Our workshops are designed to support you in the challenging work of self exploration, in partnership with some of the leading minds of the day. Join us in discovering the next frontiers of individual and societal transformation.
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Learn More“The moment one gives close attention to anything, even a blade of grass, it becomes a mysterious, awesome, indescribably magnificent world in itself.” ~ Henry Miller
Authentic contemplation brings genuine heart and meaning into daily life. From time immemorial, wild nature has called humans to embodied introspection. With Big Sur’s awe-inspiring wilderness as our primary teacher we will directly experience ourselves as nature and the realms of contemplation.
To drink deeply from the fresh moments of bare awareness, the magnificence of this wild world, and the ineffable mysteries of living fully is the intention of this workshop. Earth under our feet on hikes; water of the Pacific pounding against the shore; air of Big Sur’s refreshing breezes; the fire of the earth’s core heating Esalen’s hot springs — all the elements combine to intimately touch our bodies, minds, and spirits — literally coming to our senses.
The week will include sessions on Esalen grounds, and ventures into the wilds of Big Sur on hikes 2-8 miles in length. The group will be introduced to practices from contemporary and time-honored wisdom traditions that cultivate authentic contemplation. Days will balance walking and sitting, movement and stillness, with guided and open-awareness practices that enrich mindfulness, aliveness, and simply being. Special attention will be given to how we integrate and embody that which we are touched by into our daily lives.
All levels of experience are welcome. Be prepared for the invigorating challenge of physical activity and the opportunity to simply sit still in quiet connection. More information and a waiver will be sent upon registration. For an equipment list and frequently asked questions about Steven’s workshops, visit FAQs. ($40 permit and park entrance fees will be added to the workshop cost)
Please note: Participants need to be capable of moderate exercise. Hikes will be between two to eight miles.
We all have spirit guides. They are part of your soul family and spiritual GPS. Tuning into them takes patience, trust, and assistance from the Other Side. Learn to access your spirit guides in this kind-hearted immersion that welcomes seekers at all levels of experience and at any stage of healing.
This unique class dives deeply to understand and amplify the unseen support, healing, and unconditional love from spirit guides. Most people are unaware of the guides they are born with, let alone how to connect with them. Yet many of us have experienced a loving presence at critical moments of our lives or in our moments of serenity. What would be possible for your life if you could access that unconditional love, support, and guidance in a more dependable way?
This special and intensely personal class is designed for those who are ready to connect with the spirit guides who are always by your side, just waiting to assist, support, play, and dance with you. Connecting with your spirit guides is a profoundly intimate and expansive experience. Once this connection is made, it is forever — to utilize as you wish and create whatever you desire of it.
This course will introduce and connect you with your guides and set in place a framework to engage with them steadily and reliably. Each session is interactive and includes instruction and meditation practices to ensure that your experience creates the conditions for spiritual expansion. With support, you can better focus your energies to live an empowered, compassionate life that you love. The support and love available to you from the unseen world means you are never truly alone or disconnected.
This class is for the moderately experienced spiritual seeker who is energetically sensitive, open, and curious to receive support from beyond the veil. Previous meditation practice is helpful but not required. This course is great for people who:
In this retreat, you will get in touch with a deep relaxation to rejuvenate the body and the mind through non-sleep deep rest (NSDR) and yoga nidra. No matter your reasons — whether you need a break from the constant pressure, are in a life transition, or just want to delve deeper into your meditation practice — this retreat will provide space and time for contemplation and reflection.
The term non-sleep deep rest, coined by Stanford neuroscientist Andrew Huberman, refers to a waking state of deep relaxation that maintains awareness. Evidence suggests reaching this state through NSDR protocols such as yoga nidra can reset dopamine levels and provide other physical and mental health benefits — including better sleep and enhanced neuroplasticity.
We’ll go on an inner journey together, and the hope is we’ll emerge more connected to both ourselves and our life paths to leave feeling refreshed and deeply rested.
Together, we will:
How would it feel to move into a meaningful relationship with the living world? Beyond a mere passive appreciation of nature? In the long arc of human history, people across all cultures and traditions have lived in communion with the lands they called home. Though this intrinsic connection has been largely severed in our modern age, the perspectives and practices common to our respective Earth-reverent ancestors are not lost. They lie dormant in the land, among the wild beings, and in our own animal bodies, waiting patiently to be remembered and renewed.
Immersed in the beauty of the Esselen tribal lands now known as Big Sur, we will humbly walk the trails in pursuit of reunion with the wild Earth. We will set out each morning for hikes amongst ancient redwoods, golden grasslands, and fragrant chaparral. Our community and teachers will include the plants, animals, stones, and all aspects of the wild landscape. Acknowledging Big Sur to be the ancestral territory of the Esselen tribe, we will endeavor to behave as reverent and respectful guests on sacred land.
Along the trail, we will cultivate innate capacities for presence and wonder, build ecological knowledge, and explore pathways of reciprocity and connection with the natural world. Pausing together to learn from the land, we will participate in some of the most potent work of our time: rejoining our great family on this wild Earth.
Hiking notes:
Multidimensional Integrative Healing recognizes that there are multiple dimensions of reality and experience that exist and can be accessed for healing. EMDR is a powerful therapy for healing and integrating what blocks us from living fully. When we open to multiple dimensions in our work, we increase our capacity to heal on deeper levels that transcend time and space.
In this workshop for advanced EMDR practitioners, we will learn basic tools for creating boundaries and energetic sovereignty. We will meditate together and explore our dreams. We will discuss topics of interest, share our cases and be guided in discovery of spiritual and ancestral resources.
Topics of interest include:
In this workshop participants will learn:
This workshop is meant for Advanced EMDR practitioners, Parnell Institute trained clinicians.. To register for your space, please visit us at https://drlaurelparnell.com/multidimensional-integrative-healing-and-emdr-workshop/
Dealing with work-related burnout and rediscovering creative inspiration require dedicating time and space. Our daily challenges and life circumstances are opportunities to learn — and we can alchemize our life experiences and emotions into greater understanding and clarity. In this workshop, we will bring together a variety of wisdom traditions and explore simple-yet-transformative practices to deepen the relationship between our bodies, our minds, and our aspirations. To clarify both vision and intention, we will weave together the theory and practice of the Tibetan-based Yoga of Renewal with the contemplative science of compassion and emotional awareness. We will also introduce a few of the codes of Andean Cosmology and transformative earth-based rituals.
In this three-day workshop, mornings will be reserved for quiet reflection to promote a clear mind of stillness. Afternoon sessions will foster intentional connections for awe, gratitude, and empathy with one another and the more-than-human world. While we focus on the experiential through individual and small group activities, we will lay the foundational frameworks that help enliven our sense of interconnection and resilience and remind us how to align our lives with our true heart’s desires and the ingredients of a meaningful life.
We will draw on traditional ecological knowledge, contemplative practices, and research-informed strategies to enhance purpose and manage emotional distress in our personal and occupational lives. Discover a cosmological approach to refine your intentions for your clarified purpose. Learn the tools that can help you re-envision your worldview, build resilience and empathy for stronger relationships with friends and loved ones, as well as unity with the more-than-human world.
