320 The Tinguian 



through the foramen magnum. It is probable that both methods of 



exhibiting skulls were employed in the Tinguian belt. 



Nowadays the saloko found near to the villages are usually erected, 



during a short ceremony of the same name, as a cure for headache. A 



medium is summoned; and, after securing a chicken, she strokes it, 



as she chants : 



"You spirits of the sagang, 1 who live above. 



"You spirits of the sagang, who live on the level ground. 



"You spirits of the sagang, who live in the east. 



"You spirits of the sagang, who live in the west. 



"You Lalaman 2 above. 



"You Lalaman on the wooded hill. 



"You Lalaman in the west. 



"If you took the head of the sick man, 



"You must now grant him health, as you please." 



The fowl is killed ; and its blood, together with rice and some other 

 gift, is placed in the saloko, and is planted near the house or gate. 

 Oftentimes a string of feathers runs from the pole to the dwelling, 

 or to the opposite side of the gate. The family cooks and eats the 

 chicken, and the affected member is expected to recover at once. Should 

 the trouble persist, a more elaborate ceremony, probably Dawak, will 

 follow. 



In some instances betel-nut prepared for chewing takes the place 

 of the fowl ; rice-stalks hang from the sides of the basket, and bits of 

 pine are added "to make bright and clear." All of this is rubbed on 

 the patient's head, while the medium recites the diam. 



BawI, also called Sinaba-an and Ababong. — This name is often 

 applied to the small houses built in the rice-fields for the spirit Kaiba- 

 an, but more commonly it refers to the little structures of bamboo 

 and grass, which nestle among the banana plantings near the village 

 (Plate XXII). When such a structure is built or repaired, it is ac- 

 companied by a ceremony of the same name. The usual purpose of 

 this event is to cure sore feet, but in Patok and other valley towns it 

 is celebrated before the rice harvest and the pressing of the sugar-cane, 

 so that the spirits will keep the workers in good health, and save them 

 from injury. 



One of the most common ailments is sore or cracked feet caused, 

 no doubt, by standing for long periods in the mud and water of the 

 rice-fields, and then tramping over the rough, hot trails to the village. 

 The Tinguian, however, know that the spirits, called Abat and SElday 



1 The sagang is the sharpened pole, which was passed through the foramen 

 magnum of a captured skull. 



2 Female spirits, who always stay in one place. 



