academy of sciences] THE GREAT RELIGIOUS MOVEMENT OF 1908-1910 235 



THE REAL NATURE OF THE MOVEMENT AND MEANS USED TO CARRY ON 



THE FRAUD 



I can state unqualifiedly that the whole movement earned on in the Agusan Valley among 

 the Mandayas, Debabaons, and Mangguangans of the Salug-Libaganon region was a fraud 

 from beginning to end. I state this on the testimony of the high priest who introduced it into 

 the Agusan Valley, on that of the other priests, and on my own discovery of the fraud. The 

 abandonment of the movement and the open avowal of the Mandayas of the Karaga, Manorigao, 

 Bagafiga, Manai, and Kasauman Rivers, who are still bemoaning the loss of many valuables 

 that they had given as offerings, is unimpeachable evidence that the whole movement was a 

 great religious deception. 



I have no reason for doubting the wonderful recovery of Mesklnan, whose real name was 

 Mapakla, nor do I see any improbability in the report that he fell suddenly under the influence of 

 a spirit, for such an occurrence is not without precedent in Manoboland. I will admit even that 

 at the beginning belief in the revival was sincere, but as time went on and the reputation of the 

 power of Meskinan's spirit became greater, abuses crept in, so that shortly after my arrival in 

 Compostela the whole system became an atrocious deception for the purpose of wheedling 

 innocent believers out of their valuables. 



The scheme was most probably engineered by some Mandayas of the Tagum River in league 

 with one of the men of the Mawab River and two of the upper Salug. The Mandayas of the 

 Tagum River have had dealings with Moros from time immemorial, and undoubtedly they 

 learned from them much craft and chicanery. It is far from being impossible that they were 

 prompted by Moros in the present case or that Moros themselves set the movement afoot. I have 

 one reason for being inclined to adopt the latter opinion, namely, that the Moros did actually 

 originate a movement of this kind in the seventeenth century as stated by Combes in his " Historia 

 de Mindanao," and a similar movement about the year 1877, as is mentioned in one of the Cartas 

 de los PP. de la Compania de Jesus. 



Let us now examine the various artifices by which the fraud was carried out. 



THE SACRED TRAFFIC 



Mesklnan lived somewhere up the Libaganon River, far from the Tdgum, and was therefore 

 practically out of communication with the Agusan. Hence there was little danger of discovery 

 in reporting him deified and his body all golden. After his deification he was always absent, 

 either "down at the pillars of the earth" or on an "island at the sea" or winging his way "on a 

 shield through the starry region." It is easy to understand how difficult it would be to secure an 

 interview with him under these circumstances. 



As soon as it was reported from the Tagum and Mawab Rivers that Meskinan could take 

 anyone under his special protection — in other words, that he could bestow his spirit upon others — 

 several went over to Tagum and Mawab and did actually receive a spirit, but only at the hands of 

 those who purported to be the representative of Mesklnan. Now those who received this spirit- 

 ual influence were expected to give a consideration I6 for the gift, or Magbabdya, as it was called. 

 As time went on this usage developed into the custom of paying the equivalent of a slave (1*30) 

 for every Magbabdya received from the representatives of Meskinan. This payment had to be 

 made not only for the original bestowal of these spirits but also in case of their flight and return, 

 for they were of a fugitive disposition. I have seen several young fellows start off for Libaganon 

 in fear and trembling to redeem their runaway spirits. It may be noted here that the flight of a 

 spirit was ascribed to some act on the part of its possessor that provoked its displeasure. 

 Thus one young fellow assured me that his Magbabdya had fled because of his failure to abstain 

 from eating rice. 



8 Called d-lo. Perhaps this is an abbreviated form of the Spanish word Ttgalo, which means gift, and which is a word of frequent use among 

 those with whom the Catholic missionaries came in contact. 