Eve and Alejandro will be joined by guest faculty Cristina Lanata, MD, a physician and scientist specializing in autoimmune diseases. She immigrated from Peru and is currently a translational researcher studying how epigenetics relates to autoimmune diseases. She is also researching how biofield therapies can regulate maladaptive immune pathways, epigenetics, and outcomes in patients with autoimmunity. Cristina practices the principles of Andean Cosmology and Qigong and is a level one Reiki practitioner.
When the world around us is polarized and the future is uncertain, gathering in community, living in our bodies, and expressing the truth is more important than ever.
In this transformative five-day writing workshop, we’ll use ritual and deep writing to connect with our inner voice, discover the healing power of language, and birth powerful true stories onto the page. Evocative prompts, movement, and guided meditation will lead you deeply into the world of language and story. Discover how to “find the story beneath the story,” why writers need to “slow down where it hurts,” and the secret of crafting tales rooted in the immediacy and physicality of the moment.
As we alternate periods of writing and movement with listening to each other from a place of deep acceptance, you’ll benefit from the strength of a supportive writing circle, witness the healing power of language, and experience the transformation that occurs when we tell true stories and are deeply heard. Open to anyone willing to connect with their creativity in the context of a safe, confidential community. Both emerging and seasoned writers are welcome to attend.
Laura will be joined by Guest Faculty Evelyn Hall. Evelyn Hall is a social worker, master hypnotherapist, and minister. For the past 36 years, Evelyn has guided individuals and led groups, helping people find healing in body, mind, and spirit. Evelyn specializes in transformative healing practices, including somatic awareness, movement, meditation, healing through nature, and leading sacred ceremonies; she has a healing center in Soquel, CA.
As mothers, we wear a lot of crowns. Crowns are majestic and beautiful but also heavy, and we deserve to take them off sometimes and center ourselves.
Do you find yourself saying, “I need to make time for self-care”? Time to work out, for nails, for hair, time with friends, or even just time alone? You are busy, tired, talented, overwhelmed, overworked, and divine. You deserve time to be with yourself and in community with other mothers — to be still, to process, to heal, and to grow. We invite you to come to Esalen for this incredible wellness weekend created specifically for mothers — to move, to meditate, to process your birth, to strengthen your pelvic floor, and to activate your dreams.
The ultimate goal of this weekend together is for each of us to leave rested, revived, and seated in our power as a Birth Queen.
Together, we will:
Mothering with the support of a village enables us to not just survive but to thrive. We will have an opportunity for yoga, pilates, strength training, meditation, nature walks, small group discussions, and, most importantly, peaceful rest. Bring your loved ones and give yourself the gift of a weekend of healing, laughter, sweat, and new beginnings. Center yourself and prepare to release your power into the world. What are you giving birth to next, Queen?
All levels are welcome. This is a workshop for all Mothers. Postpartum is forever. If you are pregnant, you are welcome. Modifications will be provided. Breastfeeding mamas are also welcome. We can make accommodations for you to store your milk.
Recommended reading: Untethered Soul by Michael Singer.
We are at a crucial moment in our global work culture. Leaders must meet the rising needs and challenges of mental health and well-being. As we navigate rapid changes in the modern world — from hybrid work cultures to pandemics, wars, and overwhelming stress and anxiety — it is critical for human-centered HR professionals, or “people leaders”, to become trauma-informed.
More than ever, people leaders need tools to manage their own stress, burnout, and mental health challenges while they support their teams and executives through similar obstacles.
In this dynamic workshop, Manuela Mischke-Reeds, Justin Milano, and Rebecca Crotts integrate didactic and interactive learning with guided somatic practices and meditations to help leaders become trauma-informed while also supporting their own healing process.
This workshop will offer tools to help you:
This workshop is geared toward executives, people leaders, and HR professionals who wish to better understand and navigate stress and trauma in the workplace.
What is the relevance and significance of the maṇḍala (“circle”)? In this workshop, we aim to individually and collectively understand maṇḍalas and related sacred shapes and their importance in Tantric traditions. Even the geography of Esalen can be perceived as a sacred landscape or maṇḍala. Our focus here will be on the historical development of the maṇḍala and its connecting link between the internal and external worlds.
Join Tantric scholar-practitioners Sravana Borkataky-Varma and Keith Cantú for this fascinating new workshop, the third of a signature series on Tantra, to explore the foundations of Tantric theory and practice. Together, we will investigate the latest findings from academic research and ethnographic “participant-observation” that challenge and reframe our conventional understandings of what Tantra was, is, and can be. Staying true to the roots of Esalen, we will intertwine our research and discussion with authentic Indian folk music performances and guided meditations to bring these new breakthroughs creatively to life in your mind, body, and heart. Our collective practice of these new understandings will illuminate Tantra’s connections to a wide variety of vibrant artistic and meditative practices in an eye-opening and unforgettable way.
In this workshop, you’ll be invited to:
Come to learn how Tantric teachings navigate the interrelationships between the microcosm, or individual, and the macrocosm, or external universe. We’ll pay special attention to the ways deities are called to inhabit maṇḍala and other diagrams, as well as the connection between deities and the power of speech using mantra. We invite you to join us for this workshop that will blend meditation, art, and music with a holistic inquiry into Tantra’s power and therapeutic potential. Bring an open mind as we will explore deep questions about our bodies and minds in a safe space and nurturing environment.
Please Note: This workshop is NOT about Tantric Sex and experiencing enhanced sexual pleasures, although many discussions will address gender identity and sexuality.
Integrative Gestalt Coaching™ (IGC) is a comprehensive and interactive therapy method Perry Holloman developed over the last 40 years while living at Esalen. He and his wife, Johanna, travel and teach this approach in the USA, Europe, and Asia, working with individuals and groups and coaching businesses and communities.
This month-long program is designed for people who want to learn basic skills in the practice of Gestalt, applicable to both their personal lives as well as their work with individuals and groups.
Gestalt places high value on the development of awareness in the realm of our internal experience (personality structure) and our relational experience (family relationships, intimate relationships, professional relationships, and other dynamics). Developing awareness of how our internal experience influences our relationships — and how those relationships transform us personally — can have a powerful impact on the quality of our lives and will be a central focus of our time together.
Perry and Johanna have developed experiential exercises supported by theoretical knowledge to create a well-rounded program suited for persons who want a month of self-exploration and also those ready to cultivate Gestalt Coaching skills for their work with individuals and groups.
“The beginning of awe is wonder, and the beginning of wisdom is awe.” Abraham Heschel
Rudolph Otto described the numinous–Mysterium tremendum et fascinans–as the wholly other, experienced as a breakthrough of wonder–both fearful and fascinating. Filmmakers have given us new opportunities to experience the numinous through mystical realism. Quoting Esalen co-founder Michael Murphy, Jeffrey Kripal gives us a definition of how mystical realism appears in film: “[As] an imaginative elaboration of human experiences that have actually occurred to numerous individuals… something both fundamentally subjective (mystical) but also empirical and objective (realism).”
