Dungan

It is Taken from the root word “Duwa” which means two. The souls has two part one
is for the physical part, where it connected to physical body and its life, and the
other one is spiritual, where it exists on its own.

The dungan may leave the body voluntarily while the person is asleep according to
the Bisayans. Among the ancient Filipinos, when the person is asleep he/she should
not be awakened quickly in order to give ample time for the dungan to return to the
body. When the soul has safely returned home to the body of its owner, he/she could
then be awakened.

Dungan is a Visayan name and a folk country that means “life forth,” “soul
substance,” “alter ego,” and “spiritual twin.” While it is a concept of power, it does
not refer to a power that has a set origin that is located outside of the people’s
community. Dungan is considerably distinct from what has previously been
addressed in other south east asian civilizations, which has its clear foundation in the
“exemplary core” of old polities in the region's hierarchical systems. Dungan
represents authority, which is constantly perceived and even fought by individuals in
the course of their daily interactions.

lt is believed that whatever happens to the dungan happens to the physical body as
well. It is also believed that another reason for the voluntary withdrawal of the soul
is when the body is maltreated. The Bisayans believe that the soul or dungan is not
located in any specific part of the body. Rather, it is belleved to grow proportionately
with the person's body.

lt is normally weak at birth, that is why babies are said to be susceptible to

‘usug,‘that is the unintentional transfer of disturbing vapors of a strong body to a
weak one by holding, talking or just looking at the weaker one.

The Bisayan dungan has a secondary meaning of ‘willpower.‘A strong dungan is the
intellectual and psychological capacity to dominate or persuade others to one’s way
of thinking. A person with a lot of willpower is said to ‘have a strong dungan.

Constant companionship (sometimes under the same roof) of two people may lead
to a spiritual competition between the two dungans and the defeat (causing illness)
to the one with the weaker dungan.
At death, the dungan leaves the body through the nose, eyes, ears and other body
orifices and eventually goes with the air or the wind towards the upper regions.
There it waits until it can find another body to enter.

The Soul and the Body Are Separate From a Christian, or biblical, standpoint, it is the
soul that distinguishes humans from the rest of creation. Only into man does God
breathe the breath of life, transforming him into a living soul.

Other term in every languages in Philippines

 Kaluluwa by Tagalogs
 Gimukud by Bagobos
 Makatu by Bukidnuns
 Ikararuwa by Ibanags
 Kadkaduwa by the illokanos when the soul is in the physical body;
and karuruwa when it departs.

For the ibanags, the soul is principle of life in man body. Body is the matter; soul is
the form. As long as the body and soul unit, man is alive. Death is the separation of
the soul from the body. The body can stay alive without the soul but the soul can live
without its body.

For the illonggos, they call the soul, which cannot be seen by the human eye.
Sometimes, the dungan may show itself in form of insect a house fly or a moth or a
small animals.

Rituals and Ceremonies

Is it possible to view rituals as a way of defining or describing peoples.

A person’s participation in ritual is an expression of his religious beliefs.

A ritual is a religious or solemn ceremony consisting of a series of actions performed

according to a prescribed order. lt consists of a sequence of activities involving
gestures, words, and objects, performed in a specific place, according to a set
sequence.

Consist of sequence of activities involving gestures, words and objects. Performed in

a specific place according to a set sequence.
Rituals is a symbolic expression of actual social relation, status or roles of individuals
in a society.

Witchcraft

Witchcraft has traditionally been defined as the use or invocation of purported

supernatural powers to manipulate people or events, usually through the use of
sorcery or magic.

Witchcraft has been viewed as the work of crones who meet secretly at night,
engage in cannibalism and orgiastic rites with the Devil, or Satan, and conduct black
magic, while being defined differently in various historical and cultural settings. As
defined, witchcraft exists more in the minds of contemporaries than in any objective
fact. Nonetheless, this stereotype has a long history and has served as a credible
explanation for evil in many civilizations.

The European witch hunts of the 14th through 18th centuries best reflect the
intensity of these beliefs, but witchcraft and its accompanying ideas are never far
from the surface of popular consciousness, and find explicit focus from time to time
in popular television and films supported by folk stories and fiction.

Wicca (masculine) or wicce (feminine), pronounced “witchah” and “witchuh,”

respectively, denotes someone who performs sorcery; and craeft, which means
“craft” or “skill,” derives from Old English wiccecraeft.

Religion

Faced with ongoing controversy about the validity and definition of the term
“religion,” this study argues that the social sciences must become more self-critical
of their different and changing uses of the term. Religion as belief/meaning, religion
as identity, and religion as structured social relations are the three main applications
currently prevailing, as this article demonstrates. Some previously dominant uses,
such as Marxist approaches to religion as ideology and Parsonian notions of religion
as norms and values, are now recessive.

Humans’ relationship to what they view as holy, sacred, absolute, spiritual, divine, or
worthy of special devotion is known as religion. It is also often thought to include
people's responses to ultimate concerns about their lives and after-death fates.
Religion as speech, religion as practice, and material religion are among the new
uses that have emerged. The research presents a taxonomy of five key uses of the
phrase based on these findings. It considers their appropriateness and points out
where gaps remain, particularly in regards to super-social or meta-social
relationships with non-human or quasi-human individuals.

This relationship and these concerns are expressed in many traditions in terms of
one's relationship with or attitude toward gods or spirits; they are expressed in more
humanistic or naturalistic forms of religion in terms of one's relationship with or
attitudes toward the broader human community or the natural world.

Many religions regard writings as having biblical character, and people are regarded
as having spiritual or moral authority. Believers and worshippers engage in
devotional or contemplative practices like as prayer, meditation, or specific rites,
and are frequently mandated to do so. Worship, moral behavior, correct belief, and
involvement in religious organizations are all important aspects of religious life.

Magic

A mode of rationality or method of thinking that looks to invisible forces to affect

events, effect change in material situations, or create the perception of change is
referred to as magic. This form of thought is distinct from religious or scientific
modes within the Western tradition; nevertheless, such differences, as well as the
concept of magic, are hotly debated.

The “high” magic of the intellectual elite, verging on science, and the “low” magic of
common folk rituals are sometimes distinguished. There is also a contrast drawn
between “black” magic, which is employed for malevolent reasons, and “white”
magic, which is presumably utilized for good.

Magical practices have a sense of “otherness” because of the supernatural force that
is thought to be channeled through the practitioner, who is a marginalized or
stigmatized figure in certain communities and a major role in others, despite the fact
that these borders are often blurred.

Magic is the practice of using incantation or other procedures to achieve a desired

effect or outcome, thereby ensuring human control over supernatural entities or
natural forces.

Magic, often known as “magick”, is the use of ideas, rituals, or acts in the belief that
they may influence natural or supernatural creatures and forces. It is a category that
includes a variety of beliefs and practices that are sometimes regarded independent
from both religion and science.

Women’s oppression and environmental damage, which they claim are inextricably
intertwined, are deeply ingrained in patriarchal faiths, according to feminist
witchcraft.