Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Module 3
Philippine History:
Conflicts and
Controversies
History is the study of the past, but a more contemporary definition is centered on how it
impacts the present through its consequences. Geoffrey Barraclough defines history as the attempt
to discover, on the basis of fragmentary evidence, the significant things about the past. He also
notes the history we read, though based on facts, is strictly speaking, not factual at all but a series
of accepted judgment. Such judgment of historians on how the past should be seen make the
foundation of historical presentation.
Write at least 5 information that will describe the conflict and the criticism.
Conflict Criticism
Explore Based on the research of the said document, answer the following
questions:
Explain
CONTROVERSIES AND CONFLICTING VIEWS
IN PHILIPPINE HISTORY
The revolution and the establishment of a democratic national government was the
logical culmination of the founding of the Katipunan in 1892. Bonifacio was the first
president of the Philippines, from August 24, 1896 to May 10, 1897.
AIMS:
KATIPUNAN LITERATURE
Three writers of the Katipunan were:
1. Andres Bonifacio – wrote Decalogue of the Katipunan (a collection of wise sayings for
Katipuneros and Pag – ibig sa Tinubuang Lupa (Love for Country).
A NATION IS BORN
“The archipelago is governed by the KKK ng mga Anak ng Bayan, which initiated the
Revolution; with laws and regulations which it enforces; followed and respected by all
for defending Freedom, fraternal love, constituting and consolidating the leadership.”
- Jacinto Lumbreras
“We of the Katipunan…. are true Revolutionaries in defending the Freedom of our
Nation.”
- Santiago Alvarez
“The Katipunan came out from cover of secret designs, threw off the cloak of any other
purpose, and stood openly for the independence of the Philippines. Bonifacio turned his
lodges into battalions, his grandmasters into captains, and the supreme council of the
Katipunan into the insurgent government of the Philippines.”
- John R.M. Taylor
“The Katipunan was more than a secret revolutionary society; it was withal, a
government. It was the intention of Bonifacio to have the Katipunan govern the whole
Philippines after the overthrow of Spanish rule.”
- Gregorio Zaide
“Immediately before the outbreak of the revolution, therefore, Bonifacio organized the
Katipunan into a government revolving around a ‘cabinet’ composed of men of his
confidence.”
- Teodoro Agoncillo
Katagalugan Government
A clearer idea of Bonifacio’s Katagalugan government emerged in the late 1890s, when
letters and other important documents signed by Bonifacio became accessible.
Three letters and one appointment paper written by Bonifacio on printed letterheads dated
from March 8- April 24, 1897 and all addressed to Emilio Jacinto, prove that Bonifacio
was the first president of a national government. These letters contain the following titles
and designations:
v President of the Supreme Council
v The Supreme President
v The President of the Sovereign Nation Founder of the Katipunan, Initiator of the
Revolution
v Office of the Supreme President, Government of the Revolution
The government headed by Bonifacio prior to March 22, 1897 was democratic in
nature and national in scope, contrary to some postwar historian’s contention that Bonifacio
attempted to establish a government separate from Aguinaldo’s only after the Tejeros
Assembly, and was therefore guilty of treason.
An article on the Philippine revolution appeared in the Feb 8, 1897 issue of the La
Ilustracion Espanola y Americana. It was accompanied by an engraved portrait of
Bonifacio wearing a black suit and white tie, with the caption, “Andres Bonifacio, Titulado
Presidente de la Republica Tagala” and described him as the head of the native
government. The reporter, G. Reparaz, referred to Aguinaldo only as generalissimo. The
key officers in the Bonifacio government, according to Reparaz, were as follows:
Teodoro Plata (War)
Emilio Jacinto (State)
Aguedo del Rosario (Interior)
Briccio Pantas (Justice)
Enrique Pacheco (Finance)
EXISTENCE OF KATIPUNAN GOVERNMENT
v The results of the first Philippine national elections was reiterated by Jose M. del
Castillo
v The August 1896 transformation of the Katipunan into a revolutionary government
and Bonifacio’s elections to presidency was confirmed by Pio Valenzuela
KATIPUNAN DEMOCRACY
Bonifacio set in place mechanicisms for popular participation from the national to
the local levels. The government established by the Katipunan was run by concensus.
