The Livunganen-Arumanen Manobo tribe is found in the province of North

Cotabato. According to the Manobo of North Cotabato, the term “Manobo” derives
from the native term minovo or minobo which means “person” or “people.” The word
may also have been derived from “Banobo,” the name of a creek that flows to Pulangi
River, about two kilometers south of Cotabato City. The northern Cotabato Manobo
say that their ancestors settled along the Banobo and later in the 15th century fled up
this river using vinta (sailboats) to avoid forced conversion to Islam. This exodus
might be the historical basis for the events recounted in the prologue to the
Livunganen-Arumanen epic Ulahingan. Another theory is that the term Manobo
comes from “Mansuba” or “river people” (Blumentritt l90l).

The Livunganen-Arumanen Manobo belong to the original proto-Philippine or

proto-Austronesian people who came from south China thousands of years ago,
earlier than the Ifugao and other terrace-building peoples of northern Luzon. The term
“Proto-Manobo” was coined to designate this stock of aboriginal non-Negritoid
people of Mindanao. The first Manobo settlers lived in northern Mindanao:
Camiguin, Cagayan, and the areas of Bukidnon and Misamis Oriental. There are at
least 19 Manobo languages and major dialects. Other sources claim there are 21,
including the Bagobo, Tboli, and Ubo groups.

The Livunganen-Arumanen are concentrated in the barrios of the Libungan

municipality in the western part of North Cotabato. They share a common history
and culture with another western Manobo group, also called the Arumanen
(also referred to as the Ilianon Manobo), concentrated in the Arakan Valley, North
Cotabato. According to Elkins (1966), the Arumanen of Arakan Valley and the
Livunganen-Arumanen were originally from Aruman, now a barangay of the
municipality of Carmen, North Cotabato. According to legend, however, famine
drove the Arumanen out, and most of them eventually settled in what is now the
barangay of Borongis in Libungan municipality. Some spread out to neighboring
Pigcawayan and Carmen and are now called the Livunganen-Arumanen or simply the
Arumanen. Although the Livunganen-Arumanen and the Arakan-Arumanen/Ilianon
Manobo are now considered separate groups, the languages they speak are mutually
intelligible in spite of dialect differences.In 1977, there were a total of 240 Arumanen
families or 1,200 people living in Libungan, 40 percent of whom were in Barongis and
the rest scattered in the sitios and other Livungan barangays, such as Pigcawayan,
Midsayap, and Carmen. Barongis, the center of the Arumanen population, is
bordered by Melituveg River in the east, Libungan River in the west, barangays
Makulintang in the north and Sinapangan in the south.

Economy

The Livunganen-Arumanen’s major means of subsistence are food gathering and

swidden agriculture. The men build houses, hunt, fish, trap, and fell trees in
preparation for clearing the fields. They hunt pigs, deer, chicken, and various kinds
of fowl with traps, spears, bows and arrows, and hunting dogs. They catch fish with
baskets, hook and line, nets, traps, and spears, and gather honey in the forest. They
are expected to defend their settlement, a task which was important before World War
II, when they were engaged in much intertribal fighting.

Women bear a great part of the burden of work. They clear the fields, plant, weed, and
harvest. They make earthen pots, weave, sew, and embroider. They do all the
household work, including heavy chores such as drawing water, often from sources
far from the house. They take care of the children and serve guests.

Political System

The head of the whole Livunganen-Arumanen tribe is the timuay or datu who calls
the people to meetings (timuay can also refer to the meeting place). In earlier times,
the timuay was obliged to acknowledge the authority of the ruling Maguindanao
sultan, to whom he had to pay tribute of rice and forest products once or twice a
year. In return he received bolo, axes, salt, and clothing, among others.

