A presentation by Sir
Edwin D Bael, KGOR
Supreme Archivist of
the Knights of Rizal
during the 53rd
National Rizal Youth Leadership Institute
on December 19, 2015
at the Teachers’ Camp, Baguio City
Juventud Filipina,
Mga Kabataang Filipino:
Seeing
Open Fields And Vast Horizons From Prison
Remember Chapter 3 of
the Noli? At that point of the story, Crisostomo Ibarra had just left Kapitan
Tiago’s party after coming home from abroad. He was followed outside by the old
lieutenant; in an isolated street the lieutenant told him the truth - that his
father, Don Rafael Ibarra, died in prison. Crisostomo was shattered. In a
sympathetic voice, as he saw the emotion his words had caused in the young man,
the officer said: “I thought that you knew it; but be brave. Here, you know, no
man can be honorable without being imprisoned.”
That’s
the way it was in those days. In his letter to the members of La Solidaridad,
Barcelona, Jan 1889, Dr. Rizal counseled: “…it is advisable for each one to do
his duty just for its own sake and at best to expect to be later treated
unjustly, because in anomalous countries, injustice is the prize for those who
fulfill their duties.”
Anomalous
pa rin ba ang bansa natin? Di na
masyado!
Our
country has definitely changed. Now, it is marked among others by many elected
“honorables” in prison, and by the fact that in our national prison, or the
Bilibid, drug lords and other nefarious beings hold sway, directing operations
from within, and even have de facto
control, borne out by a report the other month that Bilibid inmates with
automatic weapons prevented the warden from moving their “bossings” to another
block…
This
bit and clip of our current state of affairs brings us to our theme: “Youth,
Elections and the Future”. The question, to me, is: In this hyper-connected world of a
Philippines entering an ASEAN Common Market, confronted by a resurgent neighbor
bully, with so much drug-related problems under the surface, and once again
boiling in political games so focused on the ego, the personality, and the
“personalan” that the true and lasting interests of the nation are forgotten,
can you the youth of this generation make a difference for the future?
I
say, yes. Being the majority of our voters, if you get your acts together, you
would be unstoppable.
Going
to the topic of my speech this morning: “Rizal and New Dapitan (Vision for the Philippines)”,
perhaps our question could be: Are there any tips, or operations manual, or
suggestions for having a consensus on what we want our common future to be and
for having a general approach to life?
In
an essay entitled "Laughter and Tears" (1884), Dr. Rizal alluded to
his general approach in the general situation he found himself in. He wrote:
“It was a world which granted privileges to some and imposed prohibitions on
others... Endowed with strength and eager to learn, one had to drag himself in
a narrow prison cell when he could see an open field, a vast horizon in the
distance; when he could feel the beatings of a heart; and when he believed himself entitled to enjoy
the beauty of a dream.”
Our common people lived in the narrow prison cell of
daily survival where they were compelled to seek connections so as to gain
privileges and circumvent prohibitions. Has this general situation substantially
changed?
I submit, not really; and therefore I also put
forward, that no matter what our circumstances may be, we can follow Jose
Rizal’s attitude of resolutely standing up to see open fields and vast
horizons, feel the beatings of our hearts, and believe we are entitled to enjoy
the beauty of a dream… in other words, as a strategic approach, to change our
mindsets and focus our respective consciousness on opportunities, blessings, abundance.
Owning
A La Juventud Filipina
You
know every generation must fight its own battles; and the future is what you
predict and create. Abraham Lincoln is quoted to have said: “The best way to
predict your future is to create it”.
How
do you create the future?
Dr.
Rizal wrote in the first stanza of A La Juventud Filipina:
Crece, oh timida flor!
Alza su tersa frente,
Juventud Filipina, en este día!
Luce resplandeciente
Tu rica gallardía,
Bella esperanza de la Patria Mía!
Grow, oh timid flower!
Lift your smooth countenance
Filipino Youth, on this day!
Let shine with full radiance
your rich grace and gallantry,
beautiful hope of my country!
Young
ones, I plead guilty to having helped formulate what now appears on your NRYLI
T-shirts; in that print you take full possession and ownership of these
Rizalian ideas, and declare to all the world: “I am, shy flower may be, yet
rich with gallantry, and hope so lovely, of this my country!”
Since
we started reading this poem which Jose Rizal wrote when he was 18, may I finish its entire
English translation so you get to appreciate the complete sense of what he was saying? Here it goes:
TO THE FILIPINO YOUTH
By Jose Rizal
Translated to English by Edwin D. Bael,
Revised August 30, 2015
Grow, oh timid flower!
Lift your smooth countenance
Filipino Youth, on this day!
Let shine with full radiance
your rich grace and gallantry,
beautiful hope of my country!
Take wing, grand genius,
and let noble thought infuse
those who launch their virgin mind
stronger than wind of gale kind
at the seat so glorious.
Descend to the amphitheater
O Youth, with pleasant glow
of arts and sciences, and sever
the strong heavy fetter
that chains your poetic flow.
See that in the zone a-burning,
the Spaniard, in shadows staying,
with a pious wise hand,
offers splendid crown grand,
to the son of this Indian land.
You, who ascend seeking,
in wings of your rich fantasy,
from Olympus in clouds hazy,
the most tender of poesy
ambrosia and nectar exceeding.
You, with accent from heaven,
melodious rival of Philomen,
who dispels, in varied recital
in the quiet night so serene,
bitter pain from the mortal.
You who, by the cruel agony
stirring your mental tendency
and the pure memory
of the genius refulgent,
eternalizes with genius prepotent.
And you, of varied charms that ripple
of Phoebus, darling of divine Apelles,
who translate the canvas simple
with magic paintbrushes
to that of nature’s mantle.
Hurry! For the laurel does await
to crown the genius’ sacred flame,
spreading around the fame
with trumpet that does proclaim
the mortal’s name for the long wait.
O happy, happy day at hand,
gentle Philippines, for your land!
Bless the Omnipotent Grand
who with loving yearning
sends you fortune and well-being.
A La Juventud Filipina
Por Jose Rizal, November 22, 1879
Crece, oh timida flor!
