Rizal beyond the image

By Philippine Daily Inquirer First Posted 01:48:00 01/09/2009

Filed Under: history, Personalities, Books, Anniversaries

Rizal Day came and went as usual without much fuss, except in Rizal These are best read in Rizal’s original Tagalog. His charming Park, where Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile presided over the translation of “Thumbelina” is “Si Gahinlalaki” and “The Ugly ceremonies. But then, of course, the President was in La Union yet Duckling” is rendered as “Ang Pangit na Sisiu ng Pato.” again for . Everyone is swept up by Christmas and New Year It is truly unfortunate that a hero who left so many writings is so to notice. seldom read by his people. Maybe we have become so conditioned to I missed writing yet another front-page article for Rizal Day because I associate Rizal with nationalism and holidays that we forget he can was, believe it or not, in a place that had no Internet connection. be an engaging writer on a wide range of topics. To read him is to There are people who think we should wear long faces and rediscover not just another aspect of the hero but a way to commemorate Dec. 30 with somber thoughts of death, martyrdom understand ourselves as . and “Ultimo Adios.” I would rather that people read Rizal’s novels and discuss them instead of repeating stock phrases and praises that Sometimes he can be cryptic, such as when he says, “Hay mas dias have numbed our youth. Better yet, try and read Rizal’s other que longanisas (There are more days than longanisas),” which is a writings, those that were not forced on you in school. phrase whose context is lost on us today. Then there is yet another cryptic parable that can be relevant to those who like to involve If you know a bit about Rizal, have some idea about his life and the lawyers and get tangled in lawsuits. Rizal wrote: plots of his novels, it would be fruitful to browse though the little- known volumes in the 25-volume complete compilation of Rizal’s Once, two friends found a clam near the sea. They debated as to who writings. My favorite volumes in the series are: “Rizal’s Prose” (Vol. III would have it. Book 2 of the “Writings of Jose Rizal” series published by the Jose Rizal National Centennial Commission in 1962, which has been “I,” one said, “saw it first.” frequently reprinted in our time by the National Historical Institute) and “Miscellaneous Writings of Jose Rizal.” The former is a collection “But I picked it up,” replied his friend. of writings, many of which we were never taught in school, while the latter is a mixed bag ranging from his medical notebooks, “Rules for They went to court and asked the judge to settle the question. The the Determination of the Dimensions of Parapets,” to a list of shells judge opened the shell, ate the meat, and divided the shell between he collected in Dapitan. “Rizal’s Prose” is basically on his literary the litigants. works while “Miscellaneous Writings” is just that: stray pieces on a variety of topics not easily classified—notes on Tagalog orthography, It is a reminder to people who are fond of resorting to the courts of the treatment of the bewitched (or how to cure a victim of a justice. “mangkukulam”), and one of the few articles that Rizal originally wrote in English, which is his re-telling of the famous Philippine Another unfinished story or novel is quite similar to George Orwell’s folktale “The Monkey and the Turtle.” “Animal Farm.” First published in 1946, Orwell set the story in a place called Manor Farm, renamed Animal Farm after a successful revolt of If you are so inclined, there are separate volumes for his letters, the animals that drove out the humans. The leader of the animals another for his poetry. The schoolmaster’s favorite is the one devoted was a pig named Napoleon. to his political and historical writings. In Rizal’s story, the leader of the animals is also a pig named Botiok. In this farm there lived an efficient farmhand named Suan who In “Miscellaneous Writings,” everything is translated from the original produced healthy and productive animals. One day, for some Spanish or French or Tagalog into English and the compilation has unknown reason, the animals turned sickly. Egg production dropped, thus misled some into concluding that Rizal wrote some fairy tales, the turkeys lost the sheen on their feathers and the other animals including “The Ugly Duckling,” because the compiler forgot to grew thin. This was strange, because there was no epidemic of mention that these tales by Hans Christian Andersen were translated animal disease at the time. The narrator, who was born on St. into Tagalog and illustrated by Rizal for his nephews and nieces. Solomon’s Day, had the gift of understanding the language of animals, so he climbed and hid in a macopa tree to eavesdrop on the must go beyond the image in our monuments and textbooks to animals. He discovered that the animals, like humans, had a social unravel the complexity of a man who mirrors a lot of what we are and structure of their own, with the pig at the head of their society. It is what we wish for. unfortunate that Rizal did not complete this story to educate and entertain us further. When people ask why Rizal always seems relevant and interesting to me, I reply that if we want to understand Rizal and ourselves, we

Jose Rizal's Legacy . . . A Life worth Emulating

By: Zigfred Diaz

More than 111 years ago, Spanish authorities shot a man in the grounds of Luneta . That moment was about to change the course of Philippine history. The man who was shot during that time was Jose Rizal. Every year we continue to remember and commemorate the death anniversary of this great man.

What was the reason why Jose Rizal was chosen as our national hero ? What is the greatest legacy that he gave to the Filipino people ? Majority of Filipinos believed that Jose Rizal become a national hero because of his example and his writings that greatly influenced most of our revolutionary leaders. However there are those who believe that he should only be declared a hero not "The national hero." Majority of Filipinos also believe that the greatest legacy that he gave to the Filipino people was his patriotism and his love for his country.

