Pagduyan sa Bayan: Tungo sa Pagluluwal ng Tradisyon ng Oyayi (Cradling the Nation: Towards Birthing the Philippine Lullaby Tradition)

• Main Author: Alquisola, Vijae
• Format: text
• Published: Animo Repository 2024
• Subjects: oyayi; tradisyonal na tula; awiting bayan; panitikang oral; tradisyong oral; naratibo (lullaby; traditional poetry; folk song; oral literature; oral tradition; narrative); Other Arts and Humanities; Other Languages, Societies, and Cultures
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/akda/vol4/iss1/3; https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/context/akda/article/1075/viewcontent/2_Alquisola.pdf
• Institution: De La Salle University

Sa diskusyon ng tradisyon at panitikang oral, tila nakaligtaan ang oyayi sa duyan nang malibang sa kuwentuhan ang tagapag-alaga. Bagamat nahahagip ang oyayi sa ilang kritikal na sulatin, antolohiya, at mga lathalain—nananatili ang pangangailangan na sinupin ang mga ito upang masimulan ang paglalatag ng tradisyon ng anyo. Bukod sa pag-survey sa mga kaugnay na literatura, layunin ng papel na maipakita ang mahigpit na pagkakabigkis ng oyayi sa karanasan ng bayang nagluwal dito. Isa rin itong pakikipagdiyalogo sa mga maagang nasabi tungkol sa oyayi bilang hindi nagkukuwento o “non-narrative” at “walang kahulugan” labas sa pagpapatulog ng bata. Sa paglalatag, ipinakita ang kalikasan ng oyayi bilang awit at tula, at isang anyo na sa kabila ng kaiksian—may kalong-kalong na naratibo. The lullaby seemed neglected in the oral tradition and literature discussion, much like a child left in a hammock as the caregiver was engrossed in a conversation. Although it has been written about in some critical essays, anthologies, and feature articles, these materials must still be reviewed and synthesized as a preliminary step toward writing the lullaby’s tradition. Aside from surveying possible related literature, the article illustrates that the existence of lullabies is tied to the experience of the community that gave birth to it. This article is in dialogue, too, with scholars’ early perceptions of lullabies in the country who believe that it is a “non-narrative song” and “meaningless” outside its use of lulling the baby to sleep. The essay sheds light on the nature of a lullaby as a song and poem, and despite its shortness—it carries a narrative.