FAST BACKWARD – Tungud Movement

Religious conversion in Davao gave rise to a number of conflicts that evolved not so much from the introduction of Christianity than from the political enforcements closely associated with conversion. In the Samal revolt, the discord was not about Catholicism but the forced tribute and the resettlement issue the priests and the colonial administrators wanted to impose on local people. The Linao revolt of Agusan, on the other hand, erupted due to forced labor.
In 1908, in the first decade of American occupation, a religious movement started in Davao among the Manobos residing along Libuganon River at the boundary of Carmen town and Tagum City. It was known as Tungud, a vernacular term closely associated with katungod (rights). The uprising, dubbed as a movement of deceit by Ireland-born author John M. Garvan who probed the unrest, was led by Mapakla, also known as Meskinan, who used his sickness to create a religious following.
Accounts say Meskinan was near-death due to a serious illness when relatives abandoned him. He, however, showed up days later healed and healthy, claiming he was cured by a good spirit whose presence, it seemed, was affirmed by the trembling of his body each time he told his story. Soon, his claim was magnified, transforming him from a mere mortal to a priest and later as god. His assertion took a life of its own, expanding to as far as the common boundary of Davao and Bukidnon, converted hostile tribesmen into his fold, and transformed into a movement that was used as a means of dissent against the Americans and as sign of religious unrest. To add credence to his tale of possession, he fasted. He also sent out messages to people supposedly to save them from global meltdown.
Among the orders Meskinan issued was the killing of poultry and hogs so the farm animals would spare their owners from being eaten alive. He also banned the planting of crops and ordered the setting up a house of worship which, it would soon be exposed, was used to deceive the gullible by using bogus priests, punuan (leader) and conniving aides called the taytayan (bridge). To add more religious color to the cult, he mandated the performance of sacred dances in his honor and the offering of gifts to his make-believe god, Magbabaya.
Separate investigations were also made about the group. Garvan found out that the religious movement, which later expanded inauspiciously, drew together warring tribal factions. This suggested that the Meskinan affair was not just about counterfeit religion but also a form of extortion. Underscoring this was the symbolic offering of spears, bows and arrows, and bolos, which were sold to the members. As a commercial activity, kerchiefs and similar articles as a form of talisman were sold, and fees were charged to those who wanted to become a cult leader.
Fay Cooper-Cole, in his The Wild Tribes of Davao, said the uprising was an offshoot of Gov. Frederic Lewis’s plan to establish new villages in once-populated communities that were now abandoned. In the Mayo Bay area, he observed that the group was exploited by the Moros as a way of expelling American planters from their area.
By cordially inviting the Mandaya chiefs to their houses, they were also able to convince the tribal leaders to rise up in arms and destroy the Christians. Known to harbor anger against any form of colonial resettlement, the Moro plan to include the Mandayas was logical. The idea to harm the Americans was later discovered and exposed.