BODIES SPLIT IN TWO
Extracts from Ian Davide Bugarin, Bodies Split in Two: Contested Monsters and Queer Space in the Philippines
Dissertation Studio 1 Another Place Tutor: Ektoras Arkomanis
School of Art, Architecture and Design London Metropolitan University 2021
CHAPTER ONE
LIFTED FROM THE
GROUND CONT E S T E D MONS T E R S AND QUE E R S P ACE I N T HE P HI L I P P I NE S
Figure 3: Lifted from the Ground (Bugarin, I., 2021) Illustrations at the beginning of chapters by Ian Davide Bugarin, based on traditional colours and designs of La Union, the Philippines 11
The Bahay Kubo is a nipa hut that is elevated on stilts with a steep thatched roof. Its materials are local — wood, bamboo and nipa thatching — and the construction draws on local techniques, beliefs and myths.6 The genesis story of the Philippines derives from a piece of bamboo emerging from the ground; from the bamboo a woman was born, the progenitor of the Filipinx. The bamboo has always been symbolically entangled with the roots of the islands; while the monsoon rain falls and waters the bamboo, inside the hut and the steep roof protects you. When the hot sun returns, it gives you shade. There is also the volcanic landscape; whereas modern flat-roofed huts collapse under the gathered volcanic ash, here the ash rolls off the steep roof. The stilts lift the wooden floor and expose you to the breeze, away from the humidity of the earth and the animals. In a country ravished by colonialism throughout its history, it is hard to locate a non-Hispanized, non-Anglo-Saxonized, truly Filipino example of domesticity. The huts are heavily influenced by folklore, which dictates their location, orientation and construction, alongside customs that determine the way of life within them. The spiritual and the physical house are inseparable; Padugo — a common ritual that persists — dictates that the blood of sacrificial white
Cabalfin, E. G. (2020) ‘Bahay Kubo as iconography: Representing the vernacular and the nation in Philippine post-war architectures’, Fabrications, 30(1), pp. 44–67.
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chicken has to be poured onto the first tree that is cut for timber. 7 This purifies the hut from the malevolent forces of one of many mythical monsters — a reincarnation of a cursed black chicken that was supposedly killed by the white chicken. Even in the historical legacy of the vernacular architecture of the Bahay Kubo, there are elements of colonial impact.8 The image of a white being as a saviour or conqueror of the black one was seized upon and expanded by the Spanish colonists as a means of cementing their superiority. This perpetuated a system of belief that persists today, in which white symbolises purity and intelligence, and anything darker does not live up to these qualities. The steeped roof was meant to repel supernatural beings; like ash, they will slide off. Pregnant women, deemed particularly vulnerable to supernatural attack, were often placed in separate buildings with even steeper roofs, and were advised to sleep in the corner of the room where the monstrous tongues couldn’t reach them if they slipped in through the centre of the roof. As these supernatural stories were utilised by the colonisers
Balmaceda, K. S. (2020) ‘Architectural transformation of traditional Philippine house bahay Kubo in the 1st society into bahay na bato in the Spanish period’, The Journal of Next-generation Convergence Technology Association, 4(5), pp. 540–553. 8 Hila, M. C. A., Perez, R. D., III and Dacanay, J. E., Jr (1992) Balai Vernacular. Cultural Center of the Philippines. 7
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to exert control, we, Filipinos, became accustomed to living in fear and at the edge, never confident or in the centre.9 BAYANI HAN
A sense of impermanence abounds; communities move entire huts to new locations, in a nomadic form of existence, which is depicted in the popular paintings by Botong Francisco. At the age of eight in La Union, playing barefoot with the other children, I watched from afar as the adults enacted Bayanihan; an elaborate coming-of-age ritual which celebrates this migration. As the male members of the community labour move the house to its new location, women and baklas are left to stand, watch and cheer regardless of their status in their community. 10 The ritual reinforces the gendered roles that are already woven into these communities and widens the social divisions.11
Legaspi, N. (2019) The best wingman: Full story, Storiesfromthebarrio.com. Stories from the Barrio. Available at: https://www.storiesfromthebarrio.com/stories/the-best-wingman-full-story (Accessed: 2 May 2021). 10 Bakla is a Tagalog word that can mean any of: gay, and queer transgender, homosexual, hermaphrodite, third sex, effeminate man, cross-dresser or drag queen historically, and in the contemporary sense more commonly refers specifically to working-class effeminate gay men (as opposed to middle class, upper class and/ or masculine gay men) 11 Marshall, A. R. (2018) Bayanihan and Belonging: Filipinos and Religion in Canada. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. 9
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Figure 4: Bayanihan Mural (Francisco, B, 1962)
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The movement of huts itself is often necessitated by physical destruction, such as floods, but also by social bonding; when two families are brought together by marriage, their huts too have to abut. This interplay between destruction and formation is a recurring image: the houses are traditionally held up by nine columns representing the nine stages of human genesis in Filipino religion. 12 But these beliefs which were largely eclipsed by Catholicism after colonisation. There is another echo of destruction amid the columns: according to a myth from the region of Panay, Bakunawa is a cosmic dragon-like serpent that is slayed with the erection of each column. A multitude of stories of destruction, death and rebirth are embedded in this architecture.
