SPIRITUAL SELF

“It’s your most beautiful and powerful form.”

SPIRITUAL vs. RELIGION

-Are both paths to God, different in terms of approach

SPIRITUAL
 Defined as relating to/affecting the
human spirit or soul as opposed to
material or physical things
 Places little importance on belief and
traditions and is more concerned with
growing experiencing the divine
 Spiritual approach to God is through the
path of love (where there is no
condemnation and judgement and only
mercy and acceptance)
 God is omnipresent and omniscient
(someone who is living presence in our
hearts)
 Embraces all the world’s religion but no
constrained by its dogmas or forms
RELIGION
 Refers to someone (person) who believes
in God or group of gods and consciously
adheres to the beliefs of his/her religion
 Takes a peach of fear and emphasizes sin,
guilt, and the concept of a punishing God
 God is depicted as separate from
humanity and high up in the heavens
 Many religions feel that their path is the
only way to salvation and that other
religions are wrong (people feel that they
need to convert others to their faith)

Contemplative Practices:

1. Meditation
2. Prayer
3. Yoga
4. Journaling

The Practice of Religion

-the belief in the supernatural being and power

Religion

 the belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal God or gods
 particular system of faith and worship
 understood as a systematic attribution or human characteristics or behavior to a god, animal, or
object

The Psychology begins religious belief

Religion attracts so many followers because it satisfies all 16 basic desires that human share:

1. Acceptance 4. Family
2. Curiosity 5. Honor
3. Eating 6. Idealism
 7. Independence 12. Saving
8. Order 13. Social contract
9. Physical Activity 14. Status
10. Power 15. Tranquility
11. Romance 16. Vengeance

Religious beliefs provide people with certain ways of thinking to help them cope with ultimate
question that cannot be explained in any other way.

The Four Dimensions of Religion:

1. Belief
2. Ritual
3. Spiritual experience
4. Unique social forms of a community

POLITICAL SELF

Political self and identity are developed through socialization, through the ways of. people learn
the knowledge, norms, values, motives, and roles appropriate to their positions in a group or
community.

We Identify ourselves as Filipinos. As Filipinos, we have different characteristics. Both positive

and negative:

Strengths of the Filipino Character:

 Pakikipagkapwa-tao
o Refers to openness, helpfulness, and generosity
o “bayanihan”
o Hospitality
 Family orientation
o Refers to the love for family and relatives
o Give honor and respect, care, generosity and personal sacrifices
o Sense of belongingness and security
 Joy and humor
o Can be seen especially during fiestas and social gatherings
o Refers to our behavior where we still laugh at people we love, hate, and in our good or
bad fortune
o We always find reason(s) to smile or laugh
 Flexibility, adaptability, and creativity
o We tend to adjust at any circumstances
o Improvise and makes use of what we have
 Hardworking and industrious
o Takes risks and works in other countries
 Faith and religiosity
o The “bahala na” mindset (serves as a kickstarter or pampalakas loob)
 Ability to survive
 o All the traits mentioned
o “Matutong mamaluktot habang maikli ang kumot”

Weakness of the Filipino Character:

 Ability to survive
o All the traits mentioned
o “Matutong mamaluktot habang maikli ang kumot”
 Extreme personalism
o Refers to personally relating to things, events, and people;
o The “palakasan system” and inside connections; led to prevalence of graft and
corruption
 Extreme family-centeredness
o Concern for community and common good is less important
o Political dynasties
 Lack of discipline
o “ningas cogon”
o “Filipino time”
 Passitivity and lack of initiative
o Strong reliance on leaders and the government
o Does not contribute to solutions
o Related to our lack of discipline
 Colonial mentality
o Loves anything foreign and incorporates foreign elements
o Lose cultural indentity
o Feelings of inferiority
 Kanya-kanya Syndrome
o Related to extreme personalism and extreme family centeredness
o Personal and in-group interest are supreme
o Dampened sense of community and cooperation
o “Crab mentality”
 Lack of self-analysis and self-reflection
o The tendency to be superficial and somewhat flightly
o “madaling makalimot” or short term memory

