Ep. 301 – The Process of Listening and Tuning

Ram Dass explores the process of listening and tuning that takes place on the spiritual journey as we find the practices that align with our unique karmic predicaments.  The Ram Dass community gathers regularly to engage in meaningful discussions about the podcast. We invite you to join us and share your curiosities, insights, and wisdom. Sign up for the General Fellowship to receive event invitations directly in your inbox.Ram Dass Here & Now is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/ramdass and get on your way to being your best self.This episode of Here and Now is from a workshop at the Lama Foundation in July of 1982. Outside in the mountains of New Mexico, Ram Dass speaks about the process of listening and tuning to hear the unique predicament of our spiritual journey. The quieter we get, the more we can hear which spiritual practice is the right one for us in the moment.Ram Dass talks about appreciating how all methods are traps. There is an excitement and joy in finding a method that’s harmonious with our being, and a sadness when that method self-ejects. He focuses on the practice of karma yoga and his own pattern of going out into the world, and then retreating for a period of time.To listen and tune, we must be willing to let go of our models. There must be a quietness of mind. To illustrate this point, Ram Dass reads a story about the Dalai Lama’s personal physician, Yeshi Dhonden. He closes the talk by saying, “All of these methods are, indeed, methods of purification, methods to prepare you as an instrument to hear so that your actions are in harmony with the way of things.”Dig even deeper into the world of spiritual practices with Love Serve Remember Foundation’s new course, Many Paths, One Mountain: Practices for Living with Awareness and Heart. Join us for 10 days of meditation, mindfulness, chanting, and devotion beginning on Monday, April 13. “You can’t grab. You can only listen and tune, and listen and tune, and listen and tune. And in the process of listening and tuning, you keep hearing many, many guides and instructions.” – Ram DassSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Take flight with Ram Dass as he shares stories about love, power, and the very subtle teachings of his guru, Maharaj-ji.  Ram Dass Here & Now is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/ramdass and get on your way to being your best self.This episode of Here and Now is from the summer of 1979. Ram Dass begins with a series of brief stories about his guru, Maharaj-ji, and the very subtle ways he transmitted his teachings. Listen for the little levels at play within each story.Ram Dass asks, “Whose karma is it to have intervention by a guru?” He talks about the guru’s grace, the problem with writing a book about Maharaj-ji, and learning to trust the heart.Ram Dass shares more stories from his time in India, including one about a mantra that enabled him to fly on another plane of reality. But Maharaj-ji’s basic teaching was not about power; it was about love and listening to the heart.The Ram Dass community gathers regularly to engage in meaningful discussions about the podcast. We invite you to join us and share your curiosities, insights, and wisdom. Sign up for the General Fellowship to receive event invitations directly in your inbox.“And yet, for all the power things that Maharaj-ji did, the basic teaching was not power. The basic teaching was love. There was a quality in which you were bathed in presence, in which all you could feel was love. That’s all there was.” – Ram DassSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Ram Dass answers questions about spirituality and money, being indecisive, ego trips, listening for your unique manifestation in life, and more. Ram Dass Here & Now is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/ramdass and get on your way to being your best self.This episode of Here and Now comes from a Q&A session with the “unique manifestation” group at a retreat in 1989.The first question is about whether it’s possible to grow spiritually and be financially prosperous. Ram Dass talks about playing with our desires and our attachments to worldly things.Next up are questions around listening for your unique manifestation in life, how to tell if you’re on an ego trip, and finding your next stage of purpose. Ram Dass tells a story about his “Eight-Fold Bath of the Upper Middle Way”.The next question is about whether being indecisive can be part of your unique manifestation. We end by revisiting the first question about spirituality and money. In this society, we’re all up to our eyeballs in desire systems.The Ram Dass community gathers regularly to engage in meaningful discussions about the podcast. We invite you to join us and share your curiosities, insights, and wisdom. Sign up for the General Fellowship to receive event invitations directly in your inbox.“You have to be ready to know that what you hear at one moment about unique manifestation is gonna constantly be changing and changing and changing. And you’ve gotta be listening afresh all the time. You’re listening for a unique manifestation, meaning that form of expression that will be… it’s the confluence between your karma and your dharma.” – Ram DassSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Ram Dass explores living in times of great change, the cost of individuality to our compassionate hearts, and the importance of building and being part of the web of human caring.  Ram Dass Here & Now is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/ramdass and get on your way to being your best self.This episode of Here and Now is the conclusion of Ram Dass’ lecture in St. Louis, Missouri, on February 27th, 1992. Listen to Here and Now Ep. 297 for the first part of this talk.  