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Sinulog,
Symbol and Art
By Jesus B. Garcia Jr.
Sinulog
is a dance performed by a devotee before the image of
the Child Jesus, the Santo Niño de Cebu. It is
a dance of petition and contrition, of thanksgiving
and adoration. It is a dance that gives us a glimpse
into the Cebuano's psyche.
Historical
accounts narrate that the image of the Santo Niño
was brought to Cebu by Magellan in 1521 and rediscovered
by Legazpi in 1565 under miraculous circumstances. The
image itself was reputed to be miraculous.
Over
the centuries, testimonies abound of the miraculous
interventions of the Santo Niño. People from
all over the Philippines have been coming to Cebu to
seek the Santo Niño's intercessions. Consequently,
the Santo Niño has become a symbol of Cebu, a
symbol for Cebuanos, a symbol for all its devotees.
Symbols
are difficult to define for definitions circumscribe
meaning and symbolic meanings cannot be circumscribed.
They are as varied and as rich as the individuals and
the cultures for whom they are meaningful. Accordingly,
symbols are not defined; they are merely described.
One
philosopher describes symbols thus: "Symbols evoke
feelings and feelings evoke symbols." We then ask,
what feelings are evoked by the Sto. Niño as
a symbol? Put differently, why do people dance before
the Santo Nino?
Actions
are motivated by needs, by a lack, by a want. And a
person in need asks. Accordingly, one dances before
the Santo Niño asking for his for intercession,
a prayer for petition. One may ask for the success of
a business venture, the relief of anguish and anxiety,
the love of another person, or a host of other needs
and wants.
One
may also ask for the forgiveness of his sins and transgressions
in which case the prayer becomes not only one for petition
but also for contrition.
When
the prayer is answered, the devotee returns to the image
to dance once again. This time it's a dance of thanksgiving.
The dance of thanksgiving is a dance of acknowledgment.
It acknowledges God as the sove-reign of one's life
and the world. Such a dance is also a dance of adoration.
And
what could be a more fitting symbol of divine sovereignty
that Santo Niño holding in his hands the scepter
and the world?
The
Sinulog, therefore, is prayer dance. It is dance for
petition, for contrition, for thanksgiving, and for
adoration. The Sinulog is a dance. It is the Cebuano's
(or devotee's) artistic expression of a religious experience,
God's constant love and care for him.
But
it's a special artistic expression for the Santo Niño
devotee does not create forms and patterns from extraneous
materials like canvas and oil, bronze or cement, words
or tunes. The devotee creates forms and designs from
the very movement of his own body.
Indeed
dancing is the most perfect form of art for the creator
and the created coincide in one person. For the Cebuano
devotee, his response to God's love is no less than
the most perfect form of art-the prayer dance.
Prayer
or parade? Sinulog takes on 'pagan' undertones
By Karen M. Flores
ALMOST
500 years after Magellan first presented Rajah Humabon
with an image of a dark little boy god, Cebu's celebration
of the boy's arrival has certainly come a long way.
From
a simple dance consisting of forward and backward steps
to amuse the Sto. Niño de Cebu, the Sinulog has
grown over the years into an annual carnival of sorts,
attracting local and foreign tourists who come primarily
for the street dancing.
An
improved Sinulog 2000 promised to be an even better
reason to take to the streets.
Some
historians believe the Sinulog was a ritual practised
by the pagan locals in the worship of other gods and
which was later "Christianized" with the arrival
of the Spaniards and the baptism of the rajah and his
queen, Juana.
Others
believe the Sinulog came about as a result of the Niño's
arrival.
Whichever
version of history is closer to the truth, Cebuanos
agree that it is in celebration of the arrival of the
real king of the world, the one who holds the world
in his hand, not the one who screamed his title from
the bow of a doomed ship.
One
of the definitions of pagan is a person who is neither
Christian, Jew or Muslim. He could also be one who worships
many gods or none at all.
These
were the people whom the Niño found in Sugbu
when his image arrived in 1521 aboard Magellan's ship
as a gift from Emperor Charles V of the Holy Roman empire.
But
could it be that in Sinulog 2000, when acrobatics and
props in the ritual dances and commercialism throughout
the celebration threaten to steal the thunder from the
Niño during his feast day, Sugbu locals and their
guests are slipping to practices dating back 500 years
to celebrate the feast of the boy who converted them?
