DEITY OF THE STARS
Lisuga was the only daughter of Lihangin and Lidagat, and was considered to be the most beautiful of them all. She was also the favorite fo her grandparents Kaptan and Magwayen. Lisuga had a caring demeanor, she always worries about her brothers and accompanies them to make sure no harm comes to them, and she also is regarded as the deity of the stars. She had a body made of silver and when Kaptan shattered her body with his lightning bolt, he was so remorseful for what he did to his grand daughter that he took a shard from her and transformed it into a seed from which the first man and woman, Sikalak and Sikabay sprang from.
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| pic taken from Paganism; Past & Present Oracle ThinkQuest http://library.thinkquest.org/28111/newpage12.htm |
DEITY OF THE BABAYLANS & SAILORS
Lisuga was also an important deity for babaylans and sailors
who travel the seas at night, for they ask for her guidance to show them the
right way or in the case of the babaylans, the future of the world around them.
It is also said that stars at night means good weather, and sailors can
continue on with their voyage without any untoward incident. Lisuga is highly
venerated in the Central Visayas in the olden days and they believed she is
also the guardian of the Chocolate Hills of Bohol, in account that she saved a
Boholana heroine from danger and as thanks, the heroine spread her string of
pearls all over the land and it became the Chocolate Hills. When the Spanish
came, her story evolved and it was thought by Visayans during the colonial
times that the heroine was a baptized Christian with a bad attitude and Lisuga,
the star diwata, disguised herself as an old woman to teach her how to behave
and protected her from danger.
Like Licalibutan, Lisuga had no formal worship, rather she is a deity who had
importance in the night sky and in ancient astronomy, since sailors look up to
her constellations at night to see if they were going in the right direction
since there was no sun to help them. When the Spaniards colonized and baptized
the tribes of Visayas, Lisuga's fame survived through the stories that pictured
her as a helpful, caring deity, and for Ancient Visayans, if it wasn't for
Lisuga, there would be no human race at all for they believe she is the mother
of us all.
Related Article:
Related Article:
The Chocolate Hills of Bohol :A Visayan Folktale from Bohol
Many years ago, at the foot of Happy Mountain, there lived a wealthy couple who had an only daughter. The daughter was good-looking, but she was arrogant, mean, and lazy. She was called Amada. The couple had a neighbor, a wise woman and mother of twins. The twins were called Ruben and Teresa. They were kind to everyone, and they grew to love God's creatures around them. Everyday they knelt and bowed their heads to pray. One bright morning Amada, Ruben, and Teresa were playing in Amada's garden when an old woman came by and begged for alms. Ruben and Teresa dug into their pockets but did not find anything. So Teresa took off her pearl necklace and gave it to the beggar. Amada did not like the idea. She tried to grab the necklace. She threw stones and splashed water at the beggar. However, the beggar did not let go of the pearls. Instead, she shouted angrily, "You are unkind and rude. I'll take you somewhere to teach you good manners. On the other hand, the kind children will be rewarded." The woman took Amada away. Ruben and Teresa went to Amada's parents and told them what had happened. Although Amada lived with the old woman, who turned out to be the diwata Lisuga in disguise, she still did not change her ways. She slung sticks at the diwata and did other mean things.The fairy promised to give Teresa's pearls to Amada if she would become good. One night Ruben heard a call. He thought it was Amada. So he went out with Teresa and headed towards where the voice seemed to have come from. They walked and walked until they reached the house of a giant. The giant was happy to see them. He thought his supper was assured that night. The giant's wife begged him not to eat the two children. Suddenly, the stars began to fall and change into little brown spiders. The little brown soldiers came in line and fought the giant, defeating the huge beast with their web. When the fight was over, Amada appeared out of nowhere and had become a changed girl. She became very kind. She was also happy to be with Teresa and Ruben again.The brown soldier spiders ran away with the children until they reached home safely, and they returned to the stars. The pearls that Amada received from the diwata were scattered into the fields as a symbol of kindness and humility. They became hard chocolate drops and grew into chocolate hills. Today they are the famous Chocolate Hills of Carmen, Batuan, and Borja in Bohol.
Many years ago, at the foot of Happy Mountain, there lived a wealthy couple who had an only daughter. The daughter was good-looking, but she was arrogant, mean, and lazy. She was called Amada. The couple had a neighbor, a wise woman and mother of twins. The twins were called Ruben and Teresa. They were kind to everyone, and they grew to love God's creatures around them. Everyday they knelt and bowed their heads to pray. One bright morning Amada, Ruben, and Teresa were playing in Amada's garden when an old woman came by and begged for alms. Ruben and Teresa dug into their pockets but did not find anything. So Teresa took off her pearl necklace and gave it to the beggar. Amada did not like the idea. She tried to grab the necklace. She threw stones and splashed water at the beggar. However, the beggar did not let go of the pearls. Instead, she shouted angrily, "You are unkind and rude. I'll take you somewhere to teach you good manners. On the other hand, the kind children will be rewarded." The woman took Amada away. Ruben and Teresa went to Amada's parents and told them what had happened. Although Amada lived with the old woman, who turned out to be the diwata Lisuga in disguise, she still did not change her ways. She slung sticks at the diwata and did other mean things.The fairy promised to give Teresa's pearls to Amada if she would become good. One night Ruben heard a call. He thought it was Amada. So he went out with Teresa and headed towards where the voice seemed to have come from. They walked and walked until they reached the house of a giant. The giant was happy to see them. He thought his supper was assured that night. The giant's wife begged him not to eat the two children. Suddenly, the stars began to fall and change into little brown spiders. The little brown soldiers came in line and fought the giant, defeating the huge beast with their web. When the fight was over, Amada appeared out of nowhere and had become a changed girl. She became very kind. She was also happy to be with Teresa and Ruben again.The brown soldier spiders ran away with the children until they reached home safely, and they returned to the stars. The pearls that Amada received from the diwata were scattered into the fields as a symbol of kindness and humility. They became hard chocolate drops and grew into chocolate hills. Today they are the famous Chocolate Hills of Carmen, Batuan, and Borja in Bohol.
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