I have two scary memories about manghihilot. I’m not sure about the English equivalent for the word, but I don’t like to use quack doctor, for some of them are really quite good. Anyway, these two manghihilot were consulted when I was terribly sick (sending me to a hospital was court of last resort).

These manghihilot were like shamaness. They had this ritual called tawas, wherein they threw melted candle wax into a basin of water, then they interpret whatever they saw in the solidified candle wax. By then they would have determined if you were a victim of supernatural creatures (pinagkatuwaan ng dwende or natikbalang – played with by dwarfs or by a creature with a head of a horse and body of a man) or something else (like pilay), then they would prescribe something.

Anyway, the first manghihilot was scary because she looked scary. She was very old and very thin, the kind that you would see in a vintage 80s Regal horror movie. For the tawas sessions, what she did was to cut a portion of a thin, white candle called “esperma”, put this on a spoon, then hover the spoon over a lighted candle. When the candle wax was melted, she poured it on a basin of water. Then the interpretation.

The next manghihilot was scarier. Aside from the fact that she looked scary (though she was younger than the first manghihilot), her tawas method was downright scary. Instead of using a spoon, she used a bolo. Yes. A large, dark, almost rusty bolo. What she did was to put the bolo in candle light. When that side of the bolo was hot enough, she would press the butt end of an esperma, and the melted wax fell on the basin.

Good thing I only had one session with the bolo-wielding manghihilot.

And oh, they were manghihilot in the true sense of the word – they can break your bones and make your muscles hurt in pain if needed. Now that is scary.