The T'bolis are organized around the household and rarely settle in a cluster larger than three to four houses. The father is the head of the household, and he enjoys the right of patria potestas. Tradition dictates, however this power should not be arbitrarily exercised and that his word is absolute only n major decisions. For example, he cannot treat his wife like a slave.
The T'boli are very solicitous of their pregnant women. For one, they are not left alone, lest they be preyed upon by bthe busao or evil spirits. Thus, a pregnant women is warned: bathe not in the lakes nor rivers or the busoa will kidnao your child and turn it into a fish. A pregnant woman is spared most household and field tasks, even such routine chores such as cooking, because she might bear a child with huge eyes.
Likewise, her food intake is regulated. She cannot eat twin bananas, lest she bear twins or triplets, forcing her to choose one (regardless of sex) and bury the others alive to prevent bad luck. Nor can she eat the legs of pigs, chickens, or deer, otherwise the unborn child will be toothless or have enormous teeth. Eating chicken gizzards or leftovers is believed to lead in difficult childbirths.
Some beliefs are similar to those of other regions. For instance, a woman should be cheered and careful in preserving her good looks so that her child will be born pretty and good. Conversely, an expectant mother should not listen to stories about the busao for her child will be born evil.
A pregnant woman who comes across a snake in the field will die in childbirth. Those who are fond of sitting near the hearth or the stairs will have difficult deliveries. During childbirth, the umbilical cord must not go to the babys head or the child will grow up to be antisocial. If this happens, it is better to kill the child.
Even the man has to
observe certain practices during his wifes pregnancy. A
woodcutter for example must arrange his logs well, lest his
child be delivered feet first. 
Prenatal care uses augury techniques to deliver diagnoses. To determine the cause of a pregnant womans premature pains, an old woman versed in the healing arts places a white chick under the house, immediately below the spot where the patient lies. Should the chick chirp, the child is deemed to be sick otherwise it is the mother who is sick. The old woman then prepares the necessary concoctions to relieve the ailment.
The T'boli have no compunction performing matung or abortion. A woman resorts to abortions for various reasons such as his husband had abandoned her and refuses to give support; she has more children that can be fed adequately; her honor has been stained; she merely wants to be spared the difficulties of delivery. The woman goes to the tao mama nga or abortionist who gives her concoctions. Failure of the latter usually results in drastic measures such as mutilation or walking around with heavy stones tied to the womb. The extreme abortion technique is suicide.
The moment the mother-to-be experiences labor pains, a monkeys intestine are placed on her abdomen in the belief that this will ease childbirth, because monkeys always have easy deliveries. The husband assists the midwives during his wifes delivery, and he places personal items like his tok(sword) or kafilan (long knife) by her side as deu or offering to the gods in supplication for easy childbirth. Another tok is used to cut the babys umbilical cord. This tok has a mystic life-bond with the child and must never be lost, lest the child die.
The mother wraps the child in her lewek or tube skirt and allows no dressing to be applied on the newly severed umbilical cord. Henceforth, she does her normal routine, free from lii ( taboos) that governed her pregnancy. The child is allowed to remain naked until it decided to emulate its elders and dresses accordingly.
The child is usually given a name according to its physical characteristics at birth, such as bukay ( white or light-skinned ), udi ( small ), or bong ( big ). Sometimes, the child is named after important ancestors, forces of nature, or animals. If the child is first-born, the parents are identified by the childs name. thus, the parents of the child named fok come to be known as Ma Fok ( father of Fok ) and Ye Fok ( mother Fok ).
Disrespect or disobedience to parents may result in child being bartered, a practice known as hebalu. Destitute parents may also resort to this to meet their credit obligation. Filial obligation, however, dictates that the relatives of the parents buy the child themselves, or buy back the latter should he/she be sold to a non relative. Once sold, the child ceases to have all relations with the original family.
T'boli upbringing is not strict. The indoctrination of the child into the rigid rules of T'boli society is subliminally and relentlessly pursued through the numerous folktales and beliefs that are told and retold. These didactic exercises contain various lii ( taboos ). Among the beliefs expressed are whole class of injunctions against eating: badak or langka growing against the branch, so that the children will not grow up to be rebellious and insubordinate; the head of a pig, to prevent hardheadedness; frog's heads, to prevent talkativeness; burnt rice sticking at the pot bottom, to prevent laziness and unruliness; chicken wings, as the boys will be unable to build a house and the girls unable to weave; and rats, so that the children will not grow up to be thieves.
