>>> ARTICLES: THE BAMBOO AND THE FILIPINO

 

THE BAMBOO AND THE FILIPINO
by : Chuck Crisanto

The bamboo for the Filipino is more than a plant. Its very nature is entwined with his culture, lifestyle, and character.

In Philippine mythology, the origin of the first Filipinos came about after a small bird pecked on a large bamboo trunk until it cracked wide open in the middle where a man called Malakas (Strong) and a woman called Maganda (Beautiful) emerged. Unlike the story of Adam and Eve where the latter was formed out of Adam's rib, the Filipino creation myth highlights the importance of both man and woman being born out of one source, different from yet equal to each other.

In the face of typhoon winds or crisis, the Filipino, like the bamboo bends back without breaking, exhibiting a resiliency as a race. The bamboo can also thrive on different types of soil. Similarly, Filipinos have the flexibility to transplant themselves in various countries without losing their identity.

Many parts of the bamboo have a variety of uses. Archeologists have discovered etchings on the inner skin of the bamboo slats which served as a type of rosetta stone that helped decode the writings of the indigenous tribes.

In olden times, the bamboo was used for cooking rice-a technique still used by mountaineers and mountain-dwellers to this day. It can also serve as container for water from springs. It has been made into tables, beds and other furniture. Even entire houses in the countryside have been built using the material. If one wanted to move his house, the entire house was literally lifted on the shoulders of the neighbors using huge bamboo poles in a community effort called the "bayanihan". Today, this concept of "bayanihan" is the very inspiration for community-wide efforts and projects.

To defend their motherland, the Filipino revolutionaries of 1898 lined their trenches with sharpened bamboos to protect strongholds. Poles were used as spears against western weaponry. Bamboo rafts transported troops through the river ways.

During more festive times, it is used in the native dance "tinikling", where the feet of the dancers nimbly jump between bamboo poles thumped together in an increasing pace. One of the highlights during rural "fiestas" continue to be a native sport called palo sebo, wherein greased bamboo poles poke upright from the ground to challenge children in climbing up to reach for a prize tied at the top.

However, of the recorded 1500 uses of the bamboo, the pinnacle of its transformation was made in the town called Las Piñas. Two centuries ago under the guidance of a parish priest, the town folk harvested from its riverbanks bamboo trees of various lengths. Filipino artisans then meticulously crafted something they had never seen before. Over a span of seven years, the bamboo organ was finally finished.

The Christian townsfolk were assembled, more likely on a Sunday. When the bamboo organ was first given life, the breath of its music lifted their souls to fervent heights. Never had the faithful heard anything so sweet. Its fame quickly spread and people began trooping to St. Joseph Church, where the organ has been enshrined, to listen to its enchanting music.
There is no other bamboo organ in the country, and none more famous in the world. Its unique and melodious sound is a rarity best experienced live, which at times does remind one of the tinkling laughter of a Filipino child.

The Nacionalista Party is a proud sponsor of this event. As a party, it extols and seeks to nurture what is best among the Filipinos. It shares with the international community one of the historic treasures of the Philippines.

>>BACK TO MAIN