Webster
says a pagan is also one "who has little or no
religion and who delights in sensual pleasures and material
goods." He may also be an "irreligious or
hedonistic person."
Certainly,
one does not have to be a devotee to take to the grand
parade route, unlike those who brave the crowds, heat,
fireworks gone astray and occasional rains which characterize
the Saturday procession.
Moving
feast
The
grand parade, by all means, is a feast for the senses.
As for materialism, there are plenty of entrepreneurs
cashing in on the remnants of the Christmas extravagance,
offering anything from tie-dyed shirts to chopper rides
at P1,500 for 10 minutes, to face painting. All for
what? To fully enjoy whose feast again?
The
Niño's.
It
is easy to forget Him and His red vestment, curly hair,
chubby cheeks and boots as one gets lost in a crowd
so revved up for the festivities. Have you even noticed
after all these years that Sto. Niño always wears
boots?
Some
say it's because he's a warrior, a peacekeeper for the
world that he holds in his left hand.
With
a reputation built on being a great time to party, the
term Sinulog is increasingly becoming the big parade
and no longer the dance people perform for the Holy
Child to ask for favors or to give thanks.
In
fact, few of those who have things to ask of Him do
the dancing themselves. For convenience, there are elderly
women (and not-so-elderly ladies and even some men)
outside the Sto. Niño Basilica who, for a mere
P1, will dance as well as provide the candle to be lit
for the petition.
If
Buddhists have prayer wheels that are spun to carry
their prayers, vendors at the Basilica sell helium-filled
balloons (more expensive than those filled with other
gases and do not fly) to which one can attach pieces
of paper where wishes are written and sent up to heaven.
Everything
is for a price these days.
Prayer-dances
In
Bad-asay, Surigao city, Joel Sembrano said they are
lucky that the Sirong, their version of the Sinulog,
is not performed by hired dancers but by the people
themselves who want to say thanks for healing, pregnancies
and rains after a drought.
There
are no prizes for the best performer among the participants,
no package tours, no sales at malls but people come
from as far as Luzon anyway.
And
when it is over, their solemn gathering does not leave
tons of garbage on the streets; nor do they need an
extra day to rest.
Having
been given the chance to dance for the Niño is
all they need to commemorate His feast that falls on
a date which Surigaonons believe is just as wondrous
as the image itself.
The
Sinulog may have started out this way for Sugbuanons
in the early 16th century, but with grand dreams to
better the celebration each year, it seems to be edging
closer to some pagan gathering (sensual pleasures, material
goods) for those whose visions are easily blurred by
great big parties.
Great
big parties, though, can only last as long as the senses
are able to resist boredom.
The
Sto. Niño, on the other hand, has been around
for half a millennium. He has weathered wars, revolutions,
fires, typhoons and other calamities. A little distraction
on the part of the people he has looked after for hundreds
of years will certainly not diminish the Little Boy's
place in Cebuano society.
(This
article was first published in the Jan. 17, 2000 issue
of Sun.Star Cebu)
Sinulog
The Festival and The Dance
By H. B. Gapud
Every
Friday, the Basilica Minore del Santo Niño pulsates
with the activity of visiting worshippers and the Sinulog
dancers-cum-vendors.
These
vendors meet the churchgoers at the grounds of this
18th century legacy and ask if they are interested in
having the prayer-dance performed in their behalf. After
agreeing on the number of candles, the vendor positions
herself at the church door and starts lifting her arms,
dancing rhythmically with her candle-laden hands upraised
in supplication - this is the Sinulog dance.
The
dance moves two steps forward and one step backward.
This movement resembles the current (sulog) of what
was then known as the Pahina River thus, in local dialect,
Sinulog. At this festival, the ritual is performed to
the beat of the drums in the streets of this oldest
city in the Philippines. Thousands of visitors visit
Cebu to see this glorious Mardi Gras.
It
is said that long before Ferdinand Magellan discovered
Cebu in 1521 and brought Christianity, the Sinulog dance
was already performed by the natives in honor of their
wooden idols and anitos.
Historians
further say that during the 44 years between the coming
of Magellan and Miguel Lopez de Legaspi, the natives
continued to dance the Sinulog. However, when Legaspi
arrived in 1565, the natives were already dancing the
Sinulog as a sign of reverence to the Santo Niño
which is now enshrined in the basilica.
