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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 13 of 13. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by habbyshabit on July 7, 2003, at 3:37:09
Hi,
Any questions that you might like Arlon to answer, please let us know.
Habby and Arlon
Posted by rayww on July 7, 2003, at 9:06:40
In reply to Arlon's QA thread, get channeled!, posted by habbyshabit on July 7, 2003, at 3:37:09
In business, job desctiptions are set and then positions filled to meet that criteria. Employees and employers performance is measured according to their particular job description.
However, in a family corporation, family members seem to choose their own job desctiption, and ignore the less appealing parts of the position list.
Just because I may be labelled office manager, does not mean I am willing to do what is required of "the" office manager. Same for wife, mother, grandmother, chair, etc.
Is there a basic job desctiption for a wife and mother? What do you and Arlan say the basic roles and responsibilities of a woman are?
Posted by Mercury on July 7, 2003, at 13:45:40
In reply to Arlon's QA thread, get channeled!, posted by habbyshabit on July 7, 2003, at 3:37:09
Ok, Habby, now that we've got Dr. Bob's blessing, here are 5 questions for the Arlon Council.
1. Who and what are you?
2. What is the relationship between mental illness and religious/spiritual revelation.
3. What is the relationship between anti-depressant drugs and enlightenment?
4. Along with prohibitions against associating with "astrologers, magicians, and enchanters", the Bible warns against consulting with "familiar spirits"...why?
5. And finally, do you pray? And if you do, to whom?
Thank you for taking this time to visit with us. Your insights are greatly appreciated.
Mercury
Posted by Dr. Bob on July 8, 2003, at 22:59:16
In reply to Arlon's QA thread, get channeled!, posted by habbyshabit on July 7, 2003, at 3:37:09
> Any questions that you might like Arlon to answer, please let us know.
Sorry to intrude, but could I ask that questions here be related to faith? Thanks,
Bob
Posted by habbyshabit on July 10, 2003, at 0:07:45
In reply to Re: Arlon's faith QA thread, get channeled!, posted by Dr. Bob on July 8, 2003, at 22:59:16
Hi all,
One thing I need in order to answer online questions channeled from Arlon is solitude and quiet. With my husband newly retired and an acre of land that needs water and grooming, there is precious little time time to just sit here and let the answers to your questions reveal themselves.
I'm sorry to delay your replies. There WILL be times when the opportunity will arise and I suspect soon. So stay tuned.
As Dr. Bob requested, these questions must revolve around faith and spirituality. I could start another thread on another board that might be more appropriate to other questions - like the Psychological Babble board for instance. But that will have to wait for quieter times in my life.
Meanwhile, I have read all your questions, which means Arlon has recieved them as well. We will answer them as time allows.
Thanks for your patience.
Habby and Arlon
Posted by lil' jimi on July 10, 2003, at 15:25:11
In reply to Arlon's QA thread, get channeled!, posted by habbyshabit on July 7, 2003, at 3:37:09
hi Habby,
hi Arlon,hope you are doing well......
you guys wrote:
> Hi,
>
> Any questions that you might like Arlon to answer, please let us know.
>
> Habby and Arlonso here goes nothing!
(i apologize for the length of this post ... i found i could not shorten it ... ... it is the first time i have put into writing this significant part of my life ... ... i thank everyone for their indulgence in my therapeutically beneficial exercise in self-indulgence ... ... )
there have been a number of indicators seeming to guide me toward a particular spiritual path ... .... this process has taken a considerable amount of time ... ...
at 8 years old, i was disenchanted from theism and by 12, i was a self-possessed atheist ... ... at 18, i was disabused of my anti-supernatural views by experiences reminiscent of those described by Temmie, Mercury and you ... ... ... out-of-the-body experiences are forceful validations of the reality of life beyond death, which i could not deny ... ... a spiritual quest began .... ... . at 20, i discovered i was a buddhist ......
.... .... there is an expectation of benefiting from the blessings known as the Three Jewels of Buddhism: the Buddha; the Dharma; and the Sangha ... ... in this world one’s spiritual teacher represents the Buddha ... ... i could hardly call myself a buddhist without a teacher or a congregation (Sangha) ... so choosing which branch of buddhism would be best for me had began ... ...