Years ago when I was taking up the required "Rizal" course in college, I was so amazed by the story of Jose Rizal that I went through Zaide's book on Rizal in just one day. I consider Jose Rizal is one of my "Role models." When I went to Manila, I made sure that I could visit the actual grounds where Rizal was shot. Contrary to what others believe, Rizal was not shot where the Rizal shrine in Luneta stands. The actual place where he was shot is several meters away from the shrine. As you approach the area you can see a sign that says that the place is "hollowed ground." and it truly is for me. After we took the bar exams, I went with my family to Enchanted Kingdom. I also saw this as an oppurtunity to visit nearby Calamba, Laguna, Rizal's home. Hopefully, I hope to visit his place of exile in Dapitan someday. Reading so much about Rizal, being to the places where he has been, and watching so many Rizal movies, I cannot help but ask myself, how could a somebody who lived only 34 years of his life make a huge difference in this , not only in his country but globally as well ?

It is my personal belief that Jose Rizal's greatest legacy is a life that is full of meaning and purpose. Even if he lived for only 34 years, he accomplished so much because he had a vision in his mind and a mission in his heart. The strength and intensity of such mission and vision translated into action. That is why he did not waste any time in trivial matters. Rather he devoted all of his time to live out his mission and accomplish his vision.

The question right now that I should be asking myself or you should be asking yourself is when the time comes for us to leave this earth, will our lives matter? Can we truly say that we have lived a full and meaningful life? If we cannot answer this question positively, than we must ask God to grant us a personal vision and a mission for our lives in that we might not waste our time on things that does not matter at all. In so doing we might be able to live a life just like Jose Rizal did and leave a legacy for others to follow. Leaving a legacy as Rizal did is what I believe as my "higher calling."

Article Source: http://www.approvedarticles.com until June 15, and did not begin his studies in Madrid until Oct. 3. How could he have written a letter from Madrid before he even left A MISTAKE IN RIZAL'S LETTERS Manila? By John Nery I have not seen the original letter, but I can make an educated guess Philippine Daily Inquirer about the mistake. It was the turn of the year, and 1883 was not even First Posted 00:08:00 12/30/2008 three weeks old; Rizal wrote down the wrong year.

The letter is the 12th printed in chronological order, out of the 226 It happens. It happens even to the best of us; and it happened to included in "Letters Between Rizal and Family Members 1876-1896." Rizal. It is dated Jan. 17, 1882, written in Madrid and addressed to Jose Rizal's brother-in-law Silvestre Ubaldo. What makes this particular, decidedly trivial error instructive, however, is that some of the country's best historians in the 1960s, Ubaldo had repeatedly asked Rizal to work for his transfer to the and then again in the 1990s, did not see it as erroneous. To be sure, government telegraph station in Calamba. Rizal's reply was practical it takes some chutzpah on my part, a mere student of history, to take to a fault: "I'll see if I can do something for you at the ministry, but to task the very people on whose shoulders I and my generation of my acquaintances are still few. If you didn't expect much from the Rizal readers now stand. But I cannot help but think that the National post you hold, I believe it would be much better if you would devote Heroes Commission, which printed several volumes of Rizal's letters yourself to farming." in 1963, including those he wrote to and received from his family, accepted everything Rizal wrote as holy writ; and that the National He does not fail to end on a light note, asking Ubaldo to give his Historical Institute, which reprinted the same volumes starting in regards to his wife Señora Ipia (Rizal's sister Olimpia), "who turned 1992, passed up the chance to edit Rizal's letters according to out to be stout as I believed. Tell her to stop wriggling." contemporary standards and by the light of the latest research.

The letter, however, is erroneously placed in the chronology. Rizal did (Could it be that blame for the perpetuation of this admittedly minor not leave for Europe until May 3, 1882. He did not arrive in Barcelona error goes all the way back to Teodoro M. Kalaw and his "Epistolario Rizalino"? If I correctly read the introductory note to Filipiniana. net's patriot, or Rizal the hero and martyr whom we fondly and impressive "epistolary bibliography, " which unfortunately repeats the unquestioningly worship." sequencing error, perhaps the answer is yes.) Ah. Hero worship. There is plenty of evidence — both internal to the letter and external * * * to it — that would have told anyone that the date of the letter, even if Some of Rizal's letters are a little too earnest now for our taste, but affixed by the hand of Rizal, was wrong. many of them are alert with both precision of description and intensity of passion, and quite a few are genuinely funny. Their greatness lies in what they show us: his protean mind, but his constant character.

The real mistake is not in his letters, but in the way we handle them. We should not confine our attempts to publish them to a few thousand copies, in large-paper formats, bound like precious and unavailing dissertations. We should publish, in time for the 150th anniversary of his birth in 2011, hundreds of thousands of copies, in formats that we can read on the bus, in the ferry, while lying in bed. Rizal begins the letter by acknowledging receipt of a previous letter from Ubaldo, dated Dec. 23, and by mentioning that he had already It would be the best way to get to know him. Writing his sister Josefa, for instance, he couldn't resist another poke at the stout older sister. replied to Ubaldo's entreaties ("I thank you for your perseverance in "Is Sr. Ipia there already? Do her eyes still become small when she writing me") not once but twice. These circumstances would have laughs?" The only thing missing, it seems, is the now obligatory LOL. placed Rizal in sometime in December 1881, perhaps even earlier — clearly an untenable thought, if, that is, the thought had http://opinion. inquirer. net/inquireropin ion/columns/ view/20081230- been entertained. 180547/A- mistake-in- Rizals-letters