• Kataastaasang Kapulungan
• Kataastaasang Sangunian
• Sanguniang Bayan
FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Prior to the outbreak of the revolution, some Filipinos based in Hongkong acted on
behalf of the nationalist movement in the Philippines such as:
• Doroteo Cortes and other Filipinos solicited funds from various sources, especially
from wealthy businessmen and companies;
• Jose Maria Basa served as disbursing officer in Hongkong;
• Doroteo Cortes, Isabelo Artacho and Jose A. Ramos arranged with Japanese
politicians to acquire 100,000 rifles and an unspecified amount of ammunition.
• They also petitioned Japan to send a military squadron to aid the revolutionary
forces and, after independence was won, to recognize the Filipino state.
Although Japan was not at war in 1896, she looked at her Asian neighbours with a
keen expansionary eye. Around the middle of May 1896, the Japanese cruiser Kongo
visited Manila.
Bonifacio and some Katipunan members immediately sought a meeting with
Japanese Admiral Kanimura, while Jacinto drafted a message addressed to the Emperor of
Japan. It read:
“The Filipino people greet the Emperor of Japan and the entire Japanese nation,
with the hope that the light of liberty in Japan will also shed its rays in the
Philippines…”
Cortes continued to represent the revolutionaries before foreign entities. Together
with Basa and A.G. Medina, Cortes sent a petition to the Consul of the United States of
America in Hong Kong on 29 January 1897. The request implored the “Gefe Supremo desu
Nacion” for protection of the Filipinos and recognition of their right to self-government.
Grover Cleveland lost the presidential elections; his successor, William McKinley,
declared a national policy focused on “domestic business conditions and economic
recovery from the continuing depression of 1893 and therefore (he tried) to avoid conflict
with Spain.”
In January 1897, The Philippine Commission in Hong Kong addressed a petition to
Henry Hannoteaux, the French Minister of Foreign Affairs, which enumerated 50
grievances of the Philippines against Spain and called for assistance. However, France
remained strictly neutral because she feared that such anticolonialism would contaminate
neighbouring French Indochina, and also because France had no means for practicable
intervention.
• Insignia
• Admission
• Decree of Gen. Ramon Blanco
• Declaring Martial Law
In the year 1893, Spanish Prime Minister Antonio Canovas del Castillo has sent
Blanco in the Philippines.
From the date of the publication of this decree there shall be declared in a state in a state of
war all the territory comprised in the provinces of Manila, Bulacan, Pampanga, Nueva
Ecija, Tarlac, Laguna, Cavite and Batangas.
All persons accused of crimes against the public order, of treason, all those who endanger
the peace and independence of the state or the form of government; those who defy or show
contempt of the authorities, and those guilty of crimes common in all rebellions and
seditious movements, shall be submitted to the jurisdiction of the military courts.
All persons found on a battlefield shall be treated as suspects
All those who refuse to surrender shall be arrested and delivered into the custody of the
military authorities.
All crimes committed shall be tried by summary courts-martial.
Courts-martial are established to become competent courts to try those accused of the
crimes.
The chiefs shall be pardoned of their crimes provided they surrender within the period
of time prescribed.
“Huwag kang gagawa ng anumang magbibigay bahid sa iyong pangalan. Katakutan ang kasaysayan,
dahil wala kang gawaing maitatago rito.” – Andres Bonifacio
Panimula
Konsepto ng Bansa:
* kamalayan ng sariling identidad
* malinaw na teritoryo
* nagkakaisang kasaysayan
*magkahawig na kultura
Ito’y di bunga nang biglaang silakbo ng pag-iisip kundi isang mahabang proseso
ng pag-unlad – ng pagbabago ng nabago ng mga Kastila sa loob ng 300 taon.
