Sa Aking Mga Kababata

By: Johnisaiah Platino

His love for poetry was awakened by his mother at a young age. That is why at the
age of 8 he was able to write his first poem in Tagalog. Moreover, this is arguably
one of the best poems Rizal has ever written.
The poem aims instill in young Filipinos the following:

Tell the importance of the Filipino language

Language is God's gift to us
We should love our Language

Knowing that Rizal at a very young age was able to write a poem that contain such
message with a pure intent of heart for the edifying of the mother tongue, it only
shows that he is a leap ahead of his age in terms of intelligence and awareness of
his environment also, let us not forget Rizal, acknowledging the almighty God in this
poem.

Interpretation: Sa Aking mga Kabata

Kapagka ang bayay sadyang umiibig
Sa langit salitang kaloob ng langit
Sanlang kalayaan nasa ring masapi
Katulad ng ibong nasa himpapawid
This first stanza in Rizal's poem shows that long before he sprouted the first fruits of his
youth, he had already placed distinguished value in the importance of one's mother tongue.
According to these verses, if a nation's people wholeheartedly embrace and love their
native language, that nation will also surely pursue liberty. He likens this idea to a bird
soaring freely in the vast, eternal sky above.

Ipinapakita sa unang talata na kahit noong bata pa lamang si Rizal ay nakita

na niya ang kahalagahan ng wikang pambansa. Ayon sa kanya, kung taospusong mamahalin ng mga tao ang kanilang pambansang wika ay taos-puso
rin nilang ipaglalaban ang kanilang kalayaan. Ito raw ay parang isang ibong
lumilipad nang malaya sa himpapawid.
Pagkat ang salitay isang kahatulan
Sa bayan, sa nayo't mga kaharian
At ang isang taoy katulad, kabagay
Ng alin mang likha noong kalayaan.
Language here is likened to a people born into freedom. In Rizal's time, Filipinos were held
in slavery by Spain. Rizal, however, believed that if the people treasured and loved and
used their mother tongue, it would become a symbol of relative freedom, and of identity.

Ang wika ay ihinahalintulad ni Rizal sa mamamayang ipinanganak sa

kalayaan. Sa panahon noon, ang Pilipinas ay naging alipin sa kamay ng mga
Kastila. Ganunpaman, sinasabi ni Rizal sa talatang ito na kahit na ang bansa
ay parang nasa bilangguan ng mga dayuhan, ang kanilang pagmamahal at
pagtatangkilik sa sariling wika ay magiging simbolo na rin ng kanilang
pagkatao ang pagka-Pilipino.
Ang hindi magmahal sa kanyang salita
Mahigit sa hayop at malansang isda
Kaya ang marapat pagyamanin kusa
Na tulad sa inang tunay na nagpala
It is here in these lines of verse that we find Rizal's famous quote: "He who does not love his
own language is worse than an animal and smelly fish." He further adds that Filipinos must
work to make the language richer, and likens this endeavor to a mother feeding her young.
The native tongue is now compared to a helpless child that must be nurtured in order to
grow and flourish.

Dito sa pangatlong saknong nating makikita ang isa sa mga pinakatanyag na

kasabihan ni Rizal. Ayon sa kanya, ang wika raw kay nangangailangan ng
pag-aaruga, gaya ng pag-alaga ng ina sa kanyang anak. Ihinahalintulad niya
ang pambansang wika sa isang sanggol na kailangang alagaan at mahalin.
Ang wikang Tagalog tulad din sa Latin,
Sa Ingles, Kastila, at salitang anghel,
Sapagkat ang Poong maalam tumingin
Ang siyang naggagawad, nagbibigay sa atin.
The Tagalog language is, according to these lines, equal in rank to Latin, English, Spanish,
and even the language of the angels. It is not inferior to any other language, nor must it be
considered so. For it is God who has bestowed upon the Filipinos this gift, just as he has
blessed the other nations and lands with their native tongues.

