®
The Esalen Catalog • July– December 2016
gratitude
AS An ExPRESSion oF REnEWAL
save tHe date
BEnEFiT WEEKEnD
octoBer 14-16 | 2016
Honor esalen stars
We are pleased to announce the 2016 recipients
of the Esalen Prize and Spirit of Esalen Award.
esalen Prize Honorees
www.esalen.org/2016Benefitweekend
Ken and Maddy Dychtwald
for program updates and featured speakers
The Esalen Prize recognizes
achievements that have tangibly
improved the lives of others and
created a significant impact in
the world.
Historic riBBon-cutting ceremony
for tHe esalen lodge
Join us for a special weekend connecting Esalen friends
new and old in celebration and gratitude. Come celebrate
the completion of our beloved Lodge with a special
ceremony. Enjoy a tour of the new Huxley meeting
room, dining room, and enhanced bookstore and guest
reception area. We will honor our generous Campus
Renewal supporters with the unveiling of a donor wall
located at the entrance of the Lodge.
sPirit of esalen Honorees
Marion Hunt and Terry Hunt
The Roy A. Hunt Foundation
The Spirit of Esalen Award
recognizes visionary and inspiring
philanthropic support to Esalen and
the world.
Please Plan to join your friends at esalen on tHis sPecial occasion.
for furtHer information, contact 831.250.1022 x244 or katie.cronen@esalen.org
Ju ly –Dece m ber 2016
Volume 55, Number 2
contents
Daniel Bianche t ta
®
Dear Friends,
A
s you read this, the Esalen community will have celebrated a remarkable
milestone: the unveiling of a new second-floor addition to our iconic Lodge.
Viewed by so many of us as the heart of Esalen—where we gather to nourish our
bodies and minds—the Lodge is undergoing a significant transformation beginning with a
new Huxley meeting room, renovated kitchen, and outdoor deck. This evolution continues
throughout the year, including a new Lodge bookstore and café, and will incorporate other
parts of Esalen such as additional guest rooms on the north-side of
property and much needed expanded staff housing.
And yet this is just the beginning. What you will experience during
your next visit is reflective of even more expansive growth in the
spirit and intention of the Esalen community. Conceived a half
century ago as a place of rebirth, today Esalen plays a critical role in
exploring and promoting the interconnectedness we share in an
increasingly fragmented world. We do this by continuing to seek out and provide transformational learning experiences while finding more ways to increase access to Esalen for all
those who are seeking greater potential in themselves and others.
Our latest selection of workshops and other offerings has been carefully selected with our
larger community in mind. Within these pages you’ll find opportunities to deepen your
understanding of leading meaningful and joyful lives (as in The Art and Science of
Mindfulness, Compassion, and Joy workshop, p. 36), explore how to balance
technology with mindfulness (through our collaboration with Wisdom 2.0, p. 23), tap
into your creative self (with Color Yourself Calm: Mandalas, p. 54), among many
others. We are also excited to explore new ways to connect to our inner selves, including
a new property-wide silent retreat planned for 2017.
I hope you join us in a time of transformation and come experience our sense of renewal.
We look forward to welcoming you back home to Esalen this summer.
Warmly,
Tricia McEntee
Esalen CEO
Share the magic of Esalen by connecting with Esalen’s Facebook community
at facebook.com/EsalenInstitute or on Twitter at twitter.com/EsalenInstitute.
Welcome to Esalen.................................... 2
Guide to Workshops................................. 4
Esalen Faculty............................................ 6
Visiting Esalen........................................... 7
Accommodations and Rates.................... 8
Esalen Workshops................................... 10
Esalen Midsummer Festival......10 & 49
100-hour Esalen® Massage Cert. .......77
Work Study Program.............................90
Continuing Education Programs....... 95
Faculty Index............................................96
contact
Website: www.esalen.org
E-mail: info@esalen.org
Mailing Address: Esalen Institute,
55000 Highway 1, Big Sur, CA 93920
General Information: 831-667-3000
Reservations: 9 am–6 pm every day.
Preregistration is required for all Esalen
programs.
Online: www.esalen.org/workshops/
reservations.html
Phone: Toll-free US: 888-8-ESALEN
(888-837-2536)
International: +1 703-342-0500
Fax: 831-667-2724
Mail and fax reservations must include a
completed reservation form, available online
at www.esalen.org/workshops/reservations.html.
Support Esalen’s environmental sustainability efforts and reduce paper product usage by
viewing our catalog online. To discontinue
your print catalog subscription, please email
info@esalen.org. Thank you for saving our
natural resources!
Esalen Board of Trustees:
Jeffrey Kripal
Nancy LunneyChair
Wheeler ex officio
Chip Conley
Tricia McEntee
Bill James
Anisa Mehdi
Mary Ellen Klee
Michael Murphy
Jay Ogilvy
Ben Tauber
Gordon Wheeler
Sam Yau
The Esalen Catalog is published biannually by Esalen Institute,
Big Sur, CA 93920-9546. Printed on recycled paper.
©2016 Esalen Institute. All rights reserved. ISSN 1088-2782
cover photo: Kyle Evans
www.studio-inspiration.com/
KyleEvans. Email: KyleEvans
@studio-inspiration.com
FSC FPO
Welcome to Esalen
Our Mission
Our Offerings
Esalen is a leading institute for exploring and realizing human
potential through experience, education, and research. We work
toward the realization of a more humane and all-embracing world,
seeking answers to questions unlikely to be explored by traditional
universities and religions. We sponsor pioneering initiatives and offer
personal, spiritual, and social transformation programs for workshop
participants, Work Scholars and extended students, apprentices, and
property residents.
Workshops/ Work Study/Conferences
Our workshops range in subject matter from the arts and body movement to meditation, psychology, and nature and sustainability. You
may choose from a variety of program lengths; most workshops are
weekend, five- and seven-days long. Your workshop registration is
all-inclusive, providing you with accommodation, meals, and access to
additional classes and facilities on property. Please view the Guide to
Workshops for a full list of programs by subject.
Many educational institutions recognize Esalen programs as
eligible for credit in their curricula; check with your university
or college. Additional information can be provided if needed. Esalen
provides continuing education (CE) credit for psychologists, MFTs,
LCSWs, nurses, bodyworkers , acupuncturists, and more. See page 95
for details.
We also offer a Work Study program for individuals interested in
participating in an intensive month-long course of study. See page 90
for more information.
Our Values
Esalen explores these possibilities:
• Human possibilities vastly exceed our imagination.
• Realization of the human potential transcends religious and
scientific dogma.
• Mental, physical, emotional, spiritual, and social dimensions of
our being are inextricably joined.
• Transformation of consciousness is the basis for transformation
of the world, individually, collectively, and in social systems.
• All share the potential to love, learn, feel, and create.
2
Personal Retreat and A Time to Reflect
This is a special opportunity to spend time at Esalen without enrolling in a specific workshop. Choose from a single or multiple day
Daniel Bianche t ta
S
ince 1962, Esalen Institute has been devoted to the exploration of what Aldous Huxley
called the “human potential”—the world of unrealized human capacities that lies at
the growing edge of consciousness. Esalen is known for a blend of East/West philosophies,
experiential/didactic workshops, a steady influx of expert teachers from around the world,
and breathtaking grounds and natural hot springs. Once home to a Native American
tribe called the Esselen, Esalen is situated on the spectacular Big Sur coastline with the
Santa Lucia Mountains rising sharply behind.
Personal Retreat or book a longer stay with A Time to Reflect. A Time
to Reflect is offered regularly throughout the year. Personal Retreats,
which are not scheduled more than five days in advance, may also
become available when space allows. Nourish your body, mind, heart,
and soul by enjoying yoga and movement classes, massage, time in
the meditation Round House, evening programs, and the hot springs.
Visit the website for updates and pricing.
Massage and Bodywork
Esalen has long been known for its unique massage and bodywork
modalities, developed by innovative practitioners at the hot springs
overlooking the Pacific Ocean, and offered to guests during their stay.
Esalen Massage® incorporates long flowing strokes over the whole
body, and helps release the stresses of everyday life, leaving the receiver
feeling integrated and deeply relaxed. Reservations must be made and
paid for in advance. Please call 831-667-3002 for more information.
Hot Springs
Esalen is the steward of a natural hot springs overlooking the Pacific
Ocean. The hot springs is a source of relaxation and healing for those
who visit, and you may catch a glimpse into the life of a sea otter, seal,
or migratory whale while you enjoy the baths. Swimsuits are optional,
and nudity common, in the hot springs and massage areas.
We offer public night bathing from 1:00 am to 3:00 am. Reservations are required and can be made online at www.nightbaths.esalen.org.
Reservations are non-refundable and non-transferable. During the
winter months same day booking applies. Online reservations are
available for booking at 9:00 am based on weather. The hot springs
may be closed during public holidays and some Esalen events. We
do not accept large group reservations.
Children and Families
Esalen offers family-oriented workshops throughout the year. Guests
attending workshops who have small children can also inquire about
child care opportunities at the Gazebo Park School. Gazebo is an onsite, state-licensed outdoor preschool for children ages 1-6 that serves
families in the Big Sur area as well as workshop guests and leaders.
Children may enroll in a half or full day during an Esalen stay, but
space is limited. Please give at least one month advance notice for
enrollment. Call 831-667-3026 for more information.
Giving Back
The Friends of Esalen are supporters whose donations of $65
or more help advance Esalen’s mission of personal and social
transformation. By becoming a Friend of Esalen, you receive
a $25 discount on a future Esalen workshop. See page 48 for
more information.
Additional Classes
Esalen offers a daily schedule of free classes open to all guests. Offerings can include yoga, chanting, meditation, free-form dance, didjeridoo meditation at the baths and more. We also host visiting scholars
and teachers who interface with the Esalen community in many ways,
including Wednesday evening discussions.
Farm & Garden
Esalen’s five-acre Farm & Garden produces hundreds of varieties of
vegetables, many of which are used to feed Esalen guests and residents.
Guests may volunteer with the Farm & Garden crew during their stay,
enjoy the flowers during spring and summer, and participate in farming and permaculture workshops throughout the year.
Planning Your Visit
For additional tips and information regarding your Esalen stay,
see page 7.
kodiak greenwood
Accommodations
Esalen features an all-inclusive rate, which means your reservation
includes your workshop tuition, overnight accommodation, meals,
and other offerings. There are several types of accommodations to
meet a diversity of needs and budgets. Offerings begin with sleeping
bag, bunk bed, and shared standard rooms as well as premium rooms
that provide for greater privacy and Point Houses which are private
suites nestled behind the Esalen Garden. For full description and
pricing, see page 8.
3
V
Guide to Workshops
T
his is a guide to the workshops offered in this
catalog. Many of them defy easy categorization
and could be cross-referenced across many disciplines;
most are listed here in just one main subject area.
Arts & Creativity
Creative Expression / Theater
Aug 7-12 • Tongue and Pen: Spoken Word Poetry
Oct 28-30 • The Workshop of Doing and Being
Nov 20-25 • The MAX: Self-Expression
Nov 25-27 • Improv Inspiration
Music / Rhythm
July 1-3 • Esalen Midsummer Festival
July 17-22 • The Buddha, the Brain, and Bach
Aug 12-14 • Ecstasy of Sound: Music and Healing
Aug 14-19 • Building a Vocal Community
Nov 6-11 • Songwriting from the Heart
Dec 30-Jan 6 • The Natural Singer
Visual Arts
Sep 4-9 • The Art2Life Workshop
Oct 7-9 • Color Yourself Calm: Mandalas
Oct 9-14 • Art as a Spiritual Path: Painting
Oct 23-28 • Painting the Outer and Inner Landscape
Dec 4-9 • Awakening the Creative: Painting
Writing
Sep 2-4 • Your Heart’s Blueprint
Sep 4-9 • Unwinding Meridians
Sep 23-25 • Full Body Presence
Sep 23-25 • Healer Within™: Medical Qigong
Sep 25-30 • Tai Chi Easy™ Certification
Sep 25-30 • CranioSacral Therapy 2 Oct 9-14 • Visceral Manipulation 1
Oct 28-30 • Zero Balancing Open Forum
Oct 30-Nov 4 • Zen Practice and Wild Goose Qigong
Nov 6-11 • Visceral Manipulation 2
Nov 13-18 • Creative Tai Ji Experience
Nov 13-18 • Conquering Injury and Pain: Spinefulness
Nov 18-20 • Essential Qi-Gong Exercises of China
Nov 18-20 • NeuroMovement
Nov 20-25 • Spinal Awareness (with Humor)
Dec 4-11 • CFR, Feldenkrais, and Brain Plasticity
Dec 9-11 • Recapturing Your Posture
Dec 11-16 • Esalen Massage and Deep Bodywork
Dec 23-30 • Qigong for Health and Happiness
Massage
July 3-8 • Advanced Esalen Massage: Shoulder Girdle
Sep 25-Oct 23 • Work Study—Deep Bodywork
Sep 30-Oct 2 • Esalen Massage—The Basics
Oct 2-7 • Intro to Esalen Massage
Oct 23-28 • Deep Bodywork: Back, Hips, Shoulders
Nov 6-11 • Embodied Anatomy in Esalen Massage
Dec 2-4 • Advanced Esalen Massage
Dec 4-23 • 100-Hour Esalen Massage Certification
Dec 18-23 • Esalen Massage Holiday Retreat
Yoga
July 8-10 • Navel Intelligence
July 17-22 • Liquid Asana Live
Aug 7-12 • Radiant Body: Living From the Heart
Aug 26-28 • Power Vinyasa Yoga
Sep 2-4 • Yoga Practice: An Ongoing Metamorphosis
Sep 18-23 • Happiness through Mindfulness, Yoga
Sep 23-25 • Yoga and Creative Writing
Sep 23-Oct 2 • Path of Devotion: Yoga Teacher Training
Oct 2-7 • Yoga, Meditation and Addiction Recovery
Oct 9-14 • Shadow and Light: Advanced Yoga Psychology
Oct 23-28 • Breath as a Tool of Transition
Oct 28-30 • Yoga of Deep Intimacy
Nov 4-6 • Gratitude, Love and Easiness
Nov 11-13 • Yoga and Longevity; Optimum Health
Nov 20-25 • Thanksgiving Retreat
Nov 25-27 • Tending the Heart Fire: Thanksgiving
Dec 16-18 • Aligning With Nature: Winter Solstice Yoga
Dec 18-23 • Yoga Practice Intensive: Mindful Transition
Dec 30-Jan 1 • The Promise: Advanced Yoga for Everyone
Jan 1-6 • The Promise: Advanced Yoga for Everyone
Aug 21-26 • The Way of Story
Aug 26-28 • Memoir as a Path of Transformation
Oct 21-23 • The Sun: Personal Writing
Oct 30-Nov 4 • Sharing Your Life Story
Nov 11-13 • Jump Start Your Memoir
Dec 2-4 • The Writing Life
Body & Movement
Dance
July 3-8 • Libido Fundamentals
July 10-15 • Empowering Creativity
July 31-Aug 5 • 5Rhythms: Connections
Sep 9-11 • Soul Motion™: Pause Presence
Nov 6-11 • Dance of Oneness
Nov 13-18 • Hearth of Belonging
Nov 18-20 • 5Rhythms and Motion Theater
Nov 20-25 • 5Rhythms: Gateways
Nov 25-27 • Soul Motion™ and Gestalt Practice
Dec 23-30 • Soul Motion™: Tenderness
July 17-22 • EFT for Healing
July 24-29 • Full Body Presence
July 31-Aug 5 • Taiji (T’ai Chi) and Qigong
Aug 5-7 • Taiji (T’ai Chi) and Qigong
Aug 7-12 • Advanced CranioSacral Therapy 1
Aug 12-14 • The Embodied Life™
Aug 14-19 • Gratitude and Forgiveness
Aug 21-26 • Zero Balancing—Part 1
Sep 2-4 • The Gokhale Method
4
doug ellis
Healing Arts / Somatic Practices
Leadership & Society
Leadership
Oct 30-Nov 4 • Regenerative Leadership
Nov 27-Dec 2 • Web of Change
Social / Political Change
Oct 9-14 • The Path of the Wisdompreneur
Nov 25-27 • Social Entrepreneurship
Meditation & Spirituality
July 22-24 • Surrender to the Power of Intuition
July 24-29 • Ayurvedic, Tibetan, Chinese Medicine
Aug 19-26 • Lotus Borne Perception
Sep 4-9 • Embodying Shakti
Oct 23-28 • Art and Science of Transformation
Meditation / Mindfulness
July 3-8 • Mindful Education Teacher Training
July 3-8 • Mindfulness as a Wisdom Practice
July 15-17 • EcoMeditation
Sep 9-11 • Intro to Mindfulness Meditation Sep 30-Oct 2 • Mindfulness and Lovingkindness
Oct 28-30 • Search Inside Yourself
Nov 18-20 • Grateful Heart, Joyful Heart
Dec 11-16 • Mindful Self-Compassion Intensive Training
Dec 16-18 • Solstice Meditation Retreat
Dec 18-23 • Living a Mindful and Compassionate Life
Dec 23-30 • The Buddhist Path of Awakening
Dec 30-Jan 1 • New Year: Self-Love and Kindness
Jan 1-6 • New Year Meditation Retreat
Benja min Fahrer
Contemplative / Spiritual Studies
November 28–December 2, 2016
Web of Change
Web of Change is a dynamic community that connects leaders in technology working at
the frontiers of social change. For 15 years, Web of Changers have met annually to support
and inspire one another. More than 135 individuals attended the 2015 Esalen gathering, coming from such areas as social justice efforts in Ferguson, the United Nations Climate
Change Secretariat, and the environmental and immigration movements.
“We are looking at what it means to be a change agent, what kind of stress that puts
on one’s life, and how we can do our work better,” said Julie Szabo, 2015 Web of Change
organizer. “We hope to offer a combination of personal transformation and professional
ideas that participants can go back to organizations with and try something new.” Please
see page 74 for full program description. Myth / Ritual / Shamanism
Sep 2-4 • Soul Saturation
Sep 23-25 • Spiritwalker: Shamanic Journey
Sep 25-30 • Visionseeker: Spirit Medicine
Nov 4-6 • One Spirit Medicine
Nov 6-11 • Dreamgates
Mind & Psychology
Neuropsychology / Neuroscience
Sep 18-23 • The Anatomy of a Calling
Sep 25-30 • Know Your Sexual Self
Oct 7-9 • You Can Heal Your Heart
Oct 28-30 • Intro to Gestalt
Nov 13-18 • Abandonment to Healing
Dec 2-4 • Calling in “The One”
Dec 4-9 • Relational Gestalt Process
Dec 4-9 • Total Immersion for Total Transformation
Dec 9-11 • Science of Happiness and Well-being
Dec 18-23 • Shift Happens
Philosophical / Scientific Inquiry
July 10-17 • The Resilience of the Family in Film
July 17-24 • Japanese and Western Films
July 29-31 • Wisdom 2.0 Unplugged
Aug 19-21 • I Am the Word
Aug 21-26 • I Am the Word
Nov 11-13 • The Work of Byron Katie
Nature & Sustainability
Ecology / Permaculture
Sep 18-23 • Planting the Seed: Farm and Garden Educators
Sustainable Practices
Dec 2-4 • Advanced Energy Efficiency, Climate Protection
Dec 9-11 • When Water Becomes Gold
Psychology / Transpersonal Psychology
Wilderness / Hiking
July 8-10 • The Bio-Breakthrough Workshop
July 10-15 • Not For the Feint of Heart
July 15-17 • Arrive Already Loved
July 24-29 • Embodying the Intelligence of Heart
Aug 5-7 • Unleash Astonishing Potential
Aug 7-12 • R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century
Aug 14-19 • The Transformational Enneagram
Aug 19-26 • EMDR Training (Parts 1 and 2)
Aug 28-Sep 2 • Mindfulness, Compassion and Joy
Sep 9-11 • Hakomi Experiential Therapy
Sep 16-18 • Loving What Is
Sep 18-23 • The Radically Alive Leader
July 3-8 • Walk on the Wild Side: Hiking
July 24-29 • Big Sur Wilderness Experience
Sep 4-9 • Way of Nature: The Practice of the Wild
Aug 7-12 • Leading the Edge
Aug 14-19 • Secret Revolution in Human Possibility
Oct 2-7 • Unstuck—Turning Toward Transformation
Nov 11-13 • Stories that Sicken, Stories that Heal
Jan 1-6 • Designing the Life You Want
Relationship / Communication
July 10-15 • Hold Me Tight Workshop for Couples
July 15-17 • Getting the Love You Want: Couples
July 17-22 • Embodying Your Love: Couples
Aug 12-14 • Extraordinary Couples Workshop
Aug 26-28 • Speak to Inspire
Sep 9-11 • Couples’ Communication Retreat Oct 7-9 • Getting the Love You Want: Couples
Dec 16-18 • Mindful Communication
Sexuality / Gender
July 8-10 • A Call for Gay Heroes
July 29-Aug 5 • Healing the Pelvic Floor
Aug 5-7 • 5Rhythms Moon Lodge: Sacred Feminine
Aug 19-21 • Mothering and Daughtering
Sep 11-16 • Conversations on the Edge
Sep 18-23 • Tantra: Art of Conscious Loving
Oct 23-28 • The Wild Woman’s Way
Relationship & Self
Family
July 1-3 • The Magical Family
July 24-29 • Music and Nature Family Workshop
Life Purpose / Visioning
July 8-10 • Unleash Your Calling:
July 31-Aug 5 • Quarter-Life Calling
5
Esalen Faculty: A Wondrous Legacy
A
t the heart of the Esalen experience are the brilliant, wide-ranging teachers
who have taught here through the decades, and who renew and reinvent Esalen’s
place at the forefront of human consciousness.
One of Esalen’s most iconic moments came on the day in
1963 when humanist psychologist Abraham Maslow drove
down the hill by chance, looking for a place to stay the night.
At the time, Maslow was fermenting some renegade ideas
about the human psyche, and he ended up staying on at
Esalen to work on his groundbreaking Hierarchy of Needs.
This was when Alan Watts lectured in the Lodge, and soon
Fritz Perls set up a makeshift Esalen classroom to introduce
Today, the legacy of these treasured teachers continues on in
the quality of workshops and in the exceptional teachers who
lead them, including . . .
Anna Halprin
Anna Halprin has touched thousands
through her Esalen Dance for Life and
other movement workshops. Since the
late 1930s, she has revolutionized the art
of movement and taken modern dance to
new dimensions. Anna founded the San
Francisco Dancer’s Workshop, and the
Tamalpa Institute in 1978 with her
daughter Daria. See page 15.
