RIZAL’S LIFE:

HIGHER EDUCATION AND LIFE ABROAD

Higher Education of Rizal
The execution of the three martyr priests, Mariano Gomez, Jacinto Zamora,
and Jose Burgos, collectively known as Gomburza on February 17, 1972, left
Paciano, Jose Rizal’s brother, deeply moved and angered by the brutality of the
Spanish colonial government. He expressed his frustrations to the younger Jose,
making him, even at the very young age, aware of the atrocities of the Spanish
colonizers.
The execution of Gomburza stirred the nationalist sensibilities in Rizal. He
even dedicated his second novel, EL Filibusterismo, to the three priests. The
execution opened Rizal’s eyes to the true conditions of Philippine society under
the Spaniards.
 Originally Francisco Mercado wanted Jose to study at Colegio de San Juan de
Letran but Paciano convinces him to let Jose study instead at Ateneo Municipal de
Manila. With the help of Manuel Xerez Burgos, the nephew of the priest Jose Burgos,
Rizal was admitted to Ateneo despite objections from some school administrators.
In the first two terms at Ateneo, classes were divided into groups of interns and
externs. The interns constituted the Roman Empire while the externs constituted the
Carthaginian Empire. In each group there were five dignitaries: the Standard-bearer,
Centurion, Decurion, Tribune, and the Emperor who was considered as the best student
in class. Rizal, grouped in the Carthaginian Empire was ranked at the bottom of the class
at the start of the term. HE kept on getting promoted so that by the end of his first month,
he had already attained the rank of Emperor.
Rizal continuously exemplified scholastic excellence such that he was the pride
of the Jesuits as he received the highest grades in almost all his classes. On
March 23, 1877, he obtained the degree Bachiller en Artes and was awarded
sobresaliente (outstanding). During his stay in Ateneo, he wrote poems and
crafted sculptures. One of these sculptures was the Sagrado Corazon de
Jesus (Sacred Heart of Jesus) upon the request of his teacher. After finishing
his studies at Ateneo, Rizal pursued further studies. This was strongly opposed
by his mother for she believed that gaining more knowledge would only
endanger his life. However, with the support of his father and brother, Rizal
went on to attend the University of Santo Tomas (UST) to study Philosophy.
After a year, he shifted to study medicine, where he was allowed to take up
preparatory medical courses and regular first year medical courses at the
same time.
 Rizal’s academic life at UST was full of controversies and hardships compared to his
time in Ateneo. It was reported on various occasions that Rizal had “unhappy days” at UST
for three reasons. One reason is that the Dominican professors were hostile to him.
Another reason was the fact that Filipinos were vulnerable to racial discrimination and
lastly, the method of instruction was repressive and dated. In 1882, Jose Rizal finished his
fourth year in UST and left the Philippines bound for Spain where he continued his study of
medicine at the Universidad Central de Madrid. He obtained multiple degrees in
philosophy, letters, and medicine in 1884.
Rizal’s sudden decision to leave the Philippines was compounded with speculations.
According to some accounts, Rizal left the country as part of a secret mission co-
orchestrated by his brother to observe life abroad and initiate a campaign for reforms in
the Philippines.
Rizal’s Life Abroad
In 1882, after finishing his fourth year at the University of Santo Tomas (UST), Rizal left for
Spain to continue his studies there. According to some accounts, Rizal left the Philippines as
part of a secret pact with his brother Paciano. With only a few people aware of his departure,
not even his parents nor his lover Leonor Rivera, Rizal left the Philippines bound for Spain to
observe life abroad and to write a book displaying Filipino nationalism. In his journey, he was
able to establish connections that facilitated the campaign for reforms in the Philippines trying
to conceptualize his book.
Rizal’s trip was primarily funded by Paciano, who regularly sent him money for his upkeep.
When the agrarian crisis in Calamba took place, Rizal’s allowance was delayed and he had to
pawn the diamond ring his sister Saturnina gave him before he left for Spain. He even had to
cut his living costs, which meant skipping meals and eating tuyo (dried fish). Rizal also had
problems in paying rent which forced him to move from one place to another.
 Nevertheless, Rizal never lost focus on his mission. On his first visit to foreign country, he
witnessed how people in Singapore displayed a carefree attitude in whatever they did. This
was because their rights as citizens were respected and their authorities were not abusive.
He also traveled to Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), Egypt, Italy and France before finally arriving in
Barcelona, Spain.
In Spain, Rizal regularly met with some of his former schoolmates from Ateneo Municipal
and this partially relieved his home sickness. He also wrote articles for a newspaper based
in Manila, one of which was his first published essay El Amor Patrio (Love of Country). HE
also spent his time growing his personal library that included books on the lives of the
presidents of the United States and the history of the English civil war. In his collection of
books, Rizal had two favorites – Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1852) by Harriet Beecher Stowe and The
Wandering Jew (1844) by Eugene Sue. These two books made Rizal emphatic towards the
less fortunate and reminded him of the unjust relationship between Filipinos and Spaniards.
This came Rizal’s motivation to start drafting his own book.
 Aside from reading and writing, Rizal was also overwhelmed by the courage and
camaraderie displayed by the Freemasonry. It did not take long before Rizal joined their
ranks. Through the influence of his uncle Jose Alberto, Rizal was given access to the
Acacia Lodge of the Masonic Fraternity.
Rizal also met Don Pablo Ortiga y Rey, a former alcalde of Manila, whose commonly
served as a meeting place for Filipino students in Madrid. He soon joined the group,
Circulo Hispano-Filipino, led by Juan Atayde. He also regularly convened with his Filipino
friends from the Los Indios Bravos that included renowned painters Juan Luna and Felix
Resurreccion Hidalgo.
