Why The Sky Is High
Why The Sky Is High
Why The Sky Is High
(Tagalog)
In the early days, when the sky was still low, two brothers named Ingat and Daskol lived
with their parents on earth.
As their names indicate, Ingat was careful in everything he did and was therefore his
fathers right hand man. He was always helping with the work in the field and his parents
were very pleased with him.
On the other hand, Daskol did his work sloppily. In the absence of a daughter in the
family, the house work came to be Daskols responsibility. He fetched water, cleaned the
house, and did the cooking. He also did the pounding of the palay that his father and
Ingat harvested. Even in pounding, Daskol lived up to his name. Half of the grain he
pounded scattered and fell to the ground. Being naturally lazy and impatient, he did not
like the work of pounding rice.
One day, Daskol had to pound a greater quantity of palay than usual. He was irritated
because every time he raised the pestle higher, and every time it hit the sky, the sky
would be raised. In his hurry, Daskol did not notice that the sky was rising. When he
finished pounding the rice, he looked up and discovered that the sky had risen and it is
where it is today.
made, almost, the food would be on the table; but after the expulsion of Adam and Eve,
God made men work for their own living. With this change in their condition came the
custom of holding feasts, when the men would rest from their labors.
One day one of the chiefs, Abing by name, held a feast. Many people came to enjoy it. A
sayao, or native war-dance, was given in honor of the men belonging to the chief, and it
was acted by men brandishing spears. While acting, one of the actors, who was drunk,
tried to show his skill, but he forgot that the sky was so low. When he darted his spear,
he happened to pierce the sky, and one of the gods was wounded. This angered God the
Father: so he raised the sky as we have it today far from the earth.