UNIVERSITY OF PANGASINAN

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING AND ARCHITECTURE

ARC 150 – HOUSING

SAS/ MODULE NO. 4

 UPDATED PHILIPPINE CULTURAL BELIEFS IN HOUSING.

MENESES, MARY RUTH V.

UP – FBI – BSAR05 – 01
STUDENT

AR. CESAR AGPOON

INSTRUCTOR
When it comes to building our homes, we take extra measures to ensure our prosperity
and safety in them. Besides relying on Chinese geomancy or feng shui, many Filipinos
also prescribe to traditions that date back to pre-colonial times. From burying coins to
counting the steps on our stairs, we have upheld these inherited practices throughout
the centuries. Take a look at some of the more common superstitions that Filipinos
continue to practice when it comes to building and selecting our homes.

Homeownership is often viewed as a symbol of financial stability and success in the

Philippines. There is a strong desire among Filipinos to own a home in order to provide
security and stability for their families. A common belief is that owning a home is a
valuable investment that appreciates over time and can be passed down to future
generations.

Traditions when moving to a new home

In the Philippines, moving into a new home is often celebrated with several traditions
and practices. These can include a house blessing by a priest, where holy water is
sprinkled throughout the house, lighting a candle in each room to bring light and
positivity, and the hosting of a party or gathering to celebrate the new chapter in their
lives. Friends and family members may also bring gifts for the new homeowners as a
way of welcoming and congratulating them. These traditions allow Filipinos to bring
good luck, blessings, and positivity to their new home.

Common rituals before house construction

Even at present times where scientific findings are a foundation of a strong house
foundation (concrete mix composition, depth of foundation, etc), many Filipinos take
extra measures to ensure the safety of their homes and the prosperity of those who live
there. Such Filipino beliefs and rituals on building homes are handed down from
generation to generation mostly through word-of-mouth communication.
Part of daily life is ancient beliefs that proper setting up of homes and buildings
translates to good luck and avoiding misfortune. Even in this modern age where rational
thinking dominates, beliefs rooted in cultural history continue to pervade. And for every
attempt to dismiss them as old-fashioned and archaic, the common defense will always
prevail: wala namang mawawala kung susubukan natin.

When selecting the lot

Never mind if the lot is expensive, securing those that show prospects of fortune and
avoiding those that manifest tell-tale signs of bad luck is a big deal.

1. Go for square or rectangular lots as they are thought to usher a well-balanced

and harmonious home. Other shapes are also welcome: trapezoidal lots could
mean great wealth, and purse-shaped lots, with a small frontage and a wider
back, are thought to naturally collect money and fortune. Triangular lots, as
challenging as they are from an architectural perspective, are discouraged as
they are believed to invite accidents and conflicts.

2. Good luck awaits those who wish to buy that tract of land that has the
presence of black ants.

3. Certain regional groups discourage buying of dead-end lots as they cause

financial misfortune or death in the family.

4. It is best to cut down aratilis/mansanitas trees that grow on a lot you bought to
prevent your daughters from getting pregnant out of wedlock in the future.

5. Finding a snake in the lot may be scary and dangerous but these reptiles are
considered good luck. Just make sure to remove the animal promptly —
getting bites is not a sign of luck.
Laying the foundation

Laying the pillar of the house is a momentous event and a milestone that summons lady
luck and blessings to fill the house.

1. It is believed that embedding loose coins or religious medallions inside the

foundation can bring good luck. It is believed that St. Benedict’s Medals mixed
in with each foundation can guard against misfortune. Burying the medallion
of St. Joseph, a carpenter in the Bible serves the same purpose.

2. The blood of a pig or chicken smeared on the house’s foundation prevents

bad spirits from wreaking havoc on the home.

3. Wait until the full moon before pouring in the foundation concrete as lunar
cycles are auspicious and as essential in housebuilding as they are in
agriculture.

4. Turning the posts in a clockwise position as they’re erected and fixed to the
ground makes a house resilient to typhoons that often wreak havoc in certain
regions in the Philippines.

5. Turn your home into a financially-blessed dwelling by placing an old coin on

its doorstep.

Placement of elements of the house

Orientation of homes follows a certain Chinese geomantic system to invite prosperity

and discourage bad luck.

1. The housefront should face the rising sun/east to encourage sunshine through
the front door, which also brings warmth and prosperity to the home. Likewise,
kitchens are ideal to face the east to both allow ample brightness in food
preparation and good fortune and happiness to those who partake of the food
prepared in such auspiciously located kitchens.
 2. The house should not face the west, as this can bring financial difficulties,
quarrels, or immediate death to its residents.

3. Avoid placing toilets close or open towards the kitchen. In addition to sanitary
reasons, food must be held in high regard and its preparation close to the
kitchen is perceived to be disrespectful to the sacredness of dining.

4. Avoid placing a mirror across the main door of the house to prevent deflecting
good luck that enters.

5. Bedrooms should be planned so doors never face each other or the stairwell.
Doors should not open towards the foot of the bed nor a headboard rest
against a window opening to ensure a long life. Otherwise, sleeping
positioned at any large openings invites an early exit.

6. Make the surroundings airy by allocating a generous amount of space to allow

good ventilation and sufficient lighting to create that aliwalas effect. Its
opposite, kulob, is thought to be the presence of unwanted entities.

1. Avoid sunken areas such as basements and depressed floor areas as they
are believed to collect bad energy and invite malevolent entities to linger in the
house.

