Ram Dass is an American spiritual teacher, leader, psychologist and author. He died on December 22, 2019.
Wiki/Biography
His real name is Richard Alpert. He was born on Monday, April 6, 1931, in Boston, Massachusetts, USA (he died aged 88). His zodiac sign is Aries. Ram Dass was educated at “Williston Northampton School” in Eastampton, Massachusetts. He received his BA from Tufts University in Massachusetts. He received his master’s degree in psychology from Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut. He received his PhD in Psychology from Stanford University in California.
Ram Dass in his youth
His father wanted him to enter medical school, but while he was studying at “Tufts” he decided to pursue a career in psychology. His mentor at Wesleyan recommended him to Stanford University, where he studied for a doctorate in the early 1950s. His doctoral thesis was on “Achievement Anxiety.” After receiving his PhD, he taught at Stanford University for a year and then began studying “psychoanalysis” (theoretical and therapeutic techniques related to the study of the unconscious mind).
appearance
Height (approximately): 6′3″
Eye color: Vibrant green
Hair color: white
Ram Dass in spiritual course
family and religion
Richard Alpert was born into a Jewish family. However, Richard considers himself an atheist. His father, George Alpert, was a lawyer in Boston. His brother was William Alpert. He never married, however, at the age of 78, he discovered that he had a son named Peter Reichard.
Ram Dass (left) and his brother William Alpert
Ram Dass and his son Peter Reichardt
Teaching career
In 1958, his mentor at Wesleyan, David McClelland, moved to Cambridge to teach at Harvard University. David subsequently helped Ram Dass secure a tenure-track position as an assistant professor of clinical psychology at Harvard University. At Harvard, he worked in the Department of Social Relations, Department of Psychology, Graduate School of Education, and Health Services. He specializes in human motivation and personality development and published his first book, titled Identity and Child Rearing, while at Harvard University.
Ram Dass (Richard Alpert) when he was at Harvard University
David’s close friend Timothy Leary also served as a lecturer in clinical psychology at Harvard University. Alpert (Ram Dass) becomes the deputy of Leary’s laboratory. In 1961, Alpert and Leary began conducting research and experiments on the potential therapeutic effects of psychedelic drugs such as “psilocybin,” “LSD-25,” and other “psychedelic chemicals” through the Harvard Psilocybin Project . In 1962, they assisted Harvard Divinity School student Walter Pahnke in conducting the Good Friday Experiment (the first controlled, double-blind study of drugs and mystical experiences).
Ram Dass (left) with Timothy Leary (center) and Walter Pank (right)
In 1962, Das and Leary co-founded the non-profit International Federation for Internal Freedom (IFIF) in Cambridge to conduct research on the religious use of psychedelic drugs. Both were fired from Harvard in 1963. Harvard’s president said Leary was expelled for leaving Cambridge and his class without permission or notice, and Alpert was expelled for allegedly giving psilocybin to an undergraduate student.
Ram Dass (right) and Timothy Leary
spiritual life
In 1967, Alpert (Ram Dass) visited India and had the opportunity to meet the American spiritual leader Bhagavan Das. Bhagavan Das made him get acquainted with the Indian master “Nim ·Neem Karoli Baba” (Neem Karoli Baba). Karoli Baba had a huge influence on Alpert’s thinking and he became Karoli’s disciple. Alpert once called Karoli Baba “Maharaj-Ji” and Karoli Baba named him “Ramdas” (Servant of God). Once, in an interview, he said that he gave Baba Karoli a lot of LSD, but it didn’t affect him at all, and that his mind was at a higher altitude due to his connection with God, LSD Can’t compete with that.
Ram Dass and Neem Karoli Baba
Ram Dass soon returned to the United States and began giving lectures on spiritual guidance and guiding people based on what Karoli Baba had taught him. In 1971, he wrote a book called “Be Here Now,” which became a bestseller, selling more than 5 million copies. In 1974, Ram Dass founded the Hanuman Foundation, a non-profit foundation designed to embody the spirit of service that inspired his mentor.
Ram Dass’s book – it’s here now
In 1986, Das founded the Life/Death Project with Dale Borglum in Marin County, California, and Santa Fe, New Mexico. It was the first residential facility in the United States to allow people to “consciously die.”
Ram Dass in the Santa Fe Dying Project
In August 1991, he received the “Peace Monastery Conscience Courage Award”. A lifelong atheist, Ram Dass first began exploring “Judaism” at the age of sixty. Once, he said in an interview——
My belief is that it was no accident that I was born into Judaism, so I need to find ways to honor that. “From a Hindu perspective, you are born with something to deal with, and if you try to push it away, whatever it is, it will catch you.”
In February 1997, he suffered a stroke that left him with “expressive aphasia” and paralysis. He was unable to speak or move many parts of his body, so he spent the rest of his life in a wheelchair. However, he found a way to speak in part and began lecturing and teaching online. In 2004, he moved to Maui, Hawaii and resides there permanently. He died at his home in Maui on December 22, 2019, at the age of 88. His death was announced on his Instagram page and the cause of death was unknown.
Facts/Trivia
- His book, “Be Here Now,” was a bestseller that inspired the likes of Steve Jobs, George Harrison of The Beatles, and Mark Zuckerberg. people.
- His books and teachings also had a life-changing impact on many factions of society. He frequently hosts retreats and gives lectures on life, yoga and spirituality to people of all ages.
Ram Dass during retreat
- When he found out about his son’s condition, he thought someone was trying to trick him. So his son took a DNA test to prove he was his son.
- Ram Dass once followed pescatarianism (eating seafood, dairy products and eggs as the only sources of meat on a vegetarian diet).
- Once, in an interview, he described himself as being hurt by religion. He also said——
Before I took LSD, I didn’t have a whiff of God.”
Ram Dass in speech
- Early on, he had taken a lot of LSD. At one point, he recalled locking himself in an estate with some friends and taking LSD every four hours. They want to escape reality, but inevitably have to return to reality.
- Even though he was in a wheelchair, he frequently visited nearby temples, hospitals, and other foundations that were working for the same causes as himself.
Ram Dass in his house
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education