Baba Ram Dass Travels to Another Plane of Existence

Sadly, RIchard Alpert, known popularly as Baba Ram Dass has passed from this mortal plane into a being of light and love. Ending this state of existence on Maui, December 22, 2019. He was 88 years old.

Many of the founders of this site, the Hippie community worldwide, and Buddhists everywhere will remember Baba Ram Dass eterenally.

From studying with Dr. Timothy Leary to publishing the amazing book known as 'Be Here Now' Ram Dass influenced a generation with his wisdom, kindness, and teachings.

While I never met him, he touched my life in a personal way when a copy of 'Be Here Now' appeared in the post addressed to me from a casual visitor I had met recently from California. This was in the very early 1970s. and the sender enclosed a note explaining that several of the pages in the center had been dipped in liquid LSD.

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To my great delight, that proved to be true, and I shared those pages of wisdom with my friends while greatly expanding my own consciousness as well.

If you or anyone you know have any stories about Ram Dass this would be a great place to tell us!

Bon Voyage Richard Alpert/Baba Ram Dass!

Baba Ram Dass with Dr. Timothy Leary​

 

@ncbumpkin Great quotes from a great mind...

Did you know he was brought up by his parents to become a railroad tycoon? Fortunately he rebelled against that.

Somewhere I have a recording of one of his talks given back in the '70s... must find it.

 

First found Be Here Now back in 1972 while at college, it cost $3.33. You can look up 333 on your own.
The hippie bible.

I remember meeting "Itchy" a black hippie I knew and he spotted the book under my arm.
"That book keeps turning up everywhere I go," he said.

If you like it there's another very similar book called Toward the One, 1974. Complied from lectures by Pir Vilayat Inayat Khan, "a teacher of meditation and of the traditions of the East Indian Chishti Order of Sufism."

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Kinda rare, cheapest I've found is used at $47.62 and up to $274.00. I think I have a first edition...may be only one edition.
I scanned the page below.

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Another one is Seed, 1974, no author given.

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Introduction by Ram Dass.
This book came with 240 tear out cards with pictures on two sides and 32 with words on two sides. Unfortunately I lost all the cards.

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The chicken sees.​

 

That would be Tim Leary.

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One of the shining lights of the consciousness movement died this week.
Sail on, Baba Ram Dass. Thank you for the chemical and behavioral enlightenment.

Baba wrote a little tome in 1971. I’ve had a copy since...1978? ‘79? A brilliant work to start adolescence. By 1984, I was surfing the psychedelic waves and dancing in the billows that Dass (when he was Richard Alpert) and former fellow Harvard prof Tim Leary set loose upon America. Set and setting was more my jam than Uncle Ken’s Prankster method.
But I passed the acid test. Repeatedly.
Graduated to the natural world, and always, as the option or accent, was sitting. Be Here Now.

As I unsuccessfully ride the barrel of emotions Baba’s death is opening in me, I knows this, respect for what people dedicate their live to is a wonderful, humble thing.

I hope to be humble.