Philippine Folklore Stories | Page 6

seeds. Larina showed her the empty bag and said
she had given them as directed. The old woman searched the house, but
of course could not find the seeds. She then asked Larina again if she
had given them to Mangita. Again the cruel girl said that she had done
so.
Suddenly the room was filled with a blinding light, and when Larina
could see once more, in place of the old woman stood a beautiful fairy
holding the now well Mangita in her arms.
She pointed to Larina and said, "I am the poor woman who asked for
rice. I wished to know your hearts. You were cruel and Mangita was
kind, so she shall live with me in my island home in the lake. As for
you, because you tried to do evil to your good sister, you shall sit at the
bottom of the lake forever, combing out the seeds you have hidden in
your hair." Then, she clapped her hands and a number of elves
appeared and carried the struggling Larina away.

"Come," said the fairy to Mangita, and she carried her to her beautiful
home, where she lives in peace and happiness.
As for Larina, she sits at the bottom of the lake and combs her hair. As
she combs a seed out, another comes in, and every seed that is combed
out becomes a green plant that floats out of the lake and down the
Pasig.
And to this day people can see them, and know that Larina is being
punished for her wickedness.

How the World Was Made
This is the ancient Filipino account of the creation.
Thousands of years ago there was no land nor sun nor moon nor stars,
and the world was only a great sea of water, above which stretched the
sky. The water was the kingdom of the god Maguayan, and the sky was
ruled by the great god Captan.
Maguayan had a daughter called Lidagat, the sea, and Captan had a son
known as Lihangin, the wind. The gods agreed to the marriage of their
children, so the sea became the bride of the wind.
Three sons and a daughter were born to them. The sons were called
Licalibutan, Liadlao, and Libulan, and the daughter received the name
of Lisuga.
Licalibutan had a body of rock and was strong and brave; Liadlao was
formed of gold and was always happy; Libulan was made of copper
and was weak and timid; and the beautiful Lisuga had a body of pure
silver and was sweet and gentle. Their parents were very fond of them,
and nothing was wanting to make them happy.
After a time Lihangin died and left the control of the winds to his eldest
son Licalibutan. The faithful wife Lidagat soon followed her husband,
and the children, now grown up, were left without father or mother.
However, their grandfathers, Captan and Maguayan, took care of them
and guarded them from all evil.
After a time, Licalibutan, proud of his power over the winds, resolved
to gain more power, and asked his brothers to join him in an attack on
Captan in the sky above. At first they refused; but when Licalibutan
became angry with them, the amiable Liadlao, not wishing to offend
his brother, agreed to help. Then together they induced the timid
Libulan to join in the plan.

When all was ready the three brothers rushed at the sky, but they could
not beat down the gates of steel that guarded the entrance. Then
Licalibutan let loose the strongest winds and blew the bars in every
direction. The brothers rushed into the opening, but were met by the
angry god Captan. So terrible did he look that they turned and ran in
terror; but Captan, furious at the destruction of his gates, sent three
bolts of lightning after them.
The first struck the copper Libulan and melted him into a ball. The
second struck the golden Liadlao and he too was melted. The third bolt
struck Licalibutan and his rocky body broke into many pieces and fell
into the sea. So huge was he that parts of his body stuck out above the
water and became what is known as land.
In the meantime the gentle Lisuga had missed her brothers and started
to look for them. She went toward the sky, but as she approached the
broken gates, Captan, blind with anger, struck her too with lightning,
and her silver body broke into thousands of pieces.
Captan then came down from the sky and tore the sea apart, calling on
Maguayan to come to him and accusing him of ordering the attack on
the sky. Soon Maguayan appeared and answered that he knew nothing
of the plot as he had been asleep far down in