• Pamahalaang Espanyol
• Simbahan
• Bagong Komunidad (pambansa at Pilipino ang karakter)
Mahalaga ang ibig sabihin ng mga layunin ng La Liga Filipina lalo na ang implikasyong
di isinulat na siyang talang punto ng Liga. Sa pag-aaral ni Cesar Majul, ipinakita niyang
ang mga layuning ito ay batay sa ebolusyon ng diskurso ng kabansaan ng panahong iyon.
Paano? Ang kolonya kasi’y nasa ilalim ng dalawang namamayaning kapangyarihan na
bagamat magkasama ay magkahiwalay rin sa ibang pagkakataon. Binunuo ito, una ng
pamahalaang Espanyol at pangalawa na kalakip nito, ng Simbahan na simbolo ng mga
ideyal at istilo ng pamumuhay ng komunidad na Katoliko.
nila si Rizal sa Dapitan – itinatag ni Bonifacio ang lihim at alternatibong samahan, ang
Katipunan.
• Liga Katipunan
• armadong pakikibaka kasarinlan
2. Ang Tao
• Ang katutubong katangian ng tao ay naka sandigan sa pagkakapantay-pantay ng lahat.
• “Ang lahat ng tawo’y magkakapantay sapagkat iisa ang pagkatawo ng lahat.”
• “ang lahat ng tawo ay magkakapatid.”
3. Ang Paggawa
• Ang paggawa ang pinagmulan ng sibilisasyon at lipunan.
• Ang lahat ng pinakikinabangan, ang balang ikinabubuhay at ikinaiiba sa hayup ay
siyang kinakatawan at ibinubunga ng paggawa na nararapat ng kapagalang hindi
nasisinsay na matuid.
• Ang gumagawa ay nalalayu sa buhalhal na kasalanan, maruruming gawi at kayamutan;
nagtatamo ng aliw, tibay, ginhawa at kasayahan.
Pinuno at Pamahalaan
Pagkakapantay-pantay ng lahat ng tao
7. Ang Kalayaan
• “Ang kalayaan ng tao ay ang katwirang tinataglay na talaga ng pagkatao na umisip
at gumawa ng ano mang ibigin kung ito’y di nalalabanan sa katwiran ng iba…”
-E. Jacinto
• Makatarungan ang mag-alsa at magtayo ng bagong kaayusan ng lipunan
Sumama ang kalagayan ng mga katutubo dahil sa ehemonya ng Espanya. Bago ang
Sandugo, ani Bonifacio, ang mga katutubo ay “nabubuhay sa lubos na kasaganaan at
kaguinhawahan” – kasundo ang mga kalapitbayan, malakas ang kita, at “mayaman ang
kaasalan ng lahat – marunong bumasa at sumulat”. Ano ang nangyari paglunsad dito ng
mga Kastila? Sinabihan nila na “tayo’y aakuin sa lalung kagalingan at lalong imumulat ang
ating Kaisipan” – at naniwala. Sumunod kunwa ang mga Kastila sa kostumbre ng mga
katutubo na ang napagkayarian ay pagtibayin ng pag-inom ng dugong galing sa kanilang
ugat, “tanda ng tunay at lubos na pagtatapat na di magtataksil sa pinagkayarian.”
Nang namayani ang estadong Espanyol, binuhay natin sila sa kasaganaan kahit
abutin natin ang kasalatan at kadayukdukan. Tinulungan pa natin sila na lumaban sa mga
puwersa ng mga Intsik at Olandes na ibig sumakop sa Pilipinas. Sa kabila ng lahat na ito,
ano ang iginanti ng mga Kastila? Pawang kataksilan, pagpapahirap, at pagsasamantala –
lahat ng krimen ay nagawa nila laban sa mga katutubo. Nawalang saysay ang Sandugo.