Ram Dass begins by laying out the societal changes taking place from his vantage point in the 90s, and how people get reactive and frightened by change. In order to hear our predicament, we must quiet down enough to be able to listen clearly.Ram Dass talks about the cost of individuality to our compassionate, human hearts. He explores how we can set boundaries and learn to say no without closing our hearts, and how we can take any situation and turn it into karma yoga.Ram Dass speaks to how we can honor individual differences without being trapped by them. Being caught in our separateness cuts us off from the community of fellow beings, but it is possible to build the web of human caring and be part of it. We can be at peace in the midst of great change.The Ram Dass community gathers regularly to engage in meaningful discussions about the podcast. We invite you to join us and share your curiosities, insights, and wisdom. Sign up for the General Fellowship to receive event invitations directly in your inbox.“To recognize fully that we have cut ourselves off from our spiritual lifeblood by cutting ourselves off from the community of fellow being, because our mind has caught us in our separateness, and therefore, reaching out to create community. Through helping, through loving, through sharing, through acknowledging family, through whatever. Build the network or the web of human caring and be part of it.” – Ram DassSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Ram Dass explores how the process of karma yoga is about cultivating a spiritual perspective that allows us to see any situation on multiple planes simultaneously.  Ram Dass Here & Now is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/ramdass and get on your way to being your best self.This episode is also brought to you by Strawberry Moons Media. Strawberry Moons Media is a collection of new YouTube channels that blends dharma-focused education and entertainment for all ages. Be sure to check out and subscribe to Strawberry Moons Media on YouTube. You can also visit their website at strawberrymoonsmedia.com. This episode of Here and Now is from the first part of a Ram Dass lecture in St. Louis, Missouri, on February 27th, 1992. Check back soon for the conclusion of this talk.  Ram Dass begins by talking about how the primary practice in his life is karma yoga, using the stuff of life as a route to liberation. The process of karma yoga is about cultivating a context, or a spiritual perspective, to see any situation on more than one plane simultaneously.Ram Dass discusses how fear is rooted in getting caught in one plane of reality and how we need to find a balance between separateness and unity. He explores some of the immense changes taking place in the 90s, including ecological destruction and economic disparity. We can either respond to the change and the chaos with fear, or we can respond to it as an opportunity to awaken. Ram Dass talks about the roller coaster ride that is living in the Kali Yuga, and how working with death and dying helps him respond to times of change with great appreciation. The Ram Dass community gathers regularly to engage in meaningful discussions about the podcast. We invite you to join us and share your curiosities, insights, and wisdom. Sign up for the General Fellowship to receive event invitations directly in your inbox.About Ram Dass:Ram Dass’s spirit has been a guiding light for generations, carrying millions along on the journey. Ram Dass teaches that through the Bhakti practice of unconditional love, we can all connect with our true nature. Through these teachings, Ram Dass has shared a little piece of his guru, Maharaj-ji, with all who have listened to him. Learn more at ramdass.org.“At that point, when you see that your next curriculum is honoring what is in your incarnation, so that you end up honoring it as relatively real. You do your dharma, you do your part, you play your part in it. And yet, at that same moment, there is absolute equanimity in you about it. What is required in the process of karma yoga is cultivating a context. And that's what’s called a spiritual perspective… It’s a context so that you see any situation on more than one plane simultaneously.” – Ram DassSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this 1970s interview, Ram Dass sits down with psychologist Daniel Goleman to discuss why people aren’t happier, the power of meditation, and the delight of simplicity.   Ram Dass Here & Now is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/ramdass and get on your way to being your best self.This podcast is also sponsored by Magic Mind. Visit https://www.magicmind.com/ramdasshere to get 20% off of your order!This episode of Here and Now is a conversation between Ram Dass and Daniel Goleman.  Daniel begins by asking Ram Dass to help us understand why people aren’t happier. Ram Dass discusses the suffering that arises from clinging to sense experiences, our strong attachment to our identities, and awakening to the realization that there is no absolute reality.Daniel asks, practically speaking, how a person can begin to change. Ram Dass explores how real change comes from within, not from external circumstances. We can embrace the delight of simplicity and learn how to quiet our minds.Ram Dass provides an example of the power of meditation. He and Daniel discuss entering the space behind thought and how the intellect is a terrific servant but a terrible master. Ultimately, it’s better to be identified with our being, rather than our knowing or doing. The Ram Dass community gathers regularly to engage in meaningful discussions about the podcast. We invite you to join us and share your curiosities, insights, and wisdom. Sign up for the General Fellowship to receive event invitations directly in your inbox.About Daniel Goleman:Daniel is an internationally known psychologist and author. His New York Times bestselling book, Emotional Intelligence, was named one of the 25 “Most Influential Business Management Books” by TIME Magazine. Daniel is also a board member of the Mind & Life Institute, an organization that fosters dialogues and research collaborations among contemplative practitioners and scientists. Daniel has organized a series of intensive conversations between the Dalai Lama and scientists, and further merged Dharma and science, coauthoring Altered Traits: Science Reveals How Meditation Changes Your Mind, Brain, and Body. Learn more about Daniel’s work at danielgoleman.infoAbout Ram Dass:Ram Dass’s spirit has been a guiding light for generations, carrying millions along on the journey. Ram Dass teaches that through the Bhakti practice of unconditional love, we can all connect with our true nature. Through these teachings, Ram Dass has shared a little piece of his guru, Maharaj-ji, with all who have listened to him. Learn more at ramdass.org.