Hero As Redeemer: Rediscovering Jose Rizal
HERO AS REDEEMER
Rediscovering Jose Rizal
31 August 2006: I just finished my revision of my earlier book, indios bravos! Jose Rizal As Messiah Of The Redemption, which I published last year, December 2005. The next edition is for December 2006, to commemorate the 110th anniversary of his martyrdom. That 1st edition came out with quite a few revelations on the most documented national hero of the world, including the hidden title of the poem, ‘Adios, Patria Adorada.’ Apt image by Ngarat Hinliliit who captions it ‘Rizal Psychedelic’ (flickr.com/) – if there is a correct view of Rizal, this approximates it. He was multi-faceted, as all those who reads Gregorio F Zaide’s book knows: Jose Rizal: Life, Works & Writings.
In the new version of indios bravos! I offer a brand-new translation of Rizal’s farewell poem, my 4th, which I have titled ‘Adios, Beloved Country.’ I have also retitled my book, HERO AS REDEEMER: Rediscovering Jose Rizal, to emphasize the fact that we have much to discover about our own national hero, such as that Rizal was not a patriot! and that the most beloved of all translations of his valedictory poem, Charles Derbyshire’s is the most un-Rizal of all.