Ayon kay Rizal, ang wikang Tagalog ay singhalaga ang sintulad lamang ng
wikang Latin, Ingles, Kastila, at salitang anghel. Hindi ito dapat minamaliit
kapag ikinukumpara sa wika ng ibang mas mauunlad na bansa, sapagkat
iisa lamang ang Diyos na nagbigay-bunga sa lahat ng wika ng mundo.
Ang salita natiy tulad din sa iba
Na may alfabeto at sariling letra,
Na kaya nawalay dinatnan ng sigwa
Ang lunday sa lawa noong dakong una.

These last lines may very well be referring to the Alibata, or the old Filipino alphabet whose
characters are unique in every essence, finding no likeness in any other alphabet. The
Tagalog language, according to Rizal, has letters and characters of its very own, similar to
the way other "elite tongues" do. These letters, however, were overthrown by strong waves
and lost, like fragile, fickle boats in the stormy sea, many long years ago.

Ang wika ng mga Pilipino, tulad nga iba pang wika, ay mayroon ding sariling
alpabeto. Maaaring tinutukoy ni Rizal dito ang Alibata o ang lumang
alpabetong Pilipino, na talaga namang nag-iisa ang walang katulad. Ngunit,
ayon kay Rizal, ang mga letra ng ating katutubong alpabeto ay parang
natangoy sa malalaking alon, na parang mga bangka.

A Reflection on "A La Juventud Filipina"

By: Adana Reyes
The Artistic-Literary Lyceum of Manila in 1879 held a literary contest that
offered a prize for the best poem. When this event happened, Rizal was only
eighteen years old. He submitted his poem entitled A La Juventud Filipina.
The Board of Judges, composed of Spaniards, was astounded by Rizal's poem
and awarded him first prize which consisted of:
a silver pen (feather-shaped and decorated with gold)
diploma
Rizal was congratulated by the Jesuits especially his former professors in
Ateneo, friends and family. It is a classic Philippine literature because it was
the first Spanish poem written by a Filipino and was recognized by Spanish
literary authority. Another reason is that it expresses that the Filipinos were
the "fair hope of the Fatherland" and not the Spaniards.
A La Juventud Filipina is an inspiring poem that states that the Filipino youth
are capable of great heights. It urges the Filipino youth to reach their
potential by harnessing their skills and talents for the betterment of our
countrymen. It motivates the youth to free Filipinos from ignorance, and to
seek freedom and human dignity.

This poem may have been written during the Spanish colonization, but the
essence of it applies to the our generation as well. Currently, our country's
economy is not doing so well. We have a lot of debt and many internal issues
unresolved. Only a few years from now, our generation will be handling those
problems. But how can we, if we are only sitting around and being satisfied
with mediocre work. The poem reminds us that we, as Filipino youth, have a
duty to serve our countrymen to our full extent. In order to do this, we must
harness talents and skills that we have. We must also take initiative to help
our country. Everyone of us can be able to contribute to the better
development of our country. The vision that Rizal had for our country can
become a reality if and only if we remember our duty.

Click the links to see the poem:

A La Juventud Filipina (English Translation)
A La Juventud Filipina (Spanish Translation)
A La Juventud Filipina (Filipino Transation)

Interpretation: To the Filipino Youth

Unfold, oh timid flower!
Lift up your radiant brow,
This day, Youth of my native strand!
Your abounding talents show
Resplendently and grand,
Fair hope of my Motherland!
Soar high, oh genius great,
And with noble thoughts fill their mind;
The honor's glorious seat,
May their virgin mind fly and find
More rapidly than the wind.
The first line, "unfold, oh timid flower," implies that the youth is silent, maybe daunted, and
consequently has not yet gone into full bloom for whatever reason there is that may have
silenced them. In the beginning stanza, Rizal encourages the youth, by telling them to hold
their heads high for they possess talents and skills and abilities that would make their

country proud.
The second verse can be rearranged in contemporary English to say: "Oh genius great, soar
high; and fill their mind with noble thoughts. May their virgin mind fly and find the honor's
glorious seat more rapidly than the wind." Here, Rizal calls to genious to fill young minds
with noble thoughts and hopes that as they release their thinking from the chains that bind,
they may be able to soar swiftly high where the joy of honor is.