The timuay is chosen for certain qualities and does not inherit his position. A
prospective leader should know the traditional laws and customs of the tribe. He
should be able to lead his people in war but must also be kind and hardworking. He
is preferably married; if single, his family is expected to do all the household work
that a Livunganen timuay’s wife normally does, especially preparing and serving the
batuung (special food) for festive or religious occasions. He is the arbiter and judge in
matters of dispute between tribal members. In the past, there was a saliling (alternate
timuay) who took over when the timuay was unable to fulfill his duties, due, for
instance, to illness.During the American colonial period, the last traditional timuay
was replaced by an appointed official, first designated as the “head,” then the “barrio
lieutenant,” and finally the “barangay captain.” In 1974, however, the Mindanao
Highlanders Association held an assembly at Barongis and restored the position of
timuay. The timuay is now expected to possess the traditional qualities and the
characteristics required of a modern political leader, i.e., he must be highly educated,
respected by government institutions and officials, and open to ideas for the social
and economic development of his tribe. Tribal members go to him for advice or to
seek representation in government. He is expected to work with the pekilukesen,
the council of elders that advises him.

The pekilukesen recommends decisions to the timuay, who approves them. It

also decides when to hold the bulangan (the annual harvest festival). It functions
within a smaller sphere, for there is a pekilukesen in every barangay. Aside from
advising the timuay, it also intercedes for village members, passes on the tribal laws
and customs, arranges marriages, and chooses the timuay.

The Arumanen word for law or legal code is kukuman. There are four kinds of
codes covering Arumanen life. The kukuman te mehinged (civil code) preserves
harmony among community members. For example, it forbids anyone from chopping
down trees that are at least 1.7 meters tall and outside a person’s property. To do
otherwise is to show malice against the community and the occupants of the house
near the tree. A fine of three articles, such as a bolo, chicken, and clothing, is imposed
on the culprit.

The kukuman te suriman (code of ethics) maintains proper behavior among the
people. For example, a man meeting a woman (of any civil status) on the street must
step to the left and allow the woman to pass to his right. To do otherwise indicates
malice toward the woman, and he must pay a maximum of 15 household articles.
Another ethical code stipulates that it is not proper for a man to enter the house of a
woman when her husband is out. Otherwise, the husband can demand a retribution
of brass and cloth.

The kukuman te bunu (criminal code) states that under no circumstances is killing
justified. The penalty is one carabao plus articles to be paid to the aggrieved family.

The kukuman te esei (marriage code) forbids elopement and imposes punishment
on the offending man even if the elopement is instigated by the woman. If a younger
sister is engaged ahead of her older sister, her fiance must pay her parents one carabao.

Social Organization and Customs

The traditional social structure consisted of five classes: the ruling class, the
walian (shaman), the warrior, the commoner, and the slave. In earlier times, the
Maguindanao sultan conferred the ranks of nobility. The walian, who can be either
male or female, were village priests and healers. They interpreted dreams and omens,
foretold the future, and healed the sick with herbal medicine and elaborate mystic rites.
During these rites they were invariably possessed by the diwata or spirits. Their
powers were either inherited or conferred upon them by the spirits. In the past,
Arumanen warriors defended the community and engaged in battle. The commoners
were farmers. The slaves seized in raids belonged to the ruler. The warrior and slave
classes no longer exist.

The talaulahingan, the singer of the Livunganen-Arumanen epic called Ulahingan,

enjoys a special status conferred upon him by one diwata—the muse of epic poetry.

Certain rites and customs attend the significant stages in the Arumanen’s life, such
as childbirth, courtship, marriage, and death. After childbirth, the placenta is placed
in a basket, which is hung at arm’s reach from a tree. The walian, with the consent
of the grandparents, names the infant three days later. If the child is sickly, its name
is changed. When the child is three months old, the parents and grandparents sprinkle
chicken blood on its forehead and palms to ward off evil spirits. A baby boy is given
a spear or bolo.

The onset of puberty used to be marked by the girl wearing the malung (tubular
skirt) for the first time and the boy, his first pair of trousers.

Courtship involves much circumlocutory language, especially when the man

declares his intentions, and during negotiations for the bride-price. The man sends his
spokesperson, called ad-ugpu, to notify the woman’s parents of his wish to call on
them. During the visit, the ad-ugpu of both parties conduct the negotiations for the
dowry, which may consist of carabaos, brass gongs, heirloom articles, and several
cavans of rice. The dowry size depends upon the woman’s position in the family,
the eldest and the youngest commanding the highest price.

