Preserving our Ancestral Healing Tradition

Our participation in creating a Standard Competency Standards for National Certification and Accreditation of Hilot Practitioners, Training Institution and Hilot Healing Center has one of its aim in preservation of the Philippine Ancestral Healing Arts and Science.

Throughout the History, the definition of Hilot have been evolved through Generations.

First during the precolonial times, Hilot has been known to be the only medicine for the common people. During those time, our ancestors have power over caring for their own health by employing thier own knowledge and skills so as their behavior towards our natural resources as a form of medicine.

During the Colonial Period, Hilot has become a liberating modality not only in terms of freeing an individual from physical ailments but also from emotional disturbance and mental disabilities.

Still on the Spanish rule that extends to the American Occupation, Hilot becomes a life changing modality that gives woman the power to exercise their power of choice. Hilot has been used for abortion thats free the woman from the responsibility of taking care a new life within their body. Though later on the act of abortion has been criminalized so as the Practice of Hilot on Pregnancy as well as on Maternal Healthcare.

Later on Hilot has become a modality of luxury, where people can avail its services on a Hotel so as in a High End Spa. Now that we are in the 21st century, we are redefining Hilot as we integrate it into our National Healthcare delivery system. And lastly, Hilot becomes our Windows in the past and we dont just see it like in the museum but we can experience it; thus hilot becomes our ancestral and cultural heritage.

Hilot Development Plan

As the World will open to face-to-face interaction, We are also preparing for new Hilot Program that we will offer to the public through our Training Program we develop for International School of Sustainable Tourism.

The International School of Sustainable Tourism (ISST) is a private non-stock and non-profit corporation established in 2010 in the Philippines. It is an organization dedicated to education and technical training of manpower to develop, promote and viably operate sustainable tourism in the Philippines and other ASEAN countries. Also, it is dedicated to the upliftment of the lives of the people of communities with ecological resources that need to be preserved and can be sustainably used for tourism.

As of this moment at the time of Pandemic, Hilot Academy offers the non touch aspect of hilot which is the Traditional Diagnostic and Divinatory Course through our Non Contact Hilot: Mind and Spirit Work. Since June of 2020, we have produced graduates coming from different part of the world who completed our training program. Now, even that we are still in the Pandemic Situation, we are already preparing for the possibility of face-to-face learning that we make partnership with ISST through Hilot Philippines Development Center or HPDC.

HPDC is a private organization within ISST that aims to promote and preserve Hilot or Traditional Filipino Medicine that could be incorporated into Eco Tourism and Agri- Tourism. With this goal we have developed a 6 tier Training Program that will create personalities to sustain this Healing aspect of our Culture and Tradition.

With all training program it will start with the Basics which we call Hilot Treatment Application Course. This is a 5 days face-to-face training, that will introduce you to the Healing touch approach of Hilot. When I say Healing Touch, your fingers and hands will really make connection to the body of the person and apply the necessary techniques in order to affect cure. So those who graduated from us the Non- Contact Hilot are advised to take this class as this will complement your skills in conducting diagnostic procedures of Hilot.

We also have designed the Hilot Healing Water Treatment Course which is an advance method of Hilot Healing that employs the Use of Water. We also have a Training Course on Basic Entrpreneurship and Business Management so that our Graduates will have a skills, knowledge and attitude in marketing, selling their acquired skills either through employment or starting to have a Hilot Healing Center in their own.

We also have a Mastery Class that will ground the practitioners to the Fundamental Principles of Hilot Healing and that is through our Remedial Hilot Class and Hilot Diagnostic Method Class.

Of course we do not just envision our graduates to become a practitioner and entrepreneur, but we also see them to become a potential trainer/ teacher of Hilot that will stand side-by-side with us in preserving our Ancestral Healing Tradition through our Trainers Training Class.

As we establish this Training Program, we are also working out to integrate our Manghihilot to the Universal Health Care Delivery System by communicating with Government Agencies such as the Philippine Institute of Traditional Alternative Health Care, Department of Health, Department of Social Works and Development, Department of Science and Technology and other necessary agencies so that our Manghihilot could have local employment.

I believe that our Manghihilot is known as Primary Health Care Provider and they can be seen in our Local Government Unit which can be found in sitio, purok or Barangay; our manghihilot can be employed in Barangay as partners with Barangay Health Care Workers, they can be given task of providing preventive and promotive healthcare.

Our Manghihilot can also become an agent of Pithac within the Barangay by:

Conducting Research on Herbal Plants that Grows within the barangay. This can be done by doing house to house visitation, taking pictures, and asking the residents if they could have a sample of the plants that grows in their home.
Upon documentation, our Manghihilot will send the sample herbs to Pitahc for further conduct or laboratory research.
Our Manghihilot will cultivate the herbs by creating Brgy. Herbal Nursury which can grow different kinds of herbal medicine.
Our Manghihilot can process, the approved herbs into herbal tea, capsule, syrups which later can be distributed either for free or with minimum amount to its constituents.

