The Philippine Literature

This is the story how two lovers from two warring families fought for their love and right to be together.

When the world was young, in a faraway town, there were two families who were fighting for the right to govern the people. Both families were rich and powerful, which is why nobody would back down in the struggle to claim power over the town. These were the tribes of Datu Dinaganda and Datu Manoo.

The Dinaganda family had an only daughter named Marikit. The girl is loved by their servants because she is kind-hearted and helpful. She is also beautiful and cheerful which is why a lot of men wooed her to be their wife.

Meanwhile, the Manoo family also boasts of their eldest son, Maksil. He is a true warrior, being strong and brave. Many women as well as men admire Maksil for his characteristics.

One time, while Maksil was in the woods hunting, he spotted the beautiful Marikit by the falls. Maksil instantly fell in love with her. He introduced himself to the lady. Soon after, the two became a couple and were inseparable.

The two lovers had to keep their relationship a secret; they coming from families who were mortal enemies. They would sneak from their families to meet clandestinely.

One day while Marikit sneaked out of their house to meet Maksil, her father Datu Dinaganda, had her followed by a trusted servant. After seeing the lovers together, the servant rushed back to the Datu and reported what he saw.

Datu Dinaganda was angered by what he learned. He scolded Marikit and forbade her to see Maksil. But the girl was determined to continue the relationship. She devised a plan to meet up Maksil. She would ask him to take her away from their warring families.

Marikit asked her trusted servant to give Maksil her letter. He agreed to meet her in their usual meeting place.

That night when the two met up, the lovers promised that they would not let anyone get in the way of their love. However, unknown to them, they were both followed by their families.

Their fathers tried to separate the two but Maksil would not let them without a fight. He took out his machete and promised to strike anybody who would go near them.

The two were able to run away from the crowd and managed to hide themselves under a big tree. They repeated their promise to stay together. Suddenly, they realized that the only way to keep this promise is if they took away their lives together. Then their families could no longer do anything to separate them.

The lovers had already decided and they killed themselves while holding on to each other’s hands.

While the lovers were pledging their love to each other, the gods and goddesses had heard what they had promised to each other. They admired their pledge for each other. They were sorry that the lovers had to resort to death just so they could be together. Because of that, the gods and goddesses decided to make the lovers into birds so that they will have a chance to be together.

The birds were then called lovebirds. Just as the two had promised not to separate from each other, lovebirds cannot be separated from each other or else they would die from extreme loneliness.