importance of studying rizal essay

10 reasons why you should study Rizal (Hugot version)

• March 12, 2018

Ever since we’re young, we’ve been taking a lot of introductory lessons about our national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal. He was probably the most popular Filipino hero of all time since he’s always emphasized during our Hekasi, History, and Araling Panlipunan days. During our 3rd year and 4th-year Highschool or should I say Grade 9 and 10 for K12 students, students go deeper with the two famous novels of Rizal which are Noli me Tangere and El filibusterismo. The mentioned novels were tackled chapter by chapter to ensure full understanding of what is the narrative all about. Just when we thought we are over with too much information about Rizal, Republic Act 1425 of Philippine law requires the life, works, and writings of Rizal in the curricula of all public and private universities and colleges in the country. It seems like learning the same thing all over again and you might find it a little bit redundant. Some of you who are about to take this course or even just wondering why do you have to enroll in this class when you are already bombarded with numerous information about Rizal might want to take a look into this 10 reasons why we should study Rizal (Hugot Version).

1.     You’ll wonder about the past.

The reason why we can’t move on is we keep on dwelling on the things and events that already happened just like studying Rizal, but in a positive way. Exploring the life and works of Rizal would give you a better vision of what is it like during the Spanish era and how Filipino’s deal with it.

2.     You’ll realize how important communication is.

There have been a lot of miscommunication issues with Rizal. In life, it is very important to have a clear delivery of what you want to say to avoid misunderstandings. Imagine if Rizal had actually put things in the proper process, imagine what could have happened if he achieved what he really wanted. Let that sink in.

3.     You’ll Prove that too much love will kill you.

Jose Rizal’s love for the country led him to his execution. It was such a heroic act of sacrificing his own life for an accusation and being a role model in the rebellion of the Filipinos.

4.     You’ll think of what if’s.

One of the most painful things in life is to continually wonder what if’s. Studying Rizal could give you a lot more what if’s in life. What if he got a wife? What if he did not study abroad? What if he just told the Spaniards his real intentions? Things like that.  

5.     It will inspire you to think differently.

We’ve always been thought that Rizal is an iconic hero because he fought with his writings instead of violence like using the mind over strength. When we think about it, we could really do things our way. It depends on us on how we will act in certain situations we are in.  

6.     It will give you a different view of Rizal.

Just like when someone is courting you or when you are courting someone, former learning’s about Rizal was all rainbows and butterflies. But when you’ve taken this subject, you’ll discover secrets and things you’ve never thought of Rizal. **insert evil laugh here** **HAHAHA***

7.     You’ll get to know Rizal better.

There are times when you thought you knew it all but soon you’ll realize how dumb you are to believe such things. (I’m gonna stop it right there because it would probably turn out a cringe-worthy hugot line and you’ll start rolling your eyes on this part. So, yeah.) The truth is, everything we’ve learned from Rizal was just a mere sentence of his whole life.

8.     You’ll understand the relationship of the other Filipino heroes with Rizal.

We all know who are they individually but we are not given the whole context of how they are connected with each other. Studying Rizal will give you part of the whole context on how they are related to each other.

9.     It would build the inner revolutionary in you.

Not like you’ll have to fight like Rizal or KKK’s but it could get you interested in the current national issues since you’ll know how our heroes fought for our freedom. Just like Rizal, You could do it in your own unique way.

10. It is stated in our laws.

Let’s be frank here, you can’t escape this course when your studying in the Philippines. As mentioned earlier RA 1425 requires us to do so. It could be a really fun and exciting experience just give it a chance. Judging and hating it wouldn’t do you any good though. So just enjoy the wonders of the life and works of Rizal. 

Given the above-mentioned reasons for studying the Rizal course, list down five benefits you got from studying this subject.

Well writen and Rizal has always been one of my favorite minors to take. So much insight on our rich history and famed hero.

Emmanuel Colobong Barcelona · Student at National University Emmanuel III C. Barcelona FIN 144

We should study Rizal because RIZAL FIRMLY BELIEVED THAT THE YOUTH IS THE HOPE OF OUR NATION. The national hero believed that the youth or the new generation should realize that they should take on the responsibility of helping the nation achieve the social change that we had fought for since then. We, the youth, is given the gift of life and the talents by God. We should always embody the ideals of Rizal since he is the perfect example of a refined Filipino, whose contribution did so much impact in the society. Therefore, we should be the spark change that Rizal wanted us to be, the movers of the society that will make a difference in the future.

