who is mayari?
In Tagalog mythology, Mayari is a warrior goddess of the moon and the daughter of Bathala, supreme creator of earth. In one version of Mayari’s story, her father Bathala went into a deep slumber because of his old age. As such, Mayari proposed to her bother, Apolaki, god of the sun, that they both rule earth equally. Apolaki chose to rule as one, which led to a fierce divine war between the two.
Mayari lost one eye during their battle due to Apolaki’s bagakay (a weapon made of bamboo). Injuring his very own sister made Apolaki reflect and ask for forgiveness. He eventually relented to Mayari’s proposal. As a result, Apolaki ruled the day and Mayari ruled the night, and the light during nightime was dimmer due to Mayari’s lost eye.
Mayari symbolizes inner strength, compassion, beauty, revolution, night, and the moon. Her weapon, the yantok, is made of bamboo and measures up to 3 feet long. This ‘fighting stick’ is used in martial art forms such as eskrima, arnis, and kali.
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