Succession is exclusively reserved for men. When the father dies, his responsibilities and rights go to his eldest son or, if he has no son, to his eldest brother. Daughters are generally considered inferior to the sons and do not inherent property.
T'boli kesiyahan or marriage is a long process that may be conducted in three major stages; childhood, puberty and adolescence and the growing celebration called the moninum. Marriages are prearrange by the parents and may be contrated at any age, even immediately after childs birth.
Most child betrothals are the result of a childs sickness. If a child is sick, an augury is made, using a pendulum made of a handful of soil wrapped in a piece of cloth tied a string called the hemkowing. The question of whether or not the child is benahung, or in need of a life-partner is asked. The hemkowing replies by spinning clockwise or counter clockwise. Another way of determining if a child is benahung is for a medium to make measurements using the palm or dmangao. If the childs pinky does not meet the mediums pinky at the end of the measurements, then the child needs a spouse.
Once the child is known to be benahung, the parents seek a spouse of suitable age, family back ground, and economic standing. When the prospect is known, the sick childs parents borrow a piece of the chosen childs body adornments from the latters parents. This is place first on the healthy child then brought to the sick child over whom it is suspended then struck.
Upon the sick child?s recovery, its parents go to the prospective spouse parents and make arrangement for the celebration of the first of marriage ceremonies. On the date set for the latter, the parents of the girl go to the house of the boy and discucc with his parents. The sungod, the bride price and the kimo composed of movables and immovables to be given by the families of the briden and groom which will comprice the paraphernal property of the bride.
This is done over a drawn-out feast called the mo bulung bahung lasting 3 to 7 days. Once the sungud and the kimo are agreed upon, the contract is sealed with the promise of delivery by the boy's parents of the sungud, which usually consist of horses, carabaos, agong ( gongs ), land, or other valuable properties. afterwards the boy and the girl sleep together and are covered with a kumu or hand-woven blanket.
The next phase is the mulu, a reciprocal feast hosted by the girls parents, again, the betrothed sleep together. The mulu last exactly as long as the mo bulung bahung. At the end of the mulu, the datye for the wedding is set, which may will be far into the future at this point, in the eyes of T'boli society, the child spouses are already married. The period between conclusion of the contract and the solemnization of the marriage is gatoon.
During this period, the boy visits the girls house performs various chores for his in laws, and, if he so desires, sleeps with his spouse. His parents on the other hand, gradually fulfill the provisions of the kimo. Should one of the children die, a close relative is made to take the place of the deceased, a practice called lomolo. If the other party should not accede to this substitution, the kimu is returned. Short of death the marriage may still called off. And the sungud returned.
Years later, when the children shall have reached puberty, the exact date of the solemnization is set usually set on full moon when no rain ia expected, as the marriage is celebrated at night in the bride's house.
For the occasion, the house would be spruced up, with displays of swords and kumu newel (hand-woven blankets) on the walls and rafters, and igam (mats ) and tilam (cushions ) on the floor. The boy and the girl dress up in their respective houses: then, they go separately to their respective venerable elders, who sprinkle water on their feet, hands, and face. As hey return to their respective houses, they must be careful not to break a twig because this would presage badluck. All throughout the afternoon prior to the ceremonies, and as the preparation get under way, there is continuous playing of the agong, hegelung, and tnonggong .
The groom is informed when the bride is ready in all her wedding finery, and he proceeds to the house of the bride at the head of his entire entourage. The bride awaits her groom seated on a cushion in her houses lowo or central space, with another cushion placed beside her. She is covered with a kumu immediately prior to the entry of the groom. From that moment on, no one may go near her except for the old person who had sprinkled her with water earlier in the afternoon.
The groom enters the house accompanied by his sisters or any other female relative who directly goes to the bride, removed the kumu, and kisses her. The kumu becomes the person's property, and she in turn must give the bride a gift proportionate to the value of blanket she has just removed an acquired. The groom is made to sit to the empty tilam (cushion) next to his bride, taking care not to touch her. Only then are the groom's other relatives and guests allowed into the house. They are made to sit on the groom's side and may not talk or mix in any way with the bride's relatives and guests until the marriage ceremony are over. The bride's sister or other female relative reciprocates the unveiling. She removes the grooms turban and lays it beside him in a ceremony known as hemwos olew.