Alza su tersa frente,
Juventud Filipina, en este día!
Luce resplandeciente
Tu rica gallardía,
Bella esperanza de la Patria Mía!
Vuela, genio grandioso,
Y les infunde noble pensamiento,
Que lance vigoroso,
Más rápido que el viento,
Su mente virgin al glorioso asiento.
Baja con la luz grata
De las artes y ciencias a la arena,
Juventud, y desata
La pesada cadena
Que tu genio poético encadena.
Ve que en la ardiente zona
Do moraron las sombras, el hispano
Esplendente corona,
Con pía sabia mano,
Ofrece al hijo de este suelo indiano.
Tú, que buscando subes,
En alas de tu rica fantasia,
Del Olimpo en las nubes
Tiernisima poesia
Mas sabrosa que nectar y ambrosia.
Tú, de celeste acento,
Melodioso rival de Filomena,
Que en variado concierto
En la noche serena
Disipas del mortal la amarga pena.
Tú, que la pena dura
Animas al impulso de tu mente,
Y la memoria pura
Del genio refulgente
Eternizas con genio prepotente.
Y tú, que el vario encanto
De Febo, amado del divino Apeles,
Y de natura el manto
Con mágicos pinceles
Trasladar al sencillo lienzo sueles.
Corred! Que sacra llama
Del genio el lauro coronar espera,
Esparciendo la Fama
Con trompa pregonera
El nombre del mortal por la ancha espera.
Día, día felice,
Filipinas gentil, para tu suelo!
Al Potente bendice
Que con amante anhelo
La ventura te envía y el consuelo.
Anong
ibig sabihin nito sa madaling salita? Ansabi nya, magmadali tayo mga bata, in
unfolding and manifesting our respective unique geniuses, dahil nag-aantay si
laurel or the recognition of your excellence. Come on, let them shine with full
radiance, in nobility, with arts and sciences, be they poetry, music, science
or painting.
And, may I say, own your future, whatever your potentials may be.
Yes
my friends, to effectively create, you must own your future!
Always,
the power to choose is yours.
But
I can hear your question: what are the options for the future to choose from?
Actually,
as many as you can imagine.
But
there is one option that springs from our topic: New Dapitan.
New
Dapitan
Why
new Dapitan? Because there, Dr. Rizal put his ideas into practice and there he
refined his ideas of what and how the Filipino can be; there, he fused ideas
with action into his unique praxis.
I
wish to submit to you that the poem-song “Himno a Talisay” or Hymn to Talisay
is one such product of his visioneering for our country or how the Filipino can
be or ought to be. For this presentation, let’s just assume this Himno is a
main pillar of Rizal’s framework of ideas that we now call New Dapitan.
Before
I take up this Himno with you, however, I want you to recall Dr. Rizal’s plan
in the La Liga Filipina that Sir George Aseniero had wonderfully explained
yesterday. Among the underlying tenets that caught my attention in the La Liga
are the principles of cooperativism that Jose Rizal thought should underpin the
workings of the entire organization to engage the rest of the Philippine
population.
Rizalian
Cooperativism
Cooperativism
and its principles were first set out in 1844 in Rochdale, England and have
formed the bases for the principles on which co-operatives around the world
continue to operate.
In
1889-1890, Dr. José Rizal spent several months in London first, to do his
historical research on pre-colonial Philippines and second, to improve his
English language skills. During that time, he annotated Antonio Morga’s 1609
“Historical events of the Philippines” and among others, sent out the Liham sa mga Kababayang Kadalagahan sa
Malolos.
I
would submit that it is very probable Jose Rizal came across and learned of
cooperatives and its principles during this stay in London or about 45 years
after the establishment of cooperativism. But he could as well have learned it
in Spain or other parts of Europe. He must have appreciated how these
principles could co-exist with and yet counteract the monopolistic tendencies
of those with political and economic power. Hence, he used them as the
organizing principles underpinning the La Liga.
Just
for our overview (as there is a need for a separate study on each of them) the
seven principles of cooperativism, in summary form, are as follows:
1. Voluntary and open membership;
2. Democratic member control;
3. Member economic participation;
4. Autonomy and independence;
5. Education, training and information;
6. Co-operation among cooperatives; and
7. Concern for the community.
From
this summary enumeration, you can already see how a democratic free market can
be achieved through cooperativism.
That
People Become Persons Worthy Of Liberty
But
beyond the underpinnings of cooperative principles, Dr. Rizal pursued his
frenetic activities under an overarching value.
That
value was to “make men worthy”, especially Filipinos.
In a letter to Blumentritt dated February 2, 1890 in
Brussels, Rizal narrated his exchange with his rhetoric professor, the Jesuit
Priest Fr. Francisco Sanchez who defended the Noli in public. He wrote: “I told
him that I wanted to awaken my countrymen from their profound lethargy and one
who wished to awaken did not use soft and gentle sounds but detonations, blows,
etc. ‘Are you not afraid of the consequences of your audacity?’ asked Fr. Sanchez.
‘Father,’ I replied, ‘you are a missionary. If you go on your mission, are you
not afraid of the consequences of its fulfillment?’ ‘Oh, that is entirely
different!” he responded. ‘Not at all,’ I answered, ‘your mission is to baptize
the heathen, but mine is to make men worthy.’”
But
worthy of what? Liberty, I submit.
In
his manifesto of December 15, 1896 while incarcerated in Fort Santiago, Jose
Rizal wrote: “I have given proofs as one who most wants liberties for our
country and I continue wanting them. But I put as a premise the education of
the people so that through education and work they might have a personality of
their own worthy of liberties.”
A
personality worthy of liberties is brave. For, as Rizal had written to the
members of La Solidaridad in Barcelona, “(l)iberty is a woman who grants her
favors only to the brave. Enslaved peoples have to suffer much to win her and
those who abuse her lose her.”
Now,
if you sell your votes, are you a person worthy of liberties?
If
you just take and believe what other people say without critically thinking
about its truthfulness and source-reliability, are you a person worthy of
liberties?
Dr.
