In my own personal belief and opinion, I do not believe in

the existence of mythical creatures or aswang for that matter. I

humbly think that it is only the people who constructed the idea

of mythical creatures (specifically aswang in the Philippine

setting) because of lack of knowledge or rational explanation to

certain bizarre phenomena which they have not encountered yet in

their everyday life.

Growing up, my parents made sure that I should not be

threatened with scare stories or be blackmailed by adults by

using statements such as “Sige ka kung indi ka magpahimunong

kaunon ka guid sang aswang” type of slurs to make me behave or

do something according to their will. My parents has always

explained to me that they do not find it necessary to use aswang

as a way to make children to behave because it paints in the

mind of a child unnecessary stress of not liking the idea of

darkness – which is the time when aswangs and other mythical

creatures would usually come out.

From what I see, for instance, there exist a lot of tales

and scare stories even here in Panay island regarding families

or certain mysterious people living in Duenas or Capiz who

practice cannibalism and turn into monsters during the night. I

highly doubt these aswangs exist because from what I observe,

people only put labels or references on individuals who do not

meet the society’s standards for what is the norm in terms of

physical attributes or looks, behavior, and/or lifestyle.

For example, a certain individual may be suffering from a

particular disease that makes him look unpleasant (i.e. hunched

back, having skin diseases like psoriasis, tumors, deformed face

or body, missing limbs etc.) thus because of such unsightly

looks, such individual would prefer to stay at home instead of

mixing and interacting with the public because he is afraid that

people will judge or laugh at his condition. And because of the

said individual’s aloofness towards his community plus his

unsightly looks, people tend to label him as a “monster”,

“aswang”, or any other hurtful names which are not backed up by

any scientific data or basis.

Furthermore, I feel that people from far-flung communities

would usually have little to no interaction with medical doctors

hence any condition or disease that afflicts an individual

cannot be explained to the majority in a scientific or medical

way. To add insult to injury, also perhaps because of lack of

knowledge and education, the mothers of these “aswangs” or

“strange creatures” would usually believe that their child’s

condition may be explained by her “paglilihi” to a particular

animal who bear similar characteristics with the child or

because of not having faithfully followed a superstitious belief

when in fact it is the lack of medical assistance or medical

intervention that led the pregnancy to be sensitive and not well

taken care of. Perhaps it is also the mother’s way of coping

with the mental anguish of having a labeled aswang child as a

sort of justification or rationale.

Though aswangs are part of our culture as Filipinos with

all the fantasized idea because of media, comics, and word-of-

mouth, I do believe that they are basically a product of

people’s creative imagination. Up until now there has been no

scientific studies, research, or data that would sufficiently

prove the existence of aswang. Also in my twenty-five years

existence, I am also still yet to see one before my naked eye.

However, even though I do not believe in aswang, I do

believe of the existence of spirits (both good and bad). Somehow

this belief of mine of the existence of spirits stem from my

religion (I am Roman Catholic) whrein God sends certain spirits

to watch over mankind and that there are also bad spirits that

the devil has sent to tempt people to do awful and evil acts.

On hindsight though, the concept of mythical creatures or

aswang also have its own positive effects towards the community

and society. Since we cannot discount the fact that it is

already part of our culture, the urban legend must stay where it

is in our literature. It serves as our identity as Filipinos and

encourages creative thinking among the youth. I, an avid reader

and advocate of preserving the Filipino culture, strongly would

want to uphold the moral lessons behind the stories of our famed

aswangs.

For example, the well-known character kapre who lives in

huge trees like the balete tree. Townsfolk believe that one

should not do any act of disturbance against the balete tree so

not to offend or disturb the kapre and the spirits who live in

it. The advantage of this belief is that it forces people to

give respect to the trees by not chopping them down thus a

benefit to the mother nature.

Another example of making good use the concept of aswang is

the superstitious belief that drivers of motor vehicles must be

extra careful when traversing roads across schools because such

roads are considered as “sensitive” and “malas” for it is

believed that a white lady will appear and cause accident if a

motor vehicle is running fast. A good take-away from this belief

is that it gives drivers of motor vehicles extra-precaution and

vigilance when driving near schools hence conversely decreases

the chance of accidents especially that a lot of students and

children walk by the vicinity.

As a final word, I am convinced that people who do not

measure up with the norms or standards of the society must not

be bashed or ostracized right away as “aswang”. It is unfounded,

unfair, and even libelous especially when it reaches to the

extent of affecting these people’s everyday life. A lot of

families have gone to quarrel just because of a condescendingly

calling someone as aswang. Hence, it best for us to not judge

odd or bizarre circumstances immediately to be attributed to

aswang because such scenario may also have possible concrete

explanations by science or medicine.

 According to (E. Lombardi, 2017), a myth is a traditional

story that may answer life's overarching questions, such as the

origins of the world or of a people. A myth can also be an

attempt to explain mysteries, supernatural events, and cultural

traditions. Sometimes sacred in nature, a myth can involve gods

or other creatures. In other words, they present reality in a

dramatic mode or manner.

Myths are also symbolic tales of the past of a certain

place and its history that concern the origin and nature of the

universe (R. Dorson, 1968). The good thing about myth is that it

connects to the belief systems or rituals of a certain place or

happening, and may serve to direct social action and values.

