Visiting the Island of the Witches | Solo Show (Re-upload)
Rune Soup
Gordon White
4.7 • 861 Ratings
🗓️ 24 March 2023
⏱️ 49 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In the middle of the Philippines archipelago is the mysterious Siquijor -known variously as the Island of the Witches, the Island of Sorcerers or the Island of Healers. This remarkable place is home to several thriving magical and healing lineages.
Here is my story of visiting and encountering these traditions during the time of year where the healers travel up sacred Mount Bandilaan in order to collect the healing herbs their work requires for the whole year. These visits only happen on the seven Fridays between Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. I was fortunate enough to come along on one of these harvests.
It's a fascinating place that is illuminating in comparison with cunning traditions, curanderismo and other cosmovisions around the world: Saints, sacred timing, herb lore, energy work. And if you are looking to visit Siquijor, check out the show notes.
If you'd prefer some visuals, head over to YouTube.
- Note - Episode has been updated due to audio not playing properly.
Show Notes
I have added the following places to Google Maps on Siquijor, so go to the island and search for these:
- Annie Ponce (Nearest town is San Antonio).
- Batong Hakut (the name of Noel Torremocha's healing practice. Nearest town is Cantabon).
- Loreto Quimno (bolo-bolo healer in the town of San Juan).
If you are visiting, I recommend the guide I used, Chelsey, whom you can contact via Facebook or Instagram. He came with me to each of the healers and accompanied me gathering herbs so he knows everyone and all the places. He's also a great guide just if you are visiting Siquijor:
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | And the This week we are doing a slightly different solo show for one thing it's not live and |
| 0:22.1 | for two I'm going to give you a little bit of a travel log, a little |
| 0:28.2 | bit of what I did in my holidays. Not that it was a holiday, that's a book reference for you. Old Time is out there. |
| 0:35.7 | I want to tell you about visiting the island of the witches, which is Sikihur in the Philippines. |
| 0:42.3 | So I guess we'llhore in the Philippines. |
| 0:42.5 | So I guess we'll start talking about the Philippines |
| 0:45.6 | and move in from there. |
| 0:49.4 | It takes three and a half days to get to Sikhi-hore |
| 0:51.9 | from where I am in southern Tasmania. |
| 0:54.0 | And part of that is just the realities of travel now. |
| 0:57.0 | It was overnight. |
| 0:58.0 | And by realities of travel, I mean, you have to expect flight cancellations and delays and all the rest of it in a way that we never had to prior to, oh, I don't know, some rules that came about over the last three years |
| 1:16.8 | that have resulted in widespread sicknesses and so on, which was the case we had a sick pilot |
| 1:22.3 | that no one could find and whatever. |
| 1:24.0 | We're moving back into a world of slower travel. |
| 1:28.0 | It used to, I mean it is the other side of the world, but it used to take several days on an airplane to get to London from |
| 1:34.9 | Australia. Anyway, so it took three and a half days, overnight Sydney, overnight Manila, |
| 1:40.4 | overnight Dumagete, which is the nearest big town I suppose to |
| 1:45.0 | see Gihyhor and then very early the next morning getting a ferry over because |
| 1:48.1 | there is no airport there actually is it's just not open yet. They've a classic developing country story. |
| 1:54.7 | They've got all the money for it. |
| 1:55.8 | It's long overdue. |
... |
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