Bathala sat quietly on his throne, watching as Apolaki- the god of the sun, quietly sat on the throne beside him. The tension thickened a little bit as the two remained quiet for a bit. Although Bathala had already forgiven the younger god, he could not forget how Apolaki had hurt his first daughter, Mayari- the goddess of the moon.
“I give the light that gives food for the mortals. They play and dry their rags under my sun.” The god argued. “On your light, they sleep. There is little to no need for your light.” He spat, glaring intensely at the goddess that sat on the other side of the table that stood before them. The god then faced Bathala, who was sitting on his throne, far from the table, and angrily said, “It would be better if my sun does not leave its place in your sky.”
“With my light, the mortals know they should rest. My light guides those who haven’t returned to their families. My light also accompanies those who are troubled and unable to rest.” Mayari, the goddess of the moon, interrupted. She glared back at the god before turning to face her father. “In his light, it is hot. The mortals cannot look at him for their eyes burn. How will they know that the sun is watching them?” She continued. “My moon will not burn their eyes. The mortals can look at me and know that I am watching over them.”
The two continued to argue in the presence of Bathala until he became impatient and dismissed them. However, the two continued to defy each other until they eventually fell into a fit of rage that drove them to violence. Wielding their weapons, the two engaged in a physical and bloody fight where no other divinity could step in. However, everything stopped when one day, a loud thud and a cry of pain ripped through the thick and quiet atmosphere. Apolaki snapped out of his trance, realizing the severity of the damage he’d done. A large gash ran through the goddess’ eye, inflicted by none other but a wooden club.
Upon hearing about this, Bathala separated the two until they had calmed down. Eventually, the two younger deities decided to share the throne beside Bathala, where they ruled at different times. Although the fight was behind them, the damage Apolaki inflicted was permanent, and so was the guilt.
“Father,” A feminine voice spoke, catching the attention of both the gods. It was no other than Hanan, the goddess of the morning. “I am done.” Hanan was the second daughter of Bathala, whom he also sired from a mortal woman. She often goes down to earth in the morning to bless the start of a new phase in a mortal’s life or a new season. “However, I must tell you something.” She continued before looking into Bathala’s eyes. “I have heard from a strange mortal that there is another like you.”
“Impossible!” Cried Amanikabli, the god of the sea, as he abruptly stood from his seat. “Tell me who this stranger mortal is and I will teach him not to anger the gods.” The god was known for his anger towards mortals ever since he was rejected by a beautiful mortal maiden named Maganda. He often destroyed the boats of mortals and drowned them whenever his temper would go sour.
“Calm down, Amanikabli.” Bathala responded as he motioned the god of the sea to sit down. The god had called for a meeting with the other deities in his kingdom to discuss what his daughter had told him earlier. However, not wanting to cause war, he’d only called those with supreme authority, his daughters, and Apolaki.
“Perhaps if there are other gods, we may combine our worlds and rule together. It would be nice since our mortals have been growing in numbers.” Ikapati suggested calmly. However, her words did not surprise any of the attendees, not even Amanikabli. Ikapati was the goddess of cultivated land and was known for being the most understanding and kind among the deities. Oftentimes, she’d visit the earth in the day to bless the farmlands of mortals and provide them with great harvests. “We should talk to them. If we try to harm one of their mortals, it may start a war, will it not?”
The other deities murmured words of agreement. “How will we know if there is another god like father?” A powerful voice ripped through the sea of words, silencing it. All the deities turned to Mayari, the goddess of the moon. Mayari was well-respected by most gods. She was the first daughter of Bathala and the most beautiful divinity, even with the scar that came from her fight with the god Apolaki.
“One of us should go to the kingdom of the gods the strange mortal worships.” Tala answered, facing Mayari with a nod. Tala is the third daughter of Bathala and the goddess of stars, who often accompanies Mayari when it is her time on the throne. However, unlike Mayari, who watches from the sky, Tala walks on the earth and guides mortals back to their homes.
“Then I will go,” Mayari spoke. “Mortals are more active during the reign of Apolaki. I have the time.”
Thinking about it for a moment, Bathala eventually agreed with Mayari. However, worrying about the safety of her first daughter, he orders Amanikabli to accompany Mayari. Seeing that there were no objections afterward, Bathala dismisses all of the gods.
“We will have visitors.” Mangalabar, the goddess of good grace, spoke. This goddess, however, was not a goddess of Bathala, nor did she know about the presence of that god. She was a deity of Malayari, the supreme deity of an independent land in Luzon named Zambales. Mangalabar often stayed in Malayari’s kingdom, only leaving to accompany mortal priests of her land.
“Strange, I was not expecting any,” Malayari responded. He is the supreme deity of the independent land- Zambales. He was loved and respected by the mortals as the creator of all things and master of life and death. “Very well, if they enter our land, fetch them and bring them to my kingdom so we may welcome them.” He delightfully said.
Malayari was surprised to see a male and a female being, dressed in divine rags. Assuming that they were deities that took an interest in his world, he grinned and opened his arms before greeting, “Welcome to my kingdom! I am Malayari, the ruler and creator of this world.”
“I am Mayari… daughter of the supreme god Bathala… who rules and created this world and the mortals that take care of it…” Mayari replied, almost too stunned to talk. However, unlike Mayari, Amanikabli was not quick to recover from the shock.
“A good sense of humor!” Malayari guffawed at the goddess’ words for a moment before recomposing himself. “Now tell me, who are you really and what brings you to my world?”
