Ibalong: Bicol’s epic legend lives on
From the dustbins of history to the streets of Legazpi City. This is the unfolding saga of “Ibalong,” Bicol’s epic legend which has been given a new lease on life through an annual festival extravaganza.
Regarded as the region’s biggest non-religious festival, Ibalong is based on indigenous folklore and is perhaps the only cultural event in the country which relives an epic.
Now in its 26th edition, it is a recreation of fragments of a mid-19th century 60-stanza epic poem penned by Franciscan friar Bernardino de Melendreras about the ancient civilization of the Bicol region.
He was inspired by the accounts of Kadunung, a wandering minstrel and bard.
Cast in the mold of classic mythologies, Ibalong tells about three legendary heroes – Baltog, Handyong and Bantong – who, with their supernatural strengths, rid the land of beasts and helped it attain its golden era.
Arriving at various times in history, these warriors from a faraway land vanquished the dreaded beasts which sowed terror among the populace. Among these dreaded beasts were giant wild boar Tandayag and half-man, half beast Rabot.
Another prominent character is the villain-turnedheroine Oryol, a beautiful half woman-half serpent, who had a change of heart as she fell in love with Handiong and joined his forces to defeat the monsters of the land.
The legendary heroes cultivated the land, established a government and a justice system, followed by an age of discovery and invention which helped civilization flourish.
After recounting their exploits, Kadunung suddenly stopped and promised to resume telling the story some other time. Scholars noted that while the epic is an unfinished story, it is a living legend where the readers can freely continue the saga with their own interpretations of modern-day heroism.
The epic got mass exposure in 1895 when editor Wenceslao Retana compiled and annotated its fragments in the book “Archivo del Bibliofilo Filipino.” While the original Spanish manuscripts were lost, what exists is the portion copied by Fray Jose Castaño and included in the “Bibliofilo of Retana” published in Spain.
The title Ibalong was supplied by Bicolano essayist Jose Ma. Panganiban in reference to Tierra de Ibalon, the moniker given to Bicolandia by the Spaniards.
In 1992, the late mayor Imelda Roces inaugurated the festival to rescue the epic from oblivion and make it a source of pride for the city and Bicolandia.
In 2013, it was adapted as a dance musical by Tanghalang Pilipino at the Cultural Center of the Philippines by playwright Rody Vera.
Legazpi City Mayor Noel Rosal said that the festival brings to the fore Bicol’s rich heritage and resilient character amidst adversities. He said that in transforming a forgotten legend into a colorful festival, the city has put a visual touch into the epic to make it more understood by the people.
He noted that Ibalong showcases the city’s strides in economic development, governance and tourism despite being frequently hit by typhoons and eruption of Mayon Volcano.