Kamma and Kungnga

 CULTURAL NOTES

Richard Kinnud

Characters in Ifugao a’apo (fictional narrative), Kamma and Kungnga are obvious adaptation for literary purposes of the words amamma (an older one) and ung-unga (a younger one).  There are two stories I first heard from my grandmother where Kamma and Kungnga have figured in.
    In one of them, they are neighbors who went swidden farming.  They planted gube (some claim that this refers to watermelon although melons are not a common crop in the place where I first heard it). When the gube were red ripe, someone named Lablabut comes in the night stealing them.  He even boasts of eating the best ones by shouting about it in the night.  Kamma and Kungnga plotted how to catch the thief.
    They took turns guarding their farm but each time, Lablabut was able overcome the individual strength when only one comes to wrestle him.  So Kamma and Kungnga thought of doing it together to which they were able subdue the thief.      Unluckily, they were tricked by Lablabut that he was able to escape to his home in the depths of a deep part of a river at the base of a waterfall. 
    Kamma could not accept however that what his gube would not be paid by the thief so he took courage to follow Lablabut into the water.   He discovered that Lablabut lived in an abundant home and so he confronted and exacted something from him. 
    When Kungnga came to know about it, he also went to Lablabut and got something better.  Not wanting to be outdone, Kamma went to complain to Lablabut and was given another repayment.  Kungga too did return when he heard of Kamma’s additional recompense.  And it went over and over that way.
    I remember that the way grandmother told us, she seemed not to have an intention to end it by devising new recompense for Kamma and Kungnga until we get bored of the story and asks her to retell it or tell another one.  By the way, in my experience an a’apo is not told at once but in installments while on the sleeping mats. 
    So Kamma and Kungnga might take a whole week or even more especially if someone who slept during a previous episode would request a retelling. 
    In another Kamma and Kungnga story, they were brothers who are sent every day to the swidden farm.  Their parents take turn in bringing them lunch. 
    When it is the turn of the father, they would have an equal meal.  But when it is their mother’s turn, Kamma noticed that his would look like stale food while Kungnga has something better.  It goes that way everytime that at one point, Kamma told his brother that he now likes to leave them. 
    Even if Kungnga was crying pleading to his brother to not leave, Kamma went on to call the birds to give him beak and wings that he could join them.  There were several groups that attempted to give Kamma what he desires but only the beak and wings of kango (a big bird) would fit him. 
    He then joined the group of the kango.  The family was so remorseful but they know they could not have Kamma anymore as he could have flown faraway.  To their surprise, every morning when they wake up they find the best foods from the mountains distributed equally beside each of their heads. 
    The ration went on regularly.  They knew it was Kamma bringing them the goods.  They were happy about it but wanted that Kamma will stay with them so they plotted about catching him.  One time, they were successful.  Kamma turned into man again and they lived again together.
    These stories came to mind as it flashed through some social media posts that this month of April is National Literature Month by virtue of Proclamation 968 of the president of the Philippines issued on February 10, 2015. The proclamation acknowledges that “the Philippine literature, written in different Philippine languages, is associated with the history and cultural legacy of the State, and must be promoted among Filipinos” and that “the national literature plays an important role in preserving and inspiring the literature of today and in introducing to future generations the Filipino values that we have inherited from our ancestors.”
    Here in the Cordillera, the short stories and other narratives have been transmitted from generation to generation in the oral tradition.  
    There surely are written ones but may not be accessible to all.  There surely are several other stories not just Kamma and Kungnga awaiting a written form.  It becomes a challenge to every Cordilleran especially to researchers and writers.  The goals that Proclamation 968 looks forward to is markedly noble to us as indigenous peoples, and so the best forward is to respond positively it even beyond this month, the National Literature Month.