A life of many chapters.
Explore his early life, education, writings, and legacy.
José Rizal
Early life & family
Who is José Rizal?
José Protacio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda was born in the town of Calamba, Laguna, Philippines, on June 19, 1861, and died at age 35 on December 30, 1896, in Manila.
He was the seventh of eleven 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 of 8, he is said to have written a Tagalog poem, Sa Aking Mga Kabata, which revolves around the theme of love of one’s language.
Listen to a summary of this biography
English
Transcript · English
This page introduces José Rizal, the Philippine national hero. Born in Calamba, Laguna, in 1861, he was the seventh of eleven children. His mother taught him to read, and by childhood he was already drawing, shaping clay, and writing poetry. He studied at the Ateneo Municipal de Manila and the University of Santo Tomas, then continued his education in Spain, where he earned degrees in medicine and philosophy and specialized in ophthalmology. Rizal traveled widely, mastered many languages, and worked as a doctor, writer, artist, teacher, scientist, and reformer. His novels, Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo, exposed injustice under Spanish colonial rule. He founded La Liga Filipina, was exiled to Dapitan, and was later arrested and executed in 1896. His writings and example helped awaken Philippine nationalism. Today, Rizal is remembered for defending education, civic freedom, and the dignity of the Filipino people.
Tagalog
Transcript · Tagalog
Ipinapakilala ng pahinang ito si José Rizal, ang pambansang bayani ng Pilipinas. Ipinanganak siya sa Calamba, Laguna, noong 1861, at siya ang ikapito sa labing-isang magkakapatid. Tinuruan siya ng kanyang ina na bumasa, at bata pa lamang ay mahilig na siyang gumuhit, humubog ng luwad, at sumulat ng tula. Nag-aral siya sa Ateneo Municipal de Manila at sa Unibersidad ng Santo Tomas, at ipinagpatuloy ang kanyang pag-aaral sa Espanya, kung saan nagtapos siya sa medisina at pilosopiya at nagpakadalubhasa sa ophthalmology. Naglakbay siya sa maraming bansa, natuto ng maraming wika, at naging doktor, manunulat, artista, guro, siyentista, at repormista. Inilantad ng kanyang mga nobelang Noli Me Tangere at El Filibusterismo ang mga kawalang-katarungan sa ilalim ng pamamahalang kolonyal ng Espanya. Itinatag niya ang La Liga Filipina, ipinatapon sa Dapitan, at kalaunan ay inaresto at pinatay noong 1896. Nakatulong ang kanyang mga isinulat at halimbawa sa paggising ng damdaming makabansa ng mga Pilipino. Ngayon, inaalala si Rizal sa pagtatanggol niya sa edukasyon, kalayaang sibiko, at dignidad ng sambayanang Pilipino.
Education & medicine
In March 1877, at age 15, he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree with a rating 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 taking 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 a license to practice the profession until December 30, 1881.
At 17, Rizal learned that his mother was going blind, so he enrolled in medicine at the University of Santo Tomas but had to stop his studies when he felt that Filipino students were being discriminated against by their Dominican tutors.
Europe & medical studies
On May 3, 1882, he sailed for Spain, where he continued his studies at the Universidad Central de Madrid. On June 21, 1884, at the age of 23, he was conferred the degree of Licentiate in Medicine and on June 19, 1885, at the age of 24, he finished his course in Philosophy and Letters with a grade of "excellent." At age 25, he completed his eye specialization, and in 1887 he operated on his mother's eye.
Rizal traveled throughout Europe, America, and Asia. He proved to be a versatile genius mastering 22 languages (a polyglot) and a multitude of occupations. He was an architect, artist, businessman, cartoonist, educator, economist, ethnologist, scientific farmer, historian, inventor, journalist, linguist, musician, mythologist, nationalist, naturalist, novelist, ophthalmologist, poet, propagandist, psychologist, scientist, sculptor, sociologist, and theologian during his short life. He was also proficient in martial arts, fencing, and pistol shooting.
