Story

 

Spain, to Rizal, was a venue for realizing his dreams. He finished his studies in Madrid and this to him was the realization of the bigger part of his ambition. His 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. It must have been this sentiment that prompted him to pursue, during the re-organizational meeting of the Circulo-Hispano-Filipino, to be one of its activities, the publication of a book to which all the members would contribute papers on the various aspects and conditions of Philippines life.

"My proposal on the book," he wrote on January 2, 1884, "was unanimously approved. But afterwards difficulties and objections were raised which seemed to me rather odd, and a number of gentlemen stood up and refused to discuss the matter any further. In view of this I decided not to press it any longer, feeling that it was impossible to count on general support…"

"Fortunately," writes one of Rizal’s biographers, the anthology, if we may call it that, was never written. Instead, the next year, Pedro Paterno published his Ninay, a novel sub-titled Costumbres filipinas (Philippines Customs), thus partly fulfilling the original purpose of Rizal’s plan. He himself (Rizal), as we have seen, had ‘put aside his pen’ in deference to the wishes of his parents.

But the idea of writing a novel himself must have grown on him. It would be no poem to forgotten after a year, no essay in a review of scant circulation, no speech that passed in the night, but a long and serious work on which he might labor, exercising his mind and hand, without troubling his mother’s sleep. He would call it Noli Me Tangere; the Latin echo of the Spoliarium is not without significance. He seems to have told no one in his family about his grand design; it is not mentioned in his correspondence until the book is well-nigh completed. But the other expatriates knew what he was doing; later, when Pastells was blaming the Noli on the influence of German Protestants, he would call his compatriots to witness that he had written half of the novel in Madrid a fourth part in Paris, and only the remainder in Germany.

"From the first," writes Leon Ma. Guerrero, Rizal was haunted by the fear that his novel would never find its way into print, that it would remain unread. He had little enough money for his own needs, let alone the cost of the Noli’s publication… Characteristically, Rizal would not hear of asking his friends for help. He did not want to compromise them.

Viola insisted on lending him the money (P300 for 2,000 copies); Rizal at first demurred… Finally Rizal gave in and the novel went to press. The proofs were delivered daily, and one day the messenger, according to Viola, took it upon himself to warn the author that if he ever returned to the Philippines he would lose his head. Rizal was too enthralled by seeing his work in print to do more than smile.

The printing apparently took considerably less time than the original estimate of five months for Viola did not arrive in Berlin until December and by the 21st March 1887, Rizal was already sending Blumentritt a copy of "my first book." 

Rizal, himself, describing the nature of the Noli Me Tangere to his friend Blumentritt, wrote, "The Novel is the first impartial and bold account of the life of the tagalogs. The Filipinos will find in it the history of the last ten years…" 

Criticism and attacks against the Noli and its author came from all quarters. An anonymous letter signed "A Friar" and sent to Rizal, dated February 15, 1888, says in part: "How ungrateful you are… If you, or for that matter all your men, think you have a grievance, then challenge us and we shall pick up the gauntlet, for we are not cowards like you, which is not to say that a hidden hand will not put an end to your life."

A special committee of the faculty of the University of Santo Tomas, at the request of the Archbishop Pedro Payo, found and condemned the novel as heretical, impious, and scandalous in its religious aspect, and unpatriotic, subversive of public order and harmful to the Spanish government and its administration of theses islands in its political aspect.

On December 28, 1887, Fray Salvador Font, the cura of Tondo and chairman of the Permanent Commission of Censorship composed of laymen and ordered that the circulation of this pernicious book" be absolutely prohibited.

Not content, Font caused the circulation of copies of the prohibition, an act which brought an effect contrary to what he desired. Instead of what he expected, the negative publicity awakened more the curiosity of the people who managed to get copies of the book.

Assisting Father Font in his aim to discredit the Noli was an Augustinian friar by the name of Jose Rodriguez. In a pamphlet entitled Caiingat Cayo (Beware). Fr. Rodriguez warned the people that in reading the book they "commit mortal sin," considering that it was full of heresy.

As far as Madrid, there was furor over the Noli, as evidenced by an article which bitterly criticized the novel published in a Madrid newspaper in January, 1890, and written by one Vicente Barrantes. In like manner, a member of the Senate in the Spanish Cortes assailed the novel as "anti-Catholic, Protestant, socialistic."

