Daragang Magayon: the Lady of Mayon Volcano, an active volcano in the Bicol Peninsula, notable for its nigh-perfect cone. Her myth is here recounted.
Maria Cacao: The Lady of Mount Lantoy, a mountain in Cebu Island.
After Typhoon Sendong: a recent and, considering the fairly benign role of these deities, rather peculiar legend concerning Maria Cacao is here recounted. After the devastation of said typhoon, the people of Cagayan de Oro noticed a strange lady sailing her boat down the muddy, log-ridden river, and inviting folks, particularly the sick, the weary, the very young, and the very old, to board her boat. The wise among the people, however, warned against accepting her invitation, saying that she was to bring them reprieve eternal -- she was Maria Cacao, collecting souls for the otherworld.
Maria Makiling: the Lady of Mount Makiling, a dormant volcano in Southern Luzon. One of her legends is this: that a humble farmer became the object of her affections, such that he lived a blessed, protected life; and yet, on the arrival of war, entered into marriage with a fellow mortal for fear of his life, as marriage meant exemption from conscription; and, visiting Makiling one last time before the ceremony, received a wedding gift, after which the fairy disappeared.
"by American mahogany? But there is": certain species of [South] American mahogany are considered to be invasive, here in the Philippines.
"the pale white man who pitched his tent": a campus of the state university was established on the slopes of Mount Makiling. At first, it was just the college of agriculture, with its first dean being Edwin Copeland, an American botanist. Classes were first held in tents.
Maria Sinukuan: the Lady of Mount Arayat, an extinct volcano in Central Luzon. The name seems to come from the word "suko", meaning "surrender".
"just as he shaved surrender's head": another Mount Arayat myth involves Sinukuan, this time a male god of the mountain, whose chief rival is Namalyari, the god of Mount Pinatubo. In this piece, however, the legends of Sinukuan and Maria Sinukuan are conflated, especially considering the 1991 eruption of Mount Pinatubo, whose ash cloud was extensive enough to cover, if not Mount Arayat itself, then the fields surrounding it.
"transformed her figs fat on the twigs": it is said that Maria Sinukuan once grew a vast, bountiful garden on the slopes of her now barren mountain, from which she picked fruits to give to the locals of a nearby town. The locals, however, grew greedy, eventually trespassing into her garden and stealing much of her fruit. Angered, she turned all of the fruit they stole into stone, dissolved her garden, and, ultimately, disappeared from mortal eyes.
"and entered her dark cave": among these four fairies, only Maria Makiling does not live in a cave, instead residing in a hut.
