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Matigsalog Combative Culture
A Preliminary Field Study Into Indigenous Philippine Fighting Arts
by Mark V. Wiley
When considering the fighting arts of the Philippines, what comes to
mind most often are the classical and modern civil defensive arts and
sport forms. While these systems are representative of the contemporary
practice of the Filipino martial arts, they do not offer a complete view
of these arts in terms of how they were meant to be used on the
battlefield in times of war, raids, and rebellion.
During my fieldwork in the Philippines, I have been able to thoroughly
research the classical and modern martial arts of the lowland Christian
Filipinos, while generally having little access to the various Muslim
communities and indigenous tribal groups (now known as the ethnic
minorities). An 1997, however, I had the rare opportunity to conduct
preliminary field research into the fighting arts and combative culture
of the Matigsalog tribes of Bukidnon, Mindanao. And while there is a
smattering of information available on the warrior and head-hunting
practices of such indigenous peoples as the Kalinga, Bontoc Igorot, and
Ilongo, I have found none on the Matigsalog. The purpose of this
article, then, is to offer a preliminary yet brief glimpse into the
combative culture of the Matigsalog, a traditional Philippine ethnic
minority.
Turbulent Beginnings
The beginnings of Matigsalog combative culture is told in a tale of
when, generations past, the tribes fought against the invading Muslims
in Kapuling, Kalagangan, San Fernando, Bukidnon. As it turns out, the
Muslims were taking Matigsalog women and children as slaves and selling
them other countries. The Matigsalog were at that time ruled by Dato
Gapaw who, with the aid of the Manobo tribe, fought against the Muslims.
Peace between the Matigsalog, Manobos, and Muslims was made during a
ritual blood compact in Kapuling, Kalagangan. These groups remain allies
to this day.
While generally a peaceful people, as recently as July of 1975 the
Matigsalogs prepared their warriors again and rebelled against
then-president Ferdinand Marcos. As it happened, Dato Gowilan, the chief
of the Matigsalog at the time, waged war against the Marcos government as
it began taking their vast lands, converting them into ranches, and
selling them to "cowboys," as the Matigsalog refer to the ranchers. In
addition, a member of Marcos' group began burning Matigsalog thatched
homes and placing blame on Dato Gowilan.
As a result, Dato Gowilan and some of the elder chiefs of the Matigsalog
tribes came together and engaged in a pre-war ritual over the grave of
the late warrior, Dato Gapaw. The knife of Dato Gapaw was then given to
Dato Gowilan, as he was selected to head the rebellion against Marcos
and his armed contingent in Mindanao. Dato Gowilan took the knife for
protection during combat, as it is believed to hold the power and
strength of Dato Gapaw. Throughout Matigsalog history, the possessor of
this knife is looked to as the leader of the warriors.
While the troops of Marcos were equipped with firearms, the Matigsalog
were not -- they used their traditional weapons of combat: bows and
arrows, spears and shields, and various bladed weapons. During the
combative encounters that ensued, the Matigsalog would come to acquire
firearms as they killed Marcos' men. The conflict ended after Marcos
lost too many men and, rather than lose more, negotiated a peace pact
with Dato Gowilan and the Matigsalog people.
Hunting and Fighting
Traditionally, Matigsalogs are hunter-gatherers, and they see a direct
correlation between hunting and warfare. When a Matigsalog boy learns to
hunt he is at the same time taught the ways of the warrior. It is the
same group of men who are the hunters and warriors for the tribe -- and
only men can engage in such activities. For the Matigsalog, hunting
training and warrior training is seen as a rite of passage into manhood.
Indeed, one is already considered as a "real man" if he is able to catch
a white pig without the aid of weapons on any kind, and with just his
bare hands. They believe this act of tracking down and catching a white
pig to be the same as fighting an enemy: if a budding hunter/warrior is
able to locate and capture a white pig with his bare hands, he will be
able to defeat an enemy in unarmed combat.
The means of preparing for combat and the fighting techniques used
therein are taught to the initiated by the tribal elders -- who
invariably have practical experience in such matters. From childhood,
future warriors are trained foremost in the use of the spear.
