Mermaids @ MindSay 
You would be a Mermaid! A protector of the sea. You love art and music. You care a lot for the sea beings. You are nothing without you friends and you would do everything to protect them!
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Find out what kind of Mystical Creature you would be....
If you were mine
We'd fly to the moon
And we would hit golfballs into the
Space vacuum
If you were mine
We'd dive under sea
And dance with the mermaids and maybe the
Sea monkeys
Oh, everything would be so perfect
And everyone would be so happy
People with AIDS wouldn't be sick
And war-torn countries would find peace
If you were mine
A young Mermaid named Mindayen.
The creation of “Ranao” leads to the development of yet, another mermaid heroine.
This time, the story centers not to a princess, but around a young and resolute, mermaid warrior who lived at the nearby island of “Lakawon”, a neighbor island of Pearl Island of Ranao.
Just like Princess Ranao, Mindayen‘s characterization is a combination of headstrong female characters who answers the call of challenge.
Again, there is Hayao Miyazaki’s Nausicaa of the valley of the Wind; Princess Urduja of ancient Philippine legends, then Ariel of Disney’s The Little Mermaid.
Ranao and Mindayen seem identical at first glance.
They were both on their early teens, of mermaid warrior blood; both can sprout legs and fins at will; both had thick black hair, gorgeous dark skin, native tropical features and aquatic ears.
Both their stories are set in the same period and same archipelago.
But they have different destinies to full fill.
Ranao’s theme is self maturity; her impulsive attitude leads to her kingdom’s ruin. It was her self analyzing had brought her to her own redemption. Correcting her disposition, means the recovery of her kingdom and it's deliverance from evil.
On the other hand, Mindayen’s story deals with an intruding foreign belief that grows and shatters the culture and heritage of the villages that it touches.
This foreign religion brought war and strife among the islanders and it’s up to her to stop it.
But before she could stop this, she have to convince her people (Both human and ethereals) to return to worship the indigenous gods that once held them together in harmony.
So does the belief in ancient gods and goddesses which were once observed throughout the islands.
Before the Muslims and the Spaniards had set foot on Philippine shores, the ancients had their sets of deities and other supernatural beings whom they fear, pray to or worship, and called on their assistance through their walks of life.
The Dictionario Mithologico (Second Edition, 1895) written by Ferdinand Blummentritt, provides a list of unworldly beings respected by various natives.
The Leader God was known by many names, Apu to the Igorots, Banua to the Bataks of Palawan, Kabunian and Lumawig to the tribes of Northern Luzon, Kaptan to the Visayas, Apo Malyari to the Zambal, Mananahahut to the Kiangans and Magnisda to the Tagbanuas. But the leader god was popularly known by his Sanskrit name as Bathala or Bathalang Maykapal.
Creation stories were best attributed to the Leader gods. But the Bagobos tribes believed in the joint venture of three gods:
Makakoret: who created the sky.
Makaponget: who created the waters
Mamale who created land.
The goddess Lalahon was believed to reside in a remote volcano called Malaspina, located somewhere in the islands of Negros.
Sida-pa, another island goddess, was believed to reside on the top of a legendary mountain called Madya-as somewhere in the island of Panay. Legends tell about Sida-pa and her own tree of life. She was said to make notches on the tree that said to regulate the life time of all people.
In agricultural areas, the natives prayed to the gods for good harvest and to protect the fields. For the Tagalogs, Idianale was the god of agriculture and Lakanpati was the protector of their fields.
On the other hand, the Zambals call upon Dumagan and Damolag, before planting thewir crops to protect their fields from storms and typhoons.
The Bagobos tribe calls on Dimakolem, god of the mountains for their well being.
Taguibanua was the agriculture god in some areas in Mindanao while in the Visayas, she was also a goddess for house hold benefactors. Sedumunadok was the god of their planting fields. In the Tagalog fishing villages, they call upon Aman Sinaya for aid. On the other hand, Poko, was the Tagbanua people’s sea god.
In the story of Ranao and Mindayen, the prevalent sea goddess is Abyang Ghinbinitan.
There are also fighting and warrior gods that said to boost moral among different combatants. The tribes of Pangasinan had Apolaki as their war deity. The Visayan people once offered sacrifices to Wataugo for victory in battle.
Deities of welfare also played important roles in ancient Filipino lifestyle. Ang them were Lakambini of the Tagalogs who was said to be giver of food and Lakambakad as healer of sickness. The goddess of love among the Tagalogs was Dian Masalanta.
There were evil gods, said to live in hell-like places for the damned.
The Tagbanuas had Basaud as their hell-like abode, while the Ilocanos had Kasamaan.
The Visayan people called the god of hell, Sumpoy (Siguinaguran or Suinuran) who was aided by his demon armies called Yawa or Panulay.
The gods and goddesses who resides on Eden-like places were the ones worshipped and often called by the natives for help and blessings.
Kadungan was the paradise-like site for some tribes in Northern Luzon. The Bicolanos called such a place as Kamburagan. The Visayans call their paradise as Ologan.
The people of Panay once believed that Paradise was located on top of the mysterious mountain Madya-as. (Something similar to Mount Olympus)
I remember the time, when we used to live in Negros, we had this spectacular 75 gallon “Reef Tank” filled with live corals, scallops, crabs and other “inverts” picked up from a nearby beach. Unlike other beaches frequented by both local and foreign tourists, this beach seemed undisturbed. Its sandy shores and tide pools remained untouched. My brother and I used to inspect tide pool boulders for colorful sponges, sea anemones, star fishes, limpets, shells and other tiny marine creatures, clinging onto rocks. In the aquarist’s lingo, what were doing is called “dipnetting” or collecting species from the wild. For me, the ocean offers more than just collecting tiny sea life for aquarium captivity, it rouse a world of imaginations.
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