible
tempests every now and then to wreck boats and drown men.”

12. Galang Kaluluwa and Ulilang Kaluluwa

In some Tagalog creation myths, Bathala was not the only deity who lived in the universe before
humanity was born. He shared the space with two other powerful gods: the serpent Ulilang
Kaluluwa (“orphaned spirit”) who lived in the clouds and the wandering god aptly
named Galang Kaluluwa.
 13. Haliya and the Bakunawa
Haliya is the moon goddess of Bicolano mythology who periodically comes down to earth to
bathe in its waters.
The gigantic sea serpent called bakunawa, a mythical creature found in the early Bicolano and
Hiligaynon culture, devoured all but one of these moons.

14. Sitan
The modern-day heaven and hell also had ancient counterparts. Jocano said that the early Tagalogs
believed good guys would go to Maca, a place of “eternal peace and happiness.” The evil sinners,
on the other hand, were thrown into the “village of grief and
affliction” called Kasanaan/Kasamaan.

The Kasanaan is a place of punishment ruled by Sitan, which shares striking similarities
with Christianity’s ultimate villain, Satan. Just like Bathala, the vicious Sitan was also assisted
by other lesser deities or mortal agents. First was Mangagaway, the wicked shapeshifter who
wore a skull necklace and could kill or heal anyone with the use of her magic wand. She could also
prolong one’s death for weeks or even months by simply binding a snake containing her potion
around the person’s waist.

Mansisilat was literally the home-wrecker of Philippine mythology. As the goddess of

broken homes, she accepted it as her personal mission to destroy relationships. She did this by
disguising herself as an old beggar or healer who would enter the homes of unsuspecting couples.
Using her charms, Mansisilat could magically turn husbands and wives against each other, ending up
in separation.

Hukluban was also a terrific shapeshifter who could make anything happen–say, burn a
house down–by simply uttering it.

The Mankukulam, on the other hand, often wandered around villages pretending to be a priest-
doctor. In the same book by Scott, a mankukulam was described as a “witch who appears at
night as if burning, setting fires that cannot be extinguished, or wallows in the filth under
houses, whereupon some householder will sicken and die.”