BUKIDNON VIEWS: Erlowism: The Big Rock!

MALAYBALAY CITY (28 November 2020) Since time immemorial, the people of Mindanao never ceased in achieving peace in this Promised Land. Before the Spanish time, the natives of Bukidnon headed by Datu Mansikiyabu and Sultan Alimpasay, a Prince from the Middle East who headed the Moslems, Maranaos, and Moros of the provinces of Cotabato and Lanao, came to terms with their followers to a peace negotiation.

The ceremony for peace agreement, which was known as the Bigela Hu Liduay, took place at the Tagulwan Junction Rivers of Can-ayan and Kibalabag. Two stones as big as softball were blessed both by the Moro and the Bukidnon natives who witnessed the ceremony.

All took an oath promising that enmity and strife between them would be forgotten. The Bigela Hu Liduay ceremony symbolized the general cleansing of their covenant, whosoever would do evil again and pass beyond the blessed stones would die.

At present, the stone grandly standing near the boundary site as it was believed to be continuously growing huge and big and being tagged by the locals as “The Big Rock”.

Peace however, continue to elude Mindanao due to some political indifferences, cultural traditions, and historical injustices, which caused unending bloodshed to this land of “Milk and Honey”.

A chief negotiator once said, “there is no template for peace and what we need is political settlement and respect to culture and traditional peace pact in Mindanao to bring development to the land we call home”.

Peace can only be attained if all sectors of society will strive to promote justice and equality for the Lumads, the Moro, and the Christian Settlers in Mindanao.

(Aside from being a surrealist painter, the author is CEO and president of MasterZone. For inquiries, follow MasterZone FB Group, or contact 0906-601-1796 or erlow2006@yahoo.com . ERLOWISM is his column for BukidnonViews, the opinion section of BukidnonNews.Net)

In photo: The Big Rock, a tourist destination in the hinterlands of Malaybalay City. Courtesy of Erlow D. Talatala's FB post