The letter as placed in the sequence is also jolting; it jumps out of context. (This is, in fact, what drew my attention in the first place.) History, Independence Day, Jose Rizal On one spread, Rizal is enduring a chastening from Leonor Rivera and making plans to survey a piece of land; on the next, he is dispensing By Dr. Pablo S. Trillana III advice to his brother-in-law from Madrid. Indeed, the very next letter Inquirer in the sequence, No. 13, is from that good man, Rizal's older brother Paciano, writing from Manila on May 26, 1882, and informing the (Editor's Note: The author is a former chair of the National Historical younger brother — then en route to Europe — about his parents' grief Institute and currently Knight Grand Officer of the Knights of Rizal.) upon hearing the news of his departure. MANILA, –Within a week of each other, the nation will If these weren't enough, there is the evidence of Ubaldo's own commemorate two events of great national significance — the letters. On June 26, 1882, Ubaldo raises the request for the first time: declaration of independence in Kawit, Cavite, on June 12, 1898, and "If you can do me a favor there by having me transferred to Calamba, the birth of national hero Dr. Jose Rizal on June 19, 1861. recommend me to the Inspector General of Communications. " He follows it up on Oct. 5, 1882. There are also three other letters These seemingly disparate events, in the course of our story as a touching on the request: Paciano's of July 24, 1882; Rizal's of Oct. 10; people, led to a historical conjunction that gave birth to our modern and finally Rizal's again of Jan. 11, 1883. "I received Silvestre's nation. It would be difficult to think of one without the other. letter," he writes, "and I'm very sorry that I can't do anything for him now." The radical idea of separating from Spain through a revolution is generally laid at the doorstep of the Katipunan. This was the secret Admittedly a small error, and an even more minor mystery, the society founded on July 7, 1892, the day the decree of Rizal's exile "to obvious key to which may lie in the preface to the volume of "family" one of the southern islands" was published in the Gaceta de Manila. letters. The last sentence of the preface (written, I assume, on behalf of the National Heroes Commission) reads: "Going over all these In truth, the roots of separatist ideas reached deeper into the past. letters can never fail to reveal to us Rizal the man, or Rizal the On Dec. 12, 1896, in preparing his defense against the charge of rebellion, Rizal acknowledged these roots: "Separatist ideas have depicting everyday events under the velvet heel of Spanish existed in the Philippines for many years. In this century alone there oppression, leading up to "El Filibusterismo" (The Reign of Greed), occurred many uprisings: Those of Novales, Cuesta, Apolinario, in the which came out in 1891, his call to revolution. Ilocos and Pangasinan, of the regiment of the Pampangos, of Cavite and again that of Pangasinan in 1884." And in "Las Filipinas Dentro de Cien Años" (The Philippines a Century Hence), Rizal lightly parted the veil of the future to give a glimpse of Novales was Capt. Andres Novales, a Spanish mestizo who led a the direction toward which the country was heading. revolt in 1823 and declared himself "Emperor of the Philippines. " His armed uprising was foiled and he was executed. In these works, Rizal created a climate of opinion that questioned the existing social order. If Spain, after more than 300 years of colonial Cuesta was Lt. Jose Cuesta, another Spanish mestizo who, in 1854, rule, had nothing more to offer than tears and chains for the indios, it rebelled and declared the country's independence from Spain. He was time for the Filipinos to separate from her by regaining their was also captured and then hanged. freedom and establishing their own nation.

Apolinario, on the other hand, was Apolinario de la Cruz, more Rizal clearly laid out the historical basis for independence in Las popularly known as Hermano Pule, a native of Lucban, whose Filipinas Dentro de Cien Años: If Spain would not introduce equitable movement called the Cofradia de San Jose attracted thousands of laws and sincere reforms to assimilate Filipinos then he predicted followers in Tayabas, Laguna, Batangas and Cavite. They were that "the Philippines one day will declare herself inevitably and suspected of being heretics and subversives and were attacked in unmistakably independent. " 1841 on the slopes of Mt. San Cristobal in Tayabas. Pule was captured, shot and quartered. Peace or destruction?

Early conquest years It is true that the national hero emphasized education as the foundation upon which the Filipinos could succeed in developing a Going back farther, down to the early conquest years, the sons and fledgling nation. He condemned the 1896 revolution of Bonifacio relatives of Rajah Matanda, Lakandula and Rajah Soliman attempted because Rizal believed that conditions were not ripe for its success. in 1574 to separate from the Spaniards and regain leadership over their ancient domains. Armed struggle, however, was an option that remained on his mind. On June 19, 1887, his 26th birthday, Rizal wrote to his good friend Thirteen years later, Magat Salamat and Agustin de Legazpi led the Ferdinand Blumentritt: "I assure you that I have no desire to take part so-called "Revolt of the Lakans (1587-88)" to drive away the in conspiracies which seem to me too premature and risky. But if the Spaniards. Both attempts failed. government drives us to them, that is to say, when no other hope remains to us but to seek our destruction in war, when the Filipinos The uprisings were easily suppressed. They were not based "on the would prefer to die rather than endure longer their misery, then I will necessity of the whole nation," a principal reason, according to Rizal, also become a partisan of violent means. The choice of peace or why they failed. destruction is in the hands of Spain…"

There was yet no clear idea of nation, no national sentiment that could galvanize disparate ethnolinguistic communities into a united http://blogs.inquirer.net/beingfilipino/2007/06/11/2-historical- yet widespread struggle for independence. Rizal changed all that and events-led-to-birth-of-modern-rp/#more-11 gave the idea of independent nationhood moral clarity.

Social order

Rizal's choice of means were words. When Filipinos were falling for the line that our culture was nonexistent before the arrival of Spain, he found Antonio de Morga's "Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas" (Events Jose Rizal’s 100-year-old secret in in the Philippine Isles), first published in 1609, and annotated it to emphasize the richness and liveliness of our pre-colonial past.

In "Noli Me Tangere" (The Social Cancer), published in 1887, Rizal By Michaela P. del Callar took the bold step of laying bare the cancerous present by accurately 09/26/2010 neglect, with the scantiest budget to protect priceless artifacts from BERLIN — Stored in a German museum’s metal cabinets and glass the ravages of time and even theft. vaults with controlled temperature for more than a century, Jose Rizal’s intricately hand-woven Barong Tagalog and other cultural mementoes depict how he once proudly showed off his small Southeast Asian nation’s cultural heritage in mighty Europe.

