This story
was taken from Bulatlat, the Philippines's alternative weekly
newsmagazine (www.bulatlat.com, www.bulatlat.net, www.bulatlat.org).
Vol. V, No. 26, August 7-13, 2005
The Holok: An Indigenous Pest
Control System in Ifugao
BY MONTAŇOSA RESEARCH AND
DEVELOPMENT CENTER
Part 1: Rice, Pests and Ifugao Gods Pests plaguing the rice
terraces is a major concern in the Cordillera region. Since pesticide spray is
unfamiliar in the area, farmers rely on indigenous pest management systems that
their ancestors taught them. The most significant techniques include
synchronized transplanting, field sanitation and seed selection. The most complex and
exemplary pest control system is believed to be the holok in Hingyon,
Ifugao. Holok involves the collection and processing of a variety of
plants known only to selected members of the community. What makes it more
complicated is the ritual involved in its preparation, which the farmers believe
“transubstantiated” the plants into pesticides. The holok mixture is
not sprayed on the rice plants. Instead, a handful of the mixture is placed
along strategic areas in the levees. Amazingly, as testified by all the farmers
in the locality, insects in the rice fields fall to the ground and die a day or
two after application. Despite the holok’s
known extraordinary feat in the Ifugao rice world, little effort is exerted in
seeking scientific basis even with the increase in scientific knowledge and
available government resources. Obviously, scientific endeavors are biased
towards modern agriculture that promotes the use of chemical pesticides for pest
control.
The holok region The holok is
practiced in the barangays (villages) of O-ong, Cababuyan and Mompolia, all in
Hingyon, Ifugao. They are located roughly 12 to 20 kms northeast of the capital
town of Lagawe, Ifugao. Some of the boble (settlements) could be reached
by vehicular transport while others are accessible only through hiking.
The holok region has
over a hundred sitios (sub-villages), some of which are a mere few meters apart.
Settlement areas are usually characterized by small clusters of residences,
granaries and occasional sari-sari (variety) stores. These areas are
mostly found on elevated ground and are close to the rice fields. Villagers said
settlement sites were chosen for their proximity to trails and water sources,
better passage of air and sound (to make it easier to hear the village crier),
and better defensive positions. They also said settlements on higher grounds
also facilitate the easier flow of human and animal waste to fertilize the rice
fields. The main source of
livelihood in the area is tending the land: the rice fields (payoh),
swiddens (habal), and privately-owned forested areas (muyong). All
households in the community engage in farming, regardless of whether these are
of rich (kadangyan), middle (uduh-udol), or poor (nawotwot)
class backgrounds. Households are involved in the farming cycle as owner
cultivators, tenants (makiliyak), or wage laborers (bumuklah). The
produce from the swidden farms and the livestock and poultry are mainly for home
use. Occasionally, these are sold to generate cash to buy basic consumer goods
like salt, sugar, lard, coffee and kerosene, among others. Rice terraces cover most of
the land. Almost all gently sloping hollows between hills have been carved into
rice terraces. The hollows are preferred for terracing because they act as
natural catchments for water, topsoil, and humus run-off from the mountains.
The rice varieties planted
are classified into the “tinawon” (traditional variety) and the exotic variety
or “irik.” The “tinawon” varieties includes donaal, hinglow, imbangor,
imbu-ukan, Inguhad, inlammuhan, madduli, imbanig, and the glutinous types
such as ingumalingon, ulluy, ingiwih, binoggon, and imbalikwadang
(black rice). The “irik” variety includes mantika, ihapoh, and oklad. The rice cropping pattern
determines labor in the community. Time for other work is made available only
when tasks in the rice fields are relatively less intensive. Most often, men
leave the community to search for jobs in the mines, vegetable farms, and town
centers. This leaves the women, children and elderly to deal with the labor
required in the farms and homes. Controlling the rice
pests Rice pests perennially
plague the rice crop in Hingyon. The most common pests are army worms (Pseudaletia
unipuncta Haworth) golden kuhol (edible snail), and rats. Informants
relayed that army worms are the most damaging and they inflict severe losses on
the rice crop even before they are detected. The larvae feed on the parts of the
plants which are above the ground. Usually, they eat all parts of the leaves
except the midribs. The worms appear sporadically and suddenly in immense
numbers. Frequently, they also disappear suddenly. Army worms figured
prominently in the discovery of the holok. The old generations of
farmers, through the use of traditional knowledge and power of traditional
prayer, used a pesticide created from the combined mass of more than 20 plants.
The system has been proven effective by more than seven generations. In recent
years, few farmers have tried spraying pesticides to kill army worms. The
practice has not gained widespread support due to cost and safety measures.
Holok
is a general Ifugao term for grass and other small vegetation. In Hingyon, it
also refers to a distinctive pest management system that uses the various parts
of more than 20 plants to produce a pesticide against army worms and other rice
pests. The system, as traditionally practiced, was part of the hongan di
pageh, the system of Ifugao rituals on rice culture. When exactly the holok
was discovered is unknown. However, villagers in Mompolia were able to trace the
holok back to the time of Nalidong, some seven generations ago. By their
estimates, that would have been around the 1860s. Based on oral literature,
Nalidong inherited the technology from his forebears. But he is best known
because he successfully used the holok on other crops and without the
benefit of the baki or rituals invoking the aid of the spirits of dead
ancestors and the gods. Due to his achievement, people believed that Nalidong
had certain gifts given to him by the gods. Holok
ritual There are three key persons
in the holok tradition.
