The Esalen Journal

Our life unfolds within relationships — our connections with family, friends, colleagues, community, the world. For most of us, our relationships are where the rubber meets the road. Faculty member Caverly Morgan shares how practice on our cushions can seem quite peaceful — at least until we get off our cushions and into the relationships of our lives!

Guests are often surprised to discover a carnivorous option among the buffet items prepared by the Esalen Kitchen. The thrice-daily delicious offerings nearly always include meat or fish options alongside the de rigueur vegetarian and vegan fare. (Save for Meatless Mondays.) And our talented kitchen crew frequently creates culinary choices that tempt, if not convert, meat-eaters to dig into some leafier items. While our tuna poke is without a doubt to die for, the vegan beet poke is a remarkable standout.

Three world-class artists from last year’s annual Seasonal Series are returning to Esalen in the fall as workshop leaders. This September, holistic dance educator Amy Secada, interdisciplinary vocalist and composer Odeya Nini, and Guillermo Martinez, a master craftsman of Mesoamerican instruments, will help us go deeper and reconnect to the source through body, breath, and sound.

We are enthusiastically sharing some visioning for innovative programming coming to you in this second half of 2025 and beyond — from new workshops, new faculty, and immersive experiences through our expanding Self-Guided Explorations to the deeper cultural pulse shaping Esalen’s next chapter.

Steven Harper is a longtime Esalen faculty member who helped found the Esalen Farm in the early 1980s. He has spent decades leading workshops that blend hiking in the Big Sur wilderness with embodied Gestalt practice. His oldest son, Kai Harper, has deep roots at Esalen, having worked in the Grounds department, the Farm & Garden, and the Programs department, where he became the youngest person to lead the month-long residential program. Steven’s younger son, Kes Harper, continues to assist his father in workshops, carrying forward the family's connection to Esalen's transformative work. One memorable offering the Harpers created together was a Fathers and Sons workshop at Esalen.

This month, our track list includes memoirs and biographies of musical geniuses who have impacted culture here at Esalen over the years: Babatunde Olatunji, “Queen of Folk” Joan Baez, "Lady of the Canyon” Joni Mitchell, all four members of folk-rock supergroup Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, and pop superstar and recent workshop leader Kesha!

Esalen elder Pam Portugal Walatka takes us back to the Summer of Love in 1967. The Institute’s very first yoga teacher talks about studying with some of the greats — including Ed Maupin, Charlotte Selver, Bernie Gunther, Jim Fadiman, Claudio Naranjo, Michael Murphy, Gia-Fu Feng, Virginia Satir, Fritz Perls, Ida Rolf, Alan Watts, and John Pierrakos — and takes credit for some our favorite Esalen traditions: “Hardly anyone from then is alive to refute me.”

When you think of a weekend or week-long retreat, you likely picture a quiet room to yourself, a view of the ocean, and long hours of solitude. And yes, we offer that. But sometimes the real magic at Esalen happens when you open your door and your heart to someone new. Shared accommodations offer a unique chance to stretch, connect, and grow. Here’s why choosing to room with a random, unknown bunkmate might be one of the best decisions you make when registering for your workshop.

Acclaimed journalist and author Melissa Petro, who is also a former sex worker and survivor of sexual exploitation and media humiliation, investigates the modern epidemic of shame in our society — and helps others through the transformative truth-telling process of embracing their concealable stigmatized identities: “Authenticity, in all its messy, imperfect glory, is what allows us to fully step into our lives.”

Time is a luxury, and we know that a lot of Esalen magic can unfold in only a single weekend. But if you have the chance to extend your stay for a longer journey, here are six great reasons to sign up for our weeklong faculty-led workshops and/or weeklong self-guided experiences.

Both boys and girls are frequently conditioned to behave in specific ways, and traditionally, young girls are often taught to be selfless — to want for others instead of themselves. Psychotherapist, author, and interfaith minister Nancy Colier tells us about showing up with your truth and letting your real self out.

Shared ideas create community, and this June, we are presenting four extraordinary evenings with thinkers and artists working at the cutting edge of consciousness and culture. This month, the Esalen tradition of Wednesday Evening Programs (WEP), an open format to present new insights, features Voices of Esalen’s Sam Stern, professors Ramzi Fawaz and Charles Stang, and ceremonial leader Erika Gagnon.

Contemporary dance artist and actor Janelle Hacault tells us about valuing the “creative essence of the body” and her greatest love, Minou (her black cat). She also reveals her greatest fear, happiness, and favorite qualities in humans: “Empathy, loving-kindness, generosity.”

