The Philippines A Century Hence

This article he wrote in La Solidaridad gave me quite a stir. I was pondering: is it true? Is

this the article that, shall say, predicted the future of the Philippines in his years? I was

ready to plunge into his mind, into his precious intellect, ready to accept whatever

pieces of fact that will make him, our national hero, more of a human being that he was.

I read the article, quite impressed of the heavy title as it summarizes what may the

whole thing is all about. However, to tell frankly, the lengthy article didn’t give me a

feeling of rush excitement. It did, if not, gave me a sense of historical nostalgia. I was

caught up by what he wrote that “in order to read the destiny of a people, it is necessary

to open the book of its past”. It was a strong argument, and needed a logical point of

view.  As much was said, the Philippines was a battleground of the clash of cultures, of

blending of races and of pitiful bloodshed. Rizal in his own words painted the picture of

our past clearly; the depth of his writings was proof of much grief and much work. He

could have overreacted in telling his stories, but the next generation Filipinos

understood the hardships of their forefathers. It can be considered that the people had

had enough war, that they longed peace, and that they never stopped hoping for

happiness and the right to live in their own contentment. What supplied Rizal of the

heart for passion for his country became his primary mission to save from the terror and

tyranny of the cruel Spaniards.

How this article was made gave its reader a hint of the author’s thought. It was full of

reverie and passion: every sentence and ideas expressed discontent of the author from

tyranny, and his longing for something to do for his homeland. There could also be a
possibility that the guesses he made was but a hopeless act of zealousness to the

country, that he was having delusions and might have been on the verge of giving

everything up. Yet there was still a factor of good reasoning that led him to think of

these delusions.

There was also another thing that I think the article was trying to tell. How one shall read

this article must interpret it as not just as mere words but full of message for our own

generation. I wrote earlier that there were patterns that make the world go on changing.

History repeats itself; history may have repeated itself a hundred times now. But today’s

battle was not the same battle our forefathers were fighting before. It is now a message

with an intention of giving a warning. The colonization by the Spaniards which started

four centuries ago is now parallel to the colonization of foreign minds of our countrymen.

Most of us Filipinos are now enslaved by materials from other countries, that we neglect

the riches of our own. Just as Rizal has thought of saving our ancestors, many modern

Rizal’s will begin to save our vanishing culture. Everyone does not need to be a psychic

to know what will happen. The Filipinos are now intelligent. It’s just a matter of choosing

which way to take: a way alike to what Rizal and many of our heroes had taken or

another way of letting things be.

The article was tactful, as expected. It opened to me the thought of Rizal, not a prophet

and seer, but just a normal man. Yet he was, no doubt, a genius. His ingenuity

transcends through time, which eventually make him a “prophet”.  He was a Great

Filipino Genius. It’s the most appropriate title to be given to him.

As what I read, Rizal described the people in the tropical and non-tropical countries. In

tropical areas, the people there do not work a lot when it’s hot especially at noon time. It

is because they have to rest because of the sun’s heat. For instance, we students,

whenever the air or the weather is some warm, the tendency for this thing is we want to

sleep. On the other hand, countries have four seasons have to work much during spring

and fall. It is because they cannot easily work on summer (because of excessive heat)

and on winter. Thus, the total work all in all is almost the same! We as human being

must adopt to our environment whatever its conditions. Therefore, being “indolent (as

they say)” during hot conditions is reasonable.

I can prove without the text in the book that Filipinos in those days (Spaniard’s and pre-

colonial period) were NOT indolent. This can be verified through Banaue’s Rice

Terraces, Filipinos at the dawn (before the sunrise) are ready to start planting and

keeping their vegetables and harvests. At the coming of Miguel Lopez de Legazpi, he

noticed the people have enough supply of food, very generous, energetic and

industrious.

When the Spaniards came to our lands, they burned many houses, eradicated some

goods and resources, killed many Filipinos, and stop our economic and commercial

cycle. They controlled almost all farms and villages. Many areas were become

unpopulated. Almost two thirds of the populations were declined. Many boys especially

the teenagers were asked to do the Polo y Servicios. Farms were left uncultivated and
encomienda was implemented. Only the friars and Spanish officials could benefit- from

high taxes to church offerings. To be able to start a business and work, the permissions

from the administrators was required, and not all were granted. For that, many Filipinos

gave up their work, lands, and even their life. They viewed their life hopeless and they

thought themselves as inferiors. Gambling grown up because all of their sacrifices and

works were not enough. They trusted  fortune to make their status quite good. Some of

these are “sabongs” or cock fighting and even today exists! Another obnoxious is the

friars told the people: “THE RICH MAN WILL NOT GO TO HEAVEN.” What kind of

deception is that! They corrupted and controlled the minds of the innocent people. Also,

aside from this, education for all was not granted. The reforms, programs the

government should take in to action were only a dream. How bad or worst are these!!!

Today, the indolence and hopeless mentality stays toward the masses. Many corrupt

officials, unsettled reforms, poverty, misdistribution of money and taxes, poor tenancy,

illiteracy, slow progress, etc. are still there! HISTORY TRULY REPEATS ITSELF. That’s

the importance of education and studying or past. IF THESE TRAITS AND SYSTEM

CONTINUE, THEN AS HISTORY SAYS, WE WIL SUFFER AGAIN AND AGAIN!!!

Truly that article is excellent in describing our situation and delighting everyone who

reads it. I learned a lot from this essay. I hope many people will read this beautiful work

of art.
Sa Aking Mga Kababata

Said that the poem was written by Rizal when he was eight years old. Perhaps this

surprise mostly because his young age, heavy text he wrote. Before we make

speculations about this issue, it decided to give her first comment author.

In the first verse we see immediately that intense desire to achieve freedom again. So

we say this is because of his simile given the word "freedom" and the condition of the

bird in the air. Therefore if he used it as a simile, what would be the wish of the birds

sometimes become free when it is intentionally imprisoned, he expressed using the

word "mortgage" or pawn. Furthermore the first two lines said that if all the people

(emphasis on "the people") are intentionally loving [who devote a non-compulsory

in its own language; it can be key in achieving freedom. The text contains the concept of

freedom may be the way to achieve this. The use of rhetorical devices deep [language

of angels] to show the existence of the concept of the mighty [supreme] language, as

well as the concept of hierarchy of entities [The Great Chain of Being]

Pursuant to being said some interpretation of the concept of hierarchy, notably at a

young age, he has a concept of things about social caste, that is if you can prove that

he wrote the author in 1869. In his rhetoric we Administration tension most of his

concept of "equality" based solely on his comparison of Latin, English and Spanish as

you type the Tagalog language. If we give them a deeper sense, the author can say that

everyone in the world is equal.