Sunday, 12/08/2024
Sunflower
12th Sunflower Program
Update: 14/12/2016
Before this event, there were 11 Sunflower programs with 11 stories about 11 lives, 11 fates and also 11 precious lessons for all of us. During the events, audience have got the opportunities meeting with people in varied areas as professor, doctor, lawyer, businessmen, director, actor, singer and so on. This time, the main character is an entrepreneur who has overcome unique challenges and circumstance that is worth for our admiring of his will and energy.
He used to be born and grown up as a normal person until his age of 23 when he lost his sight due to a disease. During nearly 10 years, he had to get used to the life without sunshine but darkness instead. His life turned a new stage with lots of difficulties, toughness and challenges but meaning with lots of unforgettable memories.
Generally, we are born with clear eyes to see, to look and to put on graces. It is easy for us to close our eyes in 1 minute or an hour. Nevertheless, it is quite different to close eyes and live in darkness during one year or in the rest of life. As the visually impaired person, Mr. Luc had a very hard time that both his body and mind fell into severe crisis. This phenomenon is understandable because it is difficult to accept the situation that vision, one of the most precious things in life, no longer exists. It seemed that his youth, the most beautiful stage of life, broken, the world collapsed ruining all of his dreams and plans and taking away all of his energy. The incident forced him making the major turning point of life, giving up or standing up, winning or losing. Thanks to the thought of his parents, wife, children and family, he decided to come up with his own efforts and finally became a successful businessman.
Entrepreneurship is never a smooth voyage for healthy and normal boss, much less for the visually impaired person with 0.5/10 vision. He has been trying his best to develop his business in the fierce market and attain some certain achievements in fashion field. For him, the business is the opportunity, hobby as well as the tool for him to shorten the gap between the disable/blind person and others. The situation is the boss and all we can do is changing ourselves to match with it to get success.
But more importantly, via charity activities in business, he has got the opportunity knowing Buddhism Dharma. This is the essential factor for him to become a successful young entrepreneur. Since knowing Dharma, he changed his whole life within a short time, from mindset, thought to manner in daily life. Buddha teachings of karma, cause and effect, Four Noble Truth, Eight-Fold Path,... in sutras and lecturing helped refresh him who becomes a man with sound mind regardless his physical disability. Since then, he has been able to control his mind and thoughts, change his weakness to strength to benefit his business and this life. Moreover, he brought Buddhism to not only his life but also to his staffs. This is such a great achievement. Although his worldly eyes can no longer work, but he has got the Dharma eye with wisdom to see the nature of this life. It is such a great deal, isn't it?
Via this story, we can see that, life is not easy but fluctuating and impermanent with happiness and suffering interchangeability. Through ups and downs, we can learn precious lessons to become strong and mature. Good things will come to the believers, better things will come to the patient ones and the best is for the ones who never give up.
Joining the event, Senior Venerable Thich Chan Tinh, abbot of Hoang Phap Pagoda, the program chairman, shared his thoughts as following:
Regardless the physical limit, Buddhist Tam Tri has tried his best to overcome all the challenges to attain happiness. He has taken the light of Dharma to make up for his impaired vision. This is also a precious lesson for Buddhists who may have clear worldly eyes but with impaired Dharma vision, sometimes.
Besides, the Venerable had words of praise about the spouse of Buddhist Tam Trà for her kindness and support to her husband. Through the story of this Sunflower program, the Venerable sent the mass an important message “ Disable but not impossible†using Buddha Dharma as the vehicle to overcome challenges, applying Buddha’s teaching to this life to get success and make this world better, happier and more meaningful.
Following are the recorded photographs:
BBT Website