This is the time for rebirth and growth! To embrace the growing season, here are five titles from faculty and upcoming workshop leaders to bring us closer to our partners, ourselves, the world around us, and the world we hope to create.

Among the families who have emerged from Esalen’s six decade-strong history, the Horans stand out. Peggy and her daughters, Lucia and Jasmine (who are leading workshops this summer), have lived and learned here for decades. Currently, all three Horan women are leading and conducting experiences here. (Husband and father Dick Horan worked in the Farm & Garden and Art Barn in Esalen’s early years as well.) This family innately understands the healing, community, and self-expression the land can rattle out of us. In honor of Mother’s Day, we spoke with the Horan matriarchy about their family history — firmly rooted and still blooming within Esalen.

In the Esalen kitchen, Megan Patterson pays loving homage to her mother with her “cottage porridge” recipe, sharing the healing and joy it has brought to many mornings. “Adopting techniques to make vital nutrients within the oats and seeds more readily available, it has become part of my morning contributions to the community with a simple, comforting, and nourishing start to their days of healing work.”

From the Serpent Bench overlooking the sea, Director of Product Sadia Bruce is conceptualizing new artistic and cultural offerings and planning transformative original programming that can translate “complex ideas into embodied, actionable experience, offering guests pathways for praxis, integration, and belonging.”

“The ’70s at Esalen were a good time,” says Rick Tarnas. The cultural historian, astrologer, and author remembers heading out west with all his possessions — “a suitcase, a typewriter, and a guitar” — and raising his son in the deep pluralism of a growing community.

The Esalen Massage & Bodywork Association (EMBA) brings a profound tool for healing to far reaches of our planet. “Given our current growth and the growing interest in practicing and teaching Esalen Massage, I would love to see Esalen Massage in every country of the world,” says EMBA coordinator and practitioner Robin Fann Costanzo.

Warren Farrell, leader of the popular "Role Mate to Soul Mate: The Art and Discipline of Love" workshop, shares the biological reasons behind conflict, the evolutionary shift of his “Caring and Sharing” practice, and how he has transformed relationships for over 30 years. “Over time, couples tell me that what once provoked anxiety becomes a cherished opportunity for intimacy,” says Farrell.

The power of love, the sentiment that love heals, the notion that love can conquer all, and that love saves the day, all resonate when they are with people with whom we make deep soul connections. Here, relationship expert Amy Chan shares how by accessing and embracing the parts of us that we often keep hidden, we can create the foundation for a connection that goes beyond surface-level interaction.

Esalen-born author and educator Jasmine Star Horan shares her thoughts on Gestalt, the Gazebo Learning Project, looking past the good guy/bad guy model, and following the words of Baba Hari Das: “Work honestly, meditate every day, meet people without fear, and play.”

Tom “Little Bear” Nason, Tribal Chairman of the Esselen Tribe of Monterey County, takes us back to a moment in time when arriving at Esalen was like entering a tribal village.

Janne Larsen guides fellow seekers in cultivating intimate bonds with the diverse flora thriving across the Esalen campus — and honors them through art. “Communing with plants, finding those elusive pigments and seeing what gifts they have gives me so much joy,” says Janne. “Finding that joy is so essential to living life as an artist.”

Systemic coach Zita Tulyahikayo has trust and faith these days: "There is so much potential ripening beneath what some might see as terrible times." As an experienced transgenerational healing, hypnotherapy, and storytelling facilitator, she draws exercises from Systemic Constellations and the Orders of Love to lead her workshops. Here, Zita shares her heroes ("my parents"), her joys, and a perfect image of bliss: "Heart openings under a clear lavender blue sky."

Born and raised at Esalen, Lucia Horan received lifelong direct training with Gabrielle Roth in the 5Rhythms® moving meditation practice. With mastery in the fields of somatic meditation and dance, she teaches skills and strategies that help her students become better emotional and physical athletes of life. Here, she shares her thoughts on authenticity, love, and the ever-evolving, holy nature of the dance: “It never gets old. It is always inspirational.”

Kimberly Lee wants to help you harness the magic of images, imagination, and intuition using clippings, scissors, and glue: “One of my favorite ways to decompress is to turn on some chill music and sit with a stack of magazines to tear striking images for use in collages.” The writer and creativity coach tells us about starting her mornings with a “glow up,” why this is a time for resilience, and how she’d conduct her orchestra — “while wearing a great dress!” 

