Chapter XIX: Introduction

The term Luwaran, which the Mindanao Moros apply to their code of law, means "selection" or "selected." The laws that are embodied in the Luwaran are selections from old Arabic law and were translated and compiled for the guidance and information of the Mindanao datus, judges, and pandita who do not understand Arabic. The Mindanao copies of the Luwaran give no dates at all, and nobody seems to know when this code was made. They say it was prepared by the Mindanao judges some time ago, but none of those judges is known by name. Datu Mastura's copy of this code was written about 1886, and it is undoubtedly copied from some older manuscript. The original manuscript [11] accompanying this code is older still, but it bears no date at all.

The Arabic books quoted in the Luwaran are Minhaju-l-Arifeen, Taqreebu-l-Intifa, Fathu-l-Qareeb, and Miratu-t-Tullab. The first of these, generally known as the Minhaj, is the chief authority quoted. Datu Utu had an old copy of the Minhaj that looked more than two hundred years old. The author of the Minhaj must have lived in the ninth or tenth century. The compilation of the Luwaran must have been made before the middle of the eighteenth century.

Each Mindanao datu is assisted in the administration of justice by a judge and a vizier. The judge is called Datu Kali. The word kali is derived from the Arabic word meaning "judge." The Datu Kali is the chief pandita of the district and is supposed to be the best-informed man of the community. The pandita is the scholar who can read and write and perform the functions of a priest. The vizier is called "wazir;" he is a pandita, too, and acts in a semijudicial and clerical capacity. Mohammedan law being based on the teachings of the Quran, the chief pandita of the district is naturally regarded as the most competent expounder of the law and the best-fitted person in the community to act as a judge. As the wazir is a pandita, he should be a well-informed and wise man. Some datus are pandita themselves, and some take all matters into their own hands and delegate none of their offices or duties to a judge or a vizier; but this is the exception, not the rule.

In making the Luwaran the Mindanao judges selected such laws as in their judgment suited the conditions and the requirements of order in Mindanao. They used the Arabic text as a basis, but constructed their articles in a concrete form, embodying genuine examples and incidents of common occurrence in Mindanao. In some places they modified the sense of the Arabic so much as to make it agree with the prevailing customs of their country. In a few instances they made new articles which do not exist in Arabic but which conform to the national customs and common practices. The authority of the Luwaran is universally accepted in Mindanao and is held sacred next to that of the Quran. The Mindanao judge is at liberty to use either of them as his authority for the sentence to be rendered, but as a rule a quotation from the Quran bearing on the subject is desirable.

All datus and viziers and all persons acting in the capacity of a chief or a vizier find the Luwaran very convenient and helpful. Very few people can become kali, but all who are able to read can study and use the Luwaran. Consequently the Luwaran has had general use, and copies of it are seen in all the districts that speak the Magindanao dialect. To establish this fact copies of it were secured from the ruling datus of Bagumbayan and of Saraya or the upper valley.

The copy [12] secured from Datu Mastura is by far the most complete of all. The text is well written, neat, and distinct. The original Arabic articles are written separately on the margin of the book and opposite the Magindanao articles with which they were supposed to correspond. Datu Mastura is the best living descendant and representative of the house of Mindanao, and he probably owns the most reliable books and documents that have been transmitted from the previous generations.

This book is certainly the best specimen of Magindanao literature; it is genuine, correct, and well written. On account of inability to secure the book itself, an accurate and exact copy of the same was taken. The Magindanao articles are written separately and are numbered for convenience in reference. The translation is not exactly literal, but nearly so.

The Arabic marginal quotations are copied separately and are numbered in the order in which they appeared in the original copy. They are also translated, and a table indicating the Arabic quotation which corresponds to each article of the Luwaran is attached to the introduction to the translation.

In actual practice the Moros do not distinguish between custom and law. Many of their customs are given the force of law, and many laws are set aside on account of contradiction to the prevailing customs of the day.