'Folklore' has four basic meanings. First, it denotes oral

narration, rituals, crafts, and other forms of vernacular

expressive culture. Second, folklore, or ‘folkloristics,’ names

an academic discipline devoted to the study of such phenomena.

Third, in everyday usage, folklore sometimes describes colorful

‘folkloric’ phenomena linked to the music, tourist, and fashion

industries. Fourth, like myth, folklore can mean falsehood. (B.

Klein, 2001) Folklore is the traditional, unofficial, non-

institutional part of culture. It encompasses all knowledge,

understandings, values, attitudes, assumptions, feelings, and

beliefs transmitted in traditional forms by word of mouth or by

customary examples. (J. Brunvand, 1978).

 Folklore is present in many kinds of informal

communication, whether verbal (oral and written texts),

customary (behaviors, rituals) or material (physical objects).

It involves values, traditions, ways of thinking and behaving.

It’s about art. It’s about people and the way people learn. It

helps us learn who we are and how to make meaning in the world

around us. (M. Sims & M. Stephens, 2005)

The classic definition of myth from folklore studies finds

clearest delineation in William Bascom’s article “The Forms of

Folklore: Prose Narratives” where myths are defined as tales

believed as true, usually sacred, set in the distant past or

other worlds or parts of the world, and with extra-human,

inhuman, or heroic characters. According to Esther Lobardi

(November 1, 2017), the main difference between myth and

folklore is that the former has at its core the origins of a

people and is often sacred while folklore is a collection of

fictional tales about people or animals. Under the folklore

tradition, superstitions and unfounded beliefs are important

elements in its characteristics. Folktales are oftentimes

describe how a protagonist or main character copes with the

events of everyday life, and the tale may involve crisis or

conflict.

However, myth would occupy much space in the world of

literature. This is because myth is often described as

“cosmogonic,” which functions to provide order or cosmology,

based on “cosmic” from the Greek kosmos meaning order (Leeming

1990, 3, 13; Bascom, 1965). Cosmology’s concern with the order

of the universe finds narrative, symbolic expression in myths,

which thus often help establish important values or aspects of a

culture’s worldview. Myth therefore concern much of what

comprises human nature.

To further illustrate the similarities and differences of

myth and folklore, there are a number definitions including the

following below:

1. Myths are Cosmogonic Narratives which means they are

connected with the Foundation or Origin of the Universe.

Oftentimes, myth is borne specifically in terms of a particular

culture or region.

Since myth deals with origins, the setting is typically

primordial or the beginning of time and characters are proto-

human or deific unlike folklores which protagonists does not

necessarily mean it has to be a human figure but could also take

a form of an animal or creature. Myths also often have

cosmogonic overtones even when not fully cosmogonic, for

instance dealing with origins of important elements of the

culture like food, medicine, ceremonies, and the likes (G. Fink,

2010).
 2. Myths are Narratives which are sacred in nature, often

connected with some ritual. Myths are often foundational or key

narratives associated with religions. These narratives are

believed to be true from within the associated faith system

(though sometimes that truth is understood to be metaphorical

rather than literal). Within any given culture there may be

sacred and secular myths coexisting. In contrast, scholar

William Hansen notes that not all myths had a sacred element.

They were not necessarily connected to religious beliefs, but

were often secular stories that are demonstrated by his studies

on Greek myth.

3. Myths are Narratives Formative or reflective of social

order or values within a culture, way of life, or place hence

has a functional role in the society. While Folklores do not

necessarily have to have social-cultural values attached on it

though oftentimes they also have a tinge of it.

4. Mythic Narratives often involve heroic characters

usually in the form of proto-humans, super humans, or gods who

mediate inherent, troubling dualities (reconciling good/bad,

light/darkness, peace/chaos), which reconciles us to our

realities, or establish the patterns for life which we are

familiar of and which people can easily relate to.

5. Plot may involve interplay between worlds (this world

and previous or original world) unlike Folklores that do not

necessarily stick with the interplay of worlds as a setting of

the story.

6. Myths are Narratives that are "Counter-Factual in

featuring actors and actions that confound the conventions of

routine experience" (McDowell, 80).

 References

Lombardi, Esther. The Meaning of Myths, Folklore, Legends, and

Fairy Tales. (2017, November 1).

Folklore Forum 36.1 (2005). Richard M. Dorson Former Director of

the Folklore Institute, Indiana University

Stress of War, Conflict and Disaster. Fink, George. Elsevier

2010.

Mark, J.J. (2009, September 01). Mythology. Ancient History

Encyclopedia. https://www.ancient.eu/mythology/

Barbro Klein. Folklore. In International Encyclopedia of the

Social and Behavioral Sciences. Volume 8. Pp. 5711-5715.

New York: Elsevier, 2001.

Jan Brunvand. The Study of American Folklore: An Introduction,

2nd edition. New York: W.W. Norton, 1978.

Martha C. Sims and Martine Stephens. Living Folklore: An

Introduction to the Study of People and their Traditions.

Pp. 1-2. Logan: Utah State University Press, 2005.

The Folklore Forum Volume 1, Number 4, 1968

http://www.nyfolklore.org/tradarts/folklore.html

http://www.afsnet.org/?page=whatisfolklore