Apostles of Baao

During the Holy Week services in Baao, especially during the Holy Thursday liturgy reenacting the "Washing of the Apostles' Feet", the roles of the twelve apostles are played by several reputable men of Baao who are traditionally chosen for their good moral character, if not for their closeness to the Parish Priest. Unless one resigns or is incapacitated, the 'office' of an apostle is held for life.

Click for more pictures: Group: 1, 2, 3, 4. Individuals: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11.

Sifting Through Perceptions: A Fresh Look at Baao's Beginnings

An excerpt from "Baao Vignettes" by P.B.Robosa

Authors’s note: So that a new Municipal official seal could be submitted to the National Government, it became a matter for the local government to establish and clarify once and for all the town’s foundation date .I was one of those invited to provide some explanation to the question and in the process finally appreciated the extent or lack thereof of our knowledge of our past. In looking at our past, we are provided an opportunity to appraise our origins and along the way look into ourselves. Having done so, we can understand our actions and reactions to the changes and struggles we continue to face. 

In the early months of 1889, Lt. Jose Taviel de Andrade of the Civil Guards went on inspection tour of the towns of Southern Luzon. A talented artist, his inspections produced illustrations of the towns he visited and one among these was that of the town center of 19th century Baao. His illustrations from Baao bore three vignettes; a squatting man with a child, a bell tower and a scene of the town “poblacion” showing a cross at the center of a group of palisaded houses.

A modern commentary of this illustration presumes that the cross was intended to commemorate the town's still unverified founding by St. Peter Baptist in the twilight of the 16th century. Carefully read, the commentary echoes the opening passages on the work on the history of Baao by the Franciscan scholar Fr. Felix de Huertas who implies that the circumstances regarding the foundation of the town is unconfirmed. This statement has gained much acceptance with writers but is in direct contradiction to the Catholic Church’s pronouncement that the Franciscan saint did indeed found the town in 1590.

Although, to modern historians, the town’s foundation date marks only the start of the town’s recorded history, the 1590 foundation date is, nevertheless, significant as the formation of the town as a religious and political unit during the Spanish regime. Be that as it may, between Huertas and the Catholic Church, whom do we believe? Is their a way to verify which of these claims is correct?

Published in 1865 and widely available, Huertas’ Estado Geografico, Topografico, Estandistico, Historico-Religioso de la Provincia de San Gregorio Magno, has become a popular reference source for the historical records of Philippine towns. Aside from being based on the Franciscan records Huertas had available to him, his concise chronological presentation of his data makes his book a handy source especially for amateur historians.

Baao’s own Luis Dato in his attempt to provide clarification to the unrecorded origin of Baao readily quotes Huertas even as he pointed out that Huertas’ claims contradict data by that of another Franciscan author, Eusebio Gomez-Platero. While Huertas cites the tradition that Baao was founded in the time of Peter Baptist, he discards this information and puts forward a latter date that agrees with his records and his strict definition of a “foundation”. Because of Gomez-Platero’s biographies on Franciscan priests serving in Bicol towns, we are lead to doubt Huertas’ records when the village had priests administering to it years before the village Huertas’ claims became an independent religious unit. Thus later, Dato unable to be sure of Huertas’ and Gomez- Platero’s claims left the question of the town's origins to “the assiduity of future local historians.”

Up until recently, except for the Catholic Church's uncompromising statement on the foundation of Baao as recorded in their directory, there was no authoritative source available to be found of the “foundation” of the town. In Dato’s time, this lack of definitive source led him to write in resignation that Baao’s origins “are shrouded in myths and legends”. Although his statement holds true when we speak of pre-Hispanic Baao, other documents that have come to light today if that if we are to speak of the formation of the town at the time of Spanish conquest, this statement quite mistaken and needs correction.

What are then the available data, at present, of the origins of the town? Except for Huertas’ difficulty in agreeing with the established assertion of the Church, there is really no significant opposition to the 1590 date. The problems Huertas encounter are due to two reasons: First, although the tradition of St. Peter Baptist's founding Baao is firmly established by his sources, the documents to which he decides to give credence rather than tradition, mentions Baao only in 1656, sixty-six years later than the traditional date of 1590. Second, he is honest about his uncertainty of the meaning of the term “foundation” as to whether this happened during the conversion of the people or, during the time the town formed its own civil or religious unit.

Because of existing documents that were once unavailable to him, we may now be able to smooth out some of his difficulties. Regarding documents mentioning Baao at the earliest time, Huertas’ sources are antedated by documents found in Blair and Robertson's The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898. The books reprints the original and translations of the documents "The Status of Encomiendas, 1591" and Bao or Baao was already mentioned as an encomienda with more 700 inhabitants a year after the 1590 traditional foundation. This invalidates by 66 years Huertas’ claim the town was first mentioned in documents.

Regarding Huertas’ qualification for the foundation of the town as to whether foundation was to mean during the conversion of the inhabitants or, by Baao’s formation into a separate religious and political unit, the following excerpt below appears to give us the answer:

King - His majesty has another encomienda also) Nabua by name, numbering one thousand and eighteen whole tributes, or four thousand and seventy-two persons. The villages of this encomienda are near together. They used to have four ministers, for they visit the two following encomiendas. There are in Nabua two Franciscan friars.

