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“I came back with a deeper sense of self, and confidence in who I am and knowing that there was no mistake in that…it was a really transformative experience.”

“It’s the kind of place where you can wake up (and simultaneously have a spiritual awakening) with the sunrise during a blissful bath in the mineral hot springs...”

Summer is in full swing and our Garden is producing carrots in a wide spectrum of colors that are both lovely to behold and tasty to eat. As the heat starts to climb, it's a good time to enjoy a nice cool, refreshing salad that is easy to pack for an afternoon picnic or having friends over for a backyard BBQ. Carrots can be the star of a salad and even surpass the more famous versions of summer salads like potato and macaroni.

June 22–26, 2025 Teachers in Residence

June 26–28, 2026 Teachers in Residence

April 24–26, 2026 Teachers in Residence

July 24–26, 2026 Teachers in Residence

After a year of experimentation and exploration, including piloting programs at Esalen and Big Creek Reserve, Big Sur Park School began its spring 2019 session on April 1st. The early childhood program with a relational, ecological-based curriculum has secured an agreement with Esalen at Gazebo Park, the one-acre outdoor meadow that was home to Gazebo Park School for 40 years.

Every pho aficionado will tell you that the secret to this Vietnamese staple is the broth, a two-plus hour process of breathing and waiting. We wouldn’t recommend shortcutting personal transformation, but we’ll hungrily allow it for pho in honor of API Heritage Month 2022!

June 22–26, 2026 Deva Munay

July 24–26, 2026 Francis Lu

April 24–26, 2026 Shauna Shapiro

June 26–28, 2026 Micha Merrick

June 22–26, 2026 Dorothy Charles

November 7, 1936 – May 26, 2010

June 26–28, 2026 Erin Prophet

June 26–28, 2026 Wendy Haines

April 24–26, 2026 Masood Ali Khan

April 26 – May 1, 2026 Russ Hudson

Three-time Nobel Peace Prize nominee Scilla Elworthy is a vibrant example of what we are capable of doing when we see clearly — and take action. When Scilla was just 11 years old, her four older brothers were teaching her how to fire a shotgun at their home in Galashiels, England. In one quick moment, young Scilla did something that forever changed her life path.

Read about our mission to realize human potential and meet our leadership team, founders, and board of trustees.

July 24–26, 2026 Silvia Guersenzvaig and Lori Lewis

June 22–26, 2026 Cristi Christensen with Guest Musician Marques Wyatt

This podast episode aired on Aug 26, 2016. Listen to it now.

This podast episode aired on Aug 26, 2022. Listen to it now.

This podast episode aired on Jun 26, 2020. Listen to it now.

This podast episode aired on Apr 26, 2018. Listen to it now.

This podast episode aired on Jul 26, 2016. Listen to it now.

This podast episode aired on Feb 26, 2026. Listen to it now.

This podast episode aired on Aug 26, 2025. Listen to it now.

4 cups corn flour 1/2 lb. softened, room temperature butter 2 cups sugar 2 eggs 1/2 teaspoon vanilla 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 1/2 cup (up to 1 cup) of water, milk or orange juice

Learn about what to pack, driving directions and how to get here, massage and activities, food and drink, check-in/check-out times, cancellation policies, and more.

Summer Lall is a board certified music therapist who works at Optimist Youth Homes and Family Services in Los Angeles. She is also the founder of the organization Rhythm & Truth Music Therapy which seeks to empower at-risk youth. We recently spoke to Summer about what her Esalen experience has meant to her and how scholarship made it possible for her to be at Esalen.

“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.”

This podast episode aired on Apr 20, 2016. Listen to it now.

April 24–26, 2026 Fletcher Tucker and Mike Smith with Wildtender Guides Ali Goodman, Rachel Goldberger, Thomas Strickland, and Bryan Goldberger

Some places you stay in have a way of staying with you. At Esalen, a handful of remarkable spaces offer a chance to live inside the history of this place, and the human potential movement itself. Built on bluffs, tucked into cypress groves, and shaped by the hands of artists, visionaries, and craftspeople, these living artifacts are available as accommodation options — each with its own story, spirit, and quirks.