... ... i was drawn to the Mahayana and the tibetan traditions, by the time i was 25 ... ... the major schools of tibetan buddhism are: the Gelugpa (the Dalai Lama’s own tradition), the Kargyutpa, the Nyingmapa and the Sakyapa ... ... my studies found the Nyingma tradition appealing and i sat around doing nothing about this for about 20 years, other than reading and meditating ... ... at around this time i developed my devotion to Manjushri ... ...
i had collected some texts about the indian saint Nagarjuna .... ... .... i had had “”Emptiness: a study in religious meaning”” by Fredrick J. Streng for 30 years, i bought Lindtner’s “”Master of Wisdom”” about 20 years ago, and then a 3rd volume i checked out of the library last summer ... ...
meanwhile a very close friend of mine who i’ve know for more than 30 years was working for local philanthropic social non-profit organization and became friends with some of the board members ... .. ... she began to tell me about one of them who had his own buddhist temple in his home .. ... .. this last info was greeted with my eyes rolling derisively at what this might imply ... ... ... then last summer she extended an invitation from the temple owners to a three week long event celebrating the rare visit of their Dharma Master and lineage title holder ... ... Pema Norbu ... ... then i received their reading recommendation: “”A Garland of Immortal Wish-fulfilling Trees”” ... ...
... ...(there is, of course, that familiar quotation ‘when the pupil is ready, the teacher will appear’) ... ...
... ... in the library, ““Wish-fulfilling Trees”” was on the same shelf as “”Nagarjuna and the Philosophy of Openness”" by Nancy McCagney (1997)... ... my 3rd book to focus on Nagarjuna’s ““Fundamentals of the Middle Way”" ... ...
before i had begun to read them (finally!) i discovered online at the tibet government-in-exile web site (endorsed, of course, by h.h. the dalai lama) that ...
“The present head of Nyingmapa is His Holiness Penor Rinpoche”
(http://www.tibet.net/cta/nyingma.html) ... ... and that Pema Norbu IS Penor Rinpoche ...the momentum of these events, accelerating from their glacial pace into an avalanche, rekindled in me an exhilaration for spirituality i had shamefully lost ... ... i say ‘shamefully’ because it is inexcusable to ignore the great blessing we have been given with the certain knowledge that there is a life (are lives) after “death” ... ... to have been freed from the doubt about the hereafter does not deserve the disrespect of being ignored ....
to discover that the leader of the tradition i had chosen .... was coming on a world tour for the Namcho Space Treasures (see http://www.bodhi.org/Namcho/namcho.HTML), to a friend of friends’ temple .. ... only a few dozen blocks from my home ... ...
... ... by this point, just over a year ago, my close family and friends were ecstatic for me ... ... i scheduled my vacation time to go to the three weeks of activities ... ... i registered to participate at the temple and offered to assist with my tech skills ... .... nothing could be more clear than the inevitability of me beginning (finally) my path in earnest ... ... i was very happy ... ... the event would begin june 5, 2002 ... ...
... ... june 3rd i got the phone call from my sister who never calls me at work where she does not know my number ... ... i recognized her voice, as choked with emotion as it was, as she told me who she was and said. “well, i’m calling you at work, jim ...” and she broke into tears ... ...
... our mom was 81, a week away from her 82nd birthday ... dad was 83 1/2 ... ... they took a left turn across traffic heading into a parking lot for lunch ... ... they never made it ... ... the big utility-work truck broad-sided their car ... ... mom died there ... ... dad died after a week suffering in critical intensive care ... ... i flew to florida on june 4th ... ...
... ... the time my sibs and i had divided their property; me and a buddy flew to florida, rented a truck with my share, drove back to texas; attended memorial service in florida; attended the funeral at arlington national cemetery ... ... sent up this computer my dad used to use ... ...
... ... ... ... the imagined joy of my nyingma plans had been ... ... sidetracked ... ...... ... the juxtaposition of these events is so striking to me that some form of linkage seems/feels unavoidable ... ... i chose to not seek the council of my new nyingma friends, although i may eventually ... ...
(significantly, here in pBabble land, my parents’ deaths are the major contributors to my depression, which is being treated with 10mg of lexapro a day.)
so these events are the nexus of my:
spiritual issues;
depression issues;
and
medication issues.Habby your posts, and those from Temmie and Mercury have inspired this outburst from me ...
