8 ANNALS NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES 



son of a Tuban man. He was a boy well versed in tradition and 

 in ceremonial material, a close observer, and possessed of a fair 

 knowledge of English. He was present with me at the above- 

 mentioned rites, and listened carefully to the formulae, already 

 familiar to him from many previous hearings. For purposes of 

 checking, 1 often took the same texts from him both in English 



7 "~ / 



and in Bagobo. Although the festival at Tallin took place after 

 I had been for several months with the Bagobo, and could make 

 my way fairly in the language so far as everyday conversation 

 was concerned, yet, when listening to devotional exercises, it was 

 impossible for me to record more than small portions of the text. 

 This difficulty was due, in part, to a difference in ceremonial vocab- 

 ulary from that used in ordinary affairs; in part, to the necessity 

 of giving attention to various ritual activities that were going on 

 at the same time. 



It would be ungracious to omit mention here of my great 

 indebtedness to many Bagobo friends who gave me, freely, stories 

 and magical devices, as well as explanation of the ceremonies; who 

 entertained me at their homes; who excused my blunders, and who 

 helped me in a hundred ways. Chief among these native friends 

 are my hosts at Talun : Datu Oleng, Datu Ido, Miyanda and all 

 of the members of their large families; Sambil of Talun, her mother 

 and her brother, and others of the village of Mati: my hosts at 

 Tubison: Datu Imbal, his wife, their sons and their daughters; 

 Datu Vting of Santa Cruz, his wives Soleng and llebe and his 

 son .Melanio; Ayang, Liwawa, Simoona and many other old women: 

 Egianon's family; Kaba and his wife Suge, and their five sons — 

 Tungkaling, Gayo, Uan, Baya and Balusan ; and also a great 

 Dumber of young people, both girls and buys, who brought me. 

 with joyful alacrity, the songs and folklore and traditions that 

 they had Learned from the old people. 



introduction. general characteristics of the 

 Religious Attitude of tiik Bagobo 



The religii f the Bagobo is characterized by the highly Bacri- 



ficial nature of public and private ceremonial; by the composite 

 make-up of the rites, in which are blended both offerings of the 

 blood of slain victims and agricultural products; by the non-esoteric 

 character of the religious life of the community, where the people 