Bula: Dona Maria de Ron - The village of Bula belongs to Dña. Maria de Ron. It is four leagues from Nabua. It has two hundred and six whole tributes, or eight hundred and twenty four persons. It is visited from Nabua.

Bao: Minor son of Sebastian Perez - These fathers of Nabua visit also the encomienda of the minor son of the late Sebastian Perez, called Bao. It has one hundred and seventy tributes, or seven hundred and four persons. Like Nabua, the capital, it used to have four friars, but now has not more than two. These encomiendas are not well administered but five religious would be sufficient for it.

Buy: Sebastian Garcia - likewise these fathers of Nabua visited and instructed the encomienda of Buy, which belongs to Sebastian Garcia; but they can do so no longer. It is two leagues from Nabua, and can receive instruction from no other place. It has three hundred and twelve tributes, or one thousand two hundred and forty-eight persons, who will receive instruction, when Nabua the capital, has the said five ministers.’

The document, aside from negating Huertas’ sources, also render somewhat erroneous the statement that Baao's "conversion" cannot be considered as a “foundation”. How can the conversion of the people and village of Bao qualify as the time of foundation of Baao? Using even Huertas’ own criteria, a convincing argument can be made to reconcile both events.

An “encomienda” in the beginning of the Spanish conquest of the Philippines is a royal charge to a person (in Baao’s case a Spaniard named Sebastian Perez) to collect tributes from the inhabitants of a village. In exchange, the “encomendero” must provide protection, justice and instruction to the faith while he and his heirs maintain the encomienda. Thus, if Baao was converted and was an encomienda in 1590, a rudimentary civil and religious unit was formed with the intent to provide order, justice, instruction including catechism and rites of the Catholic faith. This would sufficiently satisfy Huertas’ own definition of a “foundation”, the formation of a political and religious unit under the Spanish crown.

The above passages in addition, by supporting Baao's foundation in 1590, also overturn what we now know as misconceptions of Baao's origins. For instance, because of Dato’s use of parts of Huertas in his frequently reprinted “Brief History of Baao”, when he commences with Baao as a “visita” of Bula, Baaoeños in general assume that Baao was originally a part of Bula like a modern barrio connected to a “Bula poblacion”. If we follow this line of thinking but pushing back time 66 years before, Baao, Bula and Buhi, were originally once “Barrios” of Nabua.

The Spanish dictionary defines "visita" as a religious term referring to a village with a chapel where services where periodically performed by a visiting priest. The priest so assigned makes scheduled visits to the place because of the difficulty posed due to the lack of roads and conveyance between these inland villages. Unlike modern “Barrios” which are originally “Sitios” which are found within the boundaries of and later to be carved out from existing municipalities, Nabua, Bula, Bao, and Buy were all originally separate encomiendas with no clear boundaries and separated by great distances.

Politically, since there was no defined boundaries of the encomiendas or visita, being a visita would not mean affiliation or continuity with another, as do modern barrios to town centers but affiliated simply religiously, by being "visited" from one place due perhaps to proximity or convenience. Let us repeat this line from the Account of Encomiendas to clarify this arrangement: “likewise these fathers of Nabua visited and instructed the encomienda of Buy, which belongs to Sebastian Garcia; but they can do so no longer. It is two leagues from Nabua, and can receive instruction from no other place.”

Thus, being an encomienda, Buhi like Baao, from the beginning was not part of any place but was an independent village on its own. Also from this example, it appears that the “visita” stage was simply part of a process that each village might undergo or might lose depending on the conditions and availability of clergy that would be able to administer to the village. Take the cases of Buhi and Bula; Buhi a decade earlier was administered from Nabua but in 1591 was not, Baao became independent of Nabua when it became a “visita” of Bula even if the latter was still also a visita of Nabua. It was not 100 years later that Bula became independent of Nabua.

But what is most remarkable when we study these passages is that it gives us a hint to what it was like during Baao's conversion. Note that while the other encomiendas in the list were being "visited" by friars from Nabua, Bao is mentioned, to have recently had its own friars. We know from records that Nabua,. Bula and Buhi were founded a decade or more earlier than Baao and should have reached a degree of stability at this time, Baao was reportedly not visited by friars but "used to have four but now has no more than two". What happened in Baao prior to 1591 that required the services of four friars and still required two a year later? Was the 1591 account simply reporting the aftermath of a mass conversion of the people of Baao in 1590?

It is likely that Baao as a separate civil or religious unit may have regressed or was neglected in the years following its conversion like Buhi in 1591 though converted 20 years before. These lapses may have accounted for the loss of records of the town in Huertas' sources. The 1591 document is a clear picture of the formation of Baao, a year after its conversion and a record of the establishment of Spanish government and religion. From that point, Baao entered the gates of recorded history and the Baaoeños ceased practicing their native culture and religion.

How true then is the tradition that Baao was founded by Saint Peter Baptist? Huertas mentions the tradition that “the town was founded in the time of our Holy Custodian Fr. Pedro Bautista" which covered the period in 1590 to 1591 when St. Peter Baptist was elected custodian of the Franciscan Missionaries in the Philippines. Beloved by the Franciscans, St. Peter Baptist is the subject of many stories and legends. But according the Saint’s biographers (Gomez-Platero's Catalogo Biografico and Sta. Inez's Cronicas) in 1590 he traveled to the Bicol region and founded several villages with Bao among them. He stayed in the region until 1591 when he returned to Manila to assume guardianship of the Manila convent. He finally sailed for Japan in 1593 as envoy to the court of Taicosama, dying there later in 1597 as a martyr.