KxxxKxxxKxxx
3. Ykintal sa puso ang pag asa na malabis na kapurihan at kapalaran na kung ikamamatay
ng tawoy mag bubuhat sa pagliligtas sa kaalipinan ng bayan.
5. Paingat ingatang gaya ng puri ang mga bilin at balak ng K... K... K....
9. Ang kasipagan sa pag hahanap-buhay ay siyang tunay na pag ibig at pag mamahal sa
sarili sa asawa, anak at kapatid o kabayan.
10. Lubos na pag sampalataya sa parusang ilinalaang sa balang sowail at magtaksil, gayon
din sa pala na kakamtan ukol sa mabuting gawa. Sampalatayanan din naman na ang
mga layong tinutungo ng K... K... K... ay kaloob ng Maykapal, sa makatwid ang hangad
ng bayan ay hangad din Nya.
KxxxKxxxKxxx
Duties of the Sons of the People
2. Reflect always that a sincere faith in Him involves love of one’s native land, because
this shows true love for one’s fellows.
3. Engrave on the heart the conviction that to die for the liberation of the country from
enslavement is the highest honor and fortune.
5. Guard the instructions and plans of the K... K... K... as you would guard your own honor.
6. Anyone who falls into danger whilst carrying out their duties should be supported by
all, and rescued even at the cost of life and riches.
7. Let each of us strive in the performance of our duty to set a good example for others to
follow.
9. Diligence in earning a livelihood is a true expression of love and affection for self,
spouse, children and brothers or compatriots.
10. Believe absolutely that scoundrels and traitors will be punished and good deeds will
be rewarded. Believe, likewise, that the aims of the K... K... K... are blessed by the
Creator, for the will of the people is also His will.
4. Maitim man o maputi ang kulay ng balat, lahat ng tao'y magkakapantay; mangyayaring
ang isa'y hihigitan sa dunong, sa yaman, sa ganda; ngunit di mahihigitan sa pagkatao.
5. Ang may mataas na kalooban, inuuna ang (dangal o) puri kaysa pagpipita sa sarili; ang
may hamak na kalooban, inuuna ang pagpipita sa sarili sa puri.
7. Huwag mong sayangin ang panahon; ang yamang nawala'y mangyayaring magbalik;
ngunit panahong nagdaan nay di na muli pang magdadaan.
9. Ang taong matalino'y ang may pag-iingat sa bawat sasabihin; matutong ipaglihim ang
dapat ipaglihim.
10. Sa daang matinik ng buhay, lalaki ang siyang patnugot ng asawa at mga anak; kung
ang umaakay ay tungo sa sama, patutunguhan ng inaakay ay kasamaan din. (Ang
simula nito ay obserbasyon sa ugnayan ng babae at lalaki sa panahon ng Katipunan;
para sa kasalukuyan, iminumungkahing ipalit ang sumusunod: "Sa daang matinik ng
buhay, ang mga magulang ang patnugot ng mag-anak; kung ang umaakay ay tungo sa
sama, and patutunguhan ng inaakay ay kasamaan din.)
11. Ang babae ay huwag mong tingnang isang bagay na libangan lamang, kundi isnag
katuwang at karamay (ng lalaki) sa mga kahirapan nitong buhay; gamitin mo nang
buong pagpipitagan ang kanyang (pisikal na) kahinaan, alalahanin ang inang
pinagbuhatan at nag-iwi sa iyong kasanggulan.
12. Ang di mo ibig gawin sa asawa mo, anak at kapatid, ay huwag mong gagawin sa asawa,
anak at kapatid ng iba.
13. Ang kamahalan ng tao'y wala sa pagkahari, wala sa tangos ng ilong at puti ng mukha,
wala sa pagkaparing kahalili ng Diyos, wala sa mataas na kalagayan sa balat ng lupa:
wagas at tunay na mahal na tao, kahit laking gubat at walang nababatid kundi sariling
wika, yaong may magandang asal, may isang pangungusap, may dangal at puri, yaong
di nagpaaapi't di nakikiapi; yaong marunong magdam-dam at marunong lumingap sa
bayang tinubuan.
