The Dumagat People of Barangay Dibut, San Luis, Aurora
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DOCUMENTATION OF PHILIPPINE TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE AND PRACTICES IN HEALTH: THE DUMAGAT PEOPLE OF BARANGAY DIBUT, SAN LUIS, AURORA A collaborative project of The Dumagat community of Barangay Dibut, San Luis, Aurora Philippine Institute of Traditional and Alternative Health Care - Department of Health (PITAHC-DOH) Institute of Herbal Medicine - National Institutes of Health - University of the Philippines Manila National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) Aurora State College of Technology (ASCOT) 2011 TABLE OF CONTENTS I. Reminder II. Executive summary III. Abstract IV. Background V. Scope and limitations VI. Methodology VII. Ethnography of Dibut A. People 1. Description of the people 2. Tagibulos: the origin of the Dumagat language B. Place 1. Physical description 2. Access to the area C. History 1. Governor Lucing Molina 2. The Second World War 3. The coming of the New Tribes Mission 4. Awarding of the Certificate of Ancestral Domain Title (CADT) D. Livelihood E. Political system F. Religion G. Social 1. Family 2. Courtship 3. Marriage 4. Gender 5. Education 6. Pastime H. Food 1. Binungu 2. Nami I. Health 1. Beliefs and practices a. Pregnancy b. Giving birth c. Infant care d. Puberty and aesthetics J. Death, afterlife, and the world we live in K. Causes of illness 1. Aswang 2. Amas a. Sobkal b. Taloman c. Patianak d. Talo 3. Kaluluwa 4. Change of climate 5. Salot 6. Hawa 7. Pagsalubong ng init at lamig 8. Animals and the surroundings 9. Plants 10. Bonog/usog L. Health-seeking practices 1. Mainstream 2. Arbularyo 3. Prayer M. Dibut: a clan of healers N. How one learns to heal 1. Pagkakatnig 2. Need 3. Experience 4. Purposely transferred O. The healing process 1. Cultivation, gathering, and storage of herbal medicine 2. Preparation a. Laga b. Alak c. Laib d. Pais e. Ngata/nguya 3. Direction for use a. Tapal b. Inom c. Buga d. Langgas e. Pahid f. Ligo g. Kwintas 4. Effects, adverse effects, and contraindications VIII. Tables of ethnopharmacological uses of natural materials IX. Appendices A. Indications recognized and corresponding plants used B. Case studies of Dumagat households and key consultants 1. Eustaquio Bihasa’s Household 2. Natividad Household 3. Molina Household 4. Felicito Bihasa’s Household 5. Casamis Household C. Dumagat folktales 1. Dibut: the origin of the name 2. Ang kuwento ni Mog-got 3. Ang kuwento ni Kutikut D. Lexicostatistics E. List of cultural consultants F. Bibliography ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We thank all the Dumagat families and community members in Barangay Dibut, San Luis, Aurora who gave their time and energy to the project REMINDER The indigenous knowledge and practices written in this report were obtained with full consent from cultural consultants belonging to the Dumagat community in Barangay Dibut, San Luis, Aurora. Any information from this study to be used for further academic research or commercial purposes should have the free and prior informed consent of the knowledge-owners. The knowledge-owners and this study should be properly acknowledged and cited if information in this report will be used. Any commercial benefits which may arise from the utilization of the community’s indigenous 1 knowledge should be shared with the Dumagat people of Barangay Dibut, San Luis, Aurora. 1 Based on Elisabetsky and Posey 1994. From Posey and Dutfield 1996. Beyond Intellectual Property: Toward Traditional Resource Rights for Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities. p.48. Documentation of Philippine traditional knowledge and practices in health: i The Dumagat People of Barangay Dibut, San Luis, Aurora, 2011 Documentation of Philippine traditional knowledge and practices in health: ii The Dumagat People of Barangay Dibut, San Luis, Aurora, 2011 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY PROJECT TITLE: DOCUMENTATION OF PHILIPPINE TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE AND PRACTICES IN HEALTH: THE AGTA PEOPLE OF CASIGURAN, AURORA AND THE DUMAGAT PEOPLE OF SAN LUIS, AURORA PROJECT LEADER: DR. ISIDRO C SIA IMPLEMENTING AGENCY: Institute of Herbal Medicine, National Institutes of Health University of the Philippines Manila COOPERATING AGENCIES: Agta People of Sitio Dipontian, Barangay Cozo, Casiguran, Aurora Dumagat People of Barangay Dibut, San Luis, Aurora Aurora State College of Technology National Commission on Indigenous Peoples DURATION: 15 MONTHS SIGNIFICANCE: The Philippines is one of the richest countries in terms of cultural diversity, as well as of biodiversity. There are 110 indigenous communities and 175 ethnolinguistic groups in the country. The indigenous peoples, characteristically living in the mountains or their fringes, have depended mostly on plants and other natural products from