“La Indolencia de los Filipinos”

THE INDOLENCE OF THE FILIPINO

The Indolence of the Filipinos is a study of the causes why the people did not, as was said, work hard during the
Spanish regime. Rizal pointed out that long before the coming of the Spaniards; the Filipinos were industrious and
hardworking. The Spanish reign brought about a decline in economic activities because of certain causes:
First, the establishment of the Galleon Trade cut off all previous associations of the Philippines with other
countries in Asia and the Middle East. As a result, business was only conducted with Spain through Mexico.
Because of this, the small businesses and handicraft industries that flourished during the pre-Spanish period
gradually disappeared.
Second, Spain also extinguished the natives’ love of work because of the implementation of forced labor.
Because of the wars between Spain and other countries in Europe as well as the Muslims in Mindanao, the
Filipinos were compelled to work in shipyards, roads, and other public works, abandoning agriculture, industry,
and commerce.
Third, Spain did not protect the people against foreign invaders and pirates. With no arms to defend
themselves, the natives were killed, their houses burned, and their lands destroyed. As a result of this, the Filipinos
were forced to become nomads, lost interest in cultivating their lands or in rebuilding the industries that were shut
down, and simply became submissive to the mercy of God.
Fourth, there was a crooked system of education, if it was to be considered an education. What we’re being
taught in the schools were repetitive prayers and other things that could not be used by the students to lead the
country to progress. There were no courses in Agriculture, Industry, etc., which were badly needed by the
Philippines during those times.
Fifth, the Spanish rulers were a bad example to despise manual labor. The officials reported to work at
noon and left early, all the while doing nothing in line with their duties. The women were seen constantly followed
by servants who dressed them and fanned them – personal things which they ought to have done for themselves.
Sixth, gambling was established and widely propagated during those times. Almost every day there were
cockfights, and during feast days, the government officials and friars were the first to engage in all sorts of bets
and gambles.
Seventh, there was a crooked system of religion. The friars taught the naïve Filipinos that it was easier for a
poor man to enter heaven, and so they preferred not to work and remain poor so that they could easily enter
heaven after they died.
Lastly, the taxes were extremely high, so much so that a huge portion of what they earned went to the
government or to the friars. When the object of their labor was removed and they were exploited, they were
reduced to inaction.
Rizal admitted that the Filipinos did not work so hard because they were wise enough to adjust themselves
to the warm, tropical climate. “An hour’s work under that burning sun, in the midst of pernicious influences
springing from nature in activity, is equal to a day’s labor in a temperate climate.”
 INTERPRETATION

Jose Rizal’s The Indolence of the Filipinos is a self-defense against the hatred and calumnies of the oppressors who
condemn the Filipinos as inert, unresponsive and useless. I disagree on what those people say that Filipino workers
are unskilled, untrained, misguided, irresponsibly haughty, intoxicated with show, romp and glory, and
unconcerned with the intrinsic value of work. It’s not a concrete reasons or basis for them to conclude that
Filipinos are indolent. Filipinos were in fact hardworking people who are very dedicated with their works. It is
more right to say that indolence of Filipinos is he effect, not the cause, of Philippine backwardness. They way
Spaniards treated the Filipinos made them indolent. They snatched the land of Filipinos and work for their own
soil without benefiting from it. They made Filipinos believe that rich people have no place in heaven and poor’s
have, making them give more offerings, because of wrong doctrines of the church, to the extent of leaving nothing
for them. Rizal admits that indolence among the Filipinos exists, but there could be numbers of reasons behind it.
He traces its causes to factors such as the climate and social disorders. He defends the Filipinos by saying that they
are by nature not indolent, because in fact, Filipinos have been engaged in economic activities such as agriculture
and trade even before the arrival of Spaniards. In the end, Rizal summarizes the main causes of indolence to the
limited training and education Filipino natives receive and to the lack of national sentiment and unity among them.
According to Rizal, education and liberty would be the cure to Filipino indolence.
It is important to note that indolence in the Philippines is a chronic malady, but not a hereditary one. Truth is,
before the Spaniards arrived on these lands, the natives were industriously conducting business with China, Japan,
Arabia, Malaysia, and other countries in the Middle East. The reasons for this said indolence were clearly stated in
the essay, and were not based only on presumptions, but were grounded on fact taken from history.
Another thing that we might add that had caused this indolence, is the lack of unity among the Filipino people. In
the absence of unity and oneness, the people did not have the power to fight the hostile attacks of the government
and of the other forces of society. There would also be no voice, no leader, to sow progress and to cultivate it, so that
it may be reaped in due time. In such a condition, the Philippines remained a country that was lifeless, dead,
simply existing and not living. As Rizal stated in conclusion, “a man in the Philippines is an individual; he is not
merely a citizen of a country.” It can clearly be deduced from the writing that the cause of the indolence attributed
to our race is Spain: When the Filipinos wanted to study and learn, there were no schools, and if there were any,
they lacked sufficient resources and did not present more useful knowledge; when the Filipinos wanted to establish
their businesses, there wasn’t enough capital nor protection from the government; when the Filipinos tried to
cultivate their lands and establish various industries, they were made to pay enormous taxes and were exploited by
the foreign rulers.
It is not only the Philippines, but also other countries, that may be called indolent, depending on the criteria upon
which such a label is based. Man cannot work without resting, and if in doing so he is considered lazy, they we
could say that all men are indolent. One cannot blame a country that was deprived of its dignity, to have lost its
will to continue building its foundation upon the backs of its people, especially when the fruits of their labor do not
so much as reach their lips. When we spend our entire lives worshipping such a cruel and inhumane society, forced
upon us by aliens who do not even know our motherland, we are destined to tire after a while. We are not fools, we
are not puppets who simply do as we are commanded – we are human beings, who are motivated by our will
towards the accomplishment of our objectives, and who strive for the preservation of our race. When this
fundamental aspect of our existence is denied of us, who can blame us if we turn idle?

REFERENCE: www.bohol.ph/books/Indolence.html

TRIVIA/S: 1.) The Indolence of the Filipinos is the longest essay of Rizal. It was published in five installments in
the La Solidaridad from July 15 to September 15, 1890.
2.) This essay represents his defense of the Filipinos from the charge that they were inherently lazy or
indolent.
3.) This was written as a response to the accusation of Indio or Malay’s Indolence.

ANGELIKA M. ROSARIO
BSE FILIPINO 1-A