THE EPIC OF PANAY; HINILAWOD

SUMMARY
Hinilawod is the oldest and longest epic poem in Panay. It is usually sung for a period of three
weeks at intervals of two hours at night. It contains, in its complete form, some eighteen stories.
Each story represents three generations.
In the eastern part of what is known as the Philippines, there lived a beautiful goddess named
Alunsina, goddess of the eastern sea. Alunsina fell in love with an ordinary mortal named
Paubari and she married him though she knew that marriage between heavenly persons and
ordinary mortals was frowned upon.
When the marriage was discovered, Maklium-sa-twan, god of the plains and valleys, became
angry. He vowed to make life miserable for the unfortunate couple. Together with other gods
who felt insulted by the marriage, Maklium-sa-twan sent down raging storms and floods to the
kingdom, of Paubari and Alunsina.
Fortunately, Suklang Malayon, the guardian of happy homes, had warned the couple beforehand.
Heeding the warning, the two fled to the top of the Madyaas Mountains and stayed there until the
gods had spent their wrath.
With the deluge over, the couple descended to the plains to live in peace and raise a family.
Eventually, Alunsina gave birth to triplets. These three children grew up to become giants, all
endowed with superhuman strength which they used for helping their parents and the people in
outlying villages.
With their coming of age, Labaw Dingin, the eldest of the three, asked his parents, Respected
Father, O, my Beloved Mother, I ask your permission to go and seek a loving and industrious
woman who will give me sons and daughters and who will serve you in your old age.
Go, my son, replied the two. Bring back a woman who will be a source of happiness for all.
But bringing back the woman of his dreams was no easy task. To win his first wife, he had to
vanquish Manalutad, a monster. For his second wife, he had to kill a hydra-headed giant named
Sikay Padalogdog. And for his last love, Labaw Dinggin had to fight Saragnayan, the lord of
darkness. For many moons they grappled with each other until Labaw Dinggin was
overpowered. He was thrown into prison and there, he languished for many years until one of his
children fought the lord of darkness and killed him.
When Alunsinas second son, Humadapnin, heard of the maltreatment suffered by his brother, he
set out to punish the people of the lord of darkness. He brought with him his trusted warrior
Buyong Matang-ayon. Along the way, they met a sorceress named Pinganun-Pinungganum. The
Sorceress had the taken the form of a woman so beautiful that in no time, Humadapnin was

bewitched. Fortunately, Buyong Matang-ayon succeeded in breaking her spell and the two were
able to escape.
Upon reaching the kingdom of Umban Pinaumbaw, they found their way blocked by a huge
boulder. Because of this huge rock the people in the kingdom could not move about freely. The
two friends tried to go around the boulder but it seemed that the rock grew wider with every step.
They tried to climb it, but it seemed to grow higher with their every step. Seeing that the boulder
could not be overcome by ordinary effort, Humadapnin put on his magic cape. Without much
ado, he was able to lift the rock and put it out of the way. For thus great feat, he was awarded the
hand of the princess.
Meanwhile, Alunsinas third son, Dumalapdap, set out to win the hand of the beautiful LubayLubyok Hanginin si Mahuyok---- the goddess of the evening breeze. After several minor
adventures, he finally reached the palace where she lived. But this place was guarded by
ferocious monsters.
The first was Balanakon, a two-headed monster. With the aid of a friendly dwende, Dumalapdap
overcame this first foe. Hardly had he rested from this battle when a bat-like monster named
Ayutang came hurtling down at him. No matter how he tried, Dumlapdap could not pierce the
monster with his sword for its body was covered with thick scales. Finally, he inflicted a wound
on the monsters armpit, the only vulnerable part of the monsters body.
Mortally wounded, Ayutang began growling in pain and gasping for breath. The earth beneath
him quaked as he trashed about in agony. Suddenly, the earth split into two and swallowed up the
hapless monster. The rocks in the area sank into the newly-formed sea but their surfaces stuck
out and became the island of Panay.
With his hard-earned victory, Dumalapdap returned home accompanied by the beauteous
goddess of the evening breeze. Meanwhile, the newly-formed land was apportioned among the
brothers. Labaw Dinggin was made the ruler of Irong-Irong (Iloilo); Humadapnin, the king of
Hantique (Antique); and Dumalapdap, the lord of the Aklan region. Thereafter, Alunsina and
Paubari went to live in peace atop the Madyaas Mountains.

IDENTIFY THE ARRESTING DETAILS:

Hinilawod is an epic poem written by the early inhabitants of a place called Sulod in central
Panay. The word means tales from the mouth of the Halawod River.
Hinilawod is not just a literary piece but also a source of information about culture, religion and
rituals of the ancient people of Sulod; showing us that ancient Filipinos believed in the sacred,
in the importance of family honor and in personal courage and dignity.

This 8,340-verse epic is chanted when performed and would take about three days when
performed in its original form, making it one of the longest epics known.
The arresting details that can be found on the epic are;
All the heroes mentioned in the epic possess prowess, bravery, overwhelming strength or
extreme ability.

WHAT IS THE RELATION OF THE ARRESTING DETAILS OF THE EPIC TO OUR

SUBJECT/COURSE?
WHAT IS THE RELEVANCE OF THIS EPIC TO THE SOCIAL HISTORY OF THE
PHILIPPINES
Relevance of this epic is that it gives us a glimpse on how the visayans creativity is subjugated
with other stories of creation or myths. The visayans created their own story on how the early
inhabitants of Panay was and on what they believe to in terms of their religious activities,
cultural practices and etc. The story/epic is somehow is alike to other story of creation but has its
own uniquenessand stability which makes it a very good epic and yet it is the longest epic to be
performed.