DEITY OF HUMAN AFFAIRS & POLITICS
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| Munsad Buralakaw as portrayed by Raul Dillo GMA Network's AMAYA, 2011 |
He is the diwata in charge of human affairs and politics, an important deity of
the Visayan ancestors whom they both praise and honor as a protector of their
communities and also in charge of their fates and the state of the nation. He
is described as a refined god who loves order and peace, yet at the same time
admires the bravado of heroes, chieftains and their armies. It is said that he
is present in every community council, observing and lending a hand of
inspiration to the datus, babaylans and other important figures of ancient
Visayan society. He has the power to inspire great leaders, guide and bless
heroes on their quests, give blessings and good fortune to a community, yet
also has the power to take it all away in one fell swoop of his hand. Munsad
Buralakaw also is believed to be one of the deities who loves to make his
presence known to the early people, either in dreams or in real life situations
by disguising himself either as a lone traveller or a poor beggar, observing
and judging community life and testing it's inhabitants when it comes to their
hospitality, generosity and kindness. It was also said that communities who
drove him away from the village in his guise as a dirty vagabond or a beggar
were punished severely for their selfishness and evil ways by allowing them to
be captured by the enemy and civil unrest, while he bestowed glory and fame to
the inhabitants of communities who treated him with kindness.
PATRON OF DATUS, HEROES
Munsad Buralakaw is said to be the patron of datus, heroes,
war leaders, the chief babaylan, doctors and young adults due to his power of
affecting a person's fate, either good or bad. Offerings were made to him
during important community events like rites of passage, crowning or election
of community leaders and datus, weddings, births, even during judgement of
prisoners of war and wrongdoers, in which the datu and the chief babaylan ask
his guidance that they may give the correct sentence and punishment to the
wicked and determine and save the innocent and wrongly accused. In a sense, one
can say that Munsad Buralakaw is one of the most important deities in ancient
Visayan Society due to his central role in them.
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| Munsad Buralakaw and Suklang Malayon watching over a family from the Children's Artbook of Marla Yotoko Chorengel Illustrated by Bernadette C. Solina |
EVOLUTION OF IMPORTANCE THROUGH SPANISH INFLUENCE
When the Spanish conquistadores came and introduced Christianity, Munsad
Buralakaw's worship weakened and was replaced by the worship of Christ. The
belief of Munsad Buralakaw's central role in the lives of the people were
discredited by the Spanish lawmakers and friars, telling the Visayans that
worshipping him and the other diwatas were wrong and in his stead, the
teachings of Catholicism and faith in the Catholic Christian's God was planted
in the hearts and minds of the people. Now, only a few ethnic Visayan groups
believe in Munsad Buralakaw, and through them and their descendants, he remains
as one of the most important gods of their daily lives.
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