The Unified Theory of Ram Dass • Hacker News Board

Re: The Unified Theory of Ram Dass

#31

Post by marzell » Thu, Nov 29, 2018, 10:39 PM UTC

dugluak wrote: post #17

djsumdog wrote: post #4

I had his Be Here Now book in University. I didn't know he had a podcast. I'll have to add it. I had a friend I was tripping on acid with, back in grad school, and he picked up the Be Here Now book, read the intro and said, "Wait, did he seriously change his name to 'Rammed ass?!'" .. I've always wondered about his intent after that. :-P

He should have spelled it "DAAS" instead of "DASS", because DAAS is how it's supposed to be pronounced.

There's no universal way to pronounce given letters, especially when transliteration is involved. Neem Karoli Baba chose the name for him. Not sure how the spelling was decided upon, but it seems pretty trivial, as spellings/pronunciations change all the time.

Re: The Unified Theory of Ram Dass

#32

Post by maxxxxx » Thu, Nov 29, 2018, 10:41 PM UTC

eludwig wrote: post #16

maxxxxx wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed. A lot of famous gurus are just very charismatic people that live a very nice life and don't really have to deal with the drudgeries of the life most regular people live. When you look under the cover a lot of them are abusive and really not nice people. I think there are only very few people that are really spiritually enlightened and they are not necessarily the famous gurus. I know nothing about Ram Dad's b…

I agree with you, but I don't necessarily see a conflict between someone "teaching" me (what a guru basically is: a teacher, in a way) and other facets of their personality. I've had many teachers that were superb at imparting their lessons while living with the foibles and flaws of being real people. You take what you need from the teacher and move on. An example in popular culture: someone like Bill Cosby, who I am…

With self help, spiritual and health people I have decided only to listen to people who live their own teachings. I have seen famous yoga teachers talk about the benefits of yoga while popping large amounts of Ibuprofen daily because their practice injured them.

Same for some gurus who outwardly are serene and friendly people but their ashram is a dictatorship that terrorizes and manipulates people. There is also a lot of sexual abuse going on. Ram Dass himself did questionable things.

I think bad behavior negates the teachings or at least diminishes them by a lot. How am I supposed to know something works if it doesn't work for the teacher?

Unfortunately there are only a few authentic gurus and teachers.

Re: The Unified Theory of Ram Dass

#33

Post by thebigspacefuck » Thu, Nov 29, 2018, 11:24 PM UTC

Nomentatus wrote: post #23

The most effective rape drug ever, turning adults into children who can be exploited. “I got dismissed from Harvard because I had given psychedelics to an undergraduate. We had agreed with the dean that we would not give psychedelics to undergraduates.” Ram Dass flashes a mischievous grin. “He was an attractive kid.” So do you suspect, I ask, that Maharajji had a hand in making you attracted to men because it would u…

Psylocibin is the most effective rape drug ever?

Re: The Unified Theory of Ram Dass

#34

Post by toofy » Thu, Nov 29, 2018, 11:30 PM UTC

Nomentatus wrote: post #23

The most effective rape drug ever, turning adults into children who can be exploited. “I got dismissed from Harvard because I had given psychedelics to an undergraduate. We had agreed with the dean that we would not give psychedelics to undergraduates.” Ram Dass flashes a mischievous grin. “He was an attractive kid.” So do you suspect, I ask, that Maharajji had a hand in making you attracted to men because it would u…

Other than this article, I’m pretty much unfamiliar with Ram Dass, so I’m curious what leads you to believe some form of rape took place. Is there something in Ramm Dass’ past that the article doesn’t cover? I feel like I must be missing something, surely it’s not the drug use alone that has led you to believe this, right?

Re: The Unified Theory of Ram Dass

#35

Post by brianberns » Thu, Nov 29, 2018, 11:50 PM UTC

toofy wrote: post #34

Nomentatus wrote: post #23

The most effective rape drug ever, turning adults into children who can be exploited. “I got dismissed from Harvard because I had given psychedelics to an undergraduate. We had agreed with the dean that we would not give psychedelics to undergraduates.” Ram Dass flashes a mischievous grin. “He was an attractive kid.” So do you suspect, I ask, that Maharajji had a hand in making you attracted to men because it would u…

Other than this article, I’m pretty much unfamiliar with Ram Dass, so I’m curious what leads you to believe some form of rape took place. Is there something in Ramm Dass’ past that the article doesn’t cover? I feel like I must be missing something, surely it’s not the drug use alone that has led you to believe this, right?