Establishing a Democratic Culture

Democracy

Government in which the supreme power vested in and exercised by the people
directly/indirectly through a system of representations, usually involving periodically held free elections

Features:

 Prevent cruel and vicious autocrats from ruling

 Fosters human development
 Helps protect fundamental individual rights and interests
  Provide people maximum opportunity to take moral responsibility for their choices and
decisions
 Offer relatively high chance of political equality

Adjustment of individual to the collective awareness is achieved through:

1. Formal way
a. System of ideas and models that are officially established (e.g. laws, politics)
2. Informal way
a. Acceptance of behaviors and thoughts that are not established formally (e.g. culture
(collective); Religion, science, morality, and ideology (individual))

 There should be a participative attitude for democracy to flourish

 Personality traits factor in internalizing political attitudes

THE POLITICAL SELF OF BEING FILIPINO

What makes a Filipino a genuine Filipino? If you were to introduce yourself as a Filipino to a
person of another nationality and he/she asks “Who are Filipinos?” what will you reply?

Abstraction

 The Philippines we know today only emerged in the 1890s after over three centuries of
colonization of the Spaniards
 Foreign culture, beliefs, language and religion have made a huge dent on our own by setting a
foundation to the contemporary Filipino identity and culture
 In this chapter, you will learn that an individual’s race, ethnicity and physical characteristics are
not the only factors that make a person’s national identity
 Values and traits are also important indicators that set apart one nationality from the other

According to the 1987 Philippine Constitution, Filipino citizens are:

 Those whose fathers or mothers are citizens of the Philippines

 Those born before January 17, 1987, of Filipino mothers who elect Philippine citizenship upon
reaching the age of majority
 Those who are naturalized in accordance with law

Who is a Filipino?

 However, citizenship is not only the marker of being a Filipino

 Culture and history have greatly influenced the manner Filipinos learn, live, and behave

Filipino Values and Traits

While Philippines may be known for its awe-inspiring beauty, unique traits, reputable values, and
laudable talents make the country a place to be.

Tourists who visited the Philippines can never forget the big and bright smiles that greeted them,
the colorful and loud jeepneys, the common Filipino phrases such as “Mabuhay!” and “Salamat” and
habits such as saying “po” and “opo” to the elders, leaving shoes or slippers at the front of the door
before entering a house, and the importunate asking of “Kumain ka na ba?”

 The Filipino Hospitality

o Filipinos welcome their guests and tourists as if they are their own brothers and sisters
o Always makes their guests feel at home, offering them something to eat or even a place
to stay
o They bring out their best sets of plates and chinaware for their honored guests and
would even go as far as spending a lot of money and going into debt just so they can
satisfy them
o During festivals or fiestas, they serve heaps of festive food and invite the whole
barangay over
o Pasalubong and pabaon
 Respect for Elders
o Filipinos greet their elders by kissing or touching their hand to their forehead while
saying “Mano po!” and constantly using “po” and “opo” in the conversations
o References to elder: Ate, Kuya; Tito, Tita; Lolo, Lola; Manong, Aling
 Close Family Ties
o Filipinos maintain a tight relationship with their families regardless if the children are old
enough and already have families of their own
o They are fond of family reunions during birthdays, holidays, or fiestas year-round
 Cheerful Personality
o Filipinos have a habit of smiling and laughing a lot- they smile when they are happy, or
sometimes even when they are sad or angry
o Smiling has been a coping strategy for many Filipinos especially during trying times and
calamities
o They always try to maintain positive outlook in life which makes them resilient and able
to manage almost everything with a simple smile
 Self-sacrifice
o An attitude that can be seen as an extension of Filipino hospitality
o Filipinos go out of their way to extend help to friends, families, and loved ones. They
wish comfort and better lives for their loved ones and would even go to the extent of
working abroad to earn more money for their family
 Bayanihan
o The spirit of communal unity and cooperation of Filipinos
o Filipinos are always ready to share and help their loved ones who are in need
 “Bahala na” attitude
o Filipino version of the famous line “Hakuna Matata” meaning no worries
o Originated from “Bathala na” where Bathala means God, and the phrase meaning
leaving everything into God’s hands
o Can be viewed as something similar to cheerful and positive traits of Filipinos
 Colonial Mentality
o Regarded as the lack of patriotism and the attitude where Filipinos favor foreign
products more than their own
 o The desire to look more foreign than local and keep up with foreign beauty trends
 Mañana Habit
o Filipino term for procrastination
o Derived from a longer Filipino phrase “Mamaya na”
o Poor habit of laziness that results in heavier workloads
 “Ningas Kugon”
o The attitude of eagerly starting things but quickly losing eagerness soon after
experiencing difficulty
o Laziness is a common problem among Filipinos
 Pride
o Most Filipinos hold on their pride as if they are more precious than keeping a good
relationship with family and loved ones
o When two parties are not in good terms, they find it so hard to apologize and wait until
the other party asks for an apology first
 Crab Mentality
o A toxic trait where one resents the achievement of another instead of feeling happy for
them
o Just like crabs, they pull each other down and ruin each other’s reputation rather than
bringing them up resulting to no progress
 Filipino Time
o Filipinos have common attitude of arriving late at commitments, dinner, or parties
especially if they are meeting someone close to them
o The 7:00 PM call time is moved to 7:30 PM, and almost everyone arrives at the same
time because everyone is using Filipino time

