On this episode of the Here and Now Podcast, Ram Dass talks about seeing through illusions of the ego while still carrying the burden of one’s personality through life.
Click here to read the transcription of this podcast.
Show Notes
Seeing Through Illusions (Opening) – Ram Dass explores the realizations about the ego which comes from looking at ourselves and reality through the lens of altered states of consciousness. He discusses the implications of this perspective and talks about the role that our perception of suffering plays in our awakening.
“So what happened to me is that I went through the doorway of perception and I thought ’Oh wow, reality isn’t like I thought it was at all. If I am going to spend my whole life manipulating this puny ego through a set of power gains and sensual gratifications, what’s the pay off if it’s going to all end anyway?” – Ram Dass
The Moment of Awakening (10:00) – Ram Dass discusses the impact of our spiritual awakening, describing the line in the sand that gets drawn between the ego we once identified as and our true selves. He describes the distinct difference in how we begin to see everything in the world once we have passed through this veil of illusion.
“Once the seed is in you, you don’t have any choice – its karma. Once you have seen what it all is like you can’t just go back to playing bridge, it just doesn’t cut it. When you sense that possibility, once you feel that other thing inside of you, you begin this unconscious searching and looking for the next message. The interesting thing is that there is always a next message, and it is always available to you.” – Ram Dass
Following the Messages (26:15) – When we open ourselves to the direction our karma pulls us, we are opening ourselves to incredible possibilities. Ram Dass shares his understanding of this karmic path and describes the individuals who have reached its end – who have made it their mission to turn around and show others the way.
“I saw that my whole game didn’t work. It gave me all the rewards that were offered, but it wasn’t working. I knew there was something else and I couldn’t get to it. At that point, I gave up and then I was ready for the next message. The next message was sitting right there at a hippie restaurant in Katmandu, Nepal. That message took me by the hand and led me to my next message giver who was a being who had finished the trip, he was a realized being – Maharaj-ji.” – Ram Dass
Hear more about the journey that unlikely message set Ram Dass on and the powerful lessons he learned along the way on Ep. 3 of the Here and Now Podcast.
Reading Recommendations
Photo via AliExpress
Totally timeless information-transmission from fairly early Ram Dass…liberating expliques of higher consciousness and non- attached awareness. A gem.
interchange of thought. experienced it. if only less people scuffed at it, it’d be more commonplace.
We met Pujya Ram Dass and his Father when He came to attend Gandhi Movie premier show in Cambridge, MA. We always remembered .
Ram Dass turn inwardly and meeting Maharajji is the impact to many beside him .
Blessing of Hanumanji is helping all.
Rajendra