Pacquiao's Anting-anting

It has  almost been 3 weeks since the Philippines’  “Pambansang Kamao”,  Manny “Pac Man” Pacquiao got hit by a thunderous punch from his Mexican nemesis Juan Manuel “El Dinamita” Marquez.  The Latino fighter truly deserved his moniker that night as he unleashed a straight counter right which exploded in the face of Pacquiao rendering him unconscious and crashing to the canvas.  The perfectly timed punch was felt by Filipinos around the globe who witnessed the fight as if they were inside the squared circle themselves.  The only difference is that while Pac Man’s eyes were closed in a comatose state for over a minute, Pinoys had their eyes and jaws widely open in disbelief.



 

 

As expected, there are a lot of theories and reasons in trying to explain the shocking debacle.  There are talks that he lost his focus due to involvement in many activities outside the ring such as show business and politics. Many also believe that fame and his gazzillions have made him complacent in training and that the “hunger” is just no longer there.  A lot more others, especially among devoted Catholics which include his beloved mother “Mommy D”, truly believe that his downfall began when he changed his religion.  Like majority of Filipinos, the great fighter was born and raised as a Catholic.  Most will recall that until recently, his pre-fight routine include kneeling and praying in a corner of the ring. He previously wore a rosary and kissing it before the fight began.  Adding credence to this is that his stunning loss happened on December 8, the feast day of the Immaculate Conception. This is being interpreted by many Marian devotees as a result of his “abandonment” of the mother of Christ.  To them,  Pacquiao lost because he was no longer wearing the Holy Rosary which they believe served as his “anting-anting” or in English an amulet, charm or talisman.

 

 

 

This brings us to the culture of the anting-anting. Every culture has produced its own set of talismans and amulets, and the Philippines is no exception. While some cultures may regard amulets merely as magical accessories to protect one against harm and bad luck, the culture of the Filipino anting-anting may be different, being so ingrained as to be regarded as a religion in itself. Notably, the anting-anting invariably contained mixed symbols of the ancient Filipino religion, Roman Catholicism, the Christian Orthodox church, and Judaism.

 

For those who believe in its divine properties, the anting-anting is one of the few man-made objects that can make man closer to God or even achieve the qualities of God. It is a long-held belief among the mystics, both in the East and the West,  that amulets serve as temporary or even constant habitation of God and other divine spirits. The animist belief that inanimate objects can become receptacles of dwelling of the divine is shown through the ancient worship of statues, relics, beads, portraits, tombs, and of course, amulets.

Before the coming of the Spaniards, the early Filipinos were already known to keep amulets, talismans, charms, and various other objects to protect them from harm, the elements, and  evil spirits. Crocodile tooth, gems, odd-shaped stones, and even fossilized remains of animals were the earliest known examples of anting-anting used by the early Filipinos.

The anting anting has many other names in the Tagalog lexicon: bertud, agimat, gamit, talisman, mutya, or galing. It also comes in many forms. It can be a medallion, a small book, a piece of paper, a tattoo, a crocodile tooth, a meteorite, a vest or scarf inscribed with oraciones, and many others. No one is quite sure how the word anting-anting came to be. According to Lorna Montilla, anting-anting may have evolved from the Latin word “anti,” and thus means “anti-anti” or “against-against.” Indeed if the present belief in the popular use of anting-anting is to be considered, Montilla may be correct, since the anting-anting is mostly used to protect its wearer against harm and illness. But there are also some who put forward the theory that the term is actually derived from the Javanese word “anting-anting” which means ear pendants. Anting-anting may also have been derived from the Bahasa Melayu word “anting” that means “dangling” or “swinging.”


Part of the attraction of the anting-anting lies in its esoteric nature. Basically, man is attracted to the unknown, to the mysterious. Most anting-anting pieces are puzzling because of their cabalistic figures, mysterious oraciones, and hidden initials. Many people who possess these are very secretive and would not want to reveal what they keep, except maybe those pieces they wear around. They believe that the mystical nature of the anting-anting–their own covenant with the gods–is what makes it powerful. Once revealed to others, its power diminishes or disappears altogether.


The most commonly seen symbol is the Eye contained in a triangle, which represents the Bathala or the Infinito Dios, the ancient Filipino God. This symbol appears in many emblems, banners, and seals of many millenarian groups in Southern Tagalog.

The connection of God to the anting-anting, therefore, is key to understanding its nature. To unlock the secrets of the anting-anting’s hidden meanings, myths, and symbolisms, one must be able to understand the Filipino’s concept of God. The anting-anting is the Filipino’s way to approach God, and to contain God within a medallion or vest, and thereby achieve a divine connection which will give him the qualities of God.

Another attraction of the anting-anting is the promise it gives to its possessor. Many who keep them believe that the anting-anting gives them spiritual power that can protect them from material harm. Many of the people who put their faith in the anting-anting, such as the kapatid of the Lapiang Malaya, held the notion that they gain supernatural powers through the anting-anting. They can become invisible to enemies, impervious to bullets and knives, escape mortal dangers, be in two places at the same time, perform miracles, and so on. Therefore, the anting-anting endows them with the attributes of the gods.

