(Baba Ram Dass) June 8, 2026: Ram Dass' full lecture interview from "The Congress of Planetary Initiative for the World We Choose" in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in 1983.
Who is "God," Ram Dass? The Monad (Gnosticism), Brahman (Vedas), Maha Brahma (Buddhism), Brahma (Hinduism)? We need to make a distinction between the lesser personality many call "God" (the Demiurge or "Fabricator") and that all-encompassing reality behind the illusion (Brahman), which in the West may be called the Monad (One).
Remember: Be Here Now (Ram Dass)
In this interview, Ram Dass (formerly Harvard's Dr. Richard Alpert) presents his viewpoints regarding the state of the world and what we can do. He skillfully weaves his way through his perspectives on personal responsibility, American media, and spiritual practice.
The Love Serve Remember Foundation is dedicated to preserving and continuing the teachings of Ram Dass and his love guru, Neem Karoli Baba.
Find out more at ramdass.org. Social media: Instagram (babaramdass), Facebook (babaramdass), TikTok (ramdassofficial). Patreon: ramdasspodcast.
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or text YouTube to 91999. This is an all-time favorite Ram Dass piece, so enjoy! SUBSCRIBE to channel for more magic Ram Dass moments.
The deepest meditation I’ve ever found (and I’ve tried 112)
(SoulArtist) May 14, 2025: After exploring over 100 different meditation techniques across the past seven years — from silent sitting to active movement, from vipassana (insight) to breathwork (pranayama) — I recently discovered a meditation so powerful, it went deeper than anything I’ve ever tried before: the OSHO Mahamudra Meditation™.
Might the Tibetan version be better than Osho's?
In this video, I share my honest experience with this practice, what makes it so different, and why I believe it may be one of the most transformative meditations available today. This is not a technique for the mind; it’s a surrender into something far greater.
š§♂️ What is OSHO Mahamudra Meditation™? “This meditation is a meeting between you and the cosmos, between you and the whole of existence. It helps you to merge, melt, and let-go on the deepest level possible.”
– Osho, from “Tantra: The Supreme Understanding, #6”
The meditation has two stages (approx. 50 minutes) and is supported by specific music that mirrors and deepens the energetic flow of the practice. Instructions (from osho.com):
First Stage – 30 minutes: Stand with eyes closed and let the body move naturally. Allow spontaneous movements to arise — no control, just witnessing. This is Latihan. The body becomes an expression of pure energy.
Second Stage – 20 minutes: Kneel, raise both hands to the sky. Feel like a hollow bamboo. Let energy pour into you from above — then bow down and release it into the earth. Repeat at least 7 times.
“If you do this every day, soon, somewhere within three months, one day you will feel you are not there. Just the energy is pulsating with the universe – nobody is there, the ego is completely lost, the doer is not. The universe is there, and you are there, the wave pulsating with the ocean – that is Mahamudra. That is the final orgasm, the most blissful state of consciousness that is possible.”
If you’ve tried many meditations but still feel like something’s missing, this might be the one. ✨ Subscribe for more honest insights on presence, awareness, and embodied spiritual practice. #mahamudra #osho #meditation #powerfulmeditation
Saraha, MahÄsiddhas (British Museum)
MahÄmudrÄ (Sanskrit ą¤®ą¤¹ाą¤®ुą¤¦्ą¤°ा, Tibetan ą½ྱą½་ą½ེą½་, phyag chen, chag-chen, contraction of Tibetan ą½ྱą½་ą½¢ྒྱ་ą½ེą½་ą½ོ་, phyag rgya chen po, chag-gya chen-po) literally means "great seal" or "great imprint."
It refers to the fact that "all phenomena inevitably are stamped by the fact [that] wisdom and emptiness [are] inseparable" [1]. (That is to say, the "perfection of wisdom" or prajnaparamita is that all things are ultimately impersonal).
MahÄmudrÄ is a multivalent term of great importance in later Indian Buddhism and Tibetan Buddhism, which "also occurs occasionally in Hindu and East Asian Buddhist esotericism" [2].
The name also refers to a body of teachings representing the culmination of all the practices of the New Translation schools of Tibetan Buddhism that believe it to be the quintessential message of all of their sacred texts.