Rizal clarified many things about this matter in his Liham sa mga Kababayang Kadalagahan sa Malolos from London dated February
1889. He wrote on points that should be taken as tips on how to be a person
worthy of liberties. Here are a few quotes from that long letter in Tagalog:
1.
“Ignorance
is bondage, because like mind, like man. A man without a will of his own is a
man without personality. The blind who follows other’s opinion is a like a
beast led by a halter.”
2.
“God
gave each one his own mind and his own conscience so that he can distinguish
between right and wrong. All are born without chains, free, and no one can
subject the will and spirit of another. Why would you submit to another your
noble and free thought?”
3.
“Ignorance
is ignorance, and not goodness and honor. God, fountain of wisdom, does not
expect man, created in his image, to allow himself to be fooled and blinded.
The gift of reason with which we are endowed must be brightened and utilized.”
4.
“Let
us be reasonable and open our eyes, especially you women, because you are the
ones who open the minds of men. Consider that a good mother is different from
the one created by the friars. Raise your children close to the image of the
true God – the God who cannot be bribed, the God who is not avaricious, the God
who is the father of all, who is not partial, the God who does not fatten on
the blood of the poor, who does not rejoice at the plaints of the afflicted,
and does not obfuscate the intelligent mind. Awaken and prepare the mind of the
child for every good and desirable idea – love for honor, sincere and firm
character, clear mind, clean conduct, noble action, love for one’s fellow men,
respect for God – teach these to your children. And because life is full of
sorrows and perils, fortify their character against any difficulty, strengthen
their hearts against any danger.”
5.
“Lack
of self-respect and excessive timidity invite scorn”.
6.
“Men
are born equal, naked, and without chains. They were not created by God to be
enslaved, neither were they endowed with intelligence to be misled, nor adorned
with reason to be fooled by others. It is not pride to refuse to worship a
fellow man, to enlighten the mind, and to reason out everything. The arrogant
one is he who wants to be worshipped, who misleads others and who wants his
will to prevail over reason and justice.”
From
Dapitan, in a letter dated December 20, 1893, Dr. Rizal counseled his nephew
Alfredo T. Hidalgo, saying: “Go ahead then; study, study, and meditate well on what
you study. Life is a very serious thing and only those with intelligence and
courage go through it worthily. To live is to be among men and to be among men
is to struggle. But this struggle is not just a brutal and material struggle
with men alone; it is a struggle with them, with one’s self, with their
passions and one’s own, with errors and preoccupations. It is an eternal
struggle with a smile on the lips and tears in the heart. On this battlefield
man has no better weapon than his intelligence, no other force but his heart.
Sharpen, perfect, polish then your mind; and fortify and educate your heart.”
If
I may say so, young friends, most of Rizal’s works can probably be categorized
under the general rubric of “how to be a person worthy of liberties”.
Let’s
move on to the Himno a Talisay before
we take on many other things.
He
made his students sing this Himno before start of classes and the Spanish
Military Prosecutor used it in his Trial in Fort Santiago as corroborative
proof of his alleged subversion of Spanish sovereignty.
Recall
La Liga? That sent him to exile in Dapitan. (Di lang alam ng mga prayle at colonyalistang
Espanyol na ipapadala ng Maykapal si Josephine Bracken doon para ma-ibsan ang
lungkot ni Rizal sa pag-iisa).
And
the Himno a Talisay? It served as added justification for the prejudgment to
send him to death by firing squad in Bagumbayan. (And it gave him the chance to
record for posterity in the last farewell, his high regard for Josephine, as
his friend and his joy divine!)
Why?
What was so important about these two writings?
La
Liga was intended firstly to “unite the whole archipelago into one compact,
vigorous, and homogeneous body,” secondly, for “mutual protection in every want
and necessity,” thirdly, for “defense against all violence and injustice”; its
motto was unus instar omnium, which
had three connotations, namely: one like all, one equals all, one for all. If
our people were to behave as a united archipelago, with mutual respect and
teamwork, working together and refusing to quarrel with each other, then that
behavior would undermine and defeat Spain’s strategic approach to colonization
here, which was “divide and conquer”. So, they suppressed those ideas by
exiling Rizal: trying to “cut the head off.”
The
Himno a Talisay, on the other hand, was more potent. It described in the
present tense the future condition of the Filipino standing as a free,
learning, and overcoming being, marked with courage and self-esteem.
It
describes the Filipino who has won his freedom not with the sword but, as Rizal
wrote in the Fili, “by deserving it, exalting individual reason and dignity,
loving the just, the good, the great, even dying for it.” And he continued in
the Fili, “when a people reaches that height, God will provide the arms, and
idols will fall, the tyrants will fall like a house of cards, and liberty will
shine with the first dawn.”
Que
horror! The colonialists must have thought: if the Filipinos behave as
described in the Himno a Talisay, then indeed we could fall “like a house of
cards.” We better kill this man to sow terror among the populace and discourage
them from following his suggestions, they plotted.
Killing
Rizal is just what occurred: after a kangaroo court trial, they had Filipino
guardia civil marksmen shoot Rizal with the threat that if they hesitated, an
equal number of Spanish regulars armed with Mauser rifles positioned behind them
would include them in the execution.
However,
the populace did not get cowed; his innocent's death became
the loudest detonation and it awakened his countrymen; ang mga great, or great-great
grandparents ninyo saw Rizal’s martyrdom as the last straw on the carabao’s
back, so to say, and ended their limitless patience and placidity.
And
the hostilities happened. The rest is history. The Filipino nation was born.
[albeit, amid punyeta]. We are the latest manifestation and unfolding.
How
can the Himno a Talisay help us today?
It
could point us to a noble “choice of being” as a nation.
But
note: just to point out, not to make us; because only our own choice and our
resolute follow-up actions can make us do and become…
So,
aside from what’s already in the Bagumbayan publication, here’s how I want to
discuss this Himno with you: I’ll treat them in two stanza chunks for
consideration, then the chorus, and lastly a general view.