.... i thank you VERY much for this .Habby i would be deeply honored if you would take up my story with your Arlon friend(s) for me ... ... any insight about these circumstances will be greatly appreciated.
i also invite anyone else to offer their perspective on my saga ... ... every response will be appreciated!
thank you,
~ jim
Posted by Mercury on July 10, 2003, at 15:39:54
In reply to Dear Habby and Arlon and everyone! (very long!!), posted by lil' jimi on July 10, 2003, at 15:25:11
Jim...wow.
I'm very sorry for your loss. On the other hand, 80+ years of avoiding that big truck is very impressive. You're folks should be commended for such great work. We all know how hard it is to stay here. I can only imagine that this was the right time for them to leave. And as it has obviously helped accelerate you towards...well...something important, I have to believe that this was a final gift for you. They must have loved you very much. Never forget...
No one ever dies.
Mercury
Posted by lil' jimi on July 10, 2003, at 16:07:06
In reply to Re: Dear Habby and Arlon and everyone! (very long!!), posted by Mercury on July 10, 2003, at 15:39:54
hi Mercury.
thanks for your very kind reply!
you wrote me:
> Jim...wow.
>
> I'm very sorry for your loss. On the other hand, 80+ years of avoiding that big truck is very impressive. You're folks should be commended for such great work. We all know how hard it is to stay here. I can only imagine that this was the right time for them to leave. And as it has obviously helped accelerate you towards...well...something important, I have to believe that this was a final gift for you. They must have loved you very much. Never forget...
>
> No one ever dies.
>
> Mercury
me:
... ... and i believe every word you wrote is accurate ... ... since the accident, while porcessing this grief ... i have mined some silver lining(s) out of such a tragic dark cloud ... ... .. strange to recognize that there are worse things than to die from being suddenly voilently crushed to "death" ... ... my parents visit us regularly ... ... they're happy ... ... i'm the (SELFISH!!) one who is miserable ... maybe a little miserable ... ... and angry (?)... ... but they are doing great ... ... i'd be bad off if i felt otherwise... one of the first times i had one of those experiences (out-of-the-body), i fell into my sunday school training and asked,
"What must one do to become immortal?"the reply was, "Too bad! You already are!"
... ... my cosmology changed with those words ...
i truly appreciate your kindness ... ... your conversations with Temmie and Habby have raised my spirits ... ... thank you very much!!
take take,
~ jimp.s. and you know, sometimes it can be very hard to leave this world, too ... my folks had their own kind of success.
Posted by habbyshabit on July 11, 2003, at 17:04:27
In reply to re: Dear Arlon ... and everyone! » Mercury, posted by lil' jimi on July 10, 2003, at 16:07:06
I need to get to the grocery store (busy,busy) but took the time to read all your posts, and mercury's. Please know my heart is with you in your grief. My Mother died last June 19, and I just celebrated her Hebrew Yahrzeit on July 9th. My father's Hebrew Yahrzeit falls on July 22nd this year ( corresponding to the Hebrew calender ), which is my birthday. His regular calendar death was July 17. In a way, I celebrate their lives, and remember their deaths, twice each year. My Dad died when I was 5. So I am an orhpan too!
What I know about the grieving process, in my experience, is that it comes in waves. I had times when the 'go' button wouldn't turn on. I just couldn't motivate to do anything much at all. A lot of grieving does feel very much like depression, but it's really GRIEVING! I'm not sure if you have a history of depression or not.
I know from my own experience major, clinical depression and I could feel the similarities and differences as I moved through the loss of my Mom last year. In the Jewish Tradition, they expect the grieving process to last at least a year. They don't even erect a headstone on the grave until the first anniversary of the death. At least the orthodox don't.
I just wanted to respond right away to your incredible loss and let you know that I empathize with the sense of void and tragedy that losing beloved parents brings.
That was a great recap of your Buddhist awakening and I know Arlon will have a response. I just have to find ( make ) the time for them to address your situation. I am deeply honored that you would request their views.
Did you know that the Dalai Lama has a 'state medium'? That there has always been one in the Galupa tradition and that all the Dalai Lamas have consulted them? Interesting, no?