Establishing our Role in our Society

Hilot has been mentioned in the work of William Henry Scott Barangay: Sixteenth-Century Philippine Culture and Society. According to his book at page 118 Hilot is described as a person who apply massage for injured or dislocated muscles, or pressure put on nerve centers. And they were known as Physical experts.

But to the eye of a Catholic Priest as mentioned in the book, Hilot according to Fr. Sanchez as a form of massage in a woman’s abdomen to cause miscarriage or abortion. Though through out time in our History, Hilot evolve so as our definition of Hilot change.

In Hilot Academy, we want to establish the Identity of Hilot as an umbrella term for Philippine Traditional Medicine. As the practitioners throughout the country has their own native practices that is known in their own local dialect. And in promoting it to the world it must have a name which people would know.

In 2012, the Philippine Statistic Authority has conducted survey on different occupational groups of the working population The Philippine Standard Occupation Classification is primarily used as basis for manpower and educational planning, program formulation, policy decision-making and serves as useful guide for statistical operations and activities, such as censuses and surveys.

In this survey we do not find the word Hilot but instead Traditional and Complementary Medicine Associate Professional. They describe this occupational category as follow:

Traditional and complementary medicine associate professionals prevent, care for and treat human physical and mental illnesses, disorders and injuries using herbal and other therapies based on theories, beliefs and experiences originating in specific cultures.
https://psa.gov.ph/classification/psoc/?q=psoc/minor/323

Their tasks include:

a) examining patients and interviewing them and their families to determine their health status and the nature of physical or mental disorders or illnesses or other ailments;
b) recommending and providing care and treatment for illnesses and other ailments using traditional techniques and medicaments, such as physical manipulation and exercises, blood-letting using natural vessels, and preparations using herbs, plants, insects and animal extracts;
c) providing care and treatment for physical injuries such as setting and healing fractured and dislocated bones using traditional methods of physical manipulation and herbal therapies;
d) advising individuals, families and the community on health, nutrition, hygiene, lifestyle and other issues to maintain or improve health and well-being; and
e) referring patients to, and exchanging information with, other health care providers to ensure comprehensive and continuing care.

Examples of occupations classified here:

Drugless treatment healer
Bonesetter
Faith healer
“Healer of indigenous people (e.g. Mansi-bok (Ibaloi); Mansip-ok (Kankana-ey) in Cordilleras)”
Herbalist
Scraping and cupping therapist
Village healer
Witch doctor

Some related occupation classified elsewhere:

Acupressure therapist – 3255
Acupuncturist – 2230
Ayuverdic practitioner – 2230
Chinese herbal medicine practitioner – 2230
Chiropractor – 3259
Homeopath – 2230
Hydrotherapist – 3255
Naturopath – 2230
Osteopath – 3259
Traditional midwife – 32223230

Through this task enumerated by PSOC, we can have a guideline in establishing our roles in our Society.

Few more steps and we will be there

My formal journey as Hilot Advocate dates back when I started to become a Hilot Educator and Trainer. I am attributing this personality that I am right now when I become a supporting member of Philippine Wellness and Spa Association that I met Ms. Cathy Turvil of now Nurture Wellness Village in Tagatay. Through my membership to the Association, Ms. Turvil gave recommendations that expose my expertise to the community. And my first public exposure happened on September 27-29, 2011 during the Commission of Filipino’s Overseas Event Titled Diaspora to Development: Global Summit of Filipinos in the Diaspora where I talk about Hilot.

What I did not realize is that my Talk about Hilot is powerful enough to move People that even after 10 years, certain person searched for me in order for that talk will work.

And now that talk that i made 10 years ago is still moving that on 2020 at the start of Pandemic i received a call to create a program on Hilot that will make it known and teach it to the Greater Public. I can’t imagine myself that out of this Love for our Culture and Tradition will make to sit together with Highly respected personality in our country in order to facilitate our vision to work.

Thank you for all the Trust and Soon people in abroad can come and learn with us the Hilot that our Ancestors have taught us.

Meeting with International School of Sutainable Tourism, Hilot Academy of Binabaylan and Philippine Institute of Traditional and Alternative Health Care. Sitted besides me is Dr. Mina Gabor former Department of Tourism Secretary, and in front of us is PITHAC Director General Anabelle Pabiona De GUzman and their officers.

Remedial Hilot Curriculum Development

Working on our Curriculum about Remedial Hilot as i work on it i am reminded to be grounded on the Healing Principles that all individual has the ability to heal our selves so the treatment procedure we provide as manghihilot does not intend to heal but to help the individual to heal themselves.