While in Europe, Rizal published several books with nationalistic and revolutionary tendencies, including his two famous novels, Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo. His literary works became an inspiration for Philippine nationalism and his writings exposed the corruption and injustice of the civil and clerical officials, which provoked those in power. Upon his return to the Philippines, he formed a nonviolent society called La Liga Filipina, which sought government reforms.
The goals he sought were:
The Philippines to become a province of Spain with representation in the Spanish Government.
Filipino priests in their parishes instead of Spanish friars.
Freedom of speech and assembly.
Equal rights for Filipinos.
Exile, imprisonment & legacy
Rizal incensed the government and was exiled to Mindanao for four years. His writings and actions became the catalyst for the Philippine Revolution, which began in 1896.
Rizal denounced the violence that was taking place, but the government still linked him to it and arrested him. After a mock trial, he was convicted of rebellion, sedition, and forming illegal associations.
From November 3, 1896, to the date of his execution, he was imprisoned in Fort Santiago. In his prison cell, he wrote an untitled poem, now known as Mi Ultimo Adios, which is considered a masterpiece and a living document expressing not only the hero’s great love of country but also that of all Filipinos.
On the cold morning of December 30, 1896, Rizal, a man whose 35 years of life had been packed with varied activities which proved that the Filipino has the capacity to equal if not excel even those who treat him as a slave, was publicly executed by firing squad at Bagumbayan Field, now known as Luneta Park, Manila.
He became a martyr of the Philippine Revolution; his nonviolent work helped inspire the revolution that ultimately won independence from Spain.
José Rizal is the national hero of the Philippines, and the anniversary of his death is commemorated as a Philippine holiday called Rizal Day.
Written Works
Rizal’s vision broadened while he was in Spain to the point of awakening in him an understanding of human nature, sparking in him the realization that his people needed him.
In March 1887, Rizal published in Berlin, Germany, his daring novel written in Spanish, Noli Me Tangere, a satirical novel exposing the arrogance and despotism of the Spanish clergy, the ills of Philippine society, the way Filipino culture was backward, anti-progress, anti-intellectual, and not conducive to the ideals of the Age of Enlightenment.
Early English translations used titles like An Eagle Flight (1900) and The Social Cancer (1912), but more recent translations have been published using the original Latin title, meaning “touch me not.”
Fittingly, Rizal found it a timely and effective gesture to dedicate his novel to the country of his people whose experiences and sufferings he wrote about, sufferings which he brought to light in an effort to awaken his countrymen to the truths that had long remained unspoken, although not totally unheard of. In writing the Noli, Rizal signed his own death warrant.
After the fate of the Noli was sealed by the Spanish authorities, Rizal was prompted to write the continuation of his first novel.
Inspired by what the word filibustero connoted in relation to the circumstances during his time, and his spirits dampened by the tragic execution of the three martyred priests, Rizal aptly titled his second novel El Filibusterismo (also known in English as The Reign of Greed) published in Ghent, Belgium, on September 18, 1891. His second novel, a sequel to the Noli, was more revolutionary and tragic than the first.
The book was dedicated to the memory of the three priests, Fr. Mariano Gomez, Fr. Jose Burgos, and Fr. Jacinto Zamora (Gomburza), who were accused of sedition and executed in Bagumbayan Field on February 17, 1872.
In his dedication, Rizal audaciously expressed his conviction that their treatment at the hands of the Spanish authorities was unjust.
Family Tree
Women of Rizal
There are nine (9) recorded women in Rizal's life; however, some historians suggest that there were more.