Descend with the pleasing light

Of the arts and sciences to the plain,
Oh Youth, and break forthright
The links of the heavy chain
That your poetic genius enchain.
Contrary to the second verse, which talked about ascending and soaring to the heights, this
third stanza now talks about descent, and a downward motion of the great genius to fill the
earthly strokes of art and science with their magnificent ideas. Again, Rizal calls them to
break the chains that bind their intellect. "Poetic genius" here does not necessarily pertain to
the talent of writing poetry. Instead, the term "poetic" is simply an adjective to describe
genius, meaning that it is deep and mystifying and heavy with meaning.

See that in the ardent zone,

The Spaniard, where shadows stand,
Doth offer a shining crown,
With wise and merciful hand
To the son of this Indian land.
Rizal challenges the youth, that in their pursuit of knowledge and wisdom they may humble
the hand of Spain, whose proud chin did not look kindly upon the people whom they labelled
as "Indios" and whom they treated with contempt. He dreams that in their journey to
intellectual greatness they may humble even the proudest nations that look down on them
and rightfully deserve "a crown that shines, even where shadows stand."

You, who heavenward rise

On wings of your rich fantasy,
Seek in the Olympian skies
The tenderest poesy,
More sweet than divine honey;
You of heavenly harmony,
On a calm unperturbed night,
Philomel's match in melody,
That in varied symphony

Dissipate man's sorrow's blight;

In these two stanzas, Rizal calls the youth to seek the beauty of poetry and music, which he
himself values greatly as essentials in every manner of life. He claims that poetry is "more
sweet than divine honey," and that music can "dissipate man's sorrow's blight."

You at th' impulse of your mind

The hard rock animate
And your mind with great pow'r consigned
Transformed into immortal state
The pure mem'ry of genius great;
Speaking to the youth, Rizal says that by the very impulse of their mind, they are capable of
bringing to life or animating even someting as lifeless and unmoving as a hard rock. He
continues to say that the youth is able, to immortalize their thoughts and their words
through the help of great genius (as he has done himself. This stanza can be arranged in a
more contemporary English structure as follows: "You can animate the hard rock at the
impulse of your mind; and transform, with the great power of your mind, the pure memory of
great genius into immortality."

And you, who with magic brush

On canvas plain capture
The varied charm of Phoebus,
Loved by the divine Apelles,
And the mantle of Nature;
Rizal here addresses the youth, comparing their abilities to a magic brush that can capture
even the most majestic views and the most glorious charms on a blank canvas.

Run ! For genius' sacred flame

Awaits the artist's crowning
Spreading far and wide the fame
Throughout the sphere proclaiming
With trumpet the mortal's name
Oh, joyful, joyful day,
The Almighty blessed be
Who, with loving eagerness
Sends you luck and happiness.
The last stanza is a charge, urging the youth to run, for a glorious crown awaits them. The
"sphere" here pertains to the world, showing that Rizal believed the Filipino youth is as
brilliant as those in any other nation, and is able to contend with even the strongest powers
if they only set their mind to making most of what they already have.

Transcript of Education Gives Luster To Motherland

Historical Background
Implications/Meaning of the Poem
Dr. Jose Rizal
Education Gives Luster To Motherland
During 1876 at Ateneo Municipal of Manila
15 year old student
"inspires an enchanting virtue and puts the country in the lofty seat of endless
glory
Inspired by the gains he had through education, Rizal envisioned what education
can do to a country if its leadership would be made up of a new breed of educated
youth.
a. What is its history?
b. Why did JR wrote the poem
a. What message does it like to convey to readers?
Education uplifts the dignity of man.
b. What might be its significance to the contemporary Filipino Society?
Education is needed for one not be ignorant with the world.
Without education, everything will falter and be nothing.

