The tikbalang is a half-horse, half-human creature from Philippine folklore. It can be mischievous or dangerous, but a domesticated one makes an excellent servant. Taming methods vary, and there are stories of it getting married.
A tikbalang is a mythical creature found in Philippine folklore. He is described as a half-horse, half-human hybrid. In contrast to the centaurs of Western imagination, the tikbalang is said to have the head, and sometimes the hooves, of a horse, with the body of a tall, muscular man. The legs of the tikbalang are said to be so long that when it sits, its knees rise higher than its head.
There are many stories and beliefs about tikbalang, some of which are even contradictory. A northern superstition, for example, tells us that the tikbalang is a mischievous creature and often plays pranks on wayward travellers. One of her favorite tricks is to make her victims lose their way until they go insane. They say the only way to break free from a tikbalang’s control is to turn the shirt inside out.
Other legends describe the tikbalang as a monster of the night, with eyes that glow red. This version of tikbalang casts it as a fearsome creature, a real danger to people. It is believed that when angry – and he is angry easily – he tramples people with his hooves to death. In these tales, tikbalang is always accompanied by the smell of burnt hair and smoking big cigars.
Whatever type of tikbalang it may be, there is general agreement that a domesticated tikbalang makes an excellent servant that will do whatever its master commands. The proper way to tame a tikbalang, however, is up for debate. Some say the secret is in his thick mane of hair, which hides three unusually long and strong locks. When one of these threads is torn, the tikbalang becomes tame. Others require a more physical approach, which involves jumping onto the creature’s back and choking it until it submits.
In the old rural areas, people still whisper about a tikbalang getting married when you see the sun shining in the sky during a sudden downpour. Interestingly, there is no mention of female tikbalang in any of the myths, so no one can guess who the bride might be.
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