The splendor of the Sinulog Festival made Filipinos, and fellow Asians, refer to it as the “Mother of all Festivals”. Your eyes will marvel at the bright-colored, intricate costumes of street dancers. The several colorful flaglets (banderitas) hanging above the streets and lively music played in hotels and malls tell you that the date of the festival is near. Sinulog festival never fails to amaze millions of tourists.
Filipinos have a rich culture because the Philippines has been colonized by many countries but the most significant is that of Spaniards and Americans. Consequently, they become products of several social constructs or norms.
Festivities are much celebrated here because Filipinos have a deep sense of religion and a penchant for social gatherings. They actually enjoy cooking and sharing foods with other people. They are known for merry-making and warm hospitality.
Impressing greater than a million attendees, both locals and foreigners, annually, it’s no wonder Sinulog landed being one of the grandest festivals in the Philippines. Tickets for mid-January (its scheduled celebration) are sold out fast, so make sure to book ahead of time. In 2015, an estimated 1.8 million people joined the procession for the festival despite concurring with Pope Francis’ visit to Manila.
History of Sinulog Festival
The Sinulog Festival is celebrated to worship, praise, and give gratitude to Santo Niño, the child image of Jesus Christ that is said to be miraculous. It is also the patron saint of Cebu.
Essentially, it is a dance ritual to commemorate that time when Filipinos welcomed and embraced Christianity.
The dance steps originated from Rajah Humabon’s adviser, Baladhay, whose sickness was healed by Santo Niño. He was, then bed-ridden, was seen shouting and dancing with glee upon being placed in the shrine where sculptures of Santo Niño and pagan gods were kept. He remarked a small child (Santo Niño) was tickling him to wake up.
The first Sinulog dance
Surprised, he attempted to shoo the child by dancing with movements like those of the river current. This was the first Sinulog dance. Sinulog is derived from the Cebuano adverb “sulog” which roughly translates to “river current movement,” which is described as ‘two steps forward, one step back’. Many devotees believe this movement is according to Santo Niño’s instructions.
Other historians say Sinulog was already danced by local tribes to worship wooden idols and anitos before conquistador Ferdinand Magellan visited Cebu (Zebu, back then). Magellan gave a wooden statue of Santo Niño as a Christian baptismal gift to Hara Amihan (rechristened as Queen Juana to honor Charles I’s mother) and the ship’s priest baptized 800 natives, their rulers included, into Christianity.
Some versions say Queen Juana rejoiced and danced gracefully. And her subjects find this contagious and danced too. This was, as they say, the first Sinulog dance in history.
Dance Sinulog in rhythm with the drums
This time, the dancing is for Santo Niño, not the pagan gods. Only candle vendors dance Sinulog and give offerings. Children dressed moro-moro costumes and dance Sinulog during the third Sunday of January, the feast day of Santo Niño. It was just really a trivial matter and a simple celebration in Cebu City at that time.
In 1980, David Odilao, Jr., then Regional Director of the Ministry of Sports and Youth Development (MYSD) summoned a group of students, gave them warrior costumes to wear, and taught them how to dance Sinulog in rhythm with the drums.
Dance is what basically connects the country’s pagan past and Christian present. The street dance parade was initially a school affair until it caught the eyes of Cebu City for tourism purposes and to compete with other annual festivals in the country.
Different periods of history
History’s first Sinulog festival was held in 1981 with the involvement of different Cebuano sectors. The preserved sacred relic can still be found at the Basilica Menore de Santo Niño in Cebu.
Seven floral floats symbolize seven different periods of history. Each is followed by dancers wearing Sinulog festival costumes, representatives of the different era.
Today, the celebration is more commercialized brought about by the changing generations and preferences of the people. The festival effectively showcases elegance in its spectacular ceremonies.
The street dancing procession turned into a highly anticipated competition in Cebu City wherein different dance troupes participate. Performances should include the essentials of Sinulog – the ritual dance, the shoutout “Viva, Pit Señor!” the rhythm, and the muse, referred to as “queen,” holding a Santo Niño.
Is the Sinulog Festival a Religious Festival?
Sinulog is a tradition designed to honor both pagan and Catholic beliefs. Indulge yourself in feasting and celebration of holy mass, music, dance, and song. There is a solemn religious procession on the eve of the feast. This awaited Grand Parade moves along a 4-mile loop and would take many hours to finish.
While on it, you can taste Cebu’s appetizing street foods while strolling around the city and enjoy the street party at night until dawn. You can choose to shop in the night market or simply watch the fireworks with your date or friends.
