Superstitions are part of our culture, its one of the few things that make us ‘Filipinos’. But there’s a downside to it, we’re so sentimental that we can’t let go of old beliefs, the result is—we can’t move forward.
Superstitions bring bad luck than good
Superstitions are not only exclusive to the Philippines but it's a worldwide phenomenon. But what differs us from our counterparts, say the US, is that we cling too much to it. Aside from being a hindrance to success, it brings bad luck than good.
One thing I hate about Filipinos is this phrase, “You should be contented of what you have”. Aside from sounding moronic, we have the right to demand more. This belief is one of the reasons why Filipinos accept the current situation without even risking forward. If you earn 300 Pesos a day, why not strive to earn a thousand more?
“The biggest risk is not taking any risk... In a world that changing really quickly, the only strategy that is guaranteed to fail is not taking risks.”
- Mark Zuckerberg
Well, I can’t blame them actually, we’ve been colonized and been slaves for quite many times and it helped develop colonial mentality. Filipinos are used to having masters feeding them while they do the hard work, when in fact, we’re so hard-working that we can even compete with our ‘masters’.
We believe too much on luck, adopted a Feng Shui concept without even knowing that the Chinese are filthy rich not because of their Feng Shui but because of hard work and taking opportunities. The top richest people in the Philippines are Chinese immigrants, and obviously, they did not become successful today because of their own Feng Shui beliefs.
Take Henry Sy’s [The richest man in the Philippines] quote for example:
“There is no such thing as overnight success or easy money. If you fail, do not be discouraged; try again. When you do well, do not change your ways. Success is not just good luck: it is a combination of hard work, good credit standing, opportunity, readiness and timing. Success will not last if you do not take care of it.”
And it has nothing to do with the Feng Shui folks even though he’s Chinese.
Hyperreligiosity
Come on, as if you don’t know we’re ‘over religious’. Hey, I’m not discouraging faith, since I am a believer of God myself, but, saying that it is God’s will that control all of your life is rubbish to me, we were given the free will. Why not work hard and thank God for the opportunity that occurred in your life instead of being content with little things you have?
Job was a loyal believer of God, he wasn’t contented of the ‘little things’, he worked hard and thank God for every blessing. By the way, he owned hectares of land and thousands of sheeps. [Bible]
Well, Vatican City is not a poor state either. Google it!
Blame the media as well
Our local media played a very big role in keeping Filipinos stupid. Instead of showing more science, history, and mathematics in the daily shows, they keep on producing dramas, non-sense comedies and teenage love affairs that only promote pregnancy. Change must come to our media as well.
Science and Religion can work together for progress
For the Philippines to progress, there must be a balance between science and faith. Hyperreligiosity only made the priests and all the churches filthy rich while we Filipinos, who cling too much on religion, failed to progress.
Even the Petition to Support the House and Senate Bills to Enact the Philippine Space Agency [Change.org] only got 213 supporters while a petition to bring down Mocha Uson’s page got thousands. How disappointing.
Filipinos must abandon Superstition and embrace progress through science, mathematics, history and a big faith to our people to keep us going. Let go of the old saying, “I must hold on to this belief because it is the belief that I grew up with (Ito na yung paniniwala na kinalakihan ko e, bat ko pa ba bibitawan?)”. It is like saying that the Earth is flat and is the center of the Universe.
But it’s a long journey ahead and change starts within us. So why not use the abundance of the internet to learn a lot of science eh? There are tons of documentaries out there to get you started, and also, don’t forget to research if climate change is real or not, I mean, that’s a good start of becoming objective in a country full of stupid superstitions and beliefs.
Let me end the article with this quote:
“In the age of information, ignorance is a choice.” ― Donny Miller
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