Society of the Maharlika

SOCIETY OF THE MAHARLIKA

Tagalog: "Lipunan ng mga Maharlika”

Motto: To be noble is to be humble. To be free is to be a maharlika.

Society of the Maharlika (or simply The Society) is a secret organization located in the Philippines where young hinirang are taken for safety and training. It was founded by Juan Balderama-Reyes Jr. in 1808, initially situated in Mt. Arayat, Pampanga. The entrance of the organization is through a cave called the Balaghan Cave. 

Inside is divided into two different places: The Barangay and the Field, where encampments take place. The Barangay is headed by a mortal named Prof. Joacquin Capili, a 58-year old former professor in University of the Philippines, who has been a hinirang and so, dedicating his life in studying about the ancient Philippine’s history. The Field is headed by the society’s immortal guardian, Maria Sinukuan, along with the protector god of mountains, Dumakulem.

Barangay

Once a person enters the Balaghan Cave, he will appear in a parallel forest, and if he walks straight ahead, a tall building stands out. The building is called the Punong Gusali because it is the main building of the Society of the Maharlika. Surrounding it are other smaller buildings that makes the entire premise look like a small town. Inside the Punong Gusali is where the hinirang live. It is a four-story building; the first floor has its wide lobby and few bedrooms along the hallways, while the second floor is all bedrooms, filled with hallways as well. The third floor is where the cafeteria is found and some training rooms, and the fourth floor is for offices. The purpose of the Punong Gusali is to serve as the home for half-blood hinirang. It is also where the studies take place. The buildings around the Punong Gusali are library, museum, harangue, shops and other facilities.

Field

Far across the forest is the Field. It is a wide ground with nearby nipa huts for battle and game purposes. It is used for encampments (duration of three weeks for normal camps). Normal camps are held only three times a year: April, August and December. Whereas, a special event always happen every August called Banwang Battle, a battle game consisting of four groups who fights to earn tattoos. The nipa huts (locally called kubo) are currently twenty in total for twenty gods, divided into four groups. The huts keep on increasing depending on the availability or necessity. There’s also a campfire, sepak takraw court and other minor structures beside the field.

The following are the hut groups:

Group 1: Bathala, Lakapati, Amanikable, Idiyanale, Dimangan

Group 2: Mayari, Mapulon, Tala, Apolaki, Hanan

Group 3: Agwe, Anitun Tabu, Agui, Pasipo, Dian Masalanta,

Group 4: Anagolay, Dumakulem, Dal’lang, Sitan, Hidit

Other Facilities

Barn, green house, hospital, library, museum, study room, cafeteria/ canteen/ food court, meeting hall, and harangue.

(Map of the Society by Jeremiah Cordial)

Personnel

Maria Sinukuan and Prof. Joacquin Capili are of the highest managing body inside the Society. They are both heads of the Field and the Barangay, respectively. Meanwhile, Dumakulem is considered as the co-head of the Field, along with Maria Sinukuan. 

There is a board of the rajah, in which their main duty is to plan for improvement and organize the Society through creating policies and rules. The known member of this board is Isagani. There are also the council, which are composed of the councilors of each hut. Their main responsibility is to manage other hinirang especially during encampments. Known members are Tim, Kristela, Carl, Amira, Miguel and Gabriel, Isagani and Mark. 

The other personnel are catalonan, maharlika soldiers, canteen cooks, vendors, aliping saguiguulid and aliping namamahay.

Traditions

Hinirang kids who are involve in many activities in the society often receive tattoos to mark their success, especially for completing immersions, winning battles and winning contests. This is to signify that they are aiming to become true maharlika or warriors. The design depends on their accomplishment and can be placed in any part of the body a hinirang wishes.

There is also a tradition of welcoming newcomers during ceremonies by going in front of the crowd and wait for the gift of their sibling (usually the councilors for their hut). It can only be done when the Sort Board automatically put the newcomer’s name under his or her respective group by godly parents.

Sort Board

A hinirang usually cannot participate well during immersions because of their identification. A hinirang must first be sorted in the Sort Board, a magical board with approximately 20 papers posted on it that automatically prints a newcomer’s name in a paper where they belong. It changes and erases the name of the hinirang every week as a batch. When it’s not yet secured who their godly parent is, a hinirang’s name is placed at the fourth paper, belonging to Idiyanale, the goddess of labor and good deeds. The moment a god moves a hinirang’s name in his or her paper, that would mean that the hinirang is sorted and acknowledged. This will allow him or her to have more opportunities inside the Society and continue working on earning the title as a maharlika.

Immersions

Immersions are like missions that a hinirang can participate, which eventually became a basis for becoming a true maharlika. When a hinirang wishes to join an immersion, once accomplishing it, he will be given a tattoo as a maharlika. In order to join such endeavor, it is the duty of the heads of the Society to give them a place or task to be finished. Sometimes, a hinirang may ask for an assistance with the kapre or catalonan. The required number of participants depends on the need, but the team must have a leader to guide the entire team.

