Mabini150

Mabini150: The Mabini Shrine and Museum

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Today marks the commemoration itself of Apolinario Mabini’s 150th birth anniversary. What better way to close off this special than a feature on the house that has long been talked about: Mabini’s Nagtahan house now known as the Mabini Shrine in its new and permanent “home” right at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines’ (PUP) main campus, which is also known as the Mabini Campus.  (even before the move of the shrine) While it may seem odd to find such a house looking out of place in the middle of a busy campus, it does seem to complement the campus in a way, serving as a sort of a quiet spot that is insulated from all the activity going on around it.

Its transfer in 2009 was made possible thanks in part to the efforts of the PUP President at that time, Dr. Dante Guevarra. For the move, the house was actually taken apart and put back piece by piece in such a way that it remained faithful to the original house’s design. In 2010, it was decreed that the PUP site would be the permanent home of the shrine, thus ensuring its legacy from any possible future movements.

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Mabini150: Mabini and Nagtahan

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If there is one place in the metropolis that has a solid association with Apolinario Mabini, it would be the road and the neighborhood called Nagtahan which straddles between the present-day districts of San Miguel and Santa Mesa in the City of Manila.

flyover at Nagtahan, 2014

Nagtahan got its name from a word in Tagalog which means to stop or end. It was named so because in the olden days, Calle Nagtahan was a dead end, ending a few meters before the bank of the Pasig River. Despite that, it grew as a rural suburb of Manila during the late Spanish colonial period as some decided to take residence in the area. One of them happened to be Apolinario Mabini’s brother, Agapito, who married a woman belonging to a somewhat landed family, the Del Rosarios.

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Mabini150: The Dekalogo Exhibit

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If you have been to Ayala Triangle recently, you may have seen this photo exhibit at the middle of the park which has something to do with Apolinario Mabini and the commemoration of his upcoming 150th birthday. This exhibit is called “Dekalogo” and it is not just any photo exhibit about Mabini, this is an exhibit that has brought to life one of his well-known writings, The True Decalogue.

The True Decalogue was first printed on June 24, 1898, 12 days after the declaration of Philippine Independence. Mabini at that time served as an adviser to Aguinaldo’s revolutionary government, which at that time was busy laying out the foundations of the new republic. It was in this time of new-found freedom and transition that Mabini wrote The True Decalogue to help serve as a moral and ethical guide for the new nation to live by, just as how the Ten Commandments is for Jews and Christians alike.

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Mabini150: An Introduction

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On July 23*, the Philippines will commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of one of the leading intellectuals who played a vital role in the Philippine Revolution, notably for his role as president of the cabinet in the revolutionary government, and Philippine history. That man is Apolinario Mabini, also as the “sublime paralytic” (which sounds too awkward and politically incorrect today) and “brains of the revolution.” (which pertains more to him being one of the revolution’s leading intellectuals rather than the one who masterminded the revolution itself)

the official logo of the Mabini150 commemoration (courtesy of designwagen)

In honor of this esteemed, if somewhat overlooked, figure in our history on this particular milestone, the Urban Roamer is dedicating a series of stories related to the man whose ideals still resonate today. But before anything else, I suppose it would be apt by starting this off by finding out a bit more about his life and his legacy, shedding light behind the tagline of this commemoration as “talino at paninindigan.” (intelligence and integrity)

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