Inikadowa: A Flight Toward Our Indigenous Light

Long before lanterns came with doctrine, we lit fires of our own — for spirit, for story, for survival. Join us on our journey of ancestral healing.

Inikadowa is a towering (12ft) bird born from memory and myth, feathered with hundreds of Parol lantern panels — the iconic star of Filipino holiday celebration, reimagined as a symbol of ancestral light and diasporic resilience.

We invite you to help us build this bird, light these feathers, and carry this story.

Sarimanok & Inikadowa from Maranao Folklore https://www.philippineartscouncil.com/post/sarimanok

According to the Maranaos, the Sarimanok is their totem bird named Itotoro which has a twin-spirit, Inikadowa. When Rajah Indarpatra married a water nymph, they had two sons: one who can be seen and the other, unseen. Seen became the ancestors of the modern-day Maranao people and Unseen is the spirit that they pay tribute to during rituals and rites. These two brothers made a pact that they will always protect each other from bad spirits and they chose the Sarimanok to be their totem bird and through the help of its twin, Inikadowa, it became the link between the seen and the unseen worlds. The fish on the beak of the Sarimanok symbolizes the food that the Maranao people offer to the spirit world. The kashawing (rice ritual) can be traced to the narrative. The ritual involves a reenactment of the pact made by the ancestors of the community and the unseen spirits that inhabit the lake.

Receiving a Burning Man Honoraria grant is partial funding. What will my donation help to cover?

Skilled labor & teaching
Workspace rental
Engineering fees
Transportation of art
Construction hardware
Finishing materials
Lighting and Solar components
Build team travel
Team feeding budget

Join Us!!! Virtual Construction and build at Burn2 in Second Life: until July 8, Inikadowa virtual burn effigy at Burn2 Conception July 25-27, 2025

Join Us!!! Physical Construction & Assembly: July 8 to August 19, 2025
Join us to build in Doyle, CA just 2 hours away from Black Rock City or 45 minutes from Reno, NV. Tent camping, RV spots, room rentals available. Email: info@delata.art

The native lands we will working on for this project:
Nüümü (Northern Paiute) ↗
Wašišiw Ɂítdeʔ (Washoe) ↗
Cayuse, Umatilla and Walla Walla ↗

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Lynn Luzano Bryant '3V' / Lead Artist is a bi-cultural Filipina-American neurodivergent artist exploring identity, resilience, and mental health through mixed media and virtual culture. They have been attending Burning Man for 30 years building large collaborative art with the Flaming Lotus Girls, volunteers for Burning Man's DPW and the Virtual Regional of Burn2.

Kawayan Collective / Parol panels production (Dumaguete, Negros Oriental, Philippines)
Worker-owned bamboo co-op led by 33 builders, with women at every level. Building better homes for all Filipinos.

West Coast USA Team:

Mitos Ming Suson / Advisor (Philippines)
Melanie Mcknight / Surface Design
Rob Mangrobang / Info Design
Jeff Olhoeft / Second Life design Burn2
Hotnutz / Transport & Electrical
YesseeJessee / Lead Carpentry

Delata.art founded by 3V in 2023 is a non-profit project exploring art making in the Philippines.

Inikadowa Parol Lantern

Burning Man Honoraria Art 2025

Team Leaderboard

Team Members