The wedding feast is initiated by the elders tat sprinkle water on the bride and the groom. The brides elder feeds the groom and vice versa. The two elders initiate the first touch between the couple by making their knees meet. This becomes the operative act of the union, which is followed by the couple eating from a single plate, an event accompanied by hearty applause and approval from the assembled guests. This is then the cue for the relatives of the bride to seek out partners from the grooms side to feed. The latter show their appreciation by giving gift to the persons that feed them. Throughout the meal, everyone is careful not to drop anything. Silence is kept and sneezing suppressed, as a sneeze is considered bad luck for the couple.
After the meal, the parries of the groom and bride, represented by their respective hulung telu or singer, engaged in the slingon or debate in ong. The topics invariably lead to a comparison of the qualities of bride and groom, becoming an occasion to finalize negotiation on the final amoun tof sungud and kimu.
The klakak, or the chanting and singing of the exploits of tudbulul, an epic T'boli hero, follows after the slingon; this lasts until daybreak.
The following morning, the delivery of the kimu is completed while the groom ventures to the woods an cots a tree branch. He puts this in the hearth of the brides house. The young couple can stay in the brides house, where they are taught the ways of married life until the branch dries up. This period of their marriage is known as the seyehen. After the seyehen, the couple move to the grooms house, where the marriage ceremony one at the brides house, except for the removal of the kumu and the turban, is repeated.
Themoninum is a series of six feasts, hosted alternately by the families of the bride and the groom. Done over a period ranging from 2 to 6 years, the moninum I an optional celebration which usually only the wealthy T'boli can afford. Each feasts runs for 3 to 5 days and nights.
For each occasion gono moninum is is built to house the guests who would be coming from all over. Along the long wall of the gono moninum where the entrance lies, a wall consisting of kumu hung side by side is set up. These are the contribution of the bride's relatives. Opposite the gono moninum, a tebule or portable house like structure is built where the contribution by the grooms family relatives are hung or attached. These plates, clothes, umbrellas, agong, and horse bridles.
The first day is invariably given to accommodating the arriving guests. The festivities begin on the second day. Ther are kuda seket ( horse fights ), pitting horse from the grooms party against the brides side, with every party waging bets. The matches are one-on-one affairs, but each side has about 15 to 20 horses, sometimes even more. The horses fight until one flees from the field; In which case, a new pair is brought in to battle. Horse fighting enthralls the T'boli as much as cockfighting does other Philippine ethnic groups. There is continuous feasting and the nights are devoted to singing the exploits of Todbulol.
Aside from the horse fights, dances are perforemed on square. One such dance is tau soyow, where two men, one dressed as a female and representing the grooms side, stage a mock fight. The dance lifts the lii or taboo from the kumu. The climax of the festivities comes when the party of the groom lifts the tebule and carries it across the square penetrating through the wall of the kumu hung on the poles lifted by the relatives of the bride. This manner of entry purges the lii that the groom and his relatives were under.
Polygamy is allowed among the T'boli, a practice resorted to especially by chieftains and the wealthy. The T'boli adventures of Tudbulul usually end with his gaining another wife. A man may take another wife with the consent of his wife. This is seen as prestigious and advantageous, as extra wives mean as extra hand in house and field works.
The grounds for divorce include incompatibility, sterility, or infidelity. In the cases of adultery, an unfaithful wife caught in the act may simply be killed on the spot- as was with the case of Ye Dadang, a married woman who was hacked into pieces by her late husband when he caught her and her lover. The event was made into a popular T'boli song. Another consequence of divorce is the return of the bride price should fault lie with the girl.
The T'boli do not regard death as inevitable, rather it ia the result of the trick played by the busaw or the evil spirits, or punishment inflicted by the gods. This is rooted in the belief that ones spirit leaves ones body when one is asleep, and one awakes the moment the spirit returns. Thus, should the spirit not return, death occur. The T'boli refrain from crying upon a relative's death, hoping that the dead persons spirit has just strayed and will soon return. It is for the tau mo lungun (literally, ?a person who makes the coffin) to determine if the deceased is indeed dead.
When the tau mo lungun arrives, he feels the hands and feet of the deceased. Onced convinced the person is really dead, the tau cries aloud. Only then do the members of the dead persons household start weeping.
Disposal of the dead may take the following forms: burial, abandonment in the house, cremation or suspension from a tree in the case of small children. Wakes last anywhere from a week to five months, depending on how much food and consumables the dead person?s family has, since all these must be consumed before the corpse is buried or abandoned.
