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The Wisdom of Aging: A Yoga Retreat
August 22–26, 2022
August 22–26, 2022
with Jim Gallas

Please note: On Wednesday September 20, online registration may be unavailable for up to 15 minutes while system maintenance is performed. If the 'Register Now' page does not load, please wait about 15 minutes and try again.

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Need a scholarship? Apply here.

Need a scholarship? Apply here.

In a youth-obsessed culture, how do we celebrate our aging and become wisdom holders for our communities? As we ripen into the late summer and autumn of our lives, how can we let go of what no longer serves and enjoy the abundance of each precious moment?

As we move through our spiritual awakening, fully inhabiting the Eight Limbs of Yoga, we have the opportunity to broaden our daily embodiment into the true nature of freedom and joy. The experience of living through many years and experiences affords us the opportunity to see life through the lens of compassionate experience. In this workshop we will take advantage of and celebrate this perspective, creating space in our bodies for joy and curiosity about the future.

In this time together we will:

  • Build the foundations of a consistent, sustainable, injury-free asana (yoga postures) practice.
  • Explore the profound influence of the breath on the autonomic nervous system, and the relationship of breath to the quality of mind.
  • Open to the subtleties of the energy body, thus recognizing ourselves and all things as manifestations of life force, prana.
  • Develop healthy routines for a daily sitting meditation practice, and consider meditation as intimacy with self.
  • Embrace a full sense of gratitude for the ongoing miracle of living in a human body.
  • Savor poetry from the wisdom traditions as nourishment from the Divine.
  • Play with silence, sound, and laughter as gifts of spirit.

Students aged 50 years and older are welcome. Basic mobility is required, otherwise please come with someone who can assist you. You must be able to lie on the floor and put your legs up the wall for five minutes, and accept your physical limitations without judgment. Three months of a semi-consistent yoga practice is recommended. Please come with a beginner’s mind even if you’re not a beginner.

Recommended Reading: Breath by James Nestor

Learn more about the requirements to receive continuing education credit.

Lead photo:
Jim Gallas

Jim Gallas

Jim Gallas has been teaching yoga and qigong with a sense of deepening silence and the lightness of laughter for over 30 years. He has had the great joy of teaching at Esalen since 1999. 

Read More

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Workshop Schedule

Monday
8:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Tuesday
7:30 am – 9:00 am
11:00 am – 12:30 pm
4:00 pm – 6:30 pm
Wednesday
7:30 am – 9:00 am
11:00 am – 12:30 pm
4:00 pm – 6:30 pm
Thursday
7:30 am – 9:00 am
11:00 am – 12:30 pm
4:00 pm – 6:30 pm
Friday
9:30 am – 12:00 pm

Summer Groovers will experience Esalen in a format similar to our Self Guided Explorations workshops. Each Summer Groove week or weekend will open and close with a circle, and be filled with festive, nostalgic activities that harken back to those days of yore.

More activities can be found on our open class schedule.

See general schedule information including arrival, departure and meal times.

Accommodations & Tuition

Click Register Now to view availability of accommodations and all-inclusive, program-specific tuition. Please note that not all accommodation levels are available for every workshop and additional faculty fees may apply.

We offer scholarship funds for those with financial need. Learn more.

Please note: On Wednesday September 20, online registration may be unavailable for up to 15 minutes while system maintenance is performed. If the 'Register Now' page does not load, please wait about 15 minutes and try again.

Accommodations & Tuition

Click Register Now to view availability of accommodations and all-inclusive tuition that includes lodging, three meals per day, access to the baths, and all activities on the Summer Groove schedule.

We offer scholarship funds for those with financial need. Learn more.

Accommodations & Tuition

For this workshop, you will register and pay for accommodations and tuition in two separate steps.

First, sign up and pay tuition directly to

Second, click Book Accommodations from this page and enter the password to complete your reservation to stay at Esalen.

Prices for accommodations include your lodging, meals, open classes, and use of the baths and other facilities. View partner program accommodations pricing.

COVID Update

As of June 30, 2023 we no longer require a negative COVID test at the time of check in. Please read our current COVID safety guidelines for complete details prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

All guests and faculty must provide proof of negative test results at time of check-in. Please read our current COVID safety guidelines for complete details prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

In addition to proof of vaccination, all guests and faculty must provide proof of negative test results at time of check-in. Please read our current COVID safety guidelines for complete details prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Effective January 7, 2022 in response to the rapid spread of the new Omicron variant, all guests and faculty will provide proof of negative PCR, NAAT, or antigen test results at time of check-in. The test must be taken within 72 hours nd results must come from a laboratory or healthcare provider.Please read our updated COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Effective December 15 in accordance with new guidance from Governor Gavin Newsom and the California Department of Health, all guests, students, staff, residents, and faculty are required to wear masks in all indoor public settings, irrespective of vaccine status, for the next four weeks (December 15, 2021 through January 15, 2022). Please read our updated COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Effective November 19, 2021, in accordance with new guidance from the Monterey County Board of Supervisors, all guests, students, staff, residents, and faculty are no longer required to wear masks indoors on campus. Please read our updated COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Starting November 5, 2021, due to substantial levels of COVID-19 transmission in Monterey County, a mask mandate established by the Monterey County Board of Supervisors will go into effect. Please read our COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

All guests will be required to provide proof of vaccination upon arrival starting September 3, 2021. Please read our COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Masks are no longer mandated indoors or outdoors, except during massage sessions. Guests are not required to provide testing or vaccination verification before arriving on campus. Please read our COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

All-inclusive Pricing

with Jim Gallas

August 22–26, 2022
Register Now

In a youth-obsessed culture, how do we celebrate our aging and become wisdom holders for our communities? As we ripen into the late summer and autumn of our lives, how can we let go of what no longer serves and enjoy the abundance of each precious moment?

