The Praying Hands
This is another story which I thought was very heart-warming… I wonder if such people really do exist in such a society now.You might have seen this piece of artwork somewhere before. Or this may be the first time you’re seeing this masterpiece. Whatever it is, the reason why I want to blog about this picture tonight is coz of the touching story of love and sacrifice behind this work of art.
Albrecht Durer and Franz Knigstein were two young men aspiring to become professional artists in the late fifteenth century. However, they were hampered in their progress as they did not have enough money for their studies.
Finally, they decided to draw lots. Whoever lost the draw would have to work as a labourer to earn money to support the winner for his studies. Then when the winner finishes his course, he would return and support the other through the art studies.
In the end, Albrecht won and so he went for the studies. After many years, his effort finally paid off and he became a famous artist. All this while, Franz has been working diligently as a labourer to support Albrecht until it was his own turn to go to school.
Now that he is famous and self-supporting, Albrecht returned to fulfil his promise and send Franz to art school. But when the time came, Franz could not go, because the years of hard labour had destroyed the fine movements that his prized hands used to possess. He could no longer manage the delicate brush strokes necessary to execute fine paintings. Though he knew that he would never be able to realize his dreams of becoming an artist anymore, Franz was not bitter. He was genuinely happy that his friend had attained success in this field.
Then one day, Albrecht saw Franz kneeling and praying, with his rough hands lifted up in mid-air. An idea struck him and he quickly gathered his drawing materials and sketched those hands – and that was how this masterpiece was born.
How many people in this world are actually willing to sacrifice themselves so that they can help their friends succeed in whatever they were pursuing?
posted by LKY @ 9:34 pm
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