The practice of MahÄmudrÄ is also known as the teaching called "Sahaja Yoga" or "Co-emergence Yoga" [3].
In Tibetan Buddhism, particularly the Kagyu school, Sahaja MahÄmudrÄ is sometimes seen as a different Buddhist vehicle (yana), the "Sahajayana" (Tibetan lhen chig kye pa), also known as the vehicle of self-liberation [4].
MahÄmudrÄ traditionally refers to the quintessence of mind itself and the practice of meditation in relation to a true understanding of it [5].
History
The usage and meaning of the term mahÄmudrÄ evolved over the course of hundreds of years of Indian and Tibetan history and, as a result, the term may refer variously to "a ritual hand-gesture, one of a sequence of 'seals' in Tantric practice, the nature of [ultimate] reality as emptiness [impersonal], a meditation procedure focusing on the nature of Mind, an innate blissful gnosis [knowing] cognizing emptiness nondually, or the supreme attainment of buddhahood at the culmination of the Tantric path" [2].
According to Jamgon Kongtrul, the Indian theoretical sources of the mahÄmudrÄ tradition are Yogacara and tathagatagarbha ("buddha-nature") texts such as the Saį¹dhinirmocana SÅ«tra and the MahÄyÄnottaratantraÅÄstra [6].
The actual practice and lineage of mahÄmudrÄ can be traced back to wandering maha-siddhas ("great adepts") during the Indian Pala Dynasty (760-1142), beginning with the 8th century siddha Saraha [7].
Saraha's dohas ("songs" or "poems in rhyming couplets") are the earliest extant mahÄmudrÄ literature and promote some of the unique features of mahÄmudrÄ such as the importance of:
pointing-out instruction by a guru,
the non-dual nature of mind, and
the negation of the conventional means of achieving enlightenment such as calm-and-insight (samatha-vipasyana) meditation, monasticism, rituals, tantric practices, and doctrinal study in favor of more the direct methods of mahÄmudrÄ "non-meditation" and "non-action" [8].
These teachings also became the wellspring for the body of instructions eventually known as the mind teachings of Tibet associated with mahÄmudrÄ of the Kagyu lineages [9].
Later Indian and Tibetan masters such as Padmavajra, Tilopa, and Gampopa incorporated mahÄmudrÄ into tantric, monastic, and traditional meditative frameworks [10]. More: Mahamudra
Osho's Mahamudra Meditation. How to practice. A Tibetan Vajrayana meditation
(The Rebirthing Journey) Feb. 20, 2022: Osho says of this meditation: “If you do this every day, soon, somewhere within three months, one day you will feel you are not there. Just the energy is pulsating with the universe – nobody is there, the ego is completely lost, the doer is not. The universe is there, and you are there, the wave pulsating with the ocean – that is Mahamudra. That is the final orgasm, the most blissful state of consciousness that is possible.” #osho #mahamudra #meditation
How could this psychotic Nazi coach be so mean to little princess Jojo Siwa with the mom looking on in silence? Is this any way to raise a healthy dancer or pop idol? It is the way of Kali, Durga, and ferocity. There has to be a better way to enter the place of the way to discover the Tao of Self-Development.
Punk: clumsy Dancing Shiv' (skanking)
(WQ) The dojo ("the place of the way") is a training center, do or tao being "the way of," and the other portion of the word being the suggested way. Chado is "the Way of Tea" (cha or chai being tea) and taekwondo is "the way of striking with foot and hand," a martial art (method of combat). The Way of the Buddha could be the mantra Buddho, the Ennobling Eightfold Path, rather than the martial arts of Japanese budÅ (wu-dÅ) or "Way of War." And Play-Doh (a brand name form of "play dough," the Way of Play") might be a good name for dancing, if dancing weren't taken so very seriously by aspiring dancers. Playdo might be the best name for "the Way of Meditation," chan'do, "the Way of the Way," the Way of Jhana, chan, dhyana, or Zen (which is just the Japanese pronunciation of the Pali word jhanaor "meditative absorption").
