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Still Here: Embracing Aging, Changing and Dying
More than thirty years ago, an entire generation sought a new way of life, looking for fulfillment and meaning in a way no one had before. Leaving his teaching job at Harvard, Ram Dass embodied the role of spiritual seeker, showing others how to find peace within themselves in one of the greatest spiritual classics of the twentieth century, the two-million-copy bestseller...more
Paperback, 224 pages
Published
June 1st 2001
by Riverhead Trade
(first published April 27th 2000)
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Ram Dass is such an engaging writer and this book is a must for anyone dealing with debilitating illness and aging or for seniors who are beginning to feel or become curious about the onset of aging. And of course any age person can gain from his profound wisdom. As in "Be Here Now", he directs our consciousness in "Still Here" to the present moment and guides us through a conscious approach to aging (and dying) and as you read it you notice that it just really makes you feel better about yourse...more
Laura mentioned this book as a way to help understand the fear and slowness that I see in our parents now as they age more.
Ram Dass wrote this in 2000 after experiencing a stroke.
I only turned down the corner on a couple of pages as reading.
In one instance, Ram Dass has arranged to take his father, then almost 90, to the site of their old family farm where his father spent his early years. Ram Dass thought this would be a good trip for his father. Instead he was disappointed at his father's la...more
Ram Dass wrote this in 2000 after experiencing a stroke.
I only turned down the corner on a couple of pages as reading.
In one instance, Ram Dass has arranged to take his father, then almost 90, to the site of their old family farm where his father spent his early years. Ram Dass thought this would be a good trip for his father. Instead he was disappointed at his father's la...more
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I laughed aloud and then lapsed into a contemplative silence when I recently encountered a church sign which read, "Ten out of ten people die. Are you ready?"
After reading Ram Dass' Still Here, I'm ready.
With gentleness and compassion, spiritual pioneer and stroke survivor Ram Dass guides readers in an exploration of two much maligned - yet inevitable - human undertakings, aging and dying. The wisdom he shares is simple and profound: Yes, we are our bodies, but we are also infinitely more.
As we...more
After reading Ram Dass' Still Here, I'm ready.
With gentleness and compassion, spiritual pioneer and stroke survivor Ram Dass guides readers in an exploration of two much maligned - yet inevitable - human undertakings, aging and dying. The wisdom he shares is simple and profound: Yes, we are our bodies, but we are also infinitely more.
As we...more
GOOD NEWS FOR THOSE WHO ARE STILL HERE
The Harvard Ph.D. who dropped acid, dropped out and went to India in search of enlightenment. Your mother's nightmare. Your mother would be glad to know that Ram Dass hung in there, bringing comfort and light to people for the last 40 years. He has attained something worth attaining. I'm told by a friend that Ram Dass was at his most impressive last year, leading a seminar after a stroke that left him barely able to speak. He credited that stroke with teach...more
The Harvard Ph.D. who dropped acid, dropped out and went to India in search of enlightenment. Your mother's nightmare. Your mother would be glad to know that Ram Dass hung in there, bringing comfort and light to people for the last 40 years. He has attained something worth attaining. I'm told by a friend that Ram Dass was at his most impressive last year, leading a seminar after a stroke that left him barely able to speak. He credited that stroke with teach...more
I read this book several years ago and recently read it again. Ram Dass, formerly Richard Alpert, a psychologist/author and friend of Timothy Leary, similarly turfed from Harvard due to LSD experiments in the 1960's, is a lifelong spiritual thinker and healer. His serious stroke in 1999 caused him to come to terms with personal suffering and the reality of dependence onpon others in day to day life due to his incapacity. And yet, he is mostly happy. This is an excellent read that addressed the i...more
Nov 08, 2012
Karen
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Shelves:
aging,
death-and-dying,
disability,
india,
memoir,
health,
non-western-culture,
nonfiction,
pop-psyche,
sociology,
spirituality
Ram Dass has been in the consciousness-raising business since the 1960s, and he uses his self-awareness in the wake of a stroke to meditate on the topics (as flagged in the subtitle) of aging, changing and dying.
He turns ideas about disability, frailty, decay, pain, dependence, and other "bad" consequences associated with aging and turns them over and over and over in the rock-tumbler of his mind, producing beautiful objects for our consideration. His book testifies to the power that our attitu...more
He turns ideas about disability, frailty, decay, pain, dependence, and other "bad" consequences associated with aging and turns them over and over and over in the rock-tumbler of his mind, producing beautiful objects for our consideration. His book testifies to the power that our attitu...more
Ram Dass recounts his personal experience of suddenly losing his robust physical vigor to a debilitating cerebral stroke. Forced to give up his active life he became totally dependent on others for virtually every aspect of his physical existence. Yet in this book he affirms the stroke as the greatest gift he could have been given. As hard as it is to imagine anyone feeling that way, he explains convincingly. His example is an uplifting life-affirming reminder when I am anxious about aging, illn...more
A beautiful book. I had seen him in person give a talk in Hawaii 20 years ago now when he was talking about service. At that time in his life he was taking care of his aging parents. In Still Here he has a stroke and has to learn about the importance of letting others serve you when you need it. I was there when I had a broken back. It is very challenging to receive help graciously when you desperately need it. This should be required reading for anyone in the business of serving others.