Interpretation: Education Gives Luster to Motherland

Wise education, vital breath

Inspires an enchanting virtue;
She puts the Country in the lofty seat
Of endless glory, of dazzling glow,
And just as the gentle aura's puff
Do brighten the perfumed flower's hue:
So education with a wise, guiding hand,
A benefactress, exalts the human band.
In this first stanza, Rizal expresses that education is what builds up a country and allows her
to rise above the rest in matters of honor and a good name. He likens a guided and relevant
education to the vibrance of a flower.

Man's placid repose and earthly life

To education he dedicates
Because of her, art and science are born
Man; and as from the high mount above
The pure rivulet flows, undulates,
So education beyond measure
Gives the Country tranquility secure.
From the time of a man's birth to the moment of his death, he is constantly engaged in the
journey of learning. This can come in the form of a formal education and a structured
curriculum, or in the essence of daily living. And in this continued journey, people begin to
discover and innovate, create and recreate, giving birth to great discoveries and
breathtaking wonders. Rizal likens eduction to a rivulet, a stream, a brook, that provides a
certain peace as the water endlessly flows.

Where wise education raises a throne

Sprightly youth are invigorated,
Who with firm stand error they subdue
And with noble ideas are exalted;
It breaks immortality's neck,
Contemptible crime before it is halted:
It humbles barbarous nations
And it makes of savages champions.
Knowledge and wisdom enliven and embolden the young. With the sword of education they
are able to identify errors and correct them. They are able to find fault in the seemingly
faultless fabric of earthly knowledge and smother it with truth. They are well-respected for
the ideas they bring to the world.
A good education is an effective remedy to the problem of criminal acts and unlawful
pursuits. Even nations who wish nothing more than to divide, conquer, and control are
silenced when they open their ears to the voice of wisdom, which stops hatred in its tracks
and promotes the welfare of the people. Even savages, turn into champions when they are
afforded a good education.

And like the spring that nourishes

The plants, the bushes of the meads,
She goes on spilling her placid wealth,
And with kind eagerness she constantly feeds,
The river banks through which she slips,
And to beautiful nature all she concedes,
So whoever procures education wise
Until the height of honor may rise.

From her lips the waters crystalline

Gush forth without end, of divine virtue,
Knowledge is likened to a spring that nourishes everything its water touches. The spring of
knowledge is everlasting; there is no end to it.

And prudent doctrines of her faith

The forces weak of evil subdue,
That break apart like the whitish waves
That lash upon the motionless shoreline:
And to climb the heavenly ways the people
Do learn with her noble example.
In the education and enlightenment of the soul, man is able to overcome the powers of evil,
which in this stanza, are likened to the waves that lash upon the shore. Yet when man opens
his eyes to the divine revelation and acquires knowledge in matters of the spirit, he is able
to defeat the oppression of evil and "climb the heavenly ways."

In the wretched human beings' breast

The living flame of good she lights
The hands of criminal fierce she ties,
And fill the faithful hearts with delights,
Which seeks her secrets beneficent
And in the love for the good her breast she incites,
And it's th' education noble and pure
Of human life the balsam sure.
Here, education is likened to a balsam, producing medicinal effects to the many afflictions of
the human race, which are generally and singularly rooted in the propensity for evil. The
acquisition of good wisdom enables man to magnify his passion for good and continually
shun temptation.

And like a rock that rises with pride

In the middle of the turbulent waves
When hurricane and fierce Notus roar
She disregards their fury and raves,
That weary of the horror great
So frightened calmly off they stave;
Such is one by wise education steered
He holds the Country's reins unconquered.
An educated man does not sway when trials come. He stands firm in the midst of trouble

and remains courageous in times of despair. Great horrors cannot frighten him as they do
other people. Education provides her country with strong and respectable citizens who are
ready to fight for her honor no matter the cost.

His achievements on sapphires are engraved;

The Country pays him a thousand honors;
For in the noble breasts of her sons
Virtue transplanted luxuriant flow'rs;
And in the love of good e'er disposed
Will see the lords and governors
The noble people with loyal venture
Christian education always procure.
The achievements of an educated man are not forgotten, and he passes his wisdom on to
the generations that come after him. He becomes a beacon to his family and sets a good
example for the youth. In this stanza, Rizal also stresses the great importance of a Christian
education, as opposed to one that lacks the spiritual aspect, which he obviously considers
an essential cornerstone.