Marksmanship with a spear is trained by rolling something on the ground
and attempting to penetrate it with a thrown spear. It is believed that
those who are able to hit these moving targets will someday make great
fighters.
Preparation for Combat
Matigsalog warriors prepare for battle by arming themselves with spears
known as bangkaw, shields known as kalasag, bow and arrows known
collectively as pana, and most of all by holding rituals for their gods.
The Matigsalog religion is known aspamubat, and their god is named Manama
Mapobaya Pataba, meaning The Creator of Humans and Earth. During times of
war or injustice they call on Mandalangan, the god of such realms, for
power and protection.
Warriors invoke the aid of Mandalangan through a special ritual, wherein
they sacrifice a red chicken to the god and shed its blood on the weapons
they will use in the ensuing battle. After the shedding of blood on their
weapons, the warriors shout "Oh, God, help us." Once the chicken is cut
and its blood shed on the weapons, it is thrown into the air. If the
Chicken lands and dies facing East, the Matigsalogs will engage in war.
If, on the other hand, the chicken lands and dies facing West, they will
not engage in war, or surely they will be overrun and defeated.
If the Matigsalog decide to engage in war, they look to signs of divine
assistance, such as in the bird known as alimotan. During the course of
either tracking an enemy or engaging in a surprise attack, the
Matigsalog look up to see the alimotan. If the bird is seen flying
overhead and singing to either the right or left of where the warriors
are headed, they will take the opposite route, believing that the
direction in which the bird flies and sings is where the enemy is to be
found.
During times of war, Matigsalog warriors also use talisman called
anting-anting -- though such things are considered "secret" and not to
be divulged to foreigners like myself.
There are three categories of fighting arts employed by the Matigsalog:
striking (hand and foot), wrestling (armed and unarmed), and weapons
(bow and arrow, spear and shield, sword, knife).
The Matigsalog empty-hand striking art is called parogtukay, meaning
hand-to-hand. While parogtukay makes use of the hands for striking, the
Matigsalog do not strike with the closed fist. Rather, they strike their
opponent with the bottom part of their hand, similar to a generic
hammer-fist strike. Kicks of various types are also used. However, like
the empty-hand strikes, no specific names are given to them and they
lack clear and specific technical classifications. Basically, what works
best for the individual combatant is what tends to be used.
The Matigsalog grappling art is called panahungoy. Since this is a
combative grappling art and not a sport or civil defensive art,
techniques of lock-and-control are not utilized. Rather, since the art
must be and is used for real-life combat, its techniques favor immediate
limb breaking maneuvers. Indeed, when the throat is grabbed, the
Matigsalog warrior does not merely attempt to cut-off his opponent's air
flow, but tries to pull out his esophagus to quickly end the encounter.
Headlocks are executed in much the same manner, with the combatant
attempting not to choke his opponent as much as to pull his head apart
from his body.
Again, since the Matigsalog view their unarmed fighting arts as methods
of life-preservation and life-extinction, there is no time to "mess
around" with their opponents. As such, if the Matigsalog is faced with
an opponent highly skilled in unarmed combat and he finds himself
outmatched, the Matigsalog will draw his knife or sword in an attempt to
finish the encounter as quickly as possible. This is especially the case
when Matigsalog warriors are outnumbered and forced to engage several
opponents at a time, as in the case of battlefield warfare.
The Matigsalog weapon art is called pangayaw, meaning to be in
confrontation with an opponent. As mentioned earlier, this art
encompasses the use of the bow and arrow, spear and shield, the knife
and short sword. Bow and arrows are used during long-range battlefield
encounters and at closer range for surprise attack while the users are
under the cover of brush or trees. During closer battlefield ranges the
spear and shield are used in conjunction. This method of fighting finds
opponents circling one another in search of an opening and thrusting
their spears at one another. Spears are not generally thrown long
distances as they tend to take awhile to make and, once thrown, leave
the combatant without a long-range weapon. At extreme close battle range
the warriors fight hand-to-weapon and hand-to-hand. As a last resort in
battlefield combat the Matigsalog will employ the grappling art. This
art, while viewed as good one-on-one, is seen as inferior when faced
with multiple adversaries, as is often the case in times of war.
