Recorded at Naropa University in 1974, Ram Dass joins Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, John Baker, Jim Green and Duncan Campbell for a conversation around the notion of ego and personal identification.

In this panel discussion, the group explores the concepts of ego in both Western psychology and Eastern traditions. Exploring what the notion of ego really is, and isn't.

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Ep. 112 - The Notion of Ego

Ram Dass shares his heart-centered wisdom in each episode featuring excerpted lectures given throughout the last 40 years, with an introduction from Raghu Markus of Ram Dass' Love Serve Remember Foundation. 


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In this Q&A session, Ram Dass talks about dealing with disturbances in meditation, letting go of identifications, seeing the guru as an imaginary playmate, being too formless, and more.

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This episode of Here and Now is taken from a talk given in Melbourne, Australia in 1981.Ram Dass begins the Q&A by taking questions about dealing with disturbances in meditation, the relationship between concept and perception, and letting go of our identification with different roles and stances.In response to a question about the role of the guru in the unfolding of his spiritual journey, Ram Dass talks about how his relationship with his guru is like that of a child with an imaginary playmate. He cautions us about getting too caught up in the concept of the guru, saying that there are no rules to this game.After answering a question about free will, Ram Dass takes on an inquiry about being too formless and feeling disconnected from the physical. He talks about the importance of being grounded and getting your act together. Ram Dass ends this part of the session with a question about responsibility, especially as it pertains to social action.Would you like to participate in the discussion about this episode of Here and Now? Join us for the SoulPod Meet-Up on June 4th at 8 p.m. EDT.

“It’s like having an imaginary playmate as a child, but then as you grow up you realize that the playmate was real and you were imaginary. It’s sort of that way with the guru. I mean, you realize that who you thought you were that was following the guru, that was the hype in the first place. And that it all just is. So Maharaj-ji and I are buddies, lovers; I hate him because every time I try to sneak something by, there he is. And I can’t even describe how much I love him.” – Ram Dass

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Ep. 252 – An Imaginary Playmate

In this classic talk, Ram Dass explores resting in ‘I am,’ a place where we can see the perfection of all things, including suffering, and how we can balance that place with an open heart.

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This episode is a continuation of the talk from Here and Now Ep. 250 – Eat It Like It Is, which was given in Austin, Texas, in the early 1990s.Continuing to take his cue from Swami Ram Tirth’s words, “I am without form, without limit,” Ram Dass dives into the notion of “I am” and talks about how resting in that place makes the world look different than if we are busy being somebody doing something. From this place, we can see the perfection of it all, even with the suffering inherent in form. The predicament is that we are not just the “I am,” we are also human beings with bodies and personalities and human hearts that cannot bear the suffering around us. Ram Dass talks about finding a balance between these two places and keeping our hearts open to the unbearable. Ram Dass explores all the demands to respond to the suffering of the world and how it’s easy to get tired of being “should upon.” Ultimately, we can rely on our intuitive heart-minds to know what is the right action to take for ourselves. The quieter we get and the less attached we are to our roles, the more we will gravitate towards the things that relieve the suffering of all sentient beings.Want to participate in the discussion about this episode of Here and Now? Join us for the SoulPod Meet-Up on May 21st at 3 p.m. EDT.

“If you were resting in your ‘I am,’ you would look and you would see only the perfection of it all. And you would see that what we did in the ’60s is what created Ronald Reagan in the ’80s. You would see the way polarities work; you’d see the way forces polarize… You’d just see it as law unfolding right before you.” – Ram Dass




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Ep. 251 – Resting in ‘I Am’

Who are you? What are you doing here? In this classic talk about identity and attachment, Ram Dass asks where you could possibly stand in a world filled with pain and suffering to ‘eat it like it is?’

