Chapter 61: The Annual Pilgrimage to the Sto. Nino de Tondo Church, the Ancient Palace of the Kingdom of Tondo

    The Annual Pilgrimage to the Sto. Nino de Tondo Church, the ancient Palace of Lakan Bunao Dula (the last King of Tondo and the 2nd Pariarch of the House of Dula), is being held at the 4 PM mass every second Sunday of December to commemorate the birthday of Lakan Bunao Dula. It is organized by the United Royal Houses of the Philippines and the Knights of Columbus of the Sto. Nino de Tondo Church. It is hosted annual by the memebrs of the Principalia Council of the United Royal Houses, on a rotation basis. The year 2024 is the 6th Pilgrimage to the Church.  It is hosted by Apo Remedios Cabral pf the House of Cabailo, Kingdom of Palawan.

There is a snowballing initiative which include the current and  17th Patriarch of the House of Dula, Prof. Sofronio Dulay, to petition the Pope to make Lakan Bunao Dula  a Saint for his role in advancing Christianity in the Philippines. He made peace with the Kingdom of Spain, converted into Christianity with a name Lakan Carlos Dula, encourage the creation of different Cathoilc Chapels and convince his son, Martin Lakandula to join priesthood.Although his other  children (Batang Dula, Magat Salamat , Phelipe Salonga, Luis Taclucmao and Maria Poloin) eventually resisted the Kingdom of Spain, Lakan Carlos Dula maintained his neutrality and peace with the Christian Kingdom of Spain, even donating  big portion of his Palace compound to the Church with a desire that a future Catholic Church will be built on it. He died peacefully of old age.  One of the miracles that is attributed to Lakan Dula is his intercession to the Sto. Nino de Tondo to bring down the Covid cases in the Philippines in the exact dates when they were prayed for.

  A pilgrimage is a devotional practice consisting of a prolonged journey, often undertaken on foot or on horseback, toward a specific destination of significance. In modern times, the mode of travel may vary based on the available transportation. The Hajj (/hɑːdʒ/; Arabic: حَجّ Ḥajj; sometimes also spelled Hadj, Hadji or Haj in English) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. All devout and able Muslims attempt a hajj (pilgrimage) to Mecca at least once in their lifetime. Saudi Arabia’s King Salman approved a range of initiatives aimed at assisting firms and individuals operating in support of Islamic pilgrimages. The king of the Saudi Arabia  is called the "Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques" (خادم الحرمين الشريفين), a title that signifies Saudi Arabia's jurisdiction over the mosques of Masjid al Haram in Mecca and Al-Masjid an-Nabawi in Medina. 

The pilgrimage to the ancient palace of the last king of Tondo is a traditional pilgrimage by the descendants of Lakan Dula and the principalias  in Philippine society. The principalias are the datu who were relatives or allies of Lakan Dula and other native leaders but due to the de facto  alliance between the Kingdom of Spain and the Lakanate of Tondo initiated by Martin de Goiti, these datu were later appointed as gobernadorcillo or cabesa under the Kingdom of Spain, eventually calling  them as the principalia. Even today, the principalias are recognized in Europe as a title of nobility. 

The ancient palace of the last King of Tondo is the Sto. Nino de Tondo Church. The pilgrimage is done around  4pm mass on the second Sunday of December commemorating the birth date of Lakan Bunao Dula. Church historians of the Sto Nino de Tondo Church believe that during one  his birthday celebrations, Lakan Bunao Dula was converted into Christianity with a Christian name Lakan Carlos Dula, maintaining the title Lakan, replacing the non  Christian name Bunao to Carlos and maintaining the regnal name Dula in honor of the long line of previous monarchs of the Lakanate of Tondo and his mother Ysmeria who introduced the surname Dula to the monarchy. The main activity of the pilgrimage is the offering of the mass for Lakan Dula with the descendants and principalias attending the ceremony, followed by a merienda for the parish staff and street children, and culminating with a free willing  tour in the nearby Manila areas.