In this third workshop at Esalen on mystical realism in movies, you will discover the numinous experience of meeting the “wholly other,” something entirely different from anything experienced in ordinary life, be it another human being, a spirit, an angel, or some form of alien or artificial intelligence. Your cinematic repertoire will include films directed by Jean Cocteau, Terrence Malick, Alfred Hitchcock, Wim Wenders, Steven Spielberg, and a film inspired by Toni Morrison. The seminar employs methods developed over 28 film seminars at Esalen (1990-2016) co-led by Francis and Brother David Steindl-Rast: mindful film viewing, contemplative reflection, and group interaction focused on the participant’s unique experience.
Dr. Lu personally recommends, but does not require, that participants use a N95 mask during the workshop sessions, which will be provided.
For further information about the seminar, please contact Francis Lu, MD, at francislumd@gmail.com
This workshop is suited for all those of heart who are curious about exploring expanded states of consciousness.
New or novice explorers/breathers are very welcome, along with experienced navigators/breathers too.
Holotropic Breathwork® originated with the psychedelic pioneer Stan Grof and his former wife, Christina Grof. It is a useful practice for those training to become practitioners of and those interested in psychedelic-assisted therapy. No use of substances will be allowed at this retreat in a vast field of transformative potential. The fundamental urge to grow, to heal, and to be transformed in a truly authentic way drives us not outward but inward, toward the depths of our own psyche, toward a deep mystery within.
For thousands of years, expanded states of consciousness have been used as a strategy for transformation, marking life’s rites of passage and deepening one’s connection to self and the natural world.
In this workshop, we will gather in the rich field of community for an immersive experience and personal exploration of expanded states of consciousness, including strategies for preparing for, navigating, and integrating these experiences.
Holotropic Breathwork offers language, method, and structure for turning inward and working with the material that emerges uniquely from your own intrinsic wisdom. We will be supported by time-honored practices that are simple, yet powerful, including methods for quieting the mind, turning the focus inward, and attuning to the body, senses, and emotions as fully as possible while allowing the experience to be wholly guided from within.
All healing happens from within and these unique states can offer us unmediated access to self as a deep source of healing, insight, and evolutionary power. This inward journey strengthens and nourishes our senses in a way that can revitalize our daily lives with creative and emergent energy.
There will be four Holotropic Breathwork sessions: two as “breather” and two as “sitter,” so you will also gain experience sitting for others in non-ordinary state space. Additionally, contemplative practice, movement, and expressive arts will be offered throughout the week.
This workshop is suited for all those of heart who are curious about exploring various states of consciousness and opening to an evolutionary process of unfolding that leads to more expanded levels of wholeness. New or novice explorers/breathers are very welcome along with experienced navigators/breathers too.
Holotropic Breathwork originated with the psychedelic pioneer Stan Grof and his former wife, Christina Grof. It is a particularly useful practice for those interested or training to work in psychedelic-assisted therapy. Please, no use of substances at this retreat.
“I have never seen anyone who took a huge risk for growth that was not rewarded 10,000 times.” — John O’Donohue
To encounter someone, something, or someplace implies that it’s unexpected or a surprise. Encountering the moment means coming face-to-face with the unknown. In movement practice, we train ourselves to stay open, curious, centered, and responsive at the front edge of any encounter — counterbalancing those innate primal reactions to fight, flee, freeze, or please.
Rather than withdrawing, playing it safe, or tolerating things you shouldn’t, imagine being adept at staying present and standing your ground clearly and authentically. Picture a world where we are able to express opinions, feelings, discontents, and appreciations skillfully while remaining wholeheartedly open to outcome and change.
In this workshop, within a supportive and challenging environment, we will create “safe emergencies” — situations intense enough to command our attention that are managed with care and support, to help us risk moving beyond habitual self-defeating patterns. Participants can receive real feedback and gain plenty of practice making new choices in relation to others.
This is an era of chaos, change, and grief for the world. As we continue moving through these unprecedented times, we are required to face difficulties that may seem insurmountable. We invite you to a weekend retreat to hold together what should not be held alone.
Have you experienced loss and the natural emotions of sadness, anger, fear, and love? How do you process your losses and move through your life? Many of us have not yet found safe and effective ways of expressing these emotions and we can feel burdened, both emotionally and physically, with the cumulative weight of our unfinished business.
Using the tools of the 5Rhythms movement practice combined with a process of grief work grounded in emotional presence, non-judgment, and supportive witnessing, participants will come together in a safe space to help heal mind, body, and spirit:
The weekend also includes didactic and experiential sessions focused on natural and distorted emotional responses to grief, caregiving vs. caretaking, and more.
Please bring photos or other mementos of anyone whose memory you would like to bring into the workshop.
This course qualifies for 10 hours of continuing education credit for:
Join us in the dance between consciousness and form as we explore the love and play between Shiva and Shakti in our own embodied experience. You’ll be led through an intentionally curated arc of movement and dance exploration, energy transmission teachings, meditations, relational play, land-based practices, and rituals to reunite you with your inner beloved. Held by the Esalen lands and guided by sisters Gitanjali and Niralli, who carry the ancient wisdom streams of their Indian ancestors as a living transmission.
Come experience a sea of spaciousness and emerge renewed in the radiant magnificence of your being. With the new moon, nourishing daily practices, community connections, and the land as our allies, we’ll be woven into the tapestry of creation. By remembering our belonging in this way, we can return to the world, creating in generative and emergent ways that are in service to the whole.
Our days will flow with rich experiential practices, delicious meals, rest, and starlit soaks in Esalen’s healing baths. No matter who you are or where you are on your spiritual path, join us in this love affair with all creation as we dance in devotion to the beauty and miracle of life and being.
“Wilderness, by itself, has its own way of teaching. The direct experience of wilderness can spontaneously bring wholeness back into the human community.” – Manual of Gestalt Practice in the Tradition of Dick Price
When we are present in the here and now, every moment in the natural world represents an opportunity to enrich, heal, and clarify our relationships to the Earth, ourselves, and one another. Esalen’s co-founder Dick Price spent much of his time hiking in the Big Sur wilderness, and he believed that wild nature supported wholeness and healing for himself and others. With roots in the Gestalt tradition and values Dick developed at Esalen, Relational Gestalt Practice is designed to help us live our lives with increased awareness and embodied presence — and can be powerfully explored within the natural world.
For five days, we will immerse in awareness practices and deep nature connection on the sacred grounds of the Esalen Institute and in the Big Sur wild (ancestral lands of the Esselen People). Together, we will explore our inner and outer landscapes by mindfully engaging with biodiverse wilderness and Gestalt practices under the open sky. Dorothy Charles, co-founder of Tribal Ground Circle and founder of Relational Gestalt Practice, will support the cultivation of presence, awareness, and the authentic expression of our hearts and minds. Wildtender co-founders Noël Vietor and Fletcher Tucker will guide our reconnection with the living world through a framework of kinship. A community of wild relations — redwood groves, ravens, mossy boulders, and all the beings and aspects of Big Sur — will expand our circle to include the more-than-human world.