After hearing the explanation of the visiting female deity, Malayari fell silent. He almost did not believe the words of Mayari. However, he was always reminded by the powerful aura of the deity that the woman is a powerful divinity. Malayari fell onto the comforts of his throne and gently massaged his temples. “There is another god who also rules the sky and lives in it as well, is that correct?” He asked, and Mayari nodded in response.
“Perhaps it is that the sky is so massive that our kingdoms are too far away,” Mayari suggested.
“How did you know of us then?” Malayari questioned, a hint of suspicion was rising in his mind. Mayari immediately sensed this and was quick to respond. “One of our deities heard a mortal preach about you when he entered our lands.”
Malayari felt proud of his mortals’ courage and loyalty but quickly dismissed it. Like the visiting deities, Malayari also did not want to start a war between his kingdom and whatever was outside of it. “Very well, I will come to your kingdom and talk to your father.” Malayari stated, nodding towards Mayari. “Our kingdoms may grow stronger when united.”
“That went well.” Mayari said as they thread further away from the kingdom of Malayari. “Should we head back home?”
Amanikabli was quiet for a moment before speaking, “I wonder if there are other gods that claim to be like Bathala.” His words made the goddess stop in her tracks. After another moment of silence, Amanikabli spoke once again, “Perhaps we should see if there are others like him.”
“Will my father not worry?” Mayari asked.
“He ordered for me to go with you. He knows of my strength.” Amanikabli answered, puffing his chest in pride and earning a laugh from the goddess. “Let us go now, we should not waste much time.”
Mayari and Amanikabli soon found themselves in the presence of a bakayawan, a spirit deity. “Are you here to hunt?” The spirit asked. “You do not look like hunters.” It added, taking notice of the divine clothes the deities wore. It then sensed the auras of the two and fell quiet before asking, “Who are you?”
The two deities looked at each other, sharing cautious looks. “I am Amanikabli, god of the sea. With me is Mayari, goddess of the moon.” Amanikabli answered, carefully choosing his words as he spoke. He then glanced at Mayari and motioned for her to talk.
Mayari rolled her eyes at the god before approaching the spirit. “We are here to meet the ruler of this world.” She said.
The spirit pondered for a moment. Living in the mountains, it had never seen a sea before. It did not know if it should believe Amanikabli’s words. However, it did not want to anger the two after sensing power ooze from them. It sighed before speaking, “The god you seek is up there. However, do not anger him. You do not want to feel his wrath.” It pointed towards the sky before vanishing.
Eventually, the two had finished talking to Kabunian- who, like Malayari, agreed to visit the kingdom of Bathala to talk. They once again looked for other deities who claimed to be like Bathala and were met with Kaptan of Visayas and Pamulak Manobo of Mindanao. After some convincing, the two gods eventually also agreed to visit the kingdom of Bathala. Satisfied, Mayari and Amanikabli returned to the kingdom of Bathala, where they shared the shocking revelation with the other supreme deities.
Bathala called upon his deities to break the discovery. At first, chaos ensued as many of the deities refused to believe him. However, everyone eventually calmed down, not wanting to anger any of the supreme deities.
“What should we do then?” Asked Lakambakod, the god of protecting crops and home.
“Merge kingdoms so we can all rule the world together,” Mayari replied. “If the sun and the moon can sit in the same sky,” She paused, glancing at the god of the sun, who bowed his head in guilt. “Then many kingdoms can rule this world.”
The tension was thick as all the gods who claimed ownership of the throne of the world sat together. Deafening silence loomed over the deities. Unlike when the visiting deities arrived at the kingdom of Bathala, the sun was beginning to climb down.
“So…” Bathala started, clearing his throat before continuing. “I suppose we are all shocked and confused.” He glanced at the other supreme deities, checking for any kind of reaction. After another moment of silence, he sighed. “We must discuss the state of our worlds.” He said.
“There is nothing wrong with MY world,” Kaptan interjected, crossing his arms over his chest. He stared at Bathala in a challenging way. Seeing it as a sign of disrespect, Bathala felt annoyed but dismissed the feeling nonetheless. The god was not used to having mortal or divinity talking to him in such a manner. However, since Kaptan was one of his visitors and he didn’t know what the deity was capable of, Bathala simply could not instigate a fight with the god.
“Our worlds are divided, my brother.” Bathala retorted. “Our mortals would be much happier if we unite worlds.”
“Who do you suppose will be the ruler of the world then?” Malayari asked. But unlike Kaptan, who was more hostile, Malayari was more calm and respectful. Bathala grinned at the god as what he thought was an excellent answer formulated in his mind.
“We rule together.”
“I refuse to let you have ownership of my world when I am the one who created it!” Kaptan angrily shouted, slamming his hands on the table that stood between him and the other deities. “So do I!” Pamulak Manobo also stood up in protest. Both gods glared at Bathala who also glared back at them.
The three gods had been arguing for a while Malayari and Kabunian remained quiet. Even though Bathala believed that he was the first divinity in the world, he was willing to compromise in order to unite the lands. However, Kaptan insisted that he was the first god to create his land in the world, and Pamulak Manobo did the same. Because of this, both gods believed that they should be the only supreme god of the world.
“I declare war among our kingdoms!” Kaptan shouted and left, having enough of the meeting. Pamulak Manobo huffed and left the kingdom as well. Defeated, Bathala sank to his seat before glancing at the two other gods.