Baptism of the Filipino.

For Southeast Asians, water is more than just a resource, it's a divine gift, a symbol of purification, a washing away of sins and renewal of the spirit, a theme echoed in countless temples and rituals. We are baptized through water. Water is a blessing.

Songkram.

Songkram is a water festival celebrated in Southeast Asian countries such as Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos to mark the Buddhist New Year. The word "Songkram", in Thai language, means "movement" and has been celebrated for over a thousand years. Crowds gather in city centers to get dunked on by buckets, water guns, and cannons by other festival attendees. Music, food, and fun park activities are abundant in the event as it celebrates purification, prosperity, and unity among the people.

Image: Songkram, Thailand

The exact origins of Songkran remains deep in mystery, but one popular Hindu legend offers a possible explanation. The tale tells of a battle between the deity Kabila Phrom and the young hero Thammabal Kumara. The battle ends with Phrom's defeat and his subsequent beheading. To prevent the world from being consumed by the eternal flame set ablaze from Phrom's severed head, it was entrusted to a series of divine guardians to carry it around Mount Meru. Songkram, then, is a celebration to commemorate this succession of guardians, the passing of the head, symbolizes renewal and purification.

Regada.

Songkram is not celebrated in the Philippines. However, a similar water festival involving the splashing of crowd goers is celebrated mid-June. Called the Regada, meaning "to be poured on", the festival celebrates the birth of Saint John the Baptist. Filipinos gather around Cavite's city centers to get doused by camps armed with buckets, sprays and water guns. As Catholics, Filipinos believe the act of being splashed on as a blessing and a renewal of faith. The festival binds and unites Filipinos through their Catholic faith.

Image: Regada, Cavite, Philippines

St. John the Baptist is a secondary but important figure in the Christian Bible. St. John baptized Jesus; this baptism transforms Jesus into Christ the King and marks the beginning of his public ministry. By ritual, Christians are first bound and united to Christ by baptism of water.

Origins of the Regada in the Philippines is not well known. Historical records are scarce, but the similarities to Songkram, both in practice (water splashing of crowds) and symbolism (of purification and renewal) is intriguing. Shared pre-colonial heritage between the Thai and Filipinos could suggest linked indigenous origins in Regada. If this is true, then Regada may be considered an example of folk syncretism - the method by which the Filipinos resiliently preserved their pre-colonial indigenous beliefs.

Baptism of the Indigenous Filipinos.

Before Spanish colonization, Filipinos adhered to an indigenous belief system composed of Hindu-Buddhist mythology mixed with Austronesian Animism, similar to their cultural cousins, the Indonesians. These belief systems permeated the Filipino soul for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. Spanish contact changed that.

Within a few weeks of landing in the Philippine archipelago, Spanish missionaries held their first Catholic mass in Limawasa, Leyte on March 16, 1521. Shortly thereafter, the first 800 Catholic Filipinos were baptized in Cebu island on April 14, 1521.

Although some tribes across the islands were open to Christian conversion, adoption was not widespread. To circumvent the resistance, edicts from the Spanish monarchy made baptism a mandate, subjugating the natives to either convert or die.

Image: Conversion of the indigenous Filipinos

Despite coerced conversion to Christianity, the indigenous were not fully willing to completely surrender their core native spirituality.

Folk Catholicism. 

Throughout Spanish oppression, the indigenous Filipinos stubbornly preserved their folk beliefs through syncretism, the blending of religions. "By applying their own pre-Hispanic belief systems to the Catholicism introduced to them by the Spanish, the Filipino people became empowered by it, clinging to the parts of their culture that the Spanish so desperately tried to stamp out, instead of being subjugated by the colonizers’ religion" (Chloe Foor, 2023). Thus, Filipino Folk Catholicism was born.

Bathala and God

Indigenous Filipinos were polytheists but regarded "Bathala" as their supreme creator and lord of all deities. Bathala was the all powerful deity responsible for rain, monsoons, and flourishing of agriculture and life of the world. Historians continue to debate the origins of the name "Bathala" but many agree that it is indeed the Filipino cognate word of the Indonesian Hindu creator god "Batara". Post conversion, worship of Bathala never ceased for the Filipinos, they simply transformed him into God of the Christian Bible, naming him Kristong Hari ("Hari" meaning "King" in Filipino, or "Remover of Sins" in Sanskrit)

Image: Bathala (Batara Guru - Indonesian) and Kristong Hari (Source: Ayala Museum) 

Bulak Tala and Virgin Mary 

Opposite of Bathala was a female deity named Tala, the goddess of light and daughter of Bathala. Worshipped as a celestial maiden, she was known to be the "bringer of light" illuminating the darkness for lost travelers. She was also seen as a symbol of hope, offering comfort and reassurance to those who sought her protection. Given these known attributes, historians have drawn connections between Tala and Tara, goddess of compassion, from Hindu-Buddhist lore. However, after Catholic conversion, Tala was replaced with the Virgin Mary, offering worshippers refuge, peace and compassion for Mary's followers. The word "tala" was subsequently included into Filipino vernacular to mean "morning star" and is even incorporated in to a Filipino novena dedicated to Mary.