Sinulog celebrates the days of yore in the Philippines when Rajah Humabon (rechristened as Don Carlos) accepted Christianity. Essentially, Sinulog connects culture and religion.
The local government and Church spar with the business sector to preserve its solemnity. Being the oldest Christian relic in the Philippines and said to be miraculous, the Holy Child. There is a nine-day devotional prayer at the Basilica del Santo Niño (where the Santo Niño is enshrined) called novena.
After the novena, events follow chronologically:
- Traslacion, wherein Santo Niño and a portrait of Our Lady of Guadalupe parades from Basilica to Shrine of Saint Joseph in neighboring Mandaue City;
- Fluvial parade (lit. river parade), you can rent a boat two o’clock AM to early morning in the shores;
- Solemn procession where millions of devotees (greatest at 4 million) carry candles while dancing Sinulog. Nine to twelve hours of sacrifice is a small thing to thank the Santo Niño for answered prayers, guidance, and luck;
- Grand Parade, the most anticipated part where amazing dance troupes compete for recognition and millions of pesos clad in magnificent bright-colored Sinulog Festival costumes. Seeing the smiles and cheerful faces of the performers can melt your blues away! It may be on par with the colorful Carnival in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, or even Mardi Gras! and finally,
- Hubo (lit. undressing) at the Basilica where the Santo Niño is ceremoniously undressed, bathed in perfumed water, and dressed before returning to its home (glass casing). This formally ends the Sinulog Festival.
Instruments Used in Sinulog Festival
As the Holy Child Jesus is carried along the streets, drums beat in rhythm for a bountiful harvest while devotees dance in the streets the river current steps – two steps forward, one step back. Harmonious melodies come from drums, trumpets, and native metallic gongs.
Usually, the dances are interpretations of how Santo Niño had helped their respective communities. The words “Pit Senyor kang Mama kini, Pit Senyor kang Papa kini!” or “Viva Pit Señor!” would probably stick to your memory. This stemmed from the Cebuano phrase “sangpit sa señor.” It means “to call, ask, and plead to the king (Señor Santo Niño).”
After the ceremonies, everyone is enjoined to party and be wild until morning! There will be alcohol. Some say this is the best part of the Sinulog Festival. Be prepared when people put paint on you. If you’re comfortable with strangers (sometimes in groups) hugging you and being ‘overfriendly’ to you, it would be a blast!
Folk music plays a big part in the culture of Filipinos
During the celebration of the Sinulog Festival, your ears will hear cheers from the rowdy crowd and music from native materials such as bamboos, leaves, wood, and the like. And all sorts of electronic instruments such as electronic guitars, piano, organ, and electronic drum sets.
Cebuanos are good at singing. You can hear them serenade the crowd in their live band performances. Folk music plays a big part in the culture of Filipinos, so as musical instruments. In fact, they have invented several. Folk music gives energizing and exciting vibes to both the audience and the performers.
Aside from costumes and ritual dances, the Sinulog festival nowadays also features contests, such as art exhibits, beauty pageants, photo contests, and singing and dancing contests.
Below are the instruments used by the Cebuanos to set the mood of their performances during the Sinulog Festival:
Percussion
- Bass drum
- Snare drum
- Tenor drum
- Plastic Barrel drum
- Octoban
- Cymbals
- Crash cymbal
- Agung
- Babendil
- Gandingan
- Gandingan a Kayo
- Kulintang
- Kulintang a tiniok
- Dabakan
- Kulintang a kayo
- Timbales
- Congas
- Bongos
- Djembe
- Claves
- Cowbell
- Woodblock
- Wind chime
- Glockenspiel
- Xylophone
- Triangle
Wind Instruments
- Bamboo flute
- Nose flute
- Bugle
- Brass section includes Trumpet and Trombone
- Whistle
Stringed Instruments
- Guitar on occasion
- Violin on occasion
- Other ethnic stringed instrument on occasions
Ensembles of these guarantee pleasing music. Just as people put a lot of effort in designing their costumes and choreographing moves, they also maintain the highest standards in musical instruments. Makers of these take great pride in selling and introducing them to fellow Filipinos and Asians, and by extension, the world.
History tells us when the Spaniards invaded the archipelago and taught Christianity, they included these fiestas or festivals to occur in a patron saint’s feast day. Today, these reflect the varied culture of different communities and somehow Filipinos’ beliefs, values, lifestyle, and. character. Such gatherings fill the need for social connections, particularly in the simple life in the provinces. These deeply instill into them bayanihan or camaraderie.
Filipinos really love entertaining foreigners. Actually, they want you to be one with them in culture and spirit. Witness the merriest and grandest festival of the Philippines! Say it proudly, “Viva Pit Señor!”
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