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On October 24, 1986, I crossed paths with a man who would forever change my life. A kindred spirit, one of the tribe; a nice Jewish boy named Richard Alpert, better known as Ram Dass, he bridged the spiritual and the secular, the East and West. The encounter took place in a cathedral in Philadelphia where he was speaking about the concept of Seva (selfless service). I was mesmerized not only by his words but the ineffable presence he evoked. Clearly, I was not alone in my experience. In the interceding years, I have had the opportunity to interview him; once prior to and twice since a stroke on February 19, 1997, that left him paralyzed on his right side, with residual speech limitation. At the time, he had this thought that he had fallen out of his Guru’s (Neem Karoli Baba) graces until he came to understand that he had been ‘stroked by God’ and was now living in ‘fierce grace’.
In the early 2000s, I met him again as he spoke at another gathering with musicians Krishna Das, Bhagavan Das and Durga Das. I thought of it as the ‘day of the Das’. After his presentation, I waited in line with many others who wanted the opportunity to connect with him heart-to-heart. In my case, it was also hug-to-hug. I bent over as he sat in his wheelchair and he reached over and wrapped his left around me and I felt an electrical zap, unlike anything I had ever known to that point. There was more juice in that one-armed hug than many offer with both arms intact. It wasn’t until July 17th, 2008, that I had a similar experience when hugging the Dalai Lama. It is no wonder that the two of them are friends.
These days he is living on Maui and people travel from all over the world to see this octogenarian who today (April 6, 2018) is 87 years old. From what I hear from those who have visited him, (including my friends, Ramananda John Welshons and Chris Grosso) he remains vibrant and bright-eyed, sharing hard-earned wisdom and reminding people with these thoughts:
- Helping out is not some special skill. It is not the domain of rare individuals. It is not confined to a single part or time in our lives. We simply heed the call of that natural caring impulse within and follow where it leads us.” (from How Can I Help) This book was on my reading list when I was studying at the New Seminary in NY become an interfaith minister.
- “Suffering is the sandpaper of our incarnation. It does its work of shaping us.” (from One-Liners: A Mini-Manual for a Spiritual Life)
- “A feeling of aversion or attachment toward something is your clue that there’s work to be done.” (from One-Liners: A Mini-Manual for a Spiritual Life)
- “Treat everyone you meet like God in drag.” (from One-Liners: A Mini-Manual for a Spiritual Life)
- “One of the best parts of aging is entering the ‘don’t know,’ learning to be someone who can rest comfortably in uncertainty.” (from Still Here)
He is the founder of The Love Serve Remember Foundation which is a non-profit 501c3 foundation, established on behalf of Ram Dass philosophy and teachings. Proceeds from all events, retreats and website donations support Ram Dass’ legacy on healing and loving.
My experience of him is that all is God (or as he refers to it as ‘Ram,’ the Sanskrit translation) and that no question is too outrageous to be considered. What you see is what you get with the man/spirit as he seems to see himself and by extension, all of us.
Wishing you many long loving years upon this Earth.
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Photo credit: Getty Images
I love Ram Dass! Although we’re on different wavelengths, he’s given me great solace through is music and chants in my darkest hours!