With all these attributes of power and promise, many people who believe in the anting-anting spend most of their lives searching for the most powerful ones. They go to the most remote places in search of the anting-anting. They undergo great sacrifice and peril to hunt them. For example, in the past, it was a common belief that an unchristened fetus, recently aborted or miscarried, must be exhumed from the cemetery, put into a bottle or jar, soaked in liquor, and eaten one tablespoon everyday for a whole year. The pickled fetus is still believed powerful by some of the most radical faithful in the Tagalog region. This author knows of a person who fell gravely ill after eating pickled fetus for a week.

There are also people who swallow the anting-anting, in the belief that once ingested, its powers are absorbed by the body. This is called the subo (swallow), still being practiced by many believers. Another extreme is the baon, in which the anting-anting is embedded into the believer’s skin, like what Marcos was said to have had inside the skin of his back.


The ancient Filipinos believed in the existence of God. In Tagalog mythology, God is the Bathalang Maykapal or Bathala, the creator of the universe. Although the name Bathala may be Tagalog, it has counterparts in other parts of the Philippines. Bathala rules the world. He provides man with his needs and protects the world against evil. There are other deities in the ancient religion of the Tagalogs, but Bathala is the highest and most powerful.

To make the conquest easy and readily convert Filipinos into the new religion, the friar missionaries interpreted Bathala to be the same Spanish God of the Roman Catholic religion. Rather than erase the old belief in the Bathala, the friars simply adapted the Bathala into the new faith. The friars may have even encouraged local beliefs and superstitions among the Filipinos, including the belief in anting-anting, to create a market for similar objects like scapulars, scarves, relics, medallions, and rosaries.

The veneration of material objects, long a tradition among the Filipinos, has thus been encouraged and fused with Roman Catholicism. The Filipinos then created their own interpretations of these objects to suit their beliefs. Thus, many of the symbols that can be seen on the anting-anting are fusions of the Roman Catholic faith and the pre-colonial religion of the Filipinos.

 

The important change instituted by the friar missionaries had something to do with the concept of God among the Filipinos. Although Bathala is interpreted by the friars to be the same Spanish God of the Roman Catholics, Bathala’s monotheistic being was changed, as he was now viewed as consisting of three persons. This is the Doctrine of the Santissima Trinidad (Holy Trinity of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit).

This doctrine is the most important dogma of Catholicism. In the book Catechism of the Roman Catholic Church published by the Vatican, the doctrine is stated:

The Trinity is One. We do not confess three Gods, but One God in three persons. The divine persons do not share the one divinity among themselves but each of them is God whole and entire.

The early Filipinos may have difficulty understanding this concept of the Santissima Trinidad. How can the Bathala be One and Three at the same time? To solve this theological crisis, and to retain the easier concept that the God is only One, the Tagalogs created the mythology of the Infinito Dios. In this new theogony, Bathala is again One, but his name has become the Infinito Dios, and immediately below him—but also Gods in their own right —are the Santissima Trinidad: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

The concept of the Bathala/Infinito Dios existing before the Santissima Trinidad may seem easier to understand for the early Filipinos. Here, the line is clear: the Infinito Dios is the One and Only God. He retains his role as the creator of the universe, the provider of mankind, and the protector against evil.

The later arrival of the Santissima Trinidad into the Filipino theogony created the myth that the Santissima Trinidad, a newcomer in Filipino theogony, wanted to baptize, i.e., convert, the Infinito Dios, not knowing that the Infinito Dios was already existing even before the Santissima Trinidad existed. The Infinito Dios is higher than, although one with, the Santissima Trinidad.

 
In retrospect, the history of the Filipino mass movements whose combined quest for freedom and faith in the anting-anting led them to fight the oppression of those in power. The revolt of the Cofradia de San jose in 1840, the Katipunan in 1896, the Colorum rebellions of Southern Tagalog in 1897, Philippine Revolution of 1899, the Macario Sakay and Felipe Salvador rebellions during the early years of the American occupation, and the Sakdal and the Hukbalahap movements – these are all examples of uprisings driven not only by nationalistic fervor but by religious and superstitious beliefs as well.

The leaders and members of these movements invariably kept an anting-anting to protect them in their battles against the enemies. General Emilio Aguinaldo was known to possess the medallion of the Santissima Trinidad, Andres Bonifacio used the Santiago de Galicia amulet, Felipe Salvador wore the medallion of Christ’s resurrection, and General Macario Sakay went around in an anting-anting vest with the inscribed Caravaca cross design. General Antonio Luna, Bishop Gregorio Aglipay, and General Miguel Malvar were also known to possess an anting-anting.