What does Nature / the Cosmos have in store for your life today? What yearns to be birthed in and through you? What if Nature can help you release what stands in your way?
Join us in this deep partnership with the more-than-human world at wondrous Esalen to help you identify and dissolve the obstacles towards manifesting your life purpose.
Discover the alchemy of “Forest Bathing” – the Japanese practice of mindfully experiencing nature through the senses, which studies have found to improve health, elevate mood, and heighten creativity and problem solving.
Workshop leader Sylvie Rokab will guide you on a journey with Esalen’s spectacular land, waters, mountains and other beings – with invitations that help you clarify and (re)discover the beauty of your uniqueness, talents, and gifts that only you can offer to the world.
Our time together will include:
Participants often share that their stress dissolves, confusion lifts, insights awaken — and they take home a renewed sense of connection, meaning and purpose in their lives.
We live in times of high existential stress with both ever-increasing personal, societal, and global pressures and the constant pain of witnessing ecological crises and widespread social injustices. These challenges also create opportunities to reconsider our relationships to self, one another, and the planet — and to choose a life of peak purpose and interconnectedness. In this retreat, inspired by the land and its people, we will be guided by rituals reflecting both indigenous and contemporary wisdom. Together, we will learn deep lessons from a variety of modalities, including embodied mindfulness, interpersonal neurobiology, and the four directions of life from the aboriginal Esselen Tribe culture to establish, renew, and recharge our commitments to stewardship of our communities and the earth in these rapidly changing times.
We will have small group listening, experiential activities, lectures, and discussions. We will incorporate ritual, meditation, nature immersion, and movement into each day. Guided by renowned author Diane Ackerman, we will have the opportunity to express ourselves through the written word. Led by contemplative mind-body teacher and musician Nichol Chase, we will become present through mindful movement practices.
Join Tom Little Bear Nason, Rhonda Magee, Elissa Epel, and Dan Siegel as we create new pathways to sacred connection and explore, learn, laugh, love, and bring healing to ourselves and our world. All are welcome. We especially embrace people working on environmental justice issues and anyone needing restoration and rejuvenation.
Learn to activate the right side of your brain to unlock the insights necessary to break through self-limiting patterns. Based on a Nobel Prize-winning discovery in neuroscience, this methodology helps you think outside the box and live a more creative, productive, happier life.
William Donius, author of the New York Times bestseller Thought Revolution, spent a decade researching and developing this brain-enhancing methodology. He has taught these skills to a wide range of people, from students and corporate executives to scientists and artists. This innovative approach inspires more creative solutions than conventional thinking or brainstorming sessions. Through easy-to-learn exercises, you can discover ways to harness your intuition and uncover profound insights about yourself that make change possible. You’ll develop practical tools you can apply each time you face an important decision or obstacle in life. You can go home with new ways to unlock your own inner genius and create the life you long for. Please bring a notebook or journal and a pen.
Through experiential, evidence-based practices, this workshop will explore mindful eating and nature as deep nourishment for the body, mind, and heart. Discover mindfulness, mindful eating, somatic practices, ecotherapy nature-based practices, and key teachings from timeless Buddhist wisdom. Learn to develop your own mindful eating and nature-based awareness practice through:
Though we forget, our minds, like our bodies, are part of the natural world. We can get stuck in challenging emotions, beliefs, and mental states when we do not regularly access the deep peace, balance, joy, and well-being that come from being aware of our bodies, minds, and hearts as nature, nourished by nature. This joyful weekend will help us discover and return to our own true nature, build a sense of interconnectedness, and form a healthier relationship with food, body, and daily life.
There comes a time in every person’s life when it’s clear that a restructuring is needed — that the framework you’ve built isn’t serving you any longer. You may feel that you are spending too much time on things that are no longer a priority. Or there’s something you really want to be doing, but other things get in the way. Or you are living your life according to an old story you’ve outgrown. Maybe you’ve made an internal shift, but your outer life hasn’t caught up.
How do we go about making fundamental life changes in a way that aligns with who we are now? That is the question we will explore in this highly interactive program. During the workshop, you will have the opportunity to:
Are you ready to engage in a meaningful process of inner exploration that will set the course for a more authentic life? If so, please join us for this workshop where you can learn essential skills to make life changes with clarity and intention.
Tibetan yogis, monks, and nuns are human like you and me; they have feelings and emotions, and obstacles in their lives. That is why the practices they have created as a way to remove obstacles from their body, energy, and mind are suitable for us too.
These tools remained as secret recipes for centuries, and only in the last couple of decades have started to be known in the West, as they’ve been researched scientifically and practiced now by thousands of people. Those who practice them can discover or tap into a radical sense of presence — an aliveness in the midst of chaos — like a lotus flower coming out of the mud or the sun illuminating everything without bias.
Well-being in the Tibetan tradition is a holistic sense of wellness that encompasses body, energy, and mind. During this program, participants will have the opportunity to deepen their knowledge of Tibetan wellness and experientially practice meditative yogic techniques that utilize the healing power of the breath-energy (qi or lung in Tibetan) as a link and support for a healthy body and more aware state of mind. In addition, some of the current research in this area will be presented and discussed.
This workshop encourages participants to explore the potential of their subtle bodies — composed of channels and chakras — as a powerful tool for meditative practice, which utilizes the five breath-energies present in yogic and medical texts. These meditative practices and movements allow one to clear the “poisons” of one’s afflicted emotions, become more familiar with the healing support of the breath, and be radically aware of one’s “inner home.” Please bring a journal.
Since time immemorial, movement, dance, and the expressive arts have provided individuals and communities with a sense of soulful expression, healing, inspiration, spirit, and connection. We now need to reconnect with these ways more than ever.
The Life/Art Process®, developed by Anna Halprin and Daria Halprin, bridges body awareness, art expression, and psychological processes, providing people with an opportunity to experience dance and the expressive arts as a way to learn, heal, expand creativity, and develop new strategies for personal and professional life. This groundbreaking, innovative approach to human development, embodied creativity, and transformative learning began in the 1950s, and the tradition continues today.
Daria Halprin’s work connects dance, somatics, psychology, and artistic practices to foster personal, group, and community development and creativity. In this workshop, movement, dance, drawing, poetic dialogue, reflective exchanges, and witnessing practices will generate new thresholds of exploration and expression, catalyzing new resources for daily life.
Morning sessions will focus on somatic awareness and individual and group movement exploration to tune the physical body to sensation and feeling. Afternoon sessions will facilitate creative encounters through dance, drawing, and spoken and written narratives to explore our life experiences. Evening sessions will be devoted to questions generated by the day’s work, reflection, and releasing activities, including creative play and meditative art practices.
Participants will:
No previous artistic experience is necessary. This workshop is designed for everyone.
