Copyright © 2002 by Adarna House, Inc., Gabby Lee, and Marcy Dans Lee
Retold by Gabby Lee and Marcy Dans Lee
Illustrated by Marcy Dans Lee
ABOUT THE AUTHORS*
There was a young artist named Marcy
Who drank all the wine she could fancy.
She breathed fire and blew smoke,
Scared all the townsfolk,
And gave birth to a little monster named Gabby.
(* As written in the actual book)
REVIEW
This time we will look again at another origin story told in the Philippines. Aside from the natural resources found in our country, we also have multitudes of origin stories for different locations throughout the country. In fact, for practically every province in the country there are many stories surrounding their popular attractions. However, we will focus specifically on the famous active volcano Mount Kanlaon.
Mount Kanlaon, one of the most active volcanoes in the Philippines, is a remarkable landmark. Located at Canlaon City, Negros Oriental, it is also said to be the highest peak in the Negros Island located at the Visayas group of islands. It may not be as visually aesthetic as the Mount Mayon in Albay, yet it boasts a natural beauty unique to its own identity. Along with the beauty and majesty of the volcano are the many origin stories behind its supposed existence.
One of these origin stories is retold in this children's book. The story talks about a kingdom in the east whose beauty could not be admired because of the seven-headed dragon that lived in it. The dragon, being a picky eater, fed on the young virgin girls of the kingdom to satisfy his appetite. However, when the kingdom ran out of young, virgin girls after feeding the dragon, the people incited rebellion against their king, fearing for their lives in the process.
This is where La-on, the hero of the story, comes to play. You could think of him as being a Filipino version of Tarzan, for he had spent most of his life interacting with wildlife and staying as far as possible from civilization. However, because of the king's request La-on vowed to help him and his kingdom be free from the troubles brought by the dragon. Eventually, La-on and his many friendly creatures killed the seven-headed dragon together. He even brought a severed head of the dragon to the king as proof of its rightful death.
Now I didn't really know what happened to the kingdom afterwards. Whether the kingdom and its people lived happily ever after or continued their rebellion towards their king (remember, they lost all their young virgin girls to the dragon), I couldn't tell. On the other hand, the dragon laid to rest on the spot where it was killed. Eventually, a landmass would form on that exact spot which later on spat lava whenever it erupted. Thus, Mount Kanlaon was born.
When I was writing this review, I didn't really know anything about Mount Kanlaon except that it was a volcano. As I was searching on the Internet I found a multitude of other existence stories behind Mount Kanlaon. I was definitely surprised that for one place alone a myriad of stories actually exist. You can check out 2 of these stories on the official website of the Canlaon City LGU (local government unit):
Stories like this may seem extraordinary to us, but they tell amazing descriptions about a particular place. Wherever you go in the Philippines, there will always be unique stories in the places you choose to visit. How about you? What places in the Philippines have you been into? What unique folk tales have you heard about any specific place in the country?
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