I've been getting many emails about anting-antings. Many have been asking me where they can find one or help them in getting some. There are people who seek for protection, for love, for improvement of relationships and and others. Others are just curious, and some are apparently searching really hard. I would like to share one email and my reply to his questions. This was originally written in Filipino, and I took the liberty of translating it in English:
Good Day Pinoy Warrior, I wish to learn where I can get anting-anting that can protect against sickness, calamities and harm. I am a man living in a violent neighborhood and I usually encounter trouble and I fear for my life. I would like to protect myself, and in the future, have the capability of protecting my family. Please tell me where to buy or teach me how I can make one as I heard you can make your own, as long as you understand. I am also interested in getting the anting-anting that can bring luck and wealth. I want to understand how to use it too and know how it works.
To which I answered (also translated to English):
Dear _______,
Thank you for sending in an email and for visiting my blog, I am grateful your support. About your inquiry on anting-anting, I appreciate your interest in the mystical side of our culture. It is truly interesting, although its deeper than what most people think. There’s more to it than just protection and many people have misunderstood its value.
True, that some people possess anting-anting and it makes them more “supernatural.” It is also true that anting-anting allows a lot of extraordinary things to happen. But the anting-anting’s real value is often overlooked. An anting-anting is really just an object that enhances/amplifies certain qualities or energies in a person. It may help someone focus the energies or align them to the right “frequency” so he or she can do extraordinary things. It is perceived by many as a shortcut to a higher existence and capabilities, which is wrong. Same thing goes with the oracions. When one is in search for better anting-anting and oracions, it is a dead end because these are merely tools.
Filipino mysticism is fundamentally geared towards improving oneself, aligning a person to the universal energies or a higher being. The Great Filipino Mystics of the past do not become great in terms of their “powers” because they possess a hard to find anting-anting or they have a very powerful oracion. They themselves had become channels or beacons of "supernatural" energies allowing them access to feats that appear to defy logic and reasoning. It can be said that they themselves had become the anting-anting or the oracion, thus would have no need for such.
The fact is anting-anting and oracion is just a small part of the story and too much of it can mislead. These be looked at as objects of power, which if viewed in this manner, will definitely corrupt a person. The big chunk really is the valuing taught by the True Filipino Mystics which basically imparts doing good that will make things good and would lead to goodness.
Take my advice, stop searching for the anting-antings and try changing your outlook and lifestyle. An albularyo once told me it is futile if you rest your faith in anting-anting or oracion, as they can fail or might not work. He said to be good and do good things. According to him, men who are good and do good are less likely to be abused or harmed or get into trouble, and in the event that they were, they would understand and still continue doing good.
