Day 87: Bahala Na in Four Lines
In a philosophy seminar at UP Diliman, Noel (A), Jea (B) and Rafael (C) take turns arguing whether "bahala na" is fatalism or courage, the question Professor Edwin (D) set them, each in a tanaga of their own, the old four-line poem of seven syllables a line.
How to study this lesson 3 steps
- Read the situation under the title. It says who is talking and how they know each other, which decides how politely they speak.
- Read the dialogue line by line with its translation, until every line makes sense.
- Spend at least 30 minutes listening to native Tagalog. It doesn't matter if you don't understand it yet.
Dialogue
Audio for this lesson is coming soon. For now, read the dialogue and its translation.
Keys: E hide English · ← → previous / next day
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A
Ako po muna, Sir: "Sa bawat bahala na, may gawaing nawala; nakatanghod sa grasya, sa langit umaasa."
I'll go first, Sir: "With every 'bahala na,' some task is left undone; we stand there gaping for grace, our hopes pinned on the sky."
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B
Pasado ang sukat, pero mali ang basa mo: "Hindi ito pagsuko, kundi tapang sa dulo; tumalon sa malabo kahit walang pangako."
The meter passes, but your reading's wrong: "It isn't giving up, it's courage at the edge; a leap into the unclear, with nothing promised."
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C
Pasado. Pero kung tapang iyan, bakit iyan din ang sinasabi ng estudyanteng hindi nag-review?
That passes too. But if it's courage, why is it also what every student who didn't review says?
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D
Magandang tanong, Rafael. E ikaw, nasaan ang tanaga mo?
Good question, Rafael. And you, where's your tanaga?
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C
Mayroon po, Sir: "Ginawa ko ang lahat, ang plano'y isinulat; at sa hindi masukat, bahala na ang sapat."
I have one, Sir: "I did all I could, I wrote the plan down; and for what can't be measured, bahala na will do."
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A
Pito lahat, pero dinaya mo ang tanong. Kapag may plano ka, hindi na bahala na 'yan, insurance na.
Seven syllables each, but you cheated on the question. If you've got a plan, that's not bahala na anymore, that's insurance.
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B
Hindi, iyan nga ang punto niya: bahala na para sa bahaging hindi kayang planuhin.
No, that's exactly his point: bahala na is for the part you can't plan.
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D
Sandali. Tatlong tanaga, tatlong tugma, tatlong magkakaibang sagot. Kaya bang patunayan ng tugma ang kahit ano?
Hold on. Three tanagas, three rhymes, three different answers. Can a rhyme prove anything at all?
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B
Hindi po, Sir. Pero may pag-aaral po na mas pinaniniwalaan ng tao ang pahayag na may tugma, kahit hindi naman mas totoo.
No, Sir. But there's a study showing people find a statement more believable when it rhymes, even when it's no truer.
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D
Iyan ang panganib ng tula sa pilosopiya. Sa Huwebes, sanaysay na, walang tugma, at ang grado ninyo, bahala na.
That's the danger of poetry in philosophy. By Thursday, an essay, no rhymes, and your grades? Bahala na.
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