José Rizal Through the Years
Novels and Essays
- Novel · 1887Noli Me TángereNoli Me Tángere, novel, 1887 (literally Latin for 'touch me not', from John 20:17)Read in the library
- Novel · 1891El FilibusterismoEl Filibusterismo (novel, 1891), sequel to Noli Me TángereRead in the library
- Writing · 1896Mi Último AdiósMi Último Adiós, poem, 1896 (literally "My Last Farewell")Read in the library
- Writing“Alin Mang Lahi” (“Whate’er the Race”), a Kundiman attributed to Dr. José Rizal
- WritingThe Friars and the FilipinosThe Friars and the Filipinos (Unfinished)
- Writing · 1884Toast to Juan Luna and Felix HidalgoToast to Juan Luna and Felix Hidalgo (Speech, 1884), given at Restaurante Ingles, Madrid
- WritingThe Diaries of José Rizal
- WritingRizal's Letters is a compendium of Dr. José Rizal's letters to his family membersRizal's Letters is a compendium of Dr. José Rizal's letters to his family members, Blumentritt, Fr. Pablo Pastells and other reformers
- Writing"Cómo se gobiernan las Filipinas" (Governing the Philippine islands)
- Essay · 1889-90Filipinas dentro de cien años essayFilipinas dentro de cien años essay, 1889-90 (The Philippines a Century Hence)Read in the library
- Essay · 1890La Indolencia de los FilipinosLa Indolencia de los Filipinos, essay, 1890 (The indolence of Filipinos)Read in the library
- WritingMakamisaMakamisa, unfinished novel
- Writing · 1889Sa Mga Kababaihang Taga MalolosSa Mga Kababaihang Taga Malolos, essay, 1889, To the Young Women of Malolos
- Writing · 1889Annotations to Antonio de MorgaAnnotations to Antonio de Morga, Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas (essay, 1889, Events in the Philippine Islands)
Poetry/Music
- PoemFelicitación
- PoemMi primera inspiracion
- PoemA Man in Dapitan
Plays
- PlayEl Consejo de los Dioses (The Council of the Gods)
- PlaySan Eustaquio, Mártir (Saint Eustache, the martyr)
Other works
Rizal also tried his hand at painting and sculpture. His most famous sculptural work was “The Triumph of Science over Death,” a clay sculpture of a naked young woman with overflowing hair, standing on a skull while bearing a torch held high. The woman symbolized the ignorance of humankind during the Dark Ages, while the torch she bore symbolized the enlightenment science brings over the whole world. He sent the sculpture as a gift to his dear friend Ferdinand Blumentritt, together with another one named “The Triumph of Death over Life.”
The woman is shown trampling the skull, a symbol of death, to signify the victory humankind achieved by conquering the bane of death through scientific advancement. The original sculpture is now displayed at the Rizal Shrine Museum at Fort Santiago in Intramuros, Manila. A large replica, made of concrete, stands in front of Fernando Calderón Hall, the building which houses the College of Medicine of the University of the Philippines Manila along Pedro Gil Street in Ermita, Manila.
Mi último adiós, in three languages
Rizal wrote his farewell poem in Spanish in his cell at Fort Santiago on the eve of his execution. Read it side by side in the original, in Charles Derbyshire’s English, and in Jose Gatmaitan’s Tagalog.
Listen to the original Spanish, read in Rizal’s voice from the manga.
My Last Farewell
by José Rizal
Farewell, dear Fatherland, clime of the sun caress’d,
Pearl of the Orient seas, our Eden lost!
Gladly now I go to give thee this faded life’s best,
And were it brighter, fresher, or more blest,
Still would I give it thee, nor count the cost.
On the field of battle, ’mid the frenzy of fight,
Others have given their lives, without doubt or heed;
The place matters not—cypress or laurel or lily white,
Scaffold of open plain, combat or martyrdom’s plight,
’Tis ever the same, to serve our home and country’s need.
I die just when I see the dawn break,
Through the gloom of night, to herald the day;
And if color is lacking my blood thou shalt take,
Pour’d out at need for thy dear sake,
To dye with its crimson the waking ray.
My dreams, when life first opened to me,
My dreams, when the hopes of youth beat high,
Were to see thy lov’d face, O gem of the Orient sea,
From gloom and grief, from care and sorrow free;
No blush on thy brow, no tear in thine eye
Dream of my life, my living and burning desire,
All hail! cries the soul that is now to take flight;
All hail! And sweet it is for thee to expire;
To die for thy sake, that thou mayst aspire;
And sleep in thy bosom eternity’s long night.
