Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Ỏng Trời (Mr. Heaven) is the most ubiquitous personage in the Vietnamese culture. We say “Heaven!” or “Mr. Heaven!” (Trời ơi! or Ông Trời ơi!) very often for all kinds of reasons. Or “Oh, Heaven and Earth!” (Trời đất ơi!) usually for great sorrow or mourning.

And we pray to Ông Trời : “Pray Heaven, please give us rain, so we have water to drink” (Lạy Trời mưa xuống lấy nước tôi uống), and talks about Him fairly often: Continue reading Mr. Heaven →

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Probably you have heard “You are what you eat” many times. It mainly talks about your food – if you eat mainly meat, you are fat, heavy, and slow, with cholesterol clogging up your veins and all your internal organs. If you eat a lot of fruit and a moderate amount of starch, you are thin and healthy.

But I am talking about your spirit: Spiritually, you are what you eat. Continue reading You are what you eat →

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Each of us has a number of supporters who support us in various things – emotion, business, profession, career, finance… They can be individuals close to us, such as father and mother, sisters and brothers, relatives, friends… or organizations, such as commercial companies, non-government orgnizations, temples, churches, schools…

To support means to lift us up when we drop down, to carry us when we collapse, to prop us up when we’re unstable, to refesh our spirit when we lose hope, to give us a shoulder to lean on when we’re heavy laden, to defend us when we’re downtrodden, to hold our hand when we’re lonely, to bring us light when we’re hopeless…

Your suporters stand on three concentric circles, with you at the center. The innermost circle (number 1) houses your strongest supporters – father & mother, brothers & sisters, closest relatives, best friends…

The next circle out (number 2) consists of friends, workmates, work supervisor, employees, teachers, relatives, priests, nuns, neighbors…

The outermost circe (number 3) contains your doctor, lawyer, dentist, banker, finance advisor, grocer, real state agent, travel agent, insurance agent…

Generally, each of us, with some minor variations for each person, has these 3 supporter circles, with the innermost being the strongest and the outtermost the least strong. All three circles are our supporters. We need to keep them with us, for they are our family and friends, and they give us the strength to go through life.

About the inner circle, many folks take their family for granted and don’t consider family members their supporters. They are dead wrong. Family members – dad, mom, brothers, sisters – usualy give us emotional and spiritual support, especially when we don’t have much support from outside the family. Sometimes there is such a thing as family tension, but even with tension, the emotional ties in the family are always strong and beneficial, if we know to appreciate them. Even when family members are not talking to each other, they always care about each other in their own silent way. So, even if you don’t talk to your family members, keep in mind that they care for you greatly, and this understanding, in turn, will help your heart greatly.

Some young folks don’t want family’s financial support, because they want to work their way up independently. I think that is an unwise attitude. If you want to start your own business and your dad wants to give you money to start it, you don’t have to say “no” to be independent. You don’t need to have an “independent” attitude toward dad. Family members are supposed to be interdependent. Family is not neighborhood. If dad gives you money, take it with gratitude. But you want to be responsible in business, so before to taking dad’s money, show him your good business plan and a way to repay him his “loan.” Call that a loan, and you will repay dad, maybe in monthly installments for some years, with interst rate that the banks are charging. Treat dad as your banker, so that you will run your business professionally and responsibly. You will grow up faster and better that way.

All other people in all three circles are your supporters – they know you and you know them, they trust you and you trust them – so keep them within your reach, and come to them when you need their support. You will understand their value to you when you move to a new city faraway and don’t have any supporter in any circle around you.

There is another circle of supporters furthest out from you. That is the circle of your customers (if you do business) or voters (if you do politics) or readers (if you are a writer) … Generally, they are the people who consume the products you provide.

Look at the bicycle wheel above, the hub of the wheel at the center is you and the three concentric circles of your supporter. The big wheel outside represents your consumers. They are your supporters because they bring money or power or job to you. So, treat them well and try to keep them with you. They are your customers and they will bring more customers to you. All customers do that – if they like you, they will introduce you to their family and friends.

