Mangkukulam

Lola's story

When I was a girl in Manila, an old woman lived alone at the end of our street. She had a long white braid, a black pusa, and a garden full of strange plants. She never smiled. All the kids said she was a mangkukulam. "If she looks at you," they whispered, "you'll get itchy all over."

One day my ball flew over her wall. I stood at her gate for a long time, scratching my arm, before I was brave enough to knock.

She opened the gate and frowned at me. Then she frowned at my arm. "Mosquito bites," she said, and went back inside. When she came out, she had my ball and a little leaf. "Rub this on them." The itching stopped that afternoon.

She wasn't a mangkukulam at all. She grew halamang gamot, healing herbs, and she was just a little lonely, and a little grumpy. After that, I said good morning to her every day. Sometimes, she almost smiled.

What people say

In Filipino folklore, a mangkukulam is a witch who casts kulam, spells that are said to cause pains, itches, fevers or bad luck. In the old stories, she does it from far away, using a little doll or a lock of hair, and only an albularyo, a folk healer who works with herbs and prayers, can find the cause and break the spell.

Stories of witches are told in many parts of the Philippines, and the island of Siquijor is famous for its healers and their herbal remedies. Sadly, in real life, stories like these were sometimes used to blame lonely old women who lived apart and knew about plants.

How to stay safe

The old stories say: be polite to everyone, because you never know who might be listening. Lola says the same thing, for a different reason. Be kind, even to grumpy people. They may be the ones who help you most.