Then a dreamy-eyed Filipino in his 20s, Rizal had traveled to Germany in 1886 to further his studies in Medicine, nurture his revolutionary zeal, and finish writing and publish his epic novel, the Noli Me Tangere.

Rizal brought along keepsakes that reminded him of home — a wood The Berlin museum director for Southeast Asia, Dr. Roland Platz, and brass betel nutcracker, a rice stalk cutter, a beaded belt from carefully removed Rizal’s treasures from overhead metal safe boxes Mindanao, a tawo-piece Muslim ethnic garment, and a 19th century and laid them side by side on a table. The bespectacled curator baro’t saya woven from piña and abaca fiber. The cultural pieces in beamed with pride as he finally presented the items after a long wait. his bachelor’s pad in a quaint residential building in Berlin’s upscale “It’s your cultural heritage,” Platz said. Stadtmitte district were donated to the German city’s Ethnological Museum when he decided to return to the Philippines. “I think that Jose Rizal is very important to you,” he told the Tribune. “The items that he collected are special. I can imagine that a lot of Back home, he kept his romance with Europe and continued shipping Filipinos would like to see them or have them photographed and donating cultural artifacts to the Berlin museum a year after he somewhere or published in a way.” left. After his Dec. 30, 1896 execution at Manila’s Bagumbayan, now The 21 cultural relics included native garments, Filipino household known as Luneta Park, his mementoes in Berlin were forgotten. items and wooden and metal artifacts from rural regions across the Philippines. All items date back to the 19th century, according to For more than 100 years, Rizal’s treasures lay hidden from the public Platz. eye, stored at Berlin’s Ethnologisches Museum in Museenkomplex Dahlem Lanstrasse, where German authorities kept them, seen only A tribal vest from Mindanao, its intricate “Ikat” print design similar to by very few people, who got wind of their existence and seek special batik still sharp, was held up by Platz. He pointed to Rizal’s well- government permission to view them with an escort-curator. preserved Barong shirt, his letter opener and rain coat. There were hand-woven piña tablecloth and table runners, a wooden Now, Rizal’s century-old secret may finally unravel. peg for fighting cocks, a baby carrier crafted from native cloth with The Philippine Embassy in Berlin has proposed that a collection of ethnic patterns. There were women’s and men’s accessories like a Philippine cultural artifacts, including Rizal’s items, be inventoried beaded belt and a traditional Filipino salakot hat. and catalogued by German museum authorities and then possibly be put on display for Filipinos and other foreign visitors to see. Platz lamented that very few Filipinos have had the privilege to marvel at the artifacts because of the distance and scant information Philippine officials have praised Germany, which owns the priceless about them. Although tucked in locked cases, the Rizal collection artifacts, for safeguarding the treasures from the decay of time, could be shown to small groups of visitors by arrangement. insects and shifting temperature. Most, including Rizal’s Barong Tagalog, have been excellently preserved and still look stunningly “We are open for the public but of course not too many people can new. come here,” he said, adding that “a few can always come and are welcome to visit.” This journalist was allowed by German museum authorities to view Rizal’s artifacts in a rare, two-hour tour that seemed like a journey Consul Julius Flores of the Philippine Embassy in Berlin said Rizal back in history. donated these items because of his fondness and affection for Germany, where he took up further studies in ophthalmology. The experience was bittersweet, witnessing how a foreign government had spent and taken pains to preserve a part of Rizal lived in Berlin for about six months where he was welcomed in Philippine heritage that may have easily been lost in time and its prestigious scientific circles, where he wore his native outfits. knowing how many of our museums back home have been left in Rizal liked the absence of racial prejudice. He stayed longer, though, Rizal next met his puppy love Segunda Katigbak. Unfortunately, in Heidelberg, where he interned and worked in an ophthalmology Katigbak was already engaged and set to wed her Batangas clinic, Flores said.“He loved Germany and therefore the only way for townmate, Manuel Luz. him to share something of himself is his personal effects ... an impression of the Philippines,” Flores said. After Katigbak came two Leonors—Leonor Valenzuela and Leonor Rivera. Rizal met Valenzuela in Intramuros near the dormitory where German authorities have long planned to put Rizal’s artifacts on he was staying. Cleverly using invisible ink, Rizal sent her love notes, public display but have not found an appropriate space. which could only be read over the flame of a lamp or candle.

The Berlin museum currently showcases about 500,000 objects and While he was courting Valenzuela, Rizal was also seeing Rivera, the collections from Africa, American archaeology, American ethnology, woman who would eventually become his girlfriend for the next 11 Europe, the Islamic World, Eastern and Northern Asia, South and years. She would be his inspiration for Maria Clara, one of the main Southeast Asia, the South Seas and . characters in his first novel, Noli Me Tangere.

He was ready to marry her if not for the objections of Rivera’s mother http://www.tribuneonline.org/headlines/20100926hed3.html who disliked Rizal’s reputation of being a dissenter. When Rizal went to Spain, he continued to send her letters, which Rivera’s mother hid from her. Thinking that he had abandoned her, Rivera eventually gave in to her mother’s request and married Englishman Henry Jose P. Rizal: One geek of a ladies’ man Kipping. Rizal was said to have cried shamelessly when news of the who charmed 10 women wedding reached him.

