4 JULY 2007

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OUR RELIGIOUS syncretism also shows how dynamic the process is, involving many different settings. Our Spanish colonial churches carry the imprints of different cultural interactions. There may be religious images carrying a distinct Chinese imprint, in the eyes for example of images of the Virgin Mary or even the Santo Niño. These come from Chinese artisans who had migrated to the Philippines and ended up working for the friars.

The elaborate details in our churches, which we sometimes refer to as “borloloy,” is actually a variation on “arabesque,” the term referring to the penchant, in Islamic art, for filling up spaces. Since Spain itself had once been under the Moors (Muslims), that “borloloy” instinct was transmitted to them, and eventually to the Philippines.

Syncretism is found, too, in other cultural spheres, in particular health. Filipinos will not hesitate to combine Western treatments with traditional ones, including the use of therapeutic massage (paghihilot) and medicinal plants, a favorite source in Metro Manila being the Quiapo church. Traditional concepts of health and illness are pervasive — an example is grown men and women still having a handkerchief covering their backs, based on an old concept that a back with perspiration, when exposed to the wind, predisposes the person to illness. There is no medical basis for this practice, but it remains widespread.

We could go on and on with other examples of syncretism, from food to clothing. Most of the time, the result is a rather harmonious blending but even in cases where there may be conflicts — as in Quiapo’s religious culture and its flirtations with the occult, or a patient delaying treatment for an illness because of a folk healer’s advice — there seems to be enough room for accommodation. Rather than look for a non-existent “pure” precolonial Filipino culture, we should marvel at what we have, recognizing that all cultures are the result of interactions of people, in different situations and circumstances. Today Filipino culture remains in flux, many of the changes occurring outside, as millions of Filipino work and live overseas, borrowing some of the practices of their host countries and bringing them home, modified and transformed, ready to be absorbed into local culture.

We need to avoid two extremes: One is to continue wallowing in a colonial mentality that sees only Western influences as good. The other is to attempt to look for a pure precolonial past. All cultures are hybrids and it can be fascinating unraveling all the sources and processes involved in this hybridization. Once we recognize that we are all mestizo, the product of more than one culture, we might better appreciate ourselves — and humanity.

Dr. Michael L. Tan is a medical anthropologist. He is currently chair of the anthropology department at U.P. Diliman, Quezon City.  He also writes an op-ed column, “Pinoy Kasi,” for the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

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