If over my grave some day thou seest grow,
In the grassy sod, a humble flower,
Draw it to thy lips and kiss my soul so,
While I may feel on my brow in the cold tomb below
The touch of thy tenderness, thy breath’s warm power.
Let the moon beam over me soft and serene,
Let the dawn shed over me its radiant flashes,
Let the wind with sad lament over me keen;
And if on my cross a bird should be seen,
Let it trill there its hymn of peace to my ashes.
Let the sun draw the vapors up to the sky,
And heavenward in purity bear my tardy protest;
Let some kind soul o’er my untimely fate sigh,
And in the still evening a prayer be lifted on high
From thee, O my country, that in God I may rest.
Pray for all those that hapless have died,
For all who have suffered the unmeasur’d pain;
For our mothers that bitterly their woes have cried,
For widows and orphans, for captives by torture tried;
And then for thyself that redemption thou mayst gain.
And when the dark night wraps the graveyard around,
With only the dead in their vigil to see;
Break not my repose or the mystery profound,
And perchance thou mayst hear a sad hymn resound;
’Tis I, O my country, raising a song unto thee.
When even my grave is remembered no more,
Unmark’d by never a cross nor a stone;
Let the plow sweep through it, the spade turn it o’er,
That my ashes may carpet thy earthly floor,
Before into nothingness at last they are blown.
Then will oblivion bring to me no care,
As over thy vales and plains I sweep;
Throbbing and cleansed in thy space and air,
With color and light, with song and lament I fare,
Ever repeating the faith that I keep.
My Fatherland ador’d, that sadness to my sorrow lends,
Beloved Filipinas, hear now my last good-by!
I give thee all: parents and kindred and friends;
For I go where no slave before the oppressor bends,
Where faith can never kill, and God reigns e’er on high!
Farewell to you all, from my soul torn away,
Friends of my childhood in the home dispossessed!
Give thanks that I rest from the wearisome day!
Farewell to thee, too, sweet friend that lightened my way;
Beloved creatures all, farewell! In death there is rest!
Mi último adiós
by José Rizal
Adios, Patria adorada, region del sol querida,
Perla del Mar de Oriente, nuestro perdido Eden!
A darte voy alegre la triste mustia vida,
Y fuera más brillante más fresca, más florida,
Tambien por tí la diera, la diera por tu bien.
En campos de batalla, luchando con delirio
Otros te dan sus vidas sin dudas, sin pesar;
El sitio nada importa, ciprés, laurel ó lirio,
Cadalso ó campo abierto, combate ó cruel martirio,
Lo mismo es si lo piden la patria y el hogar.
Yo muero cuando veo que el cielo se colora
Y al fin anuncia el día trás lóbrego capuz;
Si grana necesitas para teñir tu aurora,
Vierte la sangre mía, derrámala en buen hora
Y dórela un reflejo de su naciente luz.
Mis sueños cuando apenas muchacho adolescente,
Mis sueños cuando joven ya lleno de vigor,
Fueron el verte un día, joya del mar de oriente
Secos los negros ojos, alta la tersa frente,
Sin ceño, sin arrugas, sin manchas de rubor.
Ensueño de mi vida, mi ardiente vivo anhelo,
Salud te grita el alma que pronto va á partir!
Salud! ah que es hermoso caer por darte vuelo,
Morir por darte vida, morir bajo tu cielo,
Y en tu encantada tierra la eternidad dormir.
Si sobre mi sepulcro vieres brotar un dia
Entre la espesa yerba sencilla, humilde flor,
Acércala a tus labios y besa al alma mía,
Y sienta yo en mi frente bajo la tumba fría
De tu ternura el soplo, de tu hálito el calor.
Deja a la luna verme con luz tranquila y suave;
Deja que el alba envíe su resplandor fugaz,
Deja gemir al viento con su murmullo grave,
Y si desciende y posa sobre mi cruz un ave,
Deja que el ave entone su cantico de paz.
Deja que el sol ardiendo las lluvias evapore
Y al cielo tornen puras con mi clamor en pos,
Deja que un sér amigo mi fin temprano llore
Y en las serenas tardes cuando por mi alguien ore
Ora tambien, oh Patria, por mi descanso á Dios!