Constant Reminders of our Nationality Filipino Markers

1. Proverbs or Salawikain- sayings that convey lessons and reflections on Filipino practices, beliefs,
and traditions
a. Proverbs expressing a general attitude toward life and laws that govern life;
b. Ethical proverbs recommending certain virtues condemning certain vices;
c. Proverbs expressing a system of values;
d. Proverbs expressing general truths and observations about life and human nature;
e. Humorous proverbs;
f. Miscellaneous proverbs
2. Superstitions- Some of these may be influenced by beliefs from other cultures, but Filipinos
have retold these superstitions according to their own experiences and they sometimes end up
even more interesting. Example: a woman singing while cooking will end up a spinster so
parents remind their daughters to avoid singing while preparing their meals
3. Myths and Legends- Stories aimed to explain origin of things, at the same time, teach a valuable
lesson. Some of these stories stemmed in pre-Christianity period, but have evolved to the
stories we know today
4. Heroes and Icons- Heroes serve as a reminder of true patriotism and nationalism as they have
sacrificed their lives for the sake of country’s freedom and progress. Famous icons and heroes
 serve as important Filipino markers as they have made the Filipino name more pronounced
worldwide through their own expertise

How to be a Good Filipino?

1. Be an Active Filipino Citizen

a. Aware of current events and participates in government programs that aim for the
country’s progression and development
b. Exercising right to vote- every Filipino citizen of legal age have a chance in choosing the
right leaders for the Philippines who are genuine in helping and caring for the Filipino
people
2. Study the Philippine History
a. The road to history is long and bloody, and by learning and fully understanding the
events of Filipino history, you learn why is it important to love your country with your
life, extend help to your fellow Filipinos in need, and recognize abuse of political power
3. Support Local Products
a. You not only support local manufacturers and businessmen, but also strengthen the
local economy
b. Business owners will also invest within the country
c. Supporting our local products displays creativity, innovativeness, and resourcefulness
4. Speak the Filipino Language
a. Jose Rizal highlighted the importance of speaking a national language as a way of
displaying the love for one’s country
b. It has been a decade-long debate whether to use Filipino as the instructional language in
school and to translate textbooks into Filipino, however, this is still not strictly imposed
5. Do not spread fake news and be democratic in engaging with dissent
a. Internet has made the spread of fake news very common
b. Likewise, it has also made us engage in intense arguments with people across the globe
about political positions
c. Verify what you read online, especially in social media before actually believing in it
d. Recognize disagreement in political views, be tolerant, and argue intelligently without
having to resort to name-calling people