Ep. 236 – The Relationship Between Karma and Grace

Ep. 236 – The Relationship Between Karma and Grace

Author: Ram Dass / Love Serve Remember October 9, 2023 Duration: 43:41

In this Q&A session, Ram Dass answers questions about how to love without emotional attachment, the relationship between karma and grace, and how he defines responsibility.

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In this recording from 1976, Ram Dass answers questions from a lively Los Angeles audience:

  • How to love without emotional attachment? Ram Dass explores the various levels of love, dealing with attachment, and working with the karma that exists in our life space.
  • What is the relationship of karma and grace? Ram Dass talks about how he perceives grace and the ways it intersects with our karma.
  • What’s his view on vegetarianism? And who is God? Somehow, those questions are connected.
  • How does Ram Dass define responsibility? A responsible being lives in the Tao. 

“And what grace turns out to be is all the forces that exist in the universe that are free agents, that are available to support the process of your going back into the source. All the gurus, all the beings on astral planes, all of the elements, all of the forces in the universe.” – Ram Dass

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The voice of Ram Dass carries a unique and enduring warmth, a blend of profound spiritual insight and grounded, often humorous, humanity. Ram Dass Here And Now is a curated archive of this wisdom, drawing from a rich tapestry of lectures recorded over four decades. Each episode is a focused journey into themes of consciousness, love, service, and the intricate paths of awakening, all filtered through Ram Dass's distinctive heart-centered perspective. The podcast is presented by the Love Serve Remember Foundation, with longtime friend and director Raghu Markus providing contextual introductions that connect these timeless talks to our contemporary moment. Listeners will find themselves immersed in conversations that weave together Eastern philosophy, particularly from the Hindu and Bhakti traditions, with practical Western psychology, exploring how spiritual principles manifest in everyday life, relationships, and societal challenges. It’s less a formal lecture and more an intimate, meandering dialogue with a wise elder, offering reflections that feel both ancient and immediately relevant. This isn't about dogma, but about the shared, often messy, human experience of seeking meaning and connection. To spend time with this podcast is to encounter a gentle guide, one who points persistently toward the present moment, toward compassion, and toward the recognition of our shared essence.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 307

Ram Dass Here And Now
Podcast Episodes
Ep. 106 - Who Are You? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 53:36
In this talk from 1976, Ram Dass talks about what we are beyond this lifetime and asks, "Who are you?" Time after time we have experienced a cycle of birth and death. Each time we are born into a new identity and cling t…
Ep. 105 – Keeping our Quietness and Love [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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Ep. 104 - Mindfulness and Food [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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Ram Dass is joined by a young Joseph Goldstein and Jack Kornfield for a meaningful talk about mindfulness and food. This discussion is part of the Naropa University Bhagavad Gita Sessions of 1974. We are shown a new perc…
Ep. 103 – Individual Differences [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 46:53
In this lecture from 1974 at Naropa University, Ram Dass talks about our unhealthy preoccupation with our individual differences. We grow up with the identity of a separate self, building an entire character around that…
Ep. 102 - Soul Complex [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 51:22
On this episode of Here and Now, Ram Dass has a Sunday hangout session with Raghu Markus. The two chat about the concept of the 'soul-complex', how Ram Dass manages his suffering, as well as duality and devotion. Ram Das…
Ep. 101 - Separation, Lust & Kali [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:12:09
How would you answer the question of, "Who do you think YOU are?" You probably believe that you are somebody, but that somebody is the ego. On this episode of Here and Now, Ram Dass talks about our separation from the On…
Ep. 100 - Imagination, Faith, and Gratitude [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 51:37
On this special 100th episode of Here and Now, Ram Dass and Raghu Markus talk about imagination, faith, and gratitude. Ram Dass teaches us to see through our own delusions that mislead us and weigh us down with fear. Ram…
Ep. 98 - Spiritual Practices [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 50:55
When it comes to Spiritual Practices, Ram Dass poses the question, “why do we practice?” Raghu reads a passage from The Wisdom Teachings and Good Wishes of the Adi-Buddha Samanta-Bhadra which poses that the reality which…
Ep. 97 – Being Free Together [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 48:47
Ram Dass talks about disturbing emotions that may arise is potential wisdom the moment you relax into your natural mind. Look directly into it, don’t deliberately reject it, regard it as a fault, or indulge in it concret…