Butang-butang is a traditional healing ritual from President Roxas, Capiz, used to treat illnesses that doctors cannot diagnose. The healing involves offering food to unseen spirits or the souls of the departed, blending ancient beliefs with Catholic prayers. The ritual requires specific food offerings, a floating raft, and sometimes releasing a chicken tied with a red ribbon to transfer the illness away. The practice is led by a mediko, a folk healer who passes down knowledge orally to apprentices within the community. However, the practice is declining due to modernization and fewer young people interested in continuing it, though efforts are being made to document and teach it through apprenticeships.
Photo Credit/s:
Ronilo G. Berondo, 2024
Mappers:
Ronald A. Almanon, Lyndemae D. Denosta, Ellaine Marie C. Tumanday
Tags:
alternative healing Philippines, ancestral healing Capiz, Butang-butang ritual Capiz, cultural heritage Capiz, Filipino folk medicine, Filipino healing rituals, folk healing President Roxas, indigenous healing traditions, mediko healing practices, oral tradition healing, preserving Filipino rituals, ritual healing with food offerings, spirit offerings ritual, traditional healing Philippines, traditional illness treatments
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