José Cecilio Corazón de Jesús y Pangilinan (November 22, 1896 – May 26, 1932), also known by his pen name Huseng Batute, was a Filipino poet who used

Tagalog Tagalog may refer to: Language * Tagalog language, a language spoken in the Philippines ** Old Tagalog, an archaic form of the language ** Batangas Tagalog, a dialect of the language * Tagalog script, the writing system historically used for Tagal ...

poetry to express the Filipinos' desire for independence during the

American occupation of the Philippines American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

, a period that lasted from 1901 to 1946. He is best known for being the "Hari ng Balagtasan" ( King of

Balagtasan ''Balagtasan'' is a Filipino form of debate done in verse. Derived from the name of Francisco Balagtas also known as the Prince of Balagtasan, this art presents a type of literature in which thoughts or reasoning are expressed through speech. ...

), and for being the

lyricist A lyricist is a writer who writes lyrics (the spoken words), as opposed to a composer, who writes the song's music which may include but not limited to the melody, harmony, arrangement and accompaniment. Royalties A lyricist's income derives ...

of the Filipino patriotic song "

Bayan Ko "Bayan Ko" (usually translated as "My Country"; ) is a Filipino patriotic song. It was written in Spanish language in the Philippines, Spanish by the Philippine Revolution, revolutionary general José Alejandrino in light of the Philippine–Ame ...

Early life

De Jesús was born on November 22, 1896 in

Santa Cruz, Manila Santa Cruz is a district in the northern part of the Manila, City of Manila, Philippines, located on the right bank of the Pasig River near its mouth. It is bordered by the districts of Tondo, Manila, Tondo, Binondo, Manila, Binondo, Quiapo, Ma ...

, to Vicente de Jesús, the first health bureau director of the American occupation government, and Susana Pangilinan of

Pampanga Pampanga, officially the Province of Pampanga (; ; ), is a province in Central Luzon in the Philippines. Lying on the northern shore of Manila Bay, Pampanga is bordered by Tarlac to the north, Nueva Ecija to the northeast, Bulacan to the east, ...

. He was christened ''José Cecilio de Jesús'' but he later dropped ''Cecilio'' and replaced it with the Spanish name ''Corazón'' (heart) because he said it best described his character. De Jesús spent his childhood in Santa Maria, his father's hometown. He completed his education at the

Liceo de Manila Manila Central University (MCU), formerly known as the Escuela de Farmacia del Liceo de Manila, is a private, non-sectarian, stock basic and higher education institution located on EDSA, Caloocan, Philippines. It was founded in 1904 by Alejand ...

, where he graduated in 1916.

King of the Balagtasan

On March 28, 1924, de Jesús and other leading Tagalog writers met at a women's school in Tondo,

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

, under the auspices of Filipino educator

Rosa Sevilla Rosa or De Rosa may refer to: Plants and animals * ''Rosa'' (plant), the genus of roses *Rosa (sea otter), a sea otter that has become popular on the internet *Rosa (cow), a Spanish-born cow People * Rosa (given name) *Rosa (surname) *Santa R ...

, to discuss how to celebrate the birth anniversary of Tagalog poet

Francisco Balagtas Francisco Balagtas y de la Cruz (April 2, 1788 – February 20, 1862), commonly known as Francisco Balagtas and also as Francisco Baltazar, was a Filipino poet and litterateur of the Tagalog language during the Spanish rule of the Philippines. ...

on April 2. They decided to hold a ''duplo'', or a dramatic debate in verse that was in its waning days in the 1920s. They changed the format of the duplo and renamed it ''

balagtasan ''Balagtasan'' is a Filipino form of debate done in verse. Derived from the name of Francisco Balagtas also known as the Prince of Balagtasan, this art presents a type of literature in which thoughts or reasoning are expressed through speech. ...

