From Bindu to Ojas

[San Cristobal, NM]: Lama Foundation, 1970. First edition. Very Good+. First edition. Brown paper sheets bound with twine, mandala label mounted on front cover; uncommon in original cardboard mailing box. A few supplements present: vinyl LP, stapled record booklet, both picture and unprinted record sleeves, various quotations in blue (cut up, may be incomplete). Lacks Cook Book for a Sacred Life, Painted Cakes, notes from publisher, and probably some of the material printed in brown with various gurus.

The core book is Very Good+ with insecting along edges of mandala (which nonetheless is present and attached), ties holding well, contents clean and bright. Closed tear to record booklet along outer edge. LP is Very Good with light wear and scratching. Inner sleeve torn and foxed. Mailing box dampstained, "Library Rate" stamped on it, slightly foxed and concave; Good+

The prototypical form of the classic spirituality book Be Here Now, with illustrations by members of the Lama Foundation commune including Steve Durkee, also of the USCO art collective. According to Dass, "We produced a thousand boxes paid for with contributions from my lectures. Anyone who sent in a postcard requesting it received one for free in the mail. Anyone who sent in a postcard requesting it received one for free in the mail. They were all sent out, and more people wanted them. When I went back to India, Steve put together a distribution deal with Bruce Harris, who worked for Crown Publishers, and the box became a book (Be Here Now)." Be Here Now has since sold over two million copies. Its unusual marriage of text and image, earthy design, sense of humor, and far-out mantras make it a true high spot of the hippie era.