the forest to prevent or treat sickness. But environmental degradation and the onslaught of lowland mainstream cultures now threaten their healing traditions. Lifestyle change as a result of displacement from their ancestral domains and lack of supportive mechanisms to pass on knowledge are also leading to the discontinuance of their traditional healing practices. Few studies have been conducted to document the ethnopharmacological knowledge and healing practices of our indigenous peoples. Madulid of the National Museum documented the medicinal plants used by the Ati people in Nagpana, Iloilo, Panay. He has also compiled a bibliography of almost 1,000 references on Philippine ethnobotanical and ethnopharmacological studies. The Complementary and Traditional Medicine Study Group of the National Institutes of Health, University of the Philippines Manila (NIH – UPM) and the Philippine Institute of Traditional and Alternative Health Care (PITAHC) documented the ethnopharmacological knowledge and healing practices of the following ethnolinguistic groups: the Isnag, Kalinga, Ifugao, Kankana-ey, and Ibaloi peoples of the Cordillera; the Bugkalot people of Dupax del Sur, Nueva Vizcaya; the Kabulowan, Tagibulos, and Idimala Agtas of Sierra Madre; the Ayta people of Morong, Bataan; the Tadyawan, and Alangan Mangyans of Mindoro; the Pala’wan, Batak, and Tagbanua peoples of Palawan; and the Ata Manobo, Bagobo, Mansaka, Mandaya, and Dibabaon peoples of Mindanao. Maramba in “Medicinal plants: their role in health and biodiversity,” reported that in 1978 to 1983, Quintana conducted a nationwide documentation of traditional healers and medicinal plants used. Maramba and Dayrit reported that out of this survey, 120 medicinal plants were chosen for priority studies by the National Integrated Research Program on Medicinal Plants. Documentation of Philippine traditional knowledge and practices in health: iii The Dumagat People of Barangay Dibut, San Luis, Aurora, 2011 Landa Jocano did his seminal work on the healing traditions of Bay, Laguna from 1968 to 1973. Documentation of healing traditions has likewise been done by Filipino anthropologists Abaya, Estacio, Padilla, Tan, and the Community Medicine Foundation. The documentation previously done, though seemingly numerous, is not enough to cover the breadth and depth of the immense body of traditional knowledge held by our indigenous peoples. For one, the more than 20 Negrito (Ayta/Agta/Alta/Ata) groups have been represented in only 3 studies listed in this review. As a group of peoples, they are the most vulnerable to losing their oral traditions because of the harsh conditions they are living in, the onslaught of mainstream cultures to the detriment of the local culture, and the lack of supportive mechanisms to pass on their traditions to the younger generations. Four Negrito languages are now considered extinct; with the loss of the language of a people, the people’s traditional knowledge is also lost. The ethnographic and ethnopharmacological study of the Agta people of Casiguran, Aurora and the Dumagat people of San Luis, Aurora, is a component of the Documentation of Philippine Traditional Knowledge and Practices in Health Program. This project aims to conserve both the biodiversity and cultural heritage of the indigenous communities and ethnolinguistic groups in the country. Documenting with the indigenous communities their health traditions may contribute in upholding their knowledge and practices. It is a way to transfer the healing traditions to succeeding generations. Indigenous elders may pass away but the community can still refer to the documentation for their ancestors’ health practices. The project recognizes that the ancestral domain of our indigenous peoples is a rich source of potentially useful pharmacologic agents. The documentation may be used by communities/community members as evidence of particular health knowledge and practices which they posses and have rights to. Knowledge gathered may also help in providing the indigenous communities with culturally acceptable health care services, including health education materials. The documentation may aid in spreading awareness that the cultural wealth of indigenous communities is inextricably tied to the richness of biodiversity of their ancestral domain. It may contribute in promoting the protection of communities’ ancestral land which they rely on not only for health but is the primary basis of life for the indigenous peoples. Objectives of the project 1. To identify and select ethnolinguistic groups and study communities 2. To identify and link up with research partners in Aurora 3. To organize, orient, and train local research assistants in facilitating participatory research 4. To conduct consultation meetings with communities and integrate their recommendations regarding the project 5. To discuss and form with the community the code of ethics