None of his biographers though, specifically mentions details of him founding Baao and most were writing many years later after the supposed event. It is important to note though that all the same, his biographers agree to the dates regarding his travels particularly the years 1590 and 1591 when he was in Bicol. Accordingly, it would indeed be plausible that he passed by Baao or if he did not, caused his brother Franciscans to convert the Baaoeños in 1590. If these events are true as the Church believes and claims them to be, indeed St. Peter Baptist had a hand in the conversion of the Baaoeños and in so doing founded the present day Municipality of Baao which today accepts 1590 as its foundation year.

We might not know for sure if the Cross that was in the center of Baao in 1889 did indeed honor St. Peter Baptist, but he was much endeared to his brother Franciscans, it would be uncharacteristic for them to let the opportunity slip for creating another legend for a great man.

Baao and Ockhams’s Razor

by P.B.Robosa

While in discussion with two of my colleagues at USI, one teaching Philosophy and the other History, the latter brought up the subject of place-names and said that almost all places now seem to have a local legend as to how a place-name came to be and added this was the fault of the Americans who taught us to read and write about this stories. Incredulously I checked my files and but found this not true as my Spanish sources also contain explanations of the origin of place names but comparing the Baao history of Luis Dato with that of the Spanish historian Felix Huertas which are two popular sources, I found something interesting about the two. While Dato actually used Huertas as his source, it was only he who wrote about of the possible origins of the name Baao giving us three theories the first two being widely accepted:

1. Baao comes from the shape of the early settlement which was shaped like the backside/carapace of the turtle which in local vernacular referred to as a "ba-oo".

2. The name Baao came directly from the aforementioned reptile which in large numbers inhabits the lake.

3. The name came about due to the penchant of the inhabitants of eating left over rice locally called "bahaw".

Huertas, however, writing much earlier using Franciscan records mentions none of these, although he does so with other places. In Huertas’ 1855 Estado, the pertinent line referring to the origin of the town reads, “Antiguamente, estuvo situado a la orilla de la laguna del mismo nombre, en el sitio llamado layoan.”. Translated it reads: In ancient times, (the pueblo of Baao) was situated in the banks of the lake of the same name, in the site called layoan.

This puts forward some questions like, which came first, the name of the lake or the name of the settlement? Did the name Baao came from the name of the Lake Baao or vice versa.

Which is connected with theory number two, did the lake or consequently Baao came from

an alleged preponderance of turtles in the area?

A year ago, I went to see these places mentioned by Huertas, The Lake would really be shallow to be able to see layoan otherwise the place would be under water and indeed the banks would accommodate an ancient settlement that would have been widely spread out to give room for living space. About two kilometer south is sitio Mawacag, the ancient burial site that yielded a cache of Chinese porcelain giving proof to the site as a pre-hispanic settlement. If the Lake was named after the turtle, the reptile is now difficult to find now largely replaced by field rats. The ancient binanuaan site a circular mound overgrown with brush and bamboo is east of layoan and would be too small to contain a village but most likely the site of a town center, a chapel or a market place, but again the lake would really be shallow for the mound to be of any use for human activity but from afar would look like the backside of a turtle just like any island would look in flat water. I understood why the village kept moving east up to the present site, if Layoan was inundated, binanuaanan was not, if binanuaanan was flooded the present site was not and I understood how Dato could make sense of all of these and came up with a believable theory. Then my friend, the Philosophy teacher introduced me to William of Ockham and his scientific precept called Ockham’s razor. Ockham’s razor is a fundamental principle of modern science and philosophy which said that one should not assume the existence of more things than are logically necessary and the simplest explanation tends to be the correct one. A theory, using this principle, can be stripped down of the unessential with a metaphorical “razor” to reveal what would be the most likely explanation. 

Using it on the Baao place-name and starting with the bare essentials, Baao was first used in a census document in 1590 with the spelling of “Bao”. The first time the place was indicated in a map was in Murillo-Velarde’s 1733 map but the village was not identified but the lake which was marked as “Laguna de Bao”.

We should remember that Bao or Baao is the name of a place not a group of people thus we can safely discard Dato’s number three theory that Baao came from the behavior of its people of eating cold rice, which anyone could do anywhere.

Now, is the name referring to the lake or the village? Before the Spaniards came there was no Baao as village, the inhabitants dwelt on the banks of the lake, only when they were converted did the people gathered in one place within reach of the church and the tribute collectors. The early settlement of binanuaanan, the one resembling a turtles back would be used only years later after the “encomienda” or “visita” Bao was already mentioned in documents.

Although it is not enough that Huertas mentions it and Murillo-Velarde used it, they are believable sources that say Bao came from the name of the lake. Common sense and experience will tell us that the natural tendency of place names being created and catching on is the presence of a prominent landmark. Notably, in the case of Lake Bao, a lake that is uniquely shallow. Thus, the theory that in ancient times, the place where the people on the banks of Lake Bao inhabited and which became a village to be called Baao is the simplest explanation that would result to satisfy Ockham’s principle. We now would find ourselves then trying to answer the question, from whence did the name Bao come from? Was there a abundance of turtle in the lake? To be simple again, let us assume there was not, and say that the name came from the description of the shallow lake, which in local dialect is variously “ababow” and “mababow” or a description of the banks “ibabow” all would be closer in phonation to the spelling of “bao” than “ba-oo”, a closer one would be the Tagalog “bao” which is unlikely as the Bicol equivalent is “soro” or the Baaoeño “abab”.

