The Life and Works of Rizal

Farewell, my adored Land, region of the sun caressed, Pearl of the Orient Sea, our Eden lost, With gladness I give you my Life, sad and repressed; And were it more brilliant, more fresh and at its best, I would still give it to you for your welfare at most. These are the words of one about to die for his country. He expresses no regret but only gladness, knowing that in giving his life, he is giving his country the greatest gift any citizen could offer. On the fields of battle, in the fury of fight, Others give you their lives without pain or hesitancy, The place does not matter: cypress laurel, lily white, Scaffold, open field, conflict or martyrdom's site, It is the same if asked by home and Country. Here Rizal says that it does not matter where one dies, but why one dies and to what purpose. Whether it’s “scaffold, open field, conflict or martyrdom’s site,” all death hold the same honor if given for home and Country. I die as I see tints on th...

Song of Maria Clara is Featured in Noli Me Tangere. Sweet are the hours in one's own Native Land, All there is friendly o'er which the sun shines above; Vivifying is the breeze that wafts over her fields; Even death is gratifying and more tender is love. The first stanza expresses how wonderful everything is in one’s own Native Land. The hours are sweet, everything is friendly, the breeze is vivifying, love is more tender, and even death is gratifying. In these four lines, Rizal signifies that Maria Clara’s love for her country is so great that it colors everything else that she sees. It is this love that makes everything else, no matter how mundane and ordinary, more beautiful than even the most beautiful wonders elsewhere. Their beauty is not a result of their empirical nature, but of their being rooted in the territory of her country. Ardent kissed on a mother's lips are at play, On her lap, upon the infant child's awakening, The extended arms...

Jose Rizal dedicated this poem to Josephine Bracken. It was written during the hero’s exile in Dapitan. Josephine, Josephine Who to these shores have come Looking for a nest, a home, Like a wandering swallow; If your fate is taking you To Japan, China or Shanghai, Don't forget that on these shores A heart for you beats high. The interpretation of these short lines of verse depend greatly on the historical background between Rizal and the lovely Josephine. However, from these verses alone, at least 3 things are apparent: first, that Rizal here is the unmoveable of the two, having been exiled and unable to leave the island; second, that as Josephine arrived in Dapitan in a sort of volatile, fleeting fashion although building a home there with him, he sees her as one that might also leave as freely as she had come, as she had none of the ties that bound her to that place; third, that any reader of these verses would sense that posture of loving, humbled submiss...

Rizal wrote this poem in 1876, when he was 15 years old. When I recall the days That saw my childhood of yore Beside the verdant shore Of a murmuring lagoon; When I remember the sighs Of the breeze that on my brow Sweet and caressing did blow With coolness full of delight; When I look at the lily white Fills up with air violent And the stormy element On the sand doth meekly sleep; When sweet 'toxicating scent From the flowers I inhale Which at the dawn they exhale When at us it begins to peep; In these first two stanzas, Rizal uses a literary device intended to prolong suspense. Every fifth line begins with the word “When,” which indicates that there is a resulting effect following the clause that tails it. These series of “when” lines look back to his childhood and the colorful encounter with nature which was associated with those years. I sadly recall your face, Oh precious infancy, That a mother lovingly Did succeed to embellish...

Not so much as a title as a form of Philippine music, the kundiman is a traditional love song, particularly one that expresses devotion and longing for its romantic object. Scholars propose that it was derived from the phrase, “kung hindi man,” (“if it should not be so”), which was the theme of most of the songs in this form during that time. This is indicative of the people’s faith in a Higher Power who is in control of everything and who decides whether or not things “ought to be so,” which is nested in his overall beliefs and notions of love and romance. Jose Rizal wrote “Kundiman” in Tagalog in September 12,1891. This particular kundiman , however, is not dedicated to a particular maiden but to that one Maiden whom the hero fully dedicated his life – the Philippines. Truly hushed today Are my tongue and heart Harm is discerned by love And joy flies away, 'Cause the Country was Vanquished and did yield Through the negligence Of the one who led. The coun...