The Warrior Art in Peace Time
These days there appears to be no overt or formal combative training
among the Matigsalog. Rather, the community is concerned with more
immediate things as keeping peace through politics, maintaining their
ethnic identity, and keeping themselves healthy. Be this as it may,
specified individuals are still found hidden along their geographic
boundaries. In this way, if a neighboring ethnic group decides to one
day attack the Matigsalog people or raid their hamlets, the Matigsalog
will know far enough in advance to marshal their forces and prepare for
combat. These look-out men have their own fighting techniques in which
they can use to engage the invaders should the situation arise.
When I asked one of the warriors to explain to me his fighting art in
detail, the request was denied. They truly believe that the person they
tell such things to could one day rebel against them. And without such
"secret" fighting techniques with which to defend themselves, the
Matigsalog would surely cease to exist.
The Matigsalog do, however, maintain their warrior ethos during peace
time through the performance of the war dance called saot, which makes
use of the spear and shield. Each July, during the designated
"Matigsalog Day," the members of the tribe gather and perform all of
their traditional dances of war, love, agriculture, and so on.
Unlike other festival dances, while performing the saot war dance there
is no accompanying music. There is, rather, a good deal of shouting by
the symbolic combatants. This is known as panahahaw, meaning to shout.
Such shouting is a symbolic gesture of battlefield psychology carried
over from times of war. From the start of a war, and during all ensuing
battles, Matigsalog warriors shout and scream. After the war and after
each battle, if all of the opponent's have been killed, the Matigsalog
shout once again for victory.
In Conclusion
While this article has been short and quite non-specific, I hope that it
has shed some preliminary light on the truly combative arts of the
Philippines and their intended battlefield use. Certainly, much more
research needs to be done in this area of Filipino martial culture
before a deeper understanding of these arts can be reached.
Matigsalog Combative Culture
A Preliminary Field Study Into Indigenous Philippine Fighting Arts
by Mark V. Wiley
When considering the fighting arts of the Philippines, what comes to
mind most often are the classical and modern civil defensive arts and
sport forms. While these systems are representative of the contemporary
practice of the Filipino martial arts, they do not offer a complete view
of these arts in terms of how they were meant to be used on the
battlefield in times of war, raids, and rebellion.
During my fieldwork in the Philippines, I have been able to thoroughly
research the classical and modern martial arts of the lowland Christian
Filipinos, while generally having little access to the various Muslim
communities and indigenous tribal groups (now known as the ethnic
minorities). An 1997, however, I had the rare opportunity to conduct
preliminary field research into the fighting arts and combative culture
of the Matigsalog tribes of Bukidnon, Mindanao. And while there is a
smattering of information available on the warrior and head-hunting
practices of such indigenous peoples as the Kalinga, Bontoc Igorot, and
Ilongo, I have found none on the Matigsalog. The purpose of this
article, then, is to offer a preliminary yet brief glimpse into the
combative culture of the Matigsalog, a traditional Philippine ethnic
minority.
Turbulent Beginnings
The beginnings of Matigsalog combative culture is told in a tale of
when, generations past, the tribes fought against the invading Muslims
in Kapuling, Kalagangan, San Fernando, Bukidnon. As it turns out, the
Muslims were taking Matigsalog women and children as slaves and selling
them other countries. The Matigsalog were at that time ruled by Dato
Gapaw who, with the aid of the Manobo tribe, fought against the Muslims.
Peace between the Matigsalog, Manobos, and Muslims was made during a
ritual blood compact in Kapuling, Kalagangan. These groups remain allies
to this day.
While generally a peaceful people, as recently as July of 1975 the
Matigsalogs prepared their warriors again and rebelled against
then-president Ferdinand Marcos. As it happened, Dato Gowilan, the chief
of the Matigsalog at the time, waged war against the Marcos government as
it began taking their vast lands, converting them into ranches, and
selling them to "cowboys," as the Matigsalog refer to the ranchers. In
addition, a member of Marcos' group began burning Matigsalog thatched
homes and placing blame on Dato Gowilan.