The simplest explanation then for the source of the name of Baao is that in on the banks of a shallow lake (mababow) inhabited a group of people which the Spaniard unified into a village which they called “Bao” from the name of the lake. The name was carried whenever the people moved eastward to avoid the constant flooding and in four centuries the Municipality of Baao became better known than the lake from where it got its name. 

A Poem by an Expatriate

THOU SHALL NOT

by Aida B. del Rosario

Scrutinizing the satellite map of my native

. . . . .town in another continent was like

. . .investigating the crime scene

. . . . .of a teenager's sin

Here once stood the house where my Lolo

. . . . .chastised me with words that started

. . . . .with: Are you a boy or a girl?

when he caught me tiptoeing to my room to

. . . . .check my new hairstyle - the shortest

. . .cut that was, and the most modern
. . . . .outfit I was wearing called

. . . . . . .pedal pushers

Here is the main road to the town proper or

. . .going the other way, out of town to the

. . . . .cemetery - the detour destination

. . . . .for young bicycle riders

. . .on moonlit nights

the same road where I learned to ride a bike

. . . . .an unthinkable act by a well-bred

. . . . .girl; bicycle riding with boys

. . .one moonlight night

. . .Went to confession

. . . . .not sure what commandment was

. . .broken but did penance for disobedience

The Cold of January

Imagine being so warm again
Hot chocolate simmering on the stove
sounds so inviting to the steaming polutan
I'll eat my crisp tuyo slowly to last till tomorrow.

I promised myself some hot coffee later
and hurry inside till the fog turns to snow.

Now I forgot I'm too old to be this happy
My body smarts from the heavy blankets
and your grin after so much mischief
as I tease your frozen fingers clumsily.

I enfold you and lead you to a little dance
working up a sweat on that sweet warm skin.

Let's do this every year in the cold
until that time when the cold front fades
or the weather breaks to rain and puts puddles
to the floor.

leaving us these intentions and recollections
of the warmth of this world.

A Christmas tale by P.B. Robosa

The Tree of a Thousand Years
by P. B. Robosa

Some years ago, for Christmas, I wrote a story as a Chirstmas gift to my wife, I gave her the copy of my first draft and vowed to elaborate it later when I will be able to publish it in a book along with my other stories. Well, the book is still a dream and the first draft remained untouched but its almost Christmas and I'm happy to share it with you.

Do you remember the story that the sky was once close to the earth? This was true. The sky was close to the earth and it was held by a tree that only lives for a thousand years. So for every thousand years or so the sky was in danger of falling down to earth and crushing everything on it, except of course, that their will be another tree ready to hold it up again. This would happen at the end of the year and at the beginning of the next so people then would wait quietly and anxiously at the end of the year, to the last minute, then broke in celebration on the first minute of the next year if the sky didn’t fall.

Nothing has yet seen this tree and many tried. It was said that a rainbow should point the way because its center is believed to be the highest part of the sky so perhaps the tree is there. So whenever a rainbow appears many would head out to its center. Finding the tree would be a great quest but also of enormous rewards because many believe that at the tree’s feet, gushes all the waters of the earth and from this the purest. From its branches, all fruit and flowers of the earth, even gold and silver, sprout and blooms. But best of all anyone who reaches it will have their hearts desire fulfilled, Once under the tree, one fears no ill weather, no hunger, no thirst, no loneliness and no pain. It would have been a great find for anyone indeed.

The bird Sayong wanted to see this tree and like many others he set out one day at the most beautiful of rainbows. The problem with Sayong was that he couldn’t fly like other birds because he was weighted down, endowed with many things because he was a peacock. He had a beautiful crown, shiny iridescent coat of feathers and a most wonderful tail that looked like it was studded with jewels. Sayong was encumbered by these trappings and a haughty and heavy heart that did not know how to love. So like the others he walked towards the rainbow.

After a while many have fallen back and discontinued the journey and only the most determined continued including Sayong. By nightfall the rainbow was gone and many others travelers and those that were left sat around a fire to keep warm. Sayong sat beside a tired Rooster who was staring at his crown. “My dear peacock,” said the Rooster, “you have such a beautiful crown.” “Do you get much praise from it?” “Yes I do,” said Sayong, “In fact I would give it to anyone quite easily because the endless praise it gets has become quite annoying.” “I would love to have them,” answered the Rooster quickly, “because that is why I am here, to look for praise which I have never had in my life and I fear I will die without it.” “I will give it to you if give me something in return.” said Sayong, “what do you have that you can give me?” Well they say I only have character, would you take some of my character?” “All right, said Sayong, taking off some of his crown and giving it to the Rooster for some of the Rooster’s character. At once Sayong felt some of his character and began to smile at himself.