14. Paglaganap ng mga aral na ito, at maningning na sisikat ang araw ng mahal na kalayaan
dito sa kaaba-abang Sangkapuluan at sabungan ng matamis niyang liwanag ang
nangagkaisang magkakalahi't magkakapatid, ng liwanag ng walang katapusan, ang
mga ginugol na buhay, pagod, at mga tiniis na kahirapa'y labis nang matutumbasan.
2. A deed lacks nobility if it is motivated by self-interest and not be a sincere desire to help.
3. True piety consists of being charitable, loving one's fellowmen, and being judicious in
behavior, speech and deed.
4. All persons are equal, regardless of the color of their skin. While one could have more
schooling, wealth or beauty than another, all that does not make one more human than
anybody else.
5. A person with a noble character values honor above self-interest, while a person with a
base character values self-interest above honor.
7. Don't waste time; lost wealth can be retrieved, but time lost is lost forever.
9. The wise man is careful in all he has to say and is discreet about things that need to be
kept secret.
10. In the thorny path of life, the man leads the way and his wife and children follow. If
the leader goes the way of perdition, so do the followers.
11. Never regard a woman as an object for you to trifle with; rather you should consider
her as a partner and helpmate. Give proper considerations to a woman's frailty and never
forget that your own mother, who brought you forth and nurtured you from infancy, is
herself such a person.
12. Don't do to the wife, children and brothers and sisters of others what you do not want
done to your wife, children and brothers and sisters.
13. A (person's) worth is not measured by his/her station in life, neither by the height of his
nose nor the fairness of skin, and certainly not by whether he is a priest claiming to be
God's deputy. Even if he is a tribesman/tribeswoman from the hills and speaks only his/her
own tongue, a (person) is honorable if he/she possesses a good character, is true to his/her
word, has fine perceptions and is loyal to his/her native land.
14. When these teachings shall have been propagated and the glorious sun of freedom
begins to shine on these poor islands to enlighten a united race and people, then all the
loves lost, all the struggle and sacrifices shall not have been in vain.
Ngayon sa lahat ng ito’y ano ang sa mga ginawa nating paggugugol ang nakikitang
kaginhawahang ibinigay sa ating Bayan? Ano ang nakikita nating pagtupad sa kanilang
kapangakuan na siyang naging dahil ng ating paggugugol! Wala kudi pawang kataksilan
ang ganti sa ating mga pagpapala at mga pagtupad sa kanilang ipinangakong tayo’y lalong
gigisingin sa kagalingan ay bagkus tayong binulag, inihawa tayo sa kanilang hamak na
asal, pinilt na sinira ang mahal at magandang ugali ng ating Bayan; iminulat tayo sa isang
maling pagsampalataya at isinadlak sa lubak ng kasamaan ang kapurihan ng ating Bayan;
at kung tayo’y mangahas humingi ng kahit gabahid na lingap, ang nagiging kasagutan ay
ang tayo’y itapon at ilayo sa piling ng ating minamahal ng anak, asawa at matandang
magulang. Ang bawat isang himutok na pumulas sa ating dibdib ay itinuturing na isang
malaking pagkakasala at karakarakang nilalapatan ng sa hayop na kabangisan.
Ngayon wala nang maituturing na kapanatagan sa ating pamamayan; ngayon
lagi nang gingambala ang ating katahimikan ng umaalingawngaw na daing at
pananambitan, buntong-hininga at hinagpis ng makapal na ulila, bao’t mga magulang ng
mga kababayang ipinanganyaya ng mga manlulupig na Kastila; ngayon tayo’y nalulunod
na sa nagbabahang luha ng Ina sa nakitil na buhay ng anak, sa pananangis ng sanggol na
pinangulila ng kalupitan na ang bawat patak ay katulad ng isang kumukulong tinga, na
sumasalang sa mahapding sugat ng ating pusong nagdaramdam; ngayon lalo’t lalo tayong
nabibiliran ng tanikalang nakalalait sa bawat lalaking may iniingatang kapurihan.
