ABOUT THE AUTHOR : RAM DASS
Born Richard Alpert, Ram Dass was a psychology professor at the prestigious Harvard University. At Harvard, he worked as a therapist specializing in personality development and human motivation. In the 60s, he was also a psychedelic pioneer by including substances like mushrooms and LSD in his experimental research.
So, in simple terms, he was a professional hippie.
Be Here Now. was not his first book. In 1965, he collaborated with Robert Sears and Lucy Rau to produce "Identification and Child Rearing" - a study which placed children in a parental role to see how they responded to certain childlike behaviors. Ram Dass would go on to become a spiritual teacher and yoga guru with dozens of published books, audios, and documentaries. Many still follow his teachings on yoga, spirituality, and mindfulness today. He passed on at the age of 88 in Maui, Hawaii in 2019.
You can learn more about Ram Dass at his website: ramdass.org
I loved how unconventional the book appeared - from the cover to the shape to the pictures when I flipped through it. Plus, the title, Be Here Now., was a concept I was studying at the time. The book is divided into three main, distinct sections, so I will do a separate review for each.
Part 1: The background story
The first part of the book introduces the author and how he became Ram Dass. It is written in a reminiscent first person voice which quickly seems to be from a reliable source. He spends some time highlighting his successes and explaining how empty he felt with riches. He then goes on to recall his drug use and abuse and how psychedelics helped to jumpstart his spiritual journey. We learn of his travels through India and of the individuals that molded him to be the spiritual leader we know of today.
I enjoyed this part of the book extensively and got through it pretty fast. It is the easiest portion of the book to read and kind of entertaining. His studies on psychedelics intrigued me, but what intrigued me even further was his over-awareness of all of his actions. Reading this section made me feel more comfortable in relying on this text as a guide because I got a better understanding of the man behind the name. And with any spiritual guide, you should feel comfortable with the person behind the words. The message may sound good, but are the intentions good? And by reading this first section I felt validation that the author was someone who I trusted to guide me.
Part 2: The journey
So this is where the book gets a little interesting. After reading the first part, the illustrations and arrangement of the second part may make more sense. It's hard to read at first. Not because the content is difficult to comprehend, but more-so because the words sometimes form pictures or run into each other or do not form the traditional sentence structure. It becomes quite apparent that if you aren't willing to literally follow the message however it is given to you, then you will not be able to finish the book.
HOWEVER, if you are willing to dive into this unconventional section, then you will be intrigued, confused, completed, excited, etc. by the actual message. I was so engulfed in the message that it wasn't hard following the graphics. It was different, sure, but as an artist I appreciated how the message often coincided with the graphic.
This is the meat of the book. This section is basically an introduction to modern spirituality and will allow you to see the world and yourself differently.
Part 3: The guide
Part 3 is more of a guide that should be practiced. It is a guide which combines mental and physical components of mindfulness. I would like to go back through this last part and actually practice the exercises. I have read that it is a great starting point for if you are interested in becoming a yogi or just in gaining a deeper understanding of yoga and meditation as a whole.
I really enjoyed this book and can definitely label it as a favorite. I think it's an excellent guide to someone who is curious about learning more about spirituality. In fact, it often times prompted me to do deeper research into some of the topics mentioned. Well worth the time and energy!
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