Jojo Siwa on TV's Dance Moms
Meditation? Start with the mantra "Buddho"
Buddho by Phra Ajahn Thate Desaransi, American Theravada Buddhist monk Ven. Thanissaro (trans) from accesstoinsight.org edited by Wisdom Quarterly
.
The Buddha inspired great confidence
When one goes to study meditation with any group or teacher who is experienced in a particular form of meditation, one should first make one's heart confident that that teacher is fully experienced in that form of meditation.
Confidence (saddha)
Be confident that the form of meditation taught is the right path for sure. At the same time, show respect for the place in which one is to meditate. Only then should one begin practicing.
Dedication
Teachers in the past used to require a dedication ceremony as a means of inspiring confidence before one was to study meditation. They would have one make an offering of five pairs of candles and five pairs of white flowers. This was called the five khandha. Or eight pairs of candles and eight pairs of white flowers, which was called the eight khandha. Or one pair of candles each weighing 15 grams and an equal number of white flowers.
Meditation methods
Then they would teach one their particular form of meditation. This ancient custom has its good points. There are many other ceremonies as well, but I won't go into them. I'll mention only a very simple, easy-to-follow ceremony a little further on.
Dhammakaya technique
Only after one has inspired confidence in one's heart as already mentioned should one go to the teacher experienced in that form of meditation. If a teacher is experienced in repeating samma araham, that teacher will teach one to repeat samma araham, samma araham, samma araham.
(Samma = "right," araham = arahant = "enlightened one," so roughly this could mean "right enlightenment.")
Then the teacher will have one visualize a bright, clear jewel two inches above the navel and tell one to focus the mind there as one continues the repetition, without letting the mind slip away from the jewel. In other words, one takes the jewel as the focal point of the mind.
Rising and falling
If one goes to a teacher experienced in meditating on the rising and falling of the abdomen, that teacher will have one meditate on rising and falling and focus the mind on the different motions of the body.
For instance, when one raises a foot, one thinks "raising." When one places a foot, one thinks "placing," and so on. Or else the teacher will have one focus continually on being preoccupied with the phenomenon of arising and passing away in every motion or position of the body.
Psychic powers
If one goes to a teacher experienced in psychic powers, that teacher will have one repeat na ma ba dha, na ma ba dha and focus the mind on a single object until it takes one to see heavens and hells, deities and brahmas of all sorts, to the point where one gets carried away with those visions.
Breath meditation
If one goes to a teacher experienced in breath meditation, that teacher will have one focus on one's in-and-out breath (ana-pana-sati) and have one keep the mind firmly preoccupied with nothing but the in-and-out breath.
Mantra reptition
If one goes to a teacher experienced in meditating on the mantra buddho, that teacher will have one repeat buddho, buddho, buddho and have one keep the mind firmly on that meditation word until one is fully skilled at it.
Then that teacher will have one contemplate buddho and what it is that is saying buddho. Once one sees that they are two separate things, focus on what's saying buddho. As for the word buddho, it will disappear, leaving only what it is that was saying buddho.
One then focuses on what it is that was saying buddho as the object of meditation.
What is the true cause?
People of our time — people of any time, for that matter — regardless of how educated or capable they may be and especially those of us who are Buddhists: Buddhism teaches causes and effects that are entirely true, but why is it that we have to fall for the claims and advertisements we hear everywhere? It must be because people at present are impatient and want to see results before they have completed the causes, in line with the fact that we are supposed to be in an atomic age.
(I don't want to criticize any of us as tending to believe in things the truth of which we have not tested because, after all, we all want to know and see the truth.)
Buddhism teaches us to penetrate into the heart and mind, which are mental phenomena. As for the material body, it is a physical phenomenon. Physical phenomena are under the control of mental phenomena.
Training the mind
When we begin to practice meditation and train the mind to be quiet and untroubled, I can't see that we are creating any problems at that moment for anyone at all. If we keep practicing until we are skilled, then we will be calm and at peace.
If more and more people practice this way, there will be peace and happiness all over the world. As for the body, we can train it to be peaceful only as long as the mind is in full control.
The minute mindfulness lapses, the body will return to its old habits. So let's try training the mind by repeating buddho.
