There are moments when what is familiar falls away and we begin to listen differently, more closely, more deeply. What rises then is the authentic voice we all have the capacity to access.
This is the metaphoric ground we return to when we make that sharp turn inward — and that sharp right off Highway 1, rolling slowly down the hill and crossing into Esalen’s threshold. Beyond the doors of Huxley, Leonard Pavilion, Big Yurt, and Rooftop, teaching is more than technique. Curiosity opens into possibility. Transformation unfolds quietly, in ways that continue working long after the moment has passed.
Explore our recently published workshops — creative pathways for remembering, questioning, and discovering all that may be waiting to emerge in you.
“Right now, our world is in a deep need of reconnection — to the land, to each other, and to the wisdom that has sustained human beings for thousands of years,” says Tom “Little Bear” Nason, who returns to Esalen in November to teach Healing Waters: Return to One alongside Douglas Drummond, guest musicians Sanga of the Valley and Nick Ayers, and guest faculty Mac Murphy. The Tribal Chairman of the Esselen Tribe of Monterey County invites us to learn the old ways of caring for the Earth “and feel her caring for you in return.”
What if our differences are not deficits but actually portals? What if quirks aren’t problems to be fixed, but pathways into creativity, insight, and resilience? Mindfulness teacher Mark Coleman, who will lead You Are Not Your Fault: Meeting ADHD with Mindfulness Wisdom and Compassion October 3–5, provides tools to navigate ADHD while cultivating its powers of curiosity, creativity, and presence: “With mindfulness and compassion, we can meet our struggles with greater kindness, and discover the gifts that lie within our challenges.”
In a world where yoga and teaching can feel formulaic, your authentic voice is your greatest gift. Sadia Bruce’s new workshop helps yoga teachers and educators alike to discover and claim their unique teaching style. This is an opportunity to move beyond the “how-to” and create a practice that is unmistakably yours, one that resonates deeply with your students and leaves a lasting impact. In a time when authenticity is currency, this workshop is your invitation to stand fully in yours.
A single action can create a lifetime of transformation. Open the door at Esalen and give someone the chance to discover their extraordinary potential. Your support creates portals to growth, healing, and discovery, giving people the chance to explore their curiosities and self-actualize. More than halfway through 2025, we’re inviting you to make a difference that resonates far beyond the mountaintops.
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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." In advance of their October workshop, Integrative Gestalt Practice™, we asked the pair to share a few thoughts on love, work, life, and fictional heroes.
“I may not have been a leader, but I was always me, accepted for who I was, and that, in its own way, saved my life.” At age 96, true original Penny Vieregge recalls the early ’60s with tales of Dick Price, Michael Murphy, John Lilly, Gregory Bateson, dirty nursery rhymes, and how she became the “community's wise Oracle.”
Books have always been companions on the human journey. They are mirrors of who we are and maps of who we might become. These works from Esalen faculty blend the personal and the universal, the intimate and the archetypal. They guide us to see what’s been hidden and remind us that the search for meaning unfolds not only on the cliffs of Big Sur but also in the quiet turning of a page.
Historically enjoyed by California’s Indigenous communities, bay nuts are typically used as a condiment, digestive aid, and stimulant. For those unfamiliar, they come from the California Bay Laurel, the broad-leaved evergreen hardwood tree native to the California coastal forests found throughout the Sierra foothills. “Among all our native edible plants, the nut of the bay laurel tree is one of the most delicious,” says Esselen Tribe elder Cari Herthel.
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." In advance of their October workshop, Integrative Gestalt Practice™, we asked the pair to share a few thoughts on love, work, life, and fictional heroes.
“I may not have been a leader, but I was always me, accepted for who I was, and that, in its own way, saved my life.” At age 96, true original Penny Vieregge recalls the early ’60s with tales of Dick Price, Michael Murphy, John Lilly, Gregory Bateson, dirty nursery rhymes, and how she became the “community's wise Oracle.”
Books have always been companions on the human journey. They are mirrors of who we are and maps of who we might become. These works from Esalen faculty blend the personal and the universal, the intimate and the archetypal. They guide us to see what’s been hidden and remind us that the search for meaning unfolds not only on the cliffs of Big Sur but also in the quiet turning of a page.
Historically enjoyed by California’s Indigenous communities, bay nuts are typically used as a condiment, digestive aid, and stimulant. For those unfamiliar, they come from the California Bay Laurel, the broad-leaved evergreen hardwood tree native to the California coastal forests found throughout the Sierra foothills. “Among all our native edible plants, the nut of the bay laurel tree is one of the most delicious,” says Esselen Tribe elder Cari Herthel.
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." In advance of their October workshop, Integrative Gestalt Practice™, we asked the pair to share a few thoughts on love, work, life, and fictional heroes.
“I may not have been a leader, but I was always me, accepted for who I was, and that, in its own way, saved my life.” At age 96, true original Penny Vieregge recalls the early ’60s with tales of Dick Price, Michael Murphy, John Lilly, Gregory Bateson, dirty nursery rhymes, and how she became the “community's wise Oracle.”
Books have always been companions on the human journey. They are mirrors of who we are and maps of who we might become. These works from Esalen faculty blend the personal and the universal, the intimate and the archetypal. They guide us to see what’s been hidden and remind us that the search for meaning unfolds not only on the cliffs of Big Sur but also in the quiet turning of a page.
Historically enjoyed by California’s Indigenous communities, bay nuts are typically used as a condiment, digestive aid, and stimulant. For those unfamiliar, they come from the California Bay Laurel, the broad-leaved evergreen hardwood tree native to the California coastal forests found throughout the Sierra foothills. “Among all our native edible plants, the nut of the bay laurel tree is one of the most delicious,” says Esselen Tribe elder Cari Herthel.
Esalen Institute
55000 Highway 1
Big Sur, CA 93920
US: 1-831-667-3000
info@esalen.org
