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| Yag-Yag Festival |
Truly, a memory can fade through time. An act of goodness can be buried deep in one’s long-forgotten past if he does not find a way to contain it. Write about it. Take pictures of it. Paint how it looks like. Make a song for it. Dance about it. These are just among the variety of things one can do to immortalize a memory.
A memory that the next generation can learn from is one of the greatest legacies our ancestors have left for us. It is indeed fascinating how they pay tribute and how they give utmost importance to gratitude. Last August 18, 2017, the Silliman University Medical School had her annual Variety Show to showcase a few of the most celebrated Philippine Festivals in history.
Each festival has a wondrous story to tell and indeed, they center on love and gratitude. They are just two things among the essentials of life. However, without them, life can be dull. One loves and one gives thanks. It is only when we realize how to do it right can we only master the art of expression.
There were four Philippine festivals presented live on stage. Among the two, the Zamboanga La Hermosa Festival and the Inagta Festival are devoted for Nuestra Señora del Pilar de Zaragosa and San Nicholas de Bari, respectively. The other two, the Panagbenga Festival and the Yag-yag Festival (which is also to pay tribute to St. Anthony of Padua), separately celebrate the flowers and the crabs, which are among the gifts of nature.
Known to be the “City of Flowers”, Zamboanga City holds dear to her heart the Marian devotion for Nuestra Señora Virgen del Pilar de Zaragoza. With the La Hermosa Festival which runs from October 1 to 12, the Zamboangueños’ legendary devotion to the Lady comes to life. The city was an integral part of Spanish colonization. A fort named Real Fuerza de San Jose was built in Zamboanga in 1635 to secure the Spaniards against the attacks of the moro warriors. In 1734, the Lady’s statue was brought to the fort to be the front-piece of the main entrance. In 1860, the fort’s western side was converted into a shrine for The Lady and was then renamed Real Fuerza de Nuestra Señora Virgen del Pilar de Zaragoza. Lives wealthy of miracles have been brought to the people and they have firmly believed that it is made possible through the intercessions of the Virgin Mary.
The Inagta Festival of Siaton has been considered to be the oldest festival of Negros Oriental, making it a celebration of authentic Negrense culture. The dance consists of a follow-the-leader sequence characterized by imitation of the movements of animals, such as the monkey, frog, crow, snake, and rail. It is performed every 6th of December to pay homage to the town’s patron saint, St. Nicholas of Bari. As they dance, the performers sing songs which depict their lives, recite verses which need confirmation of the group, and chant from time-to-time, “Viva Señor San Nicholas!” The Agtas were converted to the Christian faith due to the Spanish conquest in the country. Moslems from Jolo had attacked the established Christian villages, had kidnapped women and children, and had looted their homes, paving the way for one of the fiercest battles between the locals and the invaders. During the battle, a dark shadow, who later on the natives found to be that of San Nicholas de Bari, miraculously appeared and covered the Agtas, which led to the Moslems’ defeat after being unable to see the Agtas in the midst of the fight.
The Panagbenga Festival of Baguio, which was formerly known as the Baguio Flower Festival, was formed and organized last 1995 by Atty. Damaso Bangaoet, Jr. and Victor A. Lim. It was set in February, given the month’s perfect weather and for the visitors to have the reason to visit the city between Christmas and Holy Week. Pangbenga came from a Malayo-Polynesian origin, which means “season of blooming.” It was celebrated to pay tribute to the city’s flowers and a way to rise up from the devastation brought by the 1990 Luzon earthquake.
Celebrated on the streets of Sibulan on the last week of April, the Yag-yag Festival is held in honor of St. Anthony of Padua, who is believed to bless the municipality with marine resources. A play of comedy, action, and dancing comes alive as this festival revolves on the importance of crabs and a family’s story who found the wonders of such tiny yet useful creatures. From October to December in the Sapa, which is one of the two springs in Brgy. Cangmating of Sibulan, the crab and other marine animals gather on shore. These crabs lay and float their eggs during high tides to mature in the swamps. In the next few days, the locals would harvest their food and craft materials.
The seniors, having admirably performed the Inagta Festival, came in the third runner-up while the freshmen was awarded second runner-up for their marvelous interpretation of the La Hermosa festival and was also given the award for the Most Anticipated Performance. The juniors came in to be the first runner-up for the spectacular portrayal of the Panagbenga Festival. They also won the Best Festival Photo. The ones who were awarded to be the champions of the annual variety show were the sophomores for magnificently presenting the Yag-yag Festival to the crowd. Coming from the sophomore class, Jolou Abella and Reyna Grace Viña Maata were crowned to be the Festival King and Queen, respectively.
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| Panagbenga Festival's Best Festival Photo |
Having gone through the various stories behind the magnificence of the aforementioned Philippine festivals, to say thank you to the people who have gone before us would be an understatement, for no words can ever suffice the culture they have enriched for us to live. They have shown to us one of the ultimate expressions of love and that is, art.
The modernization would have probably buried pieces of our history but with these festivals being brought to life and celebrated at present, it is like taking a free trip to memory lane. The memory lane of how life was like ages ago. We may have thought the flowers and crabs are just so trivial. We may not have believed in miracles all our lives. Maybe the trivial things don’t matter for us and miracles are too impossible to happen.
Do you know the difference between now and back then? Now, we have a lot of things to focus on that we choose to live in fast pace. We look back to the past, prepare for the future and fail to live in the present. We tend to overlook the little things because the big things are already enough to overwhelm us. Every day, we fail to pay attention. Back then, people have been attentive—attentive to everything that makes up their lives. Yes, attention. That’s what we lack. We walk blindly feeding the pessimism in ourselves, entertaining that cloud of plague as we live. Oftentimes, we forget to feel grateful for the things we have because we choose to dwell on the things we do not have.
It still amazed me how the flowers, the crabs, and the miracles have been remembered through the festivals. Who says we need to have that time machine to travel back in time when we have all these memoirs immortalized for us?
So, how do you immortalize a memory?
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