And like the golden sun of the morn

Whose rays resplendent shedding gold,
And like fair aurora of gold and red
She overspreads her colors bold;
Such true education proudly gives
The pleasure of virtue to young and old
And she enlightens out Motherland dear
As she offers endless glow and luster.
The poem ends in a splash of color as the author likens a good education to lights of the sun
and the aurora. Great wisdom picks no favorites; young and old benefit from it and delight in
its joys. Rizal closes the verse with an image of his country with the sun overhead, a sun
that embodies the virtues and wonders of a good education, which he dreams for every
citizen to enjoy.

To the Flowers of Heidelberg

This poem is a reflections of a Rizals feelings based on his experiences. Jose
Rizal went to Germany and studied there in University of Heidelberg. While in
Heidelberg he is experiencing the feeling of nostalgia for his parents and his
country, Rizal wrote the poem To the Flowers of Heidelberg.
When Rizal soared to Heidelberg in 1886, he was fascinated with the bloom
flowers and the beautiful old town of the confluence Neckar River. He loved

its natural beauty. Those flowers act as messengers to take his thoughts of
home back there. His poem, To the Flowers of Heidelberg is simply an
expression of his sadness as he remembered his family whom he loves so
much. In his poem, he also described the flowers as beautiful and brilliantly
attractive which lie in heaven beneath a shiny bright sky. It also shows that
he misses his homeland where he first saw the beauty of life and the beauty
of all creation. Those flowers in Heidelberg were resemblance of his happy
and beautiful experiences and memories in his homeland where he was far a
distance away. Because of sorrow and loneliness he compensated by writing
a poem about the beauty he saw on the flowers of Heidelberg.

Interpretation TO THE FLOWERS OF HEIDELBERG

Go to my country, go foreign flowers,
Planted by the traveler on his way,
And there beneath that sky of blue
That over my beloved towers,
Speak for this traveler to say
What faith in his homeland he breathes to you.
(Rizal in this paragraph poetically requests the flowers of Heidelberg to speak of him in the
Philippines)

Go and say.... Say that when the dawn

First brew your calyx open there
Beside the River Necker chill,
You saw him standing by you, very still,
Reflecting on the primrose flush you wear.
Say that when the morning light
Her toll of perfume from you wrung,
While playfully she whispered, "How I love you!"
He too murmured here above you
Tender love songs in his native tongue.
That when the rising sun the height
Of Koenigsthul in early morn first spies,
And with its tepid light
Is pouring life in valley, wood, and grove,
He greets the sun as it begins to rise,
Which in his native land is blazing straight above.

(These three paragraphs mentions the times of day starting from dawn and the break of
sunlight. He beautifully asked the flowers to bear witness to his undying concern for his
motherland when at dawn he sings to the flowers native songs in exchange of their gift of
natural perfume. And in the morning under the soft light of the early sun he reflects still of
his motherland where the same sun now is at its highest... as if he is connected with his
motherland through the sun)

And tell them of that day he staid

And plucked you from the border of the path,
Amid the ruins of the feudal castle,
By the River Neckar, and in the sylvan shade,
Tell them what he told you
As tenderly he took
Your pliant leaves and pressed them in a book,
Where now its well-worn pages close enfold you.
(Rizal poetically describes his plan for the flowers to carry his message to his motherland. He
plucks them and preserves them in his book)

Carry, carry, flowers of Rhine,

Love to every love of mine,
Peace to my country and her fertile loam,
Virtue to her women, courage to her men,
Salute those darling ones again,
Who formed the sacred circle of our home.
(His first message to the country is peace, virtue to women, courage to men)

And when you reach that shore,

Each kiss I press upon you now,
Deposit on the pinions of the wind,
And those I love and honor and adore
Will feel my kisses carried to their brow.
(He poetically describes his will that his kisses on the flower may be carried by the wind to
his loved ones)

