Creation myth / Visayans

A few might not know where the origins of my avatar name comes from, tikbalang translates as 'demon horse' and is a creature from Philippine folklore said to lurk in the mountains... Why i choose it was mainly because it was free on a list, nothing more to it really..
But some probably thinks the name have a "higher cause" of some weird depraved fantasy they cocktailed together..

But im not here to discuss my name, im here to discuss a creation myth told by the Visayans.
They date from c. 6,000 to 30,000 BC and is probably the oldest, as well as the largest ethnic group in the Philippines, numbering at around 33 million.

Francisco Ignacio Alcina, a Jesuit missionary and historian, also wrote a summary of the creation myth in his Historia de las islas e indios de Bisayas in 1668.

Although there are different versions of the Visayan creation myth, they are similar in characters, conflicts and resolutions. The way the story was narrated and its different subsequent retellings strongly portray the common experience of the people. The creation myth of the Visayans not only tells the story of how the world was created and how humanity came into existence, thus effectively describing how the Visayans view the world and their origins, it also describes the first death, war, social classes, and race.

The Land, the Sun and the Moon Battled against the Sky

In the beginning, the world was nothing but a great sea of water under the sky. The sea was ruled by the goddess Maguayan while the god Kaptan ruled the sky. As the two great gods decided to unite, the sea became the bride of the sky. From their union came three sons and a daughter: the strong and brave rock-bodied Likalibutan, the happy golden-bodied Liadlao, the timid copper-bodied Libulan, and the beautiful and gentle Lisuga with a body of pure silver. Kaptan and Maguayan took great care of them and shielded them from evil. After some time, Likalibutan, the eldest of the siblings, was resolved to gain more power and asked his brothers to join him in an attack on Kaptan.

The three brothers rushed at the sky where Kaptan resided. However, they could not destroy the gates of steel that guarded the entrance to his home. The powerful Likalibutan then let loose the strongest blows and shattered the bars of the gate in every direction. As they came charging through the gate, the brothers were met by the angry god Kaptan. The sky, usually serene and calm, now darkened and the terrible anger of Kaptan made them run away in terror. However, the furious Kaptan sent three bolts of lightning after them. The first bolt struck the copper Libulan and melted him into a ball which fell near Kaptan’s feet, thus Libulan became a part of the sky forever as the moon.

The second bolt struck the golden Liadlao and he too was melted into a ball before he could escape from the sky, making him a part of the sky as the sun. The third bolt struck Likalibutan, who led the escape, breaking his rocky body into many pieces before falling into the sea. Parts of his body stuck out above the water and became what is known as lands. Gentle Lisuga, devastated by the tragedy that befell her brothers, was later placed by Kaptan in the sky as the stars so she could be near her two brothers, the sun and the moon, and share her beautiful silvery light with her eldest brother, the land, in dark nights.

Francisco Ignacio Alcina
Historia de las islas e indios visayas del Padre Alcina

a reply to: tikbalang

Fascinating story, thank you for sharing.

I haven't heard one quite like that before.

a reply to: tikbalang

Thank you for sharing that tikbalang!

I have never heard of the VIsayan's, I find it interesting that their history potentially goes back to 30,000 BC!?

Always good to hear a new creation stroy, I love hearing how it has been personified over the years.

Star for posting something new in the creation forum. Refreshing.

They forgot to explain where the world came from. And what about the rest of the universe? They also forgot to explain where lifeforms came from (including the goddess Maguayan and the god Kaptan mentioned in the story if they're not eternal).

"where ... came from" can also be phrased as 'what caused ... to come into existence' (obviously that which is eternal cannot logically come into existence, but no mention is made of anything being eternal as far as I can tell from that story).

It can also be phrased the way you phrased it: "how the world was created", which the story you quoted doesn't address unlike what you said about it. It starts with the world already there. What also may be noteworthy is that the verb "create" or the noun "creation" isn't used anywhere in the story (ignoring that which may be interpreted as 'creating' if one feels so inclined). See this comment for more details regarding the subjects of "creation" and "creating".

a reply to: whereislogic

Its a story written down on a missionary trip by a priest, it includes a lot of logical fallacies. Creation myths usually include a cosmological reference with parables..

I believe they believed the world already existed, the Universe was a canvas on the night sky and the earth was in the center..

I believe you are very educated on the etymology of the words, but sometimes its just a story without anything else..