KAMALAYSAYAN is actually a word with two distinct but very closely inter-related meanings. The first is a common noun, a coined word in Filipino for "kamalayan sa kasaysayan" or sense of history; the second is a proper noun, referring to a formal organization organized in late 1991 as a campaign network. This association was born as the Kampanya para sa Kamalayan sa Kasaysayan, which sought to campaign for an appropriate commemoration of the then forthcoming founding centennial of the orga-nization that started the revolution and birthed our nationhood -- Kataas-taasan, Kagalang-galangang Katipinan ng mga Anak ng Bayan, more popularly known as Katipunan.

Ed Aurelio C. Reyes has harbored long before this a keen sense of history. About two years before he had written The Philippines, A Century Thence, an open letter to Rizal. Earlier, he wrote under a penname a novel patterned after Rizal's Noli Me Tangere, and also wrote, under another penname, an open letter to the American people about Philippine-American relations for almost a century and it began with the words "Fourscore and seven years ago..." By that time, he had already learned as an editor-level journalist the value of familiarity with history that he had disliked as a subject when he was a student. Seeing that there were almost no prepa-rations being made by the government or even by non-government entities for that centennial, Reyes decided with some friends to organize an association for it and for the general purpose of helping develop among our people a keen sense of history -- familiarity with the main strands of Philippine history so that its lessons could be used to inspire and guide present-day decision-making and opinion leadership.

We started by making a list of people for a "pool of advisers and campaigners," and called them up one by one to invite them to join in. They did. But most were not really available for hectic preparatory work for a commemoration about half a year ahead, so ground-work had to be done by a pair of enthusiasts, namely Dr. Helen N. Mendoza and Reyes, as director-general and overall coordinator, respectively.. By July 7, Katipunan founding cantennial, Kamalaysayan successfully mounted Katipunan, Sandaan! with such activities as the first-ever Pagtitipon ng mga Anak ng Bayan solemn ceremony centered on the "Kartilya ng Katipunan" and the Katipunan, Sandaan! Concert, both held at the Cultural Center of the Philippines complex, with a Filipiniana books exhibit and storytelling-for-children sessions in the same venue. Member-entities of Kamalaysayan mounted a very successful nationwide song-writing contest that culminated in another concert and produced a audio-cassette tape for more popularization. The final output of this festival was the Katipunan, Sandaan! souvenir magazine.

Four years later, with Kamalaysayan already formalized and registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Kartilya-centered Pagtitipon ceremony spreading throughout the country and even overseas,and two dried-leaves mosaic portrait projects already finished, we prepared well to commemorate the centennial of the birth of the nation in the 1896 Revolution. Sentenaryo '96 was a much bigger success, fulfilling its banner call "Kasali Tayong Lahat!" That call encouraged a multitude of diverse groups (among historians, artists, environmentalists, churchpeople, women advocates, indigenous people, sporsmen, journalists, and others to initiate and fund a multitude of projects and activities. Kamalaysayan had no central funds but it had a radio program (Sentenaryo sa Radyo) in partnership with Radyo Varitas, a television program for children (Bayani) in partnership with ABS-CBN Foundation, and a regular section in the Manila Chronicle. Its activities were also regularly being reported in a column syndicated by the Kamalaysayan Media Service, Philippine News Agency and Mabuhay News Service, and later by the Sun-Star News Service.

The following year, dismayed over government inaction, Kamalaysayan spearheaded "Sentenaryo-Bonifacio '97: The People's Symbolic Funeral of Andres Bonifacio." Over a hundred people, composed of descendants of this national hero, members of the academe, youth and other people joined a vigil at Tutuban near Bonifacio's birthplace and a symbolic funeral march in Montalban, Rizal to "bury" a replica of his burial urn inside the legendary Pamitinan Cave, acknowledged to be the "Temple of the Katipunan Spirit." It was done on May 10, 1997, exact centennial of Bonifacio's death. (for more info on this, access this webpage -- http://filipinos4life.faithweb.com/hblehist.htm).

In 2002, Kamalaysayan teamed up with the National Economic Protectionism Association (NEPA) and Galing Pilipino Movement (GPM) to form Katipunang DakiLahi para sa Pambansang Pagsa-sanib-lakas, an umbrella organization that has since been growing fast. Under the leadership of its new chairman and president Prof. Bernard Karganilla and Executive Vice President Jose Eduardo D. Velasquez, it has been pursuing new programs and projects for the same advocacy, popularizing an empowering paradigm for Filipinos to use well the valuable gifts from our heritage to attain well rounded prosperity.