The Catholic  priests, Knights of Columbus  and the Principalia Hereditary Council of the Philippines support this traditional pilgrimage, namely; Fathers Lito Villegas and Arnel Calata, Jr,; Knights of Columbus District Deputy Cesar Arcilla and Faithful Navigators Bong del Rosario, Grand Knight Diosdado Besas, Deputy District Deputy Nestor Magsino; and the Principalia Council composed of Grand Patriarch Sofronio Dulay, The House of Dula of the Lakanate of Tondo | Datuk Delmar Taclibon, The House of Magat Salamat of the Lakanate of Tondo | Matriarch Cecille Cayetano. The House of Capulong of the Lakanate of Tondo | Dayang Corazon Siya. The House of Sumakwel of the Madja-as Confederation | Rajah Julian Canonoy, The House of Lapu Lapu of the Rajahnate of Mactan | Apo Remedios Cabate - Cabral, House of Cabailo, of the Kingdom of Palawan, in El Nido in the town of Taytay | Rajah Junbert Guigayuma, The Royal House of Tupas Humabon of the Rajahnate of Cebu | Patriarch Andrew Miranda, The House of Gatchalian of the Lakanate of Tondo.

Other principalia families that have link with Lakan Dula

The Macapagals (Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macapagal. Retrieved August 5, 2022)

Macapagal (rare variant: Makapagal) is a Filipino surname derived from the Kapampangan language.The family claims noble descent from Dola de Goiti Dula, a legitimate grandchild of Lakan Dula, the last "王" or King of Tondo "東都" (Dongdu). It is the only known branch of the Seludong's royal family to have survived the Majapahit Empire's invasion, the Sultanate of Brunei's pogrom against native royals, Chinese warlord Limahong's massacres, and the fallout from the Tondo Conspiracy. The family survived due to Martin de Goiti's giving of his Mestiza (Half Aztec and Half-Spanish) daughter in marriage to Batang Dula, the eldest son of Lakan Bunao Dula of the Lakanate of Tondo. As time went on, they incorporated the descendants from the two other royal houses: the house of Rajah Matanda (ऋअज ंअतन्द) and the house of Tariq Suleiman (سليمان).The family then migrated to Pampanga and Northern Samar after the Spanish assumed control of Manila. The following are people possessing the Macapagal surname:

• Don Juan Macapagal (d. 1683), former prince of Tondo and first documented bearer of the surname. Great-grandson of Lakandula

• Lazaro Macapagal (c. 1860s), officer of the revolutionary army during the Philippine Revolution. Commanding officer ordered to execute Andrés Bonifacio

• Diosdado Macapagal (1910-1997), former 9th President of the Philippines and 5th Vice President of the Philippines

  • Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (born 1947), daughter of Diosdado Macapagal; former Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Philippines, 14th President of the Philippines and 10th Vice President of the Philippines

    • Mikey Macapagal Arroyo (born 1969), son of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo; served as representative and vice governor of Pampanga

    • Diosdado Macapagal Arroyo (born 1974), son of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo; served as representative of Camarines Sur

• Maan Macapagal, television news reporter

The Romualdez (Source: https://ipfs.io › ipfs › wiki › Daniel_Romualdez . Retrieved August 10, 2019)

Romualdez and Dula of the Lakanate of Tondo were in the Sumuroy Revolt. Daniel Zialcita Romualdez (September 11, 1907 – March 22, 1965) was a Filipino politician who served as Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Philippines from 1957 to 1962. Daniel "Danieling" Romualdez was born in Tolosa, Leyte. His father, Miguel, once served as an assemblyman for Leyte and mayor of the city of Manila. His great-grandfather was involved in the Sumuroy Revolt but narrowly escaped Spanish execution when he was allowed by David Dula to visit his ailing mother. Dula and his seven trusted men were later executed in Palapag, Northern Samar and were buried in unmarked graves without Roman Catholic rites. Superstitions existed that a Romualdez was to die that day in Palapag. More than fifty years later, Philippine Supreme Court Associate Justice Norberto Romuáldez, Danieling's famous uncle and the man who made their surname distinguished in society, would suddenly die of a heart attack in Palapag, hometown of his second wife Beatriz, daughter of the parish priest Fray Salustiano Buz, who insisted on campaigning at the grassroots level for the Philippine Senate elections when he was almost guaranteed to win on account of his nationwide reputation.

The Aquinos

They are related to the House of Dula nobility through the Sumulong bloodline of Tondo, Marikina Valley and Antipolo . Notice that despite of so many Cojuangcos and Aquinos in the Philippine politics, e,g, Danding Cojuangco, Sen. Butch Aquino, Gibo Cojuangco Teodoro, Sen. Bam Aquino, Rep. Hermie Aquino,  Sen. Tess Aquino Oreta,   only the Aquino and Cojuangco that has a native Sumulong bloodline became Presidents of the Philippines: President Corazon Sumulong Cojuangco  and President Noynoy Cojuangco Aquino.