A man may also conduct his own courtship by offering the woman’s parents food
products, betel chew, firewood, and a period of service. An opportunity to publicly
declare his affections is a big gathering like a festival, wedding, or funeral wake. The
man sings of or declaims on the beauty and virtue of the woman and hints at her
identity by poetically alluding to her place of residence, since he is forbidden to
mention her name. The woman cannot reply to the man, but an older female relative
replies with a challenge for the man to prove his love with acts of gallantry and
wisdom, such as gathering honey from the tallest tree, clearing a seven-hectare field,
and reciting the tribal laws. A more daring man might bury a love potion at the foot
of the ladder of the woman’s house on a Friday afternoon. If she steps on it as she
comes down the steps, she will fall under his spell when he visits her sleeping room
two nights later. In a betrothal ceremony, the boy’s parents offer a spear to the girl’s
parents. The marriage arrangements, however, are done when the children come of age.
When the husband dies, his family can choose a new spouse for his widow, who
cannot refuse the match. A widower, however, is free to choose his next wife. The
father, or in his absence, the eldest son, is the head of the family. The extended
family includes the grandparents, uncles, aunts, and in-laws.When a person dies, all
the clothes in the house are hung on a clothesline strung over the body. The spirit of
the deceased takes them into the afterworld. The coffin is a log cut lengthwise in half,
with the upper half serving as cover. The man is buried facing the eastso he can work
on his farm at sunrise. The woman is buried facing the west so she can gather food
before sunset.

Mourners returning home from the funeral spit on the fire near the entrance of the
house. They try to put out the fire so that the spirit of the dead will not see them in
the dark. On the third day, they place a meal on the stairs for the soul. Footprints
left on the ashes spread over the steps of the ladder are evidence that the soul has
come and gone. During the mourning period, there is much music and dancing,
although the sound of the agung (brass gong) is prohibited.

Religious Beliefs and Practices

The Livunganen believe in one supreme diwata called Kerenen, whom they address in
prayer in several ways. He is Midlimbag, the creator of the world; Megbeveya, its
ruler; Memintaran, the people’s guiding light; Misuara, the “voice and giver of
different languages and ways of speaking.” When he is referred to in the third person,
he is Alataala (sacred or holy). He lives in the “seventh heaven” far enough not to
smell human odor, which offends him.

On the second plane of the cosmological hierarchy are six male diwata, called
katulusan: the Diwata te Idsila or Tsilaan (god of the east), who controls sunrise;
Diwata te Lambungan (god of the west) who controls sunset; Diwata te Belengkayen
(god of the north) and Diwata te Belevahan (god of the south), who hold the world
steady between them to prevent floods and control the direction of typhoons and
rains; the Diwata te Udtuwan (god of the zenith), who holds up the heavens; and
the Diwata te Insanal (god of the base of the world), who is tinier than “the pupil of
one’s eye” but “holds the goldenpillar of the world in the palm of his right hand.”
An earthquake occurs when he cleans the pillar (Maquiso 1977:25).

On the third plane are four sets of lower diwata. The first set consists of the diwata
of agriculture and food: Ivebasuk (god of the kaingin and farm tools), Kelayag (god
of plants),Pemarey (god of grains), Pemanlew (god of palm trees), Kalamkalam
(god of root crops), and Mehumenay (god of wildlife). The second set of diwata
consists of Lelawag or Pengalap (god of animals), Yakan (god of wild pigs),
Peneyangan (god of the bees), and Alimugkat (goddess of fish and the waters), the
only female diwata in this set. She is half-woman, half-fish, has long golden hair,
and lives in a golden palace under the sea.

On the fourth plane are the diwata which control the course of human life: Undi or
Yayawag (goddess of fate), Kahrang (goddess of love), Penewamuk or Penennemuk
(god of good fortune and wealth), and Kakum (god of justice and law).

On the fifth plane are the diwata of trouble: Mengilala (god of war), Tuhawa (god of
death), and Inanit (goddess of evil).

The lowest class of diwata, called inggaib, consists of evil or mischievous spirits,
called the busaw, and the helpful but naughty spirits who live in trees, springs, cliffs,
houses, rivers, brooks, and the like.

