I’ve been reading poems since there is not much to do these past few days. I admire our great poets; their works speaks of their passion for their beloved Filipinas. How I wish that the youth of today could read their wonderful poems in its original form.
When our Gobierno under US agreed to removed this language, we had given up on the language of our greatest poets and heroes. Perverted nacionalismo destroyed not only our literature in Spanish but our written history – a visit to the Archivo Nacional will make one wonder why Filipinos were not taught Spanish [paano natin babasahin ang mga mahusay na manunulat natin sa Espanyol?] We had our chances but we blew it all the way, instead of promoting Spanish lessons in our schools our constitution completely removed it.
If the Spaniards, in their more than 300 years of rule failed to disseminate their language, I’m certain that for Filipinos writers like Lopez-Jaena, Plaridel, Rizal, Recto, Bernabe, Lete, Balmori, Palma, Victoriano, Los Guerreros – would’ve wanted the common Filipino to discover the language of Cervantes and continue using it. For the simple reason that Spanish was their language and these great men believe that it rightly belongs to the Filipino people, they fought long and hard for this stand – its a shame that we forgot about what they stood for. Borrowing from Recto’s famous poem, “El Español ya es cosa nuestra propia, sangre de nuestra sangre, y carne de nuestra carne, porque así lo quisieron nuestros mártires, héroes y estadistas del pasado”.
When we speak of the Spanish era and the years of the American occupation, we have to rely on English books written by known nationalist historians and Americanized writers whose agenda is to put forward a reinvented Filipino history, based on their own personal and political beliefs. Sadly, the only books you’d find in schools these days are from these revisionist scholars.
Anyway, below ia a poem of Ma. Leon Guerrero, one of my favorite, our Hispano Filipino – Príncipe Lírico. This poem gives us the emotion his generation felt upon the defeat of their revolutionary spirit and dream.
—
PATRIA
No es la forma engañosa que dibuja
la luz que en el ambiente se refracta:
es algo grande que a la gloria empuja,
que de ella vive y que con ella pacta.
[Country] is not the misleading form that draws
the light refracted in the surroundings:
It is something grand that compels one to glory,
that lives on [glory] and with [glory] makes covenants.
Patria es la concreción del pensamiento,
Patria es el vivo ensueño de las almas;
da vida en lo moral al sentimiento
y en lo real da vida a nuestras palmas.
Country is the materialization of thought,
Country is the living dream of souls;
it gives life in the moral realm to sentiment
and in what is real, gives life to our palms.
Yo la imagino inmensa e inviolable
como un dogma sagrado; yo la veo
cristalizada en algo impenetrable
a los cálculos torpes del deseo.
I imagine her, immense and inviolable,
like a sacred dogma; I see her
crystalized in something impenetrable
for the clumsy calculations of desire.
Cuando, de cara al Ideal, la busco
de lo grande y sublime en el zodíaco,
la encuentro en los laureles de Kocziusko
y en el gladio triunfante de Espartaco.
When, face to face with the Ideal, I seek her
in what is great and sublime in the firmament
I find her in the laurels of Kocziusko [Jewish general, led 1794 uprising in Poland]
and in the triumphant gladiolus of Spartacus
En la paz es arco-iris que fulgura,
en la lid es bandera que flamea…
¡Oh! La Patria lo es todo: sangre pura,
tierra, y celaje, y sensación, e idea.
In times of peace, it is the rainbow that glitters,
in battle it is the flag that flutters…
Oh! Country is everything: pure blood,
earth, and cloud-studded sky, and sensation, and idea.
No en libros, en las almas está escrito
su nombre, que es conjuro y amuleto;
pero ¡ay! No todos saben de su rito
ni deletrean todos su alfabeto.
Not in books, but in souls is her name written,
that is an incantation, and an amulet;
but oh! — not everyone knows of her rite
nor can all spell her alphabet.
Sólo en el arca azul de la leyenda
se halla la clave del misterio santo,
y a esa arca se va por una senda
de eternos sacrificios y de llanto.
Only in the blue Ark of Legend
is the key to the holy mystery found,
and towards that Ark one travels on a path
of eternal sacrifice and tears.
Para poder abrirla es necesario
tener el corazón firme y sin mancha,
y preferir la ergástula al denario, [cárcel destinada en Roma a los esclavos]
y afrontar el turbión y la amenaza.