The anting-anting likewise figured prominently in the lives of folk heroes and bandits, such as Tiagong Akyat, Nardong Putik, and Kapitan Eddie Set, whose life stories were made into movies by actor Ramon Revilla. But for all the presumed power of the anting-anting they wore, most of these folk heroes and villains ended up being killed by gunfire in encounters with the authorities. Even former President Ferdinand Marcos was known to believe in the anting-anting. Bishop Gregorio Aglipay, reportedly a firm believer in anting-anting, was said to have embedded an anting-anting into the former president’s skin.

The arrival of the Spaniards in the Philippines in the 16th century proselytized the Filipino’s concept of God. To easily conquer the archipelago and introduce the Roman Catholic religion without antagonizing the superstitious and religious beliefs of the Filipinos, the Spanish friar missionaries presented the God of Roman Catholicism to be the same ancient Filipino God  Bathala. The synthesis of the Roman Catholic religion and the pre-colonial religious and superstitious beliefs of the early Filipinos created a new kind of religion called Folk Catholicism, the religion of many millenarian groups in Southern Luzon, as well as the religion of anting-anting believers.

The Trespicio medallion of the Infinito Dios and the Tres Personas

The trinitarian dogma which is the most important of all Catholic doctrines gave way to the mythology that God, a spirit being, is an eye contained in a triangle. The triangle (or in anting-anting parlance, trespico), is the perfect representation of God, as it contained three equal sides or three equal corners, consistent with God’s three equal personalities. The triangular medallion, therefore, becomes one of the most popular of all the anting-anting. It symbolizes the oneness of the Infinito Dios and the Santissima Trinidad. Those who keep and faithfully believe in the trespico anting-anting can achieve oneness with the Infinito Dios and the Santissima Trinidad.

The Trespico medallion, believed by anting-anting faithful as an effective protector against evil because it contains the image and names of God. The symbols in this medallion include the Eye, representing the Infinito Dios, and the initials A.A.A which are the initials of the names of the Santissima Trinidad: Avetillo, Avetemit, Avelator (other names of the Santissima Trinidad are Aram, Ardam, Adradam). The ROMA is the initial of the title and name of God which means Rex Omnipotentem Macmamitam Adonay.

 

 

God’s plan for the world is to save it from the clutches of the Devil. For this reason, one of the Santissima Trinidad has been assigned to go down to earth to save humankind. Only through his sacrifice and death can humankind be saved. But since God is immortal and cannot die, he must assume a human form, and before he must be born a human, he should be conceived by a woman.

God being born as a human by a human mother is again one of those concepts that cannot easily be understood, especially among the early Filipinos who have a simple pre-colonial belief in the existence of God who is the first being in the universe. But for God to become human, and for God to be born by a woman, is something complex, especially if Catholicism teaches that the woman is the Mother of God, instead of just a blessed human person assigned by God to bear his human form.

The woman–the Virgin Mary–conceived God in her womb. The official Catholic doctrine on her personality is stated clearly in the official Catholic book Catechism of the Roman Catholic Church published by the Vatican:

Mary is truly “Mother of God” since she is the mother of the eternal Son of God made man, who is God himself.

The image of a Mother God therefore plays an important role in the theogony of the anting- anting. In Filipino society, the mother of the family is viewed as the “ilaw ng tahanan” who provides her children with proper care, upbringing and education. Moreover, the early Filipino society, although strongly patriarchal, viewed women as mediators to God. As proof, the early priests were women called babaylan.

 

 

The veneration of the Virgin Mary as the Mother of God is therefore consistent with the Filipino view of the important role played by the mother in Filipino family and society. The babaylan priesthood still exists at present in many folk Catholic religions in Southern Tagalog, most especially in the Ciudad Mistica de Dios and the Tres Personas Solo Dios in Mount Banahaw, where the religious leaders and priests are women.

In the theogony of the anting-anting, the Virgin Mary must therefore be elevated from her role as a simple bearer of God in her womb to become the Infinita Dios, the female equality and counterpart of the Infinito Dios. The emergence of the Infinita Dios in anting-anting symbols also gave way to the belief that God does not have a sexual gender preference.

In closing, there is no question that folk Catholicism or other adaptation of it is still very much alive in the Philippines.  Anyone can visit Quiapo Church or other older churches in Manila and the provinces to see the wide array of merchandise being sold for this purpose.  It remains to be seen if Pacquiao will heed his mother’s fervent wish to return to his Catholic roots and start wearing again the Holy Rosary that to many served as his “anting-anting”.  The fact that Marquez trained longer than Pacquiao for 4 ½ months compared to the latter’s 2 months without the distractions seems to have been  lost to many.  Marquez was focused on only one thing while Pacquiao continues to dabble in politics, showbiz and bible preaching among other things outside the ring.  As the saying goes, “ Focus and hard work beats talent alone”.  Lastly and perhaps for good measure, Marquez never abandoned his own “anting-anting.”