The walian uses two important items in rituals: betel chew and the blood of a white
chicken. The betel chew is offered to the spirits and the blood is sprinkled on the
object that the shaman is blessing. To ensure a good harvest, for instance, chicken
blood is sprinkled on the seeds. An important thanksgiving ritual practiced by all
North Cotabato Manobo is the Bulangan Festival, which is held at the timuay.
The Livunganen hold theirsat Barongis.

Illness occurs when the person is being punished by ancestral spirits or by a diwata,
or when the person’s soul temporarily leaves the body. The walian diagnoses the
illness by consulting with the spirits which instruct through possession. The walian
is then able to treat the sick with rituals and herbal medicine.
It is believed that when a person is on the brink of death, the soul, which has
wandered away from the body, comes upon a big baliti tree, the trunk of which the
soul taps. If a leaf falls while the sap is flowing, the person will die soon; if not, the
person will recover.

The afterworld is divided into suruga (heaven) and nereka (hell). It is believed that
the soul initially goes to kelenganen, where its final destination—suruga or
nereka—is decided.

In 1920, a sect called the Langkat was founded by a walian, who claimed to be the
intermediary between the spirits and the people. Today most Livunganen have
retained their traditional beliefs and practices, although a significant number have
become Langkat. Some are Evangelical Christians.

Visual Arts and Crafts

The traditional clothing of the Livunganen is a fine example of Manobo embroidery art.
Blue, white, yellow, and black geometric shapes and conventional designs based on
objects in their environment, are embroidered against a bright or dark red background.
Abaca fiber, dyed by the ikat process, was the main clothing material until it was
replaced by cotton. The women wear the malung, which is folded in front with the
upper corner tucked securely at the waist. Linear or checkered designs in multicolored
threads are inwoven. If cotton trade cloth is bought, big floral designs are preferred.
The blouse is V-necked, tight fitting, and long sleeved. The embroidery runs along the
neckline and the edges of the sleeves. Geometric designs consist of horizontal lines,
zigzags, and shapes such as circles, triangles, and trapezoids.

The Arumanen wear anklets with about 15 tiny slit bells. Several layers of bead
necklaces draped from the upper chest to the upper neck, disks hanging from slits in
their earlobes, and toe and finger rings.

The men wear loose trousers reaching to just below the knee. A drawstring at the
waist holds them up. The lower part of the trousers is thickly embroidered with
similar designs as the women’s clothing. The jacket reaches down to the waist,
has tight, long sleeves, and is closed in front. The embroidery work is also similar
to that on the women’s blouses. Strands of nito vine are braided to make tight-fitting
leglets called tikes (bands of manhood).

Both men and women used to sport tattoos on their wrists, arms, chest, and legs.
Women’s calves, and sometimes their whole legs, used to be elaborately tattooed.
Except for the addition of conventional designs like crocodiles, stars, and leaves,
tattoo designs were of the same type as those used in embroidery. Nowadays, the
practice of tattooing has largely disappeared.

Some still file their teeth with sharp stones and blacken them with the sap of
the bunggay tree.Literary Arts

No samples of Livunganen folk speech, such as proverbs and riddles, have been
recorded, although there are examples of proverbs and maxims identified as
Cotabato-Manobo.

Ka tanris ne pakadazaat te putso izing te limo

Napakaamin do’t pusong.

Nothing destroys iron like its own rust.

Limo te kurata ne dalid te langon ne sala.

Love of money is the root of all evil.

Ke talad ne otang ne kenano palilipati.

A promise is a debt; do not forget it.

Ka manisan ne maritan ne bulawan,

Ka mapia ne maritan ne Iambus.

A beautiful woman is a jewel,

A good woman is a treasure.

Several Manobo tribes inhabiting the contiguous area along Cotabato, Bukidnon, and
Davao in Central Mindanao have an epic hero named Agyu. The Manobo tribe
Kulamenen/Kuamanon has an epic hero called Tuialang, the cousin of Agyu. He is also
the epic hero of the Manuvu, who call him Tuwaang. The Bukidnon/Higaonon/
Talaandig of Bukidnon province have The Epic of Nalandangan, which tells not
only about the heroic exploits of Agyu but also of Matabagka, his sister, and
Baybayan, his son/younger brother. The Livunganen, as well as all those who speak
Arumanen and inhabit the Libungan River area, have nine versions of an epic called
the Ulahingan, which is about Agyu and his people.