Kaya, O mga kababayan, ating idilat ang bulag na kaisipan at kusang igugol sa
kagalingan ang ating lakas sa tunay at lubos na pag-asa na magtagumpay sa nilalayong
kaginhawahan ng bayan tinubuan.
Source: http://www.filipiniana.net/publication/ang-dapat-mabatid-ng-mgatagalog/12791881588022/1/0
ANDRES BONIFACIO
The efforts of a determined few to honor the memory of Andres Bonifacio at a way
that befits his true stature have been deterred somewhat by the supercilious conviction
which prevails in the upper classes that Rizal cannot be replaced as the hero of the
Filipinos.
This conviction has even acquired the nature of an official one, a fact that can easily
be seen in the almost complete indifference of the national government to the City of
Manila's determination to impart a more substantial meaning to the celebration of
Bonifacio's centenary.
And yet, nothing could be more harmful than the cultivation of an artificial
rivalry between Rizal and Bonifacio. Nothing could be more revealing of the ignorance
of social and revolutionary action on the part of the so-called Filipino educated class than
the insidious campaign it is waging that the man from Calamba and the man from
Tondo were poles apart in their aims and purposes.
The simple truth, we believe, is that like the famous bow and arrow of
longfellow, Bonifacio and Rizal were useless each without the other. They
complemented each other, although they identified themselves with the use of apparently
divergent means. There was, to be sure, a difference in view asto the future of the
Philippines, but this difference was dictated by the difference in their character and in their
basic orientation.
All this may sound paradoxical, even contradictory. But not when it is considered
that in the Philippine revolution, as well as in all the classic revolutions which have
shaped human institutions, there was always a division of labor instinctively arrived
at.
Rizal and his group in the Propaganda Movement were the men who laid down the
theoretical foundations, the justifications and the morality of the Filipino grievance against
Spain. It was they who, by the power of the written word or by the urgency of vocal appeal,
opened the eyes of their countrymen to their own plight and who inspired them to aspire
for dignity. Rizal then was essentially a man of thought. He was the encyclopedist, the
pamphleteer, the philosopher, the poet who wrote and sang of love of country. He was the
theorist, immersed in thought and rendered incapable of action, not only by the corrosive
effects of "thinking too precisely on the events," but also by his implacably safe and
middle-class background.
But after he has achieved his assigned task --after, in other words, the man of
thought had reached the end of the tether -- the man of action had to take over and give
reality to what had been said and discussed before.
The man of action in Philippine history was Andres Bonifacio. here was a man
who could not boast of the profundity of learning and of the eloquence of the men of the
propaganda Movement. But here, also, was a man who had been endowed with the gift of
action.
Bonifacio saw the situation steadily and he saw the whole, and he acted on what
he saw. he acted, not by propounding more theories or indulging in more
philosophical vacillations, but in laying the foundation of the Katipunan the one and
only purpose of which was to fight a necessary and timely revolution. (12-01-1963)
Elaborate
BONIFACIO AND RIZAL
Bonifacio Day and Rizal Day are separated by barely a month, and yet no two days
in Philippine hisotry could be more apt, more distinct from each other in ideological
content and significance.
The difference has not been sufficiently appreciated by a vast majority of the
Filipinos, but by celebrating the birth of the revolutionist and the death of the reformer,
they display something like fortuitous wisdom which does them more credit than they
usually deserve.
A number of them who feel the tragedy of being grooved have realized the terrible
blunder of acceding to the systematic propaganda of relegating Andres Bonifacio to the
status of a second-class hero. And some of them, with a prescience that comes along with
time, are beginning to understand the meaning of the fact that when Rizal was hard at
work laying the foundation of La Liga Filipina and preaching the notion that the
Philippines should not separate from Spain and that the Filipino should be contented
with reforms, Bonifacio was organizing a secret society aimed at the overthrow of
Spanish domination.