'' in honor of Balagtas. There were three pairs of poets who participated in the first balagtasan on April 6, 1924 at the defunct ''Instituto de Mujeres'' (Women's Institute), founded by Sevilla, but the audience were most impressed by de Jesús and another Filipino poet, Florentino Collantes. The balagtasan was an instant hit, later became a common feature in Manila's biggest and most expensive theaters until the 1950s. De Jesús and Collantes were pitted against each other in a contrived rivalry and a showdown was set for October 18, 1925 at the Olympic Stadium. De Jesús was acclaimed winner of the showdown and was dubbed "Hari ng Balagtasan" (king of versified debate). He held the title until his death in 1932.

Death

De Jesús contracted an

ulcer An ulcer is a discontinuity or break in a bodily membrane that impedes normal function of the affected organ. According to Robbins's pathology, "ulcer is the breach of the continuity of skin, epithelium or mucous membrane caused by sloughin ...

during the filming of ''Oriental Blood'' and died of ulcer complications on May 26, 1932. He was survived by his wife Asunción Lacdan de Jesús and children Teresa, José Jr., and Rogelio. Upon his death, his heart was donated to a government museum where it was preserved until it was buried with his mother. He was finally interred at the

Manila North Cemetery The Manila North Cemetery (Spanish: ''Cementerio del Norte'') is one of the oldest cemeteries in Metro Manila, Philippines. The cemetery is owned by and located in the City of Manila, the national capital, and is one of the largest in the met ...

where he was buried under a tree, as he wished in his poems ''Isang Punong Kahoy'' (One

Tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, e.g., including only woody plants with secondary growth, only ...

) and ''Ang Akasya'' (The

Acacia ''Acacia'', commonly known as wattles or acacias, is a genus of about of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa, South America, and Austral ...

). Many of his descendants now live in Canada, the United States as well as the Philippines, carrying on the family name of Aguila, as only his daughter Teresa, married and had children.

Selected works

José Corazón de Jesús's works appeared on several magazines and newspapers, notably ''Ang Democracia'', ''Taliba'', ''Liwayway'', ''ang buhay sa nddu'' and ''Sampagita''. In addition, his works have appeared in various anthologies and textbooks from grade school to college. Among his more popular works are: *''Ang Manok Kong Bulik'' ("My White Rooster", 1911) - a poem about a country man's misfortune in

cockfighting Cockfighting is a blood sport involving domesticated roosters as the combatants. The first documented use of the word gamecock, denoting use of the cock as to a "game", a sport, pastime or entertainment, was recorded in 1634, after the term ...

*''Barong Tagalog'' (1921) - poem written after the Filipino

national costume Folk costume, traditional dress, traditional attire or folk attire, is clothing of an ethnic group, nation or region, and expresses cultural, religious or national identity. An ethnic group's clothing may also be called ethnic clothing or ethnic ...

*''Ang Pagbabalik'' ("Homecoming", 1924) *''Ang Pamana'' ("The Legacy", 1925) *''Isang Punongkahoy'' ("A Tree", 1932) Some of his poems were set into music; among these are: *''

'' ("My Country", 1929) - music by Constancio de Guzman *''Pakiusap'' ("A Request") - music by

Francisco Santiago Francisco Santiago Santiago (January 29, 1889 – September 28, 1947) was a Filipino musician, sometimes called ''The Father of Kundiman Art Song''. Life Santiago was born in Santa Maria, Bulacan, Philippines, to musically minded peasan ...

References

* Almario, Virgilio S. ''Art and Politics in the Balagtasan''. Los Angeles: UCLA Center for Southeast Asian Studies, 2003. * Almario, Virgilio S. ''Jose Corazon de Jesus: Mga Piling Tula'' ("Jose Corazon de Jesus: Selected Poems"). Manila: De La Salle University Press Inc., 1984. Reprinted 1995. . * National Historical Institute, ''Filipinos in History'' Volume 1. Manila: National Historical Institute, 1995

External links