BY ED UY LIFESTYLE REPORTER During his stay in Spain, Rizal frequented the Ortiga’s residence in In a time without Facebook, Twitter and networking sites, Jose P. Rizal Madrid where he met Consuelo Ortiga y Rey, the prettier of Don Pablo was a social butterfly whose presence was always memorable, as he Ortiga’s daughters. He dedicated to her A la Senorita C.O. y R., which used poems, magic and his wit to delight the crowd. He was a poet, became one of his best poems. Their relationship never became novelist, sculptor, painter and doctor, and his passion for knowledge serious, however, as Rizal wanted to remain loyal to Rivera, and is only matched by his love for women. Rizal was the ultimate “geek” because his friend Eduardo de Lete was madly in love with Consuelo. of his time, and he used his mastery of the language and arts to fight for the country and conquer the hearts of women on the side.

According to several Filipino historians, Rizal had romanced and conquered the hearts of at least 10 women—of different nationalities European loves —quite a feat for a man who stood no more than 4’11” tall. When he learned about Rivera’s marriage, Rizal eventually met and courted Nelly Boustead, one of two daughters of his host, Eduardo In his book, The Loves of Rizal (2000), former National Historical Boustead, in the resort city of Biarritz, . Their love story ended Institute chairman, Dr. Pablo Trillana 3rd, said that Rizal “gave and when Nelly’s parents requested Rizal to convert to the Protestant received affection and, like everyone else, felt the joy, anguish or faith. regret of Cupid’s arrow.” On his second trip to Europe in 1888, Rizal stopped by where Rizal’s first romance, ironically, was the last to be discovered. Her he met Seiko Usui whom he affectionately called “O Sei San.” She name was Julia, although her surname remains unknown. was a lovely and intelligent daughter of a samurai who taught Rizal the Japanese art of painting known as su-mie, and helped him Trillana said that he learned about Julia from a book written by Carlos improve his knowledge of Japanese language. Historians said that if Quirino, a National Artist for historical literature. She was a 14-year- Rizal wasn’t patriotic he could have married O Sei San and settled in old girl whom Rizal met in Los Baños, Laguna. In his book, Trillana Japan because a Spanish delegation there was offering him a described her as a “vibrant yet modest, oval-faced, and olive- lucrative job. In a letter, he said of her: “O Sei San, O Sei San, skinned, and blessed with simple beauty.” Rizal was 15 when he first sayonara. No woman, like you, has ever loved me . . . ” saw Julia trying to catch a butterfly she was chasing. “Rizal, ever gallant, caught two,” Trillana wrote. There was an instant attraction, Rizal also had a short-lived affair with Suzanne Jacoby when he but for lack of subsequent contact, Rizal eventually forgot Julia. moved to Brussels because of the high cost of living in Paris. There he lived at the boarding house owned by the Jacoby sisters. Their This paper does not propose that Dr.Jose Rizal was a psychologist. romance ended when Rizal left for Madrid without telling her. Rizal did not undergo professional training in psychology. My intention here is to search for concepts Rizal may have directly or While annotating the Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas in London, Rizal indirectly dealt with in his two novels, Noli Me Tangere and El lived in the house of the Beckett family near the British Museum. Filibusterismo, and a major essay, La Curación de los Hechizados There he also had a brief relationship with Gertrude, the oldest of the (The Treatment of the Possessed), that reflect types of human three Beckett daughters. Gertrude helped him in his painting and behavior usually described in psychology textbooks. sculpture, but when he realized Gertrude was seriously in love with him, he left London and went to Paris. I have set four objectives: To discover in the aforementioned works by Rizal certain concepts that may have theoretical and pragmatic Attempt at marriage implications to modern psychology and psychiatry; to find out the The last woman in Rizal’s life was Josephine Bracken whom he met in historical roots of his knowledge in psychology; to evaluate whether Dapitan. Bracken was an 18-year-old petite Irish girl and the adopted or not Rizal's concepts related to psychology and psychiatry fall daughter of George Taufer from . Taufer came to Dapitan under behavioral tenets or psychoanalytic principles; and to examine to seek Rizal for eye treatment. Rizal was immediately attracted to if some of the present Filipino behavioral patterns continue to adhere Josephine. He called her “dulce estranjera,” or sweet foreigner. He to Rizal's "diagnosis" and "prognosis'. eventually found himself falling in love with Josephine, but Rizal’s sisters suspected her of being a spy for the Spanish authorities and a My discussion will revolve around the characters in Noli who reappear threat to his security. in Fili or haunt its pages, specifically, Sisa, Pilosopong Tasyo, and Doña Victorina, three colorful literary characters who exhibit classic Upon her return to Dapitan, Rizal tried to arrange their marriage with psychological profiles in the real world. I will touch on the possessed Father Antonio Obach. The priest, however, wanted a retraction as a individual as examined in Rizal's essay. precondition before marrying them. Rizal eventually took Bracken as his wife without the Church blessings and Bracken later gave birth Sisa, whose sad life drives her to madness, is one of two tragic prematurely to a stillborn baby. heroines of Noli. Her case exemplifies a female Filipino adult, who has a weak personality, that is, in psychological parlance, very much How he managed to win all those ladies’ affection, Trillana attributes below the 50th percentile. By contrast, her submissiveness almost to Rizal’s “impeccable manners and gift of