Much Love,
Habby
Posted by lil' jimi on July 11, 2003, at 19:03:28
In reply to Dear Jim, if only briefly » lil' jimi, posted by habbyshabit on July 11, 2003, at 17:04:27
hi Habby,
hi Arlon,this post from you is wonderful ... thanks ...
> I need to get to the grocery store (busy,busy) but took the time to read all your posts, and mercury's. Please know my heart is with you in your grief. My Mother died last June 19, and I just celebrated her Hebrew Yahrzeit on July 9th. My father's Hebrew Yahrzeit falls on July 22nd this year ( corresponding to the Hebrew calender ), which is my birthday. His regular calendar death was July 17. In a way, I celebrate their lives, and remember their deaths, twice each year. My Dad died when I was 5. So I am an orhpan too!
>the calendars' dates can haunt us ... ... recently my wife pointed out ("again" she said; news to me!)
that her mother died on june 11th, 15 yrears ago now .... .... my dad died on june 11th last year ...> What I know about the grieving process, in my experience, is that it comes in waves. I had times when the 'go' button wouldn't turn on. I just couldn't motivate to do anything much at all. A lot of grieving does feel very much like depression, but it's really GRIEVING! I'm not sure if you have a history of depression or not.
>i thank you for such beautiful sharing ... ... i have not had a history of depression (as near as i can tell), until this episode ... ...
> I know from my own experience major, clinical depression and I could feel the similarities and differences as I moved through the loss of my Mom last year. In the Jewish Tradition, they expect the grieving process to last at least a year. They don't even erect a headstone on the grave until the first anniversary of the death. At least the orthodox don't.
>my gp said that i had had 9 months and the expectation was to recover in 6 months ... i hadn't, ergo lexapro ... i mention this for its comedic contrast to the wisdom of thousands of years of Jewish tradition ... and i laugh at myself, HA! ... ... i thank you; i needed that!
> I just wanted to respond right away to your incredible loss and let you know that I empathize with the sense of void and tragedy that losing beloved parents brings.
>thank you very much, kind spirit!
> That was a great recap of your Buddhist awakening and I know Arlon will have a response. I just have to find ( make ) the time for them to address your situation. I am deeply honored that you would request their views.
>thank you for the compliment ... i blush .. and it is i who is honored ... ... by this contact
do understand that i feel that (what are to me, in my small perspective) a strange series of blessings have eventuated for me, which i have detailed ... and i feel that you, my new friend, are the latest blessing in this series ... ... how utterly exotic to be blessed with being able to connect with you and Arlon through such remote and isolated means? ... ... what would be the odds of this contact?
... ... for me, it is all strange, beautiful and powerfully poignant ... ...> Did you know that the Dalai Lama has a 'state medium'? That there has always been one in the Galupa tradition and that all the Dalai Lamas have consulted them? Interesting, no?
>
> Much Love,
> Habby... ... no, i did not know that ...
... when , i believe it was kublai khan, invaded tibet, he kidnapped the master lama of tibet and took him back to mongolia ... ... but instead of subjecting tibet to his renowned wrath ... the khan was conveted by the lama ... ... and to this day, all mongolians are buddhsts devoted to the lama, who the khan titled "dalai", and has been hence known to us as the dalai lama ... ... i am told that the word 'dalai' translates as "ocean" in mongolian , a curiousity for a land-locked state such as mongolia , or tibet ... ... until we consider possible oceanic references to the buddha sky ... maybe ...
it would please me the most if you would exercise your contact with Arlon only in the fullness of time ... ... ... it would be uncomfortable to consider this under anything like 'hurry' .... ... any easy pace at all ... for me, the slower the better ... ... i have been letting some mysteries stew for 20 or 30 years ... ... as you and Arlon see fit ... ... .. all in good time ...
... ... we are further blessed that we may correspond here at our leisure ... ... let us feel free to do exactly that ...
... let me also repeat my comment to Mercury that i feel no distress about my parents' well-being ... ... .. i am blessed with the confidence that they are well ... ... ...
... i have felt a huge sense of caution from having their deaths come to preclude what seemed to be such an obvious step on the Path for me ... ... it is as if things that could not be in conflict were/are in opposition ... ... somehow? ... ... this is the mystery i would bother you and Arlon with ... please ...
