Really interesting blog about religion in the Philippines before the Spanish and what their missionaries did to the religion. All comes from the phrase bahala na, or bathala na. Bathala was a major god in the Philippines, the creator god, and the one the Spanish converted into the Christian figure of god. The others were converted into demon spirits, but bahala was kept as it was close to the Christian idea. So when people said bahala na there are two important parts. Firstly one interpretation is that the syllable ba represents babae (woman), la represents lalake (men), and the middle ha or ta is the spirit/god. So its the trinity in their spirituality, of matching man, woman, and spirituality in equality and oneness. Secondly when saying bahala na, or ikaw ang bahala, or bahala ka, its saying that youre god, that its up to you. Its not giving away power or a fatalism as its often used today (probably turned into that by the Spanish), but ultimately it was about taking responsibility, taking power, and showing that you have divine worth. Ive known other examples in other countries where Christian missionaries basically took over the local religion and turned the local creator god into the Christian version. A good example, given its coming up to Christmas, is that Jesus was actually born in August/September, but the early Church took over the Roman God Mithras birthday (Dec. 25) and all the symbolic nature of that belief for Christmas and the winter solstice. But really interesting to read about how things were in the Philippines and how it happened here. And how originally spirituality here was about taking responsibility, not about giving your power away, but about oneness in gender and religion. Interesting stuff! Check it out if this interests you.
Posted on: Sun, 07 Dec 2014 06:33:51 +0000
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