Halimaween! 2024: Spirits That Rule the Night 3

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Kombensiyon ng mga Halimaw is a Halloween staple at Las Casas Filipinas de Acusar in Bagac, Bataan, beginning in 2024. (Photo courtesy of Revo Eslava)

Philippine folklore is rich with monsters. Originally characters in oral stories passed on from generation to generation, monsters are horrifying to look at and threatening to our reason and morality. But monsters are hardly anachronistic. They can be updated to be relevant in people’s lives.

Then-16-year-old enfant terrible Rey E. de la Cruz jazzed up monsters by melding them with current events in his immortality-level satire: Kombensiyon ng mga Halimaw (Monsters’ Convention; 1971). Pioneering the use of Philippine monsters in theater and modern literature, he depicted the Philippine Constitutional Convention delegates as evil, trivial, and transgressive.

Advertising guru Alex Arellano was 14 years old when he watched the play first performed by teen-theater artists of the Philippine Educational Theater Association (PETA) at the open-air Rajah Sulayman Theater in the ruins of Fort Santiago in Manila. He is still in awe of the play up to this day. 

“To say that it was mind-opening and life-changing is like saying Ferdinand Marcos Sr. stole some petty cash from the office!” he jokes. “To see a play in Pilipino that used Filipino mythical creatures, like tikbalang, tiyanak, and aswang, to satirize politicians—it was a smack in the face that told me, ‘Behold the endless possibilities when you combine an unbridled imagination with the hard-nosed work of writing and rewriting, writing and rewriting …’” 

Beginning in 2024, Kombensiyon ng mga Halimaw will be a Halloween staple at Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar, a historic resort in Bagac, Bataan. Revo Eslava, the resort’s theater director, explains: “A youthful genius, playwright de la Cruz was the only one with the daring imagination to write the rib-tickling classic. And with its wide appeal, it should be staged often. Not only is Philippine folklore animated in the play, but the Taglish dialogue is witty and lively and the accompanying masks and costumes are always fantastic.”

Monsters retook center stage in Mga Halimaw Rin Kami (We’re Also Monsters; 2023) at the Virgin Labfest in the Cultural Center of the Philippines. An aswang and a manananggal complain that their supply of victims is being depleted because of competition from extrajudicial killings. Theater critic Le Baltar (The Philippine Star, June 25, 2023) wrote: “Writer Jules Pamisa shows how Filipino folklore remains an effective language to comment on material and political issues that are easily buried under these volatile times—borrowing details from Duterte’s drug war, uprooting historical genocides, and dissecting the fine line between action and inaction.”

In Sanduguan! (Blood Compact!; 2023), real monsters, rather than imagined ones, are characters in the tragicomedy. Humorous and hyper-masculine, the play explores a complex and intense theme, delving into the lives of three beer-guzzling friends who made a blood compact to support each other, including working as extrajudicial killers.

Paul Jake Paule's play Sanduguan! (Blood Compact!) is about three beer-guzzling friends who are real monsters! (Photo courtesy of Paul Jake Paule)

The play refers to the traditional Philippine blood-compact ritual, where individuals become bound by a pact of friendship and loyalty, symbolized by the mixing of their blood. 

“In extrajudicial killings, the focus has always been the victims,” playwright Paul Jake Paule notes. “It is challenging to divert the attention to the killers. What goes in their minds? Are they just doing their jobs for money? How about their feelings?” The blood compact symbolizes the strong bond among the three friends. As such, Paule examines the limits of their loyalty and the morality of their actions.

The play raises questions about the nature of friendship, the consequences of blind loyalty, and the moral ambiguities of taking lives. In addition, it likely sparks important discussions about the human condition, the impact of violence on individuals and society, and the true meaning of friendship. Paule’s work showcases his playwriting skill and ability to tackle tough subjects with sensitivity and depth.

Halloween involves costumes, trick-or-treats, and merrymaking. Imagined monsters are viewed as entertaining. But they are also sober reminders that real monsters are in our midst. They stealthily abuse, terrorize, and do nasty things above and beyond our control. Watch out!

Meet and greet more imagined Philippine monsters:

Duwende

Illustration by Leandro Geniston and Catherine Chiu

Duwende is described in most literature as the prototypical Western dwarf, though he has more in common with gnome spirits of the Germanic regions. He is short in stature and sometimes bearded. He protects underground homes that he makes, as well as people’s houses.  

Duwende has variations: Black Duwende is a liar who gives black rice. Anyone who eats the rice will become his servant. Red Duwende is neutral, and he is usually a liar. He teaches oraciones (prayers) and gives agimat (talisman). Green Duwende is fond of appearing to children. Bring a child to talk to him, but beware because the duwende may attach himself to the child.

Burulakaw

Illustration by Maku Felix and Yanna Gemora

Burulakaw is a small woman with long hair. The hair appears like a fire that covers her body. Supposedly resembling a comet, she moves horizontally in the sky. Once she reaches her destination, she disappears. Traveling during the day, she can only be seen at night. It is believed that she serves the higher spirits.

Nangangatok

Illustration by Joncel Guevara

Nangangatok is an entity that brings bad luck. It knocks on people’s doors. Whoever opens the door would either get sick or die. Careful people peek through their windows first to see who is knocking. If they do not see anybody, they should not open the door.

Tiktik

Illustration by NightmareSyrup

The aswang of the Eastern Visayas region supplements its diet of viscera with the tender flesh of small children. It does this with the assistance of its avian pet, the Tiktik. The Tiktik flies ahead of the aswang and goes to houses where infants are born. The aswang takes its position on roofs and extends its tongue, a sharp red thread that stabs its victims and sucks out their entrails.  

In Mga Halimaw Rin Kami (We’re Also Monsters; 2023) an aswang and a manananggal complain that their supply of victims is being depleted because of competition from extrajudicial killings.

Mantiyanak

Illustration by Julia de los Santos

The belief in the Mantiyanak is widespread throughout the Mindanao region. Bagobo tradition states that if a woman dies during childbirth, her spirit blames all men for her death. She hovers in the air near where she used to live and makes sounds like a cat. It is said that the Mantiyanak tries to kill boys and men, but does not harm girls and women.

These are just some of the beings that terrorize many islands of the Philippines. If you want to know more about Philippine monsters, go to Philippine Spirits (Phspirits.com) and participate in Halimaween!, a celebration of Philippine mythology and mythological creatures each Halloween.

Video follows*** 

Sanduguan! (Blood Compact!):

Jean Karl Gaverza writes from his interests and experiences. Ever since his childhood, he has always been fascinated by cryptids and things that thrive in the night. A linguistics graduate of the University of the Philippines, he conducts independent research into the myths, legends, and folk stories of the people of the Philippines, focusing on mythical creatures.

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Jean Karl Gaverza