... i thank you for reading my long post about my faith ... ... (and i thank Dr. Bob for having this on the pBab Faith board ... here he has established a mandate "to be supportive" of faith and religion ... ... therefore it would uncivil (aka not to be tolerated) to have others be abrasive about our beliefs ... ... and that makes this safer here than, say, on the pSocial board ... i appreciate that ... ... thank you, Dr. Bob ... again.)
love
and
have a good time Habby!
~ jim
Posted by habbyshabit on July 12, 2003, at 0:05:25
In reply to re: Dear Habby ... » habbyshabit, posted by lil' jimi on July 11, 2003, at 19:03:28
Dear Jim,
You are like an apparition and a reminder to me just how connected to the Tibetan Buddhist tradition I really am. I am sooo delighted that we have met here in cyber space. To be honest, I given up on the idea of having Arlon visit with people on the web. They never said it wouldn't happen, just that it didn't and I moved on to other interests and things. So you arrive to awaken the Arlon process in me. Not so much the connection, which is always there, but their love of conversation with us frail and often confused human spirits. I miss the living room gatherings with them. The always sat in front of an informal group of maybe 12 - 20, sometimes only 3 or 4, and opened the room to questions. They never had an agenda. They never started out with a topic or lecture. They seemed truly interested in what was on people's minds and in their hearts.
They were amazing in their ability to bring out the depth of the situation or to have a turn of phrase that would take my silent breath away. Of course, they would slip their unique view of the 'way things are' into their answers and so illuminate the world in a new way.I do know the time is near for them to respond here. I can feel it. Maybe this week-end. We'll just have to see how life intervenes!
I did not know that about the Khan. What an interesting perspective on the 14 Dalai Lamas to have come here...
Many blessing to you and yours,
Habby
Posted by lil' jimi on July 12, 2003, at 2:59:31
In reply to re: Dear Habby ... » lil' jimi, posted by habbyshabit on July 12, 2003, at 0:05:25
hi Habby,
you have written:
> You are like an apparition and a reminder to me just how connected to the Tibetan Buddhist tradition I really am. I am sooo delighted that we have met here in cyber space. To be honest, I given up on the idea of having Arlon visit with people on the web. They never said it wouldn't happen, just that it didn't and I moved on to other interests and things. So you arrive to awaken the Arlon process in me. Not so much the connection, which is always there, but their love of conversation with us frail and often confused human spirits. I miss the living room gatherings with them. The always sat in front of an informal group of maybe 12 - 20, sometimes only 3 or 4, and opened the room to questions. They never had an agenda. They never started out with a topic or lecture. They seemed truly interested in what was on people's minds and in their hearts.
> They were amazing in their ability to bring out the depth of the situation or to have a turn of phrase that would take my silent breath away. Of course, they would slip their unique view of the 'way things are' into their answers and so illuminate the world in a new way.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
you reflect back to me the joy i feel at this common re-ignition of our spiritual kindling ... ...so now i'm 'over'-joyed!
... ... ...<small word-play "humor", HA!>> I do know the time is near for them to respond here. I can feel it. Maybe this week-end. We'll just have to see how life intervenes!
>... ... excellent ... ...
> I did not know that about the Khan. What an interesting perspective on the 14 Dalai Lamas to have come here...
>... or the same guy 14 times, perhaps ... ?
... ... HA!> Many blessing to you and yours,
> Habbyour thanks to you and Arlon!
May Manjushri bless every sentient being and guide us with his Wisdom ...
... ... OM AH RA PA TSA NA DHI ... ...
... ... ...Om Mane Padme Hum... ... ...HAVE FUN!!!
~ jim
Posted by Temmie on August 1, 2003, at 7:17:39
In reply to Arlon's QA thread, get channeled!, posted by habbyshabit on July 7, 2003, at 3:37:09
Hello Habby. Sorry we've fallen off our communication with one another. Perhaps the apparant "trauma" of my current events have been too troubling ... or too disappointing .... Yet, I love the help and support I've found here, even as some friends drop off -- new ones appear. Again, Dr. Bob, thank you for creating this terrific venue!
Okay. That's probably enough praise.
In terms of "Asking Arlon," I would be interested in hearing/knowing whatever he might care to offer -- in terms of my current situation with Paul, the soul lessons involved .... And, of course, forecasts or outlooks on how I might move through this with greater success ... less pain.
I hope you don't mind my asking. Temmie
This is the end of the thread.
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