12Balmaceda,
K. S. (2020) ‘Architectural transformation of traditional Philippine house bahay Kubo in the 1st society into bahay na bato in the Spanish period’, The Journal of Next-generation Convergence Technology Association, 4(5), pp. 540–553. 16
Figure 5: The rotation of Visayan Philippine bakunawa (Mansueto, P., 1919)
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In Western culture columns embody the idea of permanence, but the orientation of the Bahay Kubo huts is subject to seasonal change, but also to the orientation of the body within the home.13 In modern Western societies privacy is prioritised, but Filipino vernacular architecture prefers communal living space. The openness of the exterior, with slats and sliding doors, echoes the openness of the space within. Perez III writes that there is ‘no dead or buried space within’; ‘internal’ space has no specific function, and the ability to have any function. In the single-space Bahay Kubo, a kind of temporary privacy is achieved by reorienting one’s body to look away from the centre of the room. Unlike the Western concept of space where each space is assigned a function — sleeping, dining, cooking, etc. — Filipino space is open and multifunctional; separations are fleeting, not total. For example, the eating area is cleared away at night and sleeping mats are rolled out. In this simple open space, where locations and orientation shift, walls are not necessary for privacy; a big, multi-layered communal space seamlessly gives on to smaller individual spaces.14 The desire for interior spaces to have multiple uses is driven by economic necessity, and at the same time reflects the Filipino penchant for aesthetic maximalism — filling up every space with
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Demetrio S. J, F. F. (1991) Encyclopedia of Philippine Folk Beliefs and Customs: Volume 1. Independently published. Mojares, R. B. (1997) House of Memory: Essays. Anvil Pub. 18
objects, forms and textures. This maximalism, and the need for abundant communal space, extends outside the house: today, suburban and provincial areas still have this chaotic, unplanned feel, with Nipa huts surrounded by markets, shops and crowds. This supposedly correlates with Filipino exuberance and the urge to connect with others,15 but I can’t help seeing it as a cycle: the desires and financial situation create the spatial conditions which, in turn, force a connection via proximity with others in the chaotic network of people and spaces. I WA S T A U G H T T O F E A R
The unrelenting history of colonisation has entailed an internalisation of notions of white supremacy. The reverence for the West and whiteness has become entrenched in education.16 The Philippines is one of the few Asian countries without an indigenous language and its own alphabet; local history had been recorded on bamboo scrolls, which, along with many other artifacts, were burned. One of the few things left is a shared oral tradition — of myths in particular — passed down from one generation to the next.
15 National Commission For Culture And The Arts (2020) In Focus: Life as Art – The Creative, Healing Power in Philippine Culture. Available at: http://gwhs-stg02.i.gov.ph/~s2govnccaph/about-culture-and-arts/in-focus/life-as-art-the-creative-healing-power-inphilippine-culture/ (Accessed: 2 May 2021). 16 Constantino, R. (1992) History: myths and reality. Quezon City: Karrel.
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It is a shapeshifting creature that takes the form of a woman or a man by day and a voracious monster by night. Its body rips in half: one with a pair of bat wings and the lower limbs perched on the ground, lurking amongst the banana trees.17 Yet these myths are often tainted; they were adapted by the Spanish and used in particular to discredit the Babaylan - queer and women shaman who were as pillars of the community of historical tribes.18 The shamans led some of the strongest opposition to the conversion to Catholicism and so they were portrayed as monsters in order to be discredited. The Spanish Catholicism twisted the meaning and understanding of these mythical creatures to imply that the shamans were allied with the Devil, despite the fact that no equivalent of the devil featured in Filipino tradition.19 As a result, belief in these creatures became more prevalent in the most heavily colonised areas of the archipelago.20 The depiction of this creature as an effeminate being that preys on pregnant women and children stems from a patriarchal suspicion towards non-masculine qualities.21 Queer people and women were thus condemned by the colonisers to severe 17 Legaspi, N. (2019) The best wingman: Full story, Storiesfromthebarrio.com. Stories from the Barrio. Available at: https://www.storiesfromthebarrio.com/stories/the-best-wingman-full-story (Accessed: 2 May 2021). 18 Federici, S. (2004) Caliban and the witch: Women, the body, and primitive accumulation. New York, NY, USA: Autonomedia. 19 Lim, B. C. (2015) ‘Queer Aswang Transmedia: Folklore as Camp’, Kritika Kultura, 24. 20 Lim, B. C. (2009) Translating Time: Cinema, the Fantastic, and Temporal Critique. Durham: Duke UP. 21 Pertierra, R. (1983) ‘Viscera-Suckers and Female Sociality: The Philippine Asuang’, Philippine Studies: Historical and Ethnographic Viewpoints, 31(3), pp. 319–337.
