This March 13 & 14, Esalen Institute proudly presents the first of our digital summit series, The Way Forward: How To Stay Inspired, Reintegrate, and Find Hope in the Shadow of the Pandemic. The Way Forward Digital Series will explore the concept of collective trauma, how it both unifies and divides us, and most importantly, how we can face it together to heal on a local and national level.

The upheaval and change of the past 12 months leaves us all looking for a new way forward. Here at Esalen, conversations about our role in helping to heal this collective trauma are constant. Our new summit series, The Way Forward, is an outgrowth of these internal discussions. As we move into this important but difficult work, we wanted to share some insight into what we’ve been grappling with internally and the work we’re invested in thus far.

Ken Dychtwald, the “Age Wave” guru, arrived at Esalen in 1970 in the pursuit of human potential and spent the next 50 years embracing every aspect of Esalen’s beauty, holistic learning, mental and physical enrichment, and deep sense of community. As Esalen shaped Ken’s life, he had a part in Esalen’s own evolution — which he explores in his his 18th book, a sort-of memoir of his life’s journey toward truth and self-discovery, Radical Curiosity: One Man's Search for Cosmic Magic and a Purposeful Life (April 6, 2021).

Nutty notes ensure this Esalen favorite has layers of deep flavor. Light but warm and nourishing, it's vegan and gluten free and made mostly of pantry staples. 

Earlier this year, Emmy-award winning journalist, author and yoga instructor Christine Chen joined us as the host of Esalen Live! on Facebook. Christine interviews Esalen faculty and change agents about timely topics — coping with the pandemic, perspectives on racial justice, and overall well-being.

Guided by the intention of nurturing true healing and reconciliation with the Indigenous tribes of the region, key staff and board members from the Esalen Institute and representatives from the founding family/land owners have embarked on a multi-year process of individual and collective reflection, deep learning, and humble listening, which started on October 7th, 2020.

Fred Dust, Esalen faculty and Former Senior Partner of IDEO, was not immune to adjusting personally and professionally this year as the pandemic captured the global spotlight. In fact, it inspired him to write a new book, Making Conversation: Seven Essential Elements of Meaningful Communication, which will be released Dec. 1.

“We carry Esalen in the very tissues of our bodies,” observes yoga instructor Tracy Lease, who evokes the spirit of Esalen during her online noontime yoga class on Wednesdays. “I believe coming together, wherever you are living, to reset the nervous system and engage in practices many of us learned or honed at Esalen can be very healthy.”

Yoga instructor and holistic nutritionist Robin Wilner facilitates our Guided Program in Creating Connection through the Rituals of Esalen. Our new Teacher-in-Residence brings a winning trifecta of accessibility, warmth and humor to the ritual construct.

We delve into books for so many different reasons: guidance, knowledge, curiosity and oftentimes to lose ourselves in a captivating tale that can take us to the farthest stretches of our imagination. Esalen News invites our faculty to share what’s on their nightstand and why.

“Esalen is a mecca for mythic transformation,” says Corinne Bordeau, co-founder of the Esalen Inspirational Film Festival, “and that is the heartbeat of the upcoming 25th anniversary celebration Chris Vogler’s book, The Writer’s Journey.” The online event on Oct. 22 is free to the Esalen community. It includes a panel discussion led by Corinne that features Chris, Esalen Board Chair/author Jeff Kripal, filmmaker Darren Aronofsky and mythology expert Will Linn.

“There was a very vivid sense of freedom, of ability to be myself, to be respected, to be allowed to explore the amazing outdoor environment and my emotional world within myself,” says Jasmine Star Horan about her experience as a student at Esalen Institute’s former early childhood program, Gazebo Park School. “I think ultimately the core teaching was about relationships.”

Society never knows quite what to do with a visionary. This is not the worst of times for visions. In many ways, it is the time. My deepest sense of Michael Murphy over the years, 22 now, is that he is one of those rarest of human beings: a person with a vision who has stayed faithful, absolutely faithful, to the vision that he received and the vows that he took and who, rarer still, has been gifted and graced by family, by circumstances, by nature, by meditation and prayer (by what we sometimes call "God?") with countless opportunities to express and explore this vision’s nuances, implications, promises and problems with others, thousands of others.

In September, Ken Dychtwald, a longtime friend of Esalen, marks his 50th anniversary of when he first came to Esalen to study and live at the age of 20. A former resident, group leader, donor and supporter, Ken is also a psychologist, gerontologist and CEO of Age Wave, the nation's foremost thought leader on issues relating to an aging population. His best-selling books include Bodymind—Age Wave and Healthy Aging, and his new book, What Retirees Want: A Holistic View of Life’s Third Age, explains how the aging of the Baby Boomers will forever change our lives, businesses, government programs and the consumer marketplace.

Esalen faculty and 5Rhythms® instructor Lucia Horan recently shared her thoughts about community and the transitions she has faced this year with ConsciousDancer.com. We share her wisdom with our community with permission from ConsciousDancer.com.

“Almost every piece of work or literature that I've read on racism is built on one assumption: that it cannot end. Or at best, that it will be a ‘lifelong fight.’ That ending racism will be something that ‘will probably never happen in our generation.’”

Like many people during COVID-19, Esalen faculty Ira Israel was forced to create significant shifts in the ways he interacts with his extended community. One of the more enterprising endeavors he recently launched is a free online course for the Esalen community. Authenticity and Awakening for Lovable Idiots! can be accessed here and it is designed to assist people in learning all of the skills necessary to keep them at the high end of their happiness spectrum—for the rest of their lives. Who’s game?

Eldra Jackson III has harnessed the power of transformation and tapping into his human potential. As a 24-year inmate in the California prison system, he was given ample opportunity to turn inward, and when he discovered Inside Circle, his inner journey took a significant turn, which led to his release in 2014.

We delve into books for so many different reasons: guidance, knowledge, curiosity and oftentimes to lose ourselves in a captivating tale that can take us to the farthest stretches of our imagination. Esalen News invites our faculty to share what’s on their nightstand and why.

Since 1980, Track Two: An Institute for Citizen Diplomacy, formerly the Russian American Center, has provided new spheres of influence for Esalen.For Track Two, in partnership with Esalen's Center for Theory & Research, traveling to Russia, the Middle East and now the Far East, brings with it the culture and practices that Esalen embodies.