Witchcraft () has been present throughout the Philippines even before Spanish colonization, and is associated with indigenous Philippine folk religions, where Philippine shamans, who people come to for healing and rituals, are known to counter the magic of Philippine witches, who people fear. Its practice involves black magic, specifically a malevolent use of sympathetic magic.
- Tagalog: ,
- Waray: , , ,
- Bisaya: aswang, mambabarang
The practice of witchcraft among Filipino ethnic groups also has unique terms. Some of these are as follow:
- Ilocano: gamod, tanem
- Tagalog: ,
- Visayan: , , , , ,
- Moro: pantak
Black magic
Filipino witches are believed to have powers that cause harm to other people covertly. Healer-sorcerers who practice this kind of sorcery usually justify it as a form of criminal punishment, as a widespread belief is that black magic does not work on people who are innocent. Their targets are usually "wrongdoers" like thieves, adulterous spouses, or land grabbers. There are also "true" sorcerers who are said to have hereditary sorcerous powers. Unlike healers, they do not consider the justice of their actions. The latter type of sorcerers are often conflated with the evil supernatural beings capable of appearing human, like aswang and manananggal. In some instances, the ingredients of the ritual themselves determine the effects. For example, adding seawater to a boiling pot "linked" to a victim is said to cause the victim's belly to swell and ache in time with the tides.
Other malevolent powers are more direct. These include the ability to kill another person instantly with magic spells, the ability to cast curses or the evil eye, the ability to "abduct" a person's soul, or the ability to send evil spirits or familiar animals to possess or harm the victim. This type of sorcery was documented as early as the 17th century by Francisco Combés.), and sampal (sea creature magic). mannamay; Ivatan: , ; Kapampangan: mangkukusim (or mangkukusino); Pangasinan: , ; Tagalog: mangkukulam, manggagaway, may-galing, hukluban (or hukloban); Visayan: dalagangan, dunganon, dalongdongan, busalian, mambabarang (or mamamarang, mamalarang, barangan), usikan (or ), paktolan, sigbinan, manughiwit, mamumuyag, mang-aawog (or mang-aawug, mang-aaug), Hiligaynon: . Other terms are the Spanish brujo and bruja (masculine and feminine forms of "witch"; Filipinized as bruho and bruha).
Aswang
The Aswang, vampire-like supernatural entities, are sometimes considered a type of witch since they can start out as an ordinary person. They have strong powers of sorcery (particularly shape-shifting) that they need to maintain by feeding on humans. They are also called , , , , , , etc., depending on the form they take or the method of attack they prefer. It is generally believed that an can not be born to normal parents. They either need to have an parent or gain their curse through transference called . Depending on local beliefs, this can involve an merely looking at a victim, contaminating the food of the victim with secretions, or by directly transferring their powers through touch on their deathbed. Mambabarang are ordinary human beings with black magic who torture and later kill their victims by infesting their bodies with insects. They are different from mangkukulams - the latter only inflict pain or illness. Mambabarang use a strand of hair from their chosen victim and tie it to the bugs or worms which they will use as a medium. When they prick the bug, the victim immediately experiences the intended effect. The name is derived from the word barang. In legends the mambabarang keeps his swarm of carnivorous beetles in a bottle or a section of bamboo, carefully feeding them ginger root. When the practitioner decides to employ his dark art, he performs a prayer ritual wherein he whispers instructions and identifies the victim to the beetles. The destructive insects are then set free and to seek out the victim and gain entry into the body via any bodily orifice: the nose, mouth, ears, anus or dermal breaks such as open sores/wounds. The victim will then feel the effects of the invasion of the insects through manifestations depending on the area of entry; hemorrhoids if through the anus, ear ache if through the ears and other similar cases. The resulting illness is supposedly resistant to conventional medical treatment and only reveals its true nature when the victim succumbs and flying insects issue forth from bodily cavities. In reality, it is possible a carnivorous beetle could lay eggs in someone it killed, and the eggs would then hatch post-mortem.
Usikan
The , also known as the , is a type of Visayan sorcerer that can inflict harm through words (). They can affect not only people, but also plants, animals, and inanimate objects. They cause harm by complimenting someone or something, either unwittingly or with malevolent intent. To protect against this, people carefully avoid accepting compliments from strangers and may say the phrase "pwera buyag" (from Spanish fuera buyag) immediately after giving a compliment or receiving one. Various beliefs hold that the can be recognized by having a dark tongue or by being born with teeth. Unlike the other types of "witches", the power of the is innate, and is not acquired by choice. Nor are they innately malevolent, and in most cases, they are believed to be unaware that they possess the power. The mananambal specialize in countering barang. As spiritual mediums and divinators, Filipino shamans are notable for countering and preventing the curses and powers of witches, notably through the usage of special items and chants.
Sorcerous "attacks" are most commonly treated with sumbalik (counter-spells or antidotes), which are themselves, a form of sorcery and do not usually require interaction with the spirits. They purportedly deflect the effects of the curse and return it to the caster. In extreme cases, sumbalik can kill the caster. Other healing rituals against sorcery do not harm the caster, but instead supposedly moves them to pity and thus revoke the curse.