Spiritual Self

This topic tackle about the Filipino spirituality that even though we are the largest Christian nation in Asia and with the Catholic influence, several remnants of our prehistoric roots has still prevail. An examples of this is when boys say ”Tabi-tabi po” when they take a piss in a dark forested part, especially a huge tree and the idea of “taw-an” or “enchanted” of the Visayans belief about trees can house spirits. Many of the people take as only a superstitions but are they really?

The Soul Book

In the SOUL BOOK: Introduction to Philippine Pagan Religion (Demetrio et.al.,1991) one of the exciting concept of soul is Dungan. Dungan is the what is the exact translation of the word in Cebuano which means “to go together” or “go along”. Dungan is an old concept of the soul, according to the Visayans in Panay Island. It is the kind of spirit that we cannot see. At first, it dwells in the heavens then when the person is born, it enters the body of the living person and it only means that Dungan only exist when the person is alive. Thus, when the person dies, the Dungan will leave the body and it is now called kalag. Whatever happens to the Dungan, it will also affect the physical body of the person. For example, when an aswang or ungo (monsters or lost souls) damages the Dungan, the physical body will get sick that leads to consulting an albularyo or mananambal (shaman or witch doctor) to feel better. Dungan also means “willpower” and it can develop throughout life. As a person grows mature, the stronger the Dungan becomes. This also explain why infants are prone to sickness and this is because their Dungan aren’t fully developed yet.

There are many more beliefs related to Prehistoric Filipino spirituality. Many of them are still alive within modern society such as the concepts of gaba, barang, lumay(gayuma), Yawa, Bathala, and many more. Nowadays, most of these are only considered as myths and legends—because of western influence.

Leny Strobel

She criticizes calling the prehistoric practices as “primitive” or” supervisions” in her book Babaylan: Filipinos and the Call of the Indigenous (2010). In her interview, she stressed out the need to “decolonize” the spiritual path for back then, Filipinos consider trees as sacred for the thought that there might be spirits living there and if people no longer believe in spirits, it might be easy to cut trees. As a result, our environment deteriorates, thus the floods, landslides, viruses, and etc.

More than a set of rituals, ceremonies, and dogma- religion offers refuge to those who seek inner peace and hope but others think otherwise and think that it is a foolish idea. Marx said that faith makes people weak, claiming that “religion is an opium of the people” (1844). Feuerbach said that the “God” concept is a projection of what human beings want for themselves, a notion he says “theology is anthropology” (2006).

According to Victor Frankl

According to Victor Frankl, a Jewish-Austrian Psychiatrist, that unlike any atheist thinkers, believe that religion aids people to survive despite all the sufferings. He developed a psychoanalytic methos called “logotherapy”, which helps people find meaning in life by reorienting themselves toward their focus. In Logotherapy, there are three sources meaning: (1) Work (doing something significant), (2) Love (caring for another person), and (3) Courage during difficult times.

Have the thought of why people debate about religion seems endless? Most of the time. People feel that there is a need to argue about faith and religion since we cannot force people believe what we believe but when someone makes fun of your religion, you might feel offended and that shows that religiosity and spirituality boil down to personal level. Sometimes we think that we are defending our faith, but we are actually protecting our fragile egos (Tonybee, 1956). So, how can people with different beliefs coexist in the same world?

As technology advances, the world shrinks thus more interactions with people of different backgrounds, faith, and religion. The cliché “respect all religion” is easier said than done for people really tend to trespass personal boundaries. To make it simple, just remember to appreciate religions the way they are instead of judging based on your owns standards. Accept that people took different path to holiness, and more importantly, love them as they seek spiritual nourishment. The more you appreciate others’ faith, the more you learn about your own beliefs.

To clarify, being religious and spiritual are not mutually inclusive terms. Being religious refers to how much you abide by your beliefs, whereas spirituality refers more to the individual practice of finding purpose and peace. You can be religious but not spiritual. For example, a person goes to church every Sunday but does not treat neighbors well.

We should honor those differences because there is so much to gain from the wealth of diverse spiritual heritage. Faith is a vehicle, not a cage. People ride different cars and take other roads, but all are going towards the same destination. God loves everyone, and people don’t have to believe what you believe to have a good relationship with God.

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