 

Sources: The Philippine Online Chronicles by Dennis Villegas
                 Wikipedia

 

 

 

 

Chasing Gold

Event : 2040 Manila Olympic Games
INT.: The Philippine Mens Basketball team led by team captain Robert Jaworski V is at the podium awaiting presentation of their Gold medals after defeating the NBA stars studded U.S. team in a blowout finals match.
Announcer : "Ladies and Gentlemen let's all rise for the playing of the Philippine national anthem".

Ahh the simple joy of day dreaming...it's free anyway right? Oh well back to reality. We're sure everybody is in Olympic mood and trying to catch their favorite sporting event and cheering their favorite athletes at the 2012 London Olympiad. Let's take a moment & take a look back into our Olympic experience so far.


The Philippines debuted in the Olympic Games in 1924 at Paris with a one-athlete, one official

delegation. It was one of the 44 countries that participated. David Nepomuceno's fame as a sprint specialist led to his selection as the first Filipino—and Southeast Asian—athlete ever sent to the Olympics. But the then 24-year-old Nepomuceno failed to qualify for the quarterfinals of both the 100m and 200m sprint events (the former's finals was later dramatized in the film Chariots of Fires). Unfortunately he was never again given the chance to compete at another Olympics. He died at the young age of 39 on September 27, 1939. The country's first olympic medal, a bronze was bagged by Teofilo Yldefonso in the 200 meter breastroke at the 1928 games in 
 Amsterdam. After his Olympic career, he served as a Lieutenant during World War II, where he died at the Capas Concentration Camp in Tarlac. In 1932, the Philippines bronze medal harvest tripled compliments of Simeon Toribio for high jump, José Villanueva for boxing and once again Teofilo Yldefonso who won the same event during the last Olympiad. Perhaps the similar hot summer weather in Los Angeles which hosted the event favored the Filipinos.  Another bronze medal was bagged in the 1936 Berlin games by Miguel White in the 400 meter hurdles. We can be sure that Hitler was not pleased about this half white (pun intended) beating other "pure blooded" Aryan athletes.

The next 20 years proved to be a medal drought for the country. The Philippines was shut out of the medal tally from 1940 to 1960. In 1964, the first silver medal was copped by boxer Anthony Villanueva whose father Cely, a boxer, contributed a bronze in 1932.

Two boxers gave the country a medal each in 1988 and 1992. Mansueto "Onyok" Velasco, whose elder brother Roel won a bronze four years earlier, snatched the second silver medal. Over 68 years and 16 Olympic Games, the Philippines has tallied two (2) silver and seven (7) bronze medals, five from boxers, two from athletics and two from swimming (same swimmer).

The Philippines unofficially has two Olympic gold medals. The first was won by bowler Arianne Cerdena at the 1988 Seoul Olympics. But as fate would have it, her event was being played as a demonstration sport—sports that are getting more popular that host countries are allowed to showcase, but are not counted in the official Olympic tallies. But that shouldn't taint whatever prestige Cerdena's victory has brought to our country. Like other Olympic gold medal winners, Cerdena proved herself worthy of the title Olympic champion after facing and defeating the best and brightest in her sport—the event attracted participants from 20 nations. She should forever be mentioned in the same breath with her fellow Olympic medal winners.

By now, it should be pretty obvious how our Olympic journey has so far been shaped: filled with near-misses, heartbreaks, but not without splendidly courageous performances. Wushu's Willy Wang is the most recent embodiment of that predicament. Wushu, having originated in China, was included as a demonstration sport for the Beijing Olympics. Naturally, we sent our best to compete and, like Arianne Cerdena had done before, we won another demonstration sport gold. Wang won the men's nanquan and nanggun combined event, easily becoming the lone bright spot in our forgettable 2008 Beijing Olympics roster.

Our chase for that elusive gold raises the question why professional boxers are not allowed in the Olympics while allowing those in basketball and tennis to participate. For sure our "Pambansang Kamao" (national fist) Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao  could easily get that 1st official Gold medal for us. We can even throw in Nonito "The Filipino Flash" Donaire  for good measure.

We're quite sure that it won't take until 2040 before we bag that 1st Gold especially as more support and funding go into developing our athletes to compete with the world's best. In the meantime, calling the attention of the Olympic International Committee....how about including Karaoke competition as an official event? Don't worry we'll just be fielding our amateur singers.

Sources : Wikipedia
                Spot.PH

Ako'y Fil-Am....Bilingual.

According to the far-reaching study from the Pew Research Center, Asian-Americans for the first time have surpassed Hispanics as the fastest-growing immigrant group in the United States. As of 2010, 36 percent of immigrants arriving in the U.S. are Asian, according to Census data, while just 31 percent are Hispanic.

As of the 2010 Census there are 3.4 million Filipino Americans, including Multiracial Americans who are part Filipino, with the United States Department of State in 2011 estimating the population at 4 million.