As we move through our spiritual awakening, fully inhabiting the Eight Limbs of Yoga, we have the opportunity to broaden our daily embodiment into the true nature of freedom and joy. The experience of living through many years and experiences affords us the opportunity to see life through the lens of compassionate experience. In this workshop we will take advantage of and celebrate this perspective, creating space in our bodies for joy and curiosity about the future.

In this time together we will:

  • Build the foundations of a consistent, sustainable, injury-free asana (yoga postures) practice.
  • Explore the profound influence of the breath on the autonomic nervous system, and the relationship of breath to the quality of mind.
  • Open to the subtleties of the energy body, thus recognizing ourselves and all things as manifestations of life force, prana.
  • Develop healthy routines for a daily sitting meditation practice, and consider meditation as intimacy with self.
  • Embrace a full sense of gratitude for the ongoing miracle of living in a human body.
  • Savor poetry from the wisdom traditions as nourishment from the Divine.
  • Play with silence, sound, and laughter as gifts of spirit.

Students aged 50 years and older are welcome. Basic mobility is required, otherwise please come with someone who can assist you. You must be able to lie on the floor and put your legs up the wall for five minutes, and accept your physical limitations without judgment. Three months of a semi-consistent yoga practice is recommended. Please come with a beginner’s mind even if you’re not a beginner.

Recommended Reading: Breath by James Nestor

Learn more about the requirements to receive continuing education credit.

Lead photo:
Jim Gallas

Jim Gallas has been teaching yoga and qigong with a sense of deepening silence and the lightness of laughter for over 30 years. He has had the great joy of teaching at Esalen since 1999. 

Read More

Workshop Schedule

Monday
8:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Tuesday
7:30 am – 9:00 am
11:00 am – 12:30 pm
4:00 pm – 6:30 pm
Wednesday
7:30 am – 9:00 am
11:00 am – 12:30 pm
4:00 pm – 6:30 pm
Thursday
7:30 am – 9:00 am
11:00 am – 12:30 pm
4:00 pm – 6:30 pm
Friday
9:30 am – 12:00 pm

Summer Groovers will experience Esalen in a format similar to our Self Guided Explorations workshops. Each Summer Groove week or weekend will open and close with a circle, and be filled with festive, nostalgic activities that harken back to those days of yore.

More activities can be found on our open class schedule.

See general schedule information including arrival, departure and meal times.

Accommodations & Tuition

Click Register Now to view availability of accommodations and all-inclusive, program-specific tuition. Please note that not all accommodation levels are available for every workshop and additional faculty fees may apply.

Accommodations & Tuition

Click Register Now to view availability of accommodations and all-inclusive tuition that includes lodging, three meals per day, access to the baths, and all activities on the Summer Groove schedule.

We offer scholarship funds for those with financial need. Learn more.

Accommodations & Tuition

For this workshop, you will register and pay for accommodations and tuition in two separate steps.

First, sign up and pay tuition directly to

Second, click Book Accommodations from this page and enter the password to complete your reservation to stay at Esalen.

Prices for accommodations include your lodging, meals, open classes, and use of the baths and other facilities. View partner program accommodations pricing.

COVID Update

As of June 30, 2023 we no longer require a negative COVID test at the time of check in. Please read our current COVID safety guidelines for complete details prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

All guests and faculty must provide proof of negative test results at time of check-in. Please read our current COVID safety guidelines for complete details prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

In addition to proof of vaccination, all guests and faculty must provide proof of negative test results at time of check-in. Please read our current COVID safety guidelines for complete details prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Effective January 7, 2022 in response to the rapid spread of the new Omicron variant, all guests and faculty will provide proof of negative PCR, NAAT, or antigen test results at time of check-in. The test must be taken within 72 hours nd results must come from a laboratory or healthcare provider.Please read our updated COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Effective December 15 in accordance with new guidance from Governor Gavin Newsom and the California Department of Health, all guests, students, staff, residents, and faculty are required to wear masks in all indoor public settings, irrespective of vaccine status, for the next four weeks (December 15, 2021 through January 15, 2022). Please read our updated COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Effective November 19, 2021, in accordance with new guidance from the Monterey County Board of Supervisors, all guests, students, staff, residents, and faculty are no longer required to wear masks indoors on campus. Please read our updated COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Starting November 5, 2021, due to substantial levels of COVID-19 transmission in Monterey County, a mask mandate established by the Monterey County Board of Supervisors will go into effect. Please read our COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

All guests will be required to provide proof of vaccination upon arrival starting September 3, 2021. Please read our COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Masks are no longer mandated indoors or outdoors, except during massage sessions. Guests are not required to provide testing or vaccination verification before arriving on campus. Please read our COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

All-inclusive Pricing

with Jim Gallas

August 22–26, 2022
Choose Your Path

In a youth-obsessed culture, how do we celebrate our aging and become wisdom holders for our communities? As we ripen into the late summer and autumn of our lives, how can we let go of what no longer serves and enjoy the abundance of each precious moment?

