Experiments in Truth

by Ram Dass, Richard Alpert

Experiments in Truth Ram Dass In February of 1997, Ram Dass suffered a debilitating stroke that left him struggling to speak again to the generation that he so inspired. For more than 30 years his life has served as a spiritual laboratory, where he touched thousands of seekers with his personal search for greater truths. From the beginning, this respected teacher’s retreat talks and lectures have been meticulously recorded and archived. Experiments in Truth is a historic collection of Ram Dass’ most important recordings, hand-picked and presented together for the first time. You will join this pioneer of engaged spirituality in America and master storyteller for eight inspiring lectures, each one a gem of humor, insight, and intelligence about the spiritual journey today. Here is real-life wisdom for people of all faiths and all walks of life. the life of Ram Dass • The heart’s most direct path to love • The three planes of existence • Overcoming fear of sickness and death • The path of service, and much more.

Genres: Spirituality, Audiobook, Nonfiction, Philosophy, Religion, Self Help

Audio Cassette

Published January 1, 1998

About the author

Ram Dass (Richard Alpert), was one of America's most beloved spiritual figures, making his mark on the world giving teachings and promoting loving service, harmonious business practices, and conscious care for the dying. His spirit has been a guiding light for four generations, carrying millions along on the journey, helping free them from their bonds as he has worked his way through his own.

Reviews

[Bryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

An easy five stars for my first audiobook of the year. Ram Dass is, among the likes of Alan Watts and Terence McKenna, one of my favorite beings to listen to lecture. Such a high man, and one who has been through a lot. I can say nothing of Ram Dass that hasn't been said before, but I found this particular audiobook to be perhaps the best of his I've listened to; mainly because there were several lectures (the majority in fact) that I had never heard before, most of these coming from the 1990's. The audiobook is split into eight 'sessions' ranging from the '60s to the '90s, and I thought it was really fun hearing the old mixed in with the .. less old, because you really get a sense of how his consciousness has molded over the years. That is a trend that continues in his post-stroke lectures. His lectures from the '90s had a calmer, wiser, more humorous overtone than that from the '60s. Not that those traits were absent in the older ones, just perhaps not as pronounced. And I admit this could be a projection on my part. I jotted down some quotes from each of the sessions, and I thought I'd just list them out below.

Session 1: San Rafael, CA 1994
"'I want to be alone.' Don't kid yourself, heh. You don't want to be alone, you wouldn't exist! You only exist relationally, on that level."
"Ram asks Hanuman, 'Who are you, Hanuman?' and Hanuman replies, 'When I don't know who I am, I serve you. When I know who I am, I am you.'"

Session 2: Breitenbush Oregon Retreat Center, OR 1994
"Because taking something serious doesn't make it go away any faster. In fact it keeps making it a little bit worse."

Session 3: Rhinebeck, NY 1992
"...but I saw that love freed me back into the ocean and that anger didn't. And that I would rather be free than right."

Session 4: Silver Springs, MD 1969
In this session he tells the infamous story of his first mushroom trip. And while I've heard it before (and subsequently the events that led from this up to his meeting and studying under Neem Karoli Baba aka Maharj-ji), I had never heard the story with the amount of background he gave here; specifically on his and Tim Leary's relationship and what led up to that first trip.

Session 5: Silver Springs, MD 1969
A continuation of the previous session.

Session 6: Irvine, CA 1978
In this session Ram Dass lectures on the 'channels' of identity, which I had also heard before but it was really nice to revisit.
"Which channel are you talking about? If we start from the top and go on down into the grosser planes; I am the void, who manifests as the one, who becomes the many, who has a unique set of factors to work out through a unique astral, psychological, and physical body. That's what I'm doing on Earth. I have taken a body to do certain work, and when I've finished that work I will drop that body."

Session 7: Yucca Valley, CA 1979
In which Ram Dass lectures on being one with god (don't recoil from the word).

Session 8: Devon, England 1994
In which Ram Dass lectures on the forms of suffering
"I'm attempting to take the pain and play with it to see what my tolerance is before pain becomes suffering. Because pain is just pain, whether I make it into suffering or not.."
"So you look and there is your suffering; where the mind is in relation to the phenomenal field."
"You are compassion. You don't have compassion, you are compassion. You are compassion."