Before
1721, the Fiesta Señor was observed every April
28. On that year, Pope Innocent XIII decreed that the
feast be celebrated on the second Sunday of January
after the Epiphany, to avoid the season of Lent. The
Augustinians highlight the occasion on the day earlier
(a Saturday), with a Grand Procession of the miraculous
image of the Holy Child in the streets of Cebu city,
joined by hundreds of thousands of the faithful.
The
simple ritual and fiesta inside the basilica grounds
every Friday were expanded into an impressive community
dance in the 80s a Mardi Gras deserving of the Holy
Image.
Many
artists and chorographers have created several variations
to the Sinulog dance but are unanimous in their usage
of the Sinulog dance step and beat. When this festival
was founded in 1981, in order for it to be distinguished
from the Ati-Atihan festival of Aklan, the organizers
decided to use the parade to depict the history of the
Sinulog which, as has been said, is the dance which
links the country's pagan past and the Christian present.
Father
of the Sinulog Mardi Gras
By Manual N. Oyson
Over
20 years ago one Sunday when the religious "Sinulog"
dance of faith and veneration was transported from within
the private walls of the Santo Basilica on Jones Avenue
to become a public showcase, with college students meandering
and dancing in the streets surrounding the basilica
to the beat of (would you believe?) "Hala bira!"
That
was then an experiment, in the cultural tradition of
Aklan's annual "Ati-atihan" and Iloilo's "Dinagyang."BRAINCHILD:
Instead of frayed and furrowed women candle vendors
dancing and supplicating to the Santo Niño, with
their rhythmic one-two steps within the gates of the
historic church, the same was brought to the streets
for the very first time. It was an experiment that immediately
caught the fancy and excitement of the public, including
visitors and pilgrims from outside Cebu.
Big
colleges and universities willingly marshaled their
physical education students to the brainchild of then
Director David S. Odilao Jr. of the Ministry of Youth
and Sports Development to showcase the "Sinulog"
to the general public for the first time. They have
been doing so every year since, while the "Sinulog"
has become a religious and cultural spectacle of revelry
and merrymaking of pandemonium proportions.
If
for this reason alone, Odilao should be included among
the ranks of the 100 most notable Cebuanos of the century.
His forte and expertise was not politics, education
or entrepreneurial. Rather, it was cultural reawakening
and revivalism. In 1982, no less than former Cebu city
mayor Florentino Solon called him publicly "Father
of the Sinulog."
OVERLOOKED:
Des-pite his expertise, Odilao has practically been
disregarded by organizers since the "Sinulog"
Mardi Gras became a world-renowned extravaganza. But
he will not be forgotten. He is a recipient of the Perlas
Award as one of the 10 most outstanding Filipinos in
the field of tourism; the Great Cebuano Award in the
field of leadership; and the Presidential Award from
Arena-7 and the Civil Service Commission.
In
1995, he was elevated to the Cebu Sports Hall of Fame
for involvement and vital contribution to sports development
in Cebu and other parts of the country. And many, many
more distinctions in his public and private life. In
the cultural history of the province, his name and fame
is already secured. Does anyone still recall Miguel
Lopez de Le-gazpi?
NOTES:
The proposed Philippine Sports hall of Fame was conceptualized
in 1985, or five years before the Cebu Sports Hall of
Fame.
Businessman
Dan-ding Cojuangco was the chairman of the PSHF board.
The
Edsa Revolution the next year aborted the project. The
Philippine Sports Commission will be the lead agency
once the bill establishing it is signed by President
Estrada…I have just received the Sports Illustrated
2000 Sports Almanac from my son in Detroit, Michigan.
It is 852 pages thick.
QUOTE
OF THE DAY: "I want to play in the PBA and honestly
that's what I really wanted to do now." - Dondon
Hontiveros, quoted by Daily Inquirer, on the announcement
that he has inked a P150,000 monthly salary with San
Miguel beer.
(This
article was first published in the Jan. 16, 2000 issue
of Sun.Star Cebu)
The
Sinulog orgy
Merlie M. Alunan
Since
the Sinulog became a tourism affair, it had become an
orgiastic spectacle of boundless proportions. In the
hands of the folk and the clergy, the celebration of
the feast of the Holy Child used to be a simpler affair,
concentrated in the church liturgies and acts of worship
and piety of the pilgrims and adorers of the Little
Child.