As we move through our spiritual awakening, fully inhabiting the Eight Limbs of Yoga, we have the opportunity to broaden our daily embodiment into the true nature of freedom and joy. The experience of living through many years and experiences affords us the opportunity to see life through the lens of compassionate experience. In this workshop we will take advantage of and celebrate this perspective, creating space in our bodies for joy and curiosity about the future.

In this time together we will:

  • Build the foundations of a consistent, sustainable, injury-free asana (yoga postures) practice.
  • Explore the profound influence of the breath on the autonomic nervous system, and the relationship of breath to the quality of mind.
  • Open to the subtleties of the energy body, thus recognizing ourselves and all things as manifestations of life force, prana.
  • Develop healthy routines for a daily sitting meditation practice, and consider meditation as intimacy with self.
  • Embrace a full sense of gratitude for the ongoing miracle of living in a human body.
  • Savor poetry from the wisdom traditions as nourishment from the Divine.
  • Play with silence, sound, and laughter as gifts of spirit.

Students aged 50 years and older are welcome. Basic mobility is required, otherwise please come with someone who can assist you. You must be able to lie on the floor and put your legs up the wall for five minutes, and accept your physical limitations without judgment. Three months of a semi-consistent yoga practice is recommended. Please come with a beginner’s mind even if you’re not a beginner.

Recommended Reading: Breath by James Nestor

Choose Your Path

Workshop Schedule

Monday
8:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Tuesday
7:30 am – 9:00 am
11:00 am – 12:30 pm
4:00 pm – 6:30 pm
Wednesday
7:30 am – 9:00 am
11:00 am – 12:30 pm
4:00 pm – 6:30 pm
Thursday
7:30 am – 9:00 am
11:00 am – 12:30 pm
4:00 pm – 6:30 pm
Friday
9:30 am – 12:00 pm

Summer Groovers will experience Esalen in a format similar to our Self Guided Explorations workshops. Each Summer Groove week or weekend will open and close with a circle, and be filled with festive, nostalgic activities that harken back to those days of yore.

More activities can be found on our open class schedule.

See general schedule information including arrival, departure and meal times.

Accommodations & Tuition

Click Register Now to view availability of accommodations and all-inclusive, program-specific tuition. Please note that not all accommodation levels are available for every workshop and additional faculty fees may apply.

We offer scholarship funds for those with financial need. Learn more.

Accommodations & Tuition

Click Register Now to view availability of accommodations and all-inclusive tuition that includes lodging, three meals per day, access to the baths, and all activities on the Summer Groove schedule.

We offer scholarship funds for those with financial need. Learn more.

Accommodations & Tuition

For this workshop, you will register and pay for accommodations and tuition in two separate steps.

First, sign up and pay tuition directly to

Second, click Book Accommodations from this page and enter the password to complete your reservation to stay at Esalen.

Prices for accommodations include your lodging, meals, open classes, and use of the baths and other facilities. View partner program accommodations pricing.

COVID Update

As of June 30, 2023 we no longer require a negative COVID test at the time of check in. Please read our current COVID safety guidelines for complete details prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

All guests and faculty must provide proof of negative test results at time of check-in. Please read our current COVID safety guidelines for complete details prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

In addition to proof of vaccination, all guests and faculty must provide proof of negative test results at time of check-in. Please read our current COVID safety guidelines for complete details prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Effective January 7, 2022 in response to the rapid spread of the new Omicron variant, all guests and faculty will provide proof of negative PCR, NAAT, or antigen test results at time of check-in. The test must be taken within 72 hours nd results must come from a laboratory or healthcare provider.Please read our updated COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Effective December 15 in accordance with new guidance from Governor Gavin Newsom and the California Department of Health, all guests, students, staff, residents, and faculty are required to wear masks in all indoor public settings, irrespective of vaccine status, for the next four weeks (December 15, 2021 through January 15, 2022). Please read our updated COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Effective November 19, 2021, in accordance with new guidance from the Monterey County Board of Supervisors, all guests, students, staff, residents, and faculty are no longer required to wear masks indoors on campus. Please read our updated COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Starting November 5, 2021, due to substantial levels of COVID-19 transmission in Monterey County, a mask mandate established by the Monterey County Board of Supervisors will go into effect. Please read our COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

All guests will be required to provide proof of vaccination upon arrival starting September 3, 2021. Please read our COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

COVID Update

Masks are no longer mandated indoors or outdoors, except during massage sessions. Guests are not required to provide testing or vaccination verification before arriving on campus. Please read our COVID safety guidelines prior to booking your stay.

All-inclusive Pricing