The next evening at the fire, Sayong sat beside a tired looking Owl which kept looking at his iridescent feathers. “Did you get much learning my dear peacock? Your feathers are quite marvelous they look like the garment of a great philosopher.” “Yes,” answered Sayong, “I get much prestige from it but since the Rooster gave me some character last night I seem to feel no use for them.” “Prestige--you say?” retorted the Owl, “that is what I’m here for, I only have wisdom but I do not get much prestige, would you trade some of your coat with some of my wisdom?” “Gladly.” said Sayong.

On the next night, Sayong met a lonely looking white dove who kept looking at his tail feathers. “You have such beautiful tail feathers,” said the dove, “I wish I was born with some of them so I will not look so plain but beautiful like you. Sayong now with some character and wisdom offered “Would you like some of them, I’ll be glad to give you some.” “Really,” said the dove, “but I can only give you back some love which is all I have.” 

“What is that?” asked Sayong who did not know what love was. “No matter I’ll take it anyway, here are some of my tail feathers,” continued Sayong. Suddenly he felt very light and for the first time Sayong tried his flightless wings and he began to fly. He flew high up into sky and he was so happy he flew and flew and flew. At the very highest he did not feel the cold that was beginning to freeze his feathers, raindrops and wind began to buffet him but he continued on flying until at last he felt very tired and began his descent. A soon as the clouds parted from below him he saw a most majestic tree in front of him. It glittered with all manner of good things and Sayong immediately knew what it was and he headed for it.

Sayong perched on one of it branches and the tree moved feeling his presence. A voice from the tree began to talk. “Do you know where you are dear bird? You are in paradise and perhaps you are already dead for no one enters here alive.” “It does not matter anymore” answered Sayong “I am happy because I have found the tree of a thousand years.” The voice answered from the tree “The tree of a thousand years is the downfall of men, it is here that my Master was betrayed by the first man and woman who were lured and corrupted by its beauty. Up to this day it corrupts the world by its empty promises, that is perhaps why you are here. Yet my Master brings hope into the world by sending his son to destroy these promises and replace it with the promise of hope, no longer will men look from outside of themselves for nourishment, sustenance and freedom, but if they looked very hard, these they will find in their hearts.” And Sayong understood that his quest has ended and he stayed in paradise perched on the tree of a thousand years with his beauty, character, wisdom and love.

Everything came to pass in the world and a child was born to end all endless quests, and men most not look elsewhere but into their own hearts. The Rooster ever since was praised by men who removed its crown, the Owl had prestige but never got to show it because it came out only at night, the Dove never liked his tail feathers and today it has become symbol of love. Sometimes we never know what we will get until we stop wishing for it and we wait, What is true is that there is always joy in giving, whether it is a loving father giving his son away out of love, giving one’s life for others, or a Peacock giving all that he is about so he may truly feel real joy and freedom. We should remember these lessons at Christmas that it is not what we receive that gives us joy but what and when we give. To this very day we decorate the Christmas tree to remind us of another tree that holds up the sky and bears all things beautiful, why don’t we let it stay there till the New Year, lest the sky fall. 

The End

Invocation for the First Philippine Assembly
by Msgr. Jorge I. Barlin on October 16, 1907

Translated from the original Spanish by P.B. Robosa

The Year 2007 is marked in history, albeit quietly, as the Centennial of the First Philippine Assembly, the incipient Philippine Congress of the First Republic in Asia. In October 16, 1907, on it opening day, right after William Howard Taft formally opened the proceedings, Bishop Barlin was given the floor to deliver the invocation or opening prayer. Nationalist historians dismiss this event as an American colonial tool to pacify the Filipinos, but curiosly, among its first topics on its opening day was the subject of Philippine Independence and from point of view of an American journalist simply saw it as a significant event in the History of the Filipinos, thus he wrote: “It was Father Barlin who made the invocation at the opening of the First Philippine Assembly in 1907 --- a little incident in world history the full significance one hardly grasps. In a setting of Oriental Fanaticism, where life is held at naught, where man has no right that may not lose overnight, where his liberty, his home, his family are his, only as long as they are not wanted by another more powerful than he, there had come into existence an island people with Christian ideals, in whose land our own America had laid the foundation of democracy. Here, in 1907, the Bicol bishop, Father Jorge Barlin, gave the opening invocation at the first Oriental assembly of the people, by the people, and for the people.”

To You, Greatest and Omnipotent Creator, the only Magnificent King, Who reigns over the Universe with Eternal Majesty as the only Lord God. Who has created it with Your Power, You have put it in order with your knowledge, You support it with Your kindness, and You control it with Your Providence; to You, Voice of God in the highest, on whom the light of intelligence existed from all eternity, and with it you enlighten all men born to this Earth; to You, fountain of knowledge, whose eternal commandments are just and honest for all men, governments, families, societies, countries and nations, for the tribes and the kingdoms; to you Father of Light, from whom descends generosity and perfect gifts; counsel and impartiality; prudence and strength; to You on whose hands are the riches and the glory, the opulence and justice of all nations; to You, for whom the rulers govern with wisdom, the lawmakers decree just laws, the princes and heads of states order good things and the judges administer justice; we invoke You now on this great day of our history, on the day when the Filipino nation, a nation that acknowledges and adores you, is assembled for the first time to deliberate on its future destiny.