While the intellectual middle class awaited confidently the reforms asked for and
promised," Teodoro M. Kalaw, one of the nation's real historians, wrote 28 years ago in
the Philippine free Fress, "Bonifacio, with the instinct and discernment of the masses, had
already lost faith in Spain, and while many of his countrymen were satisfied to lead a life
of ease in the Oriental fashion, without giving a thought to their position as slaves or to
the future of their country, he prepared the masses for a moral revolution by describing to
them their sad plight and speaking to them of a new day which, he said, would come only
through union, discipline and sacrifice."
But the tremedous truth in these phrases and clauses have fallen on the ears
of Filipinos who have been subjected from birth to senility to the propaganda about
the greatness, courage and wisodm of Rizal.
The Rizal cult has grown to such proportions that an execrable word --Rizalist--
had been coined to describe thae fatuous boobs who are still shouting at the international
conferences that the Martyr of Bagungbayan "spoke 19 languages," as if proficiency in
languages had any relevance to the grim business of changing society.
But it has become the truism to say that Rizal is a safe hero, particularly in those
places in the suburbs where time does not seem to move. And the inhabitants of suburbia
have not stopped thanking the Americans for their choice of Rizal as the national hero, for
even today, despite a heresy here and a heresy there, Rizal fulfills the need for permanence.
The almost secure position of Rizal in the national pantheon, however, is more
a reflection of the deterrirating character of the Filipinos than a tribute to his
greatness. For there was a time, not so long after the coming of the Americans in 1898,
when the Filipino intellectuals --the professionals mostly --looked up to Bonifacio rather
than Rizal for the inspiration of their nationalism.
One of them and perhaps one of the most eloquent of them was Fernando Ma.
Guerrero. He came from Ermita, not Tondo, but he knew what Bonifacio stood for, and
for what it was worth, he sang the man's praises. Teodoro Kalaw was another, and the
whole membership of Philippine masonry during the era when being a mason meant
something, worshipped at the shrine of Bonifacio.
But the replacement of these people by a race of middle men, by a race of jaycees
and Rotarians seem to have doomed the Founder of the Katipunan to an inferior category.
The relegation, it is becoming increasingly clear, will not last forever. Already the
rising generation of Filipinos has begun to see more than the symbolism of Bonifacio Day
and Rizal Day, and seeing, they might learn that the choice of heroes is their exclusive
prerogative.
2
Ulit-ulitin mang basahin ng isip
At isa-isahing talastasing pilit
Ang salita’t buhay na limbag at titik
Ng sangkatauhan ito’y namamasid.
3
Banal na Pag-ibig! Pag ikaw ang nukal
Sa tapat na puso ng sino’t alinman,
Imbi’t taong-gubat, maralita’t mangmang,
4
Pagpupuring lubos ang palaging hangad
Sa bayan ng taong may dangal na ingat;
Umawit, tumula, kumatha’t sumulat,
Kalakhan din niya’y isinisiwalat.
5
Walang mahalagang hindi inihandog
Ng may pusong mahal sa Bayang nagkupkop:
Dugo, yaman, dunong, katiisa’t pagod,
Buhay ma’y abuting magkalagot-lagot.
6
Bakit? Alin ito na sakdal nang laki
Na hinahandugan ng buong pagkasi?
Na sa lalong mahal nakapangyayari
At ginugugulan ng buhay na iwi?
7
Ay! Ito’y ang Inang Bayang tinubuan,
Siya’y ina’t tangi na kinamulatan
Ng kawili-wiling liwanag ng araw
Na nagbigay-init sa lunong katawan.
8
Sa kaniya’y utang ang unang pagtanggap
Ng simoy ng hanging nagbibigay-lunas
Sa inis na puso na sisinghap-singhap
Sa balong malalim ng siphayo’t hirap.