Many business people abuse their current customers while trying to court new customers. That is stupid. Your current customers are your advertising company – if they like you, they automatically advertise you, free of charge. And hundreds or thousands of your clients advertising you constantly, every day, is a very very big and expensive advertising project, for which you pay zero đồng. Therefore, be nice to your customers. Not only your customers are your kings, they are more than kings, because they bring more clients and more money to you constantly. Kings don’t do that.

Alright, that is all four circles of your supporters. Be nice to everyone standing on those circles. And you will be hugely successful, however you define success.

Wish that we all be successful.

With compassion,

Hoành

© copyright 2023
Trần Đình Hoành
Permitted for non-commercial use
www.dotchuoinon.com

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

This sounds like a quote for guitar kings, divas, divos, soccer stars, martial arts stars, and all other kinds of stars and starlets – an egoistic culture focusing on pumping up each individual’s self-centered ego. Oh Lordy, how am I sick of that! TV, Radio, Internet, social media, day in and day out!

The ego wants to puff up bigger and bigger, until it becomes an overinflated balloon and explodes. Continue reading Let your light shine before men →

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

In the Vietnamese culture, when a person begins his talk with “I’m frank” or “I’m telling you frankly”,(tôi nói thẳng), you will start to get nervous, because you know the guy is going to dump all kinds of garbage on your head. They use “I’m frank” as a permit to insult you – the permit that they indeed issue to themselves.

I have never heard anyone respond: “Can you try not to be frank?” Continue reading I’m frank →

Dear Brothers & Sisters,

For at least half of a century that I have observed with my own eyes, people in the world have taught each other to break up relationships faster and faster every day.

When I was little, no one talked about divorce in Vietnam – once in awhile you heard about someones in USA or Europe divorcing, like a strange activity that strange people in the West did because they had too much leisure time on their hand. Even when I got to the US in 1975, few Americans were divorcing, though a lot compared with innocent Vietnam. Continue reading Stick together →

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Did you ever owe someone some kind of debt, monetary debt or emotional debt, that you couldn’t repay and now you have no chance to repay (because, say, the person is dead)?

How do you feel about that?

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

I talk to you about Buddhist teachings very often, not because I want to spread the Buddhist religion, but because I know that the Buddhist way of living is a very good way for us humans – meaning, for the entire troubling world of ours.

Buddhist way is not necessarily Buddhist religion. You don’t have to be a pagoda goer to live the Buddhist way – it is an observation-based philosophy with living guidelines on how to live productively and happily and, therefore, successfully, for anyone who wants to practice. You don’t have to be a Buddhist to practice the Buddhist way. It is for everyone , regardless of his/her religious affiliation or no affiliation at all. Continue reading Non-attachment →

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Many people want to be a leader, and because they want to be leader they don’t enjoy the follower position that they are currently in. However, if you are not a good follower, you will not be a good leader.

There is a direct relationship between good following and good leading. Continue reading Want to be a good leader? Be a good follower →

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Wu Yantong (Chinese: 無言通, known in Vietnam as Vô Ngôn Thông, 759?-826 C.E.) was a Chinese Buddhist monk influential in the propagation of Buddhism in Vietnam.

Born into a wealthy family, upon coming of age he renounced that lifestyle for a monastic life and eventually realized satori or enlightenment.

Around 820 CE, he crossed the border of southern China and arrived at Phù Đổng village (which is where Phù Đổng Thiên Vương of the legend had been born) to reside in Kiến Sơ Temple in Bắc Ninh, Northern Vietnam. There he only sat facing the wall to meditate (wall-contemplation or bích quán or diện bích – nhìn tường) like Boddhidharma, the Indian monk who had introduced Zen Buddhism to China around 520 CE and had faced the wall for 9 years to meditate at Shaolin Temple.

