Apolaki

Apolaki — The god of sun, wisdom and strategy and the chief patron of warriors. He is also sometimes called as Araw (literally means sun). Spanish accounts say he was "ill-tempered", however, the Spanish used the image of the Greek god of war, Ares. In actual pre-colonial mythologies, Apolaki was a peaceful god who would fight for what he thought was right and if he was wrong in the end, he would do his best to fix his wrong. This trait was exhibited during his battle with Mayari, where he apologized, after he put out one of Mayari's eyes, and agreed to Mayari's proposal for equal rights in ruling the earth. He was the son of Anagolay and Dumakulem. The neighboring pre-colonial Kapampangan people in central Luzon regarded Apolaki not a god of the sun as they already had one, but a goddess of the moon, conflicting with the pre-colonial Tagalog beliefs. The northern Tagalogs and the Kapampangans believed that female water beings (modernly referred as sirena or mermaids) worshiped Apolaki. During the Spanish occupation, reports surfaced where Apolaki came down from Kaluwalhatian and scolded some Tagalog folks for "welcoming men with white teeth". The reports were passed on by the townsfolk to the parish priest, thus documenting the said event. During pre-colonial Tagalog times, having black-pigmented teeth was the aesthetics, while having white teeth was seen as disgusting and unbearable. Apolaki is also known for defending against the serpent-dragon, Sawa, everytime the monster tries to consume the sun. In contrast, Mayari defends the moon. In Tagalog polytheism, the sun was Apolaki's emblem.