The
first person is the Bumhat. The bumhat is a member of a clan to
which the gods have entrusted the technology. Only those of the bloodline of
Nalidong can become bumhat. Historically, it is only the bumhat
and some of his kin who know the names of the needed plants. It is also a
popular belief that only the plants cut by the bumhat and his kin will be
effective. The second person is the
mombaki. The mombaki or traditional priest performs the baki
(ritual) for the holok. There are no lineage requirements for
mombaki. They learn their craft through apprenticeship and maintain their
integrity through the diligent observation of vows. The third person is the
Tumunak. The tumunak is believed to be chosen by the gods to guide
the people to bountiful rice harvests. He initiates the various phases of the
rice production cycle. People do not sow rice seed, transplant rice seedlings,
or harvest rice until the tumunak has began to do so. The holok is usually
performed during April and May when the rice crop begins to bear fruit and is
attacked by army worms. People who saw signs of an army worm attack immediately
inform the tumunak. The tumunak notifies the rice field owners to
prepare for a holok. The rice field owners meet and agree upon a date for
the holok. Each owner contributes a chicken or even several chickens for
the ritual. Owners of wider rice fields usually give greater contribution. The various activities for
the holok take three days. The ritual is performed furtively at night to
prevent the attendance of cynics and to ensure that the people are already
confined in their homes. During the afternoon of the first day, the bumhat,
his kin, and several volunteers leave the village surreptitiously to gather the
needed plants. Their departure is unannounced to avoid negative comments from
cynics. There is a strong belief, which remains to this day, that cynical
comments lead to a failure of the holok. Since the required plants grew
in different areas of the municipality, several gathering teams are formed. It
is important that each team has a member of the clan of the bumhat to cut
the plants. Other team members are not necessarily relative of the bumhat,
just volunteers to help carry the load. A few hours after the
departure of the gathering teams, village criers announce a tongoh or
holiday for the next day. During the tongoh, no one is allowed to work or
even pass through the rice fields. It is believed that the presence of people in
the fields dissipate the power of the holok. By about one o’clock in the
morning, the gathering teams return with their loads. They bring the plants to
the puntunakan (rice granary) of the tumunak where the mombaki
and other interested individuals wait. People from other villages,
especially from those that do not have the technology of the holok, bring
donations of chickens for a share of the pesticide. The mombaki begins
the ritual by calling upon and offering sacrifices to the spirits of the dead
bumhat and mombaki especially those who had exemplary achievements.
These spirits are considered appeased and able to intercede with the gods only
if a favorable sign is read from the bile sac of the sacrificed chicken. The
number of chickens to be sacrificed varies. The mombaki next
calls upon and offers sacrifices to the various gods and earth spirits. A
chicken each is offered to: Liddom, a god in the Skyworld; Yumogyog,
a god in the Underworlds; Gah-idoh, a red bird considered an omen; the
pinading or spirits residing in trees, terraces, rocks, and various bodies
of water; Kidol, the god of thunder; and Mana’haot, the sun. The best chicken of the lot
is offered to Liddom. Only roosters could be offered to Kidol.
Except for the chicken offered to the Pinading, all sacrificed chickers
are not eaten. All carcasses are tied together by the foot and hung from the
kuling or beam of the alang until they rotted away. After the required
sacrifices and prayers, the people begin chopping the plants brought by the
gathering teams. Anybody is allowed to help in the task. There are no special
chopping tools required. The people use ordinary knives and machetes. The chopped mixture is
placed in a mortar in preparation for pounding. The mombaki performs
another ritual, casts a pestle into the mortar and collapses to the ground to
symbolize the power of the holok. As the mombaki feigns death, the
people shout in unison that the bigeh or worms have died. The people take
turns pounding. The smell of the holok is claimed to be so overpowering
that no one could pound for more than a few minutes. Aside from its smell, the
mixture itself is not harmful to humans or animals. Those who handled the
pounded mass put betel nut into their mouths with unwashed hands and yet
suffered no ill effects. At about two o’clock in the
morning, the meat of the chicken offered to the Pinading is cooked and
its broth is sprinkled by the mombaki over the pounded holok.
After the blessing, the mombaki and bumhat pick volunteers to
distribute the mixture. Each volunteer is prohibited from working, eating or
bathing for a day after he has helped in the distribution. He is required to
stay at home and is allowed occasional sips of rice wine. Distribution of the
holok is timed to end before daybreak. From daybreak to sunset is time of
the tongoh. Violators of the tongoh are fined the estimated number
of chickens required for a repeat of the ritual. The holok is
distributed primarily in the infested areas. Prophylactic doses are also put
around uninfected rice fields to prevent the spread of the army worms. A handful
of the holok is put on a cut section of a banana trunk and secured to the
dike of the rice fields with stakes. Each handful of the holok is enough
to protect rice fields within a 100 meter radius. The area of placement is often
chosen because it affords free passage of air in all directions. The heat of the
sun allegedly increases the power of the holok since it cause greater
vaporization of the mixture. On the other hand, water spoils the holok
and causes it to lose power. A day after the tongoh,
the volunteers visit the rice fields to assess the affectivity of the holok.
If the holok is successful, the army worms either drop dead or creep to
the tips of the rice leaves and shrivel. If there were no observable signs of
success, the tumunak is informed of the situation for a repeat of the
ritual. There are instances when the holok fails, but these are always
attributed to the presence or comments of cynics. The holok
is left in the rice fields until all the army worms die. Nordis/ Posted by
Bulatlat
Part 2:
Contemporary Holok Practice © 2004 Bulatlat
■
Alipato Publications Permission is granted to reprint or redistribute this article, provided its author/s and Bulatlat are properly credited and notified.
Pest management in the
Cordillera came from extensive practical and traditional knowledge developed
over years of observing natural processes. Called Holok, it entails
comprehensive understanding of the entire rice production system and makes use
of more than 20 indigenous plants.
Northern Dispatch (Nordis)
Posted by Bulatlat