Book Review #145: ‘Being Ram Dass’ by Ram Dass, Rameshwar Das

‘Being Ram Dass’ by Ram Dass, Rameshwar Das (C) Aishwary Mehta.

Author – Ram Dass, Rameshwar Das | Genre – Memoir

Publishing House – Sounds True

Source – Publisher | ISBN – 1683646282

Published in – January 2021

Format – Paperback | Pages – 410

Quote from the book I Liked –

‘At times, I feel like I’m on a spiritual staircase, looking back at my former selves on the landing below, while above I am the witness, ensconced in my soul, watching myself traverse the steps in this incarnation.’ (Page no. 6)

*Important take from the book* (New segment) –

We hold memories, yes, but we are not those memories. We are who we are, today. (Page no. 332)

Stars – 5 Stars

Summary –

Set against a backdrop of nine decades of sweeping cultural change, Being Ram Dass shares this modern-day luminary’s journey from a psychologist to renegade Harvard psychedelics researcher to a beloved spiritual icon.
Perhaps no other teacher has sparked the fires of as many spiritual seekers in the West as Ram Dass. If you’ve ever embraced the phrase “be here now,” practised meditation or yoga, tried psychedelics, or supported anyone in a hospice, prison, or homeless centre—then the story of Ram Dass is also part of your story.
From his birth in 1931 to his luminous later years, Ram Dass saw his life as just one incarnation of many. This memoir puts us in the passenger seat with the one time Harvard psychologist and lifelong risk-taker Richard Alpert, who loved to take friends on wild rides on his Harley and test nearly every boundary—inner or outer—that came his way.
Here, Ram Dass shares his life’s odyssey in intimate detail: how he struggled with issues of self-identity and sexuality in his youth, pioneered psychedelic research, and opened the doorways to Eastern spiritual practices. In 1967 he trekked to India and met his guru, Neem Karoli Baba. He returned as a yogi and psychologist whose perspective changed millions.
Populated by a cast of luminaries ranging from Timothy Leary to Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, Allen Ginsberg to Sharon Salzberg, Aldous Huxley to Alan Watts—this intimate memoir chronicles Ram Dass’s experience of the cultural and spiritual transformations that resonate with us to this day, a journey from the mind to the heart, from the ego to the soul.
Before, after, and along with these waypoints, readers will encounter many other adventures and revelations—each ringing with the potential to awaken the universal, loving divine that links this beloved teacher to all of us.

About the Author –

Ram Dass (Richard Alpert), was one of America’s most beloved spiritual figures, making his mark on the world by giving teachings and promoting loving service, harmonious business practices, and conscious care for the dying. His spirit has been a guiding light for four generations, carrying millions along on the journey, helping free them from their bonds as he has worked his way through his own.

My Review –

When I got this book, I was not quite sure about how it will turn out to be. As I read very little to none of Biography or memoir of anyone. Though I’ve read a few and I loved them (Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey and When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanathi). But this book was something completely different from what I anticipated. It cant be said as a completely Spiritual journey of a man or a scientific account of a man’s life. it is an amalgam of both. It’s about the life of an Englishman who pioneered in research of Magic Mushroom or better termed scientifically as Psilocybin (a Mind-altering chemical found in some exotic mushrooms). Who in search of a more and permanent heightened state of mind, travels throughout America, lecturing, experimenting and journaling all of his experiences until he found himself in India. India being an already advanced place for spiritual encounters and enlightenment journies, was always in his mind. Here, he finally found the person and answers he was searching for.

The book talks about love, not in a male-female relationship way but more of a Guru-Shishya or even better Eternal love way. It guides the author (Ram Dass) and us as readers towards something that simply can’t be put to words. It makes the person reading this book better, an improved way to live the rest of life. To see the world in the warming rays of affection and love. It does talk about his days from when and how he found his interest in this field to how he propagated his knowledge and experience towards other humans. And he still is by his books and lecture. I do recommend this book to both the sceptic and believers of all and the one’s searching for a tit-bit of guidance here and there.

What I liked – The way this book is compiled.

What could’ve been better – Everything was great.

Writing Style – Easy, fun, informative and soothing.

Conclusion – Teaches the reader about eternal Love.

20th BOOK of 2021 (188 books read overall)

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Review of my previously read books –

Book Review #144: Kuch Ishq Kiya, Kuch Kaam Kiya by Piyush Mishra

Book Review #66: Designing Destiny: The Heartfulness Way by Daaji (Kamlesh Patel)

Book Review #130: Kratu: A Novel by Samarpan