An Enchanted Forest of Balite Trees

I always emphasize in my environmental science classes that the state of the environment is a result of how people regard nature. In other words, if somebody believes that nature is there to be exploited and is viewed as an infinite source of raw materials, his behavior will be to make full use of the resource without regard for the future. Trees, when cut may be renewable, but the extent of damage may not allow a forest to revert back to its original state.

In the Philippines, many of the old folks believe that the balite or banyan tree (Ficus benghalensis) is a favorite forest home for the enchanted. Its small leaves, twisted, and complex root system gives an eerie feeling. It's like a large bonsai growing in the forest. There were times when some people see enchanted lights in the forest and many saw them moving. And some saw half horse, half human creatures trailing behind them while walking near those trees.

These are the reasons why local members of the community in the rural areas would not dare topple the balite tree down for fear that supernatural beings living in it will get angry and punish them with some kind of unexplained illness. This belief was further reinforced when many of those who did cut the tree experienced some kind of unexplained malady.

To prevent harm, the babaylan or local psychics would advise those who pass by those trees to utter some words, in effect asking permission to walk through it. It is believed that people who prowl those forests may bump into an enchanted being unknowingly and earn its ire. Thus, the balite trees were left untouched in the forests.

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My graduate professor once remarked that it may be desirable to plant balite trees in the deforested areas of the country, as people believe it is enchanted and will not dare cut it down. It will be a good strategy to preserve the forests to maintain a desirable landscape.

Beside its ecological functions like preventing erosion as part of the forest, banyan is extensively used in creating bonsai. There may be other uses aside from this. Preserving the balite tree can provide future options for undiscovered qualities.

This idea may also hold true in the case of that island whose surrounding reefs were protected because of a fisher's snake encounter in that island. More of this story in my article titled "Marangas: An Enchanted Island".