When, after the day’s shared work was done, our ancestors would be sitting around in a circle, perhaps around a communal fire, under a starry night, perhaps drinking some rice wine, while discussing village concerns or simply sharing their stories.) (And with that, we can imagine a time when life and work was more communal. The word Kapwa refers us to that “space” that we share with others as fellow-Filipinos and fellow-human beings, sensing that “space” as being both a psychic and physical space. Ka– a union that refers to any kind of relationship, a union, with everyone and everything. It seems that the word originated from two words: Researching into the origin of the word “Kapwa”, I came across this. Kapwa Ko, Mahal Ko (Love my Fellowman) is a decades-long public service program that has been providing assistance to the poor and the needy. Its rival network is the Kapamilya Network, meaning belonging to the same family. One TV network is known as Kapuso, kapuso meaning being one at heart. Kaanak means one’s kin root word being “anak” which means sons and daughters.įilipino media has capitalized on the deep registers these words have on the Filipino psyche. Kasama means someone I am with, the root word “sama” means “to be with or be together with.” Kaibigan means friend the root word is “ibig” which means to love. The root word “akbay” conjures images of lifting up, shoulder on shoulder. When Filipinos meet other fellow Filipinos, that instant recognition and connection spark up because, we are, kababayan. Kababayan means my fellow-countryman root word– bayan, country. This sense of a shared identity is reflected in many Tagalog words, words that carry with it sentiments and feelings that resonate at a subliminal level. I can’t help but reflect on how powerful this deep, age-old Filipino sentiment can be when rekindled and placed in action, in our homes, communities, schools or workplaces and yes, especially in our social and political life today. That sense of having a common human identity, community and destiny lies deep in our psyche…It’s the translation in our particular culture and history of a universal truth that tells us to treat others the way we ourselves want to be treated because at our innermost core we have a shared humanity. It means connecting myself with others, feeling myself in the other and having a sense of shared identity and a shared inner self. We are Kapwa People.” - Professor Virgilio Enriquez, founder of Sikolohiyang Pilipino. If we can do this – even starting in our own family or our circle of friends – we are on the way to practice peace. Why? Because implied in such inclusiveness is the moral obligation to treat one another as equal fellow human beings. This Filipino linguistic unity of the self and the other is unique and unlike in most modern languages. “Kapwa is a recognition of a shared identity, an inner self, shared with others.
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