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This episode is also brought to you by Magic Mind, a matcha-based energy shot infused with nootropics and adaptogens designed to crush procrastination, brain fog, & fatigue. Use the code RAMDASS at checkout to get up to 50% off your subscription: Magic Mind

In this talk from Austin, Texas, in the early 1990’s:Ram Dass recalls a family saying from his youth, “Eat it like it is,” and asks how we can possibly apply it to the current world filled with pain and suffering.Exploring the nature of identity, Ram Dass talks about how we have to become somebody in order to become nobody. He discusses his experiences with expanded states of mind and how the game shifted from how to get high to wondering why he came down.Ram Dass talks about how the impeccable warrior is someone who exists on all planes simultaneously. He explores the nature of attachment and reads from Swami Ram Tirth, who helps us understand there is a place we can stand where we can see everything as the unfolding of law. This is the place where we can ‘eat it like it is.’Want to participate in the discussion about this episode of Here and Now? Join us for the SoulPod Meet-Up on May 7th at 8 p.m. EDT. Subscribe to the General Fellowship Group for more information.

“The signs point to Armageddon. It looks like it’s really hit the fan. Where could you stand that you could ‘eat is like it is?’ Or you could love it as it is? Where could you possibly stand? Where could you allow that to be what it is? What perspective, what vector view would you need to have? Who would you be if you were seeing it that way?” – Ram Dass




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Ep. 250 – Eat It Like It Is

In this exploration of suffering, death, and love, Ram Dass talks about resting in change and handling the balance and tension of inhabiting multiple planes of reality simultaneously.

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This episode is also brought to you by Magic Mind, a matcha-based energy shot infused with nootropics and adaptogens designed to crush procrastination, brain fog, & fatigue. Use the code RAMDASS at checkout to get up to 50% off your subscription: Magic Mind

This episode of Here and Now is from a 1992 lecture in Edgartown, MA. It continues the talk started in Here and Now Ep. 248 - Patterns of Interdependency.Exploring his work with death and people who are dying, Ram Dass talks about how he’s learning to live simultaneously on multiple planes of reality and consciousness. To him, the art form of being human is the ability to open our hearts to suffering and acknowledge that it hurts like hell, while also appreciating the awesome nature of the mystery, which includes suffering and death.Ram Dass addresses aging and the nature of change. He talks about resting in change and handling the balance and tension of inhabiting multiple planes of consciousness simultaneously.Ram Dass opens up about the trouble he has keeping his heart open to certain people. He talks about the collaborative nature of creating environments where people won’t get trapped in their roles.Ram Dass ends the talk with some reflections about love and not living out of a deprivation model. He shares his classic story about the state trooper who just might have been Krishna in drag as an example of living on more than one level at one time.“When you are able to simultaneously live on those planes of consciousness and handle that tension and that balance, then your every act towards other human beings brings to bear with it equanimity, spaciousness, and joy.” – Ram Dass

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Ep. 249 – Balance and Tension

Speaking to issues of ecology, politics, and social action, Ram Dass shares stories of compassionate action and explores patterns of interdependency we can recognize in the world.

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Today's podcast is sponsored by BetterHelp. Click to receive 10% off your first month with your own licensed professional therapist: betterhelp.com/ramdass

This episode is also brought to you by Magic Mind, a matcha-based energy shot infused with nootropics and adaptogens designed to crush procrastination, brain fog, & fatigue. Use the code RAMDASS at checkout to get up to 50% off your subscription: Magic Mind

This episode of Here and Now is from a 1992 talk in Edgartown, MA.Ram Dass discusses our looming ecological crisis, politics, and living in the age of the Kali Yuga. There is change happening all around us. For Ram Dass, what’s interesting is where one stands in relation to change.How do we respond in an appropriate way to all the suffering in the world around us? Ram Dass shares classic stories of compassionate action and talks about the constant dialogue between the mind and the heart.Ram Dass explores how moving through different planes of reality can help us recognize the incredible patterns of interdependency in this world. By acknowledging that these other planes exist, we can find a way to be fully in the world and simultaneously not be trapped by it. In this way, we’re able to keep our hearts open in hell.Take part in a 4-week Sliding-Scale Course - Reimagined: The Life & Teachings of Ram Dass. Beginning April 8th, click here to learn more!

“When you experience the plane of reality where everything is interdependent, it includes you, you’re part of it all. If you flip the dial and go to another plane of reality, you see that behind all of the forms, which are like cloud patterns, there’s only one of it. There’s one stuff. There’s one stuff that keeps going into these incredible patterns.” – Ram Dass

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Ep. 112 - The Notion of Ego

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