Some of Rizals Writings - Poems and Essays

Mi Primera Inspiracion (My First Inspiration) - It was the first poem written by Dr.
Jose Rizal during his third academic year in Ateneo de Municipal. He wrote the poem in
1874, before he turned 14. He was delighted to see his mother, Doa Teodora Alonso,
released from prison that same year so he dedicated the poem to her. This poem was written
in honor of his mothers birthday as evidenced by the terms perfume of the flowers, the
songs of the birds, feast your day of bloom and festive day. Jose Rizals poetic verses
show his eternal love and appreciation for his mother. This is somehow his way of paying
tribute to all the efforts of her dear mother.
A La Juventud Filipina (To the Filipino Youth) - It is a poem written in Spanish by
Filipino writer and national hero Jos Rizal, first presented in 1879 in Manila, while he was
studying at the University of Santo Tomas. It is is a winning poem in 1879 submitted to the
literary contest held by the Liceo Artistico-Literario (Artistic-Literary Lyceum) of Manila--a
society of literary men and artists. The inspiring poem written by Jose Rizal at the age of
eighteen was said to be of flawless form which aimed to implore the Filipinos to rise from
indolence. It is said to be a classical piece of Philippine literature for reasons that (1) Spanish
literary authorities recognize it as an impressive poem written in Spanish by a Filipino and
(2) it was the foremost literary piece to display the nationalistic belief that Filipinos were the
fair hope of the Fatherland
Sa Aking mga Kabata - The famous poem was a nationalistic undertaking to promote
the usage of Tagalog language by the Filipino people. The poem To My Fellow Children
was believed to be the national heros first written Tagalog poem at the age of eight.
However, it was said that this poem was published posthumously a hundred years after his
death sentence. From the National Library of the Philippines, records show that Sa aking
mga kabata was not published in the original Tagalog but in a free Spanish translation of the
Tagalog by Epifano delos Santos as A mis companeros de ninez.
La Tragedia de San Eustaquio (The Tragedy of St. Eustace) - Rizals longest poem
which is composed of 2414 verses. This poem recounts the tragic story of St. Eustace.
However, it appears that the original manuscript of this no longer exists and may have been
destroyed in the bombardment of the Second World War. But it was said that it had been
published in installments in a magazine, Cultura Social of Ateneo University Saint Eustace,
also known as Eustchius or Eustthius or Eustthios or St. Esthak(India), is revered as a
Christian martyr and soldier saint.
Mi Piden Versos (They Asked Me for Verses) - Rizal had been a member of Circulo
Hispano-Filipino (Hispano-Philippine Circle), a society of Spaniards and Filipinos in Madrid.
In the New Years Eve reception of the Madrid Filipinos held in 1882, he declaimed his
written Me Piden Versos, a poem he wrote due to the request of the societys members. In
March 31, 1889, this poem was published in the La Solidaridad.
A los Flores de Heidelberg (To the Flowers of Heidelberg) - At some time in his life,
Jose Rizal stayed in Heidelberg, a city in the state of Baden-Wrttemberg in Germany. In

1887, the 25-year old Rizal completed his eye specialization under the renowned Prof. Otto
Becker in the University of Heidelberg. In spring, flowers bloom along the banks of Neckar
River. Rizal admired particulary the light blue spring flower forget-me-not. These beautiful
flowers made him think of their flowers in Calamba. Amid his homesickness of his
hometown in the spring of 1886, he came up with a nice poem A Las Flores de Heidelberg
(To the Flowers of Heidelberg) which expresses prayer for the wellbeing of his native land.
A Song of Ma. Clara - This poem forms part of the Jose Rizals infamous novel, Noli
Me Tangere. In the novel, one of the main characters, Maria, upon the insistent requests of
her friends, rendered a beautiful song with the accompaniment of the harp.
A Mi Musa ( To My Muse) - It was against a background of mental anguish in Brussels,
during those sad days when he was worried by family disasters.
El Consejo De Los Dioses (The Council of the Gods) - It is an allegorical play written
in 1879 by our national heroJose Rizal. It was first published in Liceo Artistico Literario de
Manila review in 1880, latterly in La Solidaridad in1883. In December 1900 this was
translated in Tagalog. This version was adapted into sarswela by Pascual H.Poblete and
published in El Comercio de Filipinas. reveals the humanistic education of the Philippines at
the time and his answer to scholasticism.
El Amor Patrio (The Love of Country) - Rizals first essay, it was written when he was
21 and newly arrived in Madrid. It was published under the name of Laong Laan on 20
August 1882 in Diarong Tagalog, a Philippine newspaper, then on 31 October 1890 in La
Solidaridad, Madrid.This essay is a poignant dissertation of what Rizal calls a beautiful but
hackneyedsubject, love of country. In crystallizing his concept on love of country, Rizal
reveals a foretaste of the style and substance of his novels. He could have had Maria Clara
and Sisa in mind when he described the country as enveloped in morning clouds and mist,
always beautiful and poetic,and the more idolized by her sons when they are absent and far
away from her.
Memorias de Un Estudiante de Manila, 1861-1881 - This is the memoirs of Dr. Rizal
during his student days in Manila. He wrote it in Spanish on 43 pages of ruled paper, under
the pseudonym "P. Jacinto." An incomplete English version of the Memoirs was published by
Austin Craig in 1927. A complete version in the original Spanish was edited by Seores
Alberto and Tomas F. Barretto and published by San Miguel Brewery (Manila) in 1949. The
first complete English translation was written by Leon Ma. Guerrero, Jr. in 1950 and was
published by the Bardavon Book Company (Manila) in 1951.
La Vision Del Fray Rodrigues (The Vision of Fray Rodriguez) - Jose Rizal, upon
receipt of the news concerning Fray Rodriguez bitter attack on his novel Noli Me Tangere,
wrote this defense under his pseudonym Dimas Alang. Published in Barcelona, it is a satire
depicting a spirited dialogue between the Catholic saint Augustine and Rodriguez. Augustine,
in the fiction, told Rodriguez that he (Augustine) was commissioned by God to tell him
(Rodriguez) of his stupidity and his penance on earth that he (Rodriguez) shall continue to

