SOMETIMES, people who come from outside the academe are able to make substantial contributions to the field of history. The example of the recently deceased Luciano Santiago is a clear one: a respected psychiatrist who wrote outstanding books and research papers on the religious history of the Philippines.

We can say the same about the author of the book I want to comment about this week. Narciso C. Tan defines himself as 'a practitioner and consultant of inclusive finance,' but he has written a book that promises to be much discussed in the years to come by historians, anthropologists and any reader with intellectual curiosity. The title says it all: Púgot. Head-taking, Ritual Cannibalism and Human Sacrifice in the Philippines.