9
Kalakip din nito’y pag-ibig sa Bayan
Ang lahat ng lalong sa gunita’y mahal
Mula sa masaya’t gasong kasanggulan
Hanggang sa katawa’y mapasalibingan.
10
Ang nangakaraang panahon ng aliw,
11
At ang balang kahoy at ang balang sanga
Ng parang n’ya’t gubat na kaaya-aya,
Sukat ang makita’t sasaalaala
Ang ina’t ang giliw, lumipas na saya.
12
Tubig n’yang malinaw na anaki’y bubog,
Bukal sa batisang nagkalat sa bundok,
Malambot na huni ng matuling agos,
Na nakaaaliw sa pusong may lungkot.
13
Sa aba ng abang mawalay sa Bayan!
Gunita ma’y laging sakbibi ng lumbay,
Walang alaala’t inaasam-asam
Kundi ang makita’y lupang tinubuan.
14
Pati ng magdusa’t sampung kamatayan
Wari ay masarap kung dahil sa Bayan
At lalong maghirap, O! himalang bagay,
Lalong pag-irog pa ang sa kanya’y alay.
15
Kung ang Bayang ito’y nasasapanganib
At siya ay dapat na ipagtangkilik,
Ang anak, asawa, magulang, kapatid
Isang tawag niya’y tatalikdang pilit.
16
Dapwat kung ang bayan ng Katagalugan
Ay nilapastangan at niyuyurakan
Katuwiran, puri niya’t kamahalan
17
Di gaano kaya ang paghihinagpis
Ng pusong Tagalog sa puring nilait?
Aling kalooban na lalong tahimik
Ang di pupukawin sa paghihimagsik?
18
Saan magbubuhat ang paghinay-hinay
Sa paghihiganti’t gumugol ng buhay
Kung wala ding iba na kasasadlakan
Kundi ang lugami sa kaalipinan?
19
Kung ang pagkabaon n’ya’t pagkabusabos
Sa lusak ng saya’t tunay na pag-ayop,
Supil ng panghampas, tanikalang gapos
At luha na lamang ang pinaaagos?
20
Sa kaniyang anyo’y sino ang tutunghay
Na di aakayin sa gawang magdamdam?
Pusong naglilipak sa pagkasukaban
Ang hindi gumugol ng dugo at buhay.
21
Mangyayari kaya na ito’y masulyap
Ng mga Tagalog at hindi lumingap
Sa naghihingalong Inang nasa yapak
Na kasuklam-suklam sa Kastilang hamak?
22
Nasaan ang dangal ng mga Tagalog?
Nasaan ang dugong dapat na ibuhos?
Baya’y inaapi, bakit di kumilos
23
Hayo na nga kayo, kayong nangabuhay
Sa pag-asang lubos na kaginhawahan
At walang tinamo kundi kapaitan
Hayo na’t ibigin ang naabang Bayan.
24
Kayong natuy’an na sa kapapasakit
Ng dakilang hangad sa batis ng dibdib,
Muling pabalungi’t tunay na pag-ibig
Kusang ibulalas sa Bayang piniit.
25
Kayong nalagasan ng bunga’t bulaklak,
Kahoy nyaring buhay na nilanta’t sukat
Ng bala-balaki’t makapal na hirap,
Muling manariwa’t sa Baya’y lumiyag.
26
Kayong mga pusong kusang napapagal
Ng daya at bagsik ng ganid na asal,
Ngayon ay magbango’t Bayan ay itanghal
Agawin sa kuko ng mga sukaban.
27
Kayong mga dukhang walang tanging lasap
Kundi ang mabuhay sa dalita’t hirap,
Ampunin ang Bayan kung nasa ay lunas
Pagkat ang ginhawa niya ay sa lahat.
28
Ipaghandog-handog ang buong pag-ibig,
At hanggang may dugo’y ubusang itigis
Kung sa pagtatanggol, buhay ay mapatid
Ito’y kapalaran at tunay na langit.
Source: Jim Richardson, The light of liberty: documents and studies on the Katipunan, 1892-1897