ANTING-ANTING, the Filipino “amulet” or “charm”

Like other peoples of the world, early Filipinos were confronted with the cycles of courtship, love, marriage, childbirth, death and a serious respect for the supernatural.  Shrouded in a veil of mystery, the  anting-anting  was considered to be  a magic amulet holding the powers of health, prosperity, protection, strength and etc. Even the most cynical of us will hesitate to mock the sworn sincerity of ones who believe in  its powers.

Nevertheless, the existence of the anting-anting in the form of a small pebble, a cat’s liver, a prayer book, or a medallion. This stems from a need for security during the most turbulent times of our history. It has blazed a thousand paths of hope and inspiration to a people fighting for their lives, identity and dreams.

My great-grandfather Ambrosio Malabad possessed an anting-anting – a cock’s egg (it was the size of a pigeon’s egg), which is a miracle in itself as roosters “supposedly” don’t lay eggs but on rare occasions it does happen. Lolo Ambrosio believed that it brought him luck and protection from humans and the supernatural beings. He claims to have a pet rooster lay this special egg just before the Japanese troops arrived in Isabela during WW2. The magic amulet gave him favor with the invaders. They left his family alone and didn’t steal any of his  grain or livestock even though they harassed, pillaged, raped, and murdered many families in the area.

Samples of the anting-anting

Below are some samples of the anting-anting, compiled from the Beyer Ethnographic Series.

• A pregnant woman goes into labor at the same time as her pet cat. Soon after the birth of her son, the midwife discovers a newborn kitten and tells the mother about her baby boy’s anting-anting for wealth and health. In case the cat dies, its liver should be placed in a pouch to be preserved as an anting-anting.

• In Capiz the “mutya sing buaya” or pearl of the crocodile, protects its owner from the dangers of the sea and from drowning even if he cannot swim. Another well known anting-anting is the “mutya sa wasay” or pearl of the ax – will preserve its owners life from any dangers encountered in the wild forest.

• Kapitang Moneng from Marikina possessed an anting-anting which gave him the power to cause paralysis to his enemies. He single handedly  captured a band of “tulisanes” (robbers)  in Pasong Malapad and lead them back into Malabon tied up in ropes.

• Tininteng Plonio was the Tiniente del barrio of Tanong, during the Filipino Revolution. One day he resisted Sergeant Pagia of the Guardia Civil, by refusing to surrender his bolo. He struck Pagia’s head with his bolo and ran away. The soldiers fired their guns but the bullets did not kill him. When Plonio got home, his shirt was covered with bullet holes, he attributed his survival to the powers of his anting-anting.

• Maneng had a small round pebble which he kept in a small purse hanging on his breast. One day a band of Moro’s attacked his village and the pirates struck Maneng with their sharp bolos, but he was invincible to stabs and cuts, causing panic among the Moro’s that they fled away in fear.

• Tandang Gorio was one of the brave men of the Revolution against Spain. His anting-anting endowed him with superhuman powers during encounters with the Guardia Civil. His soldiers could not be pierced by bullets as long as they are near him at the radius of ten meters. He died of cholera five years after the Revolution and it was found that his anting-anting was a small prayer book encased in a leather casket hanging around his neck.

• The ultimate anting-anting was stiff hair from a tikbalang a dangerous creature that looks like a human being but its face and legs are those of a horse. To posses one ensures a life of wealth, strength and power plus the tikbalang becomes your personal slave. Capturing a tikbalang involves getting a cord blessed by a priest, jumping on the back of this elusive creature, forcing it into submission by strangling it with the blessed cord and demanding the creature to give you its hair; failure to do so means instant death.

• When a banana tree bears flowers that points skyward, on a moonless night a little stone of fire called “Mutea” dances around the flower bunch. Catching this dancing ball will cause your hair to stand and open your eyes to the supernatural realm. One will see threatening gigantic devils and other malevolent creatures. If you stand steadfast showing courage and fortitude you will succeed in keeping the “Mutea” as a powerful anting-anting against any metallic objects such as bullets and knives.

• To secure the magic stone that protects its owner from fire, one has to find the exact place where someone died from burning. It is believed that the spirit of the dead person returns as a crawling stone. To posses this stone, you have to pray day and night earnestly for nine days until the stone crawls faster and in a zig-zag motion making it difficult to catch. Upon catching the stone a hideous creature will appear and challenge your right to keep the stone, you must defeat this creature then can you keep the stone forever.

• Unusually large boas are said to posses a nail concealed under its tail. To get this amulet, one must tie a small animal under the tree where the boa is and wait until the snake is distracted while eating the bait. As soon as the boa lowers its tail you will notice a black and elongated nail, which you must fearlessly grab  before the snake runs away. The boa’s nail gives one the super human strength of ten men.

• The “tanlad” or “tanglad” plant bears flowers only once a year. Watch for a plant that blooms in the midnight of New Year’s Eve. As soon as the flowers open you will see a stone. However the plant is guarded by a powerful spirit which one must conquer. If you fail death will follow,  but if you succeed this magical stone has the power to make you invisible.
• Very large eels carry a white and square stone found within their head. This requires the patient capture of several eels. Halve the eel’s head with a large sharp knife, grope for the square stone inside the head. The eel’s stone gives you the power to become slimy and slippery and no ropes or chains can bind you.

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