FIN144 Charlene Louise Mendoza 5 Benefits

1) it gives rich source of entertaining narratives

2) it provides essential life lessons

3) it teaches patriotism

4) it helps us understand better ourselves as Filipinos

5) it provides insights of freedom and nationalism

Jane Suzette Vidallon 5 Benefits

1. It helps us understand better ourselves as Filipinos.

2. t teaches nationalism and patriotism.

3. By studying and understanding the life of Rizal, people will becomeaware of the ethics that the country created upon.

4. Rizal can serve as a worthwhile model and inspiration to every Filipino.

5. it provides insights of freedom thru reforms and not by arms confrontation.

Viviane Mikhaela Orille PHA151

1) know why he is the hero many of us looked up and idolised.

2) know why filipinos have the guts and the courage to stand up fo thereselves

3) doing the things you love and the things you’re fighting for to be come more worthy

4) you can do an act that can lead to a better future (deep but yes you can do it be one of the people doing different things for the nation, it’s a free country after all just think before you act/do.)

5) you will know him more, learn about his life and know why he became a hero.

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Still much to learn about Rizal’s lifework and influence

As with many important realizations in life, my appreciation of the Rizal course I took at the University of Santo Tomas came late. We study Jose Rizal to pay tribute to him as our national hero. He personified patriotism with his self-sacrifice and martyrdom. In schools, his masterpieces the “Noli Me Tangere” and the “El Filibusterismo” are mandatory readings, as it is important for students to know about the oppression our countrymen suffered under the Spaniards during the late 1800s. I think that knowing about the things that happened in our past—whether good or bad— strengthens our patriotism. And (more) patriotic Filipinos are precisely what this country needs to lift it from what has been variously described as its present state of “desolation,” “desperation,” “hopelessness,” “wretchedness,” etc.

Some historians’ interest in Rizal is so great that it has led them to zealously do research work on him, hoping to share with the rest of us whatever fresh insights they may gain about his already extensively chronicled life. Well and good, because if there is a national figure for whom we should have zeal and whose mind we should probe, it is Rizal.

I also find rather effective the role that theater groups play to (re)introduce Rizal to the present generation. In June last year, I watched at the Ilustrado in Intramuros the late Severino Montano’s play “Leonor Rivera,” performed by the Philippine Drama Company and directed by theater luminary Natividad Crame-Rogers. Though it centered on the relationship between Jose and the broken-hearted heroine Leonor, I ended up being intrigued by the supporting character of Paciano Rizal. It was with him Jose pleaded not to be sent off to Europe in light of his love for Leonor. Now I have my own researching to do to find out how much of an influence Paciano was to his prominent younger brother in the context of his being a “filibustero.”

There is much to learn and relearn about the different aspects of Rizal’s life and his influences. So I wish our teachers, historians, researchers, archivists, essayists, playwrights and thespians all the very best as they continue to promote our national hero among Filipinos, young and old. On this note, let me express my wish that Rizal’s succeeding birth anniversaries be consistently celebrated with a lot of dignity, enthusiasm, creativity, splendor and fanfare whether it would be the 151st, 152nd, 153rd and so on. May we love our country more as we learn about Rizal more.

Mabuhay si Jose Rizal! Mabuhay ang Pilipinas!

—CLAUDE LUCAS C. DESPABILADERAS,

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‘Rizal’s life, significant in recognizing Filipino identity’

STUDYING Jose Rizal’s life is significant in rediscovering the Filipino identity.

This was the message of Thomasian historian Jose Victor Torres in a lecture at the Brother Andrew Gonzales Hall of De La Salle University on Friday.

“[Our identity] is answered by Rizal when it was shown that we had an identity before,” Torres said. “He have to have that identity again in order to develop our identity as a nation, which also becomes a way for nation building,” he said.

“The nationalism that he taught is the recognition of oneself. [This is] the value that one should have for one’s country in order for it to develop,” he added.

Torres taught history at the UST Graduate School and Faculty of Arts and Letters.

He received the Best Book of Historical Essays award during the 36th National Book Awards for his “To the People Sitting in Darkness…and Other Footnotes of Our Past,” published by the UST Publishing House.

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8 lessons you can learn from and about Jose Rizal, according to historian Ambeth Ocampo

Today, the country celebrates our national hero Jose Rizal’s 160th birthday.

