A summary of the 13th-century lives of the Ten Datus from Borneo to Panay
The Ten Datus of Borneo by Pedro Alcantara Monteclaro, translated by Father Tomas Santaren, 1854
The Margatas
The Story or the Life experienced by the datus of Borneo namely Puti, Lumbay, Bankaya,Paiburong,Sumakuel,Dumangsil, Dalugdog,Padohinog and Kalengsusu,Dumocsol and their purchase of an island from the King Marikudo who was king of the Negritoes in the year 1520
The Ten Datus is an epic story of the early settlement of Panay Island in the Philippines by Malays from Borneo. The tale takes place in 1212. (Casper, p. 225) or thereabouts (It is believed the events took place in the 13th century; Some feel it was 1250, while others put it in the first half of the 13th century; Sonza, p.40)
The ten datus possibly migrated from Meningkabau, Sumatra, to Borneo and then escaped the wrath of Rajah Makatunaw, who ruled somewhere on Borneo (among the Melanaus, a group of people on Borneo, there is a story about a chieftain named Makatunao. This Melano ruler oppressed the people, causing a large group headed by Datu Putri to leave the island and sailed toward Panay, where they settled(Sonza p. 37)
Pedro Monteclaro, the author, was born in 1827 on the island of Panay in the Philippines and studied in convents where he learned to “read and count”. He became a sacristan (a person who cares for the altar, vestments, and other implements of the church) at the church in Jaro and later became the fiscal officer.
Monteclaro states he obtained a short manuscript of the story written by his father and also states that the story is a partial oral account from him. The parts the datus wrote were “on the wide lower part of a beetle nut palm leaf”.
Monteclaro then says he found an old sea captain named Kalimbas, whose Christian name was Pedro Sandobal, who was 85 and lived in the town of Alimodian (a town on Panay Island). He added his account of the ten Datus to his father’s account.
The story opens with the ten Datus coming from Borneo and purchasing an island called Maydia. When asked what the name meant, the island’s natives, who were Negritos, replied that it meant blissful, plentiful in vegetation and root crops. The Spanish later arrived and called it Panay.
The preface continues that the people would go to the island’s mountains and seek out a god called Gany Dapa. Gany Dapa was the god of the old natives (AI has no record of him), whose consent had to be sought regarding things that came from Sapudan (wherever that is, AI has no record) and their island.
One day when the sea was very calm, many years ago, the boats of the Datus were seen. These vessels carried the household, the relatives, enslaved people and much of their wealth. The Datus were named as above.
They landed near the river of Sinunugan (possibly named for the river Sande. The differences in spelling is due to the Spanish having difficulty in words that end in N and ng.) near the opening of the stream of Agdana, formerly called Udahanay which is now near the town of Siasi on the island of Siasi in Sulu Province. The place was ideal for anchoring, and a waterfall was nearby.
There they met some negritos and asked them if they could buy an island and settle in the area. Mambusy, the head of the group and son of King Maricudo, said they would think about it and meet at the mouth of the Taluan River near a waterfall called Dagame.
The problem here is, according to AI, there were no Negritoes near the town of Siasi. Rather, they say, Siasi was a stopover before the ten datus landed at Panay.
Another problem is that the Taluan River and the Dagame waterfall are in Negeri Sembilan, not anywhere near Siasi. However, these names do show an association with the Menangkabau people of central Sumatra. The Taluan River and Dagame both have Minangkabau origins.
But let us continue with the story.
Seven days later, the ten datus and the negroids met again, and Datu Puti said they would give him a gold sadok (hat) which was equal to 50 ounces of gold and a bowl of gold weighing no less than a thousand ounces for Panay Island. The King said this was acceptable, but the Queen, Maniuantiun, insisted on adding several necklaces. Datu Puti offered the necklaces, with the length to be determined later, but decided the Queen should give them a sack of crabs, a wild pig with long tusks (which meant it was big), and a full-grown deer. The Queen agreed, and the bounty would be given to the ten datus when they found the animals.
After all the conditions were met, the King said, “You are now the owners of the island, and so are your children and their children.” Datu Puti acknowledged that the King and Queen would forever be the rulers.
Datu Puti settled in Panay with the rest of the Datus, except for Kalengsusu and Dumokosol, who stayed by Taal River. He had many children. (Email me if you want their names.)Datu Dumaalogdog built and lived in the town of Dumabug. (possibly Dumagute in the Negros)Datu ‘Bankayas’ daughter and husband built Alimodian (in the mountains of Panay Island), while his son built Katibacan. (possibly Camiguin Island )
After 20 years, the Datus Puti, Kalengsusus and Dumoksol went back to Borneo. (A theory, advanced by John Carroll, stated that Datu Pany went to Brunei and enlisted the help of the Sultan of Brunei and attacked Makatunat. They were beaten back. Ten years later, they renewed the attack and killed Makatunato and returned to Panay with his people as enslaved people. Sonza p. 37)
When they returned, the boats drifted to Taal River, and they decided to stay there. (The river Taal is located in Luzon and is called the Pansispit River)
We now get into some mysticism. The negroids believed that up in the sky lives a being called Diua(deity associated with rivers, trees, mountains and nature). Other beings were Bugrason and Kasaysayan (now villages), children of Sarampahon and Mangin Dalan (both towns in the islands). The people who lived in the mountains worshipped Cayho and Bomalabag (now both rural villages), slaves of the bangot banua. (There are other gods and their stories. If you want, send me an email, and I will send you details. p.11)
Datu Sumakuel now enters the picture. He was informed that his wife was a “traitorous one”. He discovered his wife was in bed with another man. He found his boat and searched for a container to hold water. Then he climbed onto the roof and poured the water from the container onto them. The wife asked if it was raining, and then Sumakuel thrust a spear into the lover’s head from the roof, where he died instantly. Sumakuel fled to the sea.
