GEC 2 - READINGS IN

PHILIPPINE HISTORY
CHAPTER 2 – LESSON 3: KARTILLA OF
KATIPUNAN
THE KARTILYA OF KATIPUNAN

KKK
The Kataastaasan, Kagalanggalangang
Katipunan ng mga Anak ng bayan (KKK) or
Katipunan is arguably the most important
The Katipunan Flag organization formed in the Philippine history.
While anti-colonial movements, efforts, and organizations
had already been established centuries prior to the foundation of
the Katipunan, it was only this organization that envisioned (1) a
united Filipino nation that would revolt against the Spaniards for
(2) the total independence of the country from Spain. Previous
armed revolts had already occurred before the foundation of the
Katipunan, but none of them envisioned a unified Filipino nation
revolting against the colonizers.
 Historical Content
The first move towards independence began on July 7, 1892 when the
Katipunan was established by Andres Bonifacio. This was the result of
the failure of the reform movement in Spain in which Filipinos
attempted to demand reforms for the Philippines from the Spanish
government. Bonifacio saw the futility of the efforts of the Filipino
propagandists and organized an underground movement against Spain.
The Kataastaasang Kagalang-galangang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng
Bayan or KKK was a revolutionary society that espoused independence
and freedom for the Philippines through force of arms. The first move
towards independence began on July 7, 1892 when the Katipunan was
established by Andres Bonifacio. This was the result of the failure of the
Reform Movement
 Its main objective was separation of the
Philippines from Spain and, at the same time, the
development of the Filipinos as citizens of their
own nation once independence was achieved.
The latter was done through the written works by
Bonifacio and fellow katipunero, Emilio Jacinto,
Andres Bonifacio
who wrote a number of poems and essays for the
society members.
The new members of the society were
indoctrinated with the Katipunan rules and its
teachings that emphasized the value of the love
of one’s country and fellow Filipinos.
Emilio Jacinto
Background of the Author
 Born on Dec. 15, 1875 in the district of Trozo in Tondo
 Living a life of poverty, Jacinto still managed to get a good education
 He finished his elementary education in a private school then took up his
secondary education at the Colegio de San Juan de Letran.
He later studied law at the University of Santo Tomas
where he developed a love of reading and improved
his skills in Spanish..
Jacinto joined the Katipunan in 1894 at the age of 18
and took the symbolic name Pingkian. It was during
this time that he devloped his nationalistic ideals.
He wrote the Kartilya as well as the oath of the
Katipuneros. He also edited the Katipunan newspaper,
Kalayaan, and was the author of several literary using
the pen-name “ Dimas Ilaw.”
Marker at Santa Maria Magdalena Parish in He died on April 6, 1899 because he contracted
Magdalena, Laguna, where he set up
headquarters while recuperating from a malaria in the town of Majayjay, Laguna
gunshot wound
 Historical Background of the Document
In his study of the Katipunan history and its documents, Jim Richardson
said that “ the Kartilya is the best known of all Katipunan texts”. And that
is “ the only document of any length set in print by the Katipunan prior to
August 1896 that is known to be still extant.”
Its term was derived from the Spanish cartilla which was the primer used
for grade school during the Spanish period. This document served as the
primary lessons for the members of the Katipunan.
The Kartilya presents not only the teachings for the neophyte Katipunero
but also the guiding principles of the society. These teachings are
expected from the members even after the attainment of freedom from
the colonizers.
The Kartilya was not just a document for the Katipunan. Its importance
today is predicated on the teachings that embodied the moral and
nationalistic principles of a nation that fought for independence.
 In the conduct of their struggle, Katipunan created a complex
structure and a defined value system that would guide the
organization as a collective aspiring for a single goal. One of the
most important Katipunan document was the Kartilya ng
Katipunan. The original title of the document was “Manga Aral
Nang Katipunan ng mga A.N.B.” or “Lessons of the Organization of
the Sons of the Country.”
The Kartilya can be treated as the Katipunan’s code of
conduct. It contains fourteen rules that instruct the way a
Katipunero should behave, and which specific values should be
upheld. Generally, the rules stated in the Kartilya can be classified
into two. The first group contains the rules that will make the
member an upright individual and the second group contains the
rules that will guide the way he treats his fellowmen.
Rules of the Association of the Sons of the People
I. The life that is not consecrated to a lofty and reasonable
purpose is a tree without shade, if not a poisonous weed.
II. To do good for personal gain and not for its own sake is not
virtue.
III. It is rational to be charitable and love one's fellow-creature,
and to adjust one's conduct, acts, and words to what is in
