On this special episode of Here and Now, Raghu Markus and Rameshwar Das celebrate the release of Being Ram Dass by reflecting on some of Ram Dass’s most important teachings.
Rameshwar Das is the coauthor of Being Ram Dass, which is now available! Order your copy and leave a message about how Ram Dass influenced you.
The Other Consciousness
Raghu and Rameshwar Das discuss how Being Ram Dass came together over a period of ten years. Rameshwar Das shares some stories about writing the book with Ram Dass.
“We came around to the idea that we would look back at [Ram Dass’s] life through Maharajji’s eyes… Just feel what that would be like seeing from that other consciousness that we all have experienced in so many many dimensions of our lives, even though we probably have barely an inkling of the vastness of that state.” – Rameshwar Das
Relative Reality (12:45)
Raghu plays a couple of clips of Ram Dass talking about relative reality and the use of psychedelics. Ram Dass explores the shift of consciousness that occurred during his first psychedelic experience, and how it helped him let go of his social roles. Raghu and Rameshwar Das discuss Ram Dass’s work with psychedelics and his influence on today’s researchers.
“What the mushrooms did was they overrode my way of conceiving of the world so I saw things fresh.” – Ram Dass
Guru Found (36:20)
Raghu and Rameshwar Das listen to more clips of Ram Dass and reflect on his teachings and legacy. Ram Dass tells the story of the first time he met his guru, and shares his view on the purpose of life.
“What’s the purpose of our life on Earth? It’s a curriculum that the soul has created in order to explore its own attachments, in order to awaken out its illusion of separateness, which it created as part of its play.” – Ram Dass
Hold On Tightly, Let Go Lightly (1:01:40)
Raghu and Rameshwar Das listen to a clip from Ram Dass about death and dying, and discuss the legacy he left on that topic. Ram Dass talks about how the best preparation for dying is to live each moment fully. Rameshwar Das shares his experience of being with Ram Dass as he left his body.
“Love really does transcend death, there’s not a doubt in my mind about it.” – Ram Dass