Esalen has always been a place where unlikely things come together — where boundaries blur, where ancient wisdom meets modern inquiry, where the edges of what we think we know dissolve into something richer, wilder, and more alive. It’s a place built for experimentation, for transformation, for the kind of creative collisions that leave you altered. And that’s exactly what’s happening here: a pop icon and a Carnatic virtuoso, two seemingly divergent worlds, fusing into something unexpected. It’s music as medicine, music as reinvention. It’s also a story about homecoming — the way Esalen has a way of calling people back to themselves.

Gather your family and loved ones around the dining room table for the delicious flavors of Esalen made right in your own home! We asked sous chef D3 for step-by-step instructions to make an Esalen favorite that happens to be the ultimate comfort food.

Perry and Johanna Holloman, intimate partners and friends for over three decades, open up about their current state of being and what it’s like to teach at "the most beautiful retreat center on earth."

Our first female general manager on her friendship with Fritz Perls and ushering in her brand of equality: “I realized how much power men seemed to have. Or, more accurately, how much of my own power I had been giving away. I learned to tap into my own power and speak up without hesitation.” Beverly Silverman takes us back to Esalen’s early days for a story of personal discovery and growth.

Restoring the divine feminine brings us back into harmony with ourselves and one another. It places collaboration, nurturing, and creativity at the center of our lives. In anticipation of her spring workshop, Embracing the Divine Feminine, Elizabeth Philipose shares thoughts on how to awaken the compassion, wisdom, and strength needed to heal and liberate humanity.

Our March slate of workshops is packed with brilliant opportunities for growth, resolution, self-reflection, and emotional connection. Since we can’t partake in them all, we’re enjoying recommended reads by (and suggested by) workshop leaders to absorb some knowledge from the page as the next best thing.

There’s a new feature recently installed on campus designed for you to engage with nature under a canopy of redwood branches. Next time you’re with us, climb on and gaze up at the world above.

Daniel Gloyd shares his thoughts on fatherhood, Andy Warhol, and how Mr. Fred Rogers incorporated belonging and trust into his beloved neighborhood. The designer and research expert talks about the causal relationship between inspiration and creativity, along with the concept of warmth as an essential principle of connection: “We need it now more than ever.”

Hawah Kasat on why nature is his greatest love and what makes witnessing transformation “pure joy.” The celebrated teacher, author, and documentary filmmaker imagines the mind of a jellyfish, considers the language of music, and explains that returning to ritual and community during challenging times is more than a solitary act: “[It’s] something woven into the people and spaces that support me.”

A self-described "introverted plant person" follows his guiding light to the Esalen Farm & Garden. "From my first day as a volunteer walking through the garden, I knew I wanted to work there more than anything." James House, farm and garden lead, shares his Esalen story with enthusiasm and deep affection for the natural wonders he feels privileged to experience.

In anticipation of her upcoming workshop, Embodying Joy: Black Wisdom Traditions of Liberation and Healing, Buddhist mental health therapist, clinical educator, and professor of social work Kamilah Majied shares about her work, achievements, and current state of mind: “Joyfully determined to advance justice.” To that end, the author of Joyfully Just shares personal heroes (both in life and fiction), mantras, and more — including one inspiring quote from Sojourner Truth about “going home.”

Better communication makes for a better sex life which in turn helps to calm the mind and nourish the body and soul. Check out this batch of workshops for "when you get that feeling," designed to help you feel oh-so-fine — both with a partner and without.

For those missing the culinary comforts at the Lodge, here are step-by-step instructions to enjoy a gastronomically delightful Esalen lunch.

To welcome in the new year, we recommend reads on embodied practices to connect to your authentic self, contemplative wisdoms to battle injustice, and the secrets to long-lasting love. To build community and grow together, we can strive to make all the chapters of our own stories full, with equal parts honesty and humor.

Explore a landscape of human possibility beyond the traditional frameworks with our transformative 2025 workshops! As we launch into the new year, we are dissolving familiar categories and conventions — and we invite you to join this intentional journey of discovery.

Cultural sociologist and Gomti River ceremonialist Roksana Badruddoja tells us about connecting to hir (pronoun of choice) ancestors through ritual, drawing strength from decolonial feminist teachings, and remembering that “spirituality is an act of resistance and reclamation.” 

Check out some "on-growing" projects the Farm & Garden cultivated last year and learn about how these sustainability and regenerative practices planted the seeds for what we anticipate will be an abundant 2025.

"Here, I was allowed to break open, reframe, and begin again," said Ariv. As our last LEEP cohort of 2024 concluded their four weeks of healing, growing and transforming we asked a few seekers to share their experience. While this program takes a pause in 2025, we share the moving testimonials that articulate the intimate journey this life-changing extended stay offers.