To mark the occasion, here are a few lessons you can learn from and about Rizal, according to historian Ambeth Ocampo.

Rizal did not write the famous poem “Sa Aking Mga Kabata.”

For years now, many historians and scholars have been discussing whether or not the famous poem “Sa Aking Mga Kabata,” and its highly quoted line “Ang hindi marunong magmahal sa sariling wika, masahol pa sa hayop at malansang isda,” was actually written by Rizal.

According to Ocampo, it wasn’t.

“Apparently, it’s not from Rizal,” Ocampo said in Filipino in an episode of the “The Howie Severino Podcast.” “When I started researching about it, that’s when I saw that it didn’t have an original manuscript. It was published after Rizal died.”

“So at first I thought, ‘what’s happening?’ Apparently, it’s not Rizal who wrote ‘Sa Aking Kababata.’ There are only two manuscripts they say is from Rizal, written in Tagalog. Both of them are not by Rizal. But you know that since it’s in our textbooks, it’s what is being taught to us,” he added.

Rizal wrote an unfinished novel.

After “El Filibusterismo,” Rizal actually wrote another novel but it remained unfinished.

Ocampo himself was the one who discovered Rizal’s unfinished work called “Makamisa” back in 1987 when he decided to make an article about Rizal’s handwritten manuscript in comparison to the printed version to commemorate the 100th anniversary of “Noli Me Tangere.”

“When I searched, I was able to find a notebook that said, ‘Burador de Noli Me Tangere,’ meaning ‘Drafts of the Noli,’” Ocampo said. “And it wasn’t published because it wasn’t noticed because they said it was just a draft of Noli.”

He added, “I worked hard to copy it. It had 265 pages. When I was at 150 pages, I said, ‘If this is the draft of Noli Me Tangere, why isn’t Maria Clara, Ibarra, Kapitan Tiago here?’ Apparently it was another novel and later on I discovered it was the third novel after El Filibusterismo. He just didn’t finish it.”

According to Ocampo, the “Makamisa” was a humorous novel. He shared that Rizal may have seen humor or satire as an effective weapon so he started to write a novel that was humorous.

“Unfortunately, either he didn’t have time or he had a lot of other things to do so he wasn’t able to finish it,” he said. “I think he was experimenting and unfortunately he did not live to finish it. So we don't know if that was part of the three major books or it's a completely different way of doing things.”

Rizal wasn’t a prophet. Society just didn’t seem to change.

Some people may think that Rizal could foretell the future with his works, but for Ocampo, our national hero wasn’t prophetic.

Rizal wrote “The Philippines within a Century,” but for Ocampo, these were Rizal’s thoughts based on his study on politics and history.

“Our heroes were not prophetic, Rizal,  Apolinario Mabini. When we read them, we see that they’re still relevant. ‘Ay, it’s like they saw the problems we have right now.’” Ocampo said. “Actually it’s not like that. What we need to see is that they weren’t prophets but rather people, Filipinos haven’t changed in the past 100 years,” he said.

“Our behavior is still the same. The things that they told us to change 100 years ago are still with us. So rather than be seen that way, actually we need to think that history doesn’t repeat. History doesn’t have the power to repeat. It’s us, the people, who keep repeating history,” the historian added.

He then urged the people to see what Rizal was trying to show that we needed to change.

“Why are they still relevant today? Because we haven’t changed,” Ocampo said. “For me it’s a bit ... it’s depressing to think that the things that they rallied about or that they derailed a century ago, until now it’s still a problem.”

He can be considered father of Philippine archaeology.

For Ocampo, Rizal could be considered the father of Philippine archeology.

He said when Rizal was in Dapitan, people didn’t have enough money for his medical services, so they paid him through eggs and other goods.

According to the historian, one day, someone paid in the form of a stone the locals called the tooth of lightning.

“The person said, ‘you know when lightning strikes the earth, it bites the ground. When it comes back to the heavens, it leaves a tooth,’” Ocampo said.

“Rizal looked at it and said, ‘This isn’t the tooth of lightning. This is a prehistoric stone age tool. Where’d you find this?’ He was brought to the place and he started digging,” he said.

“He found porcelain, gold. Even though he’s not a trained archaeologist, he’s considered the father of Philippine archaeology,” he added. “It shows how restless his mind was so he entered a lot of fields. He also didn’t finish a lot. But it shows that you need to have a curious mind and your mind should always be moving.”

Rizal’s family could have had clairvoyant gifts.