I highly recommend this follow up to Be Here Now by Ram Dass. Being a person struggling with illness, perhaps that was the reason I resonated so much with this book but the truth is we will all age and/or grow sick...
Ram Dass brilliantly describes his own experiences and the ways he has found God through his experiences. Eloquent as ever, this book helped me in my own process of discovery around the experience of living in a body that no longer conforms to expectations.
a man of profound depth of wisdom, Richard Alpert succinctly put into words our vulnerability in facing our own imminent destination. through his words, i find inspirations that i didn't expect to cope with life's unexpected. in order to let go of my pain and anguish, i gotta feel it through first. the book once again appeared at the right time to alleviate the sorrows inside of me and shine light on a path ahead. thank you Ram Dass T.T
Mar 16, 2009
Irised3188
is currently reading it
A very enlightning book about age and dying. Ram Dass was stricken in 2000 with a stroke and had begun writing this book before it happened. His insight and understanding of himself and his own feelings about dying and sickness are put down on paper in this book for everyone to learn from. There is plenty of wisdom here.
"Gandhi once said, "My life is my message." That's what I aspire to."
"The Sufi Mulah Nasrudin reminds us that looking for reality only through science's lens is like a drunkard losing his keys in the dark and only looking around the lamp post because that's where he can see."
"The Sufi Mulah Nasrudin reminds us that looking for reality only through science's lens is like a drunkard losing his keys in the dark and only looking around the lamp post because that's where he can see."
Jun 18, 2008
Kathleen
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
insightful readers
Shelves:
self-improve-spiritual-health
the first time I wrote this review, I put it in the wrong place on the website...in the comments section, instead of the my review place.................
I love this book. I've never read Ram Dass prior to this book. But I'm going to go back and reads some others he's written. The book is about health aging on your own terms, cultural norms, wisdom and keeping that joy and spirit one's had during their 'young' life. It's for anyone to read. The younger readers will gain quite a bit of knowledge i...more
I love this book. I've never read Ram Dass prior to this book. But I'm going to go back and reads some others he's written. The book is about health aging on your own terms, cultural norms, wisdom and keeping that joy and spirit one's had during their 'young' life. It's for anyone to read. The younger readers will gain quite a bit of knowledge i...more
I wrote a review of his film Fierce Grace in which the review mentions these books. You can find the review posted here:
http://hubpages.com/hub/In-Favor-of-H...
http://hubpages.com/hub/In-Favor-of-H...
Ram Dass is someone who has a great sense of humor which is why i love this book. He's like a spiritual stand-up comedian. No one wants to rush the aging process but it helps to confront the fear of dying early in life. Hearing his stories of having a stroke are so inspiring. It allowed me to view illness and dying from a new perspective.
We are working through this with a reading group I belong to. It has a lot to offer in opening up our willingness to embrace aging.
horrible! horrible! horrible! occasionally he would say something good and then it would bounce again into the horrible....
Best I ever read. About no matter how sick we become we are still the same person inside
I like Ram Dass, but I wasn't in the mood once I brought this book home from the library.
It was kind of interesting, a lot of words but didn't say that much.
This may possibly be the best book I have ever read
This is a beginner spiritual book for older people who are insecure about their age. I figured that since it was authored by Ram Dass that I would enjoy it for some more of his light-hearted and down to earth spiritual insights that he's famous for, and it does have that but the book never really penetrates into the deeper wisdom that Ram Dass is able to enlighten with as well. Kinda boring stuff if you've covered his earlier works already.
great for the ober 50 crowd, like me. gives me some things to think about as I mature. This book is like the advance scout for aging.
Moving book, I read it just before my father was felled by a stroke and died 10 days later. It was enormously helpful with me being able to be with him in the best way possible at this time. Ram Dass had a stroke too, and recounts it from the inside in this book. He's still here, though. Thanks Ram Dass.
By the author of Be Here Now. He's paralyzed and in a wheelchair now but still is practicing Buddhism and still gives us a great perspective on living, enduring loss and dying. Although I don't share his belief in reincarnation, I am inspired by his honesty of self-appraisal, and his acceptance of vicissitude.
Reading this is like sitting in front of a wise and funny teacher, listening and learning from his personal stories, observations, experiences. While about aging and dying - especially in a culture that fears wrinkles - it's also encouragement to "be here now" in every moment and every situation.
Ram Dass speaks frankly about Aging, Changing and Dying. I read this book in bed, when I was very ill and thinking that I might die. It was a comfort to read from someone a bit farther on the aging path but still thinking about life and death and the meaning or non-meaning of it all.
For those of us whom Ram Dass' early book on 'Be Here Now' had a great influence on our lives, this is a wonderful companion piece, made all the more poignant because he had his stroke while working on this book, which caused him to truly reasses what matters in life
I read my brother's copy of "Be Here Now" when I was a kid. For anyone who has dealt with aging, illness, and death (oh, wait, I guess that's all of us!)especially as we get older, this one is truly inspirational.
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Ram Dass (Richard Alpert), one of America's most beloved spiritual figures, has made 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. He mak...more
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Mar 21, 2008 07:04pm