Many
of these pilgrims come from all over the country. They
would gather around the vicinity of the Basilica del
Santo Niño, or what used to be the Church of
St. Augustin, to participate in the rituals of celebration,
the vigils and novenas and a grand procession imaginable.
Having
become a tourism come-on, the Sinulog has become an
orgy of merry-making. The simple and innocent Sinulog
dance has become a base for all kinds of elaborate and
fantastic concoctions which even malls and shipping
lines throw good money to mount.
As
far as it goes, the Sinulog of Cebu could well be the
festival of festivals all over the country. There are
now two aspects of the celebration-one religious, the
other purely secular, mounted just for fun and for tourist
come-on. Mere frivolities, icing on the cake as one
might say. This has given me much fodder for rumination.
But
the heart of the celebration still revolves around the
Church and the pilgrim image of the Little Child. Cebu
is not the only place they have the Sinulog, although
nothing anywhere in the country could compare to the
grandeur of the Cebu Sinulog, especially in those earlier
days when they held the dancing in the streets and any
Maria and Juan can join the dancing. In recent years,
the city ran out of ideas to control the crowd or places
big enough to hold the dancing in.
To
make it manageable, it is now held in one designated
place. And it had become a contest. Thus popular participation
is limited only to the contingents and the populace
has become mere spectators. The Sinulog has become a
showbiz thing! Those who have the stamina for the heat
and the long walks, traffic being usually unbearable
at this season, strive for seats at the bleachers at
the Cebu City Sports Center. The rest of the city takes
to the television to watch the festivities in couch-potato
comfort.
An
aerial picture taken of the procession this year showed
what could be hundreds of thousands of revelers. The
marvel is that Cebu's famous underworld operatives also
tend to become tamer at this time of the year.
A
kind of self-imposed discipline among the ranks takes
place, one supposes, in honor of the revered patron.
The city used to gather up the whole known lot of shady
characters off the streets a few days before the fiesta
and contain them in Kawit, a little islet off the coast
of Carbon, to keep the revelers and the pilgrims safe.
I
do not know if they still do. But I have noted over
the years police report noting the reduction of petty
crimes on these rowdiest of days in the city. Who says
pilferers, pickpockets, bag snatchers etc. do not have
a sense of the sacred, or gabber at the very least?
In
2000, I joined the host of pilgrims lining up to kiss
the icon at the foot of the Holy Child. At 4:30 a.m.,
the best time to go, I swear, when the crowd is not
so big and it is still cool. All night on the festivity
days, the church is kept open for the worshippers who
come from different places to lay their hearts bare
for a few seconds at the foot of the Miraculous One.
However,
the ironies of the times are just as blatant. Standing
in line among those waiting for their turn at the Niño's
feet. I looked up at the banderetas hanging over the
streets surrounding the Church and saw that they carried
the names of Pagcor and the Philippine lotto. Those
banderetas were all over the city, north to south. Little
flaglets advertising gambling. On these holiest of days!
But the Child, they say, is very understanding. Would
He understand this?
The
local dailies were full of the alleged Mojica shenanigans,
and the national dailies bannered Erap's relentless
dislike of media who've been doing their jobs (and rather
well, while he himself appears unable to put his own
act together). The controversy over Martin Ocampo's
death still festered in the consciousness and "Dirty
Harry" Lim is up to his old tricks of painting
the houses of known drug pushers while the nation cried
"foul" at this strategy. The President, as
it turned out later, is on the verge of impeachment
proceedings for interfering in stock exchange matters.
There, that dangerous word is out at last!
How,
I wondered, will the Little Child deal with so much
complicated matters to protect the real faithful among
his worshippers? And who is the redeemer he will send
to pull the country out of its present demoralization?
A bigger wisdom we pray for and a miracle.
If
one can still hope for one in these days of unbelief.
But the faces raised at the Niño's altar were
faces of faith. I hope our faithfulness would make a
miracle happen. We do need a great one as we stand at
the threshold of the new millennium with a shaky government
ran by a president who knows only how to act and not
to govern.
Please
say amen with me.
(This
article was first published in the Jan. 23, 2000 issue
of Sun.Star Cebu)
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