Although Rizal was no prophet, Ocampo said his family could have had clairvoyant gifts and been able to see into the future.

One time, Ocampo said, Rizal dreamt he was taking an exam when he was still a child and when he took the test in real life, the same questions that appeared in his dream were written on it.

“What Rizal wrote for example in ‘Noli Me Tangere,’ when his father wasn’t buried in the church cemetery, that’s what happened to his brother, brother-in-law later,” the historian said. “When Sisa was captured by the guards and said, ‘don’t tie me up,’ and she was forced to walk to her cell, that was his mother,” he said.

“I mean it’s uncanny. We don’t know what it's like but there’s nothing like that in literature wherein we thought that most of what he wrote was like an autobiography but when we look at it, (those) were written long before they actually happened.”

For Rizal, education was important to change Philippine society.

“For Rizal, what appears most in his writings is that education is the most important aspect in order to change Philippine society because if we change our beliefs, we change how we interact with one another, our nation will also change. So education was very, very important for him,” Ocampo said.

Ocampo also noted one of Rizal’s famous lines. “He had a line in his novel that said, ‘what use is freedom if our slaves of today will be the tyrants of tomorrow?’ So he saw that, okay, we change the government but if we don’t educate ourselves, our behavior is still bad, nothing will change.”

For Rizal, Ocampo said, it was about having a high standard of what we should be, and not just about having a revolution.

The historian added that the priest’s sermon on “El Filibusterismo” was important. “You know why you didn’t succeed in getting Maria Clara and ruining the Spaniards? Because your heart isn’t in the right place.”

Ocampo said, “So it’s like he’s saying there must be purity of intention. Whatever we do, even if it’s good but the intention isn’t, it won’t bear good results.”

“That’s the lesson of Rizal that we don’t see because it’s hard to do ... when we read his novels, you’d see purity of intention, right education, a man who moves on moral and common good.”

Rizal accepted students to his school in a very unconventional way.

Unlike the entrance exams of today where intelligence would be tested through a series of printed questions, Rizal accepted students to his school through an unconventional way.

“It’s an oral interview. So what he’d do is, he’d bring the child and make the parent go away. They’d go to the forest in one of his properties,” Ocampo said. “Rizal would ask, ‘what do you know? 1+1-2.’ They’d talk about a lot of things. They’d sit in the middle of the forest. After they talk, they’d go back. When they get back to Rizal’s house, it’ll already dark,” he said.

“Rizal would say, ‘do you remember where we sat? I left my hat and book. Go get it.’ And then if the kid looks at the darkness, afraid of monsters, if the kid doesn’t go back, the kid fails. The kid won’t be accepted ... so usually the kid who goes back, who gets the items Rizal left, would run back bringing it. When the kid gets to Rizal’s house, Rizal is standing there with the other kids and he’d say, ‘It’s not enough to have a good mind, you must have bravery and you must have a heart. Welcome to the school.’”

Ocampo compared it to today’s basic education, saying it was too concerned with the mind that it did not pay attention to the heart.

Rizal knew how to make the most out of a crisis.

Ocampo said it was important to note the time when Rizal was thrown to Dapitan.

“That’s the end of the universe. This is a man who knew London, Paris, Madrid like the back of his hand and he was just thrown there,” Ocampo said. “But Rizal was … we should never waste a crisis … good businessmen will tell you that there is always opportunity in crisis and Rizal saw that.”

Ocampo said Rizal made the most of his time and built stores, opened up his own clinic and built his own school.

“Everything he felt that people should do to make a community and a nation better, he actually practiced it there. So it wasn’t just thinking or writing. He actually did something physical and good in that place,” he said. “We get paralyzed by a problem, but Rizal isn’t. If there’s a problem, there’s a solution. Whether it’s right or wrong, you need to try.”

He added, “And I think that’s the part of Rizal’s life that should be studied more because that’s when he did the things he wanted to do.”

Looking at Rizal’s life, people may see all the extraordinary things he’s accomplished and be discouraged to achieve the same thing.

“Actually Rizal’s lesson isn’t to see him and see that we can’t do the same thing. For Rizal, I’d like to think that we need to see from Rizal and from our nation our own capacity, the Filipino capacity to greatness, that if they can do it, so can we,” the historian said.

