In celebration of the sesquicentennial (150th) birth anniversary of Dr. Jose Rizal, the Philippine's national hero, I am posting my poem composed in 2000, in honor to the divine being who is immortalized by the religious sect, called "Rizalista" at Mount Banahaw. The said poem can also be read in my upcoming and soon to be published novel, entitled "The Circle of Avengers". The poem is also translated into Filipino. By Chester B. Cabalza
And we are the New Jerusalem
in a holy, mysterious mountain,
abundant with natural bounty;
tranquil, clean, beautiful, holy place;
clear skies, cloud formations, ablaze,
and enriches a potent space.
listen to the calm sound of winds,
the powerful voice of this wonder,
its trees, streams, rocks, plants, and caves.
we hear its mystical lores and myths,
even its spirituality,
and that make our paces so surreal...
this is our life, this is our story
we are waiting for our messiah
we believe He shall come, we shall know
we are the chosen ones, yes, we are,
this is our belief, this is our lore,
and we are the New Jerusalem!
we can be mystical, we wear
all white, and this symbolizes our
cleanliness, and yes we shall be saved.
bare foot, devotees’ messiah,
we hold amulets, white candles,
lit in our spiritual ritual...
we come to worship, praise, worship, praise,
and like those esteemed heroes, we praise
Jose Rizal, our savior and our
hero, and if not, who else shall be
our savior, our redeemer, our lord?
he shall save us, and our countrymen?
many have tried traversing this path,
in this mystical mountain, the likes
of Bernardo Carpio, Hermano
Pule, come all of you and let’s trek
its mountains, stations, creeks, and caves
and renew our hearts and convert our souls.
This is a holy mountain; this is
like Sinai, Tibet. devotees
climb the summit awaiting the time
and all set for the final judgment!
and when the hour has come, we are
blessed. this is our gift to all people!
come and see the temple! come and see,
its simple disciples, priestesses,
and saints on top of colossal rocks,
inside the grottos, we can feel peace,
inner peace, yes we deem, inner peace,
gardens, streams, roots of ancient trees
can heal sins, sickness. O spirits come
heal us, cleanse our souls, purify us!
breathe a soothing air, O spirits
deliver us from worldly powers,
listen to our pleas, O spirits
all devotees shall praise and worship
wearing all those white garments, lit the
candles, for spiritual ritual...
we come to worship, praise, worship, praise
and like those esteemed heroes, we praise
Jose Rizal, our savior, our saint.
Banahaw! Banahaw! claim our souls!
and when shall our redeemer come? when?
and we are the New Jerusalem!
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