Tools for making the coffin are provided for the tau mo lungun, which subsequently become his. He measures the corpse, summoning and invoking the deceased persons spirit. The tau mo lungun then goes into the forest and fells a tree, from whose trunk the coffin or the lungun is to be fashioned. Before cutting down the tree, the tau mo lungun asks permission from Fun Koyu, god of the forest, through a short invocation. After the tree has been felled, the tau mo lungon and his companions sit down to eat and apportion part of their meal to Fun Koyu.
After the meal, the tau mo lungon and his party start carving the lungon. As the lungon takes its final shape, it is beaten along its convex exterior with tubol or pieces of bamboo to drive out the busaw and prevent them from inhabiting the hallowed-out cavity before the corpse is laid in.
The finished lungun is beaten anew for around an hour. And brought out into the house. The deceased is laid inside a lungun with all of its important possessions, which are believed to be necessary in the after life. Then the relatives and friends file past the lungon and touch the corpse, the lungon is closed. Onc the lid is put in place, all the grieving and lamentations stop to prevent the dead persons spirit frm returning. The llungun is tied firmly with three rattan strips and hermetically sealed with damay, a very strong glue, to seal in the smell of decay.
The lungun of a prominent and beloved datu is suspended over a fire and the salu (grease) that seeps out through the wood is gathered into bowls. This is then served as camote dip which the people take of, in the belioef that the qualities of the datu will be passed on them.
The lungun are then decorated with of the man or womans occupation. The tau mo lungun has to sleep three nights in the house of the deceased after decorating the coffin, lest he fall sick.
The wake lasts until movable properties are sold off and the harvest is consumed. To conserve anything would offend the dead person and would cause the person?s return.
During the wake there is singing and dancing and the chanting of nged or riddles to provide entertainment, so that people do not fall asleep. The T'boli fears that the busaw will still an unattended corpse.
On the morning of the funeral, the tau mo lungun fills a kobong ( bamboo container) with water and suspends this over the lungun end corresponding to the corpse head. If the lrvrl of the water falls in the course of the day, another death will be forth coming.
The T'boli buries their dead in the night. Before the lungun is brought out, the coffin maker splits the kubong wide open, prompting the moaners to shut aloud. Then the coffin is carried around the house in taking out. Only the male relatives proceed to the gono lembeng ( burial site ). Taking turns at carrying the lungun the tau mo lungun leaves the house last taking with him a cock in the bent of one arm and a jar full of cooked chicken. If the cock escapes, ha has taken an evil spirit with him.
After the lungun has been buried, the mourners partake of a meal, apportion of which is left at the grave. After the meal the mourners return to the dead persons house in a single file and by a different route. Upon reaching the house, the mourners must leap over two swords stock in the ground in the form of extorid themselves of evil spirits that may have accompanied them back. Then, the bereaved household and of those who went to the burial bought themselves in the nearby river thus rinsing of all evil spirits that have clung stubbornly to them.
Afterwards, the house of the dead person's is burned and abandoned completely. This effectively ends the death rituals as the T'boli do not as a rule mourn their dead, for fear that the deceased would come back to life.
The T'boli practice kaingin or taniba (slash-and-burn) method of cleaning land for farming. Fields usually cleared on hilltops where T'boli establishes their homesteads. They plant corn, upland rice, sweet potatoes, and various vegetables. They raise domestic animals the most distinctive being horses, which enjoy a singular stature. Possession of horses is an indicator of financial and social prestige. Much of the producer is kept for the use of the household; some to barter with certain necessities like salt. The T'boli is also skilled in textile weaving and metalwork which enable them to produce the distinctive T'boli cloth known T'nalak and various metal artifacts ranging from swords to musical instruments and figurines.
Progressive contact with Christian lowlanders pattern T'boli life. Increasingly , T'boli hunting grounds have been constricted by expanding Christian communities in the lowlands . Barter is also giving way to a money economy. Household utensils, cosmetics and certain fabrics are already being bought from stores in the lowlands, rather than made by the t'boli households or bartered from other tribes. Lately, the sale of T'boli products has became a profitable business; the products are sold to tourists or sent to outlets around the country.
Pressure has also been brought to bear upon the t'boli to open up theire lands to contract-growing schemes for pineapple and other cash crops, a strategy adopted by the local government for lowlands Christian farmers who have either abandoned their traditional crops or become employees of giants multinational fruit companies like Del Monte. The upland climate and soil of the T'boli homelands have been determined to be suitable for pineapple, coffee, and cacao.
