Guling Guling Festival of Paoay 2021 | Ilocos Norte Philippines Ilocano Cultural Folk Dance Heritage

GULING-GULING 2021 The Guling-guling of Paoay is celebrated every March right before the proverbial St. Agustin Church. As part of a sacred tradition, the dance highlights the smearing of the cross on a person’s forehead using wet, white rice flour, as a form of cleansing from sins. This practice was introduced by the Spanish friars which has been celebrated for more than 400 years now. Included in the celebration is the commemoration of the founding of the St. Augustine’s Church which is a living testament of the people of Paoay’s commitment and loyalty to their faith. Hence, in celebration of the Guling-guling, the townsfolk don themselves in the famous abel and dance their way to the church where they are met by the priest who imprints the sign of the cross or guling on their foreheads. For centuries, it has been marking each time a season of greater faith and devotion among our people to the Almighty God. Today, the Guling-guling inspires us to recommit and truly demonstrate our faith in our lives as we all unite in praying for continuous progress, our rapid recovery, and abundance for all of our kakailian.
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The Ilocano Dance Heritage and Guling-Guling 2021. Celebrate Ilocano Dance Heritage in this special virtual staging of Tan-ok ni Ilocano Festival and the celebration of Guling-Guling 2021 - a delightful showcase of folk dances of the Ilocano people filmed in the most scenic and historic sites in Ilocos Norte.

We continue to celebrate our “Tan-ok” month with a showcase of Ilocano folk dances! Using researches by foremost Filipino dance scholars and experts as references, our choreographers, dancers, and costume designers have interpreted 10 extraordinary examples of dances in Ilocos Norte for a modern audience. This online show coincides with the celebration of Guling-Guling, an ancient tradition in the historic town of Paoay.

The Ilocano Folk Dance Festival is indeed the perfect essence of our greatness. Undeniably, our culture and the arts are powerful instruments in fostering unity in the community and pride in our heritage. As we altogether recover from the effects of the pandemic, this festival has revived the creativity and livelihood of designers, performers, choreographers, and other artists in the province, inspiring and reassuring them that their passion has a place in Ilocos Norte.