You really don't get it? He was using drugs to seduce his students from a position of power and influence over them. That wasn't cool even in 1967.

Re: The Unified Theory of Ram Dass

#36

Post by Antimachides » Fri, Nov 30, 2018, 12:17 AM UTC

thebigspacefuck wrote: post #33

Nomentatus wrote: post #23

The most effective rape drug ever, turning adults into children who can be exploited. “I got dismissed from Harvard because I had given psychedelics to an undergraduate. We had agreed with the dean that we would not give psychedelics to undergraduates.” Ram Dass flashes a mischievous grin. “He was an attractive kid.” So do you suspect, I ask, that Maharajji had a hand in making you attracted to men because it would u…

Psylocibin is the most effective rape drug ever?

It's so effective I had an out-of-body experience and raped myself.

Re: The Unified Theory of Ram Dass

#37

Post by toofy » Fri, Nov 30, 2018, 12:17 AM UTC

brianberns wrote: post #35

toofy wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Other than this article, I’m pretty much unfamiliar with Ram Dass, so I’m curious what leads you to believe some form of rape took place. Is there something in Ramm Dass’ past that the article doesn’t cover? I feel like I must be missing something, surely it’s not the drug use alone that has led you to believe this, right?

You really don't get it? He was using drugs to seduce his students from a position of power and influence over them. That wasn't cool even in 1967.

Fair point,

I definitely should have been more charitable in my reading, I got stuck on this:

> The most effective rape drug ever, turning adults into children who can be exploited

I was looking to tease out some clarification, because the implication that these drugs turn adults into children and prime them for rape seems like a strange leap from my perspective.

I’ll happily chalk it up to my lack of charitable reading and assume in good faith the commenter was referring to the drugs combined with the power dynamics.

Re: The Unified Theory of Ram Dass

#38

Post by reidjs » Fri, Nov 30, 2018, 12:22 AM UTC

davebryand wrote: post #8

Understanding and living his message (or any other non-dualist teacher) is the #1 to do if you want a successful startup. (Really, it's the recipe for a successful life. In fact, when you've tasted what he's offering, you may find that stock options, sales funnels, and customer acquisition costs no longer excite you.)

I feel like if you’re excited by those things you will have more success running a startup, no?

Re: The Unified Theory of Ram Dass

#39

Post by lalos » Fri, Nov 30, 2018, 12:48 AM UTC

Nomentatus wrote: post #23

The most effective rape drug ever, turning adults into children who can be exploited. “I got dismissed from Harvard because I had given psychedelics to an undergraduate. We had agreed with the dean that we would not give psychedelics to undergraduates.” Ram Dass flashes a mischievous grin. “He was an attractive kid.” So do you suspect, I ask, that Maharajji had a hand in making you attracted to men because it would u…

I think that quote is talking about Ram Dass being gay, and his friend having a theory that his guru (Maharajji) made him gay for Ram Dass to find him easier.

Re: The Unified Theory of Ram Dass

#40

Post by fromthestart » Fri, Nov 30, 2018, 12:58 AM UTC

vijucat wrote: post #11

I've always been conflicted by these gurus, so let me play devil's advocate and present some things I found when I researched Ram Dass / Neem Karoli Baba a while ago: http://www.strippingthegurus.com/stgsamplechapters/dass.html Some interesting tales by Ram Dass about how Neem Karoli read his mind, ingested ginormous amounts of LSD without any effect, etc; here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yb2BWvRN090 The specifi…

>sexual predators

Yeah, these guys give off slimy vibes, but I wonder if this term is a little harsh. Women associate willingly with these men, and ostensibly enjoy doing so. If all participants are willing, what is the difference between predation and normal human interaction? Is it not normal for women to be drawn to power and influence?