Ocampo added, “But how will we know it if we don’t read him?” – Kaela Malig/RC, GMA News

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What is the importance of studying Rizal's life, his writings and other heroes

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Hannmae Concepcion

AMBETH R . OCAMPO

Stephen Clarence Tacud

Reflection Paper: The First Filipino

Lara Cagayan

Advent of a National Hero Jose Rizal, the national hero of the Philippines and pride of the Malayan race, was born on June 19, 1861, in the town of Calamba, Laguna. He was the seventh child in a family of 11 children (2 boys and 9 girls). Both his parents were educated and belonged to distinguished families. His father, Francisco Mercado Rizal, an industrious farmer whom Rizal called "a model of fathers," came from Biñan, Laguna; while his mother, Teodora Alonzo y Quintos, a highly cultured and accomplished woman whom Rizal called "loving and prudent mother," was born in Meisic, Sta. Cruz, Manila. At the age of 3, he learned the alphabet from his mother; at 5, while learning to read and write, he already showed inclinations to be an artist. He astounded his family and relatives by his pencil drawings and sketches and by his moldings of clay. At the age 8, he wrote a Tagalog poem, "Sa Aking Mga Kabata," the theme of which revolves on the love of one's language. In 1877, at the age of 16, he obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree with an average of "excellent" from the Ateneo Municipal de Manila. In the same year, he enrolled in Philosophy and Letters at the University of Santo Tomas, while at the same time took courses leading to the degree of surveyor and expert assessor at the Ateneo. He finished the latter course on March 21, 1877 and passed the Surveyor's examination on May 21, 1878; but because of his age, 17, he was not granted license to practice the profession until December 30, 1881. In 1878, he enrolled in medicine at the University of Santo Tomas but had to stop in his studies when he felt that the Filipino students were being discriminated upon by their Dominican tutors. CHAPTER 2 Childhood Years in Calamba Jose Rizal, like many Filipino boys, had many beautiful memories of childhood. His was a happy home, filled with parental affection, impregnated with family joys, and sanctified by prayers. In the midst of sue peaceful, refined, God-loving family, he spent the early years of his childhood. The beauties of Calamba impressed him as a growing child and deeply influenced his mind and character. The happiest period of his life was truly his childhood days in his natal town.

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Leon Maria Guerrero y Francisco was born on March 24, 1915, in Manila. He was a Filipino author and a diplomat. He is such a well-known writer for his successful translations of Jose Rizal's Noli Me Tangere, El Filibusterismo and a biography of Rizal. The author of "The First Filipino" believed that Jose Rizal is the First Filipino that shows great patriotism and fondness for his compatriots. The book is a biography of Jose Rizal it completely and creatively covers the various life of Jose Rizal starting from his childhood and education, political and literary activities wherein Guererro explores Rizal's involvement in political movements, his literary works and his impact on Philippine society. It also wholly examines Rizal's tragic end and the enduring influence he left behind.

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[OPINION] Reading, understanding, and appreciating Rizal

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This is AI generated summarization, which may have errors. For context, always refer to the full article.

The way José Rizal is celebrated in the Philippines as a national hero finds no match in the world. Shrines and monuments dedicated to his figure are abundant throughout the archipelago, and his name indicates often the most prominent street or plaza in town. Rizal is a subject in the university as it has become a symbol of Philippine patriotism. Some historians have gained fame and money becoming eminent “Rizalistas,” and I was not surprised at all when I got to know that there is even a small group of religious believers in Mount Banahaw called Rizalistas, who claim Rizal is the real messiah. Rizal is the favorite among the national heroes , and the best word I find to call the relation between Filipinos and Rizal is devotion.

Although Rizal was already esteemed as a top intellectual and writer both in the Philippines and Spain, the making of Rizal as a national hero was a legitimate and well-intentioned operation carried out a few decades after his cruel execution during the American period. And the problem with having him converted into a national hero is that it has resulted in some unexpected consequences: an exaggerated focus in his life: what I have called “chismography” about Rizal, the oblivion of other world-class Filipino intellectuals – Sanciangco, De Los Reyes, Kalaw – and a neglect of what it should be most valued: his writings. 

I remember a day in class when I asked my students what they could say about Rizal, and I was told he was a babaero (womanizer) and had many many girlfriends. “That’s why he is our role model!” one said cheerfully. I remember a student telling me she failed in class because she forgot the color of the shirt Rizal was wearing when he was shot. I can recall the faces of disappointment every time I bring my foreign friends to Rizal’s shrine, a reliquary-like place where you can find a long list of the professions Rizal supposedly practiced and the list of the 14 languages he was supposed to master, but nothing that could help to understand him.

