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.

The Intimate Alliance Between Religion and Good Education

Rizal shared his thought about the importance of education to enlighten the nation
which was useful to gain societal freedom for every nation. It may also provide us
the necessary knowledge, skills and attitude to expand the horizon of our thoughts.
However, this would not be enough to be properly educated. Rizal thought that
there was really an intimate alliance between religion and good education. A man
who was properly educated needed to apply what he learned on spiritual view
rather than simply on material achievements. The result of good education always
fulfilled a growing uprightness and valuable virtue within the bounce of spiritual and
moral dimensions. There showed also be growing dignified fulfillment and
application to the teachings of religion ,just like a vine which continually grow that
would someday the fruit will become sweet and delicious.

Without religion, human education may result to chaos and disorder in any civilized
nation because people may no longer value freedom, respect, dignity and other
good virtues that maintain societal order. It may result to a natural disaster just as
the angered sea, which characterized the fierce winds that may, wrecked the vessel
in the deep abysses. Rizal knew that religion had a profound effect to education, the
educated must internalized the virtue of incorruptible life based on the ethical and
moral standard of the society.

My First Inspiration Interpretation

The word "inspiration" has two levels of meaning: the conventional one we use
every day and the root meaning rarely used in modern language but always present
as a connotation of the other: (1) Stimulation of the mind or emotions to a high level
of feeling or activity, and (2) The act of breathing in; the inhalation of air into the
lungs.

This poem speaks to (2) in the first stanza: the breathing in of sweet aromas on
what is declared to be a "festive day." The second stanza moves to the sweet,
musical sound of birds singing in the woods and vales on such a day. The third
stanza, of course, begins to merge the two images in a subtle way: the birds "start"
to sing (or are startled into singing) by the sound of the wind blowing. The wind
would supply them breath for singing, but it also seems to "inspire" their singing, as
in (1) above; that is, it stimulates them to a high level of activity. In the fourth
stanza, the spring of water tunes its murmur likewise to the sound of the breezes
(zephyrs) as it flows along among the flowers.

Hence, in this first half of the poem we have music of birds and brook "inspired" by
the wind; that is, the very air we breathe. And also we breathe the fragrance of the
flowers (among which the brook flows), for it is borne on the wind. The imagery of
these first four stanzas is, thus, neatly tied together, giving us a sense of the
festivity of a beautiful spring day in nature. The poem could be complete at this
point; it would be a sweet little nature poem, a song.

But the poem moves in a different direction now. Why does this day seem so much
brighter, more beautiful than others? Why is morning brighter today? The next two
stanzas answer this question. The poem, it turns out, is addressed to the speaker's
mother, and it is her day of "blooming" (birthday, probably). The perfume of the
flowers, the songs of the birds, and the sound of the bubbling brook all celebrate
her day, they "feast" in her honor. They wish her all the best: "Live happily ever
after."

Now the poem becomes more fragile, more understated. For one's "dear mother" is
also one's inspiration--there at one's first breath in life, there to move one toward
creative acts or ideas. But to say that in so many words would be trite and
sentimental. So in the last stanza the speaker acts out the feeling. Joining the music
of the brook (and of the birds and the winds), the speaker will play upon a lute. The
mother is asked to turn from Nature to Human art, from the birds and the brook to
the sound of the lute expressing emotion wordlessly. And what is the "inspiration"

that moves the lutist to play? Why, "the impulse of my love." The speaker's love for
the mother. The mother's love reflected in her child.

This is the first sound of music, which is inspired by the mother/child love; but,
indeed, the whole poem--the music of its verses--has already been inspired also in
the same way.
Through Education Our Mother Receives Light

This poem proved that he valued education so much that may give the power
of the country to survive from any forces( barbaric actions, deceits, hostility, vices
and etc.) in the struggles of societal freedom . Through education, it creates the
virtue of power to human race. This gives security and peace to the motherland as
the Filipinos would learn the sciences and arts as the basis to calm down the life of
the society. Where education reigns pacifies the barbaric action of the nations .It
may neutralized or ceased to exist on crimes and hostility including vices and
deceits because of the enlightenment of mankind.

The existence of prudent education provides the tranquility to a more dignified

action just the existence on the natural flow of life . Education shall give a perfect
virtue of man that may overthrow the power of evils and may step on heavenly path
for its good action. Likewise, education provides goodness to humanity it sheds light
for those who created destruction even from the hands of fiercest criminal.
Furthermore, education may always survive even from the worst storm, hatred of
men, and raging waves as a consequence the motherland becomes invincible to
evil forces shall be tired and fall asleep in their raging emotions.

This poem of Rizal had never thought that was applied to him heroic struggles
in his later years of life. The struggle of human freedom was won because education
provided the key role for thousands of men honored him. His education provided
him the noble virtue that someday his country was free from the bondage of foreign
oppressor. In contemporary time, education proves to be key role to produce of
noble man that shades light for his family and country.