Designing the stairs

Even the design and placement of stairs have to follow certain superstitions. While it is
difficult to prove these claims of wealth or misfortune depending on how stairs are built,
it does no harm to keep them in mind and implement them.

1. Steps on a staircase should not count in a multiple of three (3, 6, 9, etc). This
takes the pattern “oro, plata, mata” (translated as “gold, silver, death”). When
climbing the staircase, the final step should not match “mata/death”.

2. The stairs should always turn to the right, as this direction denotes the moral
path. A flight of stairs turning to the left might cause infidelity in a marriage.
Planning house details

There are intricate details inside the house that may spell doom or good luck.

The best time to move in into your new house is during the full moon, and avoid doing
so during the Holy Week leading up to Holy Saturday, All Souls Day, and the Chinese
Ghost Month of August. Also, ensure that you schedule a blessing of the house.

1. Doors inside the house should not face parallel to the door facing outdoors so
the flow of luck through the house continues.

2. Do not reduce a two-story house into a single-story structure because it will

cut short the lives of the house residents.

3. Never use 13 as a house number.

4. An auspicious start to a new home can be achieved if you move into your new
home no later than six in the morning during the new moon. This will ensure
fortune in your new home.

5. Before bringing over other things in the house, bring over salt, rice, and coins to
symbolize the continuous entry of blessings in the house. There is a special
order on which item should be brought in ahead of the others: salt, vinegar, soy
sauce, uncooked rice, sugar, a glass of water, and coins. Each should fill a
container regardless of size. Doing so will ensure the home would never run out
of provisions.
There are some who believe that the prosperity of a household is determined by unseen
factors reacting to special tributes and residential decisions. Because of these
widespread beliefs, local architects adhere to certain traditional design elements.
Though a couple of superstitions border on absurdity for tradition’s sake, there are
some that are backed up by good reasoning, even improving the quality of living in
one’s home.

Padugo

A rather infamous bloodletting ritual that involves an animal (usually a chicken) and the
designated area for construction. It is believed that the ritual will bless those associated
with the structure with luck or drive away evil forces, depending on who you ask.
Numerous versions of the ceremony call for different kinds of sacrifices and actions, but
the overall expected outcome remains the same.

Numerology

On the subject of numbers, it is no secret that the number 13 has always been
loathed as an unlucky number. Most high-rise buildings would rarely have a 13th floor,
skipping the number and labeling it as 14 to avoid scaring off the superstitious.
Ironically, there is a belief that every odd number besides 13 equals positivity. This
would sometimes be the deciding factor for those planning to live in a condo or an
apartment.

 Oro, Plata, Mata

Translated to Gold, Silver, Death, this ominous belief has become a well-known legend
among property owners and builders alike. Reminiscent of the 13th-floor
superstition, Oro, Plata, Mata believes that a staircase should start and end with
prosperity. As the first step means gold and the second means silver, the last step
should be either of the two. Ending the stairs with Mata could be disastrous to the
owner, or the architect who could get accused of bringing bad luck to a property.
Feng Shui

While Feng Shui is primarily a Chinese belief, many local and foreign property owners
adhere to its supposed harmonizing principles. Feng Shui is the study of invisible forces
that forms, energizes, and disrupts all living things, also referred to as Qi energy. Some
may find studying the art complex or even expensive because when it comes to Feng
Shui, everything matters. Furniture placement, window placement, trinket types, minor
actions, and the likes make up most of any enthusiast’s life choices. 

House Blessing

Some say it is a practice that will cleanse the aura of a house. Others say it brings good
tidings in days to come. A house is usually blessed by a priest by sprinkling holy water.
This practice is considered to be less invasive compared to other home improvement
superstitions. Another way of having a house blessed is to have every door open on
New Year’s Eve. The belief sometimes even encourages leaving the windows and lights
on to invite good fortune. Given the explosive celebrations outside, the former part is not
quite encouraged for health and safety reasons. 

Money

Give or take, spreading coins everywhere has been an easy tradition to maintain. From
planting rare mints under the garden to placing change on each foot of the staircase at
New Year’s Eve, coins have been a symbol of hope for superstitious people. Other
related monetary superstitions include planting coins within foundation posts,
having coin bowls mixed with foreign coins, and scattering coins in the living room upon
moving into a new house.

 Proper Positioning

There are superstitions surrounding house placement that shed light on the importance
of interior design and pre-construction planning. For starters, it is believed that a house
should face the direction where the sun rises to mirror the rise of the homeowner’s
prosperity. Houses facing west are the kind who would shun or avoid blessings.
Likewise, kitchens are expected to be placed on the east side of the home for similar
reasons and should generally avoid being placed close to the restroom for spiritual
reasons. There is also the belief that doors should not be placed in parallel to doors
leading outside so the good fortune does not leave. Finally, there is an amusing
preference for staircases to be built rising towards the right for the sake of inviting
righteousness. 

The culture of construction superstitions is usually considered odd and old-fashioned,

but traditions and word of mouth have kept much of it alive. There’s nothing wrong with
following these beliefs, as long as it is ensured that your home is properly built.
Reference:

https://pinoybuilders.ph/popular-filipino-home-superstitions-in-construction/

https://business.inquirer.net/266349/filipino-building-beliefs#ixzz89f409h7c

https://philippine-property.net/1993-filipino-homes-construction-beliefs.html

https://www.bria.com.ph/articles/superstitious-beliefs-that-influence-filipino-homes/