Batibat
PhilippineSpiritNightmareSleep ParalysisHousehold
Lore
Batibat is a hostile household spirit often tied to old trees or reused timber. Field notes record it as an incorporeal presence that produces a localized, bone-deep cold rather than heat; the air around a Batibat smells of damp wood, mildew and loam with a faintly sweet note of rot; sounds associated with it are low and wet — a slow rustle, the soft sucking of breath, or the creak of settled timber. Observers report a heavy pressure on the chest of sleepers and vivid nightmare imagery, though no visible mass is required to apply that weight. Habitually encountered at night in dark, damp homes made from salvaged posts or stumps, it behaves like a predatory spirit that seeks hosts while they sleep.
Origin: Philippine (Ilocano / Tagalog folklore) • Luzon
Classification: Spirit
Field Notes
Observations
- A sudden episode of sleep paralysis: inability to move or call out, oppressive weight on the chest, localized chill and the scent of damp wood or mildew.
Encounter Advice
- avoidance: Do not sleep with your head against tree stumps, burned posts, or freshly felled/unseasoned timber; keep sleeping areas dry, ventilated and lit when possible; elevate the head, use a clean pillow, and avoid reusing suspicious wood for bed supports.
- defense: Break the paralysis with abrupt stimuli — loud noise, bright light, splash of water or a sharp pinch to rouse the sleeper; remove the pillow or wooden post from under the head, scatter a pinch of salt around the bed, or cleanse the room with smoke from common household herbs. If the hold persists, seek a knowledgeable elder or local ritual practitioner.
- offering: Optional appeasements include a small bowl of uncooked rice and fresh water at the home's threshold, or ritually returning a piece of the offending wood to the earth to acknowledge the displaced spirit.
Abilities
- Chestbound EmbraceSinks its weight onto a sleeper's chest to freeze breathing and willpower, producing paralysis and crushing suffocation.
- Nightmare DrainFeeds on the victim's life through vivid, fatal nightmares that weaken bodily resistance while they sleep.
- Balete ManifestReforms from or retreats into the heartwood of a balete tree or timber, allowing it to inhabit houses built from its wood.
Weaknesses
- Sunlight ExposureDirect daylight forces the spirit to disperse and sear its hold, collapsing manifestations built on houses or sleepers.
- Abrupt AwakeningA sudden, forceful rousing of the sleeper (shout, slap, cold water) breaks its Chestbound Embrace and drives it off temporarily.
- Burning the Host WoodDestroying the balete heartwood or the specific timber it inhabits severs its anchor and can permanently banish the Batibat.