Asilo
Sagrado - Sacred Sanctuary
Stanzas
1 and 2 read as follows:
HYMN TO TALISAY
An English translation
By Sir Edwin D. Bael, KCR
An English translation
By Sir Edwin D. Bael, KCR
Taguig, June 2013
I
From Dapitan’s sandy shore and strand
and the craggy rocks on mountain high
are your throne, O sacred sanctuary!
are your throne, O sacred sanctuary!
where I spent my tender childhood.
II
II
In your valley glazed by blooms grand,
and shade and fruiting trees growing nigh;
our fully formed minds there do tarry,
with our bodies and souls as we could.
HIMNO Á TALISAY
por José Rizal y Alonso
(Original text in Spanish,
por José Rizal y Alonso
(Original text in Spanish,
Dapitan, 13 October 1895)
De Dapitan la playa arenosa
y las rocas del monte encumbrado
son tu trono, ¡oh asilo sagrado!
donde paso mi tierna niñez.
son tu trono, ¡oh asilo sagrado!
donde paso mi tierna niñez.
En tu valle que esmaltan las flores
y sombrea frutal arboleda,
y sombrea frutal arboleda,
nuestra mente formada se queda,
con el cuerpo nuestro el alma la vez.
Here we see the nation’s throne defined as stretching from shore to mountaintop. As we know, throne rooms form small areas in comparison to the entire building. It stands to reason that our entire territory would comprise our seas and islands since the throne is just beach to peak.
Here we see the nation’s throne defined as stretching from shore to mountaintop. As we know, throne rooms form small areas in comparison to the entire building. It stands to reason that our entire territory would comprise our seas and islands since the throne is just beach to peak.
And
so, taken together with the La Liga formulation for a unified archipelago, we
have the archipelagic doctrine articulated by Rizal way back in 1892-95…
This
doctrine is now incorporated in our 1987 Constitution as follows: “The national
territory comprises the Philippine archipelago, with all the islands and waters
embraced therein, and all other territories over which the Philippines has
sovereignty or jurisdiction, consisting of its terrestrial, fluvial and aerial
domains, including its territorial sea, the seabed, the subsoil, the insular
shelves, and other submarine areas. The waters around, between, and connecting
the islands of the archipelago, regardless of their breadth and dimensions,
form part of the internal waters of the Philippines.”
This
territory my friends, is asilo sagrado or sacred sanctuary, according to Dr.
Rizal. Sacred, aside from the religious or spiritual connotation, refers to
something entitled to reverence and respect, or highly valued and important. So
our territory is a place that must be respected. We have to value it beyond
claims of mere selfish ownership and ensure that others respect our territory
too in its archipelagic meaning.
The
2nd stanza would remind us of a phrase popular among expat
Filipinos, which is: “You can take the Filipino away from the Philippines, but
you cannot take the Philippines away from the Filipino,” because where ever we
may be, our minds “there do tarry.”
Hombres
Fuertes – Strong Persons
Stanzas
3 and 4, read as follows:
III
We are children who, though born late,
have souls with vigorous character,
and strong persons we shall be in the future
who’ll know how to guard their families
IV
Children who, nothing can intimidate
not waves, nor hurricane, nor thunder;
with speedy arm and serene feature
we’ll know how to fight when in difficulties.
we’ll know how to fight when in difficulties.
Somos niños, pues tarde nacimos,
mas el alma tenemos lozana,
mas el alma tenemos lozana,
y hombres fuertes serémos mañana
que sabrán sus familias guardar.
Somos niños que nada intimida
ni las olas, ni el baguio, ni el trueno;
pronto el brazo y el rostro sereno
ni las olas, ni el baguio, ni el trueno;
pronto el brazo y el rostro sereno
en el trance sabrémos luchar.
The
3rd stanza may refer to either or both being overdue or late
bloomer… well, hanggang ngayon, tila hindi pa rin fully bloomed… (may I say,
that’s your opportunity young people: make this country bloom fully!); and
immediately the lines proclaim the vigor of your souls that ensure developing
into strong beings protective of families…. walang pupwedeng makakasindak o di
ba puporma’t magpapayuko; at kung magka-gipitan, marunong kaming makipaglaban,
sabi ng fourth stanza.
I
like the phrase “with speedy arm and serene feature”. It describes the demeanor
of our arnis or eskrima masters: so cool and calm, and yet their arms blur in
the flow of strikes and parries. You know of course that FMA or Filipino
Martials Arts (Kali/Arnis/Eskrima) has been featured in “The Bourne Series,” “Mission
Impossible III,” “The Hunted,” “I, Frankenstein,” and other Hollywood movies. It
is acknowledged to be one of the best systems in CQC or Close Quarters
Combat. Hence US, military, police and intelligence units train in it too. I
personally know a Filipino guru who gives that kind of training there. But in
the movies, you don’t get some screaming title saying this is FMA: if you know
the moves, then when you see them you recognize them.
Jose
Rizal envisioned that the Filipino practices this martial art form, which has a
deeper significance. Maestra (Professor) Josephine Del Mar of the Hawaii
Escrima Academy, a descendant of Lapu-Lapu, explained that "Escrima is a
spirit for our school and our system; it is the spirit of Kali, which is the
mother art.” [Dan Inosanto explained in an article that his gurus told him Ka
comes from “kamut” or hand, and Li comes from “lihut” or movement] Maestra del
Mar continued: “When they (the manongs) left the Philippines they had to
conform to another way of living. The Filipinos are great adapters and
impersonators. But they survived. And this is the essence of Kali: survival.
The Filipinos were never completely conquered. They have been able to maintain
this basic essence. This essence is the philosophy of escrima; that is what
makes the Filipino. You have to have that soul, that depth, that feeling and
the philosophy is what keeps the art going, too.”
And
I think Dr. Rizal saw the outlines of this, or at least the survival and cool
speedy essence, long before our global diaspora.
Nuestras
Armas Alcanzan Doquier - Our Weapons Reach Everywhere
Stanzas
5 to 6 describe certain capabilities and attitudes. They say:
V
Our games scramble the sand;
Our games scramble the sand;
caves and thickets we reconnoiter;
on big rocks our houses stand,
our weapons reach everywhere.
our weapons reach everywhere.
