Origin Of Sampaloc

There once lived in one of the barrios of Lipa, Batangas, a man named Timo. He was a very religious man. He never failed to observe his religious obligations or to do his spiritual duties.
Every harvest time Timo held thanksgiving celebration for the gods of the sky, and, during lean months , he performed appropriate ceremonies to please the divinities of the forest, rivers, and hills .
Because of this , Bathala , the highest ranking deity of the sky , took a liking for Timo. He showered him with graces. He made Timo's fields yield more than enough. In fact, Timo was given everything he wished.
In due time, Timo became the richest man in the village. He was able to acquire large tracts of land which he planted crops. His granaries were always filled with cereals. His stove was never cold, his table never empty of good food.
Everyone in the village, including those from the neighboring sitios, came to Timo for food during famines. And they never left the house without sufficient food to last them till the hard times were over.
However, it did not take long when selfishness crept into Timo's heart. His wealth gave him power and influence throughut the land , and that made him boastful, arrogant, and irreverent. Soon he began forgetting his obligations to the gods of the sky.
This angered Bathala. As punishment, the great god did not let the rain fall. The fields soon became dry. The plants withered from the lack of water and the work animals died of hunger. The people became frantic. They made sacrifices and gave offerings to the divinities of the sky, the forests, and the hills. But no rain came. Famine raged over the land.
The people in the village flocked to Timo's house and begged him to give them food. Timo refused them, saying that the food he had stored was hardly enough for his family.
One day a young man came to Timo's door. He was ragged and weak. His lips were parched from the thirst and his limbs were trembling from starvation. He begged for a cup of water and a handful of rice.
Seeing the man, Timo got angry. He told him to go away. The stranger pleaded. In exasperation, Timo banged the door in front of him. But the man knocked again and moaned for food.
In his anger, Timo struck the young man's face. " Go way," he shouted. " You ought to be ashamed of yourself. You are young and strong and yet you beg for food. Go away and so you can eat."
"You don't have to strike me," the stranger said weakly. " How can I work whem I'm starved? You should remember that you were once a poor and a starving man yourself."
The man's words shamed Timo. He repented for what he had done. To make up for this mistake, he invited the man in. However, the stranger declined the invitation saying: " Ba't mo ako sinampal bago inalok?" ( Why did you hit me before inviting me in?) Then the stranger turned and walk away.
When the young man left, Timo returned to the kitchen. He was surprised to find that the food he was preparing was gone. He ran down to his granaries. The rice and corn had disappeared, and, in their stead, he saw strange-looking fruits. In his curiosity, he broke one of them and tasted it. It was very sour.
As he squirmed from the sourness of the fruit, Timo remembered what the stranger said. he knew then that the young man was the angered Bathala who came down to test him.It was too late for repentance! In his desperation, he threw the fruits out of the window. Then he went away without letting the villagers know where he was going.
Weeks passed. One day, the people saw a beautiful plant growning outside of Timo's window. When it bore fruits, these were sour. The people then called the tree sampaloc- the sour tree of selfishness.