itself reasonable.
IV. Whether our skin be black or white, we are all born
equal: superiority in knowledge, wealth, and beauty
are to be understood, but not superiority by nature.
V. The honorable man prefers honor to personal gain, the
scoundrel, gain to honor.
VI. To the honorable man his word is sacred.
VII.Do not waste thy time: wealth can be recovered, but not the
time lost.
VIII. Defend the oppressed and fight the oppressor before the
law or in the field.
IX. The prudent man is sparing in words and faithful in keeping
secrets.
X. On the thorny path of life, man is the guide of woman and of
the children, and if the guide leads to precipices, those whom
he guides will also go there.
XI. Thou must not look upon woman as a mere plaything, but as
a faithful companion who will share with thee the penalties of
life; her weakness will increase thy interest in her and she will
remind thee of the mother who bore thee and reared thee.
XII.What thou dost not desire done unto thy wife, children,
brothers and sisters, that do not unto the wife, children,
brothers, and sisters of thy neighbor.
XIII. Man is not worth more because he is a king, because
his nose is aquiline and his color white, nor because he is a
priest, a servant of God, nor because of the high prerogative
that he enjoys upon earth, but he is worth most who is a
man of proven and real value, who does good, keeps his
word, is worthy and honest; he who does not oppress, nor
consent to being oppressed, he who loves and cherishes his
fatherland, though he be born in the wilderness and know no
tongue but his own.
XIV. When these rules of conduct shall be known to
all and the longed-for sun of Liberty shall rise
brilliant over this most unhappy portion of the globe
and its rays shall diffuse everlasting joy among the
confederated brethren of the same race, the lives of
those who have gone before, the fatigues, and the
wellpaid suffering will remain. If he who desires to
enter has informed himself of all this and believes
he will be able to perform what will be his duties, he
may fill out the following application for admission.“
Analysis of the “Kartilya ng Katipunan”
This primary source needs to be analyzed in terms of content
and context. As a document written for a fraternity whose main
purpose is to overthrow a colonial regime, we can explain the
content and provisions of the Kartilya as a reaction and response
to certain value systems that they found despicable in the present
state of things that they struggled against with.
For example, the fourth and the thirteenth rules in the Kartilya
are an invocation of the inherent equality between and among men
regardless of race, occupation, or status. In this context of the
Spanish colonial era where the indios were treated as the inferior
of the white Europeans, the Katipunan saw to it that the alternative
order that they wished to promulgate through their revolution
necessarily destroyed this kind of unjust hierarchy.
 Moreover, one can analyze the values upheld in the documents
as consistent with the burgeoning rational and liberal ideals in the
eighteenth and nineteenth century. Equality, tolerance, freedom,
and liberty were values that first emerged in the eighteenth century
French Revolution, which spread throughout Europe and reached
the educated class of the colonies.
Aside from the liberal values that can be dissected in the
document, we can also decipher certain Victorian and chivalrous
values in the text. For example, various provisions in the Kartilya
repeatedly emphasized the importance of honor in words and in
action. For example, in the tenth rule, the document specifically
stated that men should be the guide of women and children, and
that women should be treated as companions by men and not as
playthings that can be exploited for their pleasure.
 Indeed, it can be argued that Katipunan’s recognition of women
as important partners in the struggle, as reflected not just in Kartilya
but also in the organizational structure of the fraternity were women’s
unit was established, is an endeavor advanced for its time. Aside
from Rizal’s known Letter to the Women of Malolos, no same effort by
the supposed cosmopolitan Propaganda Movement was achieved
until the movement’s eventual disintegration in the latter part of the
1890s.
Aside from this, the Kartilya was instructive not just of the
Katipunan’s conduct toward other people, but also for the member’s
development as individuals in their own rights. Generally speaking,
the rules in the Kartilya can be classified as either directed to how
one should treat his neighbor or how one should develop and
conduct one’s self. Both are essential to the success and fulfillment of
the Katipunan’s ideals.
References:

1. Evelyn J. Grey, Ph.D. and Ryan D. Biong, M.A. Ed.

“Readings in Philippine History.” Malones Printing Press and
Publishing House. Door 32, Zerrudo Commercial Complex,
E. Lopez St., Jaro , Iloilo, Philippines. Copyright 2017.
2. Jose Victor Torres. “BATIS: Sources in Philippine History.” C
and E Publishing, Inc. 839 EDSA, South Triangle, Quezon
City, 2018.
3. John Lee P. Candelaria and Veronica C. Alporha. Readings
in Philippine History. 856 Nicanor Reyes Sr., St., Sampaloc,
Manila. 2018