Bernardo Carpio
Encyclopedia
Bernardo Carpio is a legendary figure in Philippine Mythology
Philippine mythology
Philippine mythology include a collection of tales and superstitions about magical creatures and entities. Some Filipinos, even though heavily westernized and Christianized, still believe on these tales...

 who is said to be the cause of earthquakes. There are numerous versions of this tale. Some versions say Bernardo Carpio is a giant, as supported by the enormous footsteps he has reputedly left behind in the mountains of Montalban
Rodriguez, Rizal
Rodriguez, Rizal is a first-class, urban municipality in the province of Rizal, Philippines. It is the northernmost town in the province and comes after San Mateo, Rizal, and Quezon City coming from Metro Manila...

. Others say he was the size of an ordinary man. However, all versions agree he had a strength that was similar to that of Hercules
Hercules
Hercules is the Roman name for Greek demigod Heracles, son of Zeus , and the mortal Alcmene...

.

Basic legend

The basic form of the legend is that Bernardo Carpio, a being of great strength, is trapped in between two great rocks in the Mountains of Montalban.

Some versions say he is keeping the mountains from crashing into each other (similar to the Greek titan Atlas
Atlas (mythology)
In Greek mythology, Atlas was the primordial Titan who supported the heavens. Although associated with various places, he became commonly identified with the Atlas Mountains in north-west Africa...

 holding up the sky), and some versions say he is trapped and trying to break free. When Bernardo Carpio shrugs his shoulder, an earthquake occurs.

As a revolutionary against Spanish occupation

According to one version of the tale, Bernardo Carpio was a son of Infante Jimena and Don Sancho Diaz of Cerdenia. Infante was cloistered by her brother King Alfonso, who at that time was very powerful, because of her forbidden love with Don Sancho Diaz. Don Sanchio Diaz then was incarcerated, his eyes are to be plucked out. Then Bernardo was then cared by Don Rubio, by whosedesigns the affair of the hapless love is discovered by the King.

The Spanish hired a local engkantado (shaman) and conspired to trap him through supernatural means. Calling for a parley, they lured him towards a cave in the mountains of Montalban. The lad fell for the trap. The engkantado used his agimat
Agimat
Agimat or bertud or anting-anting, is a Filipino word for amulet or charm. Although stereotyped as a cross, a flat, round or triangular golden pendant accompanying a necklace or a necklace-like item, it is also depicted as an enchanted stone that came from the sky or from the heart of a banana...

(talisman
Amulet
An amulet, similar to a talisman , is any object intended to bring good luck or protection to its owner.Potential amulets include gems, especially engraved gems, statues, coins, drawings, pendants, rings, plants and animals; even words said in certain occasions—for example: vade retro satana—, to...

) and Bernardo Carpio was caught between two boulders which the shaman had caused to grind each other. The legend says he was not killed, but was trapped between these two boulders, unable to escape because the talisman's power was as great as his own strength.

When Carpio's co-conspirators arrived at the cave to rescue him, they were blocked from the cave by a series of cave ins
Cave-in
A cave-in is a collapse of a geologic formation, mine or structure which typically occurs during mining or tunneling. Geologic structures prone to cave-ins include alvar, tsingy and other limestone formations, but can also include lava tubes and a variety of other subsurface rock formations.In...

 that killed several of the men.

People soon surmised that whenever an earthquake happens, it is caused by Bernardo Carpio trying to free himself from the mountain.

Etymology

The same version says that Bernardo Carpio demonstrated unusual strength, even as a child. As a result, the parish priest who baptized him suggested that his parents name him after the Spanish legendary hero Bernardo del Carpio
Bernardo del Carpio
Bernald del Carpio, also Bernaldo del Carpio and Bernardo del Carpio, is a legendary hero of medieval Kingdom of Asturias, comparable to other legendary medieval Iberian heroes like El Cid.-The story:...

. This became a foreshadowing of the legendary life Carpio himself would lead.

As symbolism of freedom

Damiana Eugenio was able to find and document a 1940 compilation of tales detailing the legend of Bernardo Carpio. It specifically says that:

"Bernardo Carpio is considered the savior of the Filipinos against national oppression and enslavement".


According to that particular telling of the tale, when the last link on the chains binding Carpio is broken, "the enslavement and oppression of the Filipino race will be replaced with freedom and happiness." While this belief apparently referred to the Spanish Occupation of the Philippines and the later occupation by the Philippines by the U.S. and by Japan in WWII, the legend has continued to be told this way, an apparent reference to freedom from poverty rather than foreign domination.

Filipino revolutionary heroes Jose Rizal
José Rizal
José Protacio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda , was a Filipino polymath, patriot and the most prominent advocate for reform in the Philippines during the Spanish colonial era. He is regarded as the foremost Filipino patriot and is listed as one of the national heroes of the Philippines by...

 and Andres Bonifacio
Andres Bonifacio
Andrés Bonifacio y de Castro was a Filipino nationalist and revolutionary. He was a founder and later Supremo of the Katipunan movement which sought the independence of the Philippines from Spanish colonial rule and started the Philippine Revolution...

 are said to have paid homage to the Bernardo Carpio legend - the former by making a pilgrimage to Montalban, and the latter making the caves of Montalban the secret meeting place for the Katipunan
Katipunan
The Katipunan was a Philippine revolutionary society founded by anti-Spanish Filipinos in Manila in 1892, whose primary aim was to gain independence from Spain through revolution. The society was initiated by Filipino patriots Andrés Bonifacio, Teodoro Plata, Ladislao Diwa, and others on the night...

 movement.

As an etiology

The tale of Bernardo Carpio can be considered an etiological myth
Etiology
Etiology is the study of causation, or origination. The word is derived from the Greek , aitiologia, "giving a reason for" ....

which explains the occurrence of Earthquakes. Interestingly, the area which hosts the legend of Bernardo Carpio is also home to the Valley Fault System (formerly called the Marikina Valley Fault System).
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