“I love conflict. It's where the truth is.” Josef London, Esalen’s current safety manager and beloved longtime resident, tells us about his three-plus decades (and counting) on campus, including an epic love story that began on his very first day: “I'm a very lucky man. I just saw her, and I fell in love with her immediately.”

International speaker and award-winning author Mirabai Starr shares some real-life heroes, explains how she maintains her practice with a weekly Sabbath, and talks about bringing together those who have experienced great loss: “...the fragrance of the sacred fills the broken-open heart and connects us with unexplainable beauty, even joy.”

“I am proud of so many things here,” says Head of Farm & Garden Candice Isphording, who shares her excitement for full-circle compositing, seasons to come, and the healing power of the land. “It gives so much beauty, nourishment, medicine, but it also holds me and accepts me however I show up.”

Both the Esalen Bookstore and our online shop have received glow-ups to be go-to destinations for your seasonal shopping. To help steer your present journey with meaningful presents, we present our 2024 Holiday Gift Guide! Here are ten special items perfect for sharing some Esalen joy with your loved ones.

Holiday season, whether you celebrate or not, can be a time of community gathering and delicious meals. We checked in with our talented kitchen and culinary team after their wildly successful stint with Big Sur Food & Wine. Chefs D3 and Quinton and baker Camilla open their recipe notebooks for some non-denominational holiday yum. “We take care of you by nourishing you so you can focus on the things that you came to Esalen to do,” says Esalen Food and Beverage Manager Chloe Scott.

In shaping the workshop calendar, we ask ourselves, what does the American countercultural movement look like in 2025? Who is midwifing that which our society is ready to birth? What topics and teachers does the human potential movement beckon in now? What alchemical experiments are underway, transforming and transmuting individuals, communities, societies, and beyond?

We pop into the Bookstore to learn what inspires Merchandising Manager Heather Martin as she curates the Esalen swag “that the land speaks through” — and how this former fashionista found meaningful purpose through Esalen’s mission.

As the nights grow chilly, we’re cozying up with five books to help us discover, calm, expand, and reach our centennial birthdays. This quintet of titles by workshop leaders, wellness giants, cutting-edge philosophers, and intrepid explorers will inspire you to transform inside and out through some life-sustaining practices and recipes.

“Vast ideas like this were in the air, and my windows were wide open,” says Keith Thompson, recalling his days at Esalen in the late ’70s. The acclaimed journalist and author of Angels and Aliens and The UFO Paradox tells us how he went from being a senatorial staffer to helping to coordinate a series of annual think tank-style conferences packed with new intellectual and spiritual energies.

Danny Angelo Fluker, Jr, the founder of Black Boys OM, talks on expansiveness, sadhana, and why participating with Black American culture “through the unique lens of mind-body-spirit health” brings him the most happiness. The meditation and yoga instructor reveals some personal heroes, reminds us that the divine is all there is, and shares the very best personal motto we’ve ever heard.

Traditional African cosmologist, independent scholar, and multimedia artist Marques Redd tells us about the film that emerged from his spiritual practice and the African healer who wrote his “touchstone” book. With a sense of expansive appreciation, Marques shares a few of his heroes, both historical and literary, and reveals a powerful lesson for persevering through difficult times by “remembering my divine identity and who I truly am.”

Michael Murphy completes his 94th turn around the sun today. Over many decades, Eslen’s co-founder has established himself as a leading voice in the evolving fields of human potential and consciousness studies, and he’s still working today. Find out what Michael is working on now!

Michael Murphy, who will celebrate his 94th on September 3, 2024, shares tales of the Institute’s earliest days — the “bohemian gathering place” he created with Dick Price. It’s the Esalen origin story only Esalen’s co-founder could tell, complete with genius ideas, psychedelics, and legendary figures such as Aldous Huxley, Abraham Maslow, Paul Tillich, Alan Watts, Fritz Perls, Dick Alpert, Tim Leary, Allen Ginsberg, Henry Miller, Anais Nin, Hunter S. Thompson, Gia-Fu Feng, Arnold Toynbee, and the Monterey sheriff who told Michael to get some guns. “It was that wild,” he recalls.

Whenever Director of Communications & Storytelling Shira Levine is on campus, she deliberately pauses to make sure she is completely present: "I used to start writing the stories in my head in the moment — as I was experiencing something. Now, I stop myself to get out of the way of my buzzing brain to just Be.”