The National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) has launched a new TV documentary series on the rich and diverse cultural heritage of the Philippines.
The series is aimed at imparting deeper knowledge on the multicultural dynamics of the Filipinos, NCCA officials said.
Titled “Buhay na Buhay,” the eight-part weekly show in Filipino presents the different layers of the Philippine culture, a result of the many outside cultures, the introduction of religion, trade and colonization.
The program is based on former NCCA chair Felipe de Leon’s concept of eight cultures from the precolonial, pre-Islamic culture to the contemporary.
The cultures are still “buhay na buhay,” or vibrant and alive today, De Leon said.
These eight cultures are Kultura ng Pagdidiwata (Harmony with the Deities, Creative Forces of Nature and Ancestral Spirits); Kultura ng Pag-uukir at Pag-uuma (Poetic Mysticism and Devotion to Islam); Kultura ng Pamamanata (Devotion to the Patron Saint and Village Community); Kultura ng Pananahan (Devotion to the Home and Family); Kultura ng Paglilining at Pangangatwiran (Culture of Reflection and Reasoning); Kultura ng Pag-aaliw (Culture of Entertainment or Sensations); Kultura ng Pamumuna at Pagtutol (Culture of Social Criticism, Concern, Protest); and Kultura ng Pagka-Filipino at Pagkabansa (Devotion to the Nation and Being Filipino).
“Buhay na Buhay” is hosted by Sen. Loren Legarda, who also hosts another NCCA program, “Dayaw.”
The senator said the program aims to raise the level of awareness and knowledge of the viewers on the rich culture of the country.
“We are always in pursuit of deepening our understanding of the very soul and identity of being Filipino,” she said during a press conference. “Through this series, we will experience and witness how our culture continuous to be buhay na buhay.”
Gracing the recent media launch was NCCA chair. Virgilio Almario, NCCA executive director Rico Pableo Jr., De Leon, GMA consultant Jose Bartolome, and cultural icon Ligaya Fernando-Amilbangsa who performed Pangalay, the traditional dance of the Sulu archipelago.
“Buhay na Buhay” airs on GMA News TV starting Feb. 17, at 5:45 p.m.