The evening following a death, the friends gather and throughout the night sing of the virtues of the deceased and of their own sorrow.  The body is placed on a mat in the center of the house and for three days is watched over by the relatives, who, during this time, abstain from music, dancing, shouting, or loud talking.  The women cease from weaving and the men refrain from all labor.  A breaking of this taboo would result in the certain death of the offender, for the spirit of the dead man is still near at hand and is sure to wreak his vengeance on those who show him disrespect.  Finally, the body is wrapped in mats and is buried at some little distance from the house.  All the people return to the dwelling, where the headman makes a cup out of leaves, and having placed in it a narrow belt or string, together with betel leaves, sets it adrift on a near-by stream, while all the men shout.[2] This removes the ban, so that all the people can resume their regular occupations.

[2] See pp. 157 and 161. [Transcriber’s note:  This is page 144.]

If the deceased has been a person of great importance, the death should be followed eight days later by a human sacrifice.  This rite, while less common than with the Bagobo, is by no means infrequent, and may be occasioned by several causes beside that of death.  For instance, if a person has been ill for a long time and his relatives have become convinced that an enemy has used magic to bring about the misfortune, they may seize and sacrifice him, even though he be a member of their own community.  A case is known where a thief was put to death in this manner.  As there is considerable variation in the accounts of this important ceremony the writer has thought it wise to give the descriptions of two eye-witnesses.

The first informant was an eighteen year old Bila-an boy of Labau named Lantingari.  His account is as follows: 

“Sololin of Ma-al, the wife of Karan, a Bila-an living near Digos, died and her husband, in company with Umook, Gamban, and Bunod, Bagobos of Digos, and the people of Labau, decided that a sacrifice was necessary both because of the death and in order that the size, wealth, and fame of the tribe might be increased.  About this time Dianon, a Bila-an of Latian (now deceased), caught a man named Saligon stealing camotes, sugar-cane, and corn from the land.[1] He bound and tied the man, and after a conference with Karan, Dianon agreed to turn over his prisoner for the sacrifice if paid five agongs and one gun.

[1] The woman Sololin had planted this sugar-cane and is reported to have eaten some of it just prior to her death.  The cane stolen was from the patch, but the informant could not say whether or not this had anything to do with later developments.

“The sacrifice took place on a stream called Matinao near Labau during the new moon.  Two poles were sunk into the ground seven feet apart, and a cross-piece attached about six feet above the ground.  The culprit was tied with hands crossed, one on each side of the horizontal pole so that his arms were high above his head, and his feet were fastened to a stake.