Richard Tauber
Brother David Steindl-Rast
Brother David is a Benedictine monk,
psychologist, and author who helped
launch a renewal of religious and spiritual
life in the US. He initiated the Grateful
Living network and Gratefulness.org, a
network of thousands dedicated to cultivating joy in their lives. He served Esalen for
three years as Spiritual Teacher in Residence, and has taught many workshops
and retreats. See page 14 and 17.
Fritjof Capra
ideas that would lead to Esalen’s unique branch of Gestalt
practice. From Ida Rolf to Theodore Roszak, Joseph Campbell to Gabrielle Roth, Esalen faculty teach in a profound
symbiosis with the place. The result? New body/mind disciplines, groundbreaking cultural shifts, and a place like no
other—still perched at the leading edge of innovation. Many
of Esalen’s teachers were captured on film. A video library is
available for guests during their stay with us.
6
Fritjof Capra is an internationally
renowned scientist, author, educator, and
activist. His groundbreaking work
integrates scientific systems theory with
shifting cultural and social perspectives.
Over the decades, his workshops at Esalen
have synthesized radical new ideas in
ecological models, sustainable living,
physics, and health. See page 27.
Visiting Esalen
W
e look forward to welcoming you to Esalen. To help you plan for your visit,
we’ve put together some helpful information. For additional assistance, please call
1-888-837-2536 or 1-703-342-0500 (for international callers) or email info@esalen.org.
Getting Here
Esalen is located 45 miles south of Monterey
and 12 miles south of Big Sur on California
State Route 1. Allow yourself ample time to
travel to this remote and tranquil location. We
encourage ridesharing to reduce the number
of cars on the road or at Esalen. Ask an Esalen
reservationist for rideshare options. Esalen also
offers a shuttle service from San Francisco, San
Jose, and Monterey on Fridays and Sundays
only. A timetable and pricing is available online.
Return reservations can be made at the Front
Office in the Lodge.
What to Bring
Daniel Bianche t ta
The coastal weather is unpredictable, so we
recommend bringing warm and layered
comfortable clothing as well as hiking shoes.
Esalen paths have low lighting so you may enjoy
the night skies, so we recommend you bring a
flashlight. Please bring any medications, toiletries, sunscreen, water bottle, and earplugs if you
share a room.
What to Expect
Phone and Internet: There is no cell phone
service at Esalen. There are two shared Internet
stations available and the Lodge offers WiFi
access except during meal times. Due to our
remote location, we cannot guarantee Internet
connectivity.
Health Services: Esalen has no medical services or pharmaceutical supplies on property.
Please come prepared to administer to your own
needs. Esalen is 45 miles from a medical facility
and pharmacy.
Accessibility: Many Esalen paths, though
paved, are steep and uneven. Access to some
parts of the property may be difficult depending
on your level of mobility. Please discuss your
needs with an Esalen reservationist at the time
of registration (at least 72 hours prior to arrival)
and we may be able to assist.
Clothing Optional: In the hot springs, massage
area, and pool area, clothing is optional and
nudity common. We encourage each individual
to choose what is most comfortable for him or
her. The environment we strive for at Esalen is
one of personal sanctuary and respect for the
human body.
General Policies
The following policies are in place for the benefit of Esalen workshop participants, workshop
leaders, residents, and other visitors.
Smoking: Smoking is permitted in designated
on Esalen property is strictly prohibited.
Pets: Other than service animals, pets are not
allowed. In accordance with the Americans
with Disabilities Act (ADA), service animals are
defined as dogs that are individually trained to
do work or perform tasks for people with disabilities. If you plan to bring a service animal,
please contact an Esalen reservationist to register your animal.
Age Restrictions: Workshop participants must
be 18 years or older unless otherwise noted
(such as family workshops).
outdoor areas only; it is not permitted in guest
rooms or meeting rooms.
Personal Guests: Workshop participants may
Illegal Drugs: In accordance with state and fed-
Valuables: The Front Office has no facilities to
eral laws, the possession or use of illegal drugs
store guest valuables.
not have guests on property.
7
Esalen All-Inclusive Accommodations
W
hen you reserve a workshop at
Esalen, your tuition includes both the
cost of your workshop as well as a variety of
amenities including room accommodation,
beautifully prepared meals featuring produce
grown in the Farm & Garden, and a 24-hour
coffee, tea, and bread bar.
Additional offerings included in your stay are vegan and vegetarian
options for all meals; 24-hour use of the hot springs bath facilities;
access to the Art Barn (except during construction or when a workshop
is scheduled), walks in the Farm & Garden, and meditation in the
Round House; daily yoga and movement classes; special Wednesday
evening lectures and occasional impromptu discussions hosted by
visiting scholars and teachers; and a subscription to the Esalen catalog.
Select from the following accommodations:
Bunk Bed
Bunk beds provide an economical way to visit Esalen. This shared
housing accommodates four or more persons to a room.
Standard Room
Sleeping Bag Space
Some Esalen meeting rooms are used as shared sleeping bag space.
Storage space outside the meeting rooms is available when the rooms
are being used for meetings. Access is from 11:00 pm to 8:45 am.
Reserve Now
online: www.esalen.org
phone: 888-8-esalen
(888-837-2536)
+1 703-342-0500
(international callers)
A standard room is one which is shared housing, with two or three
people per room and in some cases a shared bathroom. Couples will
be housed privately. Standard guaranteed single housing is possible
based on availability for an additional $150 per night.
Workshop Tuition Including Accommodations
Weekend
Workshops
Five-day
Workshops
Seven-day
Workshops
Shared Sleeping Bag Space
$405
$650
$900
Shared Bunk Bed Dorm
$585
$790
$985
$1,315
$1,300
$1,700
Shared Standard
Premium Room Single
$1,405
$2,645
$3,430
Premium Room Couple
$2,160
$4,025
$5,225
Point House Single
$1,890
$3,835
$4,975
Point House Couple
$2,700
$5,240
$6,750
$405
$650
$900
Own Accommodations (Off-site)
Friends of Esalen receive a $25 discount on rates. For information on Friends of Esalen, see page 48.
Special pricing applies for Personal Retreats and A Time to Reflect. Please see our website for more information.
8
Premium Room
•Month-long Residency Program: A 20% discount is available for
anyone registering for four consecutive five-day workshops with three
Personal Retreat weekends in between. This program is available
January-April only. Please contact an Esalen reservationist for more
information.
Check-In /Check-Out
A premium room offers greater privacy, upgraded bathrooms, and
enhanced sound-proofing and climate insulation. You can request either
ocean view or Internet access (Ethernet cable provided) and a phone.
We will do our best to honor your request.
Accommodations include a Friday and Saturday night stay for weekend
workshops and Sunday through Thursday night stay for five-day workshops. Schedules for seven-day workshops vary; please ask at registration.
Guests are welcome to arrive at Esalen anytime after 2:00 pm on the day
your stay begins. Rooms become available at 2:30 pm and you may pick up
your key at the gate or at the Front Office. On the day of your departure,
please check out of your room before attending the closing workshop
session or before 10:30 am; enjoy lunch with us and depart by 2:00 pm.
Workshop schedules normally begin at 8:30 pm on the day of arrival.
Payment and Cancellation
Point House
A nonrefundable deposit is required for any workshop reservation: $150
for a weekend workshop and $300 for a five- or seven-day workshop.
Deposits paid by credit card will automatically have the workshop balance drawn from your credit card five days before your arrival. Deposits
are payable in US currency only; overseas residents must pay by checks
drawn on US banks or credit cards.
If you cancel or change any part of your workshop reservation at least
seven days before the start of your workshop(s), your nonrefundable
deposit, less a $75-per-workshop processing fee will be transferred to an
Esalen credit account to be used within one year.
If you cancel a workshop with less than seven days’ notice, you forfeit your
entire deposit. If you have prepaid your entire reservation fee, the balance
(less the deposit) will be refunded.
Point Houses are private suites nestled behind the Esalen Garden and
perched at the cliff’s edge with stunning views of the Pacific Ocean. Each
of three Point Houses offers a living room with wood stove, a master
bedroom, a sleeping loft, full kitchen and dining area, private redwood
deck overlooking the Pacific with outdoor clawfoot tub, Internet access,
and in-room telephone.
Individuals can also choose to attend a workshop and plan for off-site
accommodations, although space is limited for this option.
Reduced Rates
In some cases, you may be eligible for a reduced rate. Please inquire about
this option at the time of registration. Reduced rate options include:
•Work Exchange: Limited assistance is available for workshop participants in exchange for a work commitment in housekeeping or the
kitchen.
•Scholarships: Limited student aid is available for those in financial
need. Visit www.esalen.org/page/scholarships-financial-aid for more
information.
•Senior Citizen Discount: A discount is available for workshop
participants over 65: a $25 discount for weekend workshops and $50
for five-day or longer workshops.
If you cancel A Time to Reflect or Personal Retreat with more than 24
hours’ notice, a $75 processing fee will be charged for each reservation
(per person) and the remaining balance will be refunded. If you cancel
with less than 24 hours’ notice, you will forfeit the price of one night of
lodging (per person).
Cancellations must be made by phone with an Esalen reservationist.
Seven days’ notice means by Sunday before a Sunday workshop and by
Friday before a Friday workshop. Donations to the Friends of Esalen Fund
are nonrefundable.
Esalen may cancel a workshop due to low enrollment before the workshop start date. You can choose to select another workshop, attend a
Time to Reflect or Personal Retreat, or receive a full refund.
Fees for Children
Fees for children under 10 enrolled in a family workshops are $100 for
weekend workshops and $250 for five-day workshops. Children not
attending workshops may be housed with two full-paying adults in
premium or standard rooms for a meal charge of $20 a day per child ($10
for children under six). Single-parent accommodations are limited. Please
inquire at registration. Note: If children are enrolled in Gazebo Park
School, additional fees apply.
9
Julie Sz abo
Esalen Workshops
Weekend of July 1–3
Esalen Midsummer Festival
Join us for the Esalen Midsummer Festival—a weekend full of friends,
families, fun, music, and good food! This time will be relaxed and
unstructured, allowing for lots of opportunity to meet others, participate in daily movement classes, take long walks, visit the farm, or
simply relax in the hot springs. On Saturday afternoon, Esalen will
throw a celebratory concert and outdoor dance jam with a live musical line up, including headliner Nahko and Medicine for the People.
Watch the Esalen website for more information. Ivy Mayer Lavie will
also offer a weekend children’s workshop for parents who want their
little ones to fully experience the joy of being young at Esalen (see The
Magical Family). Join us for this epic, family-friendly event. Regular
workshop prices apply for adults and children. Please see program
highlight on page 49.
The Magical Family
Ivy Mayer Lavie
The gorgeous Esalen gardens are home base for this weekend of play,
creativity, and celebration. Get ready for a unique experience for you
and your child, including mindfulness practices through connection
to nature and expressive, musical, and sensory awareness games. We
will spend time together as a group with music, mindfulness, and
welcoming play, and time in breakout groups where the parents and
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children have their own experiences. For the child, we pay special
attention to what is emergent and noble, and seek to celebrate the
burgeoning soulfulness of the child.
Activities include respectful plant harvesting and making magical creations in the Esalen Garden, creative art, engaging light-hearted
dharma games, hiking along the Creek, and playing at Gazebo Park
School (for children up to six years old). Special experiential sessions for
parents will use embodied mindfulness to support self-care, and guided
practices that support coming home to oneself. Families are invited to
journey through a magical space that brings together the wild Esalen
coast and the creativity that emerges when a group comes together.
The concurrent Esalen Midsummer Festival will be the main
event on Saturday afternoon, with live music for the entire Esalen
community between 2 and 7pm. Parents in this workshop may enjoy
child-free time between 3:30 and 5pm, or stay with the workshop during that time.
This workshop is open to children ages 4-13 (although children on
the younger end need to be comfortable being on their own, or have a
caregiver who can be with them during all sessions). Children of other
ages may be admitted with permission of the leader. Special pricing
applies to this workshop.
Recommended reading: Louv, Last Child in the Woods.
yy CE credit for MFTs & LCSWs; see leader.
Ivy Mayer Lavie, MFT, is influenced by Somatic Experiencing, the Hakomi
Method, and her teaching experience, including for The Marin School, The
Moving Center School, Spirit Rock Family Program, and Yes!. She offers family programs, nervous system balancing trainings, and private psychotherapy.
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
Week of July 3–8
Mindful Education Teacher Training
Daniel Rechtschaffen
Schools around the world are turning to mindfulness and socialemotional learning as an antidote for rising stress, emotional dysregulation, and attention deficit. In school systems that have adopted
mindfulness, students and teachers are happier, more focused, more
compassionate, emotionally regulated, and less impacted by stress.
What school would pass up on a chance to raise test scores, have fewer
playground fights, and cultivate a more peaceful school environment?
Led by Daniel Rechtschaffen, author of The Way of Mindful Education and The Mindful Education Workbook, this Mindfulness in Education Teacher Training helps participants gain the skills and confidence
to bring the many benefits of mindfulness to children in grades K–12.
Educators, counselors, parents, and child-care providers will have the
opportunity to deepen their own mindfulness practice and discover
practical tools to incorporate mindfulness practices into daily life and
work. Throughout the week, we balance professional development
with personal development, and information with transformation.
Participants will train in the Mindful Education Workbook curriculum, and how to apply it to children of different ages, populations, and
special needs. We will examine current research and the way schools
and organizations are already successfully integrating these transformative practices. Please read The Mindful Education Workbook before
the workshop begins and bring it with you to Esalen.
Required reading: Rechtschaffen, The Mindful Education Workbook.
Recommended reading: Rechtschaffen, The Way of Mindful
Education.
Daniel Rechtschaffen
For more than ten years, Daniel Rechtschaffen has
been teaching mindfulness and emotional intelligence to students, teachers, and communities. He is
a marriage and family therapist and the author of
The Way of Mindful Education and The Mindful Education Manual, which are used by schools
around the world.
“I was raised at the Omega Institute, a spiritual
retreat center in New York. I assumed that the gurus, meditation masters,
and shamans I grew up around were just your usual childhood characters
until I found myself trying unsuccessfully to talk to kids in my public school
about meditation,” said Daniel. “Quickly I learned that existential inquiry
was not a subject in the modern education system.”
One of Daniel’s greatest loves is leading residential trainings with educators who are truly inspired to wake themselves up and bring their own realizations and spiritual maturity back to their students and into their worlds.
“Growing up with one foot in the world of wisdom traditions and the other in MTV America, I embarked on a path of integrating these two streams
within myself. Through studying western philosophy, living in meditation
centers in far flung corners of the globe, becoming a Gestalt psychotherapist,
immersing myself in earth-based traditions, and practicing qigong and other
movement modalities, I learned not only how to live a sacred life in the modern world, but I committed myself to figuring out how to offer all children a
holistic education.”
Libido Fundamentals
Andrea Juhan
“When we awaken through dance, our sexual energy begins to stir,”
writes Andrea Juhan. “One moment we may feel juicy, radiant, and
desirable, while at other times we battle feeling awkward or shy. It can
be overwhelming to contemplate our own experiences or the sexual
energies around us. Generative, sexual energy—our libido—is an essential part of our body’s natural expression: complicated one moment,
ecstatic the next. This energy comes to dance with us every time we
step onto the floor along with our past and current expectations.
“Libido Fundamentals investigates this complex and creative
conundrum by using Andrea Juhan’s Open Floor Movement practice
as a means to ground and explore our sexual energy. Because sexuality is so often unconsciously acted out or ignored, the exploration of
this territory tends to be intense, intimate, liberating, and empowering. Participants can expect to spend each day engaging in mindful
movement practice, group sharing and inquiry, and some didactic
education.
“This course is an introduction. We will mine the multitude of
historical, emotional, relational, creative, and spiritual aspects of our
sexuality. The pleasure and beauty of this journey is well worth the
challenges and risks.”
Andrea Juhan, PhD MFT, is a therapist and dancer, and for three decades
a student/teacher of Gabrielle Roth’s 5Rhythms, Gestalt Awareness Practice,
and Integrative Body Psychotherapy. She has created her own form of movement practice called Open Floor, and together with other gifted teachers she
cofounded Open Floor International. www.openfloor.org
Mindfulness as a Wisdom Practice
Bradley Lewis & Vignesh Swaminathan
Mindfulness teachings often isolate the practice from larger cultural,
spiritual, and expressive contexts. This workshop goes the other direction: it integrates secular mindfulness practices with the wisdom of
World philosophies and with the creative arts. The workshop is for
those new to mindfulness, those with an established practice, and for
psychotherapists interested in integrating mindfulness into their clinical work. It is co-taught by a psychiatrist and cultural scholar from
New York University, and an experienced meditation teacher. We
approach mindfulness in a cosmopolitan fashion as a way of life and a
practice of freedom. This approach can foster the participant’s ability
to cope with the stresses of contemporary times and to access higher
levels of consciousness and flourishing. It opens our hearts to the possibility of a more spiritual, compassionate, and honest experience of
life. Mindfulness practiced this way provides a deeper level of reserves
with which to engage in our worldly projects. And, most of all, it gives
us the capacity to delight in the process of being here on this world
now, as it is, regardless of what happens and what fates befall us.
Recommended reading: Kabat-Zinn, Full Catastrophe Living: Using
the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness; Consiglio, Prayer in the Cave of the Heart: The Universal Call to Contemplation;
Andre, Mindfulness: 25 Ways to Live in the Moment through Art.
yy CE credit for psychologists, MFTs & LCSWs; see page 95.
Bradley Lewis, MD, PhD, is an associate professor at New York University’s
Gallatin School of Individualized Study and a practicing psychiatrist. He has
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See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
interdisciplinary training in humanities and psychiatry, and his recent books
are Narrative Psychiatry: How Stories Can Shape Clinical Practice and
Depression: Integrating Science, Culture, and Humanities.
Vignesh Swaminathan, LAc, is a practitioner of Traditional Chinese
Medicine and a meditation teacher, with intensive training in the Zen,
vipassana, and Christian mystical traditions. He practices contemplative
medicine in New York City and teaches meditation at NYU.
Walk on the Wild Side: Hiking the Big Sur Country
Steven Harper
“What’s the quickest way out of the city?” John Muir is reported to
have asked a stranger on the street of the metropolis in which Muir
had just arrived. “Where do you want to go?” the man asked. “Anywhere that is wild,” Muir replied.
This week is straightforward. You day-hike the mountainous paths
into the wilds of Big Sur, breathe in the fresh mountain air, and soak
in Esalen’s natural hot springs overlooking the waves of the Pacific—in
short, you let yourself touch and be touched by Nature.
“Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray
in, where Nature may heal and cheer and give strength to body and
soul,” said Muir. Drawing from various wisdom traditions, the group
will be introduced to practices that encourage openness to self and
nature. As Muir discovered, “I only went out for a walk, and finally
concluded to stay out till sundown, for going out, I found, was really
going in.”
Hikes (4-10 miles in length) begin after breakfast and finish in
time to enjoy the hot springs and wholesome food of Esalen. Participants should be prepared for the challenge of invigorating physical
activity as well as the opportunity to simply sit still in quiet contemplation. More information and a waiver will be sent upon registration.
For an equipment list and frequently asked questions about Steven’s
workshops, visit www.stevenkharper.com/faqs.html. Muir wrote, “The
mountains are calling me and I must go.”
($30 permit and park-entrance fee will be added to the workshop cost)
is a wilderness guide, author, artist, and Big Sur resident.
He has led both traditional and experimental wilderness expeditions internationally for more than 35 years. He has an MA in psychology and his work
focuses on wild nature as a vehicle for awakening. www.stevenkharper.com
Steven Harper
Advanced Esalen® Massage with Special Focus
on the Shoulder Girdle
Char Pias & Jessica Fagan
This advanced massage workshop focuses on the shoulder girdle and
the interplay of muscular balance between the neck, thoracic cavity,
spine, and arms. Imbalances and chronic tension around the scapulae,
neck, and shoulder are frequently caused by misaligned habitual
movement patterns. These holding patterns result in kyphosis,
elevated/retracted shoulders, or a depressed chest, all of which affect
one’s ability to breathe fully and can support habits of fear and anxiety.
When the shoulders drop and broaden, the cervical spine is able to
come into alignment, which establishes more freedom in the breath.
Through the use of deep tissue/soft tissue techniques combined
with trigger point work and active/passive release, students will learn
how to address potential injuries such as frozen shoulder, rotator cuff,
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whiplash, carpal tunnel syndrome, and repetitive strain. Char and
Jessica’s teaching focuses on using a sensitive yet effective approach
toward deep work, integrating Esalen bodywork and its artistry of
touch, along with fluid lighter strokes to move lymph, prevent soreness, and integrate structural changes. Participants will be instructed
in proper body mechanics, self-care, and Chi Gong. Through these
various somatic practices, the students will gain an inner sense of
the body/mind connection and develop ways in which to restore and
maintain energetic and structural balance.
This workshop is for those with massage experience, and is especially
useful for those in the helping and healing professions in working
with their clients and patients.
yy CE credit for nurses and massage; see page 95.
Char Pias, a member of the Esalen massage staff since 1980, teaches interna-
tionally, focusing on bodywork’s energetic, emotional, and spiritual aspect.
She is a Reiki teacher, a Circle of Life facilitator/coach, and a licensed graduate of The Center for Spiritual Healing. www.piasoma.com
Jessica Fagan, a member of the Esalen massage staff, is a dancer and performer who is deeply immersed in the practice and teaching of Eastern and
Western somatic therapies as well as Vinyasa yoga. www.jessicafagan.com
Weekend of July 8–10
A Call for Gay Heroes
Christian de la Huerta
What does it mean to be a hero — to live heroically — in these times?
Have you known or even suspected that you had a role to play as
teacher, healer, or spiritual activist? We are living in what may be
the most critical juncture in the evolution of humanity. The clarion
call has gone out: All hands on deck! You are needed now. We are all
needed now. People we today call gay, bi, or queer have a long tradition
of fulfilling spiritual roles such as teachers, healers, seekers of higher
consciousness, mediators, and keepers of beauty. How are you giving
expression to those roles in your life? Are you ready to step things up
a bit? It’s time.
Come spend a weekend with an intimate group of like-minded
committed seekers. Identify and release whatever obstacles may have
been holding you back from stepping fully into your power. Enjoy
inspiring dialogue, soul-nourishing camaraderie, deep healing, and
life-changing breathwork. Let’s break through past limitations to
unleash our true potential. And, let’s have fun!
Recommended reading: de la Huerta, Coming Out Spiritually.