 Rizal also busied himself with learning different languages such as English, German, and
French. Despite his many engagements, Rizal still found time to continue drafting his
book. One of his greatest influences as Dr. Feodor Jagor, a German scientist and traveler,
whom he met in Berlin. Dr. Jagor’s book inspired Rizal to do something to emphasize that
education is the answer to the Philippines’ current social condition. The biggest
contributor to Rizal’s venture in writing was Dr. Maximo Viola. He financed the publication
of Rizal’s first book, Noli Me Tangere, in 1887 with 2,000 initial copies. Copies were given
to Viola and to Rizal’s friends in Spain, while others were shipped to the Philippines that
then reached the hands of Governor General of the Philippines and the Archbishop of
Manila.
After the publication of the Noli Me Tangere, viola accompanied Rizal to Austria to
finally meet Dr. Ferdinand Blumentritt, with whom Rizal exchanged letters and books for
several years and whom he considered as one of his advisers. After a few trips to Rome
and other parts of Italy, Rizal returned to the Philippines to personally witness the impact
of his novel.
The Propaganda Movement and La Solidaridad
Prior to the arrival of Rizal in Spain, many Filipino students were already studying there
like Pedro Paterno and Gregorio Sancianco who were both active Filipino nationalists. When
Rizal arrived in Spain in 1882, there was an atmosphere of activism led mostly by students.
Around this time, Spain’s government was in disarray because the newly adopted 1876
constitution created a power vacuum. As parties tried to consolidate their power and
politicians tried to secure their personal agendas, shifting from one political bloc to another
became common. Corruption was prevalent in the Spanish government and cabinet
reorganizations followed shortly after every change of party alignment.
In addition, many people in Spain were illiterate because of the lack of primary and
secondary schools. Most importantly, the Church was still a formidable force in almost every
aspect of Spanish society.
 This was the situation in Spain that Rizal witnessed when he arrived. He was also welcomed in
an atmosphere of liberalism which exposed him to the ideas formerly foreign to him. This was
when he became aware of the concept of assimilation wherein the Philippines can be
considered as a province of Spain and not just a tributary colony. For Rizal, this meant that
Filipinos could be equal with the Spaniards.
Shortly after arriving in Barcelona, Rizal started contributing to the short-lived bilingual
newspaper, Diariong Tagalog, together with Marcelo H. del Pilar. Most of Rizal’s contributions
were focused on the idea of national regeneration through education. Likewise, Rizal also
contributed to other publications led by Graciano Lopez Jaena. Jaena was the first to lead a
series of protests in writing against the injustices of the Spaniards in the Philippines in the
newspaper Los Dos Mundos. Later on, Rizal found himself writing side-by-side with Jaena’s
criticisms against the Spanish colonial regime.
In 1883, Rizal’s resentment against the Spaniards intensified when he received a letter from
his brother Paciano. The letter informed him, about the new Calamba parish priest, Father
Villafranca, who was threatening their father and demanding for advance rental payments.
 In 1884, Jaena and Rizal delivered speeches at the Exposicion de Bellas Artes in Madrid
where two Filipino painters were given recognition. Juan Luna received an award for his
Spoliarium and Felix Resurreccion Hidalgo for his Virgenes Cristianas Expuestas al
Populacho. In their speeches, Jaena, condemned the abuses of the friars and the
Spanish colonial government in the Philippines, whereas Rizal encouraged the Filipinos
youth to follow in the footsteps of Luna and Hidalgo.
Rizal’s speech received various interpretations both from Spain and the Philippines.
In the Philippines, Rizal’s speech was considered seditious. Many believed that Rizal
could never return to the Philippines again as long as it was a colony of Spain.
 It was in 1885 that Rizal became more active in contributing to various newspapers. In
1888, Rizal joined an organization composed of Filipino liberals exiled in Spain, the La
Solidaridad. The organization aimed to raise awareness of Spain on the needs of its colony,
the Philippines. Galicano Apacible, Rizal’s cousin, issued a newspaper of the same name. It
was published in Barcelona. Jaena and later on del Pilar edited the newspaper while Rizal
was an active and significant contributor. It served as the principal organ for reform
movement. Most of the articles featured in La Solidaridad talked about the possibility of the
Philippines becoming a province of Spain with equal rights before the law, and recognition of
freedom of speech and assembly.
One of Rizal’s most important contributions was the Letter to the Young Women of
Malolos published on February 22, 1889. It recognized the efforts and bravery of 20 women
from Malolos who wrote a petition letter to Governor General Valeriano Weyler to allow
them to put out a night school where they could study the Spanish language under the
tutelage of Teodoro Sandiko. Though the petition was initially denied because of the
pressures and influence of the friars, the perseverance of the women of Malolos prevailed.
 Jose Rizal also made a fearless forecast on the future of the Philippines within a hundred
years in his work, The Philippines a Century Hence. It analyzes the various causes of the
miseries suffered by the Filipino people under the Spanish colonizers. In connection to this,
Rizal wrote another essay published in La Solidaridad in Madrid in 1890 titled The Indolence of
the Filipino, as a response to the accusations of the Spaniards that the Filipinos were indolent.
Rizal argued that several factors can be identified for such and most can be rooted in the
abuses committed by the Spaniards directed to the Filipinos. Jose Rizal’s outstanding talent
and passion for writing, as evidenced by his numerous works, greatly antagonized the friars
who were the usual target of criticisms.
After Jaena quit writing for the group, del Pilar assumed leadership. There were stories
that Rizal was offered the position of editor but rejected it as he thought it might create a rift
between the two propagandists. Soon, Rizal also stopped writing for the newspapers to
dedicate his time in addressing the Calamba agrarian dispute that was further fueled by the
eviction of the Mercado family from the Dominican lands.