Gat Dula lived long ago. He was prince of a small kingdom on one of the northernmost islands of the Phillipines. He was a curious person, and so he often traveled from island to island, stopping in each to study the customs of others.

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One day he visited Laguna province, and went to the market near Mount Makiling. As he wandered through the marketplace, he passed a beautiful woman with hair as dark as ink and skin that shimmered beneath the sunlight. ∴К∩ПＷｗw.FａＩrＹ-ｔＡｌe．ＩｎＦｏД

The woman's eyes met his, and the young man bowed in respect. The woman bowed her head, for she felt shy.

From that moment, Gat Dula could not stop thinking of her.

So the next week the man returned to this same market, and searched for the beautiful maiden, who had captured his heart. §β9wｗw．faｉrY-ＴaLｅ。ｉnfｏフЯФЧ∪

As the young man searched, he asked the vendors if they knew a young woman with black hair flowing to her waist. They shook their heads and looked away, for they knew he must be describing Maria Makiling.

ǎキゑПＷｗｗ.fAiｒY－ｔＡLｅ。Ｉｎfｏふス≠ハТ

Maria Makiling was no ordinary woman. She was a fairy, the daughter of two powerful gods. Her mother was Dayang Makiling, her father Gat Panahon. Now in those days the gods sometimes visited Earth disguised as mortals. They were able to converse with people, and people could go directly to ask the gods for help. ＷｗW。ＦAiRY－ＴaLＥ．ｉｎｆo

Week after week Gat Dula returned to the market to search for Maria Makiling, but each week he was disappointed.

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Then, at long last, one January day, he saw her again in the market. せwWw．ｆAＩＲY-ＴａＬｅ.iｎfｏīτVメn

His heart nearly burst with joy. He walked toward her and spoke. "I am Gat Dula," he said, "and I have looked for you for months. I would like to get to know you."

The two talked as they strolled through the market. As the months passed, their love blossomed. They vowed to love each other forever.

Alas, when Maria's parents heard of the young man their daughter had given her heart to, they called her to see them. mｗwW。faIrｙ－TＡｌE.ＩＮＦoCセīàε∫

"This love cannot be," her father thundered. "He may be of royal birth, but he is mortal, and you are a daughter of gods. You may not love this man."

‖くwｗw．ＦＡｉrY-ｔａlＥ。ｉＮFOネψǔ∨~マ※

Maria looked at her father and said, "I will always love him."

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Upon hearing this, Gat Panahon took away his daughter's power of enchantment; no longer could she disguise herself as a mortal woman and visit Earth.

The next day Gat Dula went to the market to meet Maria as they had planned, and when she did not appear, he was crushed. Week after week he searched for her, but he did not find her. 『ǚ∷€MWｗＷ.fＡｉＲｙ－ＴａｌＥ.Iｎfｏfǔ0c

Gat Dula became a very sad man, and when he was still young, he died of a broken heart. てU◎8Wｗw.ｆａIＲY－ＴAｌｅ。IＮＦｏЬ

Maria begged her parents to let her guard Gat Dula's soul. They agreed. And ever since, Mount Makiling has stood majestically over the countryside, a symbol of strength and beauty. If you look closely, you'll see the profile of the maiden who is guardian of her lover's soul, the fairy who watches over the lonely and protects those who travel in the mountains.