The state of semi-divinity achieved by his figure carries other problems: “I will not achieve what he did in 35 years. He is a genius and he liked to work hard. I admire him, but I prefer a simple life,” another student told me. Rizal has been placed on such a high level that some young Filipinos do not think of him anymore as a human person whose achievements could inspire.

The lack of understanding of Rizal comes, in my modest opinion, because Rizal was a writer and suffers the irony of being a national hero in a country where most people do not like to read. Sadly, the proliferation of monuments, shrines, and homages have not been accompanied by a close scrutiny of his writings, which are most often read in a very shallow and purely nationalistic way. Apart from Noli and Fili , the rest of his abundant and rich written production is almost impossible to find in bookstores, and if not for the outstanding efforts of another patriot – Teodoro M. Kalaw – in collecting and editing most of his precious letters, those would not be easily available today.

The centennial of his birth moved the government in 1961 to publish most of his works in several volumes. However, the editorial criteria was far from the rigor demanded today in reliable editions and, most importantly, with the exception of Noli and Fili , and some other English translations, most of the works of Rizal are still only available in a language most Filipinos do not speak: Spanish. Even for his masterpiece, the only critically annotated bilingual edition was published by Vibal Fundation in 2011.

I perfectly understand that renaming a square or placing a statue in a square is way easier than publishing critical editions, but I truly believe, given the current circumstances, that the works of José Rizal truly deserve it. Establishing carefully the texts, annotating it in order to make more accessible to all kind of readers, and providing translations to the most important Filipino languages would be an undeniable exercise of patriotism that should not be longer delayed. No one can blame Filipinos for not reading Rizal when, in the first place, most of his works are not easily available.

It can happen that a Filipino reader does not have the patience to read his novels, but it could well happen that this same reader might enjoy reading his private letters or short articles. Although Filipinos cannot access the stylish beauty of his Spanish, they could get engaged with his rich arguments, with superb critical thinking skills, his uncommon intellectual brightness. Admiring Rizal without understanding him is a kind of empty nationalism and blind devotion. I do not find a better way to pay him a tribute than to read his work and getting to understand his formidable prose and his compelling ideas. Before being a hero, he was already a gifted writer, and Rizal, like another writer, wanted to be read. – Rappler.com

Jorge Mojarro has lived in the Philippines since 2009. He holds a PhD in Philippine colonial literature, teaches Spanish language and culture at the Instituto Cervantes de Manila, and conducts research for the University of Santo Tomas. He is a self-proclaimed lover of Philippine gastronomy.

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• Philippines
• The Life And Legacy Of...

The Life and Legacy of José Rizal: National Hero of the Philippines

Dr. José Rizal, the national hero of the Philippines, is not only admired for possessing intellectual brilliance but also for taking a stand and resisting the Spanish colonial government. While his death sparked a revolution to overthrow the tyranny, Rizal will always be remembered for his compassion towards the Filipino people and the country.

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Humble beginnings

José Protasio Rizal Mercado Y Alonso Realonda was born on June 19, 1861 to Francisco Mercado and Teodora Alonzo in the town of Calamba in the province of Laguna. He had nine sisters and one brother. At the early age of three, the future political leader had already learned the English alphabet. And, by the age of five, José could already read and write.

Upon enrolling at the Ateneo Municipal de Manila (now referred to as Ateneo De Manila University ), he dropped the last three names in his full name, after his brother’s advice – hence, being known as José Protasio Rizal. His performance in school was outstanding – winning various poetry contests, impressing his professors with his familiarity of Castilian and other foreign languages, and crafting literary essays that were critical of the Spanish historical accounts of pre-colonial Philippine societies.

A man with multiple professions

While he originally obtained a land surveyor and assessor’s degree in Ateneo, Rizal also took up a preparatory course on law at the University of Santo Tomas (UST). But when he learned that his mother was going blind, he decided to switch to medicine school in UST and later on specialized in ophthalmology. In May 1882, he decided to travel to Madrid in Spain , and earned his Licentiate in Medicine at the Universidad Central de Madrid.

Apart from being known as an expert in the field of medicine, a poet, and an essayist, Rizal exhibited other amazing talents. He knew how to paint, sketch, and make sculptures. Because he lived in Europe for about 10 years, he also became a polyglot – conversant in 22 languages. Aside from poetry and creative writing, Rizal had varying degrees of expertise in architecture, sociology, anthropology, fencing, martial arts, and economics to name a few.