To be able to open it, one must
have a firm heart without stain,
and prefer the slaves’ prison to the coin,
and face the squall and the threat.
¡No! Los arbustos débiles y secos
no resisten los vientos de la cumbre,
como no pueden ánimos entecos
soportar del dolor la pesadumbre.
No! The weak and dry bushes
cannot withstand the summit’s winds
as sickly temperaments
cannot bear the pain of sorrow.
¿Gloria? ….¡Jamás! No aspiren a la gloria
los que son, por su espíritu, pigmeos
y forman, abdicando de su historia,
la turba de los nuevos fariseos.
Glory! Never! They do not aspire to glory
who are, in spirit, pygmies
and they form, abdicating from their history,
the mob of the new Pharisees.
Esos que quieren del atroz flagelo
el golpe eterno, y la perpetua rienda,
¡ah! que no sueñen, bajo un propio cielo,
abrir el arca azul de la leyenda….
Those who desire the savage lash
the eternal blow, and the perpetual reins,
Ah! let them not dream, beneath their own sky,
of opening the blue ark of legend…
La Patria no la erigen los rufianes,
La Patria no la engendran los villanos:
¡es labor exclusiva de titanes,
de mártires tal vez, mas no de enanos!
The Motherland is not erected by the ruffians,
the Motherland is not spawned by the villains:
it is the exclusive labor of titans,
of martyrs, perhaps, but not of midgets!
1907
—
*Translation by Sra.Isabel Medina.
*Photo by http://images.habagatcentral.multiply.com
yet,,,you´ve chose to write this blogsite in English……
what a pity…
You’re a hypocrite. Visit your own website every once in awhile. Why do you provide English subtitles? Do you expect all Filipinos to understand Spanish right away? Try to get a little more control over your hallucinations, the idea here is to increase Filipinos awareness.
Nag-auay palá cayó dati ni Juanlu García (juanlu68), ¡hahaha! 😀
Hindi lang niya naintindihan siguro. I don’t feel any anger towards such critics. It comes with the territory.
I hope he’s not one of those Tagalog imperialists, Nold. Or is he?
Oh, and any poems by Claro M. Recto?
@ Ako – Not sure about your question. If your referring to the comments made by Juan, well i don’t know what he is. Regarding poems, I plan to post Spanish poems, those that I enjoy, with English translations so we can appreciate them in their original and translated form. I’m also trying to improve my Spanish and poetry is good practice 🙂
i think it will take time to rehabilitate the spanish language in our counrty..
Its importance in understanding our history could never be denied. Wala naman mawawala hindi ko maintindihan kung bakit naman sa dinami-dami ng pwedeng tanggalin na suheto ito pa ang inalis. pwede namang algebra sa trigo eh 🙂
We can hasten it… BY GUNPOINT!!! Let’s force everyone who calls himself Filipino learn Castellano under the pain of death!!!
I love this project of MRT with Instituto Cervantes de Manila! I think it’s amazing. This will help us Filipinos remember and appreciate our own history. Sabi ko nga, “Remember your history and use it to your own advantage. It’s not your enemy”. Just like in Macao, Hindi nila itinatakwil na na-colonized sila ng Portuguese, kundi ginagamit pa nila ito para sa kanilang advantage. They fused traditional Chinese culture with Portuguese culture, the result is a unique blend of east and west. Sa atin kasi kabaliktaran ang nangyayari, tinataboy natin ang ating Spanish heritage, hindi naman natin kaaway ito, para… Read more »
Hindi pala si Pepe Alas ‘to! Si Pepe Cabrera Ito!
@ Pepe – all the Pepe that I know are historically sound people so youre in good company ^_^ tamang-tama ang binanggit mo ukol sa mga bentahe ng pagkilala sa kultural na kasaysayang hispano. Mabuhay ka Pepe Cabrera!
Acó, ¿sino acó?
Actually my knowledge of Spanish is almost nil. But i think Spanish is a very elegant language. I could count though in Spanish pretty accurate hehe, just like any hiligaynon speaker. I can really see ur passion for Spanish culture and everything Spanish. Keep it up! I think i will be a frequent visitor of ur interesting blog.