VI
There is no darkness, no pitchblack night,
nor fierce storm or typhoon that we dread,
and should Satan himself come to sight,
he shall be captured alive or dead.
The
fifth stanza says the Filipino plays hard: our games stir up and scramble the
sand… we also work hard, investigating and scrutinizing fearful places of
unknown contents and consequences, like caves and thickets… and we build our habitations
on hard, solid foundations…
Nuestros juegos la arena revuelven;
recorremos los antros, las breñas;
recorremos los antros, las breñas;
nuestras casas están sobre peñas,
nuestras armas alcanzan doquier.
nuestras armas alcanzan doquier.
No hay tinieblas, no hay noches oscuras
que temamos, ni fiera tormenta,
y si el mismo Luzbel se presenta,
y si el mismo Luzbel se presenta,
muerto ó vivo cogido ha de ser.
Then
in one innocuous line, Rizal puts the country in a very advanced stage: nuestras armas alcanzan doquier – our
arms reach everywhere! Armas does not mean our upper limbs; these are called
brazos – armas means weapons or weapons systems. Remember that was 1895 and Dr.
Rizal was saying we have weapons that can target and hit all over.
What
weapon or weapons can hit many targets one after another, or all at the same
time? Did he envision having intercontinental ballistic missiles with multiple
independently targeted re-entry vehicles? Or satellite- and laser-guided hypersonic
cruise missiles? Or stealth air fighter-bombers and navy craft? Or a gigantic
electro-magnetic pulse? Those are the things we can think of now as weapons
that can reach everywhere… but they did not exist then, not even in the drawing
stages…
Can
you see the preconditions for that capability? Massive Industrialization;
innovative advances in shipping and aircraft systems; and all other needed scientific,
technological and human resource pre-requisites.
Are
our political leaders (or other leaders for that matter) giving any attention
to industrialization strategically, which after all is the only way to absorb
our growing work force so that they do not have to go abroad to find greener
pastures?
And
can you see the implications to those who would try to bully our country? It
would not be worth their while, unless they are very foolish.
Industrialization
and readiness for eventualities is a strategic approach for a nation worthy of
liberties: that’s what Rizal is saying here, I submit!
Never
again the approach of funnel-minded balat-sibuyas egos ever-ready to pounce on
and kill each other [punyeta] and ever-eager to be distracted and entertained
by cheap, shallow shows, thus allowing the banyaga or those with money and
connections to control and dominate.
In
fact in the Fili, Rizal was enthusiastic about industrialization in the following
passage: “Tomorrow we shall be citizens of the Philippines whose destiny will
be beautiful because it will be in loving hands. Oh yes! The future is ours, it
is rosy. I see life stirring in these regions, so long dead and lethargic… I
see towns rising along the railways and factories everywhere and buildings like
that in Mandaluyong. I hear the ship’s whistle, the concussion of trains, the
clatter of machineries…”
Well,
is any of our President-wannabes talking about full industrialization for our
nation or just peripheral production for the industrialized first world or
nothing at all? Hmmmm…
Take
note that Rizal had the happy hope: that being then colonial subjects, they shall
be citizens of the Philippines ensuring its future to be beautiful with loving
hands.
For
the coming electoral exercise in May next year, we may as well ask:
· Do
we vote for candidates who would make us continue to be slaves and subjects,
ruling and disciplining us because we know no better and they seem to be the “better”?
· Do
we choose candidates who would allow us to get away with getting what we want
but not really need, unmindful of consequences and costs?
· Do
we elect candidates who lead by guaranteeing continuing citizen participation
in decision-making and subjecting themselves to citizen accountability for
their platforms and behavior? and leaders who would ensure the nation’s
beautiful future with loving management?
Now,
let’s go to the sixth stanza: it talks about the character of courage and not
fearing dark and confusing times; it talks about such vigilance and bravery
that would not hesitate to go forth and capture the very devil himself or anyone
who dares to be a devil in our national life.
It
evokes the resolute watchfulness Dr. Rizal immortalized in the chorus of his
poem entitled Himno al Trabajo or
Hymn to Labor, an undated work presumed to be of the period in Europe. That
chorus sings:
Corro:
HIMNO AL TRABAJO
Corro:
Por la patria en la Guerra,
Por la patria en la paz,
Velera el Filipino
Vivira y morira!
Chorus: (Simply translated)
(A more elaborate translation says:)
HYMN TO LABOR
Chorus: (Simply translated)
For the country at war,
For the country at peace,
The Filipino will stand guard,
Will live and will die!
(A more elaborate translation says:)
For the homeland in war, conflict and rivalry,
For the homeland in amity and harmony,
The Filipino shall keep vigil and stand sentry,
Shall be alive and shall survive till extremity!
Do
our leaders (especially those who want to be elected) and do we ourselves have
that commitment?
Almas
Grandes – Great Noble Souls
Stanzas
VII and VIII talk some more of the Filipino nature and character. They read:
VII
The people call us Talisaynon,
great noble soul in not so big constitution,
that in Dapitan and in all its region,
Talisay has had no competition.
that in Dapitan and in all its region,
Talisay has had no competition.
VIII
Our pond has no contender,
our dive is abyss so deep cavernous,
and rowing, the world has no outrigger
that in a moment can overtake us.
Talisaynon nos llama la gente,
alma grande en un cuerpo chiquito,
alma grande en un cuerpo chiquito,
que en Dapitan y en todo el distrito,
no ha tenido Talisay su par.
Nuestro estanque no tiene rivales,
nuestro salto es abismo profundo,
y remando no hay banka en el mundo
que un momento nos pueda pasar.
In
Stanza VII, we are told of alma grande,
translated as great noble soul, that animates a not so big body; actually Rizal
describes the body as un cuerpo chiquito or
literally a small cute body; but in Dapitan and in the region, Talisay (the
country) has had no peer… This reminds us of the saying: it’s not the size of
the dog, but the size of the fight in the dog, that matters.
