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Monday, March 25, 2013

Vignettes and Cultural Memory Banking


BANIG: ANG PAGRARA

Elizabeth T. Bautista and Elgene Joy Sañol BEEd 3-A

BANIG HAND  WAVING 
- The brown mat (banig) is commonly used by Filipino for sleeping, sitting, house display, hotel designs, etc.
 - Banig weaving is a genuine treasure handed down as a tradition or a trade from one generation to another as it is widely practiced in the country.
  
Linkages: 
 Education
- Cultural practice may be linked to livelihood education
-may be considered as a form of art
- preserved the priceless tradition of their forefathers

Socio-cultural
-cultural display:
- showcases the country's various handicrafts, cultures, and delicacies, focusing specifically on the native hand woven mats known as “banig

Economic
- banig (bariw) weaving as means of livelihood
-promote banig (brown mats) and sub-products of banig as their product.
-encourage the banig weavers that the banig they produced could possibly turn into a highly valuable item that can be known not only in the province but also in the international market.


Health
-  Body protection
- It can decrease the occurrences of sickness from too much cold 

Environment
-cutting of pandan leaves may cause extinction of the plant

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Ang Pagrara Sang Banig
       Narrative:

         It was late in the afternoon, we found ourselves in the native and small house of Lolo Elias, 85 years old, has wife named Lola Berheda with four children. Their house is located at the near side of the Jaycon Elementary School. They are called as “Umuruli” because they came from far mountains of Aklan and Leon. According to Lolo Elias, the biggest reason why they left mountain because they wanted to send their children in a good quality of education in the plain that has enough number of teachers. In their place, there is no exact schedule for teacher to come and teach the “tumandok” (people living in their place). While having the conversation to Lolo Elias, we noticed Lola Berheda at the side doing the mat weaving. We asked her, “La, sa diin kamu nagakuha sang ginaubra niyo nga banig?” she answered immediately. “Pandan day-a duro tuya sa ubos ha”. And because we are interested of the exact appearance of the pandan plant, we look for it. We went down the hill to see the pandan plant.
Lolo said, farming was their livelihood before when they were still in the mountains.  But when they transferred in the lowlands, they find weaving as a source of income as well as past time activity in their home. But the banig (mat) weaving is not sufficient for an income. The product is a skillful process.
Lolo Elias as a manugbanig (a person who weaves banig), teach us the process of doing the “banig”  weaving as some sort of a spell implied with hard work, determination and patience. He together with his wife, simply cut the leaves using sanggot (an arc-shaped cutting tool) and a long slender bamboo pole to reach the leaves of high-grown pandan plant, the process locally known as the pagsasa. 










They gather and bundle the slashed leaves for stripping off thorns along the edges and into the middle ridge called as paghapnig (bundling). By removing the ridge, the leaf is divided into two. Each leaf is piled separately until the bundle is stripped off with thorns known to them as pagriras (stripping off). The leaves will be tightly tied up in bundle so that each piece will not curl up as it dries.

The Pagbulad or sun or air drying phase follows. Sun drying of pandan leaves under direct sunlight gives it a shiny brown tone and strengthens the fiber. Air-dried leaves are durable compared to the sun-dried one. Air-dried leaves create blackish spots or molds that destroy the natural luster of brown mats; however, the molds fall off easily during weaving.



The pagpalpag or the hammering phase is gradually done by beating the pandan leaves against a flat stone until they become soft and pliable with the use of a wooden club known as sampok.
Paglikid is a process of keeping the softness of the pandan leaves and prevents the leaf strips from becoming stiff and crisp. The leaf is rolled one after the other in a round form; tightly rolling the leaf sustains its softness and elasticity. The unwinding of the linikid to straighten the spiraled pandan leaves is called pagbuntay.
Then follows the pagkulhad or the shredding of pandanleaves into a desired strand through the kurulhadan or splicer; a wooden-based shredder. Pagkyupis is the preparatory process to the weaving proper. Generally, pandan strands are folded into halves. Every kyupis consists of four strands, folded together in pairs; horizontally and vertically, with the glossy brown color in the outer surface.
Taytay is the framework of the entire mat. During this step, the size and the length of the mat is already assured. The width dimensions will be determined by weaving at the sides forward, making the edge-line on both sides of the mat known as sapayHurip is the folding of the remaining strands on the sides or edge-line to keep the weave tightly locked in place. The process also refers to the repairing of worn-out and damaged mat during weaving or due to continued use.




Gutab is the final stage in mat weaving. It is done by eliminating and cutting unwanted strands in the mat, including the excess strands after the hurip has been done.
            They can produce a one person-sized “banig” for about one day. They sell it the neighborhood, school and in the town market. They please their finish products on their nephew for an easy transport.  But they cannot avoid that there will be a day that their banig will be not bought by people. They are just thankful for any amount of what they had worked.
          Through the interview, we had known thebanigweaving can be one of a good source of family income. Even though that it needs time and effort, it still can help. Lolo Elias, stressed that this greatly helps his family expenses and education purposes of his grand children. Now, we had known the living in Libot, Calinog.
          They can produce a one person-sized “banig” for about one day. They sell it the neighborhood, school and in the town market. They please their finish products on their nephew for an easy transport.  But they cannot avoid that there will be a day that their banig will be not bought by people. They are just thankful for any amount of what they had worked. 








Teaching Linked to Banig Weaving


                  The project method can be used as the strategy in teaching how to weave a banig. Like banig making, there are also processes to be followed in project method. The purposing, planning and executing are the steps in the project method.
                   Banig making is best to teach in Technology and Livelihood Education. In this way, we can teach the students the correct processes of weaving the banig. It is also one alternatives or source of income when there is materials that can be found near their places or houses.








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