Ora por todos cuantos murieron sin ventura,
Por cuantos padecieron tormentos sin igual,
Por nuestras pobres madres que gimen su amargura;
Por huérfanos y viudas, por presos en tortura
Y ora por tí que veas tu redencion final.
Y cuando en noche oscura se envuelva el cementerio
Y solos sólo muertos queden velando allí,
No turbes su reposo, no turbes el misterio
Tal vez acordes oigas de citara ó salterio,
Soy yo, querida Patria, yo que te canto á ti.
Y cuando ya mi tumba de todos olvidada
No tenga cruz ni piedra que marquen su lugar,
Deja que la are el hombre, la esparza con la azada,
Y mis cenizas antes que vuelvan á la nada,
El polvo de tu alfombra que vayan á formar.
Entonces nada importa me pongas en olvido,
Tu atmósfera, tu espacio, tus valles cruzaré,
Vibrante y limpia nota seré para tu oido,
Aroma, luz, colores, rumor, canto, gemido
Constante repitiendo la esencia de mi fé.
Mi patria idolatrada, dolor de mis dolores,
Querida Filipinas, oye el postrer adios.
Ahi te dejo todo, mis padres, mis amores.
Voy donde no hay esclavos, verdugos ni opresores,
Donde la fé no mata, donde el que reyna es Dios.
Adios, padres y hermanos, trozos del alma mía,
Amigos de la infancia en el perdido hogar,
Dad gracias que descanso del fatigoso día;
Adios, dulce extrangera, mi amiga, mi alegría,
Adios, queridos séres morir es descansar.
Huling Paalam
by José Rizal
Paalam na, sintang lupang tinubuan,
Bayang masagana sa init ng araw,
Edeng maligaya sa ami’y pumanaw
At perlas ng dagat sa dakong Silangan.
Inihahandog ko nang ganap na tuwa
Sa iyo yaring buhay na lanta na’t aba;
Naging dakila ma’y iaalay rin nga
Kung dahil sa iyong ikatitimawa.
Ang nanga sa digmaan dumog sa paglaban
Handog din sa iyo ang kanilang buhay,
Hirap ay di pansin at di gunamgunam
Ang pagkaparool o pagtagumpay.
Bibitaya’t madlang mabangis na sakit
O pakikibakang lubhang mapanganib,
Pawang titiisin kung ito ang nais
Ng baya’t tahanang pinakaiibig.
Ako’y mamamatay ngayong minamalas
Ang kulay ng langit na nanganganinag,
Ibinababalang araw ay sisikat
Sa kabila niyang mapanglaw na ulap.
Kung dugo ang iyong kinakailangan
Sa ikadidilag ng iyong pagsilang,
Dugo ko’y ibubo’t sa isa man lamang
Ng gumigiti mong sinag ay kuminang.
Ang mga nasa ko, mulang magkaisip,
Magpahanggang ngayon maganap ang bait,
Ang ikaw’y makitang hiyas na marikit
Ng dagat Silangan na nakaliligid.
Noo mo’y maningning at sa mga mata
Mapait na luha bakas ma’y wala na,
Wala ka nang poot, wala nang balisa,
Walang kadungua’t munti mang pangamba.
Sa sandaling buhay maalab kong nais
Ang kagalingan mo’t ang pahiwang sulit
Ng kaluluwa kong gayak nang aalis:
Ginhawa’y kamtan mo! Anong pagkarikit!
Nang maaba’t ikaw’y mapataas lamang,
Mamatay at upang mabigyan kang buhay,
Malibing sa lupang puspos ng karika’t
Sa silong ng iyong langit ay mahimlay.
Kung sa ibang araw ikaw’y may mapansin
Munting bulaklak sa aba kong libing,
Sa gitna ng mga damong masisinsin,
Hagka’t ang halik mo’y itaos sa akin.
Sa samyo ng iyong pagsuyong matamis,
Mataos na taghoy ng may sintang dibdib,
Bayang tumanggap noo ko ng init,
Na natatabunan ng lupang malamig.