Christian de la Huerta has been a writer, speaker, and retreat and group facilitator for more than 20 years. Author of the award-winning and criticallyacclaimed Coming out Spiritually, he is currently working on a new book
called The Soul of Power. www.soulfulpower.com
The Bio-Breakthrough Workshop:
From Limitation to Liberation
Isabelle Benarous
In this workshop, Isabelle Benarous introduces you to The Bio-Breakthrough, an innovative process based on biological decoding and
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
Neuro-Linguistic Programming. During this weekend, you will be
shown how to deprogram limiting subconscious imprints and to
liberate yourself from ancestral traumas at a cellular level. The
Bio-Breakthrough process alternates between presentations, collective
exploration, guided meditation, and exercises that can help you
unlock emotional conflicts and free your life path. During this
workshop you will be shown how to:
• Understand the direct link between emotional distress and health
issues
• Let go of fear and acquire tools to master your health
• Liberate yourself from unwanted ancestral and prenatal influences
• Overcome life challenges by reprogramming limiting
subconscious imprints
• Experience the freedom of creating your ultimate life path
• This workshop is designed to help you heal at an emotional level
in service to the deeper revelation of who you are. Discover how
your relationships, life direction, and emotional well-being can be
remarkably improved as you uncover the true reasons behind your
challenges.
Schuyler Grant & Kia Miller
Many foundational yogic texts state that yoga begins at the navel. It
is the center from which we derive our sense of self and initiate all
movement. It is also an important source of vitality and health in the
body. Join Schuyler Grant and Kia Miller as they share their mutual
love of deep core work. We will explore the physical, emotional, and
subtle realms of the navel, which will include practicing uddiyana
bandha, kundalini kriya, breath work, and meditation—as well as plenty
of asana. By applying your newfound navel intelligence to Schuyler’s
creative Kula Flow classes and Schuyler and Kia’s signature combination of Kundalini and vinyasa yoga, you will be on your way to bliss.
This weekend workshop is an opportunity to reclaim your energy,
focus, and enthusiasm for life. Please bring a yoga mat.
Schuyler Grant co-created the Wanderlust festival and directs Kula Yoga
Project in New York City. Developer of a popular style of vinyasa called Kula
Flow, known for its emphasis on intelligent alignment and creativity, she was
noted by The New York Times as the go-to teacher for advanced practice.
Kia Miller is a Kundalini yoga teacher who has an ability to translate the
subtle teachings of Kundalini in a highly accessible way. Kia’s study of yoga
began when she was 15. She is also certified in hatha yoga and teaches workshops, retreats, and teacher trainings throughout the world. www.kiamiller
.com
jens wa zel
Isabelle Benarous is a Neuro-Linguistic-Programming trainer and author
of Break the Code of Your Illness. She founded the Bioreprogramming®
Institute, which is dedicated to teaching practical technologies for the
resolution of conflicts related to health disorders and other life challenges.
www.bioreprogramming.net
Navel Intelligence: A Journey into the Core of You
13
Daniel Bianche t ta
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
Unleash Your Calling: Create the Work and Life You Love
Tama Kieves
Do you sense another life calling you? Do you crave meaningful work,
or ache to express your creativity or contribution and pay your bills?
Your wildest dreams are not frivolous. You have a calling, an expression of infinite talent, stamina, and love. And in uncertain economic
times, true passion is your greatest security. Join Tama Kieves, author
and success coach, to learn how to unlock and flourish in the work
you’re meant to do. As a former Harvard-trained attorney turned
leading career catalyst, Kieves has walked this walk. In this powerful, supportive container, you will be guided through the joyous and
practical strategies she’s used to help thousands worldwide to discover,
trust, and soar in their true power. Through breakthrough creative
exercises, learn how to:
• Choose the right passion and tap unstoppable inner strength
• Experience your inspired power and break through fears and
obstacles
• Turn your talents into income, windfalls, and opportunities
• Reveal your own tailor-made, rock-solid path to success
Recommended reading: Kieves, A Year Without Fear; This Time I
Dance! Creating the Work You Love and Inspired & Unstoppable: Wildly
Succeeding in Your Life’s Work.
($2 materials fee will be added to the workshop cost)
Tama Kieves is the best-selling author of A Year Without Fear: 365 days
of Magnificence,This Time I Dance!, and Inspired & Unstoppable:
Wildly Succeeding in Your Life’s Work! Featured on Oprah radio, she
is a speaker and a leading career/success coach. www.TamaKieves.com
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July 10–17
The Resilience of the Family in Film:
Epics of Love, Loss, and Recovery
Francis Lu & Brother David Steindl-Rast
Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it.
– Helen Keller
Film-viewing seminars led by Francis and Brother David have been an
annual tradition at Esalen since 1990. This seminar focuses on the role
of the family in teaching us how resilience develops over a lifetime
and across generations. Mindfully watching the way families express
love, endure loss, and locate their own resilience helps all of us see
how we may face life’s inevitable challenges. The group will view epic
films set within distinct cultural settings (11th c. Japan, 18th c. France,
19th c. New England, 19th c. Italy, 19th c. Wales, China/US, India,
Ireland, and Sweden). Directors include Ingmar Bergman, John Ford,
D. W. Griffith, Kenji Mizoguchi, Satyajit Ray, Jean Renoir, Luchino
Visconti, and Wayne Wang.
Carefully curated and sequenced films will be shown on state-ofthe-art home theatre equipment (including 4K Blu-ray video projection and nine loudspeakers). This seminar includes a syllabus on the
films, along with processing of the films through reflection and group
interaction focused on the participant’s own experience of each film.
Movies take on an exquisite cumulative power when shown over
seven days at Esalen in a group setting that is truly remarkable and
unforgettable.
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
For further information, contact Francis Lu at francislumd@gmail.
com and see www.gratefulness.org, then search for “films.”
Recommended reading: Walsh, Strengthening Family Resilience, 3rd
edition.
yy CE credit for psychologists, MFTs & LCSWs; see page 95.
Francis G. Lu is the Luke & Grace Kim Professor in Cultural Psychiatry,
Emeritus, at UC Davis. Since 1987 he has led 32 seminars at Esalen exploring
film and the transpersonal, 26 of them with Brother David Steindl-Rast.
www.francislumd.com
Brother David Steindl-Rast, Benedictine monk, psychologist, and author,
has lectured on five continents. He was Spiritual Teacher in Residence at
Esalen, and is concerned with the unique challenges and opportunities of our
time. www.gratefulness.org
Week of July 10–15
Empowering Creativity through Movement/Dance & Life/
Art Metaphors
Anna Halprin & Daria Halprin
In honor of Anna’s 96th year, Anna and Daria Halprin will join forces
for this five-day experience. Pioneers in their respective fields of dance
and expressive arts-based psychology, they will interweave their work
in an exploration of the wisdom of body and imagination.
Throughout time, dance and the expressive arts have been transformative for individuals and communities as ways to find meaning,
artistic expression, healing, and connection to spirit. This workshop
will generate opportunities for participants to find such artistry and
meaning connected with real issues in their lives.
The Life/Art Process® developed by the Halprins includes
individual and group movement/dance, drawing, poetic narrative,
and explorations in the beautiful outdoor environment of Esalen, all
utilized to renew, inspire, and catalyze new resources to bring back
into daily life. The workshop is designed for everyone. No previous
experience in dance/art needed.
Recommended reading: Anna Halprin, Experience As Dance and
Breath Made Visible; Daria Halprin, Expressive Body in Life, Art and Therapy. Daria also will bring copies of her work, Body Ensouled, Enacted and
Entranced, to the workshop for participants to read.
Anna Halprin was named one of “America’s 100 Irreplaceable Dance
Treasures” by the Dance Heritage Coalition. She has created revolutionary
directions for the art form and inspired fellow choreographers to take modern
dance to new dimensions. She founded the San Francisco Dancer’s Workshop
in 1955 and the Tamalpa Institute in 1978 with her daughter Daria.
www.annahalprin.org
Daria Halprin, is a dancer, teacher, therapist, and author. Co-founder and
director of Tamalpa Institute, she leads workshops and trainings programs
internationally. Her books include The Expressive Body in Life, Art and
Therapy; Body Ensouled, Enacted and Entranced; and Foundations of
Expressive Arts Therapy. www.dariahalprin.org
Not For the Feint of Heart: Be Bold in Your Personal Growth
Mariah Fenton Gladis
If you’re “feint of heart,” you avoid confronting the emotional injuries
or habits that prevent you from enjoying life to the fullest. You feint
this way and that, preserving the status quo instead of moving past
obstacles. This workshop is not for the feint of heart—nor the faint of
heart. It’s for people who have a passionate commitment to creating
healthy relationships within healthy lives. It offers opportunities to
benefit from intensive individual healing work, which may involve
emotional injuries rooted in the past, recurring themes or patterns of
dysfunction, or personal longings in the here and now. Whatever the
content of your work, this workshop can help you:
• Discover the issues that are immediately obstructing the quality of
your life
• Learn contact skills to authentically and effectively express
yourself and assure healthy interaction with others
• Risk working deeply in an atmosphere of trust and mutual support
• Expand your capacity for generosity and compassion for yourself
and others
The didactic and experiential sessions are particularly helpful
for human-relations professionals and those committed to a path of
personal betterment. Mariah Fenton Gladis, known for her effective
and innovative use of music to enrich the workshop experience, will
blend individual and group Gestalt work in an environment of trust,
compassion, and emotional generosity. A survivor of Lou Gehrig’s
Disease, Mariah speaks with what she calls her “ALS accent,” which
will be translated.
Recommended Reading: Gladis, Tales of a Wounded Healer.
Mariah Fenton Gladis, founder/director of the Pennsylvania Gestalt Center
for Psychotherapy and Training for more than three decades, leads workshops
and trainings around the US and in Europe. She is recognized for the sensitive
and creative way she practices the art of Gestalt. www.gestaltcenter.com
Hold Me Tight Workshop for Couples
Sam Jinich & Michelle Gannon
Moveme n t
VV
a n d M e ditatio n
In addition to workshops, we offer a variety of movement
and meditation classes. Offerings include dance, tai ji,
gi gong, yoga, and sensory awareness chakra meditation.
Schedules change weekly. Visit www.esalen.org/page/
movement-meditation-activities.
The Hold Me Tight Workshop for Couples is based on practices drawn
from Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), attachment theory, and Sue
Johnson’s best-selling book, Hold Me Tight. The work will be designed
around seven conversations that have been shown to be essential
to successful relationships. Relationships can be a cause of stress
and pain or a source of comfort and joy. Couples will learn how to
understand and improve their relationships via presentations, private
exercises, conversations with relationship partners, and by watching
video demonstrations. By utilizing exercises drawn from EFT, Sam
15
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
Jinich and Michelle Gannon help couples learn how to deal with their
feelings together, reach towards each other, be responsive in more
loving and positive ways, and move from isolation and frustration to
security, emotional safety, and lasting relationship satisfaction. The
Hold Me Tight Workshop welcomes all couples.
Recommended reading: Johnson, Hold Me Tight; Seven Conversations for a Lifetime of Love and Love Sense: The Revolutionary New Science
of Romantic Relationships.
Sam Jinich, PhD, is a San Francisco-based clinical psychologist, relation-
ship expert, and Hold Me Tight workshop leader for couples. He is a certified
trainer, supervisor, and therapist in Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) and
co-founder of the Northern California Community of Emotionally Focused
Therapy. www.HoldMeTightWorkshop.com
Michelle Gannon, PhD, is a San Francisco-based clinical psychologist,
relationship expert, and Hold Me Tight workshop leader for couples. She is a
certified supervisor and therapist in Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT).
Michelle has co-led more than 125 couples’ workshops. www.HoldMeTight
Workshop.com
Weekend of July 15–17
Getting the Love You Want: A Workshop for Couples
Rick Brown
This workshop is designed to help couples understand at a deeper level
why they were attracted to each other, why they get stuck in endless
power struggles, and how to safely begin to work through those stuck
places toward a safer and more satisfying relationship. Couples share
only with their partner and are able to maintain privacy. Couples are
shown:
• New communication skills to break destructive cycles of relating
• How to channel the energy from arguments to create passion and
stability
• How the unconscious forces that attract partners to each other are
also the source of conflict
• New tools for re-romanticizing their relationship to reestablish the
passion of their early time together
• How to use their relationship for emotional healing and spiritual
evolution
Activities include lectures, written exercises, guided imagery, and
live demonstrations of communication skills and processes. Rick
Brown has been offering this workshop for more than twenty years,
and has appeared on Oprah. The methodology is based on Harville
Hendrix’s best-selling Getting the Love You Want. For more information, visit www.rickbrown.org. Please note: This workshop is for couples
only.
Recommended reading: Brown, Imago Relationship Therapy; Hendrix, Getting the Love You Want.
($20 materials fee for manuals will be added to the workshop cost)
Arrive Already Loved: Creating Sacred Attachment
with Yourself in the Here and Now
Mariah Fenton Gladis
“Many people ask me how to have a fair shot at developing a healthy
relationship with another human being,” writes Mariah Fenton Gladis.
“I advise them to arrive already loved. What does that mean? It means
the essential foundation of being loved is to first love yourself. That
doesn’t mean a narcissistic pride, preoccupation with self, or conceit. It
does mean that the inner life taking place in your body is a comfortable, loving, compassionate, and enjoyable place to be. It is a home to
which you can always turn to receive your own solace, support, and
unconditional acceptance. This prepares your internal environment to
accept love from the outside, and prepares you to arrive anywhere
already loved. Remember, when it comes to needing love, you cannot
expect more from someone else than you are able to give to yourself.”
Join Mariah as she blends her unique style of individual and group
Gestalt work with her effective and innovative use of music to enrich
the workshop experience. This workshop helps you:
• Realize that what’s inside is outside; you can attract what you are
• Understand thinking as a personal conversation with yourself
• Develop an active and rich inner dialogue
• Create an abundance of emotional resources
• Turn your meditations away from detachment and separation, and
toward intimate meditation, by exercising Sacred Attachment
A survivor of Lou Gehrig’s Disease, Mariah speaks with what she
calls her “ALS accent,” which will be translated.
Recommended Reading: Gladis, Tales of a Wounded Healer.
Mariah Fenton Gladis
bio on page 15.
EcoMeditation
Dawson Church
Meditation can regulate all of your body’s systems. Researchers have
found that heart rate, nervous system, hormones, and respiration all
respond to a deeply peaceful state.
During the past two decades, research into the physiological states
of master meditators has yielded breakthroughs in the areas of neuroscience and wellness.
EcoMeditation applies these results in a seven-step routine that
can help you induce them yourself. During this workshop, you will be
shown and then practice these steps until you can trigger a deep meditative state at will. You can learn how to simultaneously produce alpha
brain waves, induce heart coherence, and release key muscles that send
a relaxation signal to your central nervous system. From that space, you
can then connect with your higher purpose and sense of self.
The practice of EcoMeditation has now inspired thousands of
people who were unable to meditate before. Its physiological approach
introduces you to the many health and longevity benefits of meditation in a clear and accessible system.
Rick Brown is executive director for the Institute for Relationship Therapy
Dawson Church, PhD, is the award-winning author of The Genie in Your
in Winter Park, Fla. Rick was executive director for Harville Hendrix’s
Institute, and he lectures and gives workshops across the country. He has
been married since 1977. www.rickbrown.org
Genes. He founded the National Institute for Integrative Healthcare to
study promising new healing techniques. He shares how to apply these
new practices to health and athletic performance through EFT Universe.
www.eftuniverse.com
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Daniel Bianche t ta
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
July 17–24
Through Compassion to Serenity in the Mindful Viewing
of Japanese and Western Films
Francis Lu & Brother David Steindl-Rast
Only the development of compassion and understanding for others can
bring us the tranquility and happiness we all seek.
—Dalai Lama XIV
Film-viewing seminars led by Francis and Brother David have been an
annual tradition at Esalen since 1990. This offering aims for a mindfulness experience of cinema: The group will view feature films in which
inspiring characters embody positive psychological qualities (compassion, courage, forgiveness, gratefulness, wisdom, serenity). The intention is to renew these qualities in the lives of seminar participants.
For the first time, the leaders will bring together seven great Japanese films, chosen for their potential to engender mindfulness. Seven
Western films will complement them. The Japanese films are directed
by Ichikawa, Kinoshita, Kurosawa, Ozu, and Takita. The Western
films are directed by Bergman, Chaplin, Dörrie, Kubrick, M. Jackson,
McCarey, and Malick.
Carefully curated and sequenced films will be shown on state-ofthe-art home theatre equipment (including 4K Blu-ray video projection
and nine loudspeakers). This seminar includes a syllabus on the films,
along with processing of the films through reflection and group interac-
tion focused on the participant’s own experience of each film. Movies
take on an exquisite cumulative power when shown over seven days at
Esalen in a group setting that is truly remarkable and unforgettable.
For further information, contact Francis Lu at francislumd@gmail.
com and see www.gratefulness.org, then search for “films.”
Recommended reading: Gilbert and Choden, Mindful Compassion:
How The Science of Compassion Can Help You Understand Your Emotions,
Live in the Present, And Connect Deeply with Others.
yy CE credit for psychologists, MFTs & LCSWs; see page 95.
Francis G. Lu
bio on page 15.
Brother David Steindl-Rast bio on page 15.
Week of July 17–22
Tuning Your Instrument: The Buddha, the Brain, and Bach
Sylvia Boorstein, Clifford Saron & Barbara Bogatin
Join us for an exploration of the benefits of practice from three distinct,
intertwined perspectives. Mornings will begin with intensive mindfulness and loving kindness meditation led by senior meditation teacher,
psychotherapist, and author Sylvia Boorstein. She will facilitate sitting
and walking meditations and help participants refine and integrate their
practice and insights. UC Davis neuroscientist Clifford Saron will lead
an extensive voyage of discovery, detailing scientific understandings of
17
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
brain function. He will also share findings from “The Shamatha Project,”
research he directs that investigates the effects of meditation on attention, emotion, and human flourishing. San Francisco Symphony cellist
Barbara Bogatin will play musical interludes and give behind-the-scenes
commentary illustrating how musicians turn their daily instrument
practice into contemplative practice. She will provide a rare glimpse
from within the discipline of maintaining a high level of craft, performing music by Bach and exploring the composer’s creative process to better understand the depths of human expression in his music. Days will
consist of meditation, didactic presentations, informal talks, and discussion interwoven with guided listening and exulting in the joy of music.
This workshop, well-suited to practicing clinicians, is open to all; no
previous experience in meditation, music, or brain research necessary!
yy CE credit for psychologists, MFTs & LCSWs; see page 95.
Embodying Your Love: Explorations in Intimacy for Couples
Stella Resnick & Alan Kishbaugh
Much emphasis in couples’ enrichment focuses on verbal communication, especially articulating feelings and mending bridges. This is valuable work, yet nonverbal communications are often ignored. The truth
is that being in touch with one’s bodily feelings and attuned to the
other’s feelings involve a unique set of skills that can bring a couple to
new heights of love and connection.
This workshop emphasizes the body-based skills, communications,
and experiences that deepen intimacy and expand loving pleasures
between mates. Pleasure is key. We see how exploring pleasure is as
much a healing teacher as working through pain. Through discussion, Gestalt processing, and person-to-person Gestalt “games”—in the
group and in private—we explore these three levels of intimacy:
• Emotional intimacy includes breath awareness, self-attunement,
and stress-regulation; discovering bodily feelings and effective
expression; embracing pleasures of connection; and the feeling of
being seen, heard, and loved
Ali K auk a s
Sylvia Boorstein, PhD, a co-founding teacher of Spirit Rock Meditation
Center, has taught internationally since 1991. She is the author of five books
on Buddhism and mindfulness practice, most recently Happiness is an
Inside Job: Practicing for a Joyful Life.
Clifford Saron, PhD, a research neuroscientist at the Center for Mind and
Brain and MIND Institute at UC Davis, investigates meditation, well-being,
and cognition from multidisciplinary perspectives. He also studies sensory
and multisensory processing in children with autism spectrum disorder.
Barbara Bogatin has been a cellist with the San Francisco Symphony since
1994. She studied at the Juilliard School and has performed with the New
York Philharmonic, New York Chamber Soloists, Connecticut Early Music
Festival, Chamber Music Northwest, and Tahoe Summerfest.
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Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
• Physical intimacy involves body-to-body attunement; body-based
empathy as antidote to emotional contagion; exploring pleasures of
affection, calming, soothing, holding and breathing, and resonance
• Sexual intimacy and pleasure includes exploring the principle
of “relaxed-excitement,” frank sex talk, healing old wounds, the
progressive, expansive, and diverse spectrum of erotic pleasures,
and spiritual attunement
Join us to enhance the depth and scope of your embodied love!
While this workshop is primarily experiential, health professionals
can also gain skills relevant to clinical practice and earn 26 CE credits.
Recommended reading: S. Resnick, The Heart of Desire: Keys to the
Pleasures of Love and The Pleasure Zone: Why We Resist Good Feelings.
yy CE credit for psychologists, MFTs & LCSWs; see page 95.
Stella Resnick, PhD, psychologist, Gestalt therapist, and certified sex
therapist in Beverly Hills, Calif., trains and supervises therapists in her f
ull-spectrum approach to psychotherapy and sex therapy. Her latest book
is The Heart of Desire: Keys to the Pleasures of Love.
www.drstellaresnick.com
Alan Kishbaugh is a writer with many years of experience in book publishing and in urban planning, parkland, and open space preservation. He and
Stella Resnick have been married for 26 years and have led couples’ seminars
together for even longer.
EFT for Physical and Emotional Healing
Dawson Church
More than 10 million people today use EFT (Emotional Freedom
Techniques) for both mental and emotional health. Thousands of
case reports and dozens of clinical trials show that EFT is extremely
effective at reducing stress. This is because it combines acupressure,
affirmations, and cognitive exposure therapy in an elegant, yet simple
self-help formula. Unhealed traumatic events from your past can compromise your health. Once emotional distress is removed with EFT,
the body quickly rebalances itself.
This combined Clinical EFT Level 1 and Level 2 workshop trains
you in the full EFT system using sixteen structured modules. You’ll
also actively participate in more than twelve hours of hands-on tapping, as well as demonstrations, supervised exercises, guidance, and
feedback from the author of The EFT Manual (3rd Ed). You will be
taught how to use EFT to improve love relationships, address family
problems, as an aid to spiritual growth, for money, career, and work
challenges.
Recommended Reading: Church, The EFT Manual and The Genie in
Your Genes.
yy CE credit for psychologists, MFTs & LCSWs and nurses; see page 95.
