A talk on the making of “Nagmalitong Yawa” as a Soul Project in the Depth Institute of Asia

The “Nagmalitong Yawa” book was a result of a Soul Project requirement of a depth psychology and storytelling course that author, Kat Gomez-Limchoc, took in 2024 from the Depth Institute of Asia. Part of the curriculum was reading and analyzing epics from around the world and the Philippines, including the Panay Bukidnon epic of Humadapnon. It was in delving in this story that Kat fell in love with the character of Nagmalitong Yawa and found her to be the true hero of the tale.

The 2025 cohort of the course had just finished taking up the Humadapnon epic, and Kat was asked to present her book and the process of creating it as her Soul Project. She highlighted how the project has given her so many gifts,from its creation that was world expanding while being an opportunity for creative play, to the many talks she has given about it to all kinds of groups, always with a different lesson to share. She talked about the joy of  inspiring children to tap into their natural creativity to empowering leaders how to tell powerful stories to kickstart social good projects.

A spirited discussion followed Kat’s talk, with questions from a scientist of how to do a soul project from her science and math background to creatives who became so curious about the Panay Bukidnon culture, to discussions about Filipino masculinity and relationship dynamics. It was amazing to see how the tale of Nagmalitong Yawa from hundreds of years ago continues to whisper wisdom and inspire wonder.