“But we don’t yet appreciate the delight that comes from simplicity. Some of our poets, people like Whitman and all, have described it, but we’ve never really bought it yet. We really don’t understand that in that simplicity lies a space in which one can plumb one’s own depths of being and appreciate that who you are is an entity that has taken birth, that is passing through a series of experiences, all of which are useful in order to awaken to one’s deeper self.” – Ram DassSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Speaking across the decades from the 1960s through the 1990s, Ram Dass shares his thoughts on expanding the boundaries of consciousness through the use of psychedelic chemicals.  Get your copy of All In This Together, the latest book from Jack Kornfield! Let this new book be your guide, as Jack reveals how to navigate our human experience with wisdom and care. Inside you’ll find a beautiful collection of stories, inspiration for conflict resolution, and powerful teachings on healing, justice, and human kindness—anchored in the teachings of the Buddha and poetry from luminary voices like Mary Oliver. Click here to learn more!Ram Dass Here & Now is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/ramdass and get on your way to being your best self.This episode of Here and Now is a compilation of Ram Dass exploring the use of psychedelic chemicals. We begin in the mid-1960s, back when Ram Dass was still Richard Alpert. In this interview with the CBC, he talks about how the psychedelic experience can help us see past individual differences.  The next stop is 1968 and the famed WBAI radio talks. Ram Dass details his first experience with psychedelic chemicals and the process he went through of losing his attachment to his social roles. We move on to 1977 and a radio interview at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Ram Dass touches on the role of these chemicals in the spiritual awareness of people, recreational versus sacramental use, and the importance of set and setting.Up next is a retreat in 1989 where Ram Dass answers questions from a breakout group. He gives a brief history of psychedelic chemicals and talks about how they can provide a fresh look at the universe, expanding the boundaries of consciousness. The final stop is a psychedelic conference at Chapman University in 1994. Ram Dass reflects on the impact that psychedelics had on his life and how they influenced his work with death and dying.The Ram Dass community gathers regularly to engage in meaningful discussions about the podcast. We invite you to join us and share your curiosities, insights, and wisdom. Sign up for the General Fellowship to receive event invitations directly in your inbox.“And the predicament is that as you develop a model of who you are and how the universe works, it’s extremely hard to get out of that, which is called the ego, really. It’s very hard to get out of that. And what the chemical allows you to do is set that aside for a moment and see the universe from a different vantage point and find places in yourself, which is why it was used in religious traditions, find the deeper parts of your being that lie behind your thinking mind.” – Ram DassSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this talk from the 1980s, Ram Dass explores different forms of yoga—hatha, dhyan, jnana, bhakti, tantra, and more—and answers questions from the audience. Get your copy of All In This Together, the latest book from Jack Kornfield!  Let this new book be your guide, as Jack reveals how to navigate our human experience with wisdom and care. Inside you’ll find a beautiful collection of stories, inspiration for conflict resolution, and powerful teachings on healing, justice, and human kindness—anchored in the teachings of the Buddha and poetry from luminary voices like Mary Oliver. Click here to learn more!This episode of Here and Now comes from an event in Irvine, CA, called “Living Consciously in the 1980s.” Ram Dass talks about how it’s only when we realize we aren’t who we think we are that the journey of awakening begins. Fortunately, there is help along this path in the various types of yoga, or methods for coming into the One.Ram Dass explores different forms of yoga, including hatha yoga (energy), dhyan yoga (meditation), jnana yoga (wisdom), bhakti yoga (devotion), and tantric yoga (senses). He says we should work with whichever form calls to us, or we can be a “chicken soup eclectic” like he is. Finally, Ram Dass answers some questions from the audience. He talks about intuition, the darkness that comes before spiritual growth, social identities, dealing with attachment to your child’s predicament, and more.The Ram Dass community gathers regularly to engage in meaningful discussions about the podcast. We invite you to join us and share your curiosities, insights, and wisdom. Sign up for the General Fellowship to receive event invitations directly in your inbox.About Ram Dass:Ram Dass’s spirit has been a guiding light for generations, carrying millions along on the journey. Ram Dass teaches that through the Bhakti practice of unconditional love, we can all connect with our true nature. Through these teachings, Ram Dass has shared a little piece of his guru, Maharaj-ji, with all who have listened to him. Learn more at ramdass.org.