gab, not to mention good reaches the 99th percentile. Her gambler of a husband constantly looks and innate charm.” takes out his anger over his hard luck on his family. It is typical of him to come home, after sustaining heavy losses at the cockfight, to Rizal’s love life may not be as successful as his patriotic endeavors, physically abuse Sisa and their two children, Basilio and Crispin. but one thing is for sure, he had used all the knowledge and talent he Outside her home, Sisa is also a victim. Her children, parish altar has to make them fall for him, and he in turn immortalized their love boys, are wrongly accused of stealing money from the church. To pay through his works. for their "crime", the priest canes Crispin to death and Basilio, who narrowly escapes the same fate, is grazed by a guardia civil's bullet. “The [women] came at varying crossroads in Rizal’s life. And with Sisa's misery is exacerbated by the loss of Crispin and the extreme varying passion and devotion, he would remember each in his heart humiliation she suffers at the hands of the Spanish militia. Branded and works,” Trillana said. as a mother of thieves and forced to walk to the cuartel under the cruel stare of her neighbors, she breaks down. In Fili, Sisa is Source: Trillana, Pablo S. 3rd. The Loves of Rizal and Other Essays on resurrected as a disturbing memory. Philippine History, Art and Public Policy. Quezon City: New Day Publisher, 2000. Through Sisa, Rizal attempted to show how the psyche of the Filipino Jose Rizal University “Rizal, the women of his time had been adversely affected by the colonial Romantic” http://www.joserizal.ph/lv01.html culture. During the Spanish era, partly due to the hold of medieval Catholicism and the generally accepted idea of women's inferiority to RIZAL AND PSYCHOLOGY men, the Filipino woman was brought up to blindly obey the wishes of her parents (especially her father's) or husband; to never assert her Rizal and Psychology own will; and to fully dedicate her life in the service of God and by Dr. Regino P. Paular family. Outside of the church and the home, she had no function. Chief, Historical Education Division There was no room for her to develop into a mature and independent National Historical Institute person in this rigid, limited and sheltered environment. She could be likened to a piece of crystal -- decoratively but extremely fragile. When confronted by a severely threatening or frustrating experience dwells on kulam, or sorcery, and the modern concept of auto- she retreated, or worse, broke down. Such is Sisa's situation. A suggestion or self-hypnosis as the underlying cause of so-called dutiful, submissive woman who, when cornered and hurt, loses her possession. Rizal argues that if person believes he is being subjected grip on reality. to kulam and then behaves as if possessed, he becomes a slave to his own thoughts. This is a classic case of auto-suggestion or self- Pilosopong Tasyo typifies the Filipino who is caught between two hypnosis. His condition, which affects him both physically and disparate cultures, the East and the West. As a young man, he mentally, is not a result of demonic possession, but rather the power studied philosophy and was a bright student. In fact, too bright for his of the mind. mother's comfort. Fearing that Tasyo might become too absorbed in his studies and, therefore, forget God, his mother told him to make a Rizal's background in psychology choice: be a priest or leave school. He chose the latter, being an Rizal was introduced to the field of psychology when he was studying obedient son, and also because he was in love. He got married but for his bachillerato or high school diploma at the Ateneo de Manila in was, unfortunately, widowed and orphaned in less than a year. the 1870s. The subject, however, was taught only as a part of Frustration, loneliness, and perhaps disenchantment with the colonial philosophy. Later, as a freshman medical student at the Universidad establishment he previously embraced drove him to seek solace in de Santo Tomas and, later, at the Universidad Central de Madrid, he his books, in the cockpits, and in a life of sheer idleness. Eventually, learned more about ailments that affect the mind. Even then, although born wealthy, his fortunes dwindled. An old man when we however, psychology/psychiat ry was not offered as a distinct branch meet him in Noli, he is touched with benign lunacy. But while the of medicine, but it was incorporated into medical books. Therefore, people of San Diego make fun of his odd ideas, such as his theories concepts relevant to insanity -- its causes, effects, and recommended on the doctrine of Purgatory, there is method to his madness. therapy -- were studied and discussed. Rizal's medical training also exposed him to the European Rizal attempted to show us that reciprocal inhibition or sublimation or understanding of mental illness and its cure. His travels in France and resorting to other activities to forget unpleasant experiences is the Germany gave him the opportunity to observe new trends in the common refuge of intelligent people. Repressing his personal treatment of the disease. In addition, he must have read books on problems through reading was the only way Tasyo could preserve the human behavior by two noted 19th century French doctors, Jean- appearance of sanity and blend in with the "normal" world. The irony Marie Charcot (1825-1893) and Joseph Breuer (1842-1925). Charcot, is, the more learned he was, the farther he moved away from what is a psychiatrist, was a recognized authority on mental disorders while perceived to be sane. Doña Victorina is one of Rizal's most colorful Breuer was an advocate of the practice of mesmerism in the characters. She is a monument to self-deception. A Filipino by blood, treatment of mental illness. Sigmund Freud's (1856-1939) association she styles herself as European. She wears overly accessorized gowns; with the two doctors helped him develop his now