Gayang: Igorot Folklore Goes to the Comic Book
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Gayang comic book cover
The book, published by the Philippine-based not-for-profit Gripo, is titled Gayang, which means Cordillera spear. The featured characters are more than just fictional. They’re legends — heroes and evil creatures that have been mainstays of Igorot folklore for many generations. Gayang shares stories about these characters based on how the old folks of the Cordilleras – including the Ifugao, Kalinga, Kankanaey and Gaddang people -- told them.
The paperback was initiated by two Baguio-based Igorot artists Majic Asbucan and Tor Sagud, with help from senior high arts students.
Magic Asbucan, left, and Tor Sagud, right, with Gayang comic book fan. (Photo courtesy of Gripo Comics)
The comic book has eight stories, each featuring a different Igorot folklore creature, namely:
BINGIL, man-like beings akin to the zombies of Western literature. They have large eyes that glow in the dark. A simple touch by a Bingil will bring sickness and death.
LAMPONG, a two-feet tall forest spirit said to be the guardian of animals. It transforms into a white one-eyed deer and lures hunters away from their original target. Anyone who succeeds in wounding a Lampong will fall ill and eventually die.
PILI, a guardian spirit that protects properties against thieves. The swelling from a Pili's bite can only be cured through a ritual that involves sacrificing a chicken.
GATUI, a dreadful creature which feasts on the souls of people, especially of unborn children. It is described as a winged dog with a human face. It is claimed to be similar to the well-known Filipino fictional character, the “Manananggal.”
BANA, the hero of the famous epic Ullalim sang by bards in every tribe of Kalinga. He is a dashing young man born with superhuman abilities. It is said that even trees and other plants bow down to him when he passes by. (An Ullalim epic is a traditional music and poetry form of the Philippines. These are long chanted stories passed down for hundreds of years that tell the exploits of heroes.)
Bana, one of the Gayang comic book characters (Photo by Rene Astudillo)
PINADING, a benevolent guardian of nature that usually looks like a normal human. It lives in boulders, rocks or sacred trees called "Patpatayan."
INLABLABBUUT, a shape-shifting, man-eating giant humanoid that lives in the mountains. It has long hair, ape-like teeth, long claws and a hardened skin. It lures its victims by taking the form of their friends or relatives.
How It All Started
Asbucan who is chairman of Gripo Comics says that he was approached by a local school in Baguio to take in a bunch of Grade 12 students for their immersion. Right away, he says he knew what project to assign to the students – a comic book featuring Igorot characters.
Asbucan’s approach was both risky and innovative. Because of the short time frame for the students’ immersion, he encouraged them to design and draw the creatures based on how they imagined them to be. He also gave them the freedom to create their own stories based on general knowledge of the folktales. He was nervous about possible backlash from the Igorot community for his approach, but there has been none so far.
While the original plan for Gayang was to create the comics and share stories about the mythical and legendary creatures of Cordillera Folklore, it has now evolved into a cultural advocacy to promote and attract more interest in Igorot folklore.
Gayang editor Majic Asbucan, center, with two of the student collaborators, Alwen Juson and Keith Graene Pablo (Photo by Rene Astudillo)
Sagud says that the younger generation seems to have forgotten or have lost interest in the rich Igorot culture, so his hope is that this comic book will contribute to preserving the rich folk tradition of the Cordilleras.
Gayang is basically a self-published book, a labor of love by its collaborators, and its distribution is quite limited to one bookstore in Baguio City and a local online outlet. The hope is to attract investors willing to finance reprints and to make the book available not only in the Philippines, but also internationally, especially in countries with large Filipino populations.
Proceeds from book sales will go towards helping young artists enhance their skills and realize their artistic dreams.
Asbucan says that the characters in Gayang are just a few from the vast number of fantastical Igorot creatures which populate Igorot folklore and superstition. Hence, Gayang #2 is in the offing!
When asked about Gripo, the name of his nonprofit group, Asbucan says it doesn’t really stand for anything. In fact, he says, it used to be called Greepo.
But on second thought, Asbucan says he finds the name evolution to Gripo quite significant. “Gripo” means faucet. He says he thinks of artistic talent as a water tank that needs a faucet so that the vast talent – especially of young Cordillerans -- can flow and be let out.
Rene Astudillo
Rene Astudillo is a writer, book author and blogger and has recently retired from more than two decades of nonprofit community work in the Bay Area. He spends his time between California and the Philippines.
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