Dawson Church
bio on page 16.
Liquid Asana Live: Summer Yoga, Mindfulness and
Art Retreat
Micheline Berry with Red Musette Collective
All art arises from an embodied creative source within your own
body and mind. Whether your art is to write, splash paint on a
canvas, move your body, crunch numbers, or raise a family, your
endeavors in life are elevated to a state of art when you act from a
present and creative state of being. Join Micheline Berry and friends
to awaken the dharmic art within and ignite your creativity. During
this retreat, you can experience the following practices and creative
process activities:
• Transformational Liquid Asana™ Vinyasa Yoga
• Buddhist Mindfulness Meditations
• Flights of evocative world music, percussion, and ecstatic dance
• Creative Process Work: Tribal painting, ceramics, and art making
drawing from Jungian principles of Active Imagination
• Communion with the healing waters, fertile land, and indigenous
spirit of Esalen
Sessions will be accompanied by Emmy®-nominated musician Joey
Lugassy + Ensemble including singer/songwriter/guitarist Toddius
Maximus, saxophonist Domonic Dean Breaux, and percussionist
Christo Pellani to sonically guide you deeper into the flow as you
learn to source peak states of creativity through Micheline’s multi-disciplinary approach. The result? You can cultivate a deeply nourished,
creatively inspired, and empowered state of being that will remain
with you long after you return to your urban lives. Open to all levels of
yoga, movement, and art experience.
Recommended reading: Richo, Shadow Dance: Liberating the Power
and Creativity of Your Dark Side; Barron, Creators on Creating: Awakening and Cultivating the Imaginative Mind; Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi,
Creativity.
Micheline Berry infuses world art and culture into her synthesis of Vinyasa
yoga, Buddhist meditation/psychology, and creative process. Known for catalyzing personal transformation and liberating creative expression, she leads
Liquid Asana™ Yoga+Creativity programs, teacher trainings, and retreats
worldwide. www.michelineberry.com
Weekend of July 22–24
Surrender to the Power of Your Intuition
Judith Orloff
Intuition is an incredible source of wisdom that everyone can tap into.
The magic comes when we awaken it and trust its guidance in our
personal and professional lives. Yet too many of us walk around out
of touch with our inner voice. Judith Orloff, a psychiatrist, intuitive
healer, and NY Times best-selling author, shows how to reclaim this
intelligence. She passionately believes that the future of medicine
lies in using intuition to access deeper insight, empathy, and greater
wellness.
This workshop, based on Dr. Orloff’s national bestseller, The Ecstasy
of Surrender, offers practical skills to help everyone, including healthcare practitioners, to improve the quality of their decisions, life, and
clinical practice by learning how to:
• Access intuition and recognize what can block it
• Read the body language and emotions of friends, family, coworkers,
and clients
• Avoid absorbing other people’s stress and protect the self from
being depleted
19
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
• Utilize intuitive tools to identify and deal with destructive
emotions
• Use medical intuition for healing
• Remember and interpret dreams that are messages from one’s
subconscious
• Surrender obsessive relationships and unavailable people
For more information visit www.drjudithorloff.com.
Recommended reading: Orloff, The Ecstasy of Surrender, Second Sight,
and Emotional Freedom.
yy CE credit for psychologists, MFTs & LCSWs, nurses and massage;
see page 95.
Judith Orloff, MD, is a psychiatrist, intuitive healer, and New York Times
best-selling author. Her latest book is The Ecstasy of Surrender: 12 Surprising Ways Letting Go Can Empower Your Life. Dr. Orloff’s other
bestsellers are Emotional Freedom, Second Sight, Positive Energy, and
Intuitive Healing. www.drjudithorloff.com
Week of July 24–29
Full Body Presence: Grounding and Healthy Boundaries
Suzanne Scurlock-Durana
In today’s demanding world, we all need full access to our inner and
outer resources in order to survive and thrive. Are you tired of feeling scattered and pulled in too many directions? Do you love feeling
grounded and mindfully aware? Would you like to experience more
resilience under stress and access your creativity and joy to your deepest potential?
If you answered yes to any of the questions above, this course can
help. Full Body Presence teaches how the deep wisdom of the body
can help navigate our living, working, healing, and relating. Listening
to this body-wisdom as the ground of knowing enables us to rediscover our innate spirituality and develop our emotional intelligence.
Many of us are inspired to be a healing influence, to have a strong
and beneficial presence in our work and personal lives. Yet unless we
know how to hold a healing space for ourselves, the outcome is often
burnout. This course presents a step-by-step process of reclaiming
and transforming the tight, numb, or painful places within so that we
can feel, in each moment, our wholeness—the sense of aliveness that
allows us to be in a state of grace with our core.
For more information about Suzanne Scurlock-Durana’s work, visit
www.HealingFromTheCore.com.
Note: Registration for this workshop is through the International
Alliance of Healthcare Educators (IAHE) only. IAHE is a coalition
of curriculum developers united to advance innovative therapies
through high-quality continuing education programs. To register,
please call 1-800-311-9204. Only after you have registered with IAHE
and paid tuition fees will you be able to reserve accommodations at
Esalen. For accommodations pricing chart, see www.esalen.org/page/
partner-program-pricing.
Required reading: Scurlock-Durana, Full Body Presence: Learning to
Listen to Your Body’s Wisdom, book and CD.
yy CE credit for nurses and massage; see page 95. CE credit for physical
therapists in CA; see leader.
20
Suzanne Scurlock-Durana, author of Full Body Presence, CranioSacral
therapy instructor for The Upledger Institute since 1987, and creator of the
Healing From the Core curriculum, specializes in conscious awareness and
its relationship to the healing process. She has taught at Esalen since 1994.
www.healingfromthecore.com
Music and Nature Family Workshop
Banana Slug String Band
Celebrate summer in the land of rejuvenation with a unique collaboration between the world-renowned Banana Slug String Band and
Esalen’s Gazebo Park School environmental education teachers. We
will use music, theater, puppetry, poetry, arts, and games to deepen
our connection to this magical earth. The program will culminate
in a performance by the budding children stars and the Banana Slug
String Band. Together we’ll create a community of families to laugh,
connect, and renew as we explore dance, family yoga, harvesting and
eating delicious organic food, hiking among the redwoods on the
Esalen grounds, a night walk, stargazing, and plenty of time to soak in
the baths. We will watch the sun set on the ocean bluff and feed the
goats and chickens at Gazebo Park School. You’ve been busy all year;
take the time to drop into your sense of wonder and reestablish your
loving bond with each other and the earth. This workshop is open to
children of all ages. Participants under 18 years old must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
Embodying the Intelligence of Your Heart and Soul
Terry Patten & Sarah Marshank
“Join us to reconnect with your embodied wisdom, power, and passion,” the leaders write. “This program will help you join the ear of the
heart to the voice of the soul, fostering intimacy with yourself, others,
and the unknowable source of it all. In a safe and nurturing space,
begin to release the armoring around your heart as you engage in the
following:
• Embodied transformative work anchored in breath and somatic
psychology
• Playful interpersonal relating processes in twos, threes, and small
groups
• Silent and guided meditation, and prayer
• Dance, conscious movement, and vocalizing
• A clear, inclusive context for understanding and anchoring your
learning
Get ready to feel secure in your connection to the sacred flow: your
next inspired idea, the energy that enables you to perform at your best,
and the guidance for life’s most important choices.
“During our time together, you can practice releasing the inner
taboos against ecstasy, freeing up creativity, and discerning the voice
of the soul and the soul’s higher purpose. Come enjoy an integrated,
evolutionary, heart-and-soul centered initiation into a life of practice
that is both sustainable and transformative.”
Terry Patten is the co-author, with Ken Wilber, of Integral Life Practice.
He is a pioneering innovator, advancing the evolutionary edge of spirituality, as well as a facilitator of intimate collective awakening. He has a lifelong
commitment to social activism. www.terrypatten.com
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
Sarah Marshank is the founder of Selfistry, a methodology dedicated to
mastering the art of being human. Integrating theory from Eastern and
Western philosophy and psychology with meditative and somatic practices,
Sarah guides practitioners to discover their authentic self and purpose in life.
www.selfistry.com
Embodying the Intelligence of Your Heart and Soul —A Closer Look
Big Sur Wilderness Experience
Steven Harper
Esalen is the trailhead to one of the most spectacular mountainous
coastlines in the world. With the Big Sur wilderness as the primary
teacher, participants will explore the beauty of this alive and wild
coast, from ancient redwood-forested canyons to dramatic coastal
beaches, from rugged rocky mountains to the soft grassy slopes of the
Big Sur hills. Drawing from nature and various experiential awareness
practices, individuals will be encouraged to open both to the natural
world and to the landscapes of their inner world. It is said that Big Sur
is not just a place but a state of mind. This wilderness experience seeks
to merge mind and place, then to embody what is learned.
Participants in this week-long workshop will venture out into the
richness of the late summer season of Big Sur on five day-hikes, 4–10
Mike Goert z
For workshop leaders Terry Patten and Sarah Marshank, the path to
embodying the intelligence of heart and soul was a personal one for
each of them.
Terry spent fifteen years in intensive spiritual discipline at Vision
Mound Seminary before pursuing his career as an author, teacher, and
a leading voice in integral evolutionary leadership and spirituality.
“I’m passionate about waking up, about the deepest most authentic
possible encounter with reality—with ourselves and each other. And
I notice ‘the elephant in the living room’—I, and my fellow human
beings, are facing unprecedented challenges that are very hard to see,
to grasp and face and meet,” observes Terry. “That transformation of
necessity begins with us dropping deep personally and together, into a
whole series of awakenings.”
Sarah’s path took her from teaching in the classroom to a tenyear journey of self-guided learning culminating in the creation of
Selfistry and her memoir, Being Selfish: My Journey from Escort to Monk
to Grandmother.
“As I began teaching in my early twenties I found, within a short
amount of time, that though I knew I wanted to support others in
their development I had hit a wall in my own. While I felt academically competent for the job, I felt personally unfit,” recalls Sarah Marshank. “I wanted to teach my young students not only mathematical
fractions, but how to be human.”
Terry and Sarah have partnered to help workshop participants
reconnect to their own wisdom, passion, and ultimately their purpose.
21
The restoration of the Esalen Lodge
includes a new kitchen and a
second floor addition that is home
to the new Huxley meeting room.
miles in length. The leader will draw from a wide range of contemporary and age-old wisdom traditions, borrowing from psychology,
meditation, aikido, and the natural sciences to weave together a
holistic experience of self and the natural world. Each hike begins
after breakfast and concludes in time to enjoy the hot springs and
dinner at Esalen. Evening sessions include informal sharing, basic
awareness practices, and useful outdoor skills, with attention given
to incorporating what is learned during the week 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 reflection. More information and a waiver will be sent upon registration. For an equipment list and frequently asked questions about
Steven’s workshops, visit www.stevenkharper.com/faqs.html.
($30 permit and park-entrance fee will be added to the workshop cost)
Steven Harper
bio on page 12.
The Inner Spiritual Dimensions of Ayurvedic, Tibetan
and Chinese Medicine
Using a body-based contemplative approach, students will be
shown how to perceive the inner dimensions and deeper meanings of
these fundamental medical and spiritual principles as understood by
ayurvedic, Tibetan, and Chinese medicine, including prana and chi
(life force), ojas and jing (nutritional essence), shen (spirit), and agni
and soma (essence of sun and moon). By gaining direct experiential
insight into these energetic and elemental powers as living processes
within the body, students can gain not only a deep understanding of
the fundamental principles and concepts of classical Asian medicine,
but also how to use this awareness to increase vitality, immunity, and
intuitive intelligence.
David Crow, LAc, is an acupuncturist and herbalist with more than thirty
years of experience. An author and lecturer in the field of natural medicine,
David’s work is focused on the synthesis of botanical medicine, ecology, and
spirituality. www.floracopeia.com
July 29–August 5
David Crow
Classical Asian medical systems offer far more than physical wellbeing for humanity. Based on profound insights into nature and
consciousness, these ancient lineages of healing describe health,
illness, and spiritual evolution as processes of life force, the interplay
and balance of universal elements, the essence of sun and moon, and
the evolution of spirit within matter.
22
Healing the Pelvic Floor: Reclaiming your Power, Sexuality
and Pleasure Potential
Suzanne Scurlock-Durana
“As women we have a unique power of creativity in our reproductive
systems,” Suzanne Scurlock-Durana writes. “That power is used not
Daniel Bianche t ta
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
only to create new life, but also to bring personal projects into being.
However, that energy can be blocked by physical, emotional, or
spiritual trauma to the pelvic floor and the female organs. This
workshop for women uses guided imagery, movement, and hands-on
exercises (while clothed) to heal the pelvic floor, including the vagina
and uterus, places that often hold our deepest wounds: sexual abuse,
rape, abortions, surgeries, childbirth tearing and scars, self-esteem,
and negative images about our femininity. Because self-knowledge is
important, scientific and anatomic information will be presented, as
well as ongoing self-care using pelvic floor yoga and abdominal
massage.
“This workshop offers a rare opportunity for deep healing. During
these seven days you can experience new possibilities for renewed
feminine energy, greater health, and a deeper sense of pleasure in
being a woman. We will spend time exploring nature and how our
connection to the earth can deepen our connection to ourselves. The
workshop will culminate with an evening of nurturing at the Esalen
natural hot spring baths.” This course is valuable for anyone who
wants to learn alternative approaches to women’s health.
Required reading and listening: Scurlock-Durana, Full Body Presence
(book). Please listen to the audio portion (available from www.
healingfromthecore.com or www.fullbodypresence.com).
Recommended reading: Ogden, The Return of Desire and The Heart
and Soul of Sex; Berman and Berman, For Women Only; Williamson,
A Woman’s Worth; Northrup, Women’s Bodies, Women’s Wisdom; Wolf,
Vagina: A New Biography.
yy CE credit for nurses and massage; see page 95.
Suzanne Scurlock-Durana
bio on page 20.
Weekend of July 29–31
Wisdom 2.0 Unplugged: Inner and Outer Connection
Soren Gordhamer
The third annual Wisdom 2.0 Unplugged retreat is an opportunity
to connect—without devices—in the beautiful and intimate setting
of Esalen. It is a time to co-create intentional community. It is a time
to be still, to play, and to take a break from the “always on” lifestyle so
prevalent today, and which can cause burnout and exhaustion. This
Unplugged gathering is part of the larger Wisdom 2.0 movement that
addresses the great challenge of our age: to not only live connected
to one another through technology, but also to do so in ways that are
beneficial to our own well-being, effective in our work, and useful to
the world.
The weekend will be an “unconference” where topics and sessions
will arise from the wisdom of the community present. Rather than
structure everything in advance, we will use various forms of body
meditation and small group dialogue to listen to and follow what is
“wanting to emerge” in our time together. As such, this will be an
experimental workshop, with facilitators supporting the themes, topics, and activities that spring from the group.
There is nothing you need to prepare, just an openness and willingness to be together in community to share, learn, and listen to what
can be created when we all show up fully.
is the founder of Wisdom 2.0, which holds events exploring mindfulness and technology. He has written several books, walked for a
year through various countries, and has taught mindfulness to incarcerated
youth, trauma workers in Rwanda, and companies. wisdom2summit.com
Soren Gordhamer
Wisdom 2.0 Unplugged —A Closer Look
Technology can create connections and inspire innovation. But it also
can lead to isolation, distraction, and unhappiness. How do we create
a balanced relationship with technology and our devices, one that supports a purposeful, meaningful life?
In 2010, Soren Gordhamer founded Wisdom 2.0 to directly address
this question.
“Before the advent of the digital age, we had contemplative times
built into our day,” said Soren. “No one was checking email at home or
receiving texts during dinner. That doesn’t exist anymore. What we’re
learning now is that constant connectivity is great for part of the day,
but after an entire day of it, you can’t sleep, you’re stressed, you’re less
present with your family. People need time for themselves.”
Since its inaugural conference, Wisdom 2.0 has brought people
together to explore—in community—how to live with awareness,
wisdom, and compassion in the digital age. Speakers include leaders
in technology and wisdom, from the founders of Twitter and eBay to
Byron Katie and Jon Kabat-Zinn. With conferences, meet-ups, and
workshops held around the world, Wisdom 2.0 strives to meet the
challenges of our age in an accessible, innovative, and inclusive way.
“In our world today, people are seeking connection,” said Soren.
“But it’s harder to find because there are more calls on our attention…
Our focus is to find ways to allow connection to happen.”
Bringing Wisdom 2.0 to Esalen is a natural fit, and this year marks
our third annual Wisdom 2.0 Unplugged gathering. There is simply
no better place to give yourself the gift of time to slow down, unplug,
and recalibrate your relationship with technology than here, where
you’ll be nourished by the support of Soren and your Wisdom 2.0
cohort. Past Wisdom 2.0 Unplugged participants have come away
with a new set of tools for thriving in the digital age, and also a strong
network of kindred spirits who have stayed in touch to deepen the
relationships ignited at Esalen.
Week of July 31–August 5
5Rhythms® : Connections
Lucia Horan
Invisible threads are the strongest ties.
— Friedrich Nietzsche
What are the invisible threads that connect you in this life? In this
workshop, we will use the map of the 5Rhythms to explore the connections we want most. By fostering the intimate union of breath and
movement, we follow a path that leads us out of isolation and into
connection.
Connections is an invitation to cultivate relationships in all forms:
self, partner, tribe, and community. At times these mysterious threads
need to be tended to, cut, or reinforced. The practice brings us the
skills we need to navigate the terrain of life.
23
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
The 5Rhythms is a moving meditation practice. The rhythms,
Flowing, Staccato, Chaos, Lyrical, and Stillness, allow us to explore the
true nature of who we are and how our energy moves in this world.
No experience is required. All workshop hours contribute to Gabrielle
Roth’s 5Rhythms® teachers training.
yy CE credit for massage; see page 95.
Lucia Horan was born into the family of the 5Rhythms® and raised at Esalen
Institute. She became a 5Rhythms® teacher in 1997, is now internationally
recognized, and is a current faculty member of Gabrielle Roth’s Moving
Center School, NY. www.luciahoran.com
Quarter-Life Calling: Creating an Extraordinary Life
in Your 20s
Coby Kozlowski
Your twenties can be a time of possibility, inspiration, and the discovery of your deepest values and truths. This decade can also be a time of
challenge and doubt as you begin creating the kind of life your soul is
calling for.
This workshop is designed for young adults aged twenty to twentynine who are interested in cultivating an authentic life. Surrounded
by a community of peers and guided by an expert facilitator, you can
embark on a journey to the heart of your spiritual quest for meaning
and purpose. Through experiential exercises, lecture, powerful coaching, expressive arts, group sharing, yoga (asana and philosophy), and
meditation, you can connect with your personal calling, find strength
amidst doubt, and find comfort in the unknown. You will also be
shown how to explore yoga and meditation as tools for personal
empowerment, how to discover paths to authenticity and accountability, and how to tap into your inner leader.
You will be supported in the process of tuning into your inherent
wisdom and making decisions from that place. You can go home with
the tools and strength to create an extraordinary life.
Coby Kozlowski, MA, E-RYT, is a professional life coach, inspirational
speaker, yoga and dance teacher, expressive arts therapist, and expert in transformative leadership. She is the founder of Souluna Life Coach Certification
™, Sacred Lasya Yoga Teacher Training, and rEvolution 180: Karma Yoga
Leadership School. www.cobyk.com
Evidence-Based Traditional Taiji (T’ai Chi) and Qigong:
Nurturing Mind, Body and Spirit
Yang Yang & Robert Sheeler
Master Yang is a traditionally trained, internationally recognized taiji
and qigong grandmaster who has distilled essential aspects of these
arts into an easy-to-learn program suitable for people of all ages and
physical abilities. His Evidence-Based Taiji and Qigong (EBT and
EBQ) programs were originally designed for research interventions
to yield maximum benefit in the shortest amount of time. During
B ook s tore
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Selected Esalen merchandise is available online.
Visit www.esalen.org/explore/bookstore/products.
this five-day workshop, participants will be shown static and dynamic
qigong exercises and taiji form movements designed to nurture
energy, develop the mind-body connection, and enhance well-being,
tranquility, and positive thinking in daily life. Master Yang’s teachings
embody the ultimate purpose of taiji and qigong practice: With your
whole being, develop your life. Integrated with Master Yang’s teachings will be one-hour presentations by special guest instructor Robert
Sheeler, MD. Dr. Sheeler, editor of the Mayo Clinic Health Letter,
will discuss the pragmatic aspects of mind-body medicine. Both the
weekend (August 5-7, 8.5 contact hours) and 5-day (23.5 contact hours)
workshops with Dr. Yang are required for those seeking Level I (EBQ)
instructor certification; however, the courses are non-sequential
and may be taken in either order. The 5-day course is designed as an
immersion training, allowing participants more time to work with
Dr. Yang and to deepen their understanding of the material. For more
information about certification, visit http://centerfortaiji.com/certification.
Recommended reading: Yang and Grubisich, Taijiquan: The Art of
Nurturing, The Science of Power.
yy CE credit for nurses and acupuncturists; see page 95.
Yang Yang, PhD, is the author of Taijiquan: The Art of Nurturing,
The Science of Power. A traditionally trained taiji/qigong master, he is
director of the Center for Taiji Studies in New York, and a researcher and
taiji/qigong instructor at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
www.centerfortaiji.com
Robert Sheeler, editor of the Mayo Clinic Health Letter, has been studying
Tai Ji and Qi Gong for several years. He has spoken extensively on a variety of
topics at both traditional medical conferences and conferences on complementary and integrative therapy.
Weekend of August 5–7
5Rhythms® Moon Lodge: Honoring the Sacred Feminine
Lucia Horan
“Join us as we journey into the Moon Lodge, a weekend of tribal and
ritual healing for women,” writes Lucia Horan. “How empowered are
you as a woman navigating this world? What is your relationship to
the feminine and her wisdom? If you’d like to explore these questions
in a sacred, supportive way, here is your chance.
“Many women do not feel the freedom to become fully empowered. The 5Rhythms movement practice is a direct path to embodiment and our fullest potential. By showing up in a practice of
presence, one can begin to clear the past and move into new territory.
This workshop is about celebrating Woman and the sacred feminine
within. Through dance, meditation, massage, and ritual baths, we will
share in the sisterhood of humanity. We will poultice the wounds and
celebrate the greatest gifts of our ancestors.
“The 5Rhythms is a moving meditation practice. This is a map of
how energy moves. It shows us the patterns, rhythms, and cycles of life
through five rhythms: Flowing, Staccato, Chaos, Lyrical, and Stillness.”