So, if you can get ahold of it I highly recommend it. I suppose you have to stomach a certain amount of woo, but Ram Dass is someone I hold in high regard. He is a being full of wisdom, compassion, and absolute love. And even if you sit through this gritting your teeth and wondering how anyone could be so pretentious (some will), I think that maybe something will rub off on you. Whether it ignites a passion in you to study Buddhism, or a desire to be more aware of yourself, or changes the way you think about death. Just a little something. One little idea, or suggestion. And it will bloom.

When I don't know who I am, I serve you. When I know who I am, I am you.

You are compassion.

[Jennifer Budnick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing. Ram Dass has the spirit of a Yogi and the delivery of a late night television host. I will listen to this audiobook again and again.

[Carolyn Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mind Blowing- and reality shattering. Ram Dass is funny and irreverent- and it opened my eyes to reality in a new way.

[Mahmoud Amr · Rating 1 out of 5]

New age bs for white bourgeois malaise. Nothing is so totally moronic and psy-opy than the american "counter culture" of the 60's

[Vladi G · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was very interesting to listen to how and about what Ram Dass is talking about. At times it was really difficult to follow it and understand what the central thread even is but closer to the end it all started to come together beautifully. It reminds me that a lot of the wisdom that such spiritual teachers are trying to convey is really beyond concepts and words. It is in being, into which you can really tune in if you listen to and feel what they say.

[Christopher Dennis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This audio series had a huge influence on me 10 years ago, after I finished university.

This was the first time I heard testimony about a persons's real, life-changing spiritual experiences. Prior to these lectures, I wondered whether 'spirituality' was just a new age fantasy. Afterwards, I believed there were powerful truths to be discovered through meditation.

[Robert Ferrin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Changed my life. No joke. Highly recommend!

[T. Laane · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an overlapping audiobook, I heard many lectures by Ram's in other books. AND once chapter was with the worst audio sound quality. So rather skip this one!
ATTACHMENT AND FREEDOM. The less you need from people and the less your own agenda runs the show, the more they open up. If you approach someone just to be present, without judgment or own thought, you become a mirror and suddenly, people actually feel seen. The author learned from Alan Watts that being too much attached to emptiness - craving that spiritual high - is just another attachment. The real goal isn’t to be “high”, it’s to be free, and that freedom even means freedom from needing to be free. Give up anger, don’t “work through it” - anger is just old karma making a dramatic exit. The big question is: do you want to be right or do you want to be free? Most people spend their lives clinging to life, status, and money, terrified of letting go, but the true measure of understanding is how openly you can accept death without clutching everything. The author isn’t afraid of death, and that calmness rubs off on the dying he spends his time with often. When people die peacefully, it’s because they’re not wrapped up in their physical bodies anymore.
SPIRITUAL HIGHS AND GURUS. Lovers get clingy and needy, thinking their partner is the source of all joy - same with spiritual teachers. The moment a teacher leads you to a spiritual high, you start needing them like you need oxygen, and they become your new obsession. That explains why spiritual fanatics love their gurus like teenagers love rock stars. But here’s the kicker: you only want their happiness if it’s with you, just like jealous lovers. The feeling never comes from the guru - it’s always inside you; you just don’t realize how to access it on your own. And once you’ve tasted a spiritual high - be it tantra, drugs, meditation, or whatever - it sticks in your memory and you can’t just forget it or go back to “normal.”
CONSCIOUSNESS AND EGO. The fisherman story nails how consciousness works: you rage at someone who bumps your boat in the dark, only to see it’s empty, and instantly your anger vanishes - consciousness just kicked in. Meditation practices, like focusing on breathing and letting all thoughts go, help guide you toward your real self, not the collection of thoughts society has glued onto you. Your true being isn’t your thoughts - that’s just social conditioning dressed up as your personality.
MIRACLES AND ENTERTAINMENT. Miracle stories are what the crowds want, everyone loves a little “supernatural,” but even the author admits miracles have nothing to do with real spiritual freedom. They’re just good entertainment, a bit of hope with a laugh at the end.
DEATH AND ACCEPTANCE. When a loved one dies, people think they’ve lost their only anchor in the universe, but the source of connection and love was always within themselves - they have only been able to unlock it via the loved person so far. Those who accept death openly understand life better than anyone still clinging to status, money, and reputation.

