212 THE MANOBOS OF MINDANAO— GARVAN [MEMO ™ 3 o? A xxn£ 



of the enemy who would fall into their clutches, while those that lay without the pale of the shield 

 represented the individuals who would escape, and to whose slaughter accordingly they must 

 devote every energy. There are numerous little details in this, as in most other forms of 

 divination, each one of which has an interpretation, subject, it would appear, to the vagaries of 

 each individual augur. 



Divination from the bdgung vine.- — Before leaving the point from which it has been decided 

 to begin the march two pieces of green rattan, the length of the middle finger and about 1 centi- 

 meter thick, are laid upon the ground parallel to each other and about 2}i centimeters apart. 

 One of these stands for the enemy and the other for the attacking party. A firebrand is then held 

 over the two until the heat causes one of them to warp and twist to one side or the other. Thus 

 if the strip that represents the enemy were to begin to twist over toward that of the aggressors, 

 while that of the latter twists away from the former, the omen would be bad, for it would denote 

 the flight of the assaulting party. Should, however, the rattan of the aggressors twist over and 

 fall on the other, the omen would be auspicious and the march might be entered upon. 



The various twists and curls of these strips of rattan are observed with the closest attention 

 and interpreted variously. Should the omen prove ill, the tagbusau must be invoked and other 

 forms of divination tried until the party feels assured of success. 



Divination from bdya squares. — The bdya is a species of small vine, a fathom of which is cut 

 by the leader into pieces exactly the length of the middle finger. These pieces are then laid on 

 the ground in squares. Should the number of pieces be sufficient to constitute complete squares 

 without any remainder the omen is bad in the extreme, but should a certain number of pieces 

 remain the omen is good. Thus if one piece remains the attack will be successful and of short 

 duration. If two remain, the outcome will be the same, but there will be some delay; and if three 

 remain, the delay will be considerable, as it will be necessary to construct ladders. 8 



When any of the omens taken by one of the above forms of divination prove unpropitious, 

 the tagbusau must be invoked and other divinatory methods tried until the party is satisfied 

 that a reasonable amount of success is assured. But should the omens indicate a failure or a 

 disaster, the expedition must be put off or a change made in the party. Thus, for instance, the 

 bad luck 9 might be attributed to the presence of one or more individuals. In that case these 

 persons are eliminated and the omens repeated. It is needless to say that the observance of all 

 the omens necessary for an expedition, together with the concomitant ceremonies, may occupy 

 as much as three days and nights. 



INVOCATION OF THE OMEN BIRD 10 



Though at the beginning of ordinary journeys the consultation of the omen bird is of primary 

 importance, yet before a war expedition it acquires a solemnity that is not customary on ordinary 

 occasions. This ceremony is the last of all those that are made preparatory to the march. 



The warrior priest turns toward the trail and addresses the invisible turtledove, beseeching 

 it to sing out from the proper direction and thereby declare whether they may proceed or not. 

 In one of the instances that came under my personal observation a little unhulled rice was placed 

 upon a log for the regalement of the omen bird, and a tame pet omen bird in an adjoining house 

 was petted and fed and asked to summon its wild mates of the encircling forest to sing the song of 

 victory. Many of the band imitate the turtle bird's cry u as a further inducement to get an 

 answer from the wild omen birds that might be in the neighborhood. 



ft Pa^a-hag-da-ndn. 

 ' Ptti-ttd. 



10 Pan-du-ag-tdu-ag to li-md-kon. 



11 This is done by putting the hands crosswise, palm over palm and thumb beside thumb. The cavity between the palms must be tightly 

 closed, leaving open a slit between the thumbs. The mouth is applied to this slit and by blowing in puffs the Manobo can produce a sound that 

 is natural enough to elicit in many cases response from a turtledove that may be within hearing distance. In (act, I have known the birds to 

 approach within shooting distance of the artificial sounds. 