This workshop is for women only. No previous experience is
required. All workshop hours contribute to 5Rhythms® teachers training prerequisites.
Lucia Horan
24
bio on page 24 (above).
Daniel Bianche t ta
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
Care to Dare: How to Unleash Astonishing Potential
in Yourself and Others
George Kohlrieser
Each one of us is a product of how we think and interact. When we
have a secure base in our lives—someone who provides a sense of
safety and trust—we can push the edge, take risks, and ultimately
unleash our full potential. Only when we know that someone cares
and stands behind us can the defenses of our brain shut down and
allow us to really “Play to Win”—to truly dare ourselves to do the
impossible. A defensive mindset produces fear, resulting in our
“Playing Not to Lose.” Being and having a secure base creates environments where teams, families, communities, and organizations focus
on opportunity through creativity and innovation, unleashing full
potential: a process of self-leadership and the leadership of others. This
is the idea behind Care to Dare.
Participants will learn through mini theory presentations, action
learning, group process, role playing, and action planning. There will
be an opportunity to do personal work on unleashing the potential
of self and others. The program draws on a major research study conducted with more than a thousand senior executives around the world,
which revealed nine core characteristics of a Secure Base Leader.
This course can be taken on its own or together with Leading the
Edge: How to Reach Extraordinary Performance (August 7-12).
Recommended reading: Kohlrieser, Goldswothy and Coombe, Care to
Dare: Unleashing Astonishing Potential through Secure Base Leadership.
George Kohlrieser
is the author of the award-winning books Care to Dare:
Unleashing Astonishing Potential Through Secure Base Leadership
and Hostage at the Table: How Leaders Can Overcome Conflict, Influence Others. www.georgekohlrieser.com
Evidence-Based Traditional Taiji (T’ai Chi) and Qigong:
Nurturing Mind, Body and Spirit
Yang Yang & Robert Sheeler
Master Yang is a traditionally trained, internationally recognized taiji
and qigong grandmaster who has distilled essential aspects of these
arts into an easy-to-learn program suitable for people of all ages and
physical abilities. His Evidence-Based Taiji and Qigong (EBT and
EBQ) programs were originally designed for research interventions
to yield maximum benefit in the shortest amount of time. During this
weekend workshop, participants will be shown static and dynamic
qigong exercises and taiji form movements designed to nurture
energy, develop the mind-body connection, and enhance well-being,
tranquility, and positive thinking in daily life. Master Yang’s teachings embody the ultimate purpose of taiji and qigong practice: With
your whole being, develop your life. Integrated with Master Yang’s
teachings will be one-hour presentations by special guest instructor
Robert Sheeler, MD. Dr. Sheeler, editor of the Mayo Clinic Health
Letter, will discuss the pragmatic aspects of mind-body medicine.
Both the weekend (8.5 contact hours) and five-day (July 31-August 5,
23.5 contact hours) workshops with Dr. Yang are required for those
seeking Level I instructor certification; however, the courses are
non-sequential and may be taken in either order. The 5-day course is
25
c a meron jordan
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
designed as an immersion training, allowing participants more time
to work with Dr. Yang and to deepen their understanding of the
material. For more information about certification, visit http://center
fortaiji.com/certification.
Recommended reading: Yang and Grubisich, Taijiquan: The Art of
Nurturing, The Science of Power.
yy CE credit for nurses and acupuncturists; see page 95.
Yang Yang
bio on page 24.
bio on page 24.
Robert Sheeler
Week of August 7–12
Radiant Body: Living From the Heart
Kia Miller
Connect to your inner self, and create new possibilities in your life. To
truly thrive, one must develop the ability to listen to the quiet voice
of the soul. Yoga and meditation give us the tools to access the place
where deep listening happens. In this exciting and comprehensive
workshop, Kia Miller shares her deep experience and love of yoga by
providing keys to thriving in these turbulent times. Participants will
explore ancient yogic teachings that have been passed down from
teacher to student for thousands of years, as well as practice Vinyasa
Flow yoga to open and strengthen the body, and Kundalini yoga and
meditation to shift through energetic blockages and build vitality and
awareness.
Take this “time out of time” to rejuvenate yourself in the healing
waters of Esalen, connect with like-minded individuals, and establish
a practice that can enable you to connect to the infinite wisdom of
your heart, and learn to live from your intuitive mind. This workshop
26
is for anyone looking for a toolbox for elevation, ways to excel in life,
and to be a “lighthouse” for all those around you. All levels welcome.
Please bring a yoga mat.
Kia Miller
bio on page 13.
Leading the Edge: How to Reach
Extraordinary Performance
George Kohlrieser
Why do some leaders overcome impossible barriers, go beyond
unbearable pressure and frustration, and persevere in order to achieve
outcomes seemingly beyond reach when others would give up? The
answer to that question has never been clearer. Through their desire
for relentless improvement, leaders at the edge can unlock the highest
levels of performance from themselves and others, making work a
more exciting place to be. Leading at the edge enables people to “play
to win” rather than simply “playing not to lose.”
Cutting-edge leaders know how to take appropriate risk, inspire
trust, drive change, and create opportunities to foster success for
themselves, their teams, and their organizations. People are facing
intense pressure like never before. There are so many complex changes
and challenges creating the necessity for high levels of engagement to
reach high performance. Drawing on research on High Performance
from the worlds of business, sports, education, teams, and personal
achievement, everyone can translate this knowledge to the real world
of leading self and others. The next question is how successful do you
want to be?
Participants will learn through a balance of theory and action
learning, group process, role playing, and action planning. There will
be an opportunity to do personal work on obstacles to high performance leadership of self and others.
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
treatment center at Kingsley Hall, where people suffering psychotic
episodes could live without conventional “treatment.” Esalen’s relationship with Laing is historic; in 1968, Esalen co-founders Richard
Price and Michael Murphy convened a summer-long symposium to
explore sanity and madness. The symposium resulted in the proliferation of alternatives to dehumanizing psychiatric treatments.
This workshop, designed for those in the mental health and healing
professions, is a continuation of last year’s gathering that focused on
sanity and madness. This year, the focus will turn to the question, what
is therapeutic? and will explore how best to respond to extreme states.
The leaders will be joined by a dozen co-presenters (most of whom
worked intimately with Laing) to assess the state of conventional therapeutic practices and offer insights into the root meaning of therapeia.
The workshop will be comprised of presentations on the therapeutic
process, panels on practical applications of Laing’s clinical philosophy,
and experiential exercises to demonstrate the kind of transformative
experience for which Laing’s work was famous. Guest speakers include
Nick Putman, Nita Gage, Douglas Kirsner, Will Hall, and others.
Note: participants must first contact Michael Thompson at michael
guythompson@mac.com for pre-screening.
Recommended reading: Thompson, The Death of Desire: An Existential Study in Sanity and Madness (2nd, revised edition, Routledge).
This course builds on the weekend workshop, Care to Dare: How
to Unleash Astonishing Potential in Yourself and Others (August 5-7),
and can also be taken as a stand-alone course.
Recommended reading: Kohlrieser, Hostage at the Table: How
Leaders Can Overcome Conflict, Influence Others and Raise Performance;
Kohlrieser, Goldswothy and Coombe, Care to Dare:Unleashing Astonishing Potential through Secure Base Leadership.
George Kohlrieser
bio on page 25.
The Upledger Institute International’s Advanced
CranioSacral Therapy 1
Stan Gerome
CranioSacral therapy is a gentle, noninvasive, hands-on technique to
help detect and correct imbalances in the craniosacral system that
may cause sensory, motor, or intellectual dysfunction. It is used to
treat a myriad of health problems, including headaches, neck and back
pain, TMJ dysfunction, chronic fatigue, motor coordination difficulties, eye problems, endogenous depression, hyperactivity, and central
nervous system disorders. Participants will learn the detailed anatomy
and physiology of the craniosacral system, its functions in health, and
its relationship to the disease processes. Half of the class time will be
hands-on, developing the sensitive palpatory skills needed to detect
subtle stimuli in the human body.
Class material will concentrate on palpation and its potential as
an evaluative and therapeutic process; fascial and soft-tissue release
methods; and the pressurestat model, which explains the mechanism
of the craniosacral system. Participants will learn a ten-step protocol
for evaluation and treatment of the entire body. By the end of this
intensive program, participants will be able to identify and localize
significant restrictions and imbalances in the craniosacral system.
Note: Registration for this workshop is through the International
Alliance of Healthcare Educators (IAHE) only. IAHE is a coalition
of curriculum developers united to advance innovative therapies
through high-quality continuing education programs. To register,
please call 1-800-311-9204. Only after you have registered with IAHE
and paid tuition fees will you be able to reserve accommodations at
Esalen. For accommodations pricing chart, see www.esalen.org/page/
partner-program-pricing.
Recommended reading: Upledger and Vredevoogd, CranioSacral
Therapy (chapters 1-6); Upledger, Your Inner Physician and You.
yy CE credit for psychologists, MFTs & LCSWs, and nurses; see page 95.
Fritjof Capra, PhD, is the author of several international bestsellers, including Uncommon Wisdom, which features his extensive conversations with
R. D. Laing. Fritjof’s latest work, coauthored by Pier Luisi, is The Systems
View of Life: A Unifying Vision. www.fritjofcapra.net
Steve Sorkin, PhD, is a psychologist who worked with R.D. Laing and the
Philadelphia Association for several years. He has provided a range of clinical
services, held several faculty positions, served as a graduate school president
and dean, and as associate executive director of the American Psychological
Association.
Michael Guy Thompson, PhD, is a psychoanalyst who worked with R.D.
Laing for many years. He continues to work with extreme states, and has
been training therapists for more than 30 years. His books include The
Death of Desire: An Existential Study in Sanity and Madness.
www.mguythompson.com
R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century —A Closer Look
yy CE credit for nurses and massage; see page 95. CE credit for
acupuncturists and physical therapists in CA; see leader.
R. D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century:
What is Therapeutic?
Fritjof Capra, Steve Sorkin & Michael Guy Thompson
Scottish-born psychiatrist R.D. Laing is best known for his impassioned plea in the 1960s and 1970s for more humane treatment for
those who felt society was destroying them. Laing dedicated his life
to reforming conventional psychiatric practices, embodied in his
john haynes
Stan Gerome is an instructor and visiting therapist with the Upledger Institute. He’s had a private practice in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. since 1986. He has
been a CranioSacral and SomatoEmotional Release practitioner since 1986.
Renowned psychoanalyst R. D. Laing, author of such best-selling
books as The Divided Self, Sanity, Madness and Family, and The Politics of
Experience, was a public critic of conventional psychiatric practices. He
conceived of an alternative approach that encompassed a community
of therapists and patients, which eventually
would inspire numerous residential treatment
communities worldwide.
On the 25th anniversary of his death, in the
fall of 2013, a gathering of Laing’s colleagues and
former students participated in a symposium
entitled R.D. Laing in the Twenty-First Century.
The weekend workshop, organized in part by
Laing’s colleague Michael Guy Thompson,
focused on a wide range of topics such as: spirituality; existential
psychology; postmodernism; and the psychotic process.
“Laing saw his role as one of helping the people who came to see
him ‘untie’ the knots they had inadvertently tied themselves in,”
27
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
writes Michael Guy regarding his experience in a Laing-inspired
household community. “He believed this entailed extraordinary care
to not repeat the same types of subterfuge and coercion that had got
them into those knots in the first place.”
Subsequent gatherings of this symposium have been hosted annually at Esalen.
Tongue and Pen: Spoken Word Poetry at the Intersection
of Courage and Compassion
Caroline Harvey
“We long to be acknowledged for our unique truths,” Caroline Harvey
writes. “Expression is our birthright, but in an era of social media
addiction and smartphone dependency, we’re experiencing a global
degradation of compassionate communication. We have online tools
that reach the world, but our words are met with impersonal clicks.
It’s easier than ever to share personal images, but technology makes
everything alterable. We have doubts: is my truth welcome? Is my
story important? Do you ache to speak out, to listen and be listened to?
Are your precious stories—memories, joys, traumas, politics, victories,
and pains—cradled under your tongue, waiting to be released?”
This course invites a safe vulnerability and encourages a confidence that yes, your voice is important. Yes, there is a community that
welcomes your honest word. We’ll analyze traditional and contemporary poetry; create original Spoken Word; engage with writing
prompts and mindfulness practices; investigate stage performance
techniques; and more. By gently dismantling our silencing mechanisms, we’ll discover our most urgent poems. You’ll embody new conviction and be better equipped to communicate with skill and clarity,
wherever you are. Please bring a journal or notebook, or a laptop/tablet
if you prefer.
($6 materials fee for the Tongue and Pen course packet will be added to
the workshop cost)
Caroline Harvey, MA, LMT, is a published author, a writing professor at
Berklee College of Music, and an internationally renowned speaker. She believes in poetry and performance as a powerful path for overcoming adversity,
discovering vibrant health, and affecting real social change. www.carolineharvey.com
Weekend of August 12–14
The Extraordinary Couples Workshop
Jason Weston & Marci Graham
Do you remember the magic of the beginning of your relationship,
when just seeing your partner got your adrenaline running? Perhaps
you met only weeks ago, or maybe years ago, and the electricity is still
there. Is it possible that the “juice” can feel even more intense?
Presented by the Human Awareness Institute, The Extraordinary
Couples Workshop is designed exclusively for couples, and focuses
specifically on couples’ issues. This workshop is very interactive and
experiential, and focuses on you and your partner, with the goal of
deepening and embodying love—between partners and within the
self. You will spend most of your time together, some time alone, and
28
time working in small groups and the full group. It is open to adults of
any sexual orientation or gender identification.
The Couples Workshop creates a safe environment in which to
explore your relationship and take a fresh look at parts of it, regardless
of what state your relationship is currently in. Participants may be couples who are at the beginning of their relationship or who have been
together for many years; couples who are already happy and loving; or
couples who are fighting or upset.
Couples whose relationships were faltering or stalled (or just
needed a boost, or were doing great already) have come away more
deeply in love than they had ever been. For more information about
the Human Awareness Institute, visit www.hai.org.
has more than 30 years of experience with the Human
Awareness Institute. He assists people in creating the lives they really want by
guiding them to see and express their own beauty, power, and love. He is the
Executive Business Director for HAI Global.
Marci Graham is a facilitator for the Human Awareness Institute (HAI).
She leads with a spirit of inquiry infused with fierceness and softness. Marci
has a 25-year history of soul searching and personal relationship transformation through movement and creative expression.
Jason Weston
The Embodied Life™ : Meditation, Guided Inquiry and
the Teachings of Moshe Feldenkrais
Russell Delman
The breeze at dawn has secrets to tell you—don’t go back to sleep.
—Rumi
All methods devoted to human potential emphasize the importance
of awakening to the present moment. All that we long for—love, joy,
peace, harmony, truth—require the fundamental capacity for presence.
This seminar uses ancient and modern methods for directly and
simply uncovering this natural capacity. Put simply, we need the
capacity to: 1. Sit quietly with our own thoughts. 2. Mindfully welcome our feelings/emotions. 3. Find comfort in our own bodies.
The meditation we will practice is a bare-bones approach to experiencing the present moment “As It Is.” This is the basis for being
at home in ourselves. Chairs are available and help is given to those
who find sitting challenging. Guided Inquiry includes a variety of
awareness experiments based in the Focusing method of Eugene
Gendlin. Learning to bring a warm, caring, curious presence to our
feelings/emotions/“negative” thoughts is truly transformative. The
movement lessons of Moshe Feldenkrais are perhaps the most neurologically sophisticated and effective ways of transforming our motor
patterns and self-image; these lessons are also interesting and fun.
Through meditations, awareness practices, movement lessons, and
conversation, we anticipate a meaningful and joyful time of learning
together.
This retreat is open to all people who are interested in living an
awakening life.
yy CE credit for massage; see page 95.
has dedicated his life to the study of human transformation. Deeply indebted to his more than 40 years of both Zen meditation and
marriage, he has helped train more than 2500 Feldenkrais® practitioners and
founded The Embodied Life School. www.russelldelman.com
Russell Delman
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
The Ecstasy of Sound: A Music and Healing Workshop
Jennifer Berezan
Vibration is at the core of all that exists in the universe. Many cultures
have long believed that the world itself was created through sound.
Some peoples believe that illness is a musical problem, a result of a
lack of harmony in the system. This workshop will explore music as
a spiritual practice and a path to realizing our natural state, which is
characterized by peace, joy, and love.
Participants will engage in a wide range of musical experiences,
from traditional and contemporary traditions, designed to open the
heart and create insight and healing. The workshop will include sessions of toning, chanting, improvisational sounding, meditation, and
silence in a safe, lighthearted, and sacred environment. No musical
experience is necessary.
Stealing Fire: The Secret Revolution in Human Possibility
Jamie Wheal & Steven Kotler
There’s a revolution happening right now and it’s hiding in plain
sight. All around the world, artists, athletes, entrepreneurs, scientists,
and seekers are quietly unlocking the source code to altered states of
consciousness and accelerated human performance. In the past, this
used to be the domain of mystics, madmen, and misfits—those all too
easy to marginalize or ridicule. Now, with advances in neurobiology,
technology, and psychology, we have literally stolen fire from the
mountaintop and can reproduce these states of accelerated performance and flow at will. We are finding out where in the brain they
come from, what triggers them, and how to consciously bring them
on. And just in time too, because now more than ever, the world needs
us at our best.
This course encompasses a wild and engaging romp through the
story at the heart of the book Stealing Fire: The Secret Revolution in
Daniel Bianche t ta
Jennifer Berezan is a singer/songwriter, teacher, and activist. Her groundbreaking work as a recording artist and teacher has established her as a leading voice in the field of music, ritual, and healing. She has released 8 albums
and produces large-scale multicultural, ecstatic ritual events. www.edgeof
wonder.com
Week of August 14–19
29
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
Human Possibility (Harper Collins 2016) and transforms that information into inspiration and practical application. The week’s practices
and activities include body-brain training, martial arts and movement,
smart tech, and sharing recent psychopharmacology research, among
other topics. This course is for rational skeptics, frustrated seekers, and
hard chargers of all stripes. If that sounds like your crew, join us!
Recommended reading: Wheal & Kotler, Stealing Fire; Leonard,
Mastery: The Keys to Success and Long-Term Fulfillment; Kotler, The Rise
of Superman: The Deep Science of Ultimate Human Performance.
Jamie Wheal &
Steven Kotler
We’ve all heard of people
being in “the zone.” Time
slows down (or speeds up)
and awareness merges with
action to create a focused
burst of creative or physical
performance. Jamie Wheal
and Steven Kotler call this phenomenon the flow state, and they’ve dedicated
themselves to uncovering—and sharing—the deep science behind it.
Jamie and Steven have an array of impressive accomplishments, from
best-selling books to Fortune 500 clients. But what brought them to their current endeavor is extreme personal crisis: Steven, a widely published journalist, was struck by a debilitating illness, and for three years he spent most of his
time in bed; as a young man, Jamie was deeply isolated and numb, and well
on his way toward self-destruction. A similar type of experience helped them
both back from the brink.
“Flow states brought me back to life,” said Steven. “At first I didn’t know
what was happening. I actually thought I was having mystical experiences,
or that I was losing my mind.” For Jamie, flow experiences became what he
calls “stepping stones of redemption” leading him out of alienation and onto a
new path.
Steven began researching the neuroscience behind peak experiences in an
attempt to figure out what had happened to him. One discovery led to the
next, and in partnership Steven and Jamie founded the Flow Genome Project,
a trans-disciplinary, international organization committed to mapping the
genome of Flow by 2020 and open sourcing it to everyone. Paired with Flow
Genome Project’s scientific research are pioneering programs designed to share
their findings in experiential settings, from mountaintops to Esalen. Their
aim is to unpack the flow state so that everyone may access to it to promote
creativity, wellness, and innovation.
The Transformational Enneagram:
Mindfulness, Insight and Experience
Russ Hudson
A growing number of people are aware of the Enneagram as an accurate and profound map of personality. 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 have led to a loss of connection with our
essential nature and to the arising of ego structures to compensate for
this loss. Thus, while our Enneagram type usually obscures our true
nature with a characteristic web of defenses, it can also serve as an
opening to the deeper reality of spirit.
This workshop will emphasize recognizing the ways that each of
30
the nine types plays out in our own personalities. It will combine
psychological insight into the inner workings of the types with meditation practices and exercises to lead participants toward a more direct
experience of qualities of essence such as presence, clarity, compassion, and joy. Conversational instruction will be combined with group
meditations, small-group work, physical movements, and music so that
participants can more fully integrate the richness of the Enneagram
material into their 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).
yy CE credit for nurses; see page 95.
is executive director of the Enneagram Institute in New York.
He is the coauthor, with Don Richard Riso, of several books, including The
Wisdom of the Enneagram and Personality Types (Revised Edition).
www.enneagraminstitute.com
Russ Hudson
Building a Vocal Community
Ysaye Barnwell
There is an awesome power in the human voice, and when uncommon
voices are blended for the common good they become a “vocal community” at its best. Masterfully led by Ysaye Barnwell, composer and
longtime performer with Sweet Honey in the Rock, singers and nonsingers alike will share the common experience of learning in the oral
tradition and singing rhythms, chants, traditional songs from Africa
and the Diaspora, and a variety of songs from African American culture including spirituals, ring shouts, hymns, gospels, and songs from
the civil rights movement. The historical, social, and political context
will be provided as an introduction to the songs.
Throughout this experience, the group will explore from an
African-American worldview the values embedded in the music; the
role of cultural and spiritual traditions and rituals; ways in which leadership emerges and can be shared by and among community members; the nature of cultural responses to and influences on political
and social struggle; and, finally, the significance of a shared communal
experience in one’s personal life. A willingness to sing is all that is
required.
Ysaye Barnwell, a former member of the African-American female a cappella ensemble Sweet Honey in The Rock, is a composer, arranger, author,
and actress. A vocalist with a range of more than three octaves, she appears on
more than 30 recordings with Sweet Honey and other artists. She is the curator and composer for The Fortune’s Bones Project ®. www.vocalcommunity
.com
Gratitude and Forgiveness: Deepening into
The Embodied Life™
Russell Delman
During this five-day seminar, you will experience direct, enjoyable, and reliable practices for inviting embodied presence. You can
uncover the natural meditation of “just sitting” as you learn to walk
through the doorway of embodiment.