Preliminary Steps to Practicing Meditation
Before practicing meditation on the mantra word buddho, start with the preliminary steps. In other words, inspire confidence in the mind, as already mentioned, then bow three times, saying: More
Jojo Siwa, Mother Siwa, and Nazi Coach (Dance Moms), Ajahn Thate translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu (accesstoinsight.com); Dhr. Seven, Amber Larson, Pfc. Sandoval (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly
This year's Los Angeles Permaculture Convergence 2023 runs from October 13-15, at Zorthian Ranch in the foothills at the top of Fair Oaks Ave. in Altadena. For current details, see losangelespermaculture.com and Instagram @LosAngelesPermaculture. It's a weekend of workshops, featuring:
All Christian denominations explained in 12 minutes
(Redeemed Zoomer) Premiered March 19, 2023. Want to know the history of the forming of these splinter groups (sects, schools, cults)? Check out this video: • History of the en... Instagram for more stuff about denominations:
instagram.com/redeemed_zo...
Roy of Hollywood Tuckman, Something's Happening, Pacifica L.A. (KPFK.org), Wisdom Quarterly
"Not What Should Be, Not What Might Be, But What Is" by Alan Watts
(Look Within)
Alan Watts fits right in with YouTube Myth & Religion Part 1 | Motivational Speeches. For more inspirational lectures and motivational speeches on YouTube, let's begin with Myth & Religion Part 1: "Not What Should Be, Not What Might Be, But What Is."
Every Sunday morning at 8:00, Roy Tuckman presents a segment of Something's Happening (his midnight show, weeknights on Pacifica Los Angeles at kpfk.org). This half hour of Alan Watts provides a short Sunday service of sorts for a Buddhist and Eastern twist, following a long Black Christian service with gospel singing and celebrating.
Let's open our eye, our third eye, and look within with Alan Watts (playlist). Who's Alan Watts? Born on Jan. 6, 1915, he passed on Nov. 16, 1973. He was a British writer and lecturer on Buddhism who interpreted and popularized Eastern philosophy, particularly Zen and Hinduism and Taoism, for a Western audience. See more at en.wikipedia.org
What if there were a way to get children to listen without yelling, bribing, or threatening?
I'll kill'ya, you little motherfather! - No, mommy
I'd like to be a more mindful parent, a more compassionate parent, a more effective parent -- and I'd like to stop yelling. What to do, what to do?
But do you know what it's like? It drive a person crazy! If only there were a way to connect, like author Andee Martineau promises.
Could there possibly be a way to get my kids to want to listen...without the yelling, ultimatums, or bribes? Here's a FREE book offer to find out: Free Parenting Book – Connect Method
Andee Martineau appeared on a podcast explaining Connect Method
ABOUT: Wim Hof (wimhofmethod.com), also known as “The Iceman,” holds multiple world records for his feats of endurance and exposure to cold — such as climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa, wearing only shorts and shoes, running a barefoot half-marathon in the Arctic Circle, and standing in an ice-filled container for more than 112 minutes. Having been taught by the majestic natural power of the cold, Hof is on a mission to share his discoveries with the world.
The benefits of his method, now practiced by millions, have been validated by eight university research studies. He has been featured on the BBC, VICE Media, Discovery Channel, and The Joe Rogan Experience, The Tim Ferriss Show, and The School of Greatness podcasts.
More
Doctor Dissects the Wim Hof Method: Cold Hard Scientific Analysis
How to burn off the fat with cold, breathing
I'm a cardiologist and academic, and this is an overly detailed look at the Wim Hof Method. (Wim Hof is a Westerner who uses yogic techniques to achieve the previously impossible, enduring cold by modifying his breathing using pranayama).
For those who might ask... Yes, I've tried the technique, quite extensively. But I haven't shared those experiences, as they're not relevant to an attempt at an unbiased scientific appraisal.
"If It Ducks Like a Quack" is a series where I seek to find the truth (if any) behind high profile medical claims, while attempting to teach critical analysis of scientific statistics.
Get one no-obligation month of unlimited CuriosityStream (at curiositystream.com/medlife) using the promo code medlife. Go take a look at the rest of the Human Limits series.
Neurocognitive and Somatic Components of Temperature Increases during g-Tummo Meditation: Legend and Reality ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...