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oppression; the monstrous myths were weaponised against them and mutated into slurs still in use today. Furthermore, the word bakla became associated with the phrase nababakla, which can be understood as the experience of ‘baklaness’ descending onto someone and transforming them, like a ‘trance or a fever.’ Therefore, as bakla-ness was associated with the impact of an exterior force, queer identity came to be seen as an affliction, with the allusion to myths about a curse.22 It could be anybody. during the daytime it may seem erratic and distant, despite its allure. Often accused of misdeed without proof, Continuously under suspicion.23 Today, as Bliss Cua Lim argues, our understanding of this creature, and in fact the majority of ‘Philippine folklore,’ is the outcome of viewing the country through a colonial lens for a long period of time. The accounts are tinted by those who documented the stories: such as early Spanish missionaries and US observers.24 An understanding of the power of manipulating myths continues beyond the earlier
22 Manalansan, M. F., IV (2020) Global Divas: Filipino Gay Men in the Diaspora. Edited by J. Halberstam and L. Lowe. Duke University Press. 23 Menez, H. (1996) Explorations in Philippine Folklore. Honolulu, HI, USA: University of Hawai’i Press. 24
Lim, B. C. (2015) ‘Queer Aswang Transmedia: Folklore as Camp’, Kritika Kultura, 24. 21
colonisation. In the 1950s the CIA was waging a war against Filipino Huk communist guerrillas, and mythology was once again weaponised, as the war became physiological.25 Between 1950 and 1954 corpses of guerrilla fighters were piled up by the road, with holes put into their bodies to resemble the animal bites associated with these mythological creatures. Additionally, dead bodies would be drained of blood as if their blood had been sucked and were then dumped outside the houses of people suspected of supporting the guerrilla cause. This intimidation contributed to the eventual defeat of the Huk.26 Myths are fiercely contested battlegrounds, because once they are colonised they can become instruments of power. Yet the Filipino perception of nature and the supernatural have often subverted these impositions. It is a Filipino tradition to ask spirits for permission to cut down trees. An urban myth tells of a tree in Luzon which was due to be cut down by a US company, but was believed to be the home of a monster. Locals protested and the cutting of the tree was prevented.27 In another case, an American company planted balete trees for shade, not knowing that these trees are thought to be
Lim, Bliss Cua. Translating Time: Cinema, the Fantastic, and Temporal Critique. Durham: Duke UP, 2009. Print. Ichimura, A. and Severino, A. (2019) How the CIA used the aswang to win a war in the Philippines, Esquiremag.ph. Esquire Philippines. Available at: https://www.esquiremag.ph/long-reads/features/cia-aswang-war-a00304-a2416-20191019-lfrm (Accessed: 23 February 2021). 27 Vicerra, P. M. and Javier, J. R. (2013) ‘Tabi-Tabi Po: Situating the narrative of supernatural in the context of the Philippines community development’, MANUSYA, 16(2), pp. 1–13. 25 26
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inhabited by supernatural beings, and therefore Filipino people would not sit underneath them.28 In an article from American Weekly in 1945, titled Escaped from
the Embrace of the Man-eating Tree, Hines describes how a tree attacked an American and his occupying team.29 Whilst it is tempting to see this as a story of empowerment of Filipinos against the colonisers, more than anything it perpetuates the stereotype of the Philippines as a monstrous nation. Today, in the Philippines people are still being killed under the false accusation of being a supernatural monster.30 News articles abound of such cases, gaining millions of ‘likes’; the impact of supernatural beliefs is long lasting and ever-growing violence. Queer people are implicitly or explicitly characterised as monstrous; they are outsiders who do not ‘share a residence’, but are vilified instead. 31 I want to see through the eyes of the monster in
28 Cheng, by W. and ABS-CBN News (2011) ‘Kapre’ tree in Malacañang named heritage tree, ABS-CBN News. Available at: https://news.abs-cbn.com/nation/metro-manila/05/30/11/kapre-tree-malaca%C3%B1ang-named-heritage-tree (Accessed: 7 March 2021).
William, B. H. (1925) ‘Escaped From the Embrace of the Man-Eating Tree’, American Weekly, 4 January. Mindanaoexaminer.com. Available at: http://www.mindanaoexaminer.com/news.php?news_id=20130420120324 (Accessed: 9 March 2021). 29 30
Cantos, J. (2014) ‘Lola inakalang aswang inutas’, The Philippine Star, 17 January. Available at: http://www.philstar.com/probinsiya/2014/01/17/1279671/lola-inakalang-aswang-inutas (Accessed: 9 March 2021). Clark, J. (2015) PSYWAR in the Philippines, Aswangproject.com. Available at: https://www.aswangproject.com/psywar-in-thephilippines-aswang-of-the-cia/ (Accessed: 9 March 2021). 31Ahmed,
S. (2009) Queer Phenomenology. Durham, NC, USA: Duke University Press. 23
order to understand and feel the impact of continual colonisation on queer people and space.32 The next chapter examines the more recent gentrification of queer neighbourhoods and spaces, which intersects with older colonisations. ‘Growth’, as it is often referred to in the current political rhetoric, benefits white and wealthy gay immigrants (‘ex-pats’) at the expense of the working class local Bakla gay people.
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Menez, H. (1996) Explorations in Philippine Folklore. Honolulu, HI, USA: University of Hawai’i Press. 24
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School of Art, Architecture and Design London Metropolitan University 2021 liveness.org.uk