Jose Rizal Quotes

One only dies once, and if one does not die well, a good opportunity is lost and will not present itself again.

He who does not know how to look back at where he came from will never get to his destination.

Our liberty will not be secured at the sword's point... We must secure it by making ourselves worthy of it. And when the people reaches that height, God will provide a weapon, the idols will be shattered, tyranny will crumble like a house of cards, and liberty will shine out like the first dawn.

Tomorrow at 7, I shall be shot; but I am innocent of the crime of rebellion. I am going to die with a tranquil conscience.

On this battlefield man has no better weapon than his intelligence, no other force but his heart.

There are no tyrants if there are no slaves.

Genius has no country. It blossoms everywhere. Genius is like the light, the air. It is the heritage of all." -Dr. Jose Rizal

Ang sagot sa dahas ay dahas, kapag bingi sa katuwiran.

It is a useless life that is not consecrated to a great deal. It is like a stone wasted on the field without becoming a part of any edifice.

....let her be loved not only for her beauty and amiable character, but also for her strength of mind and loftiness of purpose, which enliven and raise the feeble and the timid and ward off all vain thoughts. Let her be the pride of her country and let her command respect.

Filipinos don't realize that victory is the child of struggle, that joy blossoms from suffering, and redemption is a product of sacrifice.

لا يوجد مستبدون حيث لا يوجد عبيد

To live is to be among men and to be among men is to struggle. (From Jose Rizal's letter to his nephew Alfredo or Freding)

One should remember that where nobody flees, there is no pursuer: that where there are no little fish, there can be no big ones. Why does the girl not require her lover a noble and honoured name, a manly heart to protect her weakness, and a resolute spirit which will not be satisfied with engendering slaves? Let her discard all fear, behave nobly and yield not her youth to the weak and faint-hearted.

If over my tomb some day, you would see blow, A simple humble flower amidst thick grasses, Bring it up to your lips and kiss my soul so, And under the cold tomb, I may feel on my brow, Warmth of your breath, a whiff of your tenderness.

Nevertheless, I cannot refrain from expressing to you a certain melancholy upon thinking that this new being in whose veins Filipino blood runs and who will be educated with so much care will afterwards be a lost member for a country that is in need of men. ...he is one French more and one Filipino less. ...if the Philippines loses a son, at least humanity may gain one." (From Jose Rizal's letter to Fernando Canon, commenting on children born to OFWs and who grow up abroad)

Although Rizal's novels are so familiar that we even have nicknames for them, nobody takes the Noli or Fili to read on holiday except for students cramming for an exam. Studying Rizal should result in an appreciation of his life and works, but all this has turned into a boring chore.

Nadidilidili ko na ang umaga ay nilalang upang ihanda sa pagtatamasa ng kasiyahan sa kinahapunan at ang gabi’y upang mangarap at magsaya sa mga alaalang pumupukaw ng damdamin. -Salome

You must know where you are from in order to get where you are going.

Asya' denince aklınıza ne geliyor? Çekik gözler? "Çan çin çon" sözü? Yoksulluk? Yoksa uyanan bir dev mi? Bu kitap, size Asya'da çok daha fazlasının olduğunu gösterecek.Avrupalılardan daha önce, Amerika'yı ilk keşfeden Türk kökenli Çinli amiral Zheng He ile 1421'de uzun bir deniz yolculuğuna çıkacak; oradan 2500 yıl önce Çinli bilge Sun Tzu tarafından yazılmış ilk strateji kitabının sayfalarında gezinecek, ama sonra bu bilgelik ve felsefe ülkesinin bugünkü toplumsal çöküşüne tanık olacağız. Don Kişot'tan önce bir Japonyalı kadın yazar tarafından yazılmış ilk romanı birlikte okuyacak, 'Japon mucizesi' üstüne düşüneceğiz. Japonya'da aşırı çalıştırılmaktan ölümleri, Hindistan'da kast düzenini, Kuzey Kore-Güney Kore sorununu, yorucu çözümlemelere girmeden, hepimizin okuyabileceği akıcılıkta gözden geçireceğiz. Siyam ikizlerinin öyküsünü öğrenip yine Siyam'dan bir köy romancısını tanıyacağız.Ve en sonunda, "Antarktika Tellioğullarınındır!" deyip Antarktika üstüne sürmekte olan paylaşım savaşını ele alacağız. Ve her bir yazıdan sonra, dinlenmek, sanatın o hoşduyusuna kapılmak için Asya'dan çeşitli şiirler okuyacağız: "Ekmek parası mı kazanayım şiir mi yazayım?" diyecek Nepalli bir şair... İşgal dönemi Koresi'nden bir şair, "çalınmış tarlalara da gelir mi bahar?" diye soracak ülkesini düşünerek... "Benim ülkem cennet değildir" diyecek Filipinli bir şair, ülkesindeki yoksunluklara tanık olmamış turistlere... Ve Jose Rizal, bağımsız düşüncenin bu yiğit oğlu, son hoşçakalıyla veda edecek hepimize ve ardından bir şair "henüz değil Rizal henüz değil" diyecek...Yorucu olmayan ama uzun bir yolculuğa çıkaracak sizi bu kitap ve bittiğinde, kitabı okumadan önce Asya'ya ilişkin ne kadar az şey bildiğinizi şaşırarak farkedeceksiniz...

These Filipinos will be your worst enemies if you commit the imprudence of attacking the Spaniards without the necessary preparation.

People believe that madness is when you don't think as they do, which is why they take me for a madman." -Old Tasio

Man is by definition a contingent, not a necessary, being; that is to say, he does not have in himself sufficient reason for existence, and would not exist without God. God should not have created him at all if, to make one human being happy, it were necessary to send hundreds upon hundreds to eternal damnation, and all for inherited faults or a moment's weakness.

In critical moments, to declare oneself neutral is to be exposed to the wrath of both the contending parties.

life is a very serious matter, and only those who have brains and a heart have a good life. To live is to be among men, and to be among men is to struggle. But this struggle is not an animal, material struggle, nor is it a struggle only with other men; it is a struggle with them but also with one's self, with their passions but also with one's own, with errors and with anxieties. It is an eternal struggle, [which one must sustain] with a smile on one's lips, and tears in the heart. In this battlefield, a man has no better weapon than his intelligence, no greater strength than that of his own heart.10

Jose P. Rizal Tried writing ghazal. When his verse turned out silly He wrote Noli and Fili.

On this battlefield man has no better weapon than his intelligence, no other force but his heart. (From Jose Rizal's letter to his nephew Alfredo or Freding)