famous she covers her face with rice powder to hide her brown skin and her psychoanalytic theories and treatment. age. And although she speaks bad Spanish, she is "more Spanish All told, Rizal's academic background, personal experiences and than Agustina de Zaragosa", a symbol of Spanish patriotism. exposure to various social milieus gave him first-hand knowledge of Naturally, her prime ambition is to marry the Spaniard. However, no the probable causes and effects of human behavior. Moreover, he Spaniard seemed interested. Not until Tiburcio de Espadaña shows up was a keen observer of people and their idiosyncrasies, a gift in her middle age, when her luxuriant hair has thinned out, wrinkles palpable in his works. lined her face and "her teeth started to loosen". Her Spaniard, on the other hand, is lame, bald, toothless, speaks with a stutter, and is of Psychoanalytic or behavioral? low birth. Theirs is a perfect marriage of compromise. Rizal's portrayal of Sisa, Pilosopong Tasyo, Doña Victorina, and the In Doña Victorina, Rizal has drawn a picture of the Filipino woman possessed individual could be interpreted either through who has a distorted view of herself. Rejecting her own kind as inferior psychoanalysis or behavioral psychology. Psychoanalysis claims that and admiring everything foreign, especially Hispanic, she reinvents human actions are influenced by hidden conflicts while behavioral herself. She alters her physical appearance through artificial means -- psychology puts emphasis on the environment or reward system as a by using cosmetics that lighten the color of her skin and by hiding her determinant of how an individual conducts himself. I believe that Asian frame inside voluminous European dresses. However, in the Rizal's exposition on the four personalities under discussion leans process she creates a misfit shunned by Europeans as a freak and more toward behavioral rather than psychoanalysis. Sisa's weak derided by her own people as a caricature. In the end, Doña Victorina personality stems from upbringing. She learns to assume the role of a becomes entrapped in her own deception; she is ill at ease in both soft-spoken girl/lady, because her actuations leading to this role, are her own and borrowed world. always met by social, verbal or material reinforcements at home and Doña Victorina's self-delusion finds further explanation in Rizal's in the community. Behavior, whether normal or abnormal, could be essay, "La Curación de los Hechizados," written in 1895. Here he molded by a reward system. Even as an adult, Sisa continues to conduct herself within the norms taught her as child. Unable to been acquired through image, not substance. Her male counterparts, mature psychologically, she is not prepared to cope with extreme the Don Victorinos, are no less ugly and ignoble.As to Rizal's frustrations or debilitating experiences. Overpowered by an abusive possessed individuals, the victims of self-hypnosis or auto- husband and later by the death of a son, her ultimate defense is suggestion, their malady has spread to half of the present labor force. madness. In search of a better life, many Filipino men and women have mesmerized themselves into believing that they would strike gold as Pilosopong Tasyo's extreme retreat into books and new knowledge is contract workers overseas. Some of them do. But some end up with a form of reciprocal inhibition, that is, blocking negative behavior their dreams shattered by loneliness and a harsh work environment. with positive behavior. Tasyo's sorrow over the death of his wife and mother could have destroyed him had he not found an alternate Conclusion reality in books. Rizal's contribution to psychology and psychiatry is both diagnostic As explained by Rizal, the case of a person supposedly under the and prognostic. His portrayal of colonial Filipinos has both historical power a mangkukulam could be the result of auto-suggestion or self- and psychological bases. Hispanic influences diluted the Filipino's hypnosis. In modern psychology/psychiat ry, such a person can be indigenous oriental culture, thereby changing his person and later, compared to an individual who, under hypnosis, believes or does his society. Much of these changes, unfortunately, had given rise to whatever is suggested to him. conflicting values. What are Sisa, Pilosopong Tasyo, and Doña Victorina if not the products of Hispano-oriental cultural cross- As can be gleaned from the characters of Sisa, Tasyo, and Doña breeding? You can see in them the mingling or warring positive or Victorina as well as from his article on sorcery, Rizal's concepts, both negative traits, both indigenous and Hispanic. implied and symbolic, are relevant to the contemporary field of psychology or psychiatry. His observations may be summarized as Rizal's Sisa, Pilosopong Tasyo and Doña Victorina as symbols of the follows. Extreme frustration could drive a person to insanity, stagnation and deterioration of Filipino values will remain in our especially if the subject has low self-esteem or a low level of cultural mainstream until we retool our society into something more endurance. Bad behavior like gambling could be inhibited through akin to the purer pre-colonial society. environmental manipulation or reciprocal inhibition, that is, by Although Rizal was not formally trained as a psychologist, his indulging in productive activities like reading, thereby neglecting portrayal of Filipino behavioral patterns and his analysis of their maladaptive or bad behavior. Physical or mental pretensions could effects of the individual and society show that he had a firm grasp of persist if the behavioral idiosyncrasies of a subject are rewarded the psychology of the human mind and the psychology of human socially, verbally, or materially even if they are abnormal or nature. maladaptive, or if they are allowed to thrive as "superstitious behaviors". Belief in sorcery could be explained in terms of auto- suggestion or self-hypnosis.

