A review by bdesmond
Be Here Now, by Ram Dass
5.0
2020-04-07: 'If you have ever watched a beautiful Zen monk, a very old monk who is really there, or here, really here, whichever... You watch him... He's cooking food. He's lifting stones. He's moving. You watch him walk and it's like nobody's walking.'
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2018-04-02: The title says it all, and is itself a lesson. If one takes nothing more away from this book at least take that; it can be a mantra against all sorts of ails. Anxiety, worry, ego inflation. Just be here. Now. Easier said than done of course, but a good habit to form. I was glad to have finally read what many refer to as the 'hippie bible'. It makes the rounds in my circle of friends and I'd been putting it off long enough. It was a gift for Christmas, so I took my time with it.
Reading sections of this book aloud achieved something that silently reading it could not, for whatever reason. I rarely find that to be true of books.
Be Here Now is a book split into three sections. Well, really four. But three main sections. The first section is an interesting look at the transformation of one Richard Alpert into the man known today as Ram Dass. You've probably heard of him.
The middle section is a trip, and the meat of the book. When people think of Be Here Now it's this section that comes to mind. I once heard it said that the middle section, 'gets you high.' And that's true.
The third section is referred to as a 'spiritual cookbook', and is essentially a manual to get started on the path. It explains and describes all sorts of practices, from Bhakti Yoga, to furthering your Sadhana, to meditation exercises and a variety of 'potent quotes' that are applicable to each section. I read through this section for the sake of completion. I did get something out of it, but I would have been more interested if I was committed to undertaking a Buddhist lifestyle, or something of that nature.
The last little section is one of my favorites because it gives a bunch of book recommendations! 'Books to hangout with', 'Books to visit with now and then', and 'Books it's useful to have met'. I'll undoubtedly be pulling some books from this section for future reads.
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2018-04-02: The title says it all, and is itself a lesson. If one takes nothing more away from this book at least take that; it can be a mantra against all sorts of ails. Anxiety, worry, ego inflation. Just be here. Now. Easier said than done of course, but a good habit to form. I was glad to have finally read what many refer to as the 'hippie bible'. It makes the rounds in my circle of friends and I'd been putting it off long enough. It was a gift for Christmas, so I took my time with it.
Reading sections of this book aloud achieved something that silently reading it could not, for whatever reason. I rarely find that to be true of books.
Be Here Now is a book split into three sections. Well, really four. But three main sections. The first section is an interesting look at the transformation of one Richard Alpert into the man known today as Ram Dass. You've probably heard of him.
The middle section is a trip, and the meat of the book. When people think of Be Here Now it's this section that comes to mind. I once heard it said that the middle section, 'gets you high.' And that's true.
The third section is referred to as a 'spiritual cookbook', and is essentially a manual to get started on the path. It explains and describes all sorts of practices, from Bhakti Yoga, to furthering your Sadhana, to meditation exercises and a variety of 'potent quotes' that are applicable to each section. I read through this section for the sake of completion. I did get something out of it, but I would have been more interested if I was committed to undertaking a Buddhist lifestyle, or something of that nature.
The last little section is one of my favorites because it gives a bunch of book recommendations! 'Books to hangout with', 'Books to visit with now and then', and 'Books it's useful to have met'. I'll undoubtedly be pulling some books from this section for future reads.