Filipino Americans are the second largest population of Asian Americans (next to Chinese Americans) and the largest population of Overseas Filipinos. First recorded presence of Filipinos in what is now the United States date to October 1587, with the first permanent settlement of Filipinos being established in Louisiana in 1763. Some documents point out that one of the founders of present day City of Los Angeles, CA was from the Philippines, Antonio Miranda Rodriguez Poblador. He was sent by the Spanish government in Mexico along with 44 others in 1781 to establish a settlement. Since then significant populations of Filipino Americans can be found in California, Hawaii, the New York metropolitan area, and Illinois. There are smaller populations of Filipino Americans elsewhere.

All these is great to know especially when viewed with the "strength in numbers" context in mind. However it's a sad albeit a common perception that Filipinos in the U.S. are one of the most if not the most fragmented  ethnic group in the country. Common school of thought blame our archipelagic geography which naturally reinforced regionalism and evolution of hundreds of dialects thus creating numerous ethnolinguistic groups. This made it quite easier for both Spain and the U.S. to implement the basic tenet of Colonization 101 i.e. to skip the "divide" part and jump to the "conquer" part but that's another blog post altogether.

Dissecting, debating and analyzing our "cultural weakness" ad nauseam could be a a very engaging exercise especially over bottles of San Miguel and sizzling sisig. However at the end of the day, a couple of questions remain. What have we learned and what are we going to do about it? Perhaps a great place to start is teaching the first generation of Fil-Ams to speak Filipino and encourage them to be bilingual. It is sad to note that most Americans with Filipino ancestry don't speak Filipino. It is quite understandable that majority of the descendants of earlier immigrants from the Philippines from the early 20th century until the last mass wave of the 60's and the early 70's were not taught the language. Primary reason is for "ease" of assimilation and secondly, Pilipino, which is largely based from Tagalog was not as widely spoken by all Filipinos prior to the advent of mass electrification (think t.v., internet, etc.) which exposed those living in far flung areas to "imperial" Manila's mass media programs which used Tagalog or Pilipino as the medium of communication.

Presently, it's hard to believe that there are still new immigrants coming to the U.S. that don't speak Filipino. However the belief that their children will be better off just speaking English is still prevalent. Somehow the misperception that the children will have a hard time in school and be "confused" still prevail.  Does it mean that those who were born and raised in the Philippines are more "intelligent" for being bilingual or trilingual or even quadrilingual if one considers the dialects spoken by those from non-tagalog regions? This makes Rizal even more amazing considering he either mastered or at least to a varying degree, conversant in 22 languages. A certified Polyglot indeed!


According to the American Speech Language Hearing Association (ASHA), there are various phenomena which can masquerade as deficit arising from bilingualism; however, the recommended approach is actually REINFORCEMENT of both languages (and cultures, as the case may be) and NOT EXCLUSION of one or the other.  Interestingly, it states that " Children all over the world learn more than one language without developing speech or language problems.  Bilingual children develop language skills just as other children do. A study done on German-English bilingual toddlers and published in the American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology in 2002 comes to the conclusion that "early simultaneous acquisition of more than one language is not an inherent disadvantage for the child."

The truth is that teaching a second language can be BENEFICIAL.  According to an article in the Linguistic Society of America's website, "Some people worry that learning more than one language is bad for a child, but nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, there are a lot of advantages to knowing more than one language."  They then go on to say that bilingualism can ENHANCE cognitive development, IMPROVE the development of a child's cultural identity, and ENCOURAGE cross-cultural awareness and understanding.

Tragically, many Filipino-American children grow to resent the fact that their parents never taught them Filipino while growing up - regardless of the noble reasons the parents had.  It makes many of them feel isolated from their ethnic roots and wish that their parents had shown more foresight when they were younger.  Some try to learn the language later on, and while this is laudable, it is often a humongous task because the damage has already been done; the more you wait to learn a new language, the harder it is.

So let's make the census statistics really count and take advantage of our growing number and start mending our "cultural weakness" by raising bilingual kids who will grow up more attached to their roots and a stronger sense of cultural identity and unity. Hopefully one day everyone can proudly claim..........Fil-Am ako...Bilingual!.













Sources:

1) en.wikipedia.org
2) New York Times
3) CBS New
4) PewSocialTrends.org
5) Dugyotblogspot.com
6) Kevin Ofrancia / http://twitpic.com/2goyz8

The First Filipino

On June 19, 2011 Filipinos in the Philippines and abroad kicked off  a year-long celebration of our national hero's sesquicentennial or 150th birthday.  Various government and private agencies, schools, organizations and even foreign entities joined the festivities in honor of Dr. Jose Protasio Rizal Mercado Y Alonso Realonda (whew...no wonder he turned out a great novelist).  There were a lot of symposiums, lectures, bust and statue unveiling, wreath laying, ribbon cutting and even sports activities commemorating the 15th decade of his nativity.  Growing up in the Philippines, we remember having a "Rizal sensory overload". How can you not when everywhere you go there is a reference to him. Noli and Fili subjects in all levels from grade school to college, busts and statues in public schools and parks, the staple elementary class field trip to Luneta Park and ancestral home in Calamba Laguna, 1 Peso coin and 2 Peso paper note, street names and yes, even a peculiar men's hairstyle.

