Bakonawa

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The Bakonawa is a lesser-known character in Philippine Mythology. The Bakonawa appears as a gigantic serpent that lives in the sea.

Ancient natives believed that the Bakonawa caused the moon or the sun to disappear during an eclipse.

It is said that during certain times of the year, the bakonawa arises from the ocean and proceeds to swallow the moon whole. To keep the Bakonawa from completely eating the moon, the natives would go out of their houses with pans and pots in hand and make a noise barrage in order to scare the Bakonawa into spitting out the moon back into the sky.

In popular Filipino folk literature, the Bakonawa is said to have a sister in the form of a sea turtle. The sea turtle would visit a certain island in the Philippines in order to lay its eggs. However, locals soon discovered that every time the sea turtle went to shore, the water seemed to follow her, thus reducing the island's size. Worried that their island would eventually disappear, the locals killed the sea turtle.

When the Bakonawa found out about this, it arose from the sea and ate the moon. The locals were so afraid that they prayed to Bathala to punish the Bakonawa. Bathala refused but instead, told them to bang some pots and pans in order to disturb the Bakonawa. The bakonawa then regurgitated the moon and disappeared, never to be seen again.

The island where the sea turtle lays its eggs is said to exist until today. Some sources say that the island might just be one of the Turtle Islands.

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