write more stupidity so that all men may laugh at him. In this pamphlet, Rizal demonstrated
his profound knowledge in religion and his biting satire.
To The Young Women of Malolos - Originally written in Tagalog, this famous essay
directly addressed to the women of Malolos, Bulacan was written by Rizal as a response to
Marcelo H. Del Pilars request. Rizal was greatly impressed by the bravery of the 20 young
women of Malolos who planned to establish a school where they could learn Spanish despite
the opposition of Felipe Garcia, Spanish parish priest of Malolos. The letter expressed Rizals
yearning that women be granted the same chances given to men in terms of education. In the
olden days, young women were not educated because of the principle that they will soon be
wives and their primary career would be to take care of the home and children. Rizal
however advocated womens right to education. Below are some of the points mentioned by
Rizal in his letter to the young women of Malolos: 1) The priests in the country that time did
not embody the true spirit of Christianity; 2) Private judgment should be used; 3) Mothers
should be an epitome of an ideal woman who teaches her children to love God, country, and
fellowmen; 4) Mothers should rear children in the service of the state and set standards of
behavior for men around her;5) Filipino women must be noble, decent, and dignified and
they should be submissive, tender, and loving to their respective husband; and 6) Young
women must edify themselves, live the real Christian way with good morals and manners,
and should be intelligent in their choice of a lifetime partner.
Los Agricultores Filipinos (The Filipino Farmers) - This essay dated March 25, 1889
was the first article of Rizal published in La Solidaridad. In this writing, he depicted the
deplorable conditions of the Filipino farmers in the Philippines, hence the backwardness of
the country
El Amor Patrio (The Love of Country) - This was the first article Rizal wrote in the
Spanish soil. Written in the summer of 1882, it was published in Diariong Tagalog in August.
He used the pen name Laong Laan (ever prepared) as a byline for this article and he sent it
to Marcelo H. Del Pilar for Tagalog translation. Written during the Spanish colonization and
reign over the Philippine islands, the article aimed to establish nationalism and patriotism
among the natives. Rizal extended his call for the love of country to his fellow compatriots in
Spain, for he believed that nationalism should be exercised anywhere a person is.
Filipinas Dentro De Cien Anos (The Philippines within One Hundred Years) - This
was serialized in La Solidaridad on September 30, October 31, December 15, 1889 and
February 15, 1890. In the articles, Rizal estimated the future of the Philippines in the span of
a hundred years and foretold the catastrophic end of Spanish rule in Asia. He prophesied
Filipinos revolution against Spain, winning their independence, but later the Americans
would come as the new colonizer. The essay also talked about the glorious past of the
Philippines, recounted the deterioration of the economy, and exposed the causes of natives
sufferings under the cruel Spanish rule. In the essay, he cautioned the Spain as regards the
imminent downfall of its domination. He awakened the minds and the hearts of the Filipinos
concerning the oppression of the Spaniards and encouraged them to fight for their right. Part
of the essays reads, History does not record in its annals any lasting domination by one
people over another, of different races, of diverse usages and customs, of opposite and

