In the heart of the mountains, you will find what it desires; you will find the meaning why it is still beating, and that is - its people. When I heard about “Sibato” all I can ever think about are stones “kasi nga bato”. The place also proves its name because the road going there is literally rocky which gives you an uncomfortable but an exciting feeling because it spices up the adventure that you are about to experience. Actually, it’s my first time to conduct an ocular visit of a certain tribe and it gives me an unexplainable thrill because I do not have any idea what I will encounter and experience there.

         Just to give you an idea where Sibato is, it is located at Barangay Guimbalaon, 27 kms away from the city proper.

           The village welcomed us with serenity and simplicity as we are about to get out in our vehicle, letting us escape from the hustle and bustle of the city. There, we meet the Sulod Bukidnon Tribe leader Chief Ben Acse and one of the tribe members, they offered us linupak (Pounded bananas mixed with mascuvado sugar) to eat.  While we were eating, Chief Ben explained how he was appointed to be the leader. First, he told us that they were pre selected - those men who has the 100% bloodline of the tribe; Second, the elders identify the “qualified” based on their skills and knowledge of their culture; third they present themselves to the Baylans (Priest) who decides who will lead and lastly the chosen tribe leader will now be presented to the whole community to be recognized. After giving us the background of the tribe; he invited us to go to their river and watch them catch some bonog and crablets for our lunch.

Researhcers are trekking off to the river of Sibato

          As we trek going to the river, we met some of their members along the way. The river is about 3km away from the village proper. Upon reaching the destination, we saw a lady in her mid 50’s carrying a traditional tool for fishing then she explained to us how to use it and I tried it personally but I didn’t catch anything LOL. Chief also told us that there are other members who are using bangkaw (spear) as well for fishing.

            While travelling back to the village proper, somebody offered us fresh buko juice and they also invited us to collect some cucumbers in their organic garden. That organic garden was actually a project of Ikaw-Ako Foundation for their community to help them in their livelihood. After harvesting some cucumbers, a family invited us to stay temporarily at their house to have some lunch and rest. They prepared steamed okra, bisaya na manok (native chicken), pinamalhan nga marot kag bonog for our lunch.

While eating, the elders shared their knowledge about their tribe’s superstitions, traditions and beliefs.  As the conversation goes, we learned a lot of new words just like “himpit” which means fixed marriage,  “binukot”, a lady who has been part of the royalty that will undergo a process wherein she will be imprisoned in a house where no one sees her until she gets married, and different terms used for coconut shells according to its purpose:

Hungot – water container

Pulakaw – for scooping of rice

Paya – as a kabo (dipper)

Bayong – a container for water

What interest me as well is a true story of a “Binukot” Isca and her husband Abog. Click the link to see the full story.

In the afternoon, the rhythm and the beat from the instruments of the tribe woke us up in delight. Those instruments are called “agong” and “tultog” and it is used to play during special ceremonies and their traditional dance called “Binanog”, a courting dance inspired from the movement of a bird. Some of the researchers learned the rhythm and some joined the tribe dancing that result into a great performance!

The ladies of the tribe dancing their traditional dance called "Binanog"

In the evening, we learned that the community uses solar powered flashlights at night time since electricity from the city proper can’t reach the village. This solar powered flashlight is a government project under Mayor Jose “Oti” Montelibano. Some are donated by one of the city councilors, Hon. Neil Solomon Locsin. They are very grateful to have these flashlights since their problem during night time was solved, they are very hopeful to have a line of electricity someday.

We left the village at dawn and we have a lot of experiences to treasure. This journey has been a wake up call for us and for all the Silaynons that we need to value our heritage and be an agent of promoting and preserving the culture of our ancestors. Let us all be dynamic in passing on the heritage into the future generations just like the Sulod Bukidnon Tribe of Sibato.