Past versus present Praised for their timelessness, Rizal's novels offer proof that Filipino society has not changed much since his day. There are countless Sisas roaming our streets. Newspapers and police blotters are filled with stories of women who are victims of domestic violence and neglect and who eventually end up as drug addicts, prostitutes, or suicides. Children of broken homes tell the same sad tales. Unlike in Rizal's time, however, abused women today can turn to NGOs who look after their well-being and rights. Pilosopong Tasyo lives in contemporary Filipino intellectuals sequestered in ivory towers. They know the world only in the abstract and regard it with disdain. They are critical of government but refuse to do something to make it better, such as exercising their right to vote or running for public office. They are observers, never participants, preferring the safe world of ideas to the more challenging world of action. Today's Doña Victorina moves around the elite's social circle. Her many incarnations include the patroness of the arts, the belle of the ball, the champion of the poor. More often than not, her titles have Chinese, other Asians like the Japanese, being confused with them are likewise disliked by the ignorant Americans".

In London, he undertook a project that he had wanted to do. As a boy, RIZAL, THE SCIENTIST one of his uncles told him about a book written in the 16th century by a Spaniard that gave a truthful picture about early Philippine history. All By Ben O. de Lumen accounts he had read thus far were written by prejudiced Spaniards Professor, Dept of Nutritional Sciences and Toxicology seeking to justify Spain's colonial rule on the ground that the natives University of California at Berkeley, CA were "child-like savages". The book Sucesos de las Islas Pilipinas written by Antonio de Morga and published in in 1609 was available only Jose P. Rizal was a man of many talents and interests. For a man who in a few libraries, and a copy was in the British Museum in London! His lived only 35 years, his achievements are remarkable and numerous. plan was simple. He would study Morga and other writers who dealt with The Rizal Centennial Commission listed 278 written works pre-Spanish Philippine history, compare them all and publish a new of Rizal including his two major novels Noli Me Tangere and El edition of Morga, with notes and comments by himself. Filibusterismo. Although Rizal is well known for his literary prowess, perhaps his accomplishments as a scientist are not well publicized. At Thus the truth about the Philippines would become available to his this age where science and technology play a major role in economic people and the Europeans who had learned about the early Filipinos development, his scientific achievements are relevant and inspiring. To through the prejudiced eyes of the Spanish colonizers. talk about Rizal as a scientist, it is difficult to separate Rizal the Going through Morga's volumes, Rizal found that the Filipino people had natural scientist (one who practiced the natural sciences) from Rizal the been historically wronged. In the coastal regions where most of the social scientistand political reformer because he believed that islanders lived, their arts, industries and energy had been at a high level knowledge should be used for enlightenment and liberation and not for when the Spaniards arrived. Morga described their skills in weaving, in oppression. In his choice of medicine as a career and during his metal work, in agriculture, in commerce, in navigation, in government, education in Europe, he never lost sight of his goal: to serve his people their fine ships (better than Spain's), their busy market places, It was a and liberate them from years of oppression and injustice by the civilization that Rizal and the Filipino people could be proud of. More, it Spaniards. cut away the basis for Spain's claim to colonial rule. Rizal wanted to give the Filipino people back their past for he believed that a people without a Here are some highlights of Rizal's scientific accomplishments. proper understanding of their past was a people without a future.

After 5 years in Europe, he went home to the Philippines in 1887. He The last major episode of his life was spent in exile in Dapitan, in operated on his mother's eyes to remove her cataracts- the surgery was northern Mindanao, where he was sent by Spanish authorities after he successful and was the first of its kind ever done in the Philippines. His returned to the Philippines in 1892. As one author wrote, it was one of fame as an eye doctor spread quickly and people began coming to him the most extraordinary exiles in human history. In Dapitan, there was no for treatment from all over the Philippines and even from as far away as water system, no school, no street lighting, no hospital, the land was . He opened a clinic, sent away for equipment, charged moderate fertile but farming techniques were primitive. fees and treated the poor free. But, Rizal with his characteristic creativity and self-discipline, tackled After only six months, Rizal had to leave the country because his novel these problems. In his four years in Dapitan: He established a large and Noli Me Tangere had circulated and the friars were out to get him. He well known medical practice where his patients come from all over the went back to Europe via Japan and the US. Here again, Rizal made some Philippines and from Hong Kong and other Asian cities. perceptive observations of the US then. After 15 days crossing the Pacific, their ship was quarantined in San Francisco for a week although He built a hospital. He built a small house for himself and a large one for none of the passengers were sick and health clearance had been given. his family and visiting friends He bought lands and practiced scientific The authorities cited smallpox as a risk. He noted that there were a farming number of Chinese immigrants, the cargo silk had been unloaded without fumigation and the custom officers were not afraid to eat He set up a water supply system based on gravity He set up and taught a aboard. Rizal discovered the real reason for the quarantine. He wrote school for local children He paid for the first street lighting system that: America was opposed to Chinese immigration and since it was election time, the administration appeared strict to the Chinese to obtain He beautified the town plaza and a made a giant relief map of the the people's votes. Philippines which is still preserved today He obtained from Kalamba an improved type of fishing net that helped the Dapitan fishermen improve He took the train across the US and made a number of stops along the their catch. He imported farm machinery from the US for himself and way. He wrote his impressions of the US: "Undoubtedly America is a great local farmers country but it still has many defects. There is no real civil liberty. In some states the Negro cannot intermarry. Because of the hatred towards the He subscribed to the magazine Scientific American and ordered medicines and pharmaceuticals from the US He collaborated with foremost scientists from Europe at that time. With his students, he collected specimens of plants, animals and ethnographic materials from Mindanao and sent them to his colleagues in Europe Some of the animal specimens were rare and named after him:

A new species of frog named Rhacophorus rizali A new species of beetle named Apogonia rizali And a new species of lizard named Draconi rizali

In Dapitan, as everywhere he stayed, Rizal followed a disciplined schedule. He had a brilliant mind, but the key to his productivity was planning and self-disciplined execution. He wrote to his Austrian friend Blumentritt how he spent a typical day in Dapitan: "I get up early at 5:00, visit my fields, feed the chickens, I wake up my people and start them moving. At 7:30 we take breakfast. Afterward I treat my poor patients who come to my land. Then I dress up and go to town to treat the people there and return at 12 noon for lunch. Afterwards I teach the boys until 4:00 and I spend the afternoon farming. Evenings are used for studying and reading."

Finally, Rizal shared with us his philosophy and thinking about education and science. Within the limits of the circumstances in Dapitan, Rizal gave his students the key elements of his educational goals: academic knowledge, industrial training, ethical instruction and physical development. He believed that moral values were as important as knowledge itself; indeed they were the only assurance that knowledge will be used to help and enlighten, rather than oppress men.

Einstein echoed similar ideas when he addressed the students at California Institute of Technology: "Concern for man himself and his fate must always form the chief interests of all technical endeavors - in order that the creation of our mind will be a blessing and not a curse to mankind".

PS. I have used a number of books and other publications at the UC Berkeley library for this write-up. I would be happy to share these titles with anyone who wants to do further research on Rizal, the scientist. One of the few remaining original copies of Sucesos de las Islas de las Filipinas by A. Morga annotated by Rizal is at the rare book collection of UC Berkeley Bancroft library.