Bayaang ako’y malasin ng buwan
Sa liwanag niyang hilam at malamlam;
Bayaang ihatid sa aking liwayway
Ang banaag niyang dagling napaparam.
Bayaang humalik ang simoy ng hangin;
Bayaang sa huning masaya’y awitin
Ng darapong ibon sa krus ng libing
Ang buhay payapang ikinaaaliw.
Bayaang ang araw na lubhang maningas
Pawiin ang ulan, gawing pawang ulap,
Maging panganuring sa langit umakyat,
At ang aking daing ay mapakilangkap.
Bayaang ang aking maagang pagpanaw,
Itangis ng isang lubos na nagmamahal;
Kung may umalala sa akin ng dasal,
Ako’y iyo sanang idalangin naman.
Idalangin mo rin ang di nagkapalad,
Na nangamatay na’t yaong nanganhirap
Sa daming pasakit, at ang lumalangap
Naming mga ina ng luhang masaklap.
Idalangin sampo ng bawat ulila
At nangapipiit na tigib ng dusa;
Idalangin mo ring ikaw’y matubos na
Sa pagkaaping laong binata.
Kung nababalot na ang mga libingan
Ng sapot na itim ng gabing mapanglaw,
At wala nang tanod kundi pawang patay,
Huwag gambalain ang katahimikan.
Pagpitagan mo ang hiwagang lihim,
At mapapakinggan ang tinig marahil
Ng isang saltero: Ito nga’y ako ring
Inaawitan ka ng aking paggiliw.
Kung ang libingan ko’y limot na ng madla,
Ay wala nang krus at bato mang tanda,
Sa nangabubukid ay ipaubayang
Bungkali’t isabog ang natipong lupa.
Ang mga abo ko’y bago pailanglang
Mauwi sa wala na pinaggalingan,
Ay makalat munang parang kapupunan
Ng iyong alabok sa lupang tuntungan.
Sa gayo’y wala nang anuman sa akin,
Na limutin mo ma’t aking lilibutin
Ang himpapawid mo, kaparanga’t hangin,
At ako sa iyo’y magiging taginting.
Bango, tinig, higing, awit na masaya,
Liwanag at kulay na lugod ng mata,
Ang tapat kong panalig sa iyong paglaya
Uulit-ulitin sa tuwi-tuwina.
Bayang sinisinta, pighati ng pighati,
Mahal kong Pilipinas, dinggin ang huling sabi;
Sa iyo’y iiwan magulang at mga pag-ibig,
Lahat ng minamahal na sa puso’y kalakip.
Ako’y yayao na sa bayang payapa,
Na walang alipi’t punong mapang-aba,
Doo’y di namamatay ang paniniwala
At ang naghahari’y Diyos na dakila.
Paalam anak, magulang, kapatid,
Bahagi ng puso’t unang nakaniig,
Ipagpasalamat ang aking pag-alis
Sa buhay na itong laging ligalig.
Paalam na liyag, tanging kaulayaw,
Tagaibang lupang aking katuwaan,
Paalam sa inyo, mga minamahal;
Mamatay ay ganap na katahimikan.
Jose Gatmaitan translation, edited by the museum with spelling corrections and restored passages.
Martyrdom of Rizal Mural
,_belonging_to_the_Congregation_of_the_Virgin_(1900).jpg){kind=link}
_(page_1_crop).jpg){kind=link}
_(17086551627).jpg){kind=link}
The Martyrdom of Rizal mural, done in 1960, is one of the best-known works of Carlos “Botong” V. Francisco, Philippine National Artist for Visual Arts in 1973. Francisco is best known for his landmark murals depicting events in Philippine history. The mural depicts the execution of Philippine national hero Dr. José Rizal at Bagumbayan (now Rizal Park) on December 30, 1896. The mural was commissioned by Fort Santiago as part of the Rizal Shrine.
The work on display is a photo on canvas by photographer David Fabros, based on the original Martyrdom of Rizal mural.