Jose Rizal, regardless of certain views later on in his life that were controversial and somewhat contrary to the Roman Catholic faith, was brought up Catholic. He composed this sonnet during his stay at the Ateneo Municipal de Manila, when he was about 15 years old. Mary, sweet peace, solace dear Of pained mortal! You're the fount Whence emanates the stream of succor, That without cease our soil fructifies. When spoken in modern English, this first stanza reads, “Mary, sweet peace and dear solace, You are the fount of pained mortal. It is from you that the stream of succor emanates, which, without ceasing, gives life to your soil.” It is clearly in praise of the Virgin Mary, whom Rizal says in this verse is the reason for a prosperous yield, and without the help of whom no hard working man can prosper. His high regard for the Virgin Mary is evident in these four lines. From thy throne, from heaven high, Kindly hear my sorrowful cry! And may thy shining veil ...

This composition by Rizal which was originally written in Spanish, in general speaks about how every Filipino is willing to work hard, or labor, for his country. Hymn to Labor (Arranged from Chas. Derbyshire’s translation; lines in different order.) Words by Jose Rizal Hymn to Labor was written in response to a request from Rizal’s comrades in Lipa, Batangas, who then were in need of a hymn to sing during the ceremony in honor of Lipa being declared a city in January 1888. More accurately, then, this song is intended to praise the hard work and industry of the people of Lipa. For the Motherland in war, For the Motherland in peace, Will the Filipino keep watch, He will live until life will cease! These first four lines of verses comprise the chorus. It signifies that every Filipino, in his patriotism, will keep a watchful yet loving eye on his country with equal passion at wartime and in times of peace. There will be no desertion especially during the more difficult t...

Unfold, oh timid flower! Lift up your radiant brow, This day, Youth of my native strand! Your abounding talents show Resplendently and grand, Fair hope of my Motherland! Soar high, oh genius great, And with noble thoughts fill their mind; The honor's glorious seat, May their virgin mind fly and find More rapidly than the wind. The first line, "unfold, oh timid flower," implies that the youth is silent, maybe daunted, and consequently has not yet gone into full bloom for whatever reason there is that may have silenced them. In the beginning stanza, Rizal encourages the youth, by telling them to hold their heads high for they possess talents and skills and abilities that would make their country proud. The second verse can be rearranged in contemporary English to say: "Oh genius great, soar high; and fill their mind with noble thoughts. May their virgin mind fly and find the honor's glorious seat more rapidly than the wind." Here, Rizal call...

Unfold, oh timid flower! Lift up your radiant brow, This day, Youth of my native strand! Your abounding talents show Resplendently and grand, Fair hope of my Motherland! Soar high, oh genius great, And with noble thoughts fill their mind; The honor's glorious seat, May their virgin mind fly and find More rapidly than the wind. The first line, "unfold, oh timid flower," implies that the youth is silent, maybe daunted, and consequently has not yet gone into full bloom for whatever reason there is that may have silenced them. In the beginning stanza, Rizal encourages the youth, by telling them to hold their heads high for they possess talents and skills and abilities that would make their country proud. The second verse can be rearranged in contemporary English to say: "Oh genius great, soar high; and fill their mind with noble thoughts. May their virgin mind fly and find the honor's glorious seat more rapidly than the wind." Here, Rizal call...

Aglowing and fair like a houri on high, Full of grace and pure like the Morn that peeps When in the sky the clouds are tinted blue, Of th' Indian land, a goddess sleeps. Rizal builds a description of his motherland using simile and metaphor. He likens her to an houri which, by definition, is one of the beautiful maidens that in Muslim belief live with the blessed in paradise (definition taken from Merriam-Webster). The second and third lines of this first stanza comprise one versified sentence, and when arranged in the more modern tongue, goes, "When the clouds are tinted blue in the sky, [she] peeps like the Morn, pure and full of grace." Here he also likens his country to a sleeping goddess of the Indian land. One might ask why the poet imagines his land to be in deep slumber; perhaps it is because he feels she has yet to be acquainted with greatness and with equal respect as is given to other lands. The light foam of the son'rous sea Doth kiss her feet w...

IF truly a people dearly love The tongue to them by Heaven sent, They'll surely yearn for liberty Like a bird above in the firmament. In this first stanza we note that Rizal considers a people's mother tongue as a gift from heaven. Growing up in the Catholic faith where language, according to the Bible, originated from the fall of the Tower of Babel, the poet must certainly have considered the Filipino language as a unique blessing to a unique people who, if they only realize the value of the treasure they hold in the tips of their tongues, would surely yearn for the freedom to build an identity for themselves, free from the influence of foreign lands. BECAUSE by its language one can judge A town, a barrio, and kingdom; And like any other created thing Every human being loves his freedom. Here the poet explains why language is linked to the need for freedom, why language is more than just a group of words people use to communicate to each other. It is, according t...