We will also work directly with the thinking and feeling patterns
that interfere with our natural radiance. Growing our capacity for
jens wa zel
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
gratitude and forgiveness is central to this transformation. Research
confirms the life-giving influence of these mind states. We can
experience practices which can change fear into love, resentment into
forgiveness, and disappointment into gratitude.
Please see the description for The Embodied Life™: Meditation,
Guided Inquiry and the Teachings of Moshe Feldenkrais, August
12-14, for a full description of the work.
Participants are welcome to register for this five-day seminar only
or combine it with the weekend seminar, August 12-14.
If the only prayer you say in your life is ‘thank you,’ that would suffice.
—Meister Eckhart
yy CE credit for massage; see page 95.
Russell Delman
bio on page 28.
August 19–26
Lotus Borne Perception: Awareness Teachings of
Tibetan Buddhism and Continuum Movement
Susan Harper & Lama Drimed
In this retreat Lama Drimed and Susan Harper open a multi-dimensional inquiry into our spiritual, somatic, and creative human capacity.
Recognizing our natural state of awareness as a foundation, we will
explore a dynamic range that includes meditative stillness, fresh
perceiving, and movement and sounding, which opens a vital flow of
creativity.
Lama Drimed offers awareness teachings from the Dzogchen tradition. Our natural state is recognized to be all-inclusive awareness. We
awaken to the fresh perception of this moment—the natural aliveness
that is our birthright. This is the essence of the ancient tantric ways
that celebrate the unfolding of our life as sacred.
Susan Harper offers explorations from Continuum, a unique
sound and movement practice, in which we inquire into our capacity
to innovate, and participate with the essential movement processes of
life. The dynamics of how we perceive and relate are simultaneously
physical and psycho-emotional. They offer perceptual practices to
open ways that we pay attention, listen, and speak about our experience.
Lama Drimed and Susan share an innovative teaching style, and
are open and attentive to each participant’s process of discovery, and to
the group process.
Many of our explorations will take place outside in nature, where
we explore the elemental affinity between our bodies and the living
lineage of our breathing planetary body.
Susan Harper has been teaching and contributing to Continuum since
1975. She is the developer of Body of Relating Training, inspired by the
teachings of Chris Price’s Gestalt Awareness Practice, and she co-developed
Portals of Perception with Hubert Godard.
Lama Drimed offers awareness teachings from Great Perfection/Dzogchen
and Tibetan Vajrayana Buddhism. His Tibetan teacher, Chagdud Tulku
Rinpoche, recognized Lama Drimed as his lineage holder in 1995. His
vision is to open dialogues that include current discoveries and the ancient
tantric arts.
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See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
Transforming Trauma with EMDR:
Comprehensive Training (Parts 1 and 2)
Laurel Parnell
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a powerful therapeutic method for healing trauma-based problems. Shedding
new light on trauma survival —including sexual and physical abuse,
accident and surgical trauma, and grief—EMDR is opening doors
of the heart to genuine spiritual transformation. This course is for
mental-health professionals who are licensed to provide treatment.
Through lecture, hands-on practice, and demonstrations, participants
will be shown:
• Protocols and procedures for using EMDR with a wide range of
diagnostic categories
• Client selection criteria and cautions necessary for safe use of
EMDR
• Techniques for working with blocked processing and abreactions
(catharsis)
• How to unblock blocked processing
• Methods for working with dissociation
• How to use EMDR with adults traumatized as children
• Methods for developing inner resources used for interweaves, ego
strengthening, and client closure
This course has been approved by the EMDR International Association. In accordance with the standards for basic EMDR training,
participants must complete this course, receive ten hours of consultation from a recommended EMDRIA-approved consultant from the
Parnell Institute faculty, and then take a Parnell Institute Advanced
Clinical Workshop and Refresher Course (Part 3) in order to complete
the requirements for Basic EMDR training.
Participants will be screened and required to submit licensure
documentation before attending and must bring copies of their professional licenses or certification to the training.
Note: Registration for this workshop is through Dr. Laurel Parnell
only. To register, visit http://drlaurelparnell.com/training/esalen-1-2/.
Only after you have registered and paid tuition fees to Dr. Parnell will
you be able to reserve accommodations at Esalen. For accommodations
pricing chart, see www.esalen.org/page/partner-program-pricing.
Required reading: Parnell, A Therapist’s Guide to EMDR: Tools and
Techniques for Successful Treatment; Shapiro, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing.
Recommended reading: Parnell, Attachment-focused EMDR: Healing
Relational Trauma and Tapping In: A Step-by-step Guide to Activating Your
Healing Resources through Bilateral Stimulation.
yy CE credit for psychologists, nurses and MFTs & LCSWs; see page 95.
Laurel Parnell is the director of the Parnell Institute and developer of
Attachment-focused EMDR™. She is a clinical psychologist and author. Since
1995 she has trained thousands of clinicians in EMDR both nationally and
internationally. www.emdrinfo.com
Weekend of August 19–21
I Am the Word: The Energetics of Consciousness
Paul Selig
Our freshwater spring, known as
Porter Springs, is in Los Padres
lois wald
National Forest, Ventana Wilderness.
It provides about 75% of our water.
32
In his breakthrough works of channeled literature, I Am the Word and
The Book of Love and Creation, author and medium Paul Selig recorded a
program for personal and planetary evolution as humankind awakens
to its own divine nature. Through a series of lectures, attunements,
and energy activations, workshop participants will be introduced to
the frequency of the Word, which can be described as the energy of
“God in action.”
You will be shown exercises for healing the self and others, along
with practical techniques for developing and sustaining higher levels
of consciousness. You will also receive individual instruction that will
support you in moving through the physical and emotional blocks
that may be keeping you from manifesting your own higher nature.
You can discover how realizing your own true potential is inexorably
linked to the well-being of others and our planet. Paul’s workshops
can be deeply transformative. The energy he works with is palpable
and loving, and those attending will be supported in moving to the
next level of their own spiritual development. Please see August 21-26
for a five-day version of this course.
Recommended reading: Selig, I Am the Word: A Guide to the
Consciousness of Man’s Self in a Transitioning Time, The Book of Love and
Creation, and The Book of Knowing and Worth.
Paul Selig is a conscious channel, intuitive, and empath. His books include I
Am the Word, The Book of Love and Creation, The Book of Knowing
and Worth and The Book of Mastery. www.paulselig.com
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
Week of August 21–26
I Am the Word: The Energetics of Consciousness
Daniel Bianche t ta
Paul Selig
In his breakthrough works of channeled literature, I Am the Word and
The Book of Love and Creation, author and medium Paul Selig recorded a
program for personal and planetary evolution as humankind awakens
to its own divine nature. Through a series of lectures, attunements,
and energy activations, workshop participants will be introduced to
the frequency of the Word, which can be described as the energy of
“God in action.”
You will be shown exercises for healing the self and others, along
with practical techniques for developing and sustaining higher levels
of consciousness. You will also receive individual instruction that will
support you in moving through the physical and emotional blocks
that may be keeping you from manifesting your own higher nature.
You can discover how realizing your own true potential is inexorably
linked to the well-being of others and our planet. Paul’s workshops
can be deeply transformative. The energy he works with is palpable
and loving, and those attending will be supported in moving to the
next level of their own spiritual development.
This five-day intensive will offer the opportunity for more individual work and a deeper immersion in the higher energies. Please see
August 19-21 for a weekend version.
Recommended reading: Selig, I Am the Word: A Guide to the
Consciousness of Man’s Self in a Transitioning Time, The Book of Love and
Creation, and The Book of Knowing and Worth.
Paul Selig
bio on page 32.
Mothering and Daughtering: Keeping Your Bond Strong
Zero Balancing—Part 1
Sil Reynolds & Eliza Reynolds
Fritz Smith
Join a vibrant community of mothers and their ten- to fourteen-yearold daughters, where you can slow down, nourish your relationship,
and have some fun! In a soulful environment, mothers and daughters
learn how to cultivate authentic expression and deeper trust for a
healthier, more loving bond. Guided by Sil Reynolds and her 25-yearold daughter Eliza Reynolds, you will be shown how to reinforce your
already strong relationship, or how to reconnect if it has been hard to
find common ground lately. By engaging in creative and fun practices
designed to help mothers and daughters communicate well, you can
learn to create more ease and joy through the pre-teen and teen years.
Recommended reading: Reynolds and Reynolds, Mothering &
Daughtering: Keeping Your Bond Strong Through The Teen Years.
Zero Balancing (ZB) is a nondiagnostic system of healing which clarifies and coordinates energy fields in the body, balances body energy
with body structure, and focuses on bone energy and the skeletal
system. Science has shown that energy and matter are fundamentally
coupled; psychology has shown that the mind and body are interconnected. ZB embodies both perspectives. It is based on the experience that balancing the body’s energy with its structure has a direct
positive effect on physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health.
Imbalances often lead to loss of vitality, chronic pain, and decreased
potential for vibrant health. The body’s structural/energetic interface
is beneath conscious awareness. When imbalances occur at this level,
the body tends to compensate around them rather than resolve them.
Rooted in both Eastern healing and energy and Western medicine
and science, ZB brings unique touch and relevant design to overcome
imbalanced patterns.
This program, part one of a two-part Core Zero Balancing series,
is the entry level program. Didactic and experiential, it is open to all
health care professionals. The workshop will teach newcomers how to
perform a complete hands-on session, and for the experienced, it will
deepen understanding and enhance skills. It also includes theory and
practice of the ZB protocol, methods for evaluating and balancing the
body’s structural/energetic interface, and how to use energy as a tool.
Sil Reynolds, RN, is a nurse practitioner and therapist who has worked
with women and girls for 30 years with a focus on sane solutions to healing issues with body and food. She is a graduate of BodySoul Rhythms® Leadership
training and co-authored Mothering & Daughtering with her daughter
Eliza. www.MotheringandDaughtering.com
Eliza Reynolds, now 25 years old, has co-led workshops with her mother, Sil
Reynolds, since she was 15. A graduate of Brown University, she coauthored
Mothering & Daughtering and is a certified teen mediator and SOStrained counselor with Planned Parenthood. www.Motheringand
Daughtering.com
33
Daniel Bianche t ta
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
34
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
This workshop qualifies for credit toward Zero Balancing certification.
Recommended reading: Smith, Inner Bridges: A Guide to Energy
Movement and Body Structure and The Alchemy of Touch; Hamwee, Zero
Balancing: Touching the Energy of Bone.
yy CE credit for nurses and massage; see page 95.
CE credit for acupuncturists; see leader.
is a physician, osteopath, cranial osteopath, certified acupuncturist, and founder of Zero Balancing. He is the author of Inner Bridges:
A Guide to Energy Movement and Body Structure, and Alchemy of
Touch. www.zerobalancing.com
Fritz Smith
The Way of Story: The Craft and Soul of Writing
Catherine Ann Jones
The Way of Story offers an integrative approach to writing narrative,
combining solid craft with the experiential discovery of the intangible
dimensions of writing, because craft alone is not enough. This unique
workshop is for writers of all levels and all narrative forms including
plays, screenplays, short stories, novels, and memoirs.
In this workshop, you can explore and gain insight into these elements of the craft and soul of writing:
• The seven steps to story structure
• How to create memorable characters and dialogue
• How to balance craft with intuitive skills
• How to access and free your potential story
Catherine Ann Jones has served on the writing faculties of several
universities, and has been published widely.
For more information visit www.wayofstory.com.
Recommended reading: Jones, The Way of Story: The Craft & Soul of
Writing and Heal Your Self with Writing.
Catherine Ann Jones, MA, is an award-winning playwright (Calamity
Jane, On the Edge, The Women of Cedar Creek ) and screenwriter (The
Christmas Wife, Unlikely Angel, Touched by an Angel series). She also
is a writing consultant and author of fiction and nonfiction, including The
Way of Story and Nautilus Book Award winner Heal Your Self with
Writing. www.wayofstory.com
Weekend of August 26–28
Power Vinyasa Yoga
Susan Hauser
Power Vinyasa Yoga connects breath with movement using a vigorous,
fitness-based approach to vinyasa-style yoga. It emphasizes strength
and flexibility, and practitioners gain many physical, mental, and
spiritual benefits with this practice. This weekend retreat will consist
of a fast-paced sequence that is athletically based. We will rapidly
flow from one asana to another while focusing on our breath. This
retreat is open to all levels of yoga experience, and Susan Hauser will
give different variations for different levels. The Power Yoga practitioner is rewarded with many physical benefits to the bones, muscles,
and joints. Flexibility and muscle tone increase and concentration
improves. Power Yoga is intense and utilizes the entire body, working muscles in arms, shoulders, back, legs, feet, and abdomen so that
the body grows stronger and healthier and the joints, tendons, and
muscles all become more flexible. Please bring a yoga mat.
Susan Hauser founded NOW, new om world, a diverse multi-modality
studio in the San Francisco Bay Area. Susan credits yoga with getting her
through raising her two sons after her husband passed away from cancer. She
shares her passion for yoga through teaching. www.susanhauseryoga.com
Writing to Awaken: Memoir as a Path of Transformation
Mark Matousek
This transformational weekend introduces students of all levels to
spiritual memoir and writing as a path of self-knowledge. When we
learn to tell the whole truth about experience and to discern our
own soul’s journey, we come to understand the mythic dimension of
personal struggles, triumphs, confusions, longings, digressions, and
so-called mistakes. Through writing exercises and group dialogue,
students examine their inner lives as doorways to transpersonal
wisdom, beginning with early biography, through emotional maturity, adult and family life, rites of passage, loss and growth, as well as
treasure troves of must-tell stories. The objectives of this course are
radical truth telling, increased mindfulness, and increased skill in
writing. When you tell the truth, your story changes. When your story
changes, your life is transformed. Recommended reading: Matousek,
Sex Death Enlightenment: A True Story, When You’re Falling, Dive and The
Boy He Left Behind.
Mark Matousek is a best-selling author whose books include Sex Death
Enlightenment, The Boy He Left Behind, When You’re Falling, Dive,
and Ethical Wisdom. He is creative director of V-Men, an organization to
end violence against women and girls. His teaching focuses on personal writing as a wisdom path. www.markmatousek.com
Speak to Inspire
Peter Meyers
Speak to Inspire is an intensive communication and leadership
seminar that can transform your ability to engage and move others
through the power of the spoken word. During this dynamic, handson weekend, you will be shown how to elevate your ability to deliver
clear, compelling messages that inspire people to action; create rapport
and connect more effectively with anyone in your personal and professional life; transform the quality and impact of your conversations,
presentations, speeches, and meetings; and inspire those around you
to achieve new levels of excellence.
Activities will include interactive lectures, group discussions,
self-awareness exercises, simulations, coaching, and personal feedback.
You will have an opportunity to examine your underlying assumptions and beliefs about yourself as a communicator and leader, and to
overcome inner blocks that may be holding you back. This is a unique
opportunity to learn and practice cutting-edge communication skills
with Peter James Meyers, author of As We Speak and founder of the
global communication consulting and training firm Stand & Deliver.
Peter will be joined by senior members of the Stand & Deliver team.
Note: Registration for this workshop is through Stand & Deliver
35
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
only. To register, please call 415-299-4549 or email erica@standanddelivergroup.com. Only after you have reserved your place through Stand
& Deliver and paid tuition fees to Stand & Deliver will you be able to
reserve accommodations at Esalen. For accommodations pricing chart,
see www.esalen.org/page/partner-program-pricing.
author of As We Speak and founder and president
of Stand & Deliver, a global communications consultancy, has worked for
more than a decade helping leaders and their teams to enrich their presence
and effectiveness through greater clarity, credibility, and connection.
www.standanddelivergroup.com
Peter Meyers,
A Time To Reflect
This is a special opportunity for people to experience Esalen without
taking a workshop. During this period, we have a limited number of
spaces available for people who would like to participate in the Esalen
learning culture in their own unstructured way. Deeply nourish your
body, mind, heart, and soul through beautifully prepared and healthy
meals, daily yoga and movement classes, the hot springs and massages, time in the meditation center, tea with new friends, or even an
evening program, lecture, or open workshop session, when available.
Space in the program is limited, so we recommend you register early.
We recommend that you bring the following: journal, digital camera,
art supplies, hiking/walking shoes, a good book, and a map of the Big
Sur coast. Special pricing applies. Please contact Esalen Reservations
for details.
Week of August 28–September 2
The Art and Science of Mindfulness, Compassion and Joy
Daniel Siegel, Rick Hanson, Kristin Neff , Shauna Shapiro,
& Lee Holden
This workshop brings together a team of internationally recognized
scientists, meditation teachers, and clinicians to deepen our understanding of how to live a meaningful, healthy, and joyful life. Weaving
together ancient wisdom traditions with modern neuroscience, we
explore the transformative effects of meditative practices. Participants
will be taught simple yet potent meditation practices, including mindfulness meditation, compassion practices, mindful yoga, and experiential exercises. The group will also learn about revolutionary research
in neuroscience that offers this hopeful message: We can change and
reshape our brain to live healthier, happier lives. We will immerse
ourselves in the practice of being fully present, and re-train our minds
and hearts toward pathways of greater joy, compassion, forgiveness,
and gratitude.
Each of the faculty is a recognized expert who brings a unique
focus and perspective to the workshop.
• Daniel Siegel will speak on the central importance of compassion
and insight in promoting the integration within our relationships
and our brains that can be seen as the heart of well-being
• Kristin Neff will focus on self-compassion, using discussion,
meditation, and experiential exercises, and she will teach practical
ways to help you be kind to yourself in daily life
36
• Rick Hanson will explore the neuroscience of happiness and
positive emotions, offering specific cultivation practices to help us
deepen our joy, gratitude, and compassion
• Shauna Shapiro will explore the healing power of mindfulness and
its vitally important role in rewiring our neural pathways to live a
life of greater joy, health, and meaning
Esalen’s natural beauty will support us as we engage in sunset meditations, listen to the sounds of the ocean, walk through the vibrant
gardens, and open ourselves to the serenity and wisdom of nature.
This workshop is designed to deepen our connection with ourselves,
one another, and the larger web of life. Be prepared for unexpected
delight, mystery, and stillness.
($20 additional tuition paid at the time of registration)
yy CE credit for psychologists, MFTs & LCSWs and nurses; see page 95.
is a clinical professor of psychiatry at the UCLA School of
Medicine, where he is on the faculty of the Center for Culture, Brain, and
Development and the founding co-director of the Mindful Awareness
Research Center. His psychotherapy practice includes children, adolescents,
adults, couples, and families.
Rick Hanson, PhD, is a psychologist, senior fellow of the Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley, and New York Times best-selling author. His
books include Hardwiring Happiness, Buddha’s Brain, Just One Thing,
and Mother Nurture. He also is the founder of the Wellspring Institute for
Neuroscience and Contemplative Wisdom. www.RickHanson.net
Kristin Neff, PhD, is an associate professor of human development at the
University of Texas at Austin. She is a pioneering researcher into the psychological health benefits of self-compassion. She is the author of Self-Compassion and Self-Compassion: Step-by-Step, and is featured in the book and
documentary The Horse Boy. www.self-compassion.org
Shauna Shapiro, PhD, is a professor, internationally recognized expert in
mindfulness, and author of The Art and Science of Mindfulness. She
has been invited to lecture for the King of Thailand, Danish Government,
Andrew Weil’s Integrative Medicine, and World Council Psychotherapy.
www.scu.edu/ecppm/counselingpsychology/faculty/sshapiro.cfm
Daniel Siegel
The Art and Science of Mindfulness, Compassion and Joy —A Closer Look
Recent developments in neuroscience, including breakthroughs in
our understanding of brain plasticity—the ability of the brain to create
new neural connections over time—have led to some surprising discoveries. Pioneers at the leading edge of this field are drawing a direct
link between ancient mindfulness practices and increased neural flexibility, and happier, more compassionate people are the result.
Esalen is delighted to welcome a team of internationally recognized scientists, meditation teachers, and clinicians to explore this
groundbreaking interdisciplinary field. They will weave together
ancient wisdom traditions with modern neuroscience to explore the
transformative effects of meditative practices and the revolutionary
research in neuroscience that points to how we can reshape our brains
to live healthier, happier lives.
This workshop features faculty from UC Berkeley’s Greater Good
Science Center, which focuses on the psychology, sociology, and
neuroscience of well-being, and teaches skills that foster a thriving,
resilient, and compassionate society.
“Participants will be taught simple yet potent meditation practices,
including mindfulness meditation, compassion practices, mindful
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
yoga, and experiential exercises,” said Cheryl Fraenzl, director of
programs at Esalen.
Each of the faculty is a recognized expert who brings a unique
focus and perspective to the workshop.
Weekend of September 2–4
Soul Saturation: Igniting an Intimate Relationship
with Your Soul
Sera Beak
is a Harvard-trained scholar of comparative religion and author
of The Red Book: A Deliciously Unorthodox Approach to Igniting
Your Divine Spark and Red Hot and Holy: A Heretic’s Love Story.
www.serabeak.com
Sera Beak
Yoga Practice: An Ongoing Metamorphosis
Thomas Michael Fortel
One’s whole being, starting from the physical body, can be refined and
strengthened so it acts as a medium for the higher cosmic force. The system of
hatha yoga was designed to transform the gross elements of the body so they can
receive and transmit a much subtler and more powerful energy.
— Hatha Yoga Pradipika (6th century text)
Yoga is a practice of ever-unfolding metamorphosis (sadhana - a
spiritual journey). This is accomplished through the physical postures
(asanas), conscious breathing (pranayama), and the clearing and focusing of the mental consciousness (meditation, or dhyana).
Daniel Bianche t ta
“Deep in our bodies, where our truth burns the brightest, we know
we cannot be free, we cannot be of service, we cannot truly come
alive if we aren’t consciously connected to our soul,” writes Sera Beak.
“Soul Saturation is an intimate, dynamic, and radically real experience of our soul within a group setting. While most religions and
New Age and modern spiritual practices focus on spirit, emphasizing
the importance of transcendence, enlightenment, and Oneness, this
retreat focuses on soul and celebrates the importance of immanence,
embodiment, and our distinct divine identity.
“While our soul has many different aspects, and all are significant
and sacred, the part of our soul we specifically invoke on this retreat
is what we might call our Soul with a capital “S,” or our True Self, or
our inner Beloved. This is the part of us that is eternal and connected
to All That Is, but also is extraordinarily unique and eagerly seeks to
incarnate through us and as us.
“Using fiery meditation, meaningful ritual, intuitive journaling,
provocative dialogue, and conscious movement, we will allow our
souls to guide us towards authentic experiences and expressions of life
and love.” Please bring a journal, an object for the altar, an open mind,
and a sense of humor.
