In this Q&A session from 1993, Ram Dass explores an array of topics, including psychedelics as a method, assisted suicide, dealing with suffering, and awareness without identification.
“The term attachment has to do with where the awareness is, what it’s identified with. Like, at this moment, your heart is beating, but you’re not beating your heart; your awareness isn’t connected with your heart beating, it’s just going on. And as your awareness draws back, and you find a way to start to remain in awareness without identification, then the phenomena of the universe continue to happen, but the awareness is no longer identified with the act. It’s what the Gita calls breaking the identification with being the actor. It doesn’t mean that the actions aren’t happening.” – Ram Dass
In this episode, Ram Dass answers questions about:
- Psychedelics as a method
- Assisted suicide
- Emptiness and form
- Dealing with suffering
- The relationship between the One and the many
- Liberation and service
- Awareness without identification and attachment
- The concept of criticism
- Pushing against form and separateness
“Understanding the web of all life, you begin to see that any act of compassion, done anywhere, is part of the web of compassion of the universe.” – Ram Dass