Ulahing means “to chant in a particular style of poetry, language and music”
(Maquiso 1977:34). The epic, called a bendingan, is chanted in the language of the
diwata, which is also the language used by the god Kerenen when he communicates
with the people.

The Ulahingan has two parts: the kepuunpuun, which is the prologue that also
contains the synopsis, and the numerous sengedurug or episodes. The longest
version found so far has 1,355 sengedurug, or an average of 30 sengedurug for each
major epic character: Agyu, his brothers, sisters, wife, cousins, and his children. The
Livunganen believe Agyu and his people to be the origin of the human race. He is “the
supreme ruler and judge of all,” although he was originally human.

An episode in the Ulahingan explains how this epic came to be. Heaven has several
territories to which are assigned various people. Nelendangan is the heavenly territory
assigned to Agyu and his people; Agyu’s son Bayvayan, however, is assigned his own
place. Bayvayan’s grandfather orders him to circle the earth seven times in a grander
variation of the saut (war dance), and convert people of various races and religions to
follow him. One day, during a famine, Bayvayan chants a prayer for food. This is the
first ulahing. When Bayvayan finally ascends to heaven, the Supreme Being tells him
that he can best serve Agyu by inspiring people to chant the ulahing, thereby
preserving the ideals of the Arumanen as represented by Agyu. Bayvayan inspires
the talaulahingan to chant the story of Agyu in the bendingan language.

The kepuunpuun of the epic summarizes the origins of the various Manobo groups.
Banobo lived two brothers: Tabunaway, who was the timuay, and Mamalu. In
the 15th century, two strangers, Sarip Kabungsuwan and Rajah Baginda, came with a
wealth of goods: “gold, plates, Chinese jars, brass ornaments, clothing, brass pots and
ladles, spears of iron, daggers of different shapes, etc.” (Maquiso 1977:60).
Kabungsuwan then went about converting the people to Islam. Tabunaway refused
conversion, but advised his younger brother to “accept the new religion.” The two
brothers had their last meal together, in which Mamalu ate pork for the last time.

After Mamalu’s baptism, Tabunaway and his followers went to the mountains.
They stopped at a certain spot where Tabunaway defiantly danced the saut. His
movements were so powerful that the kulungkulung (bell) hanging on his spear flew
off into the sea. The place is now called Kulungkulung. They then went up the
Pulangi River, and at another stop, they decided to part ways. Tabunaway and his
group who went to Libungan became the Livunganen. The others became the
Kirinteken, Mulitaan, Kulamanen, and Tenenenen. The Kulamanen split into the
Pulangiyan and Metidsalug or Matigsalug. Branches of the Tenenenen are the
Keretanen, Lundugbatneg, and Rangiranen. A group stayed along the river in Lanuan
and built an iliyan (fort) and became the Ilianon. Those who went to the divava
(downriver) became the Divavaanen, some of whom branched into the Kidapawanen.
From Mamalu’s son Mangigin sprang the first Maguindanao sultanate.

Performing Arts

Of all musical instruments, the agung is used most, except in times of mourning. It
does, however, announce the death of a tribal member with a series of rapid then slow
beats, that indicate the age of the deceased. Other bamboo percussion instruments
include the salurey, which accompanies dancing, and the talamba. Bamboo flutes
differing in length are the pulandag, bansi, and pulala. The kubing is a bamboo
jew’s harp; its sound is produced by a strip that is partially cut from the middle of a
thin and narrow piece of bamboo. One end is held in the mouth with one hand while
the other hand strikes the strip to make it vibrate. The kutyapi is the native guitar.
The dayorey/dayuray/dayuday is a one-stringed fiddle also found among the Manobo.