[Stephen · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm in the wheelhouse of this book's target audience: A lay believer in Buddhist philosophy and the the great benefits of meditation. Sadly this book, a series of recorded lectures, fell far short for me.

First, Ram Dass fetishizes taking psychadelics (I'm not against them per se but there are IMO other ways to crack your head open to the nature of reality). He is very casual about it and makes it sounds like something anyone could do on a whim. That's some dangerous juju and most Buddhist teachers do not suggest this path, not just for the danger of taking drugs on your own like the Timothy O'Leary cool kids, but also because there's more to the path to enlightenment than a pill, though the pill path is a decidedly American approach.

He also mixes in western psychobabble from the Freud school in order to explain and justify the benefits of Buddhism. This seems an unnecessary and painful adherence to a model that (a) is discredited even in modern psych circles, (b) had no useful implication even when it was de rigueur--it was just an exciting way to think about the human mind and led to endless hours of mostly ineffective therapy drowning in thinking about thoughts, and (c) couldn't be further from Buddhism's letting go of models/thoughts. He tosses a line or two in about how it is "meaningless" but his continual use of Freudism as a language to explain Buddhist philosophy struck the wrong chord. There is a group of psychologist-Buddhists who walk in Ram Dass's shadow and they are ineffective teachers to me, with compassion and apology to them, because who am I to question Freudian Buddhists.

This was perhaps the worst book on enlightenment and Buddhism that I've ever read. I would never recommend it. If his approach works for you, wonderful.

[Brian Wilcox · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot of wisdom here in these talks, spanning decades. Not much interested in the experimentation with psychedelics nor the manifestations of psychic powers by those called gurus. Still, overall, a thought-evoking, inspirational listen.

Dass was an excellent teacher, who matured much from the earlier Dass, and spoke as someone who knew first-hand what he was sharing with others. I respect that. Also, even in the latter talks in this work, the mid-90s, he was clear that he was still in process, as the rest of us.

I especially like how he admitted he hid from the world earlier in his spiritual process, for the models available to him were ascetical, and he came to see such was not the path of compassion, but of avoidance. I will not discount that the ascetical may have a role, especially as a phase to live and grow through; however, his point is wise - even alone, we need to remain in openness to the world. I live alone, isolated, with little contact with the 'outside' world, yet, unlike earlier, find even away one can be with others. Earlier in my life, alone I was alone with myself - or, better, I thought I was. Thankfully, we grow, and keep growing.

[Mark O'Leary · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a comment on the audiobook version: to put it simply, read the print version. Don't waste your money on the audio. Although the narrator has a pleasant enough reading voice, he spent exactly no time learning the correct pronunciation of the many technical terms in Sanskrit, Hindi, etc. I could almost forgive his mispronunciations of words like Ramayana, but he couldn't even learn how to say Maharajji properly, and there are thousands of hours of recordings of Ram Dass and others saying it clearly. This may seem like a triviality, but to a long-time student of Maharajji and his dharmic descendants, it is jarring and annoying--and completely avoidable if you simply read the text yourself.

The other objectionable thing: when reading a direct quote from Maharajji, the narrator affects a South Asian accent, which is bad enough, but it wasn't even a good imitation. Indian people would be rightly offended. Again, stay away from the audio book.

[Jmay · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love these lectures- some stronger than others. I like the narrative ones illustrate how he came to some of his viewpoints.
His work on child development and not shooting down wild imaginative paths or making children scared to think- that sounds interesting.
The last 2 minutes describe a really off-putting drug trip that bolsters my opinion drugs are disgusting. I like that even Ram Dass comes off fairly anti-drug when he explains it’s only a temporary method to “switch channels” from the quotidian, and anything temporary and dependent soon becomes experientially addictive. You have to discover the capability within yourself.

