THE ART OF WEAPONRY

I. Introduction:
Pananandata or Kali is defined as “the art of weaponry” (Marinas, 2002).
Pananandata came from the Tagalog words paggamit (use) ng (of) sandata (weapon) (Marinas, 2002). This uses a variety of weapons, which are mostly tools used for farming or tools used in the kitchen for cooking and food preparation purposes.
When Spaniards came to the Philippines, the natives were already armed with different types of weapons like spears (sibat); bows and arrows (panas); two-handed broadswords (kampilans); tabaks; daggers; and wavy knives (krises) (Marinas, 2002). The villagers entertained them with native dances, wrestling, and kali--- the art of fighting with weapons. In other celebrations where the Spaniards have been invited just like royal feasts, the natives demonstrated their skills in the use of weapons (Marinas, 2002). These skills would have been the reason why in 1764, Don Salazar banned the practice of Kali (Marinas, 2002). The Spaniards became scared that the continued practice of the natives with their fighting will eventually be a disadvantage for the Spaniards even though in reality, the natives only use the weapons for entertaining foreign guests and for subsistence.
In times of conflict, however, kali was taught in secrecy under penalty of death wherein gentlemen settled disputes using the tabak and the balaraw (Marinas, 2002). This is their gentleman way of resolving conflicts. The more strong-willed and more skilled gentleman will win; whether it is for the love of a girl or for ownership of a weapon.
II. Types of Weaponry in the Philippines
The first type is the weapons of offense (Marinas, 2002). These are weapons used for attacking and for hunting. There are two types of weapons of offense: swords and spears and the wooden weapons.
Under the swords and spears are tabak, daga, and balaraw. Tabak is a bladed weapon that is wider and longer than a typical bolo (about 28 inches) and had been used for duels in the 1970’s. Its blade is often etched with words or letters from the carrier’s dialect, which represents orasyones (prayers) that are believed to protect the carrier from real and imaginary threats that his culture tells him exist (Marinas, 2002).
Daga and balaraw are types of daggers; the daga is a single-edged sword while the balaraw is the double-edged one.
The pingga, yantok, tungkod, hawakan, dikin, tabak toyok, bagakays, and blowguns (Marinas, 2002) are under the wooden weapons. Most of these are used for agricultural purposes like farming and rice-grinding. When the colonizers, however, went here in the Philippines, the natives had no choice but to use these for other purposes: as deadly weapons to be able to defend themselves against the Spaniards.
The second type of weapons is the weapons of defense. These are used for defense against attacks. Under these are the dikins, which are wooden ring shields. These can be used for attacking as well as for defending one’s self.
Filipinos value traditions and beliefs. These are evident in their weapons, like the Filipino belief in guidance through prayers (the prayers etched in the swords) and Filipinos’ resourcefulness, using nature’s gifts like trees for everyday life such as farming. Living a simple and peaceful life characterize Filipino culture prior to the colonization.
Filipinos could never be considered as war thirsty people. Weapons have been existing even before the colonizers went here. However, the main purposes of those weapons are for ceremonies, ritual dances, for subsistence, for cooking, and for protection of the natives against wild animals. The colonizers were the ones who pushed the natives to use these weapons for other purposes such as war because these Spaniards were the first who disturbed the peaceful way of life of the Filipino ancestors.
Reference:
Marinas, Amante Sr. (2002). Pananandata: History and techniques of the daga, yantok,
balisong, and other traditional weapons of the Philippines. Colorado: Paladin Press.