It was temporarily banned few years before Chris Garcia came due to an accident, which angered Bathala and forced the Society to stop doing immersions and instead, stick with the encampments where they can earn their tattoos.

Background of the Society of the Maharlika

The society took its name from the lower rank in the ancient class of the Filipinos: the maharlika. Maharlika, although the lower class, are also known as the warriors that serves the higher ranks. It was established during the 1808 under the name "Kanlungan ng mga Bayani" and started with a small group of mortals until they search for potential hinirang. The only time it admitted a half-blood hinirang first came around eight years after the society was established. 

In 1810, Kanlungan ng mga Bayani suffered in a 33-year civil war between the hinirang and mortals. To keep away from the war, Kanlungan ng mga Bayani relocated to Mt. Makiling in Laguna and with the help of Maria Makiling, her mountain became the temporary home to the maharlika. In 1844, the sanctuary moved back to Mt. Arayat. Dumakulem was sent by Bathala to guard the sanctuary and put them in another realm. The Balaghan Cave was restored to keep the mortals out and prevent wars. 

(to see timeline of events of the Society's history, click here.)

History

PRE-HISTORIC (1520s)
The clan of a rajah named Rajah Mangubat was one of the few maginoo clans who are long favored by the gods. Rajah Mangubat rules a small barangay somewhere in Selurong (present day Manila). But Mangubat fell for the goddess Lakapati and came their first half-immortal daughter, Anina. Those times, the gods can still appear to people even in their immortal form, but the offspring of mortals and gods are as rare as it is today.  Gods consider these children special, thus granting them limited abilities that normal humans cannot do. However, for the mortals, these children are forbidden as they violate their common law. That is the reason why these children are only few in numbers throughout the country and are not widely known due to their hiding. Group of killers are the one who eliminates them in order to make them as sacrifice, believing that taking back the life of these children would please the gods. In fact, mortals fear them. 

Mangubat became afraid that once Anina grow old, people would find out and kill her. He decided to seek help for Lakapati, who told him to go to Mt. Arayat where a diwata can protect her. Before he decided to leave, he formed a secret group that can accompany them, mostly consisting of the maharlika. They were his family who found out Anina was an offspring of Lakapati. One member, who is a rival of Mangubat to their father's throne and inheritances, told the secret of Anina to the public, and eventually caused the whole family to flee from their barangay after the townspeople attacked the rajah’s family. When Mangubat and his family successfully escaped and reached the Arayat, they were unfortunately attacked by natives. Magubat died during their battle with the invaders, while it is still unsure whether Anina survived or not.

SPANISH COLONIZATION (1800s)
While still healing himself after his daughter died giving birth to Dominador, historian and poet Juan Balderama-Reyes Jr. lost his four-year-old grandson after being brutally killed by an aswang in his lonesome home. Learning few years later that Dominador was a child of an ancient Tagalog god, and that he had sworn to his daughter that he will protect his grandson, he started blaming himself for failing. Few years later, a strange kid barged into his house, saying that he is being chased by an aswang. The child is homeless and has no family, and Reyes was still grieving for his loss, but it came to him that the child needs him and soon, adopted him.

Reyes studied Philippine mythology and tried to seek for the existence of the gods, aswang, and other seemingly absurd concepts that will supposedly give him answers for his grandson's death. He learned about the Legend of Anina and the tragedy of Rajah Mangubat, as well as the secret of Mt. Arayat. One day, while he and his adopted grandson went out to a plaza, they were attacked by an engkanto and threatened to kill the child. This forced Reyes to go to Mt. Arayat with the child to seek for Maria Sinukuan. Reyes established Kanlunagn ng mga Bayani (Haven of Heroes), which was inspired by the story of Rajah Mangubat and his maharlika that journeyed to Arayat to save their families.

Terms

Hinirang- refers to a person who possesses the ability to see beyond an eye can see. The scholars of the society call it a “vision”. Hinirang can be a mortal or a half-blood. The number of hinirang declined in the modern times due to the low number of people who still believes the existence of the ancient deities. Despite of their belief in the mythical gods, they still believe in one supreme God who first created the mankind and the gods. 
Balaghan Cave- It is the hidden entrance to the secret society group.

Punong Gusali- Tagalog for main building, as Punong Gusali is the head and controller of the whole society.

Trivia

• Society is inspired from a school theater club.
• The term maharlika refers to a lower class in the ancient Philippine society.
• The logo of the Society is a kalasag (shield) with two crossing spears.
• The reason why immersions are banned from the Society can be found at The Hinirang Journals: Bloodine, Part Two-The Survivor, narrated by Isagani Reyes, the son of Anitun Tabu.
• The Pre-Colonization History of the Society can be found at The Hinirang Journals: Bloodline, Part One-The Warrior, narrated by Rajah Mangubat.
• According to the author, the barangay inside the Society cannot be acknowledged as a registered barangay because they are hidden from the public, but technically they are considerable since they have more than 1,000 inhabitants.
• The first settlers of the Society are not half-blood hinirang, but rather mortals.
• Balaghan Cave comes from the word kababalaghan, which means mystery.