B'LAAN BURIAL......GIL-LI GO LAMBIN GU IN B'LAAN LANGUAGE

HIGHLAND B'LAAN TRADITIONAL PRACTICES, BELIEFS WITH DEATH AND RITUALS................................................

If B'laan dies, where they are living, then move to other place. That's why B'laans have lot of places to live, in their area. When a B'laan dies his body is kept in the house from one to three weeks. Those that were prominent in the community, during their lifetime are placed in coffins, which are made of soft wood. To prepare the coffin. B'laan cut down tree with a trunk big enough to accommodate the body. The log use then split into two equal parts and hollowed out in the center. The body is placed between the two halves and left in the house. The family of the deceased then begins discussing the place of burial and the division of property. After eating spree is over, the coffin taken to the selected tree and is tied in the branches. If the deceased is married woman the body can not burned until the husband gives her parents a horse or a carabew. The B'laan place their dead in the trees because it is for the soul to go to heaven. Sometimes, they do not take the pains of placing the body in the branches, but just prop it up against the trunk of a tree, so that when the soul leaves the body it can just walk away. WHEN THE POOR DIE, they are simply wrapped in mats or in split bamboo of the dead and feet covered with some rags............................DISPOSAL OF THE DEAD................Traditionally, the B'laan have several ways of disposing of their dead. Burial in the ground, hanging the corpse up on tree branches, inserting the cadaver into the trunk of a tree. abandoning the body where the person died. In case there is the element of respect and?or love for the departed. There is also a fear that evil spirits may have brought about the death of their relative.................................................RITUAL AND WISH OR MALO....................When death comes upon spouse in a married couple, a ritual called malo is often performed. This ritual involves the living spouse expressing he?she wish prior to the burial. He or she would put a foot on the coffin or give the coffin a light kick. If it is he?she wish not marry again, for example, he or she would express this wish. The bereaved spouse might state....."YOU ARE DEAD NOW, YOU ARE NO LONGER HERE. I STEP ON YOUR COFFIN BECAUSE YOU HAVE LITTLE LOVE FOR ME, BECAUSE YOU HAVE LEFT ME"......The ritual is an affirmation that death signals the end of a relationship.............