Pour upon these noble representatives the abundance of Your gifts, light over their intelligence, firmness in their wills, straightforwardness, nobility and determination in their acts, prudence and tact in all their decisions; so they may decree what is good and useful for the country, that which would contribute for its well being and greatness, that which would make it tread its way always towards the path of real human progress, until it reaches the summit of liberty and independence where dwells the noble and great nation, to which you have trusted the continuity and accomplishment of the work for its moral and political greatness. Bless also, Omnipotent God, that country under whose protective shield you placed the direction and safeguard of our social life, peace and liberty. For the perception and practice of justice, you have made this country great and strong, you have exalted it with majesty and power over other nations; endeavor, Lord, that while fulfilling the mission you have trusted it with, make the Filipino nation great and contented among other nations of the Earth, AMEN.

Let us commemorate the yearnings and the hopes of the Filipino nation so eloquently laid out by our "kabanwaan" and continue to pray for our Nation, our government and our leaders that they may return to the guidance of God's wisdom and follow His will.

Rizal's words in Baaoeño

Pinaka-Oreng Pa-aram
ni Dr. Jose P. Rizal
Itinaga-Baao ni P.B. Robosa

In an answer to a challenge from one of my students from Rinconada who is attending my class on Rizal who commented that Rizal is too intellectual and the youth has difficulty in relating to him, I wrote the following translation of Rizal's "Last Farewell" in simple Rinconada/Baao Bicol to see if indeed Rizal's words would be too alien to the youth. In the process, I discovered the beauty and capacity of our own dialect in expressing Rizal's lofty thoughts and feelings.

Paaram ragang kinagis-ngan, potos kin kaliwanagan
Perlas sa dagat subangan, na-uuda tang kamurawayan
masingaya kong dara, patapos na ag mamundong buway,
kun tibaad kuntana ini mas makintab, lab-as ag sagana,
itatao man diyaday tolos-tolos para sa kanimong karayan.

Sa lugar kin labanan, sa init ka labo-labong sinabatan
dali tolos kong ibubuklad, ining buway kanimo idudusay,
maski sari man, puon tanom, sa takay o sa lubid bitayan
patag man o talbungan kin binitay , labanan o kasakitan
dyaday man a buway, itatao kun ayaton ka banwaan.

Ngamin ko babayaan pag langit bumuka ag nag aninag
senyas ka tapos ka ngitngit sa silaw ka bagong ramrag
kun kulang a pagkapula kuyan na namumulaag mong aldow
ibulos ag iluyap a pula ka rugo sa kanakong mga ugat,
itugma sa nagpupuon mong aldow na mabukang liwanag.

Pangitorogan ko, ko ako igin pa, padagos angan nagdakulo
pagitorogan angan nagin tawo, nagkukusog angan nagtalubo
Namapandawan ka, kanamong perlas ka sirangan dagat
oda lua a maitom mong mga mata, tulid a kiray sa angog
di nagmomundo o nagngongorot, oda mantsa kin pagkasupog.

Anap-anap ka kanakong buway, mawot ko angan pa man
Tara! babaoy kana kalag ko na sumusuway ag babayaan,
Tara! Aba-a nang raay na mauda tanganing ika mabuway,
mag-raan ta tumindog ka, nakaasag sakanimong kalangnitan,
sa raga mong malumok, magturog tuninong uda katapusan.

kun usad na aldow, ika maka-koko, sa kanakong linubngan
nagtatarok kaiba sa mga doot usad na bumobukang burak
irokot mo kanimong mga ngabil ta ako kanimong inarkan
ag mamatean ko sa angog maski sa irarom kan lubungan
a maimbong mong inga-inga, pagpayaba mo mamamatean.

Pabayaeng a aninag ka bulan roktan ako kin luway-luway,
togote na ako kumintab sa mga silyab ka bagong sirang
a na angin pababayaeng magoyop-oyop kin kamunduan
ag minsan kun agko tumogpa, sa krus ko, usad na gam-gam
pabayaeng maghingalo, ag magsiwit kin katoninongan.

Sa init ka aldow, paalisnga-wa pagkabasa ka tubig uran
tanganing agrangay ko sa langit, paitaas man darahon,
Ludok na inabot kining buway ko, bayae a iba pagtangisan,
pagsinarom ka apon ag saka ako ipinapangadyi man
Banwaan, tabi ipagnayo-ngayo na sa Dios ako magingalo.

Pangadyi mo man su ngamin na ma-irak na nauda
su ngamin na nag-agi kin di maisip na mga kasakitan
para sa mga ina ta, na di matapos a na mga panambitan
para sa mga ilo, mga balo ag mga rakop na pinasakitan
pag-arangan man Banwaan, yana kanimong katalingkasan.

Saka kun gab-i matawoban na kin riknum a kamposanto,
oda nag aantabay kundi mga guiraan na sanang gayo,
di pag ribuka a na muraway o bugawon a na misteryo.
Ag kun marungog mo a na tunog kin gitara o harpa,
ako yan payaba kong Banwaan, kanimo na nagkakanta

Pag ining linubngan kanako, di na basang mabisita
ni ono na basang krus o bato na natutudang tanda
ipaarado mo sa para-oma angan a raga iluyap niya.
A abo ko bago malopa na ag di na mapakinabangan,
bayaeng mapino ag maging polbo sa ragang kaiwasan.

