Sources of Filipino Thoughts

By: Japhet Cañada

Filipino Thoughts:

Filipino thought in general is a person’s

consciousness of his own life and his
world, his society and his Gods in the
light of Truth, and thereby realize his
proper being.
Basic Stages of Filipino Thoughts

1. Vital Thought: by which immediate experience attains a preliminary structuration

and verbalization by way of myth, ritual, song and language, folk-tale, traditional
sayings and aphorisms, customary legal, political and religious codes.

2. Reflexive Thought: more mediate type of thought, whether conscious or unconscious,

analysing, systematizing and justifying a vital thought that has reached a high point of
growth and, therefore, of conflict, thereby demanding a reintegration, a critical
evaluation of its boundaries and particular strengths in view of the ulterior possibilities
of man.
SOURCES OF FILIPINO THOUGHTS:

As a general description, the distinct value system of Filipino is rooted primarily in

personal alliance systems, especially those based in the following:

Kinship- is a “system of social organization based on real or putative family ties,’. It is

one of the most important organizing components of society.

Obligation- is the moral or legal duty that requires an individual to perform, as well as
the potential penalties for the failure to perform.
Friendship- is about sharing the things we care about. This is essential to ethics and to
having a good life and may also have conflicts between obligations of one person to
another when it comes to morality.

Religion (particularly Christianity)- Religious beliefs also shape many kinds of values
that citizens hold. Social values such as views about homosexuality, women’s roles, the
nature of good and evil, and family and marriage have strong connections to religiosity.

Commercial Relationships- It is everything your customer has contracted for

compared to their actual purchase, usage and billing history. It is crucial for everyone
across your organization to know this- for each customer.
Sample Filipino Values and Where it Roots from
Family Oriented- The basic and most
important unit of a Filipino’s life is the
family. Filipino’s who turn 18 are not
expected to move out of their parents’
home. When a Filipino’s parents are
old and cannot take care of themselves,
they are cared for in their children’s
homes and are very rarely brought by
their children to Homes for the Aged
Flexibility or adaptability, and
creativity- Filipinos often have an
aversion to a set of standardized rules
or procedures; they are known to
follow a “ natural clock’ or organic
sense of time- doing things in the
time they feel is right.
Sample Filipino Values and Where it Roots from

Hardworking and resourceful- Joy and Humour- These famous

resourcefulness comes hard work.
Filipinos are very determined and
persevering in accomplishing whatever
they set their minds to.
traits are the ability of Filipinos to
find humour in everything. Filipino
optimism shines in whatever situation
they are in to remain determined in
going through struggles or challenges.
Sample Filipino Values and Where it Roots from

Religious and piety- The greater chunk
of the population are Christians ( mostly
Roman Catholic), then Muslims, and
few percent for ‘other’ religions.
Hospitality- Foreigners who come to
visit the Philippines speak of
Filipinos going out of their way to
help them when lost, or the heart-
warming generosity of a Filipino
family hosting a visitor in their
poverty-stricken home.
Our Filipino Values are ours. It may be affected by
where it originated from, but we decide on these
values and live with these values as we walk through
life to live in peace and in content.