“What I’m saying to you is, which yoga is appropriate for any human being, only that human being can figure out. And you can only figure it out by trying and testing and looking and quieting your heart and opening. One of you, it will be perfect for you to study and read holy book and Vedic tracts and things. For someone else, it’ll be absolutely perfect to start to work with the energy. For someone else, it’ll be perfect to do tantra. And it is not better or worse. These are merely different strategies. And some you will be sort of like I am, sort of like a chicken soup eclectic. And I do sort of play with all of these at a kind of superficial level.” – Ram DassSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this special December treat, featuring kirtan from Jai Uttal, Ram Dass speaks about opening to change and merging with the Beloved.The Ram Dass community gathers regularly to engage in meaningful discussions about the podcast. We invite you to join us and share your curiosities, insights, and wisdom. Sign up for the General Fellowship to receive event invitations directly in your inbox.This episode of Here and Now comes from an event at Spirit Rock Meditation Center on July 31, 2000. Ram Dass begins by exploring how Shiva is the aspect of God that rules over change. He talks about changing our self-concept from identification with our egos to identification with our souls. Devotional chanting, or kirtan, is one way to work on transforming ourselves. Speaking about merging with the Beloved, Ram Dass shares how his relationship with his guru evolved after Neem Karoli Baba left his body. He talks about the place of joy that exists inside all of us. That’s the yum-yum place.Jai Uttal takes over and leads a rousing kirtan to connect us all to that yum-yum place. He begins by explaining the chant: “Sita Ram, Sita Ram, Sita Ram, Jai Sita Ram. Sita, the infinite Goddess. Ram, the infinite God. Jai or Jaya, praise or victory.”About Jai Uttal:Jai Uttal is a Grammy-nominated sacred music composer, recording artist, multi-instrumentalist, and ecstatic vocalist. Having traveled extensively in India, he met many great saints and singers, and Bhakti Yoga became his personal path. Jai has been leading, teaching, and performing kirtan around the world for nearly 50 years. He creates a safe environment for people to open their hearts and voices. Kirtan Camp with Jai Uttal starts on January 25, 2026. Nurture the seeds of love and take a journey into the healing power of sound. Sign up now.About Ram Dass:Ram Dass’s spirit has been a guiding light for generations, carrying millions along on the journey. Ram Dass teaches that through the Bhakti practice of unconditional love, we can all connect with our true nature. Through these teachings, Ram Dass has shared a little piece of his guru, Maharaj-ji, with all who have listened to him. Learn more at ramdass.org.“You know those cherries, chocolate-covered cherries? They’re like hard on the outside, but they’re soft and yum, yum, yum inside. We are just chocolate-covered cherries. That’s all we are. And that yum, yum, yum, yum, that’s the joy, that’s the bhakti. Yum, yum, yum, yum. Because we meet each other in the yum-yum place.” – Ram DassSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Speaking to a room full of Buddhists and psychotherapists, Ram Dass explores the impact that Eastern traditions have had on his life and his extraordinary adventure of coming home to being human. Ram Dass Here & Now is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/ramdass and get on your way to being your best self.The Ram Dass community gathers regularly to engage in meaningful discussions about the podcast. We invite you to join us and share your curiosities, insights, and wisdom. Sign up for the General Fellowship to receive event invitations directly in your inbox.This episode of Here and Now comes from the keynote address Ram Dass gave at the 2nd Annual Buddhism & Psychotherapy Conference in 1987, which was sponsored by the Karma Kagyu Institute. Ram Dass begins by outlining his connection with the Kagyu lineage of Buddhism, sharing stories of his time with Trungpa Rinpoche. He then gives a brief recap of his journey in life and how he was eventually drawn towards Eastern writings and teachings.Ram Dass talks about embracing Buddhist practices and his spiral path of bouncing back and forth between being in retreat and being in the marketplace of life. He explores how his work with dying people helped him embrace the extraordinary adventure of coming home to being human.Sharing a story about Kalu Rinpoche, another friend in the Kagyu line, Ram Dass discusses honoring compassion and the different levels at which we can do service in the world. He wraps things up by saying, “I cannot conceivably repay the debt that I feel to the Eastern traditions for having introduced me to myself.”About Ram Dass:Ram Dass’s spirit has been a guiding light for generations, carrying millions along on the journey. Ram Dass teaches that through the Bhakti practice of unconditional love, we can all connect with our true nature. Through these teachings, Ram Dass has shared a little piece of his guru, Maharaj-ji, with all who have listened to him. Learn more at ramdass.org.“And I see that as an extraordinary adventure of coming home to being human. It’s interesting that more of the letters I’ve gotten in the past year have said to me, ‘Thank you for being human.’ Isn’t that bizarre? I mean, I’ve spent 25 years trying to be divine, and people write and thank me for being human. I mean, that just seems like a bizarre paradox to me.” – Ram DassSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.