Ang-gan sa di na kaipuwan na ako man marumruman
lilibutun ko an maiwas mong langit, bukid o patag
maludok ko ikang kakantahan ang-gan ika mananok
sa kolor, ta-mis ag ugong ka kanakong panambitan
sa pagkabo-ot ag pagmangno, sa kanimo na oda kataposan.

Payaba kong Banwaan, ika na kanakong kamondoan
Filipinas kining buway, ironga ining kanakong paaram
babayaan ko kanimo, mga kag-igin, mga nabotan.
Lugar na uda mga uripon, ana kanakong pai-iiyanan
kun sari a pagtubod buway saka Dios a kag kahadean.

Paaram, mga kag-igin, mga ngod, mga parte ko buway
mga kayamon ko sa pobreng baloy na naroromroman
mamuya kamo na ako umaabot na sa ka-ingaloan
paaram nakagnirit na dayowan, kaiba ko sa kamuyawan
paaram sa ngamin na nabootan, a pagraan kapa-ingaloan.

Moro Raids in Baao?

by P. B. Robosa

Some readers found my commentary on the image of 19th Century Baao surprising, if not hard to believe. What Moro raids? Moro raids on a place so far inland?

Moro raids were indeed a real danger for almost a century in the Bicol Region not excluding the town of Baao. Moros or Muslim raiders would wreak havoc on the coastal and inland towns of Bicol in search of loot and Christian slaves to be carried away to be sold or traded. Many of these towns, after being raided, would not recover and would disapper from the map. In the Rinconada area I can only assume that these raiders either entered the area from the Bicol river upon entering San Miguel Bay or through a land trail through one of the many gaps along the mountain range west of the region beside the China Sea. There are many accounts that the raids reached inland towns.

One of these recorded accounts, about the measures against them, was the one observed by Fr. Gomez-Platero then parish priest of Baao who recorded that sentinels(which were called with the Hispanized-Bicol word "bantayes") would roam the main streets of Baao ready to give the alarm.
A local account in Nabua recorded the instance when the Moros reached one of the outlying Barangays and the people took refuge in the parish church which was protected with "lantakas" or small cannons installed specifically for this purpose.

The failure of the provincial government to provide protection to the people, even after repeated petitions, elicited simply the province-wide instructions to make bladed weapons, bows and arrows and the setting up of an alarm system with sentinels and lookouts. The Battle of Tabgon Bay is almost unknown to our students but it was a Bikolano victory over these raiders. The threat of the Moros only ended in the close of the 19th Century upon the arrival of the steam-powered launch which could easily outrun and shoot their "vintas" out of the water. This happened more than a century ago and I still remember my Grandmother when as a child when misbehaving would silence me, "Paluway, marungog ngani ika kin mga Moro".

The Philippine Colors

by P. B. Robosa

A reader of this blog from Amsterdam, Peter Praggs, who studies flags, insists that I've got to make some modifications on my painting below. He writes " not only was the sun depicted with a mythological face but also the stars, and why is the Blue field on top if it was a time of war". I must disagree.

First, the painting is an interpretation of an event based on eyewitness accounts and the only part of the account I reconstructed is that it shows the dead and wounded being carried from the battle field on carabao drawn sleds and these casualties are being replaced from the rear, their comrades taking up the rifles where they fell and firing away. there was no mention of flags but by the gallant way the Bikolanos opened the fight and by military practice this is not impossible.

Second, from the accounts of the Americans, the flag captured is usually a personal battle standard, the Philippine flag was at its infancy and no rules was laid out as to its dimensions, size of the fields and proper color, but I depicted the Philippine flag from what I know from Aguinaldo's instruction, which was in use in the Bicol Region already at this time. someone did told me of the mythological faces on the stars, but I need to look into this.

Third, the practice of putting the Red field on top in times of war was suggested to Pres. Quezon when he laid out the practice of using the "Official Philippine Flag" in 1919. Although some historians who favor Aguinaldo, now insists that at the Battle of Alapan in 1898, the flag was carried into battle with the red field on top.

All these fascinates about history, its in the past but you do not run out of interesting things.

"The Philippine Colors are Removed from the Battlefied at the End of the Battle of Agdangan" by P.B.Robosa

Oil on canvas, Unfinished, dimensions 6ft x 9 ft, First Exhibited at "Exploring Expressions" P.B. Robosa's First One Man Show, UNC Museum. On permanent display at the Museum of Baaoeño Memory, St. Monica Academy, Baao, Camarines sur.

The 19th Century Image of Baao by J. Rizal's Bodyguard

by P. B. Robosa

Ten years ago, on my occasional visits to the Ayala museum, I came upon the exhibit entitled "The Two Joses". A show celebrating the works and the friendship of Jose Rizal and his one time companion and bodyguard, the Spanish Lieutenant of the Civil Guard, Jose Taviel de Andrade. At a time when photography was impractical, Andrade, a talented artist, recorded his travels through graphite sketches and gave us the only extant image of Baao (so far) in the 19th century. During his visit to the town on May 30, 1887, he made the above sketch.

 
A major pictorial zone of the sketch appears to be the town center showing at the background a roofed structure surrounded by a high fence. Houses appear to be scattered around this structure. Could this be the town marketplace? On the foreground appears to be a mound decorated with plants and a Cross planted at the center. Could this be a town memorial/monument to a Christian town or to the town founder St. Peter Baptist?