The wife buried her lover in the coconut grove and cleaned up the mess. Sumakuel came back from fishing with a big catch. He told his wife to clean and cook the fish. She told him she didn’t know how, besides that they enslaved people to do that. Sumakuel insisted he wanted her to prepare the food. He had planned to kill her but couldn’t and told his slaves to do it. Instead of sealing her into a jar and sinking it to the bottom of the sea, they deposited her on an island uninhabited by people beyond the deepest sea.
While on the island, she awaited a boat to pass by and ate the fruit and fish from the island. She prayed to Ganay Bulakao (ganI, a title of respect in some Philippine languages, and Bulakao is probably a mishearing of the god Bululakaw, a Visayan bird god)
A mermaid, Katao, appeared on the back of a spotted crocodile. She rode with Katao on the crocodile’s back to the island of Dipologan.
Meanwhile, Dato Sumakuel became very sad and wept bitterly. His slaves suggested they go sailing. He told the enslaved people to weigh out 50 sacks of rice. They passed by many islands. They came to the island of Dipologan, where they ran out of provisions.
At Dipologan, the wife peered out of a window, and Dato Sumakuel thought he recognised her but knew she was dead. The enslaved people encouraged him to marry her. To make a long story short, they got married. They came across Datu Bankaya, who was looking for his wife who had been stolen away. The two Datus sailed away together and, later, found Bankaya’s wife. Great rejoicing followed when they were reunited.
Meanwhile, the people of the island Bririanon (probably Biliran Island, Philippines) were preparing to perform a C-section on a very pregnant woman. Datu Bankaya objected and told the people that all that was needed was the massaging of the abdomen so the child would come forth. The people agreed, but only if Bankaya would do the massaging and they would pay him silver or gold, whatever he wanted. Bankaya replied that all he wanted was seeds, tree roots, fruits, and vegetables. They planted these seeds on many islands. (I can give you a list of the islands,p.18)
In this part, genealogy rules. There is then a whole section about the names of the Datus, their wives and the names of the enslaved people. There also follows a long list of places ruled by King Maniuantiuan’s grandson, Capid (p.21)
Datu Puti returned to Borneo along with a few of the other Datus. Datu Puti was a relative and caretaker of the Moro king named Makatunao. (Srivijayan prince recorded by the Chinese in 1082) He was quarrelsome, jealous, boastful, and lied endlessly. He resembled Magomat (Magomat doesn’t appear on AI), the god of the Moros.
The cruelty and injustices inflicted on the Datus included the seizure of gold from Datu Paiburong. He had two daughters, described as beautiful in both their ways and their figures, and they married men known for their bravery in battle.
The two husbands and their army attacked the town of King Makatunao. These two men restored the riches of their wives’ parents, as well as the money stolen from the king. They recovered them from a land called Odtohan (now a rare Philippine family name), where the king reigned over Bornay. All those who survived the attack- the women, older men and children became their slaves.
This concludes the story of the Ten Datus. The rest of the book is divided into how the races came into being, astronomy, and a long history of Panay, followed by a list and small description of the Spanish rulers from 1569-1840. I will post more next time.
Tom McLaughlin for BorneoHistory.net
Bibliography
Baumgartner, Joseph. The Bisaya of Borneo and the Philippines: A new look at the Maragtas in Philippine Quarterly of Culture and Society, September 1974
Carroll, John. The Word Bisaya in the Philippines and Borneo in Sarawak Museum Journal July-December, 1960)
Casper, Leonard. Review of Barter in Panay in Books Abroad, Spring 1963
Maragtas Symposium: A Symposium on the Maragtas. Held on the 27th of January 1968 at the Epifanio de los Santos Auditorium (National Library Building). Under the Joint Sponsorship of the National Historical Commission and the UNESCO National Commission of the Philippines.Manila: National Historical Commission,1970. 96 pp. Bibliographies, Map. n.p.l. I did not view this work. Not available online.
Reagaldo, Felix. The History of Panay Iloilo: Central Philippine University, 1973,
Ricaredo Demetillo. Barter in Panay. Quezon City. University of the Philippines, .1961.
Sonza, Demy P. The Bisaya of Borneo and the Philippines: A New Look at the Maragtas in Sarawak Museum Journal, 1972