“Burial Practices” (Costumbre sa Paglubong) by Jeky Alano
The early Negrenses practiced two kinds of burial – the primary and secondary rituals. The Primary type of burial: The Baybaylan pray over the person’s body, then covers the eyes, nose, and mouth with a burial mask. It is believed that this way, the dead person will be protected from evil spirits; otherwise, the spirits will enter the body. During the burial, some of the dead person’s things are buried inside a cave. For the second type of burial, the bones are taken out of the cave after 4 to 5 years and put inside burial jars, and given back to the family or relatives.
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