Ah, flowers, you may fare through,

Conserving still, perhaps, your native hue;

Yet, far from Fatherland, heroic loam

To which you owe your life,
The perfume will be gone from you;
For aroma is your soul; it cannot roam
Beyond the skies which saw it born, nor e'er forget.
(Here is the paradox: Rizal used the flowers of Heidelberg as his symbol of his love for his
motherland. The beauty of the flowers is comparable to the way he looks at our country that
anyone who will see the flower may get in touch with Rizal's concern for his motherland.
Though noble this may seem to be, Rizal in the last stanza reflected on its utter futility since
the flower will no longer be the same when it reaches the country. Its beauty and perfume,
which should reflect Rizal's intentions for the country, will long be gone. Why? For it is far
from its fatherland.)

Rizal wrote this when he was at Germany. In France and Germany, Rizal was well known and
respected. But he may have realized what good will their respect do to his country. What
good will this do to the Philippines if he is serving foreign lands and not his own. His verses
had a single symbol--The flowers of Heidelberg. But it symbolizes two realities. First, the
flowers' beauty symbolizes Rizal's love for his country, and second, the flowers' reduced
quality refers to Rizal's useless presence in another country. Later he decided to return to
the country despite repeated warning from his friends and relatives.

The Song of the Traveller

by Jose Rizal

Like to a leaf that is fallen and withered,

Tossed by the tempest from pole unto pole ;
hus roams the pilgrim abroad without
purpose,
Roams without love, without country or
soul.

Following anxiously treacherous fortune,

Fortune which e 'en as he grasps at it flees ;
Vain though the hopes that his yearning is
seeking,
Yet does the pilgrim embark on the seas !

Ever impelled by the invisible power,

Destined to roam from the East to the West ;
Oft he remembers the faces of loved ones,
Dreams of the day when he, too, was at rest.

Chance may assign him a tomb on the

desert,
Grant him a final asylum of peace ;
Soon by the world and his country forgotten,
God rest his soul when his wanderings cease
!

Often the sorrowing pilgrim is envied,

Circling the globe like a sea-gull above ;
Little, ah, little they know what a void
Saddens his soul by the absence of love.

Home may the pilgrim return in the future,

Back to his loved ones his footsteps he
bends ;
Naught wll he find but the snow and the
ruins,
Ashes of love and the tomb of his friends,

Pilgrim, begone ! Nor return more hereafter,

Stranger thou art in the land of thy birth ;
Others may sing of their love while
rejoicing,
Thou once again must roam o'er the earth.

Pilgrim, begone ! Nor return more hereafter,

Dry are the tears that a while for thee ran ;
Pilgrim, begone ! And forget thine affliction,
Loud laughs the world at the sorrows of
man.
Translated by Arthur P.Ferguson

Jos Rizal was a true Filipino, but he was also educated and acculturated to the European lifestyle
and mindset. Imagine for him the feeling of returning from affluent and privileged society in Europe to

his impoverished homeland, the Philippines, corruptly administered under Spanish "frailocracia"
where the native Filipinos were treated as as inferior race of "indios".
In his thoughts and writings he often straddles a difficult to reconcile line between the perspective of
colony and colonizer. But in the end, to the Europeans, even his friends, he may have only
represented little more than a curiousity, being educated and extremely articulate, but still an "indio"
and an alien. Likewise, to the Filipino people, he had become something alien through his cultural
and educational experiences that distanced himself from the perspective of his own mother culture.
It is a beautiful poem because it captures so well the loneliness of an immigrant. In your new home
you may never truly be accepted as anything more than an outsider, yet the culture you will inevitably
adapt to will mark you for life in your perspective so that you can never return to your country of
origin and fit in as seamlessly as you might once have done. In the end you are simultaneously a
native and a foreigner to both nations.
His sad conclusion is that once you begin your travels, your choice is made. Once outside of the
circle, their is no way back inside:
"Pilgrim, begone! Nor return more hereafter,
Stranger thou art in the land of thy birth ;
Others may sing of their love while rejoicing,
Thou once again must roam o'er the earth"