Shamanism and the Bajau People in The Songs of Salanda

Introduction to Nimmo's Narrative and Shamanism

The Songs of Salanda and Other Stories of Sulu by H. Arlo Nimmo is loosely based on the experiences he had conducting fieldwork as an anthropologist. Nimmo injects insight into the narrative based on the two years in the mid-1960s he spent living with the nomadic, boat-dwelling Bajau in the Sulu Islands of the southern Philippines. The book contains a total of 16 stories, many of which describe the practices of shamans and the role they play within this particular community.

In general, a shaman is defined as a priest or priestess who uses magic for the purpose of curing the sick, divining the hidden, and controlling events. According to Atkinson, the concept of shamanism in the study of anthropology has been met with a great deal of skepticism. Atkinson explains that "shamanism is ... a made-up, modern, Western category, an artful reification of disparate practices, snatches of folklore and overarching folklorizations, residues of long-established myths intermingled with the politics of academic departments, curricula, conferences, journal juries and articles, [and] funding agencies" (Atkinson 1992, 307). Despite such assertions, the subject of shamanism has been able to survive the rigors of anthropological study. Books such as The Songs of Salanda and Other Stories of Sulu give further credence to the need to study the subject of shamanism.

Bajau Spirit Beliefs and the Role of Shamans

In many societies, shamans are among the most respected individuals in the community because of the power they are believed to possess. This is particularly true in areas of the world that have traditionally embraced and depended upon shamans for healing and spiritual guidance. In The Songs of Salanda and Other Stories of Sulu, the narrator tells the story of female shamans fighting against the Saitan — the spirit that causes illness and other misfortune (Soloman, 1994). Saitan is also portrayed as the spirit of the island. The book depicts this battle in dramatic ways and seeks to give the reader a true understanding of how spiritual matters were handled among the Bajau people of the Sulu Islands.

The fictional narrative presented by Nimmo is consistent with the manner in which the Bajau people actually function and operate. As of 2001, there were between 70,000 and 100,000 Bajau living in the southern Philippines. They tend to believe that all problems they encounter can be attributed to saiton — evil spirits who live in both the sea and mangrove forests. In addition, the Bajau also believe in various other spirits that move from place to place and take the appearance of animals or fish. They believe that a significant number of these spirits regularly invade villages and are the source of illness.

Torres and Gonzales also explain the role of shamans in Bajau society as it pertains to handling these spirits. The authors assert that:

"It used to be that shamans would perform a curative rite known as the omboh, which involves the launching of a pamatulikan (spirit boat), to get rid of such spirits. These days, the Bajau are too poor to launch even a small boat for the ritual. But they also know that their omboh may not be able to protect them from more ruthless saitan who wear bonnet masks and are called by many names like pirata or Abu Sayyaf. Not to mention the big commercial fishing vessels that now dominate the waters they used to call home" (Torres & Gonzales).

Key Stories and the Spiritual World of the Bajau

The stories in the book that deal most intimately with shamanism are "The Saiton," "The Possessed," and "To Each His God." Each of these stories exposes the superstitions and remedies relating to the spiritual problems and spiritual evils that the Bajau people face in their daily lives. There is a palpable atmosphere throughout the book that helps the reader understand the environment being described. In some ways, the Bajau people seem to be deeply preoccupied with the belief that evil spirits are out to destroy their community — a belief likely passed from generation to generation.

Female Shamans: Cross-Cultural Perspectives

One of the most interesting aspects of the book is the presence of female shamans. Throughout other works of fiction, the use of female shamans in narrative is relatively rare in more modern works. From an anthropological point of view, however, female shamans are known to exist in many different societies. For instance, among the Mapuche people of Chile, most shamans are known to be women. The Mapuche are described as a "thoroughly patrilineal and patripotestal society" (Faron 1964: 127), and shamans — the vast majority of whom are women (1964: 123) — combat sorcerers and may therefore be considered representatives of the forces of good in society at large. These female shamans are "never part of the core group of any reservation on which they reside" and may be aptly described as "peripheral" members of the community (Wilson, 1967, 372).

Although female shamanism is common in some cultures, other cultures permit only men to be shamans. In some cultures, women are allowed to be shamans but are not permitted to carry out certain practices, such as exorcism. In still other groups, both males and females can be shamans but do not possess the same type of powers. For instance, in the Tubatulabal North American Indian tribe, male shamans possessed both witching powers and curative powers, whereas female shamans possessed only witching powers (Heizer & Sturtevant, 441). The reason for this difference has a great deal to do with the perceived roles of men and women within this particular people group.

Conclusion

Overall, even though this book is fictional, it provides an accurate portrayal of the Bajau people of the Philippines based on existing anthropological evidence, particularly as it pertains to the issue of shamanism. Among some other tribal groups, the idea of a female shaman is unheard of. In other places, female shamans possess only certain powers and are not permitted to engage in certain practices. There are also tribes that allow female shamans but confine them to the periphery of the community rather than integrating them as full members. Nimmo's narratives concerning the Bajau shamans suggest that these women are both respected and considered necessary to the survival of their people group. Overall, the book provides an insightful look at a group of people who have not been thoroughly studied — accomplished through a fictional narrative that remains consistent with the anthropological evidence that does exist about this tribe.

Atkinson, J. M. (1992). Shamanisms today. Annual Review of Anthropology, 21(1), 307–330.

Heizer, R., & Sturtevant, W. C. (1971). Handbook of North American Indians: California, Volume 3.

Torres, J., & Gonzales, I. C. (2001). Twilight of the sea people. Retrieved January 31, 2011, from

Shaman. Retrieved January 31, 2011, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shaman

Wilson, P. J. (1967). Status ambiguity and spirit possession. Man, New Series, 2(3), 366–378.