Hilot is part of the Filipino Culture that needs to revive and preserve. For Generations our Ancestors rely on it on the maintenance of their health and well being. As time passed by modern medicine has been introduced and slowly removing Hilot by giving its duties and responsibilities to the modern practitioners of Medicine. Our Manghihilot who was once a General Practitioner of Healthcare in our country has been demoted into a lesser degree and function. It is sad to say when you ask people about who are the Manghihilot they will only recall them as Massage Therapist. And this is also what the Philippine Government think about the Manghihilot when they created the Training Regulation of TESDA Hilot Wellness Massage NC2 Training Program.
And using their promulgated training regulation, it is written in their Healing concepts the valuing process. In this concept of healing the manghihilot see each patient to be important and has purpose. Thus the manghihilot provide care to maintain the value of each person that they may continue to progress. Through the Life force that is within us, we continue to live and move to create and establish our life. But if we personified the Ancient Healing Arts and Science of the Filipino people, we can see it now as a person that is dying and loosing its purpose. As a healer we must bring back the purpose of Hilot in order to preserve it to last for another Generation or maintain it for ever.
This is the purpose of Hilot Academy of Binabaylan. We aim to preserve Hilot by promoting it and provide training and services so that people will still know and appreciate the beauty of what our ancestors have experience through Hilot. We are giving High Value to our non tangible cultural heritage which has been passed down to us by our ancestors. If we just set aside Hilot and allow people to think of it as a Massage, the true meaning of purpose of Hilot will die and will be buried into the land of those who are not remembered.
Thus in this present times ,despite of the presence of the Government Authorities promoting Hilot as Massage, we in the Academy are working hard to revive the folkloric aspect of hilot and bridge the gap of mysticism into a more acceptable scientific approach in Healthcare.
Hilot Academy of Binabaylan 