divergent ideas. One of the two had to yield and succumb. The Philippines had regained its
long-awaited democracy and liberty some years after Rizals death. This was the realization
of what the hero envisioned in this essay.
Sobre La Indolencia De Los Filipinas (The Indolence of the Filipinos) - This logical
essay is a proof of the national heros historical scholarship. The essay rationally countered
the accusations by Spaniards that Filipinos were indolent (lazy) during the Spanish reign. It
was published in La Solidaridad in five consecutive issues on July (15 and 31), August (1 and
31) and September 1, 1890. Rizal argued that Filipinos are innately hardworking prior to the
rule of the Spaniards. What brought the decrease in the productive activities of the natives
was actually the Spanish colonization. Rizal explained the alleged Filipino indolence by
pointing to these factors: 1) the Galleon Trade destroyed the previous links of the Philippines
with other countries in Asia and the Middle East, thereby eradicating small local businesses
and handicraft industries; 2) the Spanish forced labor compelled the Filipinos to work in
shipyards, roads, and other public works, thus abandoning their agricultural farms and
industries; 3) many Filipinos became landless and wanderers because Spain did not defend
them against pirates and foreign invaders; 4) the system of education offered by the
colonizers was impractical as it was mainly about repetitive prayers and had nothing to do
with agricultural and industrial technology; 5) the Spaniards were a bad example as negligent
officials would come in late and leave early in their offices and Spanish women were always
followed by servants; 6) gambling like cockfights was established, promoted, and explicitly
practiced by Spanish government officials and friars themselves especially during feast days;
7) the crooked system of religion discouraged the natives to work hard by teaching that it is
easier for a poor man to enter heaven; and 8) the very high taxes were discouraging as big
part of natives earnings would only go to the officials and friars. Moreover, Rizal explained
that Filipinos were just wise in their level of work under topical climate. He explained,
violent work is not a good thing in tropical countries as it is would be parallel to death,
destruction, annihilation. Rizal concluded that natives supposed indolence was an endproduct of the Spanish colonization.
Por Telefono - This was a witty satire authored by Dimas Alang (one of the heros pen
names) ridiculing the Catholic monk Font, one of the priests who masterminded the banning
of the Noli. Published in booklet form in Barcelona, Spain, it narrated in a funny way the
telephone conversation between Font and the provincial friar of the San Agustin Convent in
Manila. This pamphlet showed not only Rizals cleverness but also his futuristic vision.
Amazingly, Rizal had envisaged that overseas telephonic conversations could be carried on
something which was not yet done during that time (Fall of 1889). It was only in 1901,
twelve years after Rizal wrote the Por Telefono, when the first radio-telegraph signals were
received by Marconi across the Atlantic.
Specimens of Tagal Folklore - Published in May 1889, the article contained Filipino
proverbs and puzzles.
Una Profanacion (A Desecration) - One of Jose Rizals articles in La Solidaridad, was
published on July 31, 1889 as an indictment versus the friars who denied the body of
Mariano Herbosa a Catholic burial since he was Rizals brother-in-law. Herbosa married

Lucia Rizal and had 8 children.

Sobre La Nueva Ortografia De La Lengua Tagala (On The New Orthography of
The Tagalog Language) - Rizal expressed here his advocacy of a new spelling in Tagalog.
In this article dated April 15, 1890, he laid down the rules of the new Tagalog orthography
and, with modesty and sincerity, gave the credit for the adoption of this new orthography to
Dr. Trinidad H. Pardo de Tavera, author of the celebrated work El Sanscrito en la Lengua
Tagala (Sanskrit in the Tagalog Language) published in Paris, 1884. I put this on record,
wrote Rizal, so that when the history of this orthography is traced, which is already being
adopted by the enlightened Tagalists, that what is Caesars be given to Caesar. This
innovation is due solely to Dr. Pardo de Taveras studies on Tagalismo. I was one of its most
zealous propagandists.
Brindis (Toast) - The speech was Rizals toast to the triumph of D. Juan Lunas
Spolarium painting and it seems to me that the whole monologue was said in great
meditation and in my opinion, he has commanded the attention of those who came for the
dinner. In the first few parts, he described the surroundings with much romanticism like he is
surrounded by men of heart and where noble emotions dwell and the air is full of
empathetic good feeling.
Noli Me Tangere - The title Noli Me Tangere or Touch Me Not is a Biblical allusion
taken from John 20:17 are the words spoken by Christ to Mary Magdalene. However, Rizals
title, as he explained to a friend suggest that he [Rizal] would write of things as yet
unwritten because untouchable.
El Filibusterismo (The Subversive) - It is the second novel by Jos Rizal (18611896),
national hero of the Philippines. Like its predecessor, the better-known Noli Me Tangere, the
Fili was written in Castilian while Rizal was traveling and studying in Europe. It was
published in Ghent in 1891 and later translated into English, German, French, Japanese,
Tagalog, Ilonggo, and other languages. A nationalist novel by an author who has been called
"the first Filipino," its nature as a social document of the late-nineteenth-century Philippines
is often emphasized. For many years copies of the Fili were smuggled into the Philippines
after it was condemned as subversive by the Spanish authorities. Characters from the Noli
(Basilio, Doa Victorina, Padre Salvi) return while new ones are introduced: Simoun, the
transformed Ibarra; Cabesang Tales and his struggle for justice; the nationalist student
Isagani; the Indio priest Padre Florentino. Through them the colonial milieu is expandedits
officialdom, education, legal system, power plays, social patternsand seen anew as context
for conflict and insight. Translator Soledad Lacson-Locsin is the first to have worked from
facsimile editions of the original manuscripts. The result is the most authoritative and faithful
English translation to date, one which attempts to preserve in English the cadence and color
of the original.