It is well to note that not detractors alone visibly reacted to the effects of the Noli. For if there were bitter critics, another group composed of staunch defenders found every reason to justify its publication and circulation to the greatest number of Filipinos. For instance, Marcelo H. Del Pilar, cleverly writing under an assumed name Dolores Manapat, successfully circulated a publication that negated the effect of Father Rodriguez’ Caiingat Cayo, Del Pilar’s piece was entitled Caiigat Cayo (Be Slippery as an Eel). Deceiving similar in format to Rodriguez’ Caiingat Cayo, the people were readily "misled" into getting not a copy o Rodriguez’ piece but Del Pillar’s. 

The Noli Me Tangere found another staunch defender in the person of a Catholic theologian of the Manila Cathedral, in Father Vicente Garcia. Under the pen-name Justo Desiderio Magalang. Father Garcia wrote a very scholarly defense of the Noli, claiming among other things that Rizal cannot be an ignorant man, being the product of Spanish officials and corrupt friars; he himself who had warned the people of committing mortal sin if they read the novel had therefore committed such sin for he has read the novel.

Consequently, realizing how much the Noli had awakened his countrymen, to the point of defending his novel, Rizal said: "Now I die content."

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.

 

Summary (Buod)

 

Si Ibarra ay kasintahan ni Maria Clara. Siya kilala bilang anak-anakan ni Kapitan Tiyago, isang mayamang taga-Binundok. Ang binata ay dumalaw sa dalaga kinabukasan at sa kanilang pag-uulayaw ay di nakaligtaang gunitain ang kanilang pagmamahalan simula pa sa kanilang pagkabata. Di nakaligtaang basahing muli ni Maria Clara ang mga liham ng binata sa kanya bago pa man ito mag-aral sa Europa. Bago tumungo si Ibarra sa San Diego ay ipinagtapat sa kanya ni Tinyente Guevarra ng Guardia Sibil ang tungkol sa pagkamatay nga kanyang amang si Don Rafael, ang mayamang asendero sa bayang yaon.

Ayon sa Tinyente, si Don Rafael ay pinaratangan ni Padre Damaso, na Erehe at Pilibustero, gawa ng di nito pagsisimba at pangungumpisal. Nadagdagan pa ng isang pangyayari ang paratang na ito. Minsan ay may isang maniningil ng buwis na nakaaway ng isang batang mag-aaral, nakita ito ni Don Rafael at tinulungan ang bata, nagalit ang kubrador at sila ang nagpanlaban, sa kasamaang palad ay tumama ang ulo ng kastila sa isang bato na kanyang ikinamatay. Ibinintang ang pagkamatay na ito ng kubrador kay Don Rafael, pinag-usig siya, nagsulputan ang kanyang mga lihim na kaaway at nagharap ng iba-ibang sakdal. Siya ay nabilanggo at ng malapit nang malutas ang usapin ay nagkasakit ang matanda at namatay sa bilangguan. Di pa rin nasiyahan si Padre Damaso sa pangyayaring iyon. Inutusan niya ng tagapaglibing na hukayin ang bangkay ni Don Rafael sa kinalilibingan nitong sementeryo para sa katoliko at ibaon sa libingan ng mga Intsik at dahil umuulan noon at sa kabigatan ng bangkay ay ipinasya ng tagapaglibing na itapon na lamang ito sa lawa.

Hindi binalak ni Ibarra ang maghiganti sa ginawang kabuktutang ito ni Padre Damaso at sa halip ay ipinagpatuloy ang balak ng kanyang ama na magpatayo ng paaralan.

Sa pagdiriwang ng paglalagay ng unang bato ng paaralan ay kamuntik nang mapatay si Ibarra kung hindi siya nailigtas ni Elias. Sa paglagpak ng bato habang ito'y inihuhugos ay hindi si Ibarra ang nasawi kundi ang taong binayaran ng lihim na kaaway ng binata.
Sa pananghaliang inihandog ni Ibarra pagkatapos ng pagbabasbas ay muling pinasaringan ni Padre Damaso ang binata, hindi na lamang niya sana ito papansinin subalit nang hamakin ang alaala ng kanyang ama ay hindi na siya nakapagpigil at tinangkang saksakin ang pari, salamat na lamang at napigilan ito ni Maria Clara.