[J · Rating 5 out of 5]

I recommend being fully present when listening to this book. I found I got a lot more of out of it when sitting on a porch looking at at the woods that when I listened to it driving or hiking. Having a notebook nearby was a great way for me to capturing particular bits of wisdom. If you're interested in Yoga as a spiritual path, Ram Dass is an incredible envoy. When I finished this, I immediately went and started his other audio series: Love Service Devotion and the Ultimate Surrender.

He's answering a lot of the questions I've had for a long time about the spiritual path.

[Evan Kostelka · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is not a book for beginners or those unfamiliar with Ram Dass.

The first few lectures I was a little confused about what he was talking about. However, the later lectures where he talks about his travels in India and the importance of embracing death as well as learning from suffering are good.

I'm sure if I listened again I would gain a lot more but I also would like to have a little more background to Buddhism, Hinduism, and Eastern thought in general to get more out of it.

[Bejinha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a series of talks by Ram Dass aka Dick Alpert; after he came back from India.

I’ve just finished and included in the Favorites category.

As a prologue, I do recommend watching the excellent documentary about his amazing adventures and his buddy Tim, that guy who had the Beatles composing his jingle campaign (come together) and who changed his mind and the minds of an entire generation
http://bit.ly/2nlbqnq

[Chase Wallin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Classic top tier talks from one of the most influential western spiritual teachers ever. What a privilege and gift it is that recording equipment existed at the same time as Ram Dass. 2 of the parts included are when he had just returned from the East and chronicle in detail his spiritual awakening and path to his guru. All while keeping his classic humor and relatability through the profound wisdom of ancient teachings.

[Evan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of talks spanning many different topics and points in time throughout Ram Dass's life. It's interesting to hear how his delivery and range of topics changed over the years, and to then hear him acknowledge and talk about this himself, further highlighting that the journey is never really over.

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have listened to a fair bit of Ram Dass stuff, but every time I come back to it, even if I have heard it before, its still new again and a joy. In this audiobook/lecture series I think it would have been useful to put his 'origins' story at the start. But I was still taken back and inspired by his message of love and hope and pain in suffering all over again. An eternal message.

[Laura Isabel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another author (Pete Holmes) referenced this work and I decided to give it a listen. Loved the frequent use of “far out” to lighten up some of these profound concepts.

“When you are forced to bear the unbearable, something dies in you. What dies is who you were that couldn’t bear the unbearable... Your bearing the unbearable, that is the root of the deepest compassion in the world.”

[Anthony Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think if a person had eighth minutes of audio content, Sounds True would probably give you three one hour collections with the first fifty remaining the same and the last ten changing. Or that's been my experience with their compilations so far. You can't really double dip, because you're going to get the same stuff over and over. Which is a shame. I like listening to Ram Dass speak so much.

[Terjuna Janae Faton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection of Ram Dass tapes is an exploration of the duality of existence. Through his own journey—from Harvard psychologist to spiritual seeker—he shows that truth is an ongoing experiment, one that asks us to hold both sides of experience with equal reverence. Awakening is not about rejecting the world but about seeing through its illusions to the deeper reality of love and presence.

[Kate Hyde · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF at 1 hour and 44 minutes.

SO BORING. I didn’t hear anything new and amazing. Mainly just personal stories. When the 3rd session started, and he was just reading other people’s work, I decided I was done.

[Justin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some people resonate with me better as speakers (e.g. Alan Watts) and others as writers.
It looks like Ramy D falls into the latter category for me. It might be a tone/voice issue or just that his books are more succinct.

[Sophie Rayton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really wonderful.

[Jacobs623 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful. Fascinating read. The audiobook includes his original lectures.

[Andy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic. I don't really know what to say about it because this type of stuff affects you on such a deep, fundamental level that's it's near impossible to put into words.

[Markus Molina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really great stuff to absorb and try to remember.

[Sunil Newatia · Rating 4 out of 5]

A decent book with clarity and ease of understanding on the ways we can understand our existence and purpose of life

[Joseph Via · Rating 5 out of 5]

Essential Human Listening. Absolute life changing brilliance all told through a disarmingly charming mouthpiece.

[Traci D'Antonio · Rating 4 out of 5]

“There’s only one rule, work on yourself”