What Is "Usog" in the Philippines? "Kontra Usog" Amulet Contents Revealed

Kontra usog amulet from Pulilan, Bulacan, Philippines

In some parts of the Philippines, there’s this practice of putting saliva on the abdomen of a baby by someone who’s given the child impromptu notice, whether in greeting or contact. Visitors who’ve given attention to a baby may be asked by the parent or guardian to do this and state, "pwera usog." The act is supposed to counter the effects of usog which is similar to the concept of the ”evil eye” in Western culture. It’s said that anyone (although there are those who are more inclined to it), can unknowingly place a hex on a baby (or adult) causing it to feel ill.

A baby who’s under the influence of “usog” termed colloquially as nausog or nabati may start to vomit or show signs of fever. To remove the effects of usog, the person responsible must be called to smear saliva on the baby’s belly with a finger. If the person is not available, the alternative is to look for someone who can naturally counter the effects of usog. Such people are rare, but somehow, they instinctively know if a baby is under the influence of usog. If they rub the head of a baby affected by usog, it’s said the effects can be reversed. A person with this inherent healing ability once touched the head of a baby who’s been vomiting, supposedly as a result of usog, and immediately after, the baby repeatedly burped, relieving the discomfort. If there’s no one around who has this ability, the only option is to wait for the symptoms to subside on their own. If the symptoms are severe, the parents simply take the child to a doctor, letting go of any traditional beliefs to the wind.

If you go to one of those big old Catholic churches around the Philippines, you may find vendors in the vicinity selling charms, amulets, and talismans. Some of these are designed to counteract usog. The amulet pictured here is from Pulilan, Bulacan. It consists of red and black plastic beads strung in a garter. The red cloth pouch has a cross stitched on one side. It measures roughly 1 ¼ inch. The pin is what’s used to secure the usog amulet on clothing. A baby wearing this kontra usog amulet is supposed to give protection to the child.

Inside the “counter usog” amulet, there’s a rolled piece of paper secured by transparent tape. Opening this revealed what looked like powdered tree bark. The paper is obviously cut from a grade school textbook. Anybody who’s not familiar with the idea of usog will not understand the logic behind all these and that it’s all simply superstition, but to someone who believes and has faith, it all makes sense. In the end, it’s really all about a person’s faith in God and the counter usog amulet is just a crutch to support someone’s belief. 

The paper used to wrap the amulet's bark powder.

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Ghost Hunting Teams Can Use Employee Monitoring Software

We have all seen it happen on reality television – ghost hunting teams working in coordination with one another on an assignment. Their goal is to document evidence of ghosts. They are paid to do their job right and they know how important it is to monitor the decisions and actions of their team members, whether the members are working in nearby areas or in distant locales. It is possible to keep track of what team members are doing with the help of software services like My Team Monitor, the provider of Employee Monitoring Software.

My Team Monitor can be useful for ghost hunters, professional or otherwise, because as the name suggests, it is a big help in monitoring your team. If you run a ghost hunting business and you pay people part time or full time to look for ghosts through online webcams or physically inside a haunted house, then you can use Employee Monitoring Software like the one from My Team Monitor. Using it, you can keep an eye on your workers and give you peace of mind that what they’re doing is exactly what you want them to do.

If you visit the site, you can see that the Employee Monitoring Software of My Team Monitor is currently in beta format, but it can be downloaded and installed for free for a time, which is good if you want to test the program. The website features videos of animation demonstrations to help you get started. It has links for the Boss, the Employee, and for the Office Administrator who may need to stealthily monitor employees’ work output in their workstations—just don’t forget to inform your employees that you have an eye on them.

We’ve all experienced how the Internet has changed the way people work. Whether it’s from the home or office, the kind of work you do—even if it’s ghost hunting—does not have to be done in an office that requires travel to get to. With services like My Team Monitor, you can be at “the office” anytime and anywhere and be connected with your boss or employee even when the workstation they’re using is on the other side of the globe. For managing ghost hunting teams, it’s the next best thing to having a live webcam to capture that elusive ghost. Just set up the system in a haunted house of choice and you’re all set to go. You may get lucky and capture more “ghosts” than you’ve bargained for. 

Ghost Profile Appears in a Pic of Mother and Child

Do you see the ghost's face on the left side?

On a Sunday morning, after church in February, 2012,  in a subdivision in Rizal, two women together with a baby, decided to take a few pictures inside the house. There were just three of them in the room as they took the last few pictures - the one holding the cell phone, the mother and her baby. So where did the profile of the shadowy face on the left of the picture come from?

The profile of a ghost's face in the picture was a surprise. But ghosts appearing inside and outside of this apartment is nothing new. A Doppelganger has been seen on more than one occasion inside. On the driveway, a white lady lurks and she sometimes peers into the window of a car that used to park there at night when everyone is already asleep. Outside on the road, a guitar man is sometimes seen near midnight walking with his classical guitar who fades into nothingness.

Other ghosts aside, to whom does the face belong to? Is it that of a ghost, an elemental, or something else entirely? Was this otherworldly entity just curious or does it have anything important to say.

Photos, unless specified, are owned by alvinwriter. Please contact the blog owner for copyright inquiries.

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