We tend to take the “culture” part of “agriculture” for granted. Nowadays, when we hear the word “agriculture,” we immediately associate it with food, and sometimes, unfortunately, poverty. Much of the Philippines' agricultural workers live below the poverty line, surviving hand-to-mouth working in a seemingly thankless industry.

If we’re a bit more introspective, we might relate agriculture to farming and fishing, to a deeply unfair and imbalanced food system that, despite being able to produce enough food to eradicate hunger on a global scale, nonetheless leaves many people poor, hungry, and lacking in nutrition.

But today’s column isn’t about that. Today’s column is about the relationship between agriculture and folklore, specifically in Kapampangan culture.

I sat down with Mike Pangilinan, Administrative Officer of the Kapampángan Language Services Unit under the Office of the Mayor and Administrator of the Sinupan Singsing Center for Kapampangan Culture and Heritage to discuss the role of folklore in agriculture. We were introduced by author Karl Gaverza, whose website Philippine Spirits (phspirits.com) is a popular resource for all things Philippine mythology.

Ancient Filipinos, like all ancient societies, used what is now known as folklore as a way to make sense of the weird and frankly, quite terrifying world around them. Because science had yet to take root, everything was couched in storytelling.

At its heart, religion and superstition are both ways to make life easier. They are constant, controllable practices in an uncertain world that continuously seems to be barreling into chaos. And for farmers and fishers, who constantly deal with uncertainty, every little favor from the universe counts.

According to Pangilinan, knowing beforehand that a harvest would not be successful was important because it meant that farmers could prepare for famine. This might mean saving more or planting other, sturdier crops. “That’s why you plant other things… So you stock up on kamote, you stock up on these things because the rice harvest might fail, and if you have surplus rice, don’t just give it away for fiesta or anything, just save it, and don’t be wasteful. So, find a means to save up before the harvest because the harvest might fail, and most likely, it will. The gods are always correct. That’s what they believe,” Pangilinan said.

Modern technology has alienated us from the reasons why our ancestors practiced certain beliefs. Nowadays, most people tend to think of folklore as quaint or old-fashioned. What they don’t understand is that once upon a time, these beliefs were what kept our communities safe (and well-fed). And instead of dismissing or making fun of them, we should be studying them as keys to our past and using them to understand how we became the way we are now, so that we can change for a better future.