Naniniwala ka ba sa mga kababalaghan?
Roughly translated, “Do you believe in superstitions?”

A family friend just came back from their 5-week Pinas holiday when their 5-year old son developed coughs & colds. After 2 days he developed fever & the coughing became severe. After 2 weeks & a round of antibiotics, the boy was vomiting & was unable to eat and his fever was on & off. The parents have brought him to two hospital A&Es, and if you know NHS, you’ll know how frustrated they felt. Anyway, malaria and dengue were ruled out by blood tests. The mum & her family back in Nueva Ecija then consulted an albularyo (faith healer). The woman asked for the boy’s picture & immediately said he fell from a white staircase & hit an elder (nuno) on the stomach. The family in NE has no staircase but my friend said they went to Baguio where her son did fall from a white staircase! She was then told to gather holy water, blessed oil, palaspas, dried sampaguita & incense. I don’t know the entire ceremony involved but they were told to pray “Ama Namin” (Our Father). The boy was better the following day! Indeed I saw him last Sunday (three days after the pray-over) and he was running about like he’s never been sick.

I had goosebumps when my friend told me that story over the phone last week. She asked me do I believe in “such things”? I was hesitant to answer because part of me wants to say “No”, but a greater part says “Yes”.

You see, I grew up in a family where relatives develop enlarged genitals, lumps & all sorts of pains & aches that all go away immediately when the albularyo‘s words were followed. And more often than not, those relatives all encounter these beings at my house! I’ve seen how grains of rice (newly removed from husks) or drops of candle form very recognisable figures. We order platters of rice cakes (bila-bilao talaga) for offerings & we all pray & ask forgiveness from the unseen.

I was told another story of a Pinay who got voodoo’ed here in London! Of course, this ranks of kwentong kutsero now, but let me tell it anyway. This nurse was complaining of serious headaches & pain on the nape. After scans & xrays, the doctors told her she’s probably just stressed. Frustrated she boarded a plane to Pinas but stopped in Dubai instead due to the severe pain she was felt. In Dubai (where she has friend to house her), she was introduced to an Indian “healer”. As soon the guy saw her, he told her that she has upset a dark person (read: maitim). All the guy did was link her small fingers point-to-point & the pain was gone. The girl said it was if something was pulled out of her nape!

Ah to live in constant fear of upsetting something you cannot see, or someone you can see but who has some sort of magical power. How to find a balance in modern life? Well you have your Faith, you have your Science. And also you have bigger things to worry about like the increasing crime rates.

But in my life there is a space for superstition. I say my “tabi po, apo“, and I will buy my son a small crucifix to pin on his shirt when we go visit Pinas. As one friend said with regards to these preventive measures, it doesn’t hurt to give them a try.

So you think being away in Pinas makes a First World country safe from the engkanto ha?