Stanza
VIII says our waters are unparalleled, that give us wide and almost bottomless diving
thrills, and we are great team players, especially in rowing – no boat can
overtake us in a moment. Again, Rizal
wrote this in 1895 but he somehow foresaw current Filipino dragon boat rowers
becoming champions against well-known team rowers from around the world…
Multi-Habil
Integradora - Integrative Multi-Skilled
Stanzas
IX and X indicate that the Filipino approaches situations from a scientific,
historical, linguistic and integrative perspective; and describe our people as
multi-skilled multi-taskers in various fields…
IX
We study exact science challenges,
and the history of our country,
we talk in three and four languages,
making both faith and reason agree.
X
X
Our arms wield with skill and fine accord
the knife, the pen, the gardening hoe,
the knife, the pen, the gardening hoe,
the pickaxe, the rifle, and the sword,
companion of the strong fellow.
Los problemas de ciencias exactas,
de la patria la historia estudiamos,
tres y cuatro lenguajes hablamos
tres y cuatro lenguajes hablamos
acordando la fe y la razón.
Nuestros brazos manejan á un tiempo
el cuchillo, la pluma, la azada,
la piqueta, el fusil y la espada,
compañero del fuerte varón
I
suppose exact science challenges were those that had accurate quantitative means
of testing hypotheses and repeating results. Probably Dr. Rizal was referring
to the sciences that had rigor and that accounted for the many technological
advances in his time, as he was interested in those things that advanced human
progress. And he projected that future Filipinos would be adept in these areas.
But
I believe he would also welcome quantum science and chaos theory, which did not
exist yet in his time. For while at the macro level, things are measurable and
predictable, at the micro level according to quantum theory, the intention of
the observer changes the behavior of the phenomenon being observed. Rizal would
probably appreciate the unceasing change in micro details given the infinite
number of observers and would at the same time value the continuing reliability
of certain macro- general principles and laws, like gravity.
And
probably, he would also welcome chaos theory which posits that there is a
butterfly effect, or the phenomenon whereby a minute localized change in a
complex system can have large effects elsewhere; that everything matters such that
even the flutter of a butterfly’s wings can cause a hurricane on the other side
of the world and that if you change even the smallest of life’s details, you
completely change its outcome. Yes, in chaos theory science-lingo, the butterfly effect is the sensitive
dependence on initial conditions in which a small change in one state of a
deterministic nonlinear system can result in large differences in a later
state.
The
little details Rizal wanted changed in the life of the Filipino focused on
their mindsets or belief clusters so that they stand as men and women worthy of
liberties.
Can
we still pursue these changes along the lines of science, hard or exact?
I
believe we can.
But
dear young ones: beware of a counterpoint to science - romance is not exact.
Ok,
now to his succeeding vision.
Rizal
also projected a people avidly studying their own history. For as he wrote in
his essay entitled The Philippines within a Hundred Years: “to foretell the
destiny of a nation, it is necessary to open the book that tells of her past.”
Indeed, as George S. Patton advised: “Prepare for the unknown by studying how
others in the past have coped with the unforeseeable and the
unpredictable.”
But
then, Henry Kissinger wryly observed: “It is not often that nations learn from
the past, even rarer that they draw the correct conclusions from it.” And
author S. M. Sigerson has pointed out: “A nation which fails to adequately
remember salient points of its own history is like a person with Alzheimer's.
And that can be a social disease of a most destructive nature.”
The
third point Rizal predicted here, I’d say observed, is that we speak three and
four languages; Filipinos are linguists, he says. Now, let’s clarify this. Dr.
Rizal asserted that “(w)hile a people
preserves its language: it preserves the marks of liberty.” And he also said in
“Los Viajes” that: “Man is
multiplied by the number of languages he possesses and speaks.” So for him,
it’s perfectly okay to learn other languages so long as you preserve and continue
loving your own.
The
last point he described in Stanza IX is that we are integrative: we make both
faith and reason agree. Our logic can take in stride and live with beliefs that
are beyond logic. We do not fall into the strictness and intolerance of
religious fundamentalism. In his essay entitled “Doubts” where he tackled the
importance of religion to man, he said: “A man needs to believe and to love, he
needs a goal towards which to steer his actions, to formulate for himself a
purpose, to see something more beyond matter and noise, he needs in short an
objective worthy of his being and his faculties!”
Stanza
X describes the multi-tasking, multi-talented Filipino be it with the knife (in
the kitchen or self-defense), the pen (writing, communications), the gardening
hoe (agriculture), the pickaxe (mining and industries), the rifle (hunting and
defense from a distance), and the sword (close combat) – all of which presume
an agile mind and a perceptive heart behind effective body and hand movements…
Clara
Estrella, Preciado Tesoro - Bright Star, Precious Treasure
Stanzas
XI and XII express praise for provisions and strong inspirations.. They read:
XI
Hail, hail, Talisay rich with verdure!
In chorus all our voices thee praise,
bright star, precious treasure,
of childhood’s true learning and solace
XII
In the struggles that await man,
subject to grief, pain, unease,
your memory shall be his talisman,
and in the tomb, your name, his peace.
subject to grief, pain, unease,
your memory shall be his talisman,
and in the tomb, your name, his peace.
¡Vive, vive, frondoso Talisay!
Nuestras voces te ensalcen á coro,
clara estrella, preciado tesoro,
clara estrella, preciado tesoro,
de la infancia doctrina y solaz.
En las luchas que aguardan al hombre,
á pesares y duelos sujeto,
á pesares y duelos sujeto,
tu memoria sera su amuleto,
y en la tumba tu nombre, su paz.
This
is rootedness in a rich green homeland… deemed a bright star and precious
treasure, that provides true guidance and real comfort… the attitude of
gratitude is emblazoned here…
Which
brings us to happiness, because “happiness comes from gratitude” according to David
Stendl-Rast, a monk who studied a variety of world religions throughout his
life; his message to the world is to “slow down, look at where you’re
heading, and above all – be grateful.”