  The sketch make the village appear fortified against some danger, could the above sketch of a timber and grass bell tower be also an alarm system? The age of the Moro raids on the region was at its end, is this Baao--still fortified and prepared for a Moro raid?

  Could this poignant scene of a bony man and child reflective of the prevailing condition of the village at that time, depressed and impoverished or is this a random scene picked by Andrade of the people of the town?

Waiting for Christmas and the Lost Trees of Baao Park

by P. B. Robosa

This happy love of forgotten years,

shadowed beneath drooping leaves

of the rain trees and fire trees of old

could you not stay and bear the cold?

A little time more, in a heart's quickstep

join me on this vigil, in sleepy depth

the stars are beaming and the sun is lost

the bell tolling now for the day's ghost.

Bursting stars flowing behind clouds

of pale white angels with golden crowns

and the crystal moon brings silvery sheen

on this windy chill of September again.

The tranquil trees huddle in whisper
as we dream of them to again reappear
swaying stronger and stronger till December
but we awake as the cheap lights flicker.

A Model for Generations.

by P. B. Robosa

Bea Imperial Saw: Writing History Here and Now

History is written in hindsight, but history is created here and now. It is at the most welcome triumph of one of the daughters of Baao, Bea Imperial Saw that compelled me to write about her. Like all Filipinos I followed lightly but later on was transfixed to the TV set as the drama unfolded at the PBB House. Real life is really as dramatic if not more so than fiction. Characters that you see most of the time played from a script appear and happen in real life. I write history to find and show examples of heroism and admirable character so that they may be taught to the young in the hope that someday these are the kind of people they grow up to. Bea surprises me because in my lifetime I saw in her the traits that I only pick from my readings and sometimes make believe that they are inherent in my heroes. Unlike popular celebrities, Bea did not get to the hearts of the Filipinos because she was beautiful or one who knew how to sing, dance and act, but got to it because of her strength, fortitude and childlike humility all of them played out in front of a national audience. Her reactions towards the actions and counter-reactions of her anti-theses Wendy and the one I forgot already, plays out in my head and would be unforgetable through the years. It's like watching Manny Pacquiao slugging it out, except this time it was wits, feelings, words and actions instead of fists. It will be of no surprise that someday, if not one of these days, some writer would label her as the epitome of what is good, true and beautiful about the Filipina youth and worthy as a model of character for our troubled times. If Bea doesn't do a Nora Aunor later in life, again Baao is blessed with a Baaoeno of national stature to be added to our growing pantheon of worthy Baaoeno personalities. I may not be there to write about her so I'm taking my chance now.

Independence Day in Baao

The Spectacle of Independence Day Parades in Baao

P. B. Robosa

One of my fondest memories of youth in Baao are the yearly parades done to commemorate our Independence Day. I‘ve calculated the length of almost three decades that such a parade with floats, tableaus and participants with period costumes would remind or shock onlookers about vignettes of our history. My youthful interest then was aroused by the blood and gore that some scenes were played and made out of charcoal and red paint. I was too young to appreciate the historical details and significance of each display but today I could hold a short lecture for each of them to our unaware youth. Asking around, I learned that it was once a contest among Baao’s many organizations and interested individuals. I remembered my late father telling me stories of once he and his friends constructed a lumber, plywood and cement WWII tank with a bamboo barrel. The barrel was supposed to fire carbide gas explosions occasionally during the parade, but the “gunner” couldn’t come up with a good blast along the way, up until the “tank” reached the end of the parade when, in grand finale, a successful detonation split the bamboo canon in two.

These parades were held during the incumbency of the late Mayor Paulo L. Briones and probably participated in by civic minded organizations manned by members who were probably war veterans or who were used to or educated by such enactments. It was the heyday of Tito Dato and the ember days of Luis Dato, authorities both of our local and national histories so they probably had a hand into this. These efforts of our people in commemorating our struggles is truly remarkable and deserves not only our admiration but perhaps a revival of this practices to replace the present uninspiring celebrations of June 12. Jun Ramirez suggests we compile a wish list for Baao and definitely I’m including this on my list.

When construction workers were excavating the Barlin monument for its renovation, they found a marble plaque that read,” Dedicated to the Historic and Cultured People of Baao”, a part of the monument no doubt but is an apt description of the people of this town, let us live up to it, let us continue to be “Historic and Cultured”.

2007 Holy Week Images of Baao

01 Apr 07 Domingo de Ramos
02 Apr 07 Lunes Santo
03 Apr 07 Martes Santo
04 Apr 07 Miercules Santo
05 Apr 07 Hueves Santo
06 Apr 07 Viernes Santo
07 Apr 07 Sabado de Gloria
08 Apr 07 Domingo de Pascua

Historical Marker to Barlin's Birthplace

On the occasion of the centennary of Bishop's Jorge I. Barlin's ordination to the episcopacy, this monument was set up mark the place in Del Rosario, Baao, where this illustrious bishop was born.

Vox Bustinera - Renown Sculptor from Baao

This wooden statue of St. Joseph by Vox Bustinera, renown sculptor from Baao, now graces the corridor of Loyola School of Theology. Von's famous wood carvings of the Stations of the Cross are also displayed at the Church of the Gesu of the Ateneo de Manila University. [Click here for more photos]