“We will become our opposite if we do not learn to accommodate the opposite within us.” — Carl Jung
Across various wisdom traditions, there is a common yet paradoxical invitation: Turn toward what is difficult to find freedom from what is difficult. However, when we find ourselves feeling anxiety, loss, judgment, irritation — the full bouquet of difficult emotions — facing these feelings is the last thing we want to do. Fortunately, there are trainable, evidenced-informed practices to help us transmute adversities into joy and insight. By turning toward our challenges, we uncover the wisdom within them, and they transform into our allies.
Teachers and authors Lopön Chandra Easton and Eve Ekman have been teaching these transformative tools together and apart for more than a decade. Easton’s expertise draws from her intimate knowledge and practice of Tantric Buddhism and her teachings on the evidenced-based practice of Feeding Your Demons® (FYD) internationally. FYD is a guided five-step process that transforms our so-called “demons” of difficult emotions into our allies. Ekman’s expertise lies in her application of contemporary psychological science of well-being and emotion awareness, sharing the evidenced-based practice of Cultivating Emotional Balance (CEB) with the world. CEB draws from contemporary emotion science and develops our emotion granularity by mapping our emotion episodes.
In this training, Easton and Ekman guide participants to transform the mind, which is afflicted by our tendency toward enacting destructive emotions. At the heart of all these practices is an ability to transform adversity and joy into the path of our awakening. In contemporary psychological terms, we investigate our so-called “negative” emotional experiences to identify the stories and patterns that occlude our innate compassionate, pro-social nature.
This weekend will include guided meditations based on FYD and CEB, discussions, and time for integration and practice outdoors, weather permitting.
“We will become our opposite if we do not learn to accommodate the opposite within us.” – Carl Jung
At the heart of contemplative life is the archetypal journey – returning home to the ground of our essential being, our true nature, which is love. Buddhism teaches that when we split from the “ground of being,” we can either take the path of remembrance or forgetting.
The path of remembrance teaches that when we remember who we truly are, we know that we are the ground, and we feel whole and can experience the liberation and freedom of nirvana. On the other hand, if we take the path of forgetting (which is what most of us have taken), we forget that we are the ground, which leads us to samsara, to feeling lost, empty, anxious, alone, and disconnected from love.
Whether we experience nirvana or samsara depends on our own minds, the crux is that they are not two different places – they are states of mind.
Meditation is one of the most impactful tools we have for cultivating positive mental states, states of being that enable us to experience the ground as it truly is, and gain confidence and maturity. This is the teaching on “one ground, two paths, two results” that we will explore together.
“Our fears are like dragons guarding our deepest treasures.” – Rainer Maria Rilke
In this retreat, we will complement our meditation practice with shadow work called Feeding Your Demons® (FYD), an exquisite five-step process whereby we offer attention and compassion to our inner obstacles, our “demons.” In this context, demons are those thoughts, emotions, and behaviors that block our experience of freedom. This process is greatly beneficial when working with various personal demons and other dilemmas of modern life. A 2018 FYD pilot study found that working through this process was associated with increased self-compassion, emotional awareness, and self-regulation, satisfaction with life, and decreased stress, craving, depression, and intolerance for uncertainty. FYD transcends spiritual constructs, serving as a meaningful tool for anybody, regardless of religious affiliation or personal philosophy.
In this retreat, you will experience:
Please bring loose, comfortable clothing, a journal, writing implements, and if you have art supplies, such as colored pencils, pens, pastels, and/or watercolor, feel free to bring them. Paper and art supplies will also be provided in the workshop.
Have you created the impact you want? Are you showing up the way you’d like? Are you going in the right direction? You have never before been where you are right now. You have never been the age you are today, never had the experiences you now possess. This is your time to pause and reflect. We rarely allow ourselves the opportunity to stop and look at what is changing — or discover what we truly need to feel fulfilled.
This very interactive workshop will include lots of experiential exercises. Though we will cover valuable theory and there will be plenty of reflection time, this will not be a series of talks/lectures. There will be movement, coaching, a little dance, and lots of activity. All participation will be voluntary at all times.
Our goal is to step back from our lives and renew. We will create a courageous community to both challenge and nurture ourselves. Participants will have the opportunity to learn what brings them joy and purpose, and then cultivate a vision to serve as a foundation for both the next year and next phase of life.
We will engage in a progression of individual and group exercises focused on reflection, movement, and listening to our inner wisdom. We’ll discover how to navigate major life transitions and learn skills to access our intuition. We will uncover the behaviors that support our overall success, and reveal which ones undermine our goals and fulfillment. If you are passionate about having a more powerful and authentic impact on the world around you, this program of renewal will be especially valuable.
“You didn’t come into this world. You came out of it, like a wave from the ocean. You are not a stranger here.”~ Alan Watts
Throughout the ages and across cultural traditions, nature has inspired the human spirit. The wilderness of Big Sur allows us to imprint the collective wisdom of this alive and wild coast in our bodies. The ancient redwood-forested canyons, dramatic meeting of earth and sea, and soft grassy hills remind us of the presence, wisdom, and deep sense of belonging that live in each of us.
This workshop will present simple yet profound practices designed to help us access our connections with the essential movement processes of life — and enhance our capacity to both participate and innovate. Along with physical practices, group discussions, and direct experience of nature, we will draw on ancient movement traditions of tai chi, aikido, and contemporary somatic practices that offer ways of centering, grounding, and knowing our belonging to the greater community of being.
During our time together, we will venture out on four to eight-mile hikes. Being immersed in the wild we are in an intimate embodied sensory dialogue that literally invites us to come to our senses. We will experience increasingly refined awareness and explore perceptual practices to enhance our sensitivity to all the wilderness offers, and reawaken the elements of wilderness within. With awakened senses, we can receive nature’s richness and beauty, inspiring a deepening relationship with grounding, centering, and embodiment.
All evenings and most meals will be at Esalen. All levels of experience are welcome, although participants should be prepared for vigorous physical activity and the opportunity to simply sit still in quiet reflection. More information and a waiver will be sent upon registration. For an equipment list and frequently asked questions about Steven’s workshops, visit FAQs.
Please note: Participants need to be capable of moderate exercise. Hikes will be between four to eight miles.
Asanga’s Nine Stages of Staying is one of the oldest and most comprehensive systems of concentration in the Buddhist tradition. Sometimes called the Elephant Path, this approach was originated by the great Buddisht master in 506 A.D., and it is now the main method of training the mind in the Tibetan tradition.
In this weekend meditation retreat, participants will learn all nine stages of the Elephant Path. Students will learn the basic tools of this concentration meditation, gain the capacity to stay more continuously and completely focused on the meditation object, and learn how to develop some capacity for automaticity in this practice. By the conclusion of the retreat, students will have all the instructions necessary to successfully master all nine stages of tranquility.
Training the mind in this way can lead to a direct experience of equanimity and can put the student in a range of practice, wherein pointing out the real nature of the awakened mind is possible.
No experience with meditation is required. If you have your own preferred meditation pillow and mat, please bring them
Wouldn’t it be nice to feel comfortable in your own skin? How do you “do” you?
