MAIKLUM SA BAGIDAN

MAKLIUM SA BAGIDAN

GOD OF FIRE

Maklium sa Bagidan (Being of the Flint) is the god of Fire in the Panayanon pantheon and was also featured in the epic poem Hinilawod along with his brothers Maklium sa T'wan and Maklium sa Tubig, vying for the hand of the beautiful virgin goddess Alunsina and ultimately losing out to Datu Paubari. He, along with his brothers plotted against the couple and agreed to the decision of drowning them while they are in their house with a violent flood from Maklium sa Tubig, although their plans were thwarted by Alunsina's sister, Suklang Malayon who warned her sister to evacuate in advance to avoid the catastrophe.

GOD OF FIRE

image of a fire god
spells-witchcraft.org

Maklium sa Bagidan was worshipped as the god of Fire. He is described to be a god with a cheerful, happy-go-lucky attitude but can also be hot-headed when angry and very temperamental. He is thought by Ancient Visayans to be a spirit that resides in the flint, stones that the ancient Visayans use to make fire and they thought that the flame was a gift from him, making him one of the important gods of the household and the community, where some thought he also resides and listens to human affairs and stories which were told in community gatherings around a bonfire. Some also thought that the demigod Paigrab, husband of Luyong Baybay, the goddess of tides was his descendant and that the man inherited his hotheadedness and passionate spirit. He is worshipped by homemakers to avoid any mishaps while cooking, tribal leaders to help them with community decisions, and babaylans to provide them with divine visions through the sacred flames, which was used to burn offerings for the gods.

EVOLUTION OF IMPORTANCE THROUGH SPANISH INFLUENCE

The veneration for Maklium sa Bagidan started to decline however when the Spaniards colonized the Philippines, the native people were baptized one by one to the Catholic faith and only the remote tribes who were unreached by the missionaries due to impossible landscape and bad weather that continually thwarted their efforts, were the only ones who would continue on worshipping the deities of old, and keep the spark of faith in Maklium sa Bagidan alive for generations to come.