Shamans of Siquijor - the Philippines

I was lucky to be on Siquijor during the Lenten season, a time for the gathering and preparation of healing materials by the traditional healers and their helpers. I visited one shaman's house where people were busy laying out moss, bark, twigs, leaves, berries, mushrooms, bamboo shoots and grass and mixing them in large vats with juice and water to create bottles of medicine that they sold for a small fortune. A BBC reporter just happened to be at the house at the same time interviewing the shaman. Sorcerers, shamans, witches and traditional healers use prayer wheels, incantations and these medicinal herbs to cure illness, heal wounds and also to collect debts. There's a documentary that you can watch on this: Shamans of Siquijor, The Healers. These type of healers have nothing in common with psychic surgery, where the dude rips out carcinomas with his bare hands, along with half your intestines, and declares you free of disease.





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Bottle of medicine for twenty-five dollars.