Voluntary activation of the sympathetic nervous system and attenuation of the innate immune response in humans pnas.org/content/111/20/7...
The role of outcome expectancies for a training program consisting of meditation, breathing exercises, and cold exposure on the response to endotoxin administration: a proof-of-principle study Frequent Extreme Cold Exposure and Brown Fat and Cold-Induced Thermogenesis: A Study in a Monozygotic Twin ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...
The Influence of Concentration/Meditation on Autonomic Nervous System Activity and the Innate Immune Response: A Case Study wimhofmethod.com/uploads/...
“Brain over body”–A study on the willful regulation of autonomic function during cold exposure sciencedirect.com/science...
The role of outcome expectancies for a training program consisting of meditation, breathing exercises, and cold exposure on the response to endotoxin administration: a proof-of-principle study ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...
Kirsi, A., Virtanen, M. D., Lidel, M. E., Orava, J., Heglind, M., Westergren, R., Niemi, T., Taittonen, M., Laine, J., Savisto, N. J., EnerbƤck, S.,& Nuutila, P. (2009). Functional brown adipose tissue in healthy adults. The New England Journal of Medicine, 360, 1518-1525 Controlled Hyperventilation After Training May Accelerate Altitude Acclimatization [Letter] wimhofmethod.com/uploads/...
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This is a very basic beginner's outline of the Four Noble Truths.
Wat Tham Sua, Kanchanaburi, Thailand
When we hear anything about Buddhism in the daily news, we
usually think of it as having a background of huge golden idols and saffron-robed
monastics, with a thick atmosphere of incense smoke.
We never feel that
there is anything in it for us -- except, maybe, an exotic spectacle.
Is that all there is to Buddhism? Does the news photograph the real Buddhism? Do glossy magazines show the
fundamentals or only the externals?
Let's see, then, what Buddhism really is. Buddhism as originally expounded still exists underneath the external
trappings and trimmings.
Though generally regarded as a religion, Buddhism is basically a
method of cultivating the mind. It is true that, with its monastic
tradition and its emphasis on ethics, it possesses many of the
superficial characteristics Westerners associate with religion.
However, it is non-theistic. It affirms that the universe is
governed by impersonal rules (regularities) and not by a creator-god. It has little use
for petitionary prayer, for the Buddha was a great teacher of gods (devas) and humans.
It regards
devotion not as a religious obligation but as a means of expressing
gratitude and as a means of self-development. So it is
not a religion at all from these usual points of view.
Faith or confidence?
Sutra to the Kalamas, Charter of Free Inquiry
Buddhism knows "faith" (saddha) only in the sense of confidence in
the path pointed out by the Buddha. Buddhists are expected to avoid
blind faith, questioning everything.
The Kalama Sutra shows that nothing is true or to be "taken on faith" merely
because someone -- even the Buddha -- says it,
or
because it is written in ancient books,
or because it has been
handed down by tradition,
or because others claim it,
or because it agrees with our biases,
or because of specious reasoning.
One may decide to take the Buddha-Dharma (the Buddha's eightfold path to enlightenment) as a testable hypothesis, having great confidence in it as one investigates to prove it, to directly see for oneself. One is not expected to
accept anything unless it can be verified by direct experience in this very life.
That is not to say that
everything can be demonstrated rationally and intellectually. Many things exist beyond
the scope of intellect and can be cognized (directly known and seen) only by the development
of higher faculties. So Buddhism may seem strictly mystical but, in fact, is experiential.
However one arrives at firm conviction from tentative confidence, the fact remains that there is no need for
blind faith or acceptance of anything in Buddhism.
Buddhism is a way of life based on the training of the mind. Its
ultimate aim is to show the way to complete liberation from
suffering by the attainment of the unconditioned (nirvana), the deathless, a state beyond the
range of the normal untrained mind.
Its immediate aim is to strike at
the roots of suffering in everyday life. More
*Leonard A. Bullen(1909-1984) was one of the pioneers of the Buddhist movement
in Australia. He was the first president of the Buddhist Society of
Victoria when it was established in 1953 and one of the first
office-bearers of the executive committee of the Buddhist Federation of
Australia. He was also a co-editor of the Buddhist journal Metta (BPS).
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