Return to Source is a dance and movement-based deep dive into the 5Rhythms® movement meditation practice to explore, celebrate, and connect to the beautiful authenticity that is you. Your authentic presence is as unique as your own fingerprint. It is a source of great potential that requires courage, curiosity, and support to harness. The motion of our bodies in alignment with our intentional breath is an accessible tool to sculpt, hone, and discover your unique self.
During this impactful weekend, you will have the opportunity, through movement, group shares, and sensory awareness, to explore your edges, move with intention, and unearth your own relationship to authentic being.
In this dynamic program, we will explore:
The 5Rhythms® can be a powerful lens through which we can track, express, and embrace how sensation moves and is felt within the body. Return to Source honors the maps of the 5Rhythms® practice through authentic expression of the body, in all shapes and forms.
No prior experience necessary.
Recommended Reading: Sweat Your Prayers by Gabrielle Roth
You feel a call — destiny calling you to create something amazing because you are a creator.
What is it that you truly want to create, manifest, and activate in your life right now? What is the work you have been avoiding and procrastinating doing? What is your vision for your health, home, relationships, vocation, offerings, finances, creativity, travel, spiritual life, and higher potential? You know the time is now. Whatever you want to create is possible.
You have to get clear about your vision. You need to move out of your comfort zone and into your courage zone. You need to make a plan. By transforming the vibration of your body, mind, heart, and spirit, you can find the deep fulfillment and satisfaction that comes from accomplishing goals and aligning with your greater potential and your True Self.
It’s a lot easier to be a creator when you are in the presence of other creators. This powerful and practical program will provide the community you need to craft your vision. Your dream should not remain a dream. It is your time to pull it into your reality. Conscious Creation will help you manifest your Big Vision for your life.
In this workshop, we will focus on foundational transformations through guided meditations and visualizations, empowerment conversations, writing exercises, and specific exercises, such as Emotional Freedom Technique (also known as Tapping). This is your opportunity to allow your beliefs, thoughts, and feelings to inspire you to speak the words and take the actions necessary to become the living embodiment of your visions.
Join us for a transformative workshop where ancient traditions intersect with modern science to unleash the power of transpersonal breathwork practices. Through this week-long immersive experience, you will discover the profound benefits of Holotropic Breathwork® and other multicultural techniques that have been validated by Western science.
Developed by the renowned Stanislav Grof, MD, PhD, Holotropic Breathwork® is a potent way to access non-ordinary states of consciousness without the use of psychedelics. In this workshop, you will have the opportunity to participate in four Holotropic®sessions, each designed to take you on a journey of self-discovery and transformation.
We’ll start our days with an invigorating kata led by Mac Murphy, a breathwork expert trained in China. You’ll learn qigong and other breathing practices inspired by Tummo and Wim Hof, and you’ll even have the option to take a refreshing dip in the nearby Hot Springs Creek.
Each afternoon, you’ll delve deeper into Holotropic Breathwork® in three-hour sessions. With the support of a “sitter” and under the expert guidance of Ellen Watson and Perry Holloman, you’ll explore accelerated breathing techniques that have been documented by Harvard Mind-Body Clinic co-founder Herbert Benson, MD, to have profound effects.
This workshop also includes time for integration, including creative expressions of your experiences, such as drawing mandalas, writing poetry, and exploring your experiences using the powerful tool of Integrative Gestalt Practice under the experienced guidance of Perry and Ellen.
Relax your body and mind, and let the evocative music guide you on a journey through your chakra system! Join us for a life-changing week of self-discovery and transformation through the power of breath. Experience the convergence of ancient traditions and modern science to unlock your potential for personal growth and healing.
To find out more about Holotropic Breathwork®, please read Stan Grof’s The Holotropic Mind or review these videos: Stanislav Grof – Holotropic Breathing (YouTube) and Stanislav Grof: Holotropic Bodywork Workshop [Part 1] (YouTube).
The landscape for leadership has changed. It is no longer enough to be smart, experienced, and committed. Leadership needs to be a transformative experience that starts with leading the self. The world, with all of its uncertainty, risk, and loss, needs leaders who can provide psychological safety in the face of dangers and threats.
Psychological safety begins with the “person effect” you cast out into the world. Leaders who are unaware of their “person effect” have a liability and can find it incredibly difficult to stimulate high performance. However, those who intentionally create psychological safety are able to foster the creativity and innovation necessary to thrive.
Drawing on studies of high performance leadership from the worlds of sports, business, medicine, music, theater, military, and hostage negotiation, this workshop invites participants to synthesize this knowledge and apply it to the contexts in which they live and lead. More specifically, participants will develop and learn:
A transformative experience on leading self, others, and organizations. This is a week-long journey into the roots of your leadership strengths and an exploration of your leadership talents. This workshop will offer cutting-edge theory, experiential learning, and opportunities to do personal work that can help you overcome barriers to becoming a true leader.
Learn how mindfulness and self-compassion can change everything about how you feel, how you relate, and how you live ― for good.
In this workshop, Dr. Shauna Shapiro, a leading scientist studying the effects of mindfulness and compassion on well-being, shows us that acting compassionately toward ourselves is the key. She explains basic brain science and offers powerful research-based practices to alleviate anxiety, boost creative thinking, and deepen our sense of belonging and purpose. With practice, we can literally rewire our brains for greater feelings of calm, clarity, connection, and joy.
This workshop is appropriate for anyone curious about mindfulness and compassion and how to deepen our connection with the beauty and mystery of life. We will immerse ourselves in the natural beauty of Esalen, allowing the sounds of the ocean, the magnificent views, and the delights of the gardens to nourish and support us. All are welcome.
For anyone facing financial hardship, Dr. Shauna Shapiro invites you to contact her directly for tuition scholarship possibilities.
Recommended Reading: Shapiro, S (2020). Good Morning, I Love You: Mindfulness and Self-Compassion Practices to Rewire Your Mind Sounds True, Boulder, CO.
Experience five days of deep rest, reflection, and rejuvenation. Using the profound practice of Yoga Nidra, movement and guided meditation. We will restore the body, clear the mind, and shift the habitual patterns that keep us from being calm, clear and balanced.
Yoga (meaning “union”) Nidra (meaning “sleep”) is a path to that liminal state of being between waking and sleeping. This is where you can systematically release stored physical, emotional, and mental tensions.
Let go of old beliefs and habits that keep you stuck in the past and fearful of the future. Experience your emotions fully, knowing you have unchanging, unshakable ground beneath you — a calm inner presence that allows you to see clearly.
We will work with both our bodies and our minds and create clear intentions to live, not from unconscious and automatic past programming but from a new perspective — an aware, deliberate way of being. We will learn how to take this felt sense of being — this new awareness of the True Self — back into our personal lives, family lives, work lives, and love lives.
Together, we will cultivate new tools to help us negotiate those times when we are under stress and feel lost, tired, and confused — when we forget who we are. These guiding instruments will help put us on the path to gaining life mastery, welcoming your challenges, and remembering your True Being.
This workshop is an opportunity to recognize one’s wholeness, the truth of who you are, and that deep down inside is an inner peace that has always been there.
