44: NOT TODAY, SITAN | Sitan, The Tagalog God of Death in Philippine Folklore

At the moment of death, where did the pre-colonial Tagalogs think they would go, who would decide where they would go, what kind of reptilian psychopomp would ferry them there, and who will rule in their village of rest (or grief)?   These and many other questions will be answered in this week’s episode. 

This October, we’re covering the different beings and entities representing Death in Philippine mythology, folklore, and urban legends. In this second episode, we’re covering the Sitan, the Tagalog god of death, and his agents.

Join us as we explore the musical pratices around our favorite Tagalog death holiday, Undas, find out why you should be wary of mysterious fires below your house (or any fire, actually), and discover why a happy marriage could just make you a target from a malicious demon. Also, learn the not-so-direct path of how how Sitan came to the Philippines, by way of trade, conquest, and the value of a really good story. 

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The Gods Must Be Crazy is a podcast on Philippine Mythology hosted by friends Anama Dimapilis and Ice Lacsamana, avid mythology nerds and semi-professional gossips. Follow us over at @godsmustbecrazy.pod on Instagram and Facebook for more good stuff. We welcome any suggestions on future topics or episodes.  You can also join us on Patreon at www.patreon.com/thegodsmustbecrazypodcast.

You can also find us on Youtube – Gods Must Be Crazy Podcast channel, where we post some of our episodes and interviews. For other inquiries, please email us at [email protected]

The intro and outro music is by Brian O’Reilly (@dendriform on Instagram).

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References:

https://www.aswangproject.com/tagalog-deities-in-philippine-mythology/

https://www.aswangproject.com/sitan/ 

https://religer.org/philippine-tagalog-sitan/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Souls_in_Filipino_cultures

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04IC1tjKWHw&t=86s