And
Rizal was a model of gratefulness that was also rootedness - such strong emotional
and cultural tie imparting strength in the face of life’s inescapable
struggles, that the mere remembering of home fortifies the striving soul and
grants an expectation of peace even if death should come… a wonderful stanch of
a being so worthy of liberties…
Siempre
Adelante – Always Advancing
The
chorus sings of purposive persistence and mastery of elements.
CHORUS:
Be safe, Talisay! Firm and constant,
always advancing, you shall prosper.
always advancing, you shall prosper.
Every element, with you triumphant,
sea, land and air, you shall master!
CORO:
¡Salve, Talisay! Firme y constante,
siempre adelante, tú marcharás.
¡Tú, victorioso, todo elemento,
¡Salve, Talisay! Firme y constante,
siempre adelante, tú marcharás.
¡Tú, victorioso, todo elemento,
mar, tierra y viento, dominarás!
What
does “always advancing” mean? Does it mean sugod ng sugod maski sumasalpak na
sa sobrang kapal na pader?
Well,
what did Bruce Lee advice? Be water.
Romantic
oldies like me remember lyrics like: “Don't you know, Dindi (Gingi), I'd be
running, searching for you? Like a river that can't find the sea; that would be
me, without you, my Dindi (Gingi).”
Yes,
there is an inevitable, inexorable sense that by gravity, rainwater would find
its way to the sea, regardless of obstacles. It would go over, slide under,
shift on the side, bore holes, break barriers, move obstructions, carve rivers,
destabilize mountains, or even evaporate…
That
is the sense of siempre adelante as
used here. Hence, it is described as firm and constant – firme y constante -
giving the impression of water drops falling one after another consistently over
time creating holes in granite rocks.
It
reminds us of Dr. Rizal’s advice on perseverance in his essay “Town Schools in
the Philippines,” where he said:
“Whether
the sacrifice be big or small, whether man be ungrateful and forgetful, whether
malice be opposed, or whether sterile and barren egos mock, we ought not to be
dismayed before an insignificant failure nor go backward at the least obstacle
that is discerned in the horizon. xxxxx Let us work then together and instead
of useless lamentations, of disconsolate complaints, of accusations and
excuses, let us apply the remedy, let us build,
no matter if we begin with the simplest, for later we shall have time to
erect new edifices on that foundation.
“Step
by step one reaches the Temple of Progress whose numerous and fitful steps are
not climbed without having faith and conviction in the soul, courage in the
heart necessary to facing disillusions, and the gaze fixed on the future. xxxxx
The road is ours as the present is ours, and if it is not given to us to reach
the end, we may be sure that by fulfilling our duties, the future will be ours
also – the future of blessings.”
That
is what Dr. Rizal meant by siempre
adelante.
The
ideas of struggle, persistence and hope are also evoked in Dr Rizal’s poem
entitled “A Mi…” or To My… (which refers to My Muse)
4
Muse, who in my past age
you inspired me sweet
love songs, go and repose;
Today I need a sword,
rivers of gold, and acrid prose.
5
I need to reason,
to meditate and to fight,
sometimes to cry,
for who wants to love much
must have to suffer much.
19
But if the victory with laurel crown
our efforts, and my fatherland united
emerges like a queen from burning zone,
white pearl from the morass liberated,
then return and with vigor entone
the sacred hymn of the new life,
that we the chorus shall sing
even when in the tomb we rest
4
Musa, que en mi edad pasada,
me inspiraste carinosa
cantos de amor, ve y reposa;
Hoy necesito una espada,
rios de oro, y acre prosa.
5
Necesito razonar,
meditar y combater,
algunas veces llorar,
pues quien mucho quiere amar
mucho tiene que sufrir.
19
Pero si el triunfo con laurel corona
nuestros esfuerzos, y mi patria unida
surge cual reina de ardiente zona,
blanca perla del fango redimida,
entonces vuelve y con vigor entona
el himno sacro de la nueva vida,
que nosotros el coro cantaremos
aun cuando en el sepulcro descansemos
Faith
in eventual triumph permeated a stanza in Rizal’s “Mi Retiro”, another Dapitan poem that he penned around the time he
wrote the Himno a Talisay. In that stanza he said:
And I have faith, and I hope it must shine one day
when the force of Idea conquers the brutal force,
that after the struggle and the protracted agony,
another voice, more sonorous, more happy,
will know how to sing the triumphal song perforce.
will know how to sing the triumphal song perforce.
will know how to sing the triumphal song perforce.
Y la tengo, y yo espero que ha de brillar un día
en que venza la Idea a la fuerza brutal,
que después de la lucha y la lenta agonía,
otra voz más sonora y más feliz que la mía
sabrá cantar entonces el cántico triunfal.
One
line here brings to mind a quote from Willliam E. Gladstone: “We look forward to the time when the Power
of Love will replace the Love of Power. Then will our world know the blessings
of Peace.”
Young ones, will it be your generation to sing the
triumphal song and to know the blessings of peace, in this country of ours?
Your choices and your actions will determine so.
And it might be good to remember Dr. Rizal’s
observation in the essay Como se Gobiernan las
Filipinas: “Filipinos don't realize that victory is the child
of struggle, that joy blossoms from suffering, and redemption is a product of
sacrifice.”
Overview on the Himno
You will note that the Himno a Talisay does not
have a line saying “ang mamatay nang dahil sa iyo!” There is no advance
acceptance that there is nothing else we can do but die; there is however such
bold and audacious declaration of intention to catch Satan if he ever appears.
So when you sing the Lupang Hinirang, always
connect the Himno a Talisay to the line “sa manlulupig, di ka pasisiil”; that
is, in the normal, day-to-day events, we protect our families, we can fight if
need be, we fear no one – we know how to take a stand and assert ourselves.
Yong huling mga linya, na: “aming ligaya na pag may
mang-aapi, ang mamatay ng dahil sa iyo” should be understood as applying only
to very extraordinary circumstances, such as the one that Dr. Rizal faced.