All that is being asked of you is to show up, lie down, and let go. Yoga Nidra will do the rest. Please bring blankets, a yoga mat, an eye pillow, and anything else you need to lie comfortably on the floor for extended periods of time. And we’ll have opportunities to practice outside, so bring layers!
Recommended Reading: Yoga Nidra: The Art of Transformational Sleep, by Kamini Desai; and Yoga Nidra: A Meditative Practice for Deep Relaxation Healing, by Richard Miller
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Since falling in love is biologically natural, but sustaining love is biologically unnatural, Soul Mate focuses on the art and discipline of sustaining love. You begin with learning how to appreciate your partner so specifically and frequently that your partner feels fully seen and loved.
You then practice both the art and discipline of hearing your partner’s criticisms without becoming defensive. For example, so you don’t have to fear “walking on eggshells” before sharing a concern, your partner first learns how to prepare her or himself to emotionally associate your criticism with an opportunity to be more deeply loved.
Soul Mate is designed as the next evolutionary shift beyond active listening. Active listening allowed the criticizer to feel heard, but failed to teach the person hearing the criticism how to emotionally associate the criticism with an opportunity to be more deeply loved. The problem? Unless the receiver of criticism feels safe the person sharing their concern cannot feel safe.
You will learn a series of practices you may integrate into your everyday life:
To sustain your practice after the workshop, I invite you to multiple free, ongoing, group follow-up calls to resolve stumbling blocks. If you wish to review the insights and exercises at any time, you will also have the option of purchasing a Zoom version of the course.
This workshop is for couples of all genders and sexual orientations. Developed over the past 30 years, the workshop is also used by many health professionals in their work with clients and patients.
Recommended resources: Women Can’t Hear What Men Don’t Say, pp. 1-87, by Dr. Warren Farrell; additional video content on warrenfarrell.com.
Machiel Klerk will lead participants on a journey into the mysterious world of dreams. Through various experiential exercises and discussions, we will learn how to tap into the wisdom and guidance of our inner selves, unlocking new levels of creativity, insight, and personal growth.
Dreams are a powerful tool for accessing the inner workings of our psyche and connecting with our souls. In this weekend workshop, we will learn how to use dream incubation to access the guidance and wisdom of our souls. We will journey into the world of dreams and learn tangible and practical ways of working with them, reflecting on them, and identifying their “lessons.”
Through a series of exercises and discussions, participants will explore the power of intention-setting and ritual as tools for accessing dream guidance. They will learn how to create a safe and sacred space for dream incubation and have the opportunity to practice techniques for working with their dreams.
By the end of the weekend, participants will have:
Machiel will guide participants in the ever-present world of dream and help them connect and communicate to dream figures and experience different dream states of consciousness. Discover how dreams can be used to unlock deeper levels of creativity, insight, and personal growth.
Recommended Reading: Dream Guidance Connecting To the Soul Through Dream Incubation by Machiel Klerk
Discover the benefits of Tibetan sound healing meditation. Learn practices that bring together the mind and its embodied energy, supported by the simple and powerful ancient Tibetan vocalized sounds (A, Om, and Hung) that work with different chakras to provide a sense of embodied meditation.
We will also study the clinical research done at MD Anderson Cancer Center on using these practices to help patients regain cognitive capacity after chemotherapy.
Meditating with these healing sounds can help you clear away obstacles, recuperate your being, and bring lost qualities back into your everyday life. This ancient healing modality can help connect you to your inner wisdom to achieve a relaxed yet aware state of mind and a healthier lifestyle.
Recommended Reading: Tibetan Sound Healing by Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche.
More and more, people are discovering the Enneagram as an accurate and profound map of personality. In this workshop, we’ll explore the full scope of its power to illuminate our greatest wisdom, become our truest selves, and face life’s challenges with fortitude and grace.
The nine Enneagram types are based on the three primary centers of intelligence: thinking, emotion, and instinct. However, in almost all human beings, distortions or blockages in these centers lead to a loss of connection with our essential nature and arising ego structures to compensate for this loss. Thus, while our Enneagram type, our true nature, is usually obscured with a characteristic web of defenses, discovering ourselves through the Enneagram can serve as an opening to the deeper reality of spirit.
This workshop will recognize the ways the nine Enneagram types play out in our own personalities. We’ll combine psychological insight into the inner workings of the different personality types with meditation practices and exercises designed for a more direct experience of the qualities of essence, such as presence, clarity, compassion, and joy. Conversational instruction will be added along with group meditations, small-group work, physical movements, and music to help us fully integrate the richness of the Enneagram material into our daily work and relationships.
Recommended reading: Riso and Hudson, The Wisdom of the Enneagram, Personality Types (Revised Edition, 1996), and Understanding the Enneagram (Revised Edition, 2000); Hudson, The Enneagram: Nine Gateways to Presence (2021).
As women, we tend to overlook the creative power locked away in one of our primal energy centers. This may surprise you, but this energy center isn’t the heart or even the brain. So, where does our creative energy get blocked?
It is easy to miss, but creative power can actually get trapped in the pelvis, the special area of the body that gives us the ability to create new life. That new life may be another human being — or it could be a passion project that makes your spirit sing. It might be that memoir you’ve always wanted to write to help other women move through life with more ease and courage. Or that inspiring new business you want to launch from your kitchen table. Or it could be that juicy new course you feel called to create and teach online. All that creative energy can be blocked — unless you intentionally release, heal, transform, and integrate it.
Physical, emotional, or spiritual trauma to the pelvic floor can be standing in the way of you being and feeling fully alive. In this course, we use guided imagery, movement, and hands-on exercises (all clothed) to heal the pelvic core, including the vagina and uterus — places that often hold our deepest wounds. These wounds can include rape, abortion, miscarriage, sexual abuse, surgery, childbirth tearing and scaring, self-esteem issues, and negative imagery about our femininity. We’ll also learn scientific and anatomic information and practice pelvic core yoga and abdominal massage.
Rarely does a course offer the opportunity for this type of in-depth healing that women desire. In these seven days, you will experience whole new possibilities for renewed feminine energy, greater health, and a deeper sense of pleasure in being a woman.
We will also spend time exploring nature and how our connection to the earth deepens our connection to ourselves. The workshop will culminate in a special evening of nurturing at the Esalen natural hot spring baths.
In addition to being extremely profound for women on a personal level, this course is valuable for healthcare professionals or anyone wishing to learn non-invasive techniques to heal women.
Recommended Reading: Read and Listen to the audio in Full Body Presence: Learning to Listen to Your Body’s Wisdom, and Reclaiming Your Body: Healing From Trauma and Awakening to Your Body’s Wisdom. See the Online Training Center at www.HealingFromTheCore.com for additional recommended reading list and handouts for the class.
“Rhythm is the universal mother tongue. It is the language of the soul.” Gabrielle Roth
Silent introspection (seated meditation) and movement awareness (5Rhythms®) are both practices that support unlocking the gateways of healing, celebration, and joy. Together, we will build an environment that cultivates peace, balance, and well-being. Through sweat and stillness, we will ride the rhythms of the mother tongue and turn the heart toward self-realization.
