Maguindanao Dancing in Spirituality

In celebration of Filipino-American History Month, House of Gongs is proud to present "Maguindanao Dancing in Spirituality", a unique cultural offering exploring the spiritual culture of the Maguindanao people. We are honored to host three respected Maguindanao Master Artists and Ritualists from Cotabato City, Maguindanao, Philippines, for this special event.

This tour showcases performances, dance workshops, music, and meaningful dialogues rooted in the deep spiritual traditions of Maguindanaoan culture. Central to this offering is an exploration of the Ipat healing ritual, an ancient practice that predates both colonial and Islamic influences in the Philippines. Participants will experience firsthand how spiritual elements are intricately connected to bodily movements, revealing the significance of dance in Maguindanaoan spirituality.

Featured Artists/Ritualists:

FAISAL MONAL: is a dancer, shaman, chanter, and musician. He plays various Maguindanaon traditional instruments like the kulintang, agong, debakan, babendil, and gandingan.

As a traditional musician, he became a delegate to the national music competition for young artists (NAMCYA) in Laoag City, Philippines (2000) representing the Maguindanao Province of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. His kulintang group has been invited by Kularts (San Francisco, CA) as Philippine Master Artists in Residence and has performed several times in the USA and in venues such as Asia Alive!, the Asian Art Museum (San Francisco, CA), Towson University (Maryland), University of California Los Angeles, and University of California Berkley, Yerba Buena Gardens (San Francisco, CA), and Brava Theater (San Francisco, CA).

Faisal was also part of World Arts West living Traditions in 2020 and recently completed Sagayan Archiving project with Parangal part of Living Traditions project funded by Alliance for California Traditional Arts 2021-22

Abdulhafiz “Dags” Gandawali Uko: is Maguindanaon Culture Bearer from Cotabato, City, Mindanao. He is the nephew of the reigning Sultan of Kabuntalan Sultanate. He is a Master ritualist p’bebetad with knowledge and skills in proper ritual protocols and has worked with three shamans. Dags is also known for his specialty in cooking Maguindanaon spiritual food and delicacies.

DEN MANIAL: Popularly known as Dens, is Maguindanaon Culture Bearer from Cotabato City, Mindanao. He is a shaman and group leader of Pimbagelan Kulintang Ensemble, a Champion of Cotabato State University’s Kulintang competition. Dens has been declared to be enthroned as Raja Mudah sa Luma in Dimapatoy from royal lineage of Datu Bandara sa Maguindanao.

Join us for this exploration of Maguindanaoan dance and spirituality, and connect with the ancient wisdom that has been passed down through generations. This event is a rare opportunity to engage with the spiritual roots of Filipino culture and to celebrate the culture of the Maguindanao people.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

1110 University Ave suite 100, 1110 University Avenue, Honolulu, United States