 However as a normal occurence, we tend to take anything or anyone as ubiquitous as Rizal, for granted.  There is a collective tendency for us to keep him aloft a pedestal represented by either a bronze bust or a white washed statue. Silent, cold and yes dead for almost 116 years.  Universally acclaimed and regarded as a hero, patriot, a martyr yet at the same time many of us are still oblivious to his continued relevance.

Rizal has and will always be an enigma. A character who has always been viewed by generations that followed with a combination of awe, worship by the majority and even doubt and suspicion by some. The latter perhaps influenced by the belief that his image and popularity was bolstered up by the colonizing Americans to encourage Filipinos to embrace Rizal's stance on non-violent means of emancipation. While still others as a result of a very wild imagination, thus propagating the 2 urban legends or myths that first, Rizal is the father of Hitler and the second, that he was Jack the Ripper.



Although one can see the similarity with the hair bangs, it is quite impossible that Lolo Pepe sired the anti-Christ since he was nowhere near Germany or Austria the year (or 9 months prior) Hitler was born. While the serial killer angle has more fodder for the imagination given the fact that during the murders, Rizal was in London in May 1888 to January 1889 busy annotating Antonio de Morga's Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas. It was also said that the killings stopped in the same year that Rizal left London. It was also believed that the perpetrator has a medical background and familiar with human anatomy as evidenced by how the victims were mutilated. Lastly they have the same initials...J.R. Okay boys and girls let's allow our imagination to run wild for awhile if this makes Rizal a little more interesting to you. Okay stop it...that's enough. As we all know our beloved Lolo Pepe is such a ladies' man that he doesn't need a knife but only his pen and wit to dominate (err..woo) women.

It is important that we study Rizal and learn about the man beneath the bronze sculpture, beyond the white painted bust and sans the overcoat. Heroes are not born as such. They are ordinary men and women who did extraordinary things and made extraordinary choices and sacrifices.  It has been 116 years since he was executed but his admonitions and quotes remain very much relevant to this day. This only means that the ills of society and practices of its members, though may be in a different form (actually some are exactly the same), are still very much present to this day.

 Prof. Ambeth Ocampo endeavors to highlight Rizal's relevance to the present generation and encourages us to get to know the man without the european garb. In his book, Rizal without the overcoat, Prof. Ocampo compels his readers to view Rizal not through a kaleidoscope but with a simple magnifying glass and not be scared to see any imperfections. For it is only through an unadulterated portrayal of Rizal, along with our acceptance of his humanness that we could bring him down from his pedestal and realize that heroes start out as ordinary people like us.

There are alot of modern day heroes around us today. Men and women who chose to be the change they want to see in the world or specifically in the Philippines. People who believe that doing nothing and not being part of a solution is tantamount to being part of the problem. One such modern day hero is Antonio "Tito Tony" Meloto, the founder of Gawad Kalinga. Its goal is to transform lives in the Philippines, one community at a time regardless of religion, ethnic group, dialect or political affiliations. A man Rizal would have been proud to call a "kababayan"..
                            
                                


Mabuhay ang Pilipinas...Mabuhay ang Pilipino.









sources: pics by songbird via flickr, wikinut.com, joserizal/wordpress, neps365.wordpress

Amoy PX!

One of our fondest childhood memories growing up in the Philippines involved either a "balikbayan" box or a maleta (luggage).  We recall gathering with our siblings in the living room anxiously waiting for either parent to conduct the "great reveal".  The only thing that was keeping us from tearing at the containers and getting our hands at their contents was a firm admonition that goes...."You want belt or slippers?".  However that didn't keep us from vying for the best position and trying to own the spot that will allow us, as soon as the flaps or covers are lifted,  to get the first whiff of....hhmmmmh.. "amoy PX or amoy stateside"! ("PX" is an army term meaning "Post Exchange". The Philippines used to have 2 of the largest U.S. military bases in the Pacific, the Subic Naval Base and the Clark Airforce Base where goods from the U.S. are shipped for the servicemen but somehow find their way in local merchant stores surrounding these bases.) Now what came after, is either pure ecstasy from getting your "bilin" of a specific toy or shoe brand or walk away grumbling that what you got wasn't exactly the same thing. Notwithstanding the fact that our beloved relative scoured the whole store for hours to look for our "pasalubong". I guess it's simply beyond a 14 year old's comprehension that our returning loved one is not as knowledgeable as we are in terms of "cool" stuff from the U.S. where they live.  A shoe is a shoe right?" No Tita....Sebago and Sperry are not just any shoes....they're boat shoes"! An exasperated reply comes next "Why.. do you own a boat?". "No but we need it here for the "baha"! 