The 5Rhythms dance method is focused on presence versus performance. It is a place where movement becomes the metaphor for all of life. It teaches us how energy moves and where it gets stuck. The rhythms of Flowing, Staccato, Chaos, Lyrical, and Stillness help us to more skillfully understand and navigate the inner and outer landscapes of reality.
Trauma-sensitive mindfulness builds a container to hold both movement and stillness in a way that supports all that you are facing. This approach offers tools that allow you to both “work with” and “be with” what is present.
This workshop will include:
Please note: This work is trauma-informed. This group is not trauma-focused.
Recommended Reading: Dancing With Dharma: Essays on Movement And Dance In Western Buddhism” edited by Harrison Blum, Published by McFarland & Company, Sweat Your Prayers by Gabrielle Roth, Maps to Ecstasy by Gabrielle Roth and Connections by Gabrielle Roth
Join Dr. Deborah Egerton to learn to lead from the heart and find your place in the great rehabilitation of our humanity through love, light, and connection.
The authentic self rises when we let go of the flawed dualistic mindset — that our feminine energy provides only nurturing support and our masculine energy is strength. Setting aside this binary thinking and these stereotypical roles, we come together to honor and explore the totality of energies that allow us to be our authentic selves.
Through guided exploration, participants will identify our three centers of intelligence to gain access to and realign with the heart center and step into their true power. Participants will learn to uncover what “gets in the way” of finding compassion for themselves and others when faced with real-life conflict.
Participants will:
We are faced with divides and disconnects because we have forgotten how to maintain contact with our true hearts. Messages of love and understanding have been replaced with self-preservation, isolation, and judgment — “me and mine” versus “us and ours.”
We will discuss how we have fallen into pre-programmed patterns of responses and explore the “roadblocks” we face in accessing the heart space. The unique approach of finding the root causes of our judgments, biased beliefs, and even inequitable value systems allows participants to apply what they’ve learned to real-world scenarios, take action in their lives, and lead with the heart to reconnect across any divisions.
Recommended Reading: Know Justice Know Peace, by Deborah Threadgill Egerton, Ph.D
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The hunger to belong is at the heart of our nature. ~ John O’Donohue
Many of us have the experience of not belonging — to ourselves, family, community, workplace, this earth. This disconnect expresses itself in a divided self, dysfunctional relationships and communities, and the destruction of the very planet that birthed and sustains us.
However, a sense of belonging and deep connection is the natural state of our being. To know and feel our belonging asks us to have courage, curiosity, and compassion. A deep longing calls us to risk intimacy, vulnerability, and a willingness to feel how life conspires to let us know our interbeing.
When we somatically know our belonging — experience it in our bodies — we engage in the world feeling supported and with greater ease and grounding as we face life’s challenges, joys, and inherently ever-changing nature. This monthlong workshop will be a whole-organism, experiential inquiry into what belonging might be for each of us individually and collectively.
Although not a linear path, we’ll explore:
The group will discover and practice contemporary and time-honored wisdom traditions that cultivate belongingness, including:
Special attention will be given to “what walks with us” in our daily lives as we weave together an eclectic and holistic experience. When we embody the birthright of our interbeing and the ground of belonging, life lives through us.
“Tension is who you think you should be. Relaxation is who you are.” —Chinese Proverb
Join us for deep release and renewal as we pause to align with autumn, acknowledge the sacred cycle of life, and move gracefully through this transitory season.
Autumn is a time of letting go and accepting the impermanence of things. For many spiritual traditions, it has long been an opportunity to slow down and reflect. During this period of great change, our yoga and meditation practices can help us feel more grounded, rooted, supported, and nourished. We can create more intentional pauses and open to the sacred present moment as it is while we also fortify our inner resources, nourish our own “roots” for health and wellbeing, and expand our capacity for compassion, connection, and heartfulness. This allows us to slow down to reflect, release, and recalibrate — to consciously participate in the process of closing one chapter and starting anew.
Using a series of yogic and ayurvedic balancing techniques, Jillian will weave heart-based practices with slow flow yoga, deep restorative relaxation, and Metta meditation. Plus, we’ll incorporate inner reflection, seasonal ritual, and self-love to collaborate with the present and flow through fall with reverence, peace, and ease.
With an emphasis on rooting while opening change, we will work with multiple practices to meet this moment of transition and transformation. More than ever, we can benefit by pausing and restoring our energy and nurturing ourselves in order to better nurture our world.
Garth Stevenson will add deeply healing vibrations with his double bass to help us cultivate the balance between grounding and releasing into the spaciousness of the season.
Throughout this retreat, we will practice outdoors and embrace the Autumn elements to truly be with life’s changes and arrive more fully in the present moment.
Together, we will enjoy giving and receiving therapeutic touch, moving in ways that free energetic flow, settling into silence, and laughing and connecting deeply with our healing community.
During the Streams of Energy month, you will:
This month is designed to open you to your innate healing potentials, for you to experience the power of safe therapeutic touch, and to be more fully present in your unfolding as a unique expression of Source.
For the first time, resident faculty members are joining forces, combining lifetimes of expertise and decades of institutional knowledge for a month-long workshop that synthesizes the very "best of Esalen" — a full immersion into our history, current on-campus culture, and some revelatory healing practices developed over the last sixty years.
Whether you spend one weekend, one week, or one month living in community here at the edge of the world, one thing is nearly certain — you’ll leave wondering how to spend more time with us. Diving more deeply into our homegrown practices — leading edge, forever evolving, and recognized worldwide as portals for transformation — will bring you further into the very heart of you. Our newly launched experience, the Esalen Deep Growth Experience (EDGE), is a soulfully reimagined residential study program for changemakers ready to transform from within to affect and effect collective change outside of our Big Sur campus.
What does it mean to reach toward your growing edges? Maybe some discomfort, perhaps quite a bit of vulnerability. Expanding our individual capacity can also feel exciting and exhilarating. There is an activated art to facing what we typically avoid, and it takes self-aware stretching to move beyond our self-imposed limitations.
EDGE is a transformation accelerator. It is designed to help the visionary within each of us unfurl and blossom — to cultivate our potential with group support within the nourishing container that is Esalen. Each individual week of the four weeks is devoted to one of our four programmatic pillars: heart, mind, body, and spirit. These foundations are undergirded by the Esalen community. EDGE programming utilizes breakthrough practices developed at Esalen, including Gestalt process, an array of somatic and embodiment practices, dance, movement, and facilitation experiences rooted in the Esalen ethos to retrieve, fully experience, and with support, articulate the reality of our lived experience. It is only then that we can begin to shape it most consciously.
Esalen is a microcosm of the larger human ecology — Conversations at the hot springs baths plant seeds for deep friendships. Words exchanged over a meal in the Lodge become the foundation for future relationships. Workshop participants develop supportive dynamics typically developed in relationships measured in years. Within the framework of EDGE, the Esalen Effect is amplified for even greater connectedness.
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Get notified about new programs.
Esalen Institute
55000 Highway 1
Big Sur, CA 93920
US: 1-831-667-3000
info@esalen.org