The Ulahingan has four musical forms. The andal is an ordinary tune used to
call the people to gather around to listen to the talaulahingan. It is not yet part of the
bendingan. The undayag is a musical phrase improvised by the chanter when trying
to recall the next line. The beginning of the phrase, which is set at a high pitch, is
sustained and determines the pitch of the rest of the chant. The penehensan is the
characteristic musical form of the bendingan, consisting of one note stressed on each
syllable. To break the monotony of this one-note chant, the likuen, which consists
of melodic lines, is inserted.

Other songs are either religious or secular. Susunan is the generic term for any
kind of song, “long or short, light or serious” (Maquiso 1977:24). The term may
apply even to the ulahing. The iringa is a more melodious folk song in contemporary
language. The mandata are love songs. The delinday are occupation or work songs,
including war songs, lullabies, planting, and harvest songs. The minudar and mauley
are funeral songs, which tell the story of “a hunter who journeyed to his favorite
hunting ground from where he never returned because he was killed by a giant boar”
(Maquiso 1977:31).

The Livunganen have three types of dance: the saut, the dance of the spirits, and
the courtship dance. The last is performed by girls who put on a shy demeanor. With
downcast eyes and raised arms, they sway their hands sideways to the beat of the
agung.

Acts of worship center on one or more walian who go into a trance and are
possessed by the spirit of their diwata. The opening rite of the bulangan festival is
the kebpemaya, which originated among the Kirinteken Manobo tribe. It is said that
an old Kirintek woman was transformed by the diwata into a python, which now
resides in the Meridegew River. The people pray to her for enlightenment. Two
walian chant a prayer to the old woman’s spirit, asking for her blessing. The people
respond in a chorus. After the seventh cycle of prayers, the old woman’s spirit
enters one of the walian, who begins to tremble and engages the crowd in a chanting
dialogue. Through the possessed walian, the old woman asks the crowd why they
are praying. Someone may consult her about the cause of a loved one’s illness,
or courteously ask whether she is pleased with the festival. The old woman replies
through the walian.

Another occasion in which the walian may call for a religious gathering is when
they receive a message from a spirit about an impending danger or sickness. They
relay this to the timuay, who then calls for an assembly which should include all the
other walian of the tribe. The ritual, which lasts about 2 to 3 hours, begins when the
women offer the diwata baskets of food and betel chew that they lay on a rattan mat
in the middle of the assembly. The sap extracted from a tree is burned to drive away
human odor, which offends the spirits. The head walian takes a piece of food from
each basket and offers it to the spirits. There is a break for supper, after which all the
walian, now dressed in white ritual dress, sit around the betel chew offering. The
spouses of the walian stand behind them, each rhythmically beating a sacred porcelain
plate. The walian show signs of possession when they yawn, tremble, and stand up
for about 10 to 15 minutes or more; their movements become more and more frenzied
as they march around and dance to the rhythm beaten on the floor by the spectators.

The Langkat sect has its own variation of this ritual, which is held every Friday in
a one-room house called a bintana. The men and women are segregated on either side
of the room. At one end of the room is an altar with a white mantelpiece. The
ubiquitous betel chew is placed in each corner as an offering. Possession begins when
the leader starts to chant in a low voice, which increases in pitch, volume, and
intensity as the leader, swaying rhythmically, is gripped in a trance. Everyone then
takes turns chanting as the spirits communicate with them. The leader conveys the
people’s needs, problems, and wishes to the spirits. • R.C. Lucero/ Reviewed
by S.K. Tan

References

Blumentritt, Ferdinand. “List of Native Tribes of the Philippines and of the

Languages Spoken by Them.” In The Smithsonian Report for 1899. Washington:
Government Printing Office, 1901.

Elkins, Richard. “Culture Change in a Philippine Folk Society.” Philippine

Sociological Review, Vol. XIV, No. 3 (July 1966), 160-166.

Eugenio, Damiana L., ed. Philippine Folk Literature. Quezon City: Folklore Studies
Program, 1982.

Garvan, John. The Manobos of Mindanao. Washington DC: United States

Government Printing Office, 1931.

Maquiso, Elena G. Ulahingan: An Epic of the Southern Philippines. Dumaguete:

Silliman University, 1977.

Regional Map of the Philippines—XII. Manila: Edmundo R. Abigan Jr., 1988.