Throughout human history, nations and peoples have continuously colonised and been colonised. It is said that when a foreign colonial or imperial power is too strong to be effectively resisted, the colonised population often has no other immediate option than to accept the rule of the foreigners as an inescapable reality of life. As time progresses, the colonised indigenous people-natives would perceive the differences between the foreigners and themselves, between the foreigners' ways and the native ways. This would then sometimes lead the natives to mimic the foreigners that are in power as they began to associate that power and success with the foreigners' ways. This eventually leads to the foreigners' ways being regarded as the better way and being held in a higher esteem than previous indigenous ways. In much the same fashion, and with the same reasoning of better-ness, the colonised soon equates the foreigners' racial strain itself as being responsible for their superiority. The native soon strives to that strain to give their children a better standing in life than just their native genes.

In his book, Filipino -/ American Post Colonial Psychology, Dr. David  intend to investigate the prevalence and psychological implications of colonial mentality among Filipino Americans using survey and experimental methodologies. Below are some feedback and comments expressed by readers of Dr. David's book.

Expressed by a 37-year old Filipina American:

"I find your research extremely fascinating. My father is Filipino-American. He was born in San Francisco, CA in 1932 (not the best time to be born in the U.S. when you don't fit in with the white majority.) I feel deeply saddened to say it, but my father was a victim of the "colonial mentality." My mother is English/Scottish/German ancestry. My English side goes as far back as the founding of Jamestown. I truly believe my father married my mother simply to improve his status in the U.S. and to produce the ideal "mestiza" child, namely me. I grew up with my father worshipping my "half white" status. Of course, as a teenager, I felt superior because of my mestiza look and bloodline. I grew up "ignoring" and sometimes "hating" my Filipino side, just as my father has done."

"My father died over a year and half ago and my eyes opened up to the truth. My mother treated my father as a "house negro." He would do anything for her, even though she cheated on him and basically treated him like an errand boy. She would often brag to me how she could get him to do anything she wanted him to do. I haven't spoken to my mother since the funeral. I guess the point I'm trying to say here is I was deeply affected by my father's "colonial mentality." I, too, was caught up in the colonial mentality."

"At the moment, I'm in an identity crisis, a war within myself. I feel "white guilt." I feel ashamed for being "half white." I feel horrible that my father hated himself so much for being Filipino. I feel like I'm half oppressed and half oppressor. It sucks to say the least."

"Thank you so much for bringing the truth out, I really respect and admire you for that. If you need any help on your research, don't hesitate to call me or e-mail me."

Expressed by a 19-year old Filipina American:

"After I read your article on colonial mentality, I felt like I could connect a lot of the issues to my own personal experiences. For example, my parents chose not to teach me Tagalog. In high school, I chose to play sports just like my other ‘white friends’. I assimilated to the white culture more than my Filipino side in hopes of becoming more Americanized. The last thing I wanted to be labeled as was a fob. It was not like I was denying being Filipino, but rather wanting to do more Americanized things because that was what I was surrounded by, an American culture. But now that I look back on my past, I ask myself, why did I choose to assimilate myself so heavily among the American culture and what is so wrong with being Filipino?"

Expressed by a 21-year old Filipina American:

"I called my sister this week. We got into an argument, and I was winning. I guess to get back at me, she told me that I had an accent. This came out of nowhere. What a weird way to put someone down. Then, she proceeded to tell me to get “white friends.” I didn’t even know how to respond to this. I have friends of all colors. I didn’t get it. It made me really upset. I don’t think I have an accent. What difference does it make? Accent or not, I’m still the same person. How dare she suggest to me what kind of friends to have."

Expressed by a 21-year old Filipino American:

"I called my mom today and she was telling me a story about one of her friends, and she described her friend to have a “funny accent”. She later told me that her friend is Filipino. So I guess her perception of the Filipino accent is 'funny'. I was walking home with my friend and we were just talking, and then all of the sudden, I said something funny and my Filipino accent came out. She then called me a FOB. It sort of embarrassing since the word FOB has a negative connotation to it. I was hanging out with one of my friend’s group of friends and I was very annoyed by one of his friends because he was doing some funny things, but at the same time mocking the Filipino culture. He was mocking the way Filipino’s talked and just doing Filipino stereotypes. It was very upsetting, so I just left the room and hung out somewhere else. It’s so sad to know that even Filipinos make fun of other Filipinos, and it’s unfortunate to say that I think I participate in this type of situation. I don’t know how I feel about this. I think I’m somewhat confused, but I’m slowly realizing what I must do to make things better for EVERY Filipinos, not just Filipino-Americans who have assimilated to the American culture."

Expressed by a 20-year old Filipina American:

"This past weekend, I met a Filipina that had a strong accent. I immediately knew that she grew up and probably just came here from the Philippines just for college. As we were talking she mentioned 'Yeah, I’m from the Philippines.' In my head I said to myself 'Duh, I can tell.' Is it so bad to automatically point out who is a FOB? Also this past weekend, I took part in a group activity that involved Filipino stereotypes. Each person had a note card that they could not say that was labeled different stereotypes such as ghetto, dog eater, FOB, etc. Mine was FOB. When it was my turn to guess who I was my group mates said the following: 'Learn to speak English' and 'Go back to your homeland!' Do people really act this way? Is it right to bash on a FOB because they act differently or speak differently?"