In order for us to assist them in their healing, we should also better understand the Filipino Concept of Illness which is Pilay.

On April 27 i have to present 10 common filipino illnesses but i have identified 13 and have to divide into four category of filipino illness which is pilay ipit, pilay bali, pilay hangin and pilay lamig.

We are Stewards of mother Earth

The month of April has been known as Earth Month so as with us in Hilot Academy, we recognize this month being the month were Baybayin through the Laguna Copperplate Inscription was recorded in our history. The LCI is the first ever dated document that shows that our ancestors have our writing system. The date being recorded in this document is April 21, 900- so on the 21st of April year 2022, this public document will celebrate its 1122 years of publication. And this copperplate celebrates not only the liberation from debt but also redeem us of our Identity as a Filipino.

Since the establishment of Luntiang Aghama on year 2000, we are celebrating Earth day by conducting rituals honoring the Earth Deities and one of the result of this rituals is the establishment of Hilot Academy of BInabaylan as an Educational Ministry Arm of Luntiang Aghama Natural Divine Arts Shrine of Healing Inc. We have established Hilot Academy of Binabaylan through registering it to the Philippine Department of Trades and Industry on April 5, 2016 and this year we are celebrating our 6th year anniversary. We have register it first at DTI Makati but the processing officers refuse to process the registration, as she says that we are not allowed to use the word Hilot as a business name because it is a public domain. But i push and make appeal because we do not make it an exclusive name just for us as the Business name is a descriptive title of what we are providing.

So from Makati, I travel back to my Home province which is the Land of the Heroes in Bulacan. And luckily my registration was approved at DTI Malolos City at Robinsons Place Malolos. It was a 32 miles or 51 Km travel. It seems that the ancestors are guiding us where Hilot Academy of Binabaylan should be established. I remember when doing it in Makati, i have waited for 2 hours queuing before being rejected, but DTI Malolos, i only spent 15 to 30 minutes to process it without queuing.

From then on, our ministry began to grow that we have accept our first students of Hilot as we share the Earth Healing Tradition up now. Before we are only providing lessons on a face-to-face basis and now thanks to the Universe because we have been taught how to face life challenges such as this Pandemic of Coronavirus 19, that it has opened a window that people could still learn Hilot Virtually through our Hilot Online Training.

As of this day, we are proud to say that we have retrieved the lost healing method that been taught by Kilibansa who is the Diwata of Healing and through the guidance of Luntiang Aghama we also have developed the Sibulan Adlaw Tala Binabaylan Mystic Oracle which employs Baybayin as a Divinatory/ Diagnostic Method which is under our Tawas Divinatory and Spiritual Diagnostic Studies. And this 13th of April we are going to release our Book on Hilot Orasyon through a webinar which you can register by scanning the QR code.

And hopefully, I could finish all the materials needed so we can start the Diploma Training on Manggagamot, Magtatawas and Albularyo.

By the Way, Hilot Academy still needs fund in order to build our own place in sharing this ancient knowledge. As some of you know that we are like gypsies who goes to places in conducting this training. We really pray that we could have a proper venue, where the students could stay either for 9 days or even months in Mastering the Ancient Healing Tradition.

If you have a calling, and the Spirit touches your heart to build this School you may do so by making donations below.

HELP US BUILD OUR ACADEMY NOW

As we heal our Body we need to strengthen our soul

We have taught that we can not separate our Soul to our body and if it does, death when we heal the physical body from any illness we should also treat our soul to be strengthened.

Many people think that our soul is external part of our existence. But what we do not realize is that our mental intelligence and emotions is the expression of our souls into our being.

When the Physical doctor fix our body by giving medicine, Spiritual doctors must fix also the mind and emotion of the patient. Thus praying for the sick helps fast recovery as you place the patients conscious mind into God’s grace thus developing new hope for the patient to recover past.

With a smile

I know that you are familar with the title of our article today. And to remind you, it derives from the Eraserheads hit song With a Smile!

I was in HighSchool when this song becomes very popular and amazingly it is still a hit for me specially right now that i had stroke. I cant imagine myself having this illness to myself. All i thought only before is I want to understand Stroke so that i could handle it properly with patients. I know i could learn it by reading books or articles in the website but now i am learning and overcoming it through experience.

In relations to the title of this article, luckily my stroke does not affect so much of my actions. except on my first 3 weeks from February 14- it paralyze my left part of my body. my left legs could not move so as my arms and hands. The paralysis reached my left face that makes me to have slurred speech.