Required reading: Beak, Red Hot and Holy: A Heretic’s Love Story.
37
Daniel Bianche t ta
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
In this weekend retreat, we will engage these practices. Days will
begin with pranayama and meditation, followed by an active morning
session. In the afternoons, we will practice more restorative poses,
forward bends, and twists. With all the yoga there will still be plenty
of bath time, play time, and group time.
Please have a minimum of 3 months’ yoga experience, and bring
your yoga mat.
is a longtime yoga practitioner/teacher, influenced
by the Iyengar, Ashtanga, and Anusara styles of Hatha yoga, and drawing
from his devotional experience in Bhakti yoga. He travels widely, sharing his
love for yoga. www.thomasfortel.com
Thomas Michael Fortel
The Gokhale Method: The Posture Dance Connection
Esther Gokhale
Dance is an unusually rich avenue for improving strength, flexibility,
circulation, posture, mood, and connection. During this workshop,
students will be introduced to Gokhale Method posture principles as
they learn Brazilian, Latin, and African dance moves. This workshop
is suitable for people of all ages and abilities. No dance experience is
required.
The Gokhale Method is based on historical, anthropological, and
medical research on populations who have virtually no musculoskeletal pain. Interwoven intellectual, visual, kinesthetic, and aesthetic
38
cues make the Gokhale Method a remarkably efficient and effective
way to reach a new level of wellness in your body. Join Esther Gokhale
for this transformative and empowering weekend experience.
Recommended reading: Gokhale, 8 Steps to a Pain-Free Back.
Esther Gokhale, LAc, author of 8 Steps to a Pain-Free Back, was educated
at Harvard, Princeton, SFCAOM (in Chinese medicine), and by people in
non-industrial cultures worldwide. She and other certified Gokhale
Method instructors offer instruction online and all around the world.
www.gokhalemethod.com
Your Heart’s Blueprint: Passionate Purpose
and Peaceful Presence
Sheva Carr & Robert Browning
Just as an acorn contains all the information to become an oak tree,
you were born with a user’s manual for your life—including purpose,
well-being, and peace of mind—right inside your own heart. How can
we access and decode that user’s manual? This workshop introduces
the tools and practices developed over twenty-five years of peerreviewed research at the Institute of HeartMath. The HeartMath process shows us that the concept “follow your heart” is not just a poetic
metaphor, but can be methodically manifested by anyone.
Welcome to an experiential weekend which can benefit laypeople
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
and the health and healing practitioners that serve them. Activities in
this workshop are designed to:
• Introduce you to the power, intelligence, and potential within your
own heart
• Empower you to lead a life you truly love
• Support you to live life from inner-knowing, genuine care, and
purpose
• Give you a step-by-step process and community in which to create
a heart-based world
You can find out what you (or your clients) truly want. The process
is not an archeological dig. It is as close to you as your own breath and
heart, validated by some fascinating science that reignites wonder and
awe at how we and the world work. To learn more about HeartMath,
please visit www.heartmastery.com.
yy CE credit for nurses and acupuncturists; see page 95.
Sheva Carr, L.Ac, the architect of HeartMath’s HeartMastery Program, is
CEO of Fyera!, and founding executive director of the Fyera Foundation and
Sunflower SunPower Kids. She teaches people to access heart intelligence, and
to receive the benefits of the heart’s impact on consciousness, health, performance, creativity, and social change. www.heartmastery.com
Robert Browning is HeartMath’s master trainer and health care director,
and a director for Pathways to Peace. For more than 20 years, he’s trained 8,000
individuals in heart-based living. He leads programs at Stanford, UCLA,
Brigham & Women’s (Harvard’s teaching hospital), and Kaiser Permanente.
Week of September 4–9
Upledger Institute’s Unwinding Meridians:
Applying Acupuncture Principles to CST
Ken Koles
This hands-on workshop teaches you how to utilize the points and
pathways of acupuncture along with the energy, intention, and wisdom of your own hands to enhance the effectiveness of CranioSacral
Therapy. From the rich knowledge of Oriental medicine, you can draw
connections between the craniosacral system and organs, emotions,
sounds, colors, tastes, and much more. This dynamic workshop also
offers options in verbal dialoguing to enhance energy flow.
Before participating in this course, students must complete
Upledger’s CranioSacral 1 and 2, either at Esalen or elsewhere.
Note: Registration for this workshop is through the International
Alliance of Healthcare Educators (IAHE) only. IAHE is a coalition
of curriculum developers united to advance innovative therapies
through high quality continuing education programs. To register,
please call 1-800-311-9204. Only after you have registered with IAHE
and paid tuition fees will you be able to reserve accommodations at
Esalen. For accommodations pricing chart, see www.esalen.org/page/
partner-program-pricing.
yy CE credit for nurses, massage and acupuncturists; see leader.
is an acupuncturist who developed the use of CranioSacral Therapy (CST) and Oriental medicine in private practice and as an instructor
with The Cleveland Healing Arts Institute. He studied Oriental medicine in
Japan, China, and Taiwan, and has studied CST since 1979.
Ken Koles
Embodying Shakti: Awakening Sacred Power
in your Body, Mind and Speech
Sally Kempton & Silvia Nakkach
In this highly practical retreat, two powerful teachers will initiate
you into core sacred practices from the tantric traditions of goddess
wisdom. Silvia Nakkach’s work with healing sounds, voice, and
Indian ragas will combine with Sally Kempton’s meditative and
mythopoetic teachings. “We’ll chant medicine melodies, move,
meditate with deity qualities, and deepen our relationship with
devotional sound,” the leaders write. “Contemplative practices will
help to open your subtle body. This work can dissolve subtle energetic blocks and awaken sacred energies. During this week you’ll
receive mantra initiations and have the opportunity to discover
both your personal and transpersonal connections to goddesses like
Saraswati (sacred inspiration and flow), Durga (warrior strength),
Lalita (fully empowered sacred sexuality), and Chinnamasta (pure
Awareness).”
Sally Kempton &
Silvia Nakkach
GRAMMY®-nominated
musician and sound healer
Silvia Nakkach was driving
when something unusual
came on the radio. She listened, enraptured, to a
spoken-word goddess meditation given by Sally Kempton, an international teacher of contemplative
practice. Afterwards, Silvia contacted Sally with an invitation to co-teach
a workshop on Goddess and Sacred Sound. Sally, as a longtime admirer of
Silvia’s work, was delighted to agree.
“When we met, we discovered that we share a tremendous love for the
Divine Mother—the goddess Shakti who manifests her vibratory qualities
in sound, the voice, the mantras, and in every movement that exist in the
universe,” said Silvia.
“After our first workshop, we felt like sisters, both of us deeply trained
in an Indian tradition of sacred practice, yet also committed to applying
these teachings to contemporary needs,” Sally writes. “We’ve been teaching
together ever since, unfolding the sacred technologies of mantra, goddess
practice, raga, voice, and movement. We feel that our collaboration deepens
and enhances our individual teachings, and together we have found that the
combination of sacred sound, myth, and energetic practice creates an amazing atmosphere of transformation for people in the workshops.”
Sally and Silvia are powerhouses in their fields. During twenty years as
a teaching monk in the Saraswati order, Sally received traditional training
in yoga philosophy and practice, and became deeply versed in Vedanta and
Kashmir Shaivism. She now offers heart-to-heart transmission in meditation, life practice, and applied spiritual philosophy.
Named by Utne Reader magazine as one of forty cutting-edge artists
shaking up the art world, Silvia has cultivated her voice into a tool for profound healing. With a background that includes clinical and music-centered
psychology and Gestalt therapy, she is on the faculty of the California Institute for Integral Studies and she designed their Certificate in Sound, Voice,
and Music in the Healing Arts program. She teaches widely and her albums
are used in hospices and health centers internationally.
39
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
The Art2Life Workshop
Nicholas Wilton
This workshop is a playful exploration of the creative image-making
process. Utilizing imagery inspired from our own personal stories and
life experience, we will engage in a hands-on journey through fundamental painting principles, and learn how to sustain our own creative
momentum. Throughout the week, we will work on a series of small
paintings on wood panels, often working on several pieces simultaneously, which leaves little time to worry about success or failure. We
will also explore how themes of change and spontaneity enable us to
create our own unique artwork, and illuminate life lessons inherent
in the creative process. We seek to engage both sides of the brain, and
invite in mistakes, intuition, and spontaneity. We’ll explore the six
Art2Life Creativity Principles: value, design, color, texture, risk, and
soul. Generous time will be given for experimentation with new tools,
mediums, and techniques.
Join us as we celebrate a process of inspiration, reclamation, and
the journey of self-discovery through painting. This workshop is
designed for people from a wide variety of disciplines. All skill levels
are welcome. No artistic experience is necessary, only a willingness to
play. This workshop is especially useful for those in the healing and
helping professions in working with their patients and clients.
($125 materials fee will be added to the workshop cost, and includes
everything needed for the course)
is an artist whose paintings are sold internationally. He
is the founder of the Art2Life Creativity workshops and classes, and he established the Creative Visionary Mentoring Program, which offers artistic, business, and creative coaching to artists. www.nicholaswilton.com
Nicholas Wilton
Way of Nature: The Practice of the Wild
Steven Harper
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
Ever since the supposed “primordial soup,” nature has been our
teacher. We were born of this earth and throughout recorded time
people have turned to wilderness to awaken, become whole, and know
their belonging to this world.
With wilderness as our primary teacher, we’ll explore the way of
nature, discovering as contemporary humans what it means to walk
this pathless path. Hiking the wilderness trails of Big Sur, we’ll balance the days between walking and quiet contemplation, active awareness exercises, and simply being. As seekers immersing ourselves in
the natural world, we’ll also read and share the ancient and ecstatic
voices of prose and poetic imagination. This wisdom passed through
the ages deepens our intimate connection to ourselves, each other, and
our wild nature.
The workshop includes day-hikes (4–8 miles) into the Big Sur
backcountry. Indoor sessions will include an eclectic mix of informal
sharing, awareness practice, and more poems of the wild. Previous
wilderness experience is not necessary, although participants should
be prepared for some vigorous physical activity. More information
and a waiver will be sent upon registration. For an equipment list
40
and frequently asked questions about Steven’s workshops, visit www.
stevenkharper.com/faqs.html.
($30 permit and park-entrance fee will be added to the workshop cost)
Steven Harper
bio on page 12.
Weekend of September 9–11
Essentials of Hakomi Mindfulness-Based Experiential
Therapy: Journey to the Depths of the Psyche
Robert Fisher
This workshop, designed for therapists and other healing professionals, provides an overview of the Hakomi Method. It is designed
to provide advanced skills of assessment and intervention that use
present-moment experience in elegant and gentle ways to approach
and transform core material. Hakomi mindfulness-based experiential
psychotherapy offers mindful, experiential, somatic ways of illuminating how we organize and embody core beliefs at the most fundamental
levels of our experience. Through a combination of the awareness that
mindfulness offers, the wisdom held in the body, and the safety of the
therapeutic relationship, core issues can be explored.
In this workshop we will engage in a number of practices that elucidate the Hakomi Method, and provide immediately applicable skills
for working experientially with clients in creative and heartfelt ways.
Through talk and discussion, live demonstrations, internal exercises,
and practices to develop therapeutic skills, you will be taught the following:
• Basic principles and techniques of the Hakomi Method
• How to use mindfulness in experiential psychotherapy
• How to notice present-moment experience and the underlying
models of the world that shapes us
• How to connect deeply with clients based on their moment-tomoment experience
• How to engage in mindful exploration of the psyche
• Creative approaches that bring live experience into therapy
• How to become an ally to your client’s defenses and resistance
Recommended reading: Kurtz, Body-Centered Psychotherapy - The
Hakomi Method; Fisher, Experiential Psychotherapy with Couples; Weiss,
Hakomi Mindfulness-Centered Somatic Psychotherapy: A Comprehensive
Guide to Theory and Practice.
Robert Fisher, MFT, is an international Hakomi trainer, adjunct professor at CIIS and JFK Universities, and author of Experiential Psychotherapy
With Couples. He is the lead instructor of the Certificate Program at CIIS
for Mindfulness and Compassion in Psychotherapy and a keynote speaker at
national psychotherapy conferences. www.robfishermft.com
Soul Motion™ : Pause Presence
Arjuna Martí
“Space is a stretched canvas where the dance artist unfurls the work
of gesture, the inquiry of mystery, the recognition of the movement
moment, and the exploration of stillness,” writes Vinn Arjuna Martí.
“It is a medium where we pose questions, issue statements, and
listen.
doug ellis
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
“In Pause Presence, we cultivate skills to recognize the silence at
the core of sound and how we occupy the space between gestures.
This gap is a gift we give to others and a gift we receive. We dance in
an atmosphere where we are encouraged to step back and notice as
well as circle in with something to say. Also, we learn the worth of a
conscious breath in the dance.”
Soul Motion is a conscious dance practice that invites students into
an inquiry of dance as creative expression, and as dialogue in relationship to self, other, and all. Soul Motion values each participant for
their unique and distinct voice in the body choir.
experienced freedom and aliveness running in circles in
the school yard and dancing in the Bronx. Storytelling informed him how
to speak with presence, and working with young children taught patience.
Arjuna created Soul Motion Conscious Dance Practice. He offers freedom,
aliveness, presence. www.soulmotion.com
Vinn Arjuna Martí
Being Present for Your Life:
Introduction to Mindfulness Meditation
James Baraz
How much are you present for your own life? Most of us spend more
time in our own inner world—worrying about the future, replaying
the past, or lost in fantasy—than experiencing what life is offering to
us right now. The present moment is where we can most directly be
intimate with our life—touched by beauty and intimacy, while learning through the difficult lessons how to open our hearts.
Mindfulness—or vipassana—meditation is the practice described
by the Buddha for developing wisdom, compassion, and peace by
learning to be mindful of what is actually happening in the present
moment. Using the breath, body sensations, thoughts, and emotions
as objects of attention, we can learn to be more fully awake. When we
see directly that the nature of reality is change, we begin to let go of
clinging to the pleasant or avoiding the unpleasant. We become more
capable of meeting each situation with spontaneity, fearlessness, and
love.
Participants will be introduced to this meditation practice and the
principles on which it is based. There will be periods of silent sitting
and walking meditation as well as discussion, providing a foundation
for applying mindfulness practice to everyday life.
Recommended Reading: Baraz and Alexander, Awakening Joy: 10
Steps that will Put You on the Road to Real Happiness; Goldstein, The Experience of Insight; Kornfield, A Path with Heart.
James Baraz has been teaching meditation since 1978. He leads workshops
internationally, is a founding teacher of Spirit Rock Meditation Center in
Woodacre, Calif., and has taught his popular online Awakening Joy course
since 2003. James coauthored Awakening Joy with Shoshana Alexander.
www.awakeningjoy.info
Couples’ Communication Retreat
Warren Farrell
Our inability to handle personal criticism from loved ones is a common Achilles’ heel. The more deeply we love, the more fragile we feel.
Soon, couples feel they are walking on eggshells, unable to express
41
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
themselves honestly, and their love fades. Raising children and money
magnify the problems even as they become the reason couples stay
together. The result? Couples often remain legally married but psychologically divorced—in a minimum-security-prison marriage. The biggest culprit? Defensiveness. Active listening, a good solution, is rarely
used. When Warren Farrell discovered that active listeners often said
the right thing, but did not feel safe on the inside, he developed a
method of transforming the internal defensiveness into feeling loved.
To enhance the love, couples also are taught an “art and discipline of
love” to be practiced throughout the week. After the workshop, free
on-going group conference calls with Dr. Farrell allow the group to
continually grow with each other. This workshop is for couples—two
people with a history who desire a future (e.g., parents, married or
divorced; newlyweds; parent-child; siblings).
Recommended reading: Farrell, Women Can’t Hear What Men Don’t
Say and Father and Child Reunion.
yy CE credit for psychologists and MFTs & LCSWs; see page 95.
Conversations on the Edge: Love, Sex and the Evolution of
the Masculine and Feminine
Love and sexuality are the central political issues of the newly dawning era . . .
– Dieter Duhm, Tamera Global Love School
There is something radically changing in the way the masculine and
feminine define and relate to one another, both on an individual and
a social level. With traditional constraints and historical precedent
turned on end, many people are struggling to make sense of a basic
question: “What does it mean to be a man/woman?” Gender roles, sexual expression, and social structures are all coming into question. This paradigm shift brings tremendous liberation
and also very real challenges. How do we love one another in the new
paradigm? How do we form intimate relationships? And more broadly,
how does this evolution impact the world we live in and the rules we
once lived by? This program is a step in the direction of fueling a more
deliberate, thoughtful, and deeper exploration of the masculine and
feminine dance in society.
People have suffered as we struggle to create new structures rooted
bill tipper
Warren Farrell, PhD, has been a pioneer in both the women’s and men’s
movements. His books are published in 17 languages. His workshops and
books, including Women Can’t Hear What Men Don’t Say, train couples
and therapists to handle personal criticism without feeling defensive.
www.warrenfarrell.com
Week of September 11–16
42
in integration and acceptance. The definition of safety, security, and
relationship longevity has changed. The institution of marriage is fragile. Family structure no longer looks just one way. Sexual monogamy
is up for scrutiny. And on a more global scale, aggression and even
violence has followed as we consider new paradigms of blending masculine and feminine power.
The goal of this gathering is to create space to talk about what we
notice and discuss the sense we make of it. During these five days, we
will use the sacred container of Esalen as a place to dive deeply into
conversation about many aspects surrounding love, sex, and gender
that impact us both at an individual and at a social level.
While there will be skilled facilitators to support our process, the
format of this event is focused on learning from one another and the
community that shows up for the conversation. Basic structure will
weave throughout, but the community’s energy will largely drive the
content and outcomes. You will come to know others well as we all
become content experts based on our own experience, awareness, and
knowledge. Expect to spend a majority of your time in small groups,
deeply listening and sharing with one another, then coming back
together as a larger group for learning highlights.
This gathering breaks from the traditional “expert leader” workshop model and is an experiment in radical co-creation. Every voice
has value and plays an important role. Ideal participants are thoughtful, open, respectful, and self-aware individuals who play well with
others. The quality of the program depends entirely on each person’s
availability to be vulnerable and curious as well as accept responsibility for co-creating the experience. This will be a large event with many
opportunities for intimate connection with one another.
Please Note: Because it is important to include many diverse voices,
this program has a simple application and selection process. Please fill
out your application at www.esalen.org/conversations. Once you have
been accepted, you will receive a password to register. Timely registration is recommended to ensure your participation. If you register
online at www.esalen.org, please be aware that you will not be immediately confirmed until your code word and housing requests are
verified. You will know you are registered when you receive an email
confirmation. When registering, please be sure to write your code
word in the appropriate space at the bottom of the Secure Check Out
page. If you prefer to book via phone, please call 888-837-2536.
Scholarships: You may apply for a scholarship by visiting www
.esalen.org/page/scholarships-financial-aid. If you would like to give to
the scholarship fund, please register by phone and add your taxdeductible donation to your payment. We appreciate contributions
of any amount that help us build an inclusive and diverse community
for this gathering.
Weekend of September 16–18
Loving What Is
Byron Katie
Byron Katie has one job: to teach people how to end their own
suffering. As she guides people through her simple yet powerful
process of inquiry, called The Work, they find again and again that
their stressful beliefs—about the world, other people, or themselves—
ga zebo s taff
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
radically shift. This shift allows the mind to return to its awakened,
peaceful, creative nature. Join Katie in a workshop designed to take
you on a journey of self-discovery. With her humor and lovingly
incisive clarity, Katie will show you how to identify and question
the stressful thoughts that cause all the suffering and violence in the
world. Anyone with an open mind can do The Work. Participants
will have the opportunity to ask questions and to do The Work with
Katie.
Eckhart Tolle, author of The Power of Now, says, “The Work is like a
razor-sharp sword that cuts through illusion and enables you to know
for yourself the timeless essence of your being.” Always accessible
through her books, at worldwide events and workshops, and on the
web at www.thework.com, Katie’s wisdom and unconditional love are
tangible.
created The Work, which has been bringing freedom to millions
of people for more than 20 years. Her books include the best-selling Loving
What Is, I Need Your Love—Is That True? and A Thousand Names for
Joy. www.thework.com
Byron Katie
Week of September 18–23
The Radically Alive Leader: A Radical Aliveness Workshop
Ann Bradney
People in leadership positions who strive to be inspiring, influential, and highly effective must be exquisitely present, fully alive, and
unafraid to know anything about themselves. When you can engage
the powerful feelings of others without the need to control or tame
them, that’s radical aliveness. When you can learn to hold a space
where conflict and challenge are welcome because they serve as doorways to fresh insights, that’s also radical aliveness.
This workshop is designed for established or emerging leaders—
therapists, businesspeople, community leaders, health care workers,
ministers, educators, social activists, and other professionals who want
to learn the principles and apply the techniques of Core Energetics and Ann’s Radical Aliveness approach to bring more charge and
creativity to their work.
Participants will work with blocks to leadership, facing conflict
head-on, and opening to the unpredictable energy of life. Everyone
43
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
will be encouraged to lead, take risks, be emotionally honest, shed
personal agendas, and help build a dynamic group process where every
member is an essential part of the whole. The aim is to become leaders
who serve the greater purpose of life.
This group process is unlike group work you've done before,
demanding courage, committed engagement with others, and a strong
desire to discover and develop your leadership potential within an
accelerated, intense time frame and setting.
Please note: An interview is required for admission. Please e-mail
ann@annbradney.com.
is director of the Radical Aliveness/Core Energetics Institute of
Southern California. She studied under Core Energetics founder John Pierrakos and teaches internationally. Ann’s Radical Aliveness model expands Core
beyond the individual, to address community healing and world issues.
www.annbradney.com
Ann Bradney
Tantra: The Art of Conscious Loving
Charles Muir, Leah Alchin with Diane Greenberg
This is a “reset point” for couples who want to dramatically improve
the quality of sex and intimacy in their love lives and open up to more
ecstatic pleasure and spiritual connection in their relationship.
Few of us have been blessed with healthy childhood conditioning
and education regarding the mysteries of sexual love and relationship. This can leave individuals less successful and conscious in
their sexuality than they are in other aspects of their lives. Tantra
transforms sex into a loving meditation, putting more consciousness,
energy, intimacy, joy, and love into sexual exchanges. It is time to
study sex as an art form. Sexual loving is a vital meditative skill, and
sexual energy is a sacrament, that can bring great harmony and joy
into one’s relationship so that love continues to grow over the course
of a lifetime.