Expressed by a 21-year old Filipina American:

"I went to the Bayanihan performance last week, and it was amazing. I was VERY excited. They were so fun to watch. Their costumes were beautiful, and their dances were very well choreographed. Even the sets and the lighting added to the mood and the stories. Their presentation of these various dances was really interesting because they all tied in together. I did notice something: none of the dancers were really brown. In the Igorot scene, the lighting made the dancers look darker and fierce. In all of the other dances, however, I noticed that every one of the dancers, male and female, were really light-skinned. Then, I remember the information that a lot of Filipinos prefer light skin. They think it’s beautiful. Even my mom would say so. She hates it when I get dark from being outside too much. I remember that she would say that I looked “ugly” because I was so dark…and it seems that many other moms feel that way too from hearing stories from other Filipino kids. I just think it’s a shame that Bayanihan is a world-renowned dance company, and even the National Philippine Dance Company, and they don’t represent all colors of a Filipino. It’s like they pick and choose to make their group more recognizable, or more marketable. Or more like an American dance company…"

Expressed by a 19-year old Filipina American:

"Reading your research/website presented me with larger amount of Filipino history in two hours than I have acquired in 19 years. Growing up my knowledge on Filipino history was limited with the only sources being family and friends, covering mostly social and cultural aspects. I was not taught any Filipino history unless it was the bare minimum in a high school history class, offering a trivial amount of information for the sake that the students at least acknowledged the Philippines exists. Any history I obtained I actively sought out. Even now, in college, I choose to be a part of taking some Filipino classes in hopes of catching up on the history I’ve been deprived of. Seeing that Filipino-Americans are a heavy minority population the amount of history taught in schools is very disproportional. It does upset me that we are not taught enough. My guess as to why this is is that historical events like the Filipino-American war did not display America at its most benevolent. In reality, when we learn about American history and their global relations, we are not presented with their ethical short-comings. Seeing that we are Americans, we apparently must hold the objective view that America is the “good guy” in it all. Seeing that historically the United States miseducated Filipinos, it is not a coincidence that we are not even being educated today. A similar historical example is Native Americans and their relations with the United States. I do feel that I’ve been taught a good amount of what “really” happened—the cheating, lies, abuse, and disrespect, victimizing the Native Americans. Native Americans suffered so greatly under the United States, and to this day some still do practice their culture the way their forefathers have. In the Philippines, I’m not sure if this is so. My mom refers to those seemingly uncivilized as the ‘people in the mountains’. Is ‘uncivilized’ synonymous with living as our ancestors did? I don’t like the idea that being ‘civilized’ requires adopting western norms, but Filipinos today unconsciously do it all the time. It is just seemed to be the right and proper way to live. It is a discomforting thought that the Filipino culture that I participate and even what my family generations past practiced is, to be historically accurate, not genuinely Filipino. The influence and seemingly permanent affects of our historical aggressors is what I actually consider to be Filipino culture. There is an intimidating amount of history the general Filipino-American is oblivious to. The mention of colonialism now only sends unsettling vibes to me. I have a difficult time expressing how I feel about this particular conspiracy as I know that I am very ill-educated about the matter. If Filipino-Americans are not aware of this and have no interest in educating themselves as of why their culture is the way it is, it will be lost in the past. I don’t feel that many Filipino-Americans are very interested in their historical culture. While I find this to be unfortunate and a bit shameful, I do partially blame our educational system structured by the government. My knowledge on the subject is dangerously limited, so much that I feel my opinions are not yet justifiable or mature. I want to be secure and certain about why I react the way I do before I feel I’m ready to take any action."

We nosteelgians remember how we felt when we were kids. How we loved everything american. How can you not if your favorite program is Sesame Street and all your comic, tv and movie super heroes and cartoon characters all spoke english. We wanted to migrate to Disneyland and be its first citizens. We envied cousins who were born and raised here in the U.S. and childhood friends who migrated. They could wear winter clothes and able to sniff "amoy stateside" air all the time. Not knowing that they faced challenges and adversities of a different breed growing up.

The past can't be undone but there are valuable lessons that can be learned to forge a better future for the next generation. There is a saying that goes "you teach people how to treat you". The cycle can and must be broken. We can assimilate without being mired in colonial mentality. These two are not mutually integrated with each other.  Let's start with our own children, in our own homes.

Mabuhay ang Pilipinas. Mabuhay ang Pilipino.

P.S. Don't dare call us FOBs..gaddemmit...we didn't take boats to come here. We're actually FOPs :)  (courtesy of Philippine Airlines of course).

Sources: Filipino -/ American Post Colonial Psychology
                Pics: Wordpress weblog, The Forbidden Book by De la Cruz et al, 
                          Dr. E.J.R. David, Myfreewallpapers