His novels awakened Philippine nationalism

Rizal had been very vocal against the Spanish government, but in a peaceful and progressive manner. For him, “the pen was mightier than the sword.” And through his writings, he exposed the corruption and wrongdoings of government officials as well as the Spanish friars.

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While in Barcelona, Rizal contributed essays, poems, allegories, and editorials to the Spanish newspaper, La Solidaridad. Most of his writings, both in his essays and editorials, centered on individual rights and freedom, specifically for the Filipino people . As part of his reforms, he even called for the inclusion of the Philippines to become a province of Spain.

But, among his best works , two novels stood out from the rest – Noli Me Tángere (Touch Me Not) and El Filibusterismo ( The Reign of the Greed).

In both novels, Rizal harshly criticized the Spanish colonial rule in the country and exposed the ills of Philippine society at the time. And because he wrote about the injustices and brutalities of the Spaniards in the country, the authorities banned Filipinos from reading the controversial books. Yet they were not able to ban it completely. As more Filipinos read the books, their eyes opened to the truth that they were suffering unspeakable abuses at the hands of the friars. These two novels by Rizal, now considered his literary masterpieces, are said to have indirectly sparked the Philippine Revolution.

Rizal’s unfateful days

Upon his return to the Philippines, Rizal formed a progressive organization called the La Liga Filipina. This civic movement advocated social reforms through legal means. Now Rizal was considered even more of a threat by the Spanish authorities (alongside his novels and essays), which ultimately led to his exile in Dapitan in northern Mindanao .

This however did not stop him from continuing his plans for reform. While in Dapitan, Rizal built a school, hospital, and water system. He also taught farming and worked on agricultural projects such as using abaca to make ropes.

In 1896, Rizal was granted leave by then Governor-General Blanco, after volunteering to travel to Cuba to serve as doctor to yellow fever victims. But at that time, the Katipunan had a full-blown revolution and Rizal was accused of being associated with the secret militant society. On his way to Cuba, he was arrested in Barcelona and sent back to Manila to stand for trial before the court martial. Rizal was charged with sedition, conspiracy, and rebellion – and therefore, sentenced to death by firing squad.

Days before his execution, Rizal bid farewell to his motherland and countrymen through one of his final letters, entitled Mi último adiós or My Last Farewell. Dr. José Rizal was executed on the morning of December 30, 1896, in what was then called Bagumbayan (now referred to as Luneta). Upon hearing the command to shoot him, he faced the squad and uttered in his final breath: “ Consummatum est” (It is finished). According to historical accounts , only one bullet ended the life of the Filipino martyr and hero.

His legacy lives on

After his death, the Philippine Revolution continued until 1898. And with the assistance of the United States , the Philippines declared its independence from Spain on June 12, 1898. This was the time that the Philippine flag was waved at General Emilio Aguinaldo’s residence in Kawit, Cavite.

Today, Dr. Rizal’s brilliance, compassion, courage, and patriotism are greatly remembered and recognized by the Filipino people. His two novels are continuously being analyzed by students and professionals.

Colleges and universities in the Philippines even require their students to take a subject which centers around the life and works of Rizal. Every year, the Filipinos celebrate Rizal Day – December 30 each year – to commemorate his life and works. Filipinos look back at how his founding of La Liga Filipina and his two novels had an effect on the early beginnings of the Philippine Revolution. The people also recognize his advocacy to achieve liberty through peaceful means rather than violent revolution.

In honor of Rizal, memorials and statues of the national hero can be found not only within the Philippines, but in selected cities around the world. A road in the Chanakyapuri area of New Delhi (India) and in Medan, Indonesia is named after him. The José Rizal Bridge and Rizal Park in the city of Seattle are also dedicated to the late hero.

Within the Philippines, there are streets, towns/cities, a university (Rizal University), and a province named after him. Three species have also been named after Rizal – the Draco rizali (a small lizard, known as a flying dragon), Apogania rizali (a very rare kind of beetle with five horns) and the Rhacophorus rizali (a peculiar frog species).

To commemorate what he did for the country, the Philippines built a memorial park for him – now referred to as Rizal Park, found in Manila . There lies a monument which contains a standing bronze sculpture of Rizal, an obelisk, and a stone base said to contain his remains. The monument stands near the place where he fell during his execution in Luneta.

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