Practices include ways to deepen intimacy, free female sexual
orgasm, and methods to increase pleasure for both partners. Esoteric
practices of kiss, movement, and touch are introduced in class and
then practiced in the privacy of your own room. Discover tantric wisdom presented with insight, gentleness, humor, and love.
The workshop is open to couples only and is not designed for samesex couples. For more information, media reviews, and an instruction
video, visit www.Sourcetantra.com.
($5 fee for course booklet will be added to the workshop cost)
Recommended reading: Muir and Muir, Tantra: The Art of Conscious
Loving (available at www.Sourcetantra.com).
Charles Muir has been a professional yoga teacher since 1967. Director of the
Source School of Tantra Yoga, he is quoted in 125 books in print on Tantra,
relationship, sex, and yoga. He is co-author of Tantra: the Art of Conscious
Loving, which is printed in 9 languages. www.sourcetantra.com
Leah Alchin began her Tantric education in 1997. She is an advanced certified Tantra Educator with the Source School of Tantra Yoga and has her own
private practice. A survivor of childhood sexual abuse, she is a powerful advocate of Tantric sexual awakening and healing. www.tantraloveguide.com
Diane Greenberg, a senior instructor at Charles and Caroline Muir’s Source
School of Tantra, is a certified tantric educator with more than 15 years’ experience. She leads women’s empowerment groups and has been a professional
bodyworker more than 20 years.
44
The Anatomy of a Calling
Lissa Rankin
We are all embarked on what Joseph Campbell calls the “Hero’s
Journey” of finding and fulfilling our calling. But so many of us feel
lost, disillusioned, helpless, or stuck when it comes to our life purpose.
If you’re like many of us, you may have felt called the way a priest is
called to the priesthood, only to find yourself stuck in a system that
asks you to sacrifice your soul’s integrity. Or you may still feel disconnected from your passion and purpose, not even knowing where to
start. Or maybe you just quit your job and you’re realizing that you can
quit your job, but you can’t quit your calling. No matter where you are
on your hero’s journey, this workshop is intended to offer you comfort,
inspiration, community, soul growth, and tools to facilitate the journey towards your soul’s purpose.
We will utilize writing, ritual, singing, dancing, meditation, art,
group discussions, spot coaching, discovery exercises, and nature
to help you unlock the ways in which your love and your gifts can
bless the world. Topics of exploration will include the hero’s journey,
dealing with fear, learning to receive and discern spiritual guidance,
loosening the stronghold of childhood patterns that block you from
stepping fully into your gifts, and igniting your imagination.
Recommended reading: Rankin, The Anatomy of a Calling and The
Fear Cure.
Lissa Rankin, MD, was featured on the public television special, “Heal Your-
self: Mind Over Medicine.” Dr. Rankin founded the Whole Health Medicine
Institute. She is on a grass roots mission to heal health care.
Cultivating Meaning and Happiness through
Mindfulness and Yoga
Ira Israel
Many of us would benefit from learning how to dis-identify with the
mental chatter in our heads and cultivate equanimity. These qualities help us make healthy, long-term decisions and engender loving,
positive, secure, and supportive attachments to other people. We must
learn to transcend any blunt tools we developed over the years—negative self-talk, over-reactions, judgments, facades, fears, expectations,
passive-aggressive behavior—and replace them with precise tools such
as authentic communications, loving relationships, balanced lifestyles,
commitments to personal integrity, and yoga and/or meditation
practices.
In this workshop we will explore specific practices that bode
favorably for creating meaning and happiness in our lives. We will
determine our long-term goals and the skills we should cultivate to
realize them. There will be all-level vinyasa flow yoga classes as well
as restorative yoga classes, and we will practice myriad mindfulness
meditations to cultivate non-reactivity in order to reduce drama and
de-escalate conflicts. Most importantly, we will learn how to replace
the resentments that our minds create with gratitude. Please bring a
yoga mat.
yy CE credit for nurses; see page 95.
Ira Israel, LPCC, LMFT, E-RYT500, is a psychotherapist, certified yoga
therapist, and the author of several books, including Mindfulness Meditations for Anxiety. He has graduate degrees in psychology, philosophy, and
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
religious studies, has taught mindfulness to thousands of fellow therapists,
and writes about mindfulness and yoga exclusively for the Huffington Post.
www.IraIsrael.com
Planting the Seed:
A Workshop for Farm and Garden Educators
Anna Pierce-Slive & Chad Morse
Anna Pierce-Slive has gotten her hands dirty as the garden supervisor for
Esalen’s Farm and Garden and at the University of California at Santa Cruz
Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems. Her teaching blends
a passion for plants with the urgency for social change to work towards more
equitable and healing relationships between people and the land.
Chad Morse is an educator and farmer. He managed the Esalen Farm for
four years, co-led the Farm & Garden apprenticeship program, and has a
background in cross-cultural and service-based education.
September 23–October 2
Path of Devotion: A Yoga Teacher Training
Janet Stone
Whether you’re an established yoga teacher, an aspiring teacher, or a
dedicated long-time student of yoga, the alchemy of a yogic path promises deep transformation.
This unique ten-day training begins by establishing your svad-
ir a isr ael
The Esalen Farm and Garden has been growing fresh, organic produce
for more than forty years, and is dedicated to the idea that sustainable agriculture can be a powerful vehicle for positive social, environmental, and personal change. The mission of Esalen’s Farm and
Garden team is to equip grower-educators with the technical skills,
educational training, and leadership experience that they will need to
become change agents within their communities. We seek teachers,
pollinators, disseminators—individuals as passionate about sharing
their skills, inspiration, and know-how as they are about growing
food.
This workshop is specifically geared toward people interested in
or already involved with farm- and garden-based education. Through
a combination of hands-on activities, group presentations, panel
discussions, and mentored feedback sessions, we will work together
to create and deliver clear, inspiring lessons and deepen our impact as
educators. Our classroom will be Esalen’s beautiful hand-scale garden
and three-acre farm, and the week will culminate in an intimate farm
to table dinner. Participants are welcome and encouraged to join the
Farm and Garden crew for morning harvests and fieldwork during the
workshop.
Please note: Participants must apply and be accepted to this program
before registering. To apply, please contact farm.coordinator@esalen.org
with subject line “Planting the Seed Application Request.” Some scholarship support is available.
45
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
• Study: Immerse yourself in the teachings of tantra and learn how
to incorporate the philosophy into your life and teaching
• Philosophy: Explore the history and philosophy behind the
practice in your life through storytelling and discussion
• Ethics: Get real with the yamas and niyamas, which are simple
tools for a wholesome and integrated life
• Livelihood: Approach the business of yoga as a part of your practice
life
This immersion is designed for teachers, aspiring teachers, and
long-term practitioners of yoga. Those who complete the training
will be eligible for 100 hours of Yoga Alliance Credit. All hours are
applicable to the Janet Stone Yoga 200- and 300/500-hour training
programs. Please bring a yoga mat.
Please note: Tuition for this program is $3430 for standard accommodations, $2855 for a bunk bed, and $2305 for sleeping bag space.
These costs include accommodations, meals, and the training. Please
contact Esalen Reservations with questions.
traveled to India in 1996, where she dedicated herself to a
conscious evolution through yoga. Janet blends a wealth of knowledge and
yoga experience to create a unique, vigorous-yet-sumptuous approach to
Vinyasa yoga. She teaches in San Francisco and leads retreats internationally.
www.janetstoneyoga.com
Janet Stone
meg faller
Weekend of September 23–25
Full Body Presence: Skills to Energize Your Life
Suzanne Scurlock-Durana
harma, your own personal path through the many forms and expressions of the yogic life. To identify your svadharma, you’ll proceed from
inquiry to action through a series of carefully guided steps:
• Sankalpa: Clarify your intention so you know where you want to
go on the path of yoga. Why do I practice?
• Adhikara: Closely look at your own practice so you can honestly
assess your strengths and your greatest opportunities for growth.
What is the state of my practice now?
• Sadhana: Manifest the path you’ve mapped for yourself through
detailed instruction, practice teaching, and study. Where do I want
my path of practice to lead me?
With this deeper understanding of your personal path of yoga,
you can proceed to the training’s core curriculum, with experienced
guidance from Janet Stone and top-of-their-field guest teachers. (This
training also includes required unit hours in the Esalen baths, at
Dance Church, and watching the sun set over the Pacific).
Other course activities and components include the following:
• Meditation: Find the foundation for stilling your mind and
connecting with deep intention
• Mantra and bhakti: Open your heart and your voice in a practice of
devotion, surrender, and offering
• Asana, alignment, anatomy, and assisting: Come to the physical
practice as a means to awakening, liberation, and compassion
• Pranayama: Connect with breath and the subtle body to nourish
your life force
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This workshop is packed with useful skills for rejuvenating your
mind, body, and soul, including practical tools to energize your daily
life, skills for meeting life’s challenges with new resources that grow
stronger over time, practices to help you tune into your body’s wisdom
in the face of stress, and steps for re-charging your system to calm
physical tension and quiet your mind.
Return home after the weekend more embodied and with clarity
about how your own full body presence can support you in your
world. This course teaches the process of allowing the deep wisdom
of the body to inform and help us navigate in our living, working,
healing, and relating. By learning to respect and listen to this body
wisdom as the ground of our knowing, we help ourselves rediscover
our innate spirituality and develop our emotional intelligence. Topics
include the following:
• Learn about healthy boundaries
• Understand the dynamics of your own energy patterns
• Nourish and rejuvenate in healthy, life-giving ways
• Remain fully grounded and present, even under stress
This course offers 12 CE units.
Note: Registration for this workshop is through the International
Alliance of Healthcare Educators (IAHE) only. IAHE is a coalition
of curriculum developers united to advance innovative therapies
through high-quality continuing education programs. To register,
please call 1-800-311-9204. Only after you have registered with IAHE
and paid tuition fees will you be able to reserve accommodations at
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
Esalen. For accommodations pricing chart, see www.esalen.org/page/
partner-program-pricing.
Prerequisite: Read and listen to the audio CD in Full Body Presence:
Learning to Listen to Your Body’s Wisdom.
yy CE credit for nurses and massage; see page 95. CE credit for physical
therapists in CA; see leader.
Suzanne Scurlock-Durana
bio on page 20.
Healer Within™ Practice Leader Training:
Medical Qigong Certification
Roger Jahnke
Medical Qigong has powerful roots in ancient healing traditions and
also in modern science. The Healer Within™ Practices, developed
from a Chinese Medical Qigong known as Bu Zheng Qigong or Vitality Enhancement Method, help your body utilize its own extraordinary medicine through these four essential practices:
• Body practices—posture and movement
• Breathing practice
• Self-applied massage
• Mind focus practice—mindfulness meditation
With the Healer Within™ framework, you can create a daily mindbody practice that can be performed standing, sitting, or even lying
down. The four essential practices restore and nurture a healthy balance of energy throughout your body, and you can learn to share these
practices in your community, in yoga studios, and also in hospitals,
social service agencies, churches, after-school programs, coaching
groups, and more.
The Institute of Integral Qigong and Tai Chi has trained nearly
1,000 teachers and practice leaders worldwide with its comprehensive
training, research, philosophy, and principles of mind-body practice
and holistic living. Whether you would like to attend for certification
or to learn wellness tools for a lifetime, you can awaken the healer
within you for radiant well-being.
($15 materials fee for The Healer Within coursebook will be added to the
workshop cost)
Recommended reading: Jahnke, The Healing Promise of Qi: Creating
Extraordinary Wellness through Qigong and Tai Chi.
yy CE credit for nurses and acupuncturists; see page 95.
Roger Jahnke, OMD, has dedicated his professional life to sharing the pow-
erful ancient healing traditions of China. He is the director and chief instructor of the Institute of Integral Qigong and Tai Chi, in Santa Barbara, Calif.,
and a cofounder and recent chairperson of the board of the National Qigong
Association. www.feeltheqi.com
Yoga and Creative Writing
Katchie Ananda & John Robbins
Stretch your body. Rewrite your life. John Robbins is the author of
Diet For a New America, The New Good Life, and numerous other bestsellers. He met the celebrated Anusara yoga teacher Katchie Ananda
more than twenty years ago, and they have been dear friends and
colleagues ever since.
John and Katchie each believe that there is no right way to write or
to do yoga, no “one size that fits all.” Instead, every student has to find
his or her own individual form and style of expression. Out of this
shared understanding, they offer a combined workshop, which will
alternate sessions of Anusara yoga with creative writing exercises and
opportunities. Participants will get immediate and personal feedback
and suggestions from John about their writing, and deepen their yoga
with Katchie, using the five principles of Anusara yoga. The goal is
to find one’s unique and authentic voice and dharma, on the mat, on
paper, and beyond.
This workshop is open to everyone, including those who have
practiced yoga for years and those who have never done it before, those
who are interested in writing as a career, and those for whom writing
is simply a personal art form or means of self-discovery. Wherever you
are on the spectrum of experience, you will find support, inspiration,
and practical tools to gain greater authorship over your life, and to
more fully and passionately inhabit your body, mind, and spirit. Please
bring a yoga mat.
is an internationally recognized yoga and dharma
teacher whose leadership in yoga and social change prompted Yoga Journal
to name her one of 5 top yoga teachers making change in the world.
www.katchieananda.com
John Robbins is author of Diet for a New America and many other
bestsellers, founder of EarthSave International, and one of the most popular
bloggers on the Huffington Post. He is a recipient of the Rachel Carson
Award, the Albert Schweitzer Humanitarian Award, and dozens of other
honors. www.johnrobbins.info
Katchie Ananda
Spiritwalker: Shamanic Journeywork and Empowerment
Hank Wesselman
Many of the indigenous peoples perceive that our world is made up of
two halves—a world of things seen and a world of things hidden—and
they draw no distinction between them. They understand that the
two halves present themselves together, mixed into one commonality. They also know that the hidden world is inhabited by a variety
of transpersonal forces they call the spirits, and by entering into
relationship with them, life can become an extraordinarily enriched
adventure.
This introductory experiential workshop with anthropologist
Hank Wesselman will utilize shamanic journeywork, an ancient form
of meditation, to bring us into connection with our inner sources of
wisdom, power, and healing, and especially with those helping spirits
who are the holders and keepers of our life paths. We will also work
with the issue of personal empowerment, as well as how to restore
power to someone who has lost it. Bring hand drums and rattles if you
have them, a notebook, a bandana or eyeshade, and a light blanket.
Please refrain from alcohol during the workshop.
Recommended reading: Wesselman, The Bowl of Light and The
Spiritwalker Trilogy; Wesselman and Ingerman, Awakening to the Spirit
World; Wesselman and Kuykendall, Spirit Medicine.
Hank Wesselman is the author of 9 books on shamanism including the
Spiritwalker Trilogy, The Bowl of Light, and The Re-Enchantment: A
Shamanic Path to a Life of Wonder (forthcoming in 2016). He conducts
anthropological research in Ethiopia investigating the mystery of human
origins. www.sharedwisdom.com
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RELAX, REFRESH AND…REFLECT
EXPERIENCE ESALEN A NEW WAY WITH A TIME TO REFLECT
Esalen has created a new way to nourish your body, mind, heart, and soul
through a choice of a five-day or a two-day unstructured retreat. Enjoy
daily yoga and movement classes, beautifully prepared and healthy
meals featuring produce from our Farm & Garden, time in meditation,
and immersion in our world-renowned hot springs. Take in the beauty of
the land and those around you when you take A Time to Reflect.
RESERVE YOUR TIME TO REFLECT NOW AT WWW.ESALEN.ORG/WORKSHOPS/SERIES/REFLECT.
CHECK THE WEBSITE FOR NEW RETREAT OPPORTUNITIES THROUGHOUT THE YEAR.
Become a Friend of Esalen
GivE BACK To ThE PlACE ThAT hAs GivEn so muCh
The friendships, personal growth and deep inspiration that
have come from my time here have been a catalyst in my own
change. One of the biggest reasons I support Esalen is that it is a
non-profit organization that changes people inside and out.
Why: As a non-profit organization, your tax-deductible gift helps Esalen
further its mission of personal and social transformation. The Friends of
Esalen Fund supports areas of greatest priority and need including student
aid, the Center for Theory & Research, Esalen’s Farm & Garden, Campus
Renewal projects, and much more.
Who: Join fellow workshop participants, faculty leaders, and staff who
are co-creating a more humane, all-embracing world as Friends of Esalen.
hoW:
Donate online: www.esalen.org/donate
Mail: Please use the envelope provided in this catalog.
Call: For additional assistance, please contact Kate Balog
at 831-250-1022 ext. 249.
text: @esalen to 52014
48
Esalen Institute is a non-profit public charity corporation,
exempt from income tax under IRC section 501(c)(3).
Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent allowable by law.
JR Wurster Founder and CEO
Walking Tall Media/Verbal Ink/Survey Planet
$65
$25 discount on
workshops
plus our biannual
newsletter
$250
All of the above
plus a special
memento gift
$500
All of the above
plus invitations to
special events
FrienDs oF
esalen
Creators
sustainers
$1000
BeneFaCtors
All of the above
plus a day pass
for two people to
Esalen
For information regarding
gifts of $5,000 and more,
please contact monique Baron at
monique.Baron@esalen.org.
CELEBRATE SUMMER AT ESALEN
NAHKO AND MEDICINE FOR THE PEOPLE WILL PERFORM AT
THIS YEAR’S OUTDOOR CONCERT.
VISIT ESALEN.ORG/MIDSUMMERFESTIVAL FOR UPDATES.
A MIDSUMMER FESTIVAL
AT ESALEN • JULY 1-3, 2016
CELEBRATE MUSIC
CELEBRATE FAMILY
CELEBRATE YOU
Born in Oregon, Nahko carries a mix
of Puerto Rican, Native American,
and Filipino bloodlines and
considers himself a citizen in service
to the planet. He began producing a
public, musical journal of his journey
toward personal, spiritual, and social
healing, and thus Medicine for the
People was born. Nahko describes
his music as a mix of hip-hop and
folk rock with a world message.
Enjoy the magic of Esalen with your
family! Get ready for a unique experience
for you and your child, including
mindfulness practices through visual,
expressive, and sensory awareness
games. Other activities can include
making projects in the Art Barn, playing
at Gazebo Park School (for children up
to six years old), lighthearted dharma
games, hiking, and creating works of art
in and from the garden.
Bring a journal, your walking
shoes, art supplies, and
a good book and give
yourself time to enjoy an
unstructured visit to Esalen.
Through A Time to Reflect,
offered during the July 4th
holiday weekend, you can
nourish your body, mind,
heart, and soul.
49
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
Week of September 25–30
and students recognize and reconnect to inner resources necessary for deep
healing at a core level. www.iahp.com/karen
Tai Chi Easy™ Practice Leader Certification Training
Visionseeker: Spirit Medicine
Roger Jahnke
Hank Wesselman
Tai Chi Easy is a practice that combines gentle exercises, breath practices, self-massage, and meditation to help you experience a refreshing,
healing boost to body, mind, and spirit. Developed by master teacher
Roger Jahnke, Tai Chi Easy enhances energy (qi) to strengthen and
cleanse the body and mind. According to Chinese Medicine and philosophy, qi is the vital essence that creates health, well-being, and harmony.
During this workshop, you will be taught tai chi principles including breathing, relaxation, and mindfulness.
The Tai Chi Easy Practice Leader Certification Training is a stepby-step program to support you in creating powerful practice sessions.
It is appropriate for all ages and ability levels, and provides a gentle yet
powerful practice for you to share in your local community including
schools, hospitals, social service agencies, and elsewhere. Throughout
the training, you will explore the reasons why the slow, flowing movements of tai chi have so many health enhancing effects, including
increased blood flow, improved cardiovascular fitness, endorphin production in the brain, brain plasticity, better sleep, and improved mood.
($65 DVD and manual fee will be added to the workshop cost)
Today, interest in complementary and alternative therapies is on
the rise, and more people are rediscovering the healing modalities
pioneered by indigenous peoples. Among them, the time-tested
techniques of the traditional shamans are being reconsidered and
reworked, providing nontribal Westerners with effective methods for
healing and problem solving.
This workshop provides an in-depth training in shamanic healing.
At its core lies a cross-cultural overview of the nature of health, illness,
and health care. Anthropologist Hank Wesselman writes: “We will
expand our connections to inner sources of wisdom and power and
deepen our contacts with ancestral spirits and healing masters, as well
as the elementals. We will experience the initiation of spiritual dismemberment, work with shamanic extraction methods and explore
the transpersonal healing tools that enable soul retrieval, also known
as soul renewal.”
The Visionseeker workshops provide a shamanic perspective
derived from the Hawaiian kahuna tradition in which knowledge
of the personal soul cluster, as well as the nature of reality, forms
the foundation. This training will explore the three classic causes of
illness, as well as the four levels of transpersonal healing that will
enhance the practice of practitioners in all disciplines.
Note: Bring a rattle, hand drum, notebook, bandanna or eyeshade,
and light blanket. Please refrain from alcohol use during the workshop.
Recommended reading: Wesselman and Kuykendall, Spirit Medicine; Wesselman The Bowl of Light and Awakening to the Spirit World
(with Sandra Ingerman).
yy CE credit for nurses, massage and acupuncturists; see page 95.
Roger Jahnke
bio on page 47.
Upledger Institute International’s CranioSacral Therapy 2
Karen Axelrod
CranioSacral Therapy 2 studies cranial-base dysfunctions as diagnosed
and treated by Dr. William Sutherland, the “father” of cranial osteopathy. The course material and hands-on sessions will focus on cranialbase dysfunctions, the masticatory system-hard palate, mandible and
temporomandibular joint; whole body evaluation; and the energy
cyst with regional unwinding. An introduction to SomatoEmotional
Release will also be presented.
The prerequisite for this course is Upledger Institute’s CranioSacral Therapy 1 (CS1) and thorough working knowledge of the 10-Step
Protocol.
Note: Registration for this workshop is through the International
Alliance of Healthcare Educators (IAHE) only. IAHE is a coalition
of curriculum developers united to advance innovative therapies
through high quality continuing education programs. To register,
please call 1-800-311-9204. Only after you have registered with IAHE
and paid tuition fees will you be able to reserve accommodations at
Esalen. For accommodations pricing chart, see www.esalen.org/page/
partner-program-pricing.
Recommended reading: Upledger & Vredevoogd, CranioSacral
Therapy (chapters 7–15); Upledger, CranioSacral Therapy II: Beyond the
Dura (chapter 3).
yy CE credit for nurses and massage; see page 95. CE credit for physical
therapists in CA and acupuncturists; see leