MEDICINE AND PHARMACY

PRACTICES
OF IGOROTS

IGOROTS
All Igorots believe in WITCH
CRAFT.
They inhibit the mountainous
area of the Philippines called
"Cordillera".
4 tribes of Igorots located in
Luzon:
- Lepanto Igorots
- Nabaloi Igorots
- Kankanay Igorots
- Bontoc Igorots

 Igorot or Igolot literally means

"MOUNTAIN PEOPLE".

"Manbunong"
The Tribal Leader of
the Igorot.
And a priest who
performed rituals.
The influence of the
manbunong is more
powerful or influential
than the elected
officials.

gods of the Igorot Tribe

The gods of the Igorot tribe.
According W.D Sacla:

Dios Adi Kaila

- The god which we cannot see.
- Creator of Sun, Moon, Earth, and Creatures.

Kabunyan
- Son of Dios Adi Kaila.
- One who execute the plan of god adi kaila.

Anitos or the ancestral spirit

- Which means the spirit of those relative who passed
away or malevolent ancestral spirits.
- Often called Ap-apo.

Lepanto Igorots
Never knew much about remedies of their
sickness.
Most of them died without treatment.
Later learned to offer sacrifices called
"CANAO".
Canao - sacrificing CHICKEN and HOGS to
obtain good health, better crops and increase
their livestock.
Believes that illness was attributed by the
work of bad spirits specially their departed
realtives called "ANITOS"

Lepanto Igorot Healers

Baylas - A priestess who prayed
for the sick and offered hogs for
the sacrifice.
Mandadagap - Is a herb
specialist who used the plant he
dreamt of to sick people.
Baloy - The plant used by the
Mandadagap

Nabaloi Igorots
Subgroup of the
Igorot.
Lives in the southern
part of Benguet.
They have few
remedies

Trusted their cure to the

ceremony called "CANAO"

 They were traditionally an AGRARIAN society.

Agrarian - is any society whose economy is

based on producing and maintaining crops and
farmland.

Many of the Ibaloi people continue with their

agriculture and rice cultivation.

Medical practices or Rituals of

Naboloi
Palis - Ceremony which determines the
cause of disease.
Sabat - Used in determining the name of
the person if the sickness is caused by
witch craft.
Buang - The canao to cure deafness.
Nansaang - The canao to cure headache.
Dosed - Practice to cure pains in the chest.

 Sigop - Ceremony to cure colds

Kolos - For the treatment of stomachache
and diarrhea
Basil - For the disease of the sex organs
Gangao - For rheumatism
Salchi - Is for prevention of sickness caused
by eating animals which have died of
diseases.

Kankanay Igorots
Subgroup of the
Igorot.
Lives in Amburayan
and southern
Lepanto.

Kankayan Spirits
Kakading - Souls of the dead.
Dagao - Spirits which lived with the people.
Bilig - Spirits which lived in pasture or
timberlands.
Pinading - Those which lived the high
mountains.

Medical practices or Rituals of

Kankayan
Bindian - Ceremony to cure or prevent
sickness
Mandit - Used to enhance prestige and
increase wealth
Buan - To cure deafness
Mayitlutlutan - Used to cure headache
Kapi - Celebrated to comply with dreams
or a vow made during sickness

 Palis chi Kabunian - Celebrated to cure

toothache
Manthusis bilig - Cure for chest pain
Biling - Celebrated for lung infection

Bontoc Igorots
Occupies a central
position among the
Igorots.
They are so good
that they don't harm
each other.
Lives on the banks
of the Chico River in
the Central Mountain
Province on the
island of Luzon.

 Has distinctive body tattoos.

Women were tattooed on the arms only.
Believes in LUMAWIG
Lumawig - Personifies the forces of nature
and is the legendary creator, friend, and
teacher of the Bontoc.
Majority of them died if called
"IMPOOSNAMAWAK"

Plants used in medical practice or

rituals in Bontoc
La-lay-ya - A paste applied to cuts.
Ta-kum-fao - Used to treat burns.
O-ok-ong-an - A poultice used to treat
boils and swellings
Ototek - used for trating toothache
Leaves of Saysam - In the form of
bath are used to treat small pox.