Fifteenth International Conference on Interdisciplinary Social Sciences

Abstract

Since before the advent of the Spanish colonizers in the Philippines particularly in the province of Bulacan, cockfighters also known as sabungeros are engaged in various types of cockfighting or sabong in Filipino parlance. This paper shares some pertinent common belief systems and practices of sabungeros that served as inarticulate guidelines every time they engage in cockfighting. Such practices that exist for a long period of time are currently observed. The methods that utilized in this study is phenomenological observations, interviews with the aficionados or “true blooded sabungeros,” and library-archival research. Among the belief systems of sabungeros highlights three significant practices like: do not introduce new cock inside the game yard where the cock for fighting dwells, avoid any funeral procession along the road, and when the cock is scheduled for the fight its coop must remain open until the fight is over. In summary, cockfight in the province of Bulacan will never subside because it is a lucrative sport, it helps a lot of marginalized people earn for a living, and it is a sign of indigenous recreation among the Bulakeños.