THE ORIGIN OF THIS WORLD (MARANAO)

THE ORIGIN OF THIS WORLD (MARANAO) from the Anthology of Philippine Myths by Damiana L. Eugenio

from the Anthology of Philippine Myths by Damiana L. Eugenio

           According to Maranaw folklore, this world was created by a great Being. It is not known, however, who exactly is this great Being. Or how many days it took him to create this world.

           This world is divided into seven layers. The earth has also seven layers. Each layer is inhabited by a different kind of being. The uppermost layer, for example, is the place we are inhabiting. The second layer is being inhabited by dwarfs. These dwarfs are short, plump, and long-haired. They are locally known as Karibanga. The Karibanga are said to possess magical powers. They are usually invisible to the human eye. The third layer of the earth which is found under the sea or lake is inhabited by nymphs. These nymphs also possess certain magical powers. It is stated in the story of Rajah Indarapatra that he met and fell in love with the princess-nymph with whom he had a child.

           The sky also consists of seven layers. Each layer has a door which is guarded day and night by huge mythical birds called garoda. The seventh layer of the sky is the seat of heaven which is also divided into seven layers. Every layer in the sky is inhabited by angels. Maranaws believe that angels do not need food. They all possess wings with which they fly.

           Heaven which is found on the seventh layer of the sky is where good people‘s spirits go after death. Saints are assigned to the seventh layer while persons who―barely made it‖ are confined to the lower most layer which is found at the bottom of heaven.

            It is in heaven where we find the tree-of-life. On each leaf of the tree-of-life is written the name of every person living on earth. As soon as a leaf ripens or dries and falls, the person whose name it carries also dies.

            The soul of every person is found in tightly covered jars kept in one section of heaven. This particular section of heaven is closely guarded by a monster with a thousand eyes, named Walo. Walo, in addition to his thousand eyes, has also eight hairy heads. The epic Darangan speaks of Madale, Bantugan‘s brother and, Mabaning, Husband of Lawanen, entering this section and retrieving the soul of Bantugan.

http://jhayelie.wordpress.com/2012/06/20/the-origin-of-this-world-maranao-from-the-anthology-of-philippine-myths-by-damiana-l-eugenio/

Powerpoint Activity during EXCITE Training 11/29/14 from Honesty Marie Segeril

Learning Subject-Verb Agreement

The Basics of Subject-Verb Agreement

In any complete English sentence, there must be a subject and a verb.

• The verb is the action in the sentence. (E.g. I am downstairs.)
• The subject is the person or thing that does the action. (E.g. I am downstairs.)

Subject-verb agreement, then, is all about numbers. Does the verb form chosen match up with the number of things in the subject?

• Singular subjects take singular verbs. (E.g. I am downstairs.)
• Plural subjects take plural verbs. (E.g. We are downstairs.)

This being English, there are of course many exceptions to the rule. However, two in particular are quite common.

• When two subjects are connected by and, the subjects should be treated as plural.

Example

E.g. John and Todd are downstairs. The word "and" joins the two subjects, so we use the plural form of the verb.

• When two subjects are connected by or, use the subject that is closest to the verb to determine agreement.

Examples

Either John or Todd is downstairs. "Todd" is closest to the verb, so the verb agrees with the singular "Todd."

Either John or the twins are downstairs. "The twins is closest to the verb, so the verb agrees with the plural "the twins."

While there are additional exceptions, this covers the basics. Following these steps will help ensure that you always have subject-verb agreement.

http://www.sophia.org/tutorials/subject-verb-agreement--4

(This is my output for the  activity assigned to us during our EXCITE ( Enhancement and Expansion of Capability in  Information Teachnology and English) TRAINING). Learning how to blog is fun! :)

The Story of the Life of Lam-ang ( A Summary)

Life of Lam-ang (Biag ni Lam-Ang)- Anatomy of an Ilocano Epic
Life of Lam-ang (Biag ni Lam-Ang)-
Anatomy of an Ilocano Epic


Lesson: Epic. What epic is popular in your place, country? How do you compare it with Lam-ang, or say, the Iliad or the Odessey?

The theme of the epic revolves around the bravery and courage of the main character portrayed by Lam-ang, who was gifted with speech as early as his day of birth, who embarked on a series of adventures which culminated in his heroic death and subsequent resurrection.

This series of adventures started with his search for his lost father who was murdered by the head-hunting Igorots in the Igorot country. While on his way, he met a certain Sumarang, whose name connotes obstruction, who tried to dissuade him from proceeding and who taunted him into a fight. The fight that ensued proved fatal to Sumarang as he was blown “three kingdoms” away with a spear pierced through his stomach. This encounter led to another when he met a nine-headed serpent who, like Sumarang earlier tried to dissuade him from going any further. The serpent having been ignored challenged him into a fight which cost the serpent its heads.

Lam-ang went on until he found it necessary to rest and take a short nap. While asleep, he dreamed of his father’s head being an object of festivities among the Igorots. He immediately arose and continued his journey until he found the Igorots indeed feasting over his father’s head.

Source: http://avrotor.blogspot.com/2012/11/life-of-lam-ang-biag-ni-lam-ang-anatomy.html

(Activity for EXCITE Training dated November 29, 2014