I was so down that time and my left part of the body is literally cold and at that time i considered it dead as if your right part of the body is alive and moving while the left part is dead. i want to move it but literally i could not move. i could not even picked my nose using my left finger or wash my butt when i poop. it has no strength to carry a tabo (dipper) or even a glass of water. But in my mind i refuse to be enslaved and be chained by stroke. literally stroke makes you a prisoner within your body that makes you not only limited but totally all your freedom are frozen.

Luckily, i have a companion here in the Shrine. Lakay helps me to be warmed up and battle the coldness that covers my body. With the help of the Diwata through a Hilot Orasyon and pagpapahid, the natural heat of my body has been restored that now i can walk and move my arms. But i am still working out my smile.

Hilot Orasyon: Unlock the Amazing powers of Prayers

Join us on Aoril 13 (Holy Wednesday) from 8 Pm to 10 PM as we share to you the Amazing powers of Prayers through Hilot Orasyon Webinar/ Workshop!

Tap to the Divine powers that runs in your blood and awaken the Divine powers within you.
Learn the secret power of Prayer that empowers our Babaylan ancestors in manifesting desires as well as in Healing.

In this 120 minutes/ 2 hours webinar/workshop you will receive a personal name of Filipino Diwata which you can call as word of power to grant wishes, manifest your desires, personal protection and heal all kind of illness whether it be physical in nature or spiritual.

Learn to activate (Buhayin) their Holy names through personal daily devotion that will strengthen your personal relationship with the Diwata.
Create Talisman out of the name of your Diwata and obtain its sacred key to make your prayers work.
Learn how to make pondo which you can use in times of great need.
create a poder or shield of protection for you and your love ones.
Learn different ways of communicating with the Diwata, Anito and even with the Engkanto through the Guidance of your personal Diwata

All of these and more is expected to learn from the Binaylan of Luntiang Aghama as it will be presented by Apu Adman ang Lakay Magbaya Aghama.

This webinar will povide you a Certificate of attendance that can be credited when you enroll to Hilot Academy’s Mind and Spirit working class that will lead into Paganituhan or Magtatawas Certification

Energy Exchage: Php 500.00 or USD 10.00
Mode of Payment: Gcash (09952467040) Paypal: luntiangaghama@gmail.com

For interested participants kindly download Google Meet App at Playstore if you are going to use your android or IoS.

Life goes on even with Stroke

As Manghihilot, We are not exempted to any form of illness even to Death. I remember my teacher, Dr. Rueben M. Galang Jr. at the School of Alternative Medicine when he died years ago. Many have asked why he died when he is a great doctor and have treated many patients and made them well but was not able to take care of himself. This is the same question that been playing around my mind when my ,mother died 3 years ago. I am a Manghihilot, why i was not able to take care well of my mother. And now, I am a Manghihilot and why you have stroke. When my mother died, I already planned to stop practicing, but people around me in person even at social media encouraged me not to stop but continue what I have started to do. And this time that I’ve got stroke, I already have mentioned that i plan of retiring but my current students and recent graduates have encouraged me to continue.

One of my current student at Non Contact HIlot: Mind and Spirit work have wrote me a letter of encouragement that says:

I am appreciative of the Hilot Academy of Binabaylan and all that I have learned. Apu has helped me connect to my Filipino identity in a way that feels authentic to who I am, my approach to healing, and my passion around decolonization. In learning the historical context of pre-colonial healing, how hilot practitioners were utilized prior to the introduction of western medicine, and how colonization forced manghihilots to hide or assimilate, I found an even deeper reverence for my ancestors and the manghihilot and babaylan who died because of their beliefs. In this course I was able to connect more to my highest, spiritual self, which I have rarely experienced in any other healing modality I’ve learned, even as a reiki practitioner, and especially as a psychotherapist. What feels special about learning hilot is that it brings me great pride to know that this is a healing practice that looks at the person in their entirety, not just the physical, but also the emotional and spiritual, and it all originated from my homeland, the Philippines! Learning and practicing tawas was extremely helpful because I was able to trust my intuition and the unconditional support of my ancestors. I feel a powerful connection to my inner wisdom and feel more confident as a practitioner after I practiced tawas. I have learned to really trust my instincts, when so much of living in America is focused on logic and achievement. I have not had a chance to finish the remaining course lessons and the assignment due on February 27th, but I plan on going through that material this week and weekend.

WIth teary eyes, i feel that people value my work even if our Government does not recognize it, but at least my little work on our Culture and Tradition have reached out Far and Wide across the Globe.

I am also thankful to the Universe for teaching me personally to experience Stroke that I may know personally how to handle well stroke patients in the Future

Thank you, Apu, for your love, energy, and time and for sharing your wisdom with us. I am eternally grateful. I hope you heal quickly and get the care and support you need. I look forward to perhaps attending another workshop or course you or Likai provide in the future. With love.