No one knew anything about Wu Yantong. The temple abbot, Cẩm Thành, quietly knew he was a high monk who had attained enlightenment and so treated him with much respect. Near the time of death, Wu Yantong called Cẩm Thành in and read for Cẩm Thành the parting poem:

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Communication is the most basic and fundamental activity among people. What we always do with each other, even when we do nothing else, is communication – at least talking to each other in one or two sentences.

Communication is the string that ties us humans together into networks – family, school, neighborhood, church, temple, company, market, tourist hotspot…

Without communication we all are simply dust particles blown in the wind. Continue reading How good are you in communication? →

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Most injustice in the world has been created by big world powers. The easiest to see is the colonial period that has just been over in the middle of 20th century, in which Vietnam was one of the victims of the colonizing France, which passed off South Vietnam to US who tried be the boss but was defeated by the Vietnamese.

The consequences of the colonial time are still with the colonized nations today and pose so many obstacles and difficulties for the former colonies’ socio-politico-economic development. Continue reading Wise up! →

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

The story about God’s grace that impresses me the most is Abraham’s bargaining with God to save Sodom. God told Abraham Sodom was sinful, so God would destroy Sodom. Abraham wanted to save Sodom, so he asked if God would save Sodom if there were 50 righteous persons in that city. God agreed: “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.” (Gen. 18:26). Abraham then bargained it down to 45 righteous. God agreed. Abraham continued to bargain down to 40, God agreed. Abraham continued to bargain down to 30, then 20, then 10 righteous. God agreed every time. Abraham stopped at 10, without finding 10. Why didn’t he bargain further? Looked like he was on a roll with God. We never know why Abraham stopped at 10. Thus, Sodom and Gomorrah were burned.

Lot, Abraham’s nephew, also was informed by God’s two messengers that Sodom would be destroyed and was told to take his wife and two daughters with him to go up the mountains to stay safe. (His sons in law, husbands of his two daughters, didn’t believe Lot and thought he was joking about the city being destroyed). But Lot told God’s messengers that he could not go up the mountains, fearing some evil would overtake him and he would die, so he asked them to allow him to stay in a small city on the way called Zoar. A messenger told him: “See, I have favored you concerning this thing also, in that I will not overthrow this city for which you have spoken. Hurry, escape there.”

So God saved Zoar because of one righteous person, who was Lot. (Gen. 19:21-22).

Abraham couldn’t saved Sodom, because he couldn’t find 10 righteous and he stopped bargaining. But God did save another city (Zoar) with just one righteous person. Obviously God doesn’t require much.

Does this story have anything to do with us today?

Well, it has a lot to do with us. If we live righteously, one of us will be able to save a city from destruction. We are not talking about counting heads – how many bad guys versus how many good guys in a city. We are taking about God’s grace – God only needs one righteous to save a city. God love people and God just needs a small excuse to save a city. God doesn’t require much.

So, don’t count head and don’t lose faith. One person is enough, and that one person can be YOU. One righteous you will be able to save a city.

So, brothers and sisters, try to be righteous and know that your righteousness will be used by God to save a city.

Trust in you and trust in God.

Wish you all be righteous.

With compassion,

Hoành

© copyright 2023
Trần Đình Hoành
Permitted for non-commercial use
www.dotchuoinon.com

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Here is the common problem of mankind: You have seen or read about leaders, usually warring or revolutionary leaders, who talked about saving their country, saving their people, loving their nation, protecting their citizens… all the great idealistic goals for their people to follow. But in practice, such leaders and their followers killed, maimed, tortured and imprisoned millions of people that the leaders considered anti-revolutionists, reactionists, betrayers, or enemies of the people… So their mouths talked peace and love while their hands killed and maimed, as if the hands and the mouth belonged to two separate persons. Continue reading Thinking and talking in concrete terms →

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Probably you have heard “Change yourself to change the world” many times. The question is how many people really practice that.

The world has so many problems and, of course, everyone wants the world to change for the better – less war, less sickness, less poverty, less injustice, less inequality, more health, more safety, more equality, more happiness… We all wish the world to be more like heaven.

And that is a problem: we want to world to change. Continue reading Change yourself to change the world →