Handbook for the Soul

Baba Ram Dass was born Richard Albert in 1931 in the U.S. In 1967 he went to India and returned as a bushy-bearded, barefoot, white-robed guru, Ram Dass, who became a peripatetic lecturer on New Age possibilities and a popular author of more than a dozen inspirational books. His first title, Be Here Now (1971), was originally issued by the Lama Foundation as loose pages in a box, but its published version went on to sell more than two million copies.

By the 1980s, Ram Dass had shaved off his beard but left a neatly trimmed mustache. He continued to turn out books and recordings. He started or helped start foundations to promote his charities, to help prisoners and to spread his message of spiritual equanimity. He made sure his books and tapes were reasonably priced. His other books include Still Here: Embracing Aging, Changing, and Dying (2000); Paths to God: Living the Bhagavad Gita (2004); Be Love Now: The Path of the Heart (2010) and Polishing the Mirror: How to Live from Your Spiritual Heart (2013), both with Rameshwar Das; Compassion in Action: Setting Out on the Path of Service (1991) and Walking Each Other Home: Conversations on Loving and Dying (2018), both with Mirabai Bush.

Baba Ram Dass passed away on December 22, 2019 at the age of 88.

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