As a result, Dato Gowilan and some of the elder chiefs of the Matigsalog
tribes came together and engaged in a pre-war ritual over the grave of
the late warrior, Dato Gapaw. The knife of Dato Gapaw was then given to
Dato Gowilan, as he was selected to head the rebellion against Marcos
and his armed contingent in Mindanao. Dato Gowilan took the knife for
protection during combat, as it is believed to hold the power and
strength of Dato Gapaw. Throughout Matigsalog history, the possessor of
this knife is looked to as the leader of the warriors.
While the troops of Marcos were equipped with firearms, the Matigsalog
were not -- they used their traditional weapons of combat: bows and
arrows, spears and shields, and various bladed weapons. During the
combative encounters that ensued, the Matigsalog would come to acquire
firearms as they killed Marcos' men. The conflict ended after Marcos
lost too many men and, rather than lose more, negotiated a peace pact
with Dato Gowilan and the Matigsalog people.
Hunting and Fighting
Traditionally, Matigsalogs are hunter-gatherers, and they see a direct
correlation between hunting and warfare. When a Matigsalog boy learns to
hunt he is at the same time taught the ways of the warrior. It is the
same group of men who are the hunters and warriors for the tribe -- and
only men can engage in such activities. For the Matigsalog, hunting
training and warrior training is seen as a rite of passage into manhood.
Indeed, one is already considered as a "real man" if he is able to catch
a white pig without the aid of weapons on any kind, and with just his
bare hands. They believe this act of tracking down and catching a white
pig to be the same as fighting an enemy: if a budding hunter/warrior is
able to locate and capture a white pig with his bare hands, he will be
able to defeat an enemy in unarmed combat.
The means of preparing for combat and the fighting techniques used
therein are taught to the initiated by the tribal elders -- who
invariably have practical experience in such matters. From childhood,
future warriors are trained foremost in the use of the spear.
Marksmanship with a spear is trained by rolling something on the ground
and attempting to penetrate it with a thrown spear. It is believed that
those who are able to hit these moving targets will someday make great
fighters.
Preparation for Combat
Matigsalog warriors prepare for battle by arming themselves with spears
known as bangkaw, shields known as kalasag, bow and arrows known
collectively as pana, and most of all by holding rituals for their gods.
The Matigsalog religion is known aspamubat, and their god is named Manama
Mapobaya Pataba, meaning The Creator of Humans and Earth. During times of
war or injustice they call on Mandalangan, the god of such realms, for
power and protection.
Warriors invoke the aid of Mandalangan through a special ritual, wherein
they sacrifice a red chicken to the god and shed its blood on the weapons
they will use in the ensuing battle. After the shedding of blood on their
weapons, the warriors shout "Oh, God, help us." Once the chicken is cut
and its blood shed on the weapons, it is thrown into the air. If the
Chicken lands and dies facing East, the Matigsalogs will engage in war.
If, on the other hand, the chicken lands and dies facing West, they will
not engage in war, or surely they will be overrun and defeated.
If the Matigsalog decide to engage in war, they look to signs of divine
assistance, such as in the bird known as alimotan. During the course of
either tracking an enemy or engaging in a surprise attack, the
Matigsalog look up to see the alimotan. If the bird is seen flying
overhead and singing to either the right or left of where the warriors
are headed, they will take the opposite route, believing that the
direction in which the bird flies and sings is where the enemy is to be
found.
During times of war, Matigsalog warriors also use talisman called
anting-anting -- though such things are considered "secret" and not to
be divulged to foreigners like myself.
There are three categories of fighting arts employed by the Matigsalog:
striking (hand and foot), wrestling (armed and unarmed), and weapons
(bow and arrow, spear and shield, sword, knife).
