I already bought "Filipino Tattoos Ancient to Modern," which was an extremely healing book for me on my quest to find indigenous Tagalog culture. Therefore, I bought this book last month. My copy was lightly used with a minor tear in the back cover; I don't mind small things like that, and the front and back covers are the same picture.

The Philippines has long been relegated to being simply called "Asian," despite being a notorious melting pot right at the border between Polynesia and Maritime South Asia, but there are surprisingly strong ties between the Philippines and Pacific Islanders: Precolonial Filipino tribes and their modern descendants practice indigenous tattooing, and the cultural significance and design similarities to Polynesian tattoos are elaborated at length in Wilcken's other book, "Filipino Tattoos Ancient to Modern." We have outrigger fishing canoes called bangka ("vaka" is a very common Polynesian term for canoes in general), larger seafaring canoes called paraw (almost identical in form and name to the Polynesian proa), and precolonial ships like the Tagalog balangay and the Visayan karakoa are a dead-ringer for Polynesian boats.

"The Forgotten Children of Maui" is an in-depth look at the cultural memories of the Polynesian folk-hero Maui. The Tagalog god Bathala created coconuts by slaying a dragon and burying it; later on, when the sky was too low for people to stand up, he pushed it up for more room. Bonus: In some versions of the myth, he first has to beat up the sun and shank him in the face so the sky can cool down. Lots of Polynesian folktales have Maui beat up the sun so the days can be longer. There is the Itneg figure Aponitolau, son of the wind-goddess Langa-an who was given a magic fishhook, and fished out his wife from the sea. The Ilokano hero Lam-ang stole fire from a giant who was hoarding it all in his cave. And last but most obvious is the Ilokano hero Lumawig, whose feats are a dead-ringer for Polynesian Maui's. Many of these gods also share Maui's miraculous birth: Some are miscarried, others intentionally aborted, and others were simply unwanted and abandoned as newborns, but survive through adoption by nature-spirits or gods.

Unfortunately, despite the wealth of information in the book, the fact remains that even more culture has been lost to Spanish colonization--many myths are fragmented, while others are clearly Christianized and had to be rebuilt. The only fault I could find is how little of my own Tagalog heritage is mentioned, which isn't Wilcken's fault so much as the Spanish conquistadors who invaded five hundred years ago. And unfortunately, a lot of Filipinos are still suffering a colonial mindset, fanatically opposed to getting back in touch with their tribal roots since they view them as "primitive" or simply "heathen." (Good job, Spain. Really good job.)

This daughter of Lumawig is anxiously awaiting Wilcken's next book.

Brand	N/A
Rating	4.7 (99 ratings)
Price	$31.63
Category	Australia & Oceania

The Forgotten Children of Maui: Filipino Myths, Tattoos, and Rituals of a Demigod