babaylans

Babaylans are traditional Filipino spiritual leaders, healers, and ritual specialists who served as intermediaries between communities and the spirit world in precolonial Philippine societies. The term is most commonly associated with Tagalog-speaking communities, but similar roles existed across the archipelago under regional names such as baylan in Visayas and Mindanao, and katalonan in Tagalog-speaking areas. These practitioners were often women, though men and persons who occupied gender-fluid roles could also be recognized as babaylans.

Babaylans perform and preside over ceremonies for healing, weather and harvest rites, protection against danger, and rites of passage. They communicate with ancestral spirits and deities (often referred to as anito) and may enter trance or possession to receive guidance for the community. Rituals typically involve chant, song, dance, herbal remedies, and symbolic objects or attire. Training usually occurs within kinship lines or through apprenticeship with an established babaylan.

Historically, babaylans held considerable social influence, advising local leaders and serving as mediators in disputes and alliances. They could challenge patriarchal authority within their societies and sometimes acted as custodians of ritual knowledge and community memory. The arrival of Spanish colonization and Christianization in the 16th century led to the suppression of many traditional practices and persecution of babaylans; some practices persisted in syncretic forms, while others faded.

In contemporary times, there are revivalist and cultural preservation efforts that seek to reclaim traditional babaylan practices in various indigenous communities. Scholars also study babaylans to understand gender, religion, and healing within precolonial Philippines, as well as the enduring cultural memory of these spiritual leaders.