The Matigsalog empty-hand striking art is called parogtukay, meaning
hand-to-hand. While parogtukay makes use of the hands for striking, the
Matigsalog do not strike with the closed fist. Rather, they strike their
opponent with the bottom part of their hand, similar to a generic
hammer-fist strike. Kicks of various types are also used. However, like
the empty-hand strikes, no specific names are given to them and they
lack clear and specific technical classifications. Basically, what works
best for the individual combatant is what tends to be used.
The Matigsalog grappling art is called panahungoy. Since this is a
combative grappling art and not a sport or civil defensive art,
techniques of lock-and-control are not utilized. Rather, since the art
must be and is used for real-life combat, its techniques favor immediate
limb breaking maneuvers. Indeed, when the throat is grabbed, the
Matigsalog warrior does not merely attempt to cut-off his opponent's air
flow, but tries to pull out his esophagus to quickly end the encounter.
Headlocks are executed in much the same manner, with the combatant
attempting not to choke his opponent as much as to pull his head apart
from his body.
Again, since the Matigsalog view their unarmed fighting arts as methods
of life-preservation and life-extinction, there is no time to "mess
around" with their opponents. As such, if the Matigsalog is faced with
an opponent highly skilled in unarmed combat and he finds himself
outmatched, the Matigsalog will draw his knife or sword in an attempt to
finish the encounter as quickly as possible. This is especially the case
when Matigsalog warriors are outnumbered and forced to engage several
opponents at a time, as in the case of battlefield warfare.
The Matigsalog weapon art is called pangayaw, meaning to be in
confrontation with an opponent. As mentioned earlier, this art
encompasses the use of the bow and arrow, spear and shield, the knife
and short sword. Bow and arrows are used during long-range battlefield
encounters and at closer range for surprise attack while the users are
under the cover of brush or trees. During closer battlefield ranges the
spear and shield are used in conjunction. This method of fighting finds
opponents circling one another in search of an opening and thrusting
their spears at one another. Spears are not generally thrown long
distances as they tend to take awhile to make and, once thrown, leave
the combatant without a long-range weapon. At extreme close battle range
the warriors fight hand-to-weapon and hand-to-hand. As a last resort in
battlefield combat the Matigsalog will employ the grappling art. This
art, while viewed as good one-on-one, is seen as inferior when faced
with multiple adversaries, as is often the case in times of war.
The Warrior Art in Peace Time
These days there appears to be no overt or formal combative training
among the Matigsalog. Rather, the community is concerned with more
immediate things as keeping peace through politics, maintaining their
ethnic identity, and keeping themselves healthy. Be this as it may,
specified individuals are still found hidden along their geographic
boundaries. In this way, if a neighboring ethnic group decides to one
day attack the Matigsalog people or raid their hamlets, the Matigsalog
will know far enough in advance to marshal their forces and prepare for
combat. These look-out men have their own fighting techniques in which
they can use to engage the invaders should the situation arise.
When I asked one of the warriors to explain to me his fighting art in
detail, the request was denied. They truly believe that the person they
tell such things to could one day rebel against them. And without such
"secret" fighting techniques with which to defend themselves, the
Matigsalog would surely cease to exist.
The Matigsalog do, however, maintain their warrior ethos during peace
time through the performance of the war dance called saot, which makes
use of the spear and shield. Each July, during the designated
"Matigsalog Day," the members of the tribe gather and perform all of
their traditional dances of war, love, agriculture, and so on.
Unlike other festival dances, while performing the saot war dance there
is no accompanying music. There is, rather, a good deal of shouting by
the symbolic combatants. This is known as panahahaw, meaning to shout.
Such shouting is a symbolic gesture of battlefield psychology carried
over from times of war. From the start of a war, and during all ensuing
battles, Matigsalog warriors shout and scream. After the war and after
each battle, if all of the opponent's have been killed, the Matigsalog
shout once again for victory.
In Conclusion
While this article has been short and quite non-specific, I hope that it
has shed some preliminary light on the truly combative arts of the
Philippines and their intended battlefield use. Certainly, much more
research needs to be done in this area of Filipino martial culture
before a deeper understanding of these arts can be reached.