The Philippine Lower Gods
The Filipino people have an extensive belief system that goes back to pre-Spanish times and have been passed on from generation to generation usually by oral transmission. They believe among others that a Supreme Being called by names like Bathala, Diwata, Kabunian, Mansilatan, Makaptan, Laon, Lumauig, Mamarsua, Tuhan, etc. has created a lower class of deities to whom they could offer their supplications and offerings for their daily needs and struggles.
The lower gods were known by names like diwa, diwata, tuhan and anito who were either good or bad spirits. This sort of cosmic dualism has ever since molded the daily living of early Filipinos who came to believe in the existence of many preternatural creatures. Some of these are presented here based on the book A Survey of Philippine Lower Gods written by Maximo D. Ramos, regarded by many as the father of Philippine demonology. They are collected from across the archipelago according to their traits with the particular tribes which claim knowledge of the creatures enclosed in parenthesis.
I. THE DEMONS
1. AGTA, BAWA and UNGO
* Physical Description - tall huge black men
* Domicile - large trees: santol, balite, mangrove, etc.
* Activities - walks towards humans; wanders alone at night; seen standing still and alone; orders fishermen not to fish; abroad in the dark from 8:00 pm to 4:00 am
* Intellectual and Spiritual Endowments - knocks down large trees to stop men; sits in tree smoking large pipe or cigar; when offended, punishes folk, steals clothes and firewood
* Animal Instincts - seen practically naked
* Magical Character - size varies with tree or building it inhabits
2.BATIBAT (Iloko)
* Physical Description - huge fat woman
* Domicile - hole in a post it lived in when post was still a tree
* Activities - bestrides sleeping person and suffocates him, causes bangungot or nightmares
* Intellectual and Spiritual Endowments - lives inside house of humans
* Animal Instincts - forbids folk to sleep near its domicile
* Magical Character - is driven away by biting one's thumb or wriggling one's big toe in a nightmare
3. KAPRE (Tagalog, etc.)
* Physical Description - huge black man, legs large as acacia trunks, eyes big as plates
* Domicile - balite and other large trees
* Activities - wanders alone or sits in tree
* Intellectual and Spiritual Endowments - smokes a huge cigar while seated in a tree
* Animal Instincts - makes a birdlike chirp; roars
* Magical Character - can change size and shape; fired at, turns into a banana trunk
4. MANTAHUNGAL (Tagbanua)
* Physical Description - cowlike in body and voice but hornless; shaggy coat of hair; monstrous mouth with two pairs of huge tusklike incisors
* Domicile - forest on a high mountain
* Animal Instincts - capable of ripping a person to pieces with tusks
5. PUGOT, NUMPUTUL (Iloko, etc.)
* Physical Description - black gigantic man; headless man, dog, hog, chicken, etc.; self-beheading
