In the beginning...

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Philippine indigenous communities recognize a woman (or man) as a Babaylan, someone who has the ability to mediate with the spirit world, has her own spirit guides, and is given gifts of healing, foretelling, and insight. She may also have knowledge of healing therapies such as hilot, arbularyo. She is a ritualist, a chanter, diviner. She has the gift of traveling to the spirit world or non-ordinary states of reality in order to mediate with the spirits. Babaylans are called by other names in the other languages of Philippine indigenous communities: Mombaki, Dawac, Balyan or Balian, Katalonan, Ma-Aram, Mangngallag, Mumbaki, Mambunong.

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In contemporary contexts, whether in urban Philippines or in Filipino diasporic communities, the Babaylan name is used by those who are inspired by the spirit in which the primary Babaylans carried out their work: the spirit of revolution against colonization, their belief in Sacred Wholeness, their love of mother country, the desire to serve their communities in achieving justice and peace.

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If we were to take a non-Filipino word to describe the various healers/spiritual practitioners, a “shaman” would be the closest. Some of our members, in their writings for a Western/Westernized audience, sometimes interchange shaman, “shaman-priest,” or “priestess” but our members also strive to use the local term when referring to a specific person, region, or ethnolinguistic group. Otherwise, it IS indeed a challenge to use English terms to describe or explain our Philippine traditions.

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Babaylan Tradition concerns the Filipino Wisdom and Power within us. Filipinos everywhere can be empowered by traditions preserved, upheld, passed on by and through Babaylan women and men. 

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Initiation

There are two ways to become a babaylan. Some inherit their status from an older babaylan they were apprenticed to and in some of the tribes in the Philippines they are chosen from the eligible women in the village.

 

The only other way other than being chosen in this physical realm; is being chosen through the spiritual realm. This is the way I became a babaylan. Being chosen through the spiritual realm happens through the process of experiencing what has been termed as shamanic initiatory crisis, shamanic illness or shamanic madness. This includes but not limited to a serious sudden illnesses, near-death experiences, strange events, bouts of insanity or experiencing strange visions or dreams. Filipinos regard these as encounters with the spirits; where the soul of the person is said to be journeying to the spirit world. In these types of cases, the spirit chose the person... rather than the other way around.

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For me... I was around 5. My father was stationed at Clark Air Force Base in the Philippines. My mother a devote catholic, born and raised in the Philippines 

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• In the Visayas region of the Philippines, particularly around the Mactan Islands, "Babaylans" referred to pre-colonial spiritual leaders, mostly women, who acted as priestesses, healers, and mediums, connecting with the spirit world through rituals and divination practices; they were considered highly respected figures within their communities, often consulted by the datus (chiefs) before important decisions were made. 

• Mactan is an island in the Central Visayas region of the Philippines, and is part of the Cebu province. The Visayas is a region of the Philippines that includes the island of Cebu and other nearby islands. 

• Mactan Island:

• Known for its marine life, coral reefs, and diving Home to Mactan–Cebu International Airport Home to Mactan–Benito Ebuen Air Base Divided into the city of Lapu-Lapu and the municipality of Cordova Connected to Cebu by the Cebu–Cordova Link Expressway (CCLEX), the Mactan–Mandaue Bridge, and the Marcelo Fernan Bridge 

• Cebu Province: 

• Located in the Central Visayas region

• Includes the main island of Cebu and 167 smaller islands, including Mactan, Bantayan, Malapascua, Olango, and the Camotes Islands

• Battle of Mactan:

• The battle that took place on Mactan Island in 1521, where Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan was killed by the forces of Lapulapu The first battle won by a native Filipino against the Spanish 

• Lapulapu is considered the country's first national hero 

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After being chosen, shamans go through an initiation rite. These rites are meant to gain or transfer the patronage of a spirit. Those with shamanic illness, these initiation rites are regarded as the cure, where the initiate regains health or sanity by conceding to the wishes of the spirits and "answering the call."

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When volunteered rather than volunteering, their relatives are usually required to pay a large fee to the senior shaman for the training. Initiation rites can range from simply inducing a trance through herbs or alcohol, to inducing personal crises through physical or psychological hardship.[20][39] Extreme examples of initiation rites include getting buried alive or being immersed in water overnight.[12]

After initiation, the apprentices are then trained in the details of their role. This training includes learning about the rituals, the chants and songs, the sacrifices appropriate for each spirit, oral histories, herbs and healing practices, and magic spells, among others. They usually assist the senior shaman during ceremonies until their training is complete, which can take months to years. Each shaman can have one or more such apprentices, at varying ranks or specializations.[20][3

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However *balian-derived terms have largely disappeared among lowland Filipinos after Christianization in the Spanish era.

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Filipino shamans, commonly known as babaylan (also balian or katalonan, among many other names), were shamans of the various ethnic groups of the pre-colonial Philippine islands. These shamans specialized in communicating, appeasing, or harnessing the spirits of the dead and the spirits of nature.[2] They were almost always women or feminized men (asog or bayok). They were believed to have spirit guides, by which they could contact and interact with the spirits and deities (anito or diwata) and the spirit world. Their primary role were as mediums during pag-anito séance rituals. There were also various subtypes of babaylan specializing in the arts of healing and herbalism, divination, and sorcery.[3]

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Babaylans were shamans and ritual specialists in pre-colonial Philippines. They were healers, diviners, and priestesses who were respected members of the community. 

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Role in society

• Healers: Babaylans healed people and the land 

• Diviners: Babaylans provided advice on decisions about trade, travel, and marriage 

• Mediators: Babaylans communicated with spirits of the dead and nature 

• Leaders: Babaylans were leaders in the community, equal to the noble ruling class 

• Storytellers: Babaylans passed on the tribe's histories and lore through chant, song, and dance 

 

Legacy

The Indigenous practice of having a babaylan did not last long during the Spanish colonization. They were persecuted as witches and purveyors of superstition.