Dahil sa pangyayaring ito ay itiniwalag o ineskomonyon si Ibarra ng Arsobispo ng simbahang Katoliko Romano. Sinamantala ito ni Padre Damaso upang utusan si Kapitan Tiyago na sirain ang kasunduan sa pagpapakasal nina Ibarra at Maria Clara. Nais ng pari na ang mapangasawa ng dalaga ay si Linares na isang binatang kastila na bagong dating sa Pilipinas.

Dahil sa pagkasindak sa gumuhong bato noong araw ng pagdiriwang si Maria Clara'y nagkasakit at naglubha. Dahil sa ipinadalang gamot ni Ibarra na siya namang ipinainom ni Sinang gumaling agad ang dalaga.

Sa tulong ng Kapitan Heneral ay napawalang-bisa ang pagkakaeskomulgado ni Ibarra at ipinasya ng arsobispo na muli siyang tanggapin sa simbahang Katoliko. Ngunit, nagkataon noong sinalakay ng mga taong pinag-uusig ang kwartel ng sibil at ang napagbintangang may kagagawan ay si Ibarra kaya siya ay dinakip at ibinilanggo. Wala talagang kinalaman dito ang binata sapagkat nang kausapin siya ni Elias upang pamunuan ang mga pinag-uusig ay tahasan siyang tumanggi at sinabing kailanman ay hindi siya maaring mamuno sa mga taong kumakatawan sa bayan.

Napawalang-bisa ang bintang kay Ibarra sapagkat sa paglilitis na ginawa ay walang sino mang makapagsabi na siya'y kasabwat sa kaguluhang naganap. Subalit ang sulat niya kay Maria Clara na napasakamay ng hukuman ang siyang ginawang sangkapan upang siya'y mapahamak.

Nagkaroon ng handaan sa bahay nina Kapitan Tiyago upang ipahayag ang kasunduan sa pagpapakasal ni Maria Clara kay Linares at samantalang nagaganap ito ay nakatakas ni Ibarra sa bilangguan sa tulong ni Elias.

Bago tuluyang tumakas ay nagkaroong ng pagkakataon si Ibarrang magkausap sila ng lihim ni Maria Clara,. Anya'y ipinagkaloob na niya rito ang kalayaan at sana'y lumigaya siya at matahimik na ang kalooban. Ipinaliwanag ni Maria Clara na ang liham na kanyang iniingatan at siyang ginamit sa hukuman ay nakuha sa kanya sa pamamagitan ng pagbabanta t pananakot. Ippinalit sa mga liham na ito ang dalawang liham na isinulat ng kanyang ina bago siya ipanganak na nakuha ni Padre Salvi sa kumbento at dito nasasaad na ang tunay niyang ama ay si Padre Damaso.

Sinabi niya kay Ibarra na kaya siya pakakasal kay Linares ay upang ipagtanggol ang karangalan ng kanyang ina subalit ang pag-iibig niya saa binata ay di magbabago kailanman.

Samantala, tumakas na si Ibarra sa tulong ni Elias. Sumakay sila ng bangka, pinahiga si Ibarra at tinabunan ng damo at pagkatapos ay tinunton ang ilog Pasig hanggang makarating sa Lawa ng Bay. Ngunit naabutan sila ng mga tumutugis sa kanila. Inisip ni Elias na iligaw ang mga ito kaya naisipan niyang lumundag sa tubig kung saan inakalang si Ibarra ang tumalon kaya hinabol at pinaputukan siya ng mga sibil hanggang mahawi ang bakas ng pagkakalangoy at magkulay-dugo ang tubig.

Nakarating sa kaalaman ni Maria Clara na si Ibarra'y napatay ng mga Sibil sa kanyang pagtakas. Ang dalaga'y nalungkot at nawalan ng pag-asa kaya't hiniling niya kay Padre Damaso na siya'y ipasok sa kumbento ng Santa Clara upang magmadre. Napilitang pumayag ang pare sapagkat tiyakang sinabi ng dalaga na siya'y magpapakamatay kapag hindi pinagmadre.

Noche Buena nang makarating si Elias sa maalamat na gubat ng mga Ibarra, sugatan at nanghihina na doon niya nakatagpo si Basilio at ina nitong wala nang buhay.

Bago siya nalagutan ng hininga ay sinabing, namatay siyang hindi nakikita ang pagbubukang-liwayway ng kanyang bayan at makakikita ay huwag sanang kalilimutan ang mga nangamatay dahil sa pagtatanggol sa bayan.