This month, to honor Women’s Equality day and the adoption of the Nineteenth Amendment, we’re celebrating the brave suffragists, learning about other sheroes of American herstory, and considering the challenging future facing us all. Here are four titles to enjoy this August that will inspire us all to strive for even greater equality!

This podast episode aired on Mar 16, 2023. Listen to it now.

June 15 – 19, 2026 John W. Price

An archive of online articles featuring Esalen Institute.

This year’s Benefit Weekend will feature performances by a variety of artists including award-winning vocalist Geeta Novotny (http://www.geetanovotny.com). Geeta, which means song of life in Hindi, is a musician and classical singer who has performed at Carnegie Hall and The Metropolitan Opera House. Today she maintains a voice studio in Los Angeles and offers a unique Vocal Immersion Sound Bath experience that promotes healing and wellness.

“One of the teachings of Relational Mindfulness is turning towards rather than away,” says Esalen faculty, dharma teacher and author Deborah Eden Tull. “That principle really addresses the conditioned tendency in our world to turn away from all forms of difficulty, pain, discomfort and challenging emotion because we may not feel adequate to meet it. Instead, we can learn how to turn towards it, welcome it and everything that arises.”

At many preschools, the day begins inside. At Gazebo School Park, the day begins and ends on a one-acre outdoor meadow featuring reading nooks, art spaces, a children’s theater, and a farmhouse classroom for rainy days. Founded nearly 40 years ago, the early childhood center serves the families of seminarians and faculty as well as Esalen community members and local Big Sur residents.

This podast episode aired on Jul 11, 2025. Listen to it now.

Here in coastal California, heavy rains characterize the winter months. This year, they extended well into March, which has influenced spring activities in the Farm & Garden. In addition to harvesting overwintered greens and planting trays of seed starts, Esalen farmers have been cultivating one of the intangible qualities at the heart of sustainable agriculture.

Annabel Teal is a Board Member at Esalen. Learn More.

This podast episode aired on Nov 25, 2018. Listen to it now.

More than ever, men are stepping into spaces of reflection, growth, and vulnerability. Explore embodiment, intimacy, purpose, and transformation through upcoming workshops and practices that invite presence, emotional fluency, and deeper connection, designed for anyone called to evolve the way they relate, feel, and live.

In the middle of a career shift, WisdomWomen founder Michelle Stransky took a huge leap into the unknown. As she navigated the transition, she followed her curiosity and soon pinpointed her next endeavor: to create an experimental space for women to develop and share their gifts as leaders. WisdomWomen was born, and Esalen — with its long history as fertile soil for breakthrough ideas and social movements — was a natural place for it to emerge.

This podast episode aired on May 04, 2018. Listen to it now.

Summer Groove looks back on what was good and magical about the late 60s while applying some deeply reflective and vulnerable present-day wisdom to offer some very special summer programming.

This podast episode aired on Nov 15, 2019. Listen to it now.

The former head of programs, the department she led for thirty years, Nancy Lunney-Wheeler reflects on the early days, the Russian-American project, Spirit Awakening, the legendary musical performances she organized on campus, and her arrival at Esalen as a young mother.

When Esalen Massage School Director Brita Ostrom arrived at Esalen in 1967, massage already was a part of the Institute’s culture. “It was blossoming out of collaborations among visionary faculty of the time including Charlotte Selver, Bernie Gunther, Molly Shackman, Ida Rolf, and Moshe Feldenkrais, to name a few,” recalls Brita.

The author of the New York Times bestseller Thought Revolution spent a decade researching and developing a brain-enhancing methodology that tapped into his right brain, which he now refers to as his “better half.” This revolutionized his life, and for nearly three decades, he’s traveled the world sharing this creativity block hack.