Birheng Maria, Tala sa Umaga.

Noon pa man ay itinangi ka,

Sa 'yong liwanag ang takdan lulupig,

Kay Satanas, tao'y ililigtas.

Iyong tunghan kaming nanambitan.

At ang lupang iyon tinapakan.

Tulong mo'y ilawit sa'min, Maria.

Ngayon at sa aming kamatayan.

Image: Tara (Hindu-Buddhist goddess of compassion) and Madonna Mary (Source: 1600 Filipino artist, Seville, Spain)

Paramban Temple and the Paoay Church

Pre-colonial Filipinos were not known for megalithic construction, but the Paoay Church in Northern Luzon, does present a stunning example of their skill with stone masonry and artistry. In Indonesia, Bali Hindu architecture builds on pyramid-like structures called "meru". These "meru" are built in a series of escalating structures symbolizing the ascent to the divine. The pyramid-like shape is also known for its earthquake resiliency. The Paoay Church coincidentally, was designed and built in the same manner as the meru. Although mostly Baroque-esque, archeologists have noted usage of Javanese influence in the design and function of the Paoay church. Not much is known about the builders of the Paoay church, but Folk Catholic syncretism here is evident, despite a lack of sources confirming its architect.

Image: Parambanan Temple (Indonesia) and St Augustine Church (Paoay, Philippines)

Santonilyo

Indigenous Filipinos worshipped animist deities (diwatas). They believed nature was full of spirits who protected them or caused them trouble. At Spanish contact, deities were replaced with Catholic saints and at the forefront of this syncretism was the addition of the Holy Infant. According to Filipino lore, after Magellan gifted the Holy Infant to the Visayans, the indigenous added him to their pre-existing pantheon of animist deities, and christened him with the name "Santonilyo" - the god of grace.

Image: Visayan praying to the Santo Nino (Holy Infant) and Visayan animist deity - Santonilyo

"These rituals surrounding the worship of the Holy Infant are also reminiscent of animist belief practices to appease or worship certain spirits. This worship of saints has much more of a pagan root, and is a prime example of the Filipino natives manipulating Catholic doctrine to continue practicing their own animist beliefs through folk Catholicism" (Foor, 2023)

Sinulog

Sinulog, a popular Cebuano festival celebrating the arrival of the statue of Santo Nino, has its roots in indigenous traditional culture. The word "Sinulog" is derived from the Visayan word "Sinug" which means "movement of the water current". Sinug was a dance ritual practiced by the natives to honor their animist deities. Post Christianization, Sinulog was turned into a type of Carnavale and is celebrated to this day in Cebu City. The image of Santo Nino is paraded and passed among the diverse Filipino tribes participating in the extravaganza. 

Deity worship through dance is also common in other Austronesian cultures such as Indonesia. An example of this is the Pendet Dance, a ritual performed by Balinese dancers giving gratitude to and welcoming deities on their descent from heaven.

Image: Sinulog Dancer (Cebu, Philippines), Pendet Dancer (Bali, Indonesia)

"Folk Catholicism is more than just a religion; it represents an active attempt by a group of people being subjugated to fight back against the colonial pressures imposed on them at all times. It also represents a dissatisfaction with the institution of Christianity as a whole" (Foor, 2023)

Renewal and Transformation. 

Baptism, a ritualistic cleansing symbolizing renewal and transformation, marked a pivotal moment in the history of the Filipinos. Their Catholic conversion, although influenced by Spanish colonization, was a collective aspiration for a different future. It signified a symbolic rebirth of a nation eager to evolve and embrace progress.

Forced conversions, while undeniably harsh, did not entirely extinguish the Filipinos' spirit. Instead, they demonstrated their resilience and adaptability. In the face of adversity, they found ways to integrate aspects of their indigenous beliefs into the Catholic faith, creating a unique blend of cultures. "The Filipino people adapted Catholicism to fit their needs, completely disregarding some aspects, while fighting against religious uniformity of the Spanish colonizers" (Foor, 2023)

Even in the midst of colonial rule, the Filipinos' faith served as a source of comfort and inspiration. It provided a shared identity and a sense of purpose, uniting them in their struggle for self-determination. Through Folk Catholic baptism, they embraced a new way of life, a new way of preserving and empowering the essence of their indigenous cultural heritage, evading extinction, and safeguarding their ancient, cherished identity for generations to come.

Bibliography

1. This essay borrows heavily from the essay "Deconstructing Folk Catholicism: Combating Catholic Hegemony during the Philippines’ Colonial Era" by Chloe Foor (2023)