Remember, he had that inner strength, the tatag ng
loob, the guts to expose the negative aspects of the ruling sect, the Friars,
through his writings. In a letter to Mariano Ponce and companions of La
Solidaridad, he said: “Let destiny be fulfilled! The day they lay their hands
on us, the day they martyrize innocent families for our fault, goodbye friar
government, and perhaps, goodbye Spanish government. The cruelties of Louis XIV
and XV brought about the Revolution; the cruelties of the Inquisition killed
monasticism. We demonstrate in books and writings that friars are not what they
pretend to be nor are they ministers of Christ or the protector of the people,
nor the support of the government. We write this and we affirm it, and the
friars prove it by their deeds.”
And so everyone among his family and friends and
other Filipinos were afraid for him, that he would be killed by the Spanish
colonialists. But he still came home from Hongkong in 1892 where he left a
sealed letter that among others said: “I wish to show those who deny us
patriotism that we know how to die for our duty and our convictions.”
This sentiment was consistent with his 1890 letter
to Mariano Ponce from Brussels saying: “We die only once and if we do not die
well, we lose a good opportunity which will never come up again… If one has to
die, at least one must die in his own country, by his country, and for his
country.”
In a letter to Marcelo H. del Pilar, also in 1890
from Brussels, he wrote: “I am preparing myself for death; I put in order what
I am going to leave behind, and I get ready for any eventuality. Laong Laan is
my true name.”
Since 1890, Rizal was ready already… No wonder he
was so cool, with normal blood pressure, standing before the firing squad in
1896.
Those were abnormal, extraordinary circumstances in
Rizal’s time; “mamatay ng dahil sa iyo” should only be the last resort, like in
those uncommon conditions where Rizal expected to be replaced by a pleiad of
his countrymen; it should not be a cop out in the normal course of events, for
giving up then saying bahala na! Normally, we should say: “di kami puedeng
masisiil!” “kung dadaanin mo sa sapilitan, marunong kaming maki-paglaban!”
“kung si satanas ka, hulihin ka namin, patay o buhay!”
Young friends, that is being worthy of liberties, a
la new Dapitan!
Sons
and daughters we could go on discussing more details on related topics like
leadership, success, elections. But I guess we are running out of time. So let
me wind this up.
Conclusion
We
began with a Rizalian quote relating to prison and I would like to end this
presentation with another quote from Rizal that is fictionally located in
prison but I think very relevant to your considerations.
Jose
Rizal had a poem entitled “Cervantes en
Argamasilla de Alba”. It talked about Cervantes being depressed while in
prison and being inspired by an angelic presence who told him what to do.
Miguel de Cervantes, author of Don
Quixote, was imprisoned in Seville, Andalucia for accounting discrepancies
because a banker with whom he deposited the King’s funds went bankrupt. Since
Cervantes says that Don Quixote was "engendered" in a prison, that is
presumably a reference to this episode.
But
Rizal situated his prison in the little town of Argamasilla de Alba in the
region of La Mancha (where Don Quixote was supposed to have tilted against
windmills). Argamasilla means mortar, ‘yon bang masilya sa atin, to cement
tiles on concrete, etc.; of course alba means dawn --- the phrasing, gives you
a sense about something that attracts and holds the dawn, something that brings
hope… and here is where Rizal’s quote is relevant to you. It goes:
Go then, Miguel, and with your clear thinking,
light bulb, which on your land shall be shining,
that demented multitude, go redeeming
the dark sinister shroud ripping, rending.
And, as charged cloud, in your flight so lofty,
scorching lightning lance gracefully
scorching lightning lance gracefully
that brings down the god of insanity
making sprout celestial prosperity.
Ve pues, Miguel, y que tu clara mente,
foco de luz, que alumbrara tu suelo,
Redima a esa multitud demente
Rasgando el hosco encapotado velo.
Y, cual nube prenada, rayo ardiente
Airoso lanza en tu encumbrado vuelo
Que derribe al dios de la locura
Brotar haciendo celestial ventura.
Wow,
nung panahon na ‘yon, Rizal had already figured out na ang sambayanan had
become a people who did not have their own minds, esa multitud demente he called them - a crowd of people misinformed,
misdirected, misled, miseducated and thus demented by the continuing obscurantism
and deprecation of the occupying Spanish colonialists spearheaded by the Friars.
You know of course that obscurantism is the practice of deliberately preventing
the facts or the full details of some matter from becoming known; if consistently
done for three centuries combined with control, abuse and condescension
interspersed with random kindness, then you have a demented multitude.
So
what was Rizal’s prescription?
Education,
education, education, education.
Ngayon,
dito ba sa sulok ng pitong libo at iilang mga islang ito, in this year of our
Lord 2015, do we still have multitud
demente?
Meron
pa, e… and that is our continuing opportunity!
In
more contemporary terms, young friends, taking off from the Cervantes en Argamasilla de Alba poem,
it can be said, that you are called:
to
cause positive changes in the mindsets of our crowds,
with
clear thinking in chaos theory, and use of web in the clouds,
sending
forth love and clarity to dispel inconsequence,
and to
let surge and flow: moral and material affluence.
Inconsequence:
walang nangyayari… nagbabago raw pero pareho pa rin; think electoral exercises;
ngayon, talagang baguhin natin, at palakasin natin ang butterfly effect ni
Rizal, gawin nating bagyo, para magkaroon ang Inang Bayan ng makabuluhang moral
at materyal na kasaganaan.
The
changes of course refer to Dr Rizal’s vision, a la New Dapitan.
And
let’s do it with teamwork, just as Dr. Rizal appealed to his colleagues at the
Café Habanero in Madrid on December 31, 1891: “Gentlemen,” he said, “let us
maintain firmly union and solidarity among us; let the good of the mother
country be our only cause; and let us prove to everyone and let us make it
clear, that if a Filipino wills, he can.”
Remember
your first lesson with Sir Maxx, how turtle and rabbit broke standing records
of speed in accomplishing things with their teamwork?
Each
one of you, in your own unique way, in teamwork with others, can make a big
difference, very fast.
Every
minute localized change you provoke and stimulate, in concert with your fellow
NRYLI alumni all over, in this complex system we call Philippine society and
eco-polity, can have large effects, sooner not later…
Ikaw
na, nilalang na karapatdapat sa lahat ng mga kalayaan!
Marami
pong salamat!