Slavery is such an established custom and institution of the land that it is generally sanctioned and supported in the Luwaran.

An oath on the Quran is so firmly binding and the fear of perjury is so strong in the mind of the Moro that oaths are generally taken and are always regarded as sufficient confirmation even in the absence of evidence.

The Moros are not strict nor just in the execution of the law. The laws relating to murder, adultery, and inheritance are seldom strictly complied with. Indeed, the laws of inheritance as given in the Luwaran are generally disregarded and are seldom considered at all. Mohammedan law does not recognize classes, except the slave class. But Moro law is not applied equally to all classes. Great preference is shown the datu class, and little consideration is given to the children of concubines.

The Luwaran, nevertheless, is the recognized law of the land and compliance with it is a virtue.

TRANSLATION OF THE LUWARAN, THE MAGINDANAO CODE OF LAWS

In the name of God the Compassionate and Merciful, praise be to God, who led us to the faith and religion of Islam. May God's blessing be with our master Mohammed and with all his people and followers.

The following articles are taken from the Minhaj and Fathu-l-Qareeb and Taqreebu-l-Intifa and Mir-atu-t-Tullab and have been translated from the Arabic into the Java (Malay) dialect of Mindanao, the land of peace:

Article I

If two people disagree as to the ownership of a certain property, the actual possessor has the right to the property if he swears to that effect. In case both of them are in actual possession of the property, both ought to swear. If both of them swear to that effect, the property shall be divided between them equally. If only one person swears, the property shall be given to that person alone.

Article II

If a person borrows an article and loses it, he shall replace it or pay its value. The same rule shall apply in case the article is stolen. There shall also be paid a reasonable additional compensation for the lost article.

Article III

If a person borrows an ax or a button, and the ax is broken or the button lost while being used for the purpose for which it was loaned, and not on account of carelessness, the lost article shall not be replaced. But if the ax is used at a place overhanging the water or is used to cut a stock of bamboo without being well tied or fastened, and is lost, it shall then be replaced.

Article IV

If two persons disagree as to whether or not a certain debt has been paid and have no witness to the fact, the plaintiff's claim shall be sustained in case he confirms it by an oath. In case he refuses to take an oath the defendant's claim shall be sustained.

Article V

If a person intrusts another with his property and later calls for it and it is denied him on the plea that it has been taken back or that it was lost, and no witness can be obtained, the trustee's plea shall be sustained if he confirms it by oath.

Article VI

If a person enters a claim to his lost property which has been found and kept by another person, and the finder refuses to deliver the property on the plea that it is his own property and that it has been in his possession for a long time, and there be a witness who testifies that the property is a find and not an old possession of the finder, the finder shall return the property found and pay a compensation of one cuspidor or two.

Article VII

The seizer of another's property shall return the seized property and pay an additional amount proportional to the interest derived from the property.

Article VIII

If a person enters the house of another at night without the consent of the owner thereof, and the said owner complains of the offense, the defendant shall be fined four cuspidors.

Article IX

If a man enters the house of another with the intention of holding private intercourse with a woman therein with whom it is unlawful for him to associate privately, and the woman objects, he shall be fined four cuspidors or four pesos, or shall suffer from twenty to thirty-nine lashes, or shall be slapped on his face, at the discretion of the judge.

Article X

If a woman comes into the house of a man with the intention of marrying him and of living with him, and the man refuses to marry her and she is later taken away by her people, the man shall not be liable to fine or punishment.

Article XI

Section 1. If a man divorces his wife after the conclusion of the marriage act or ceremonies, and before any sexual intercourse has taken place, the woman shall have half of the dower only. If the divorce occurs after sexual intercourse has taken place, the woman shall have all the dower.

Sec. 2. If a man refuses to marry a woman after having been engaged to her, the whole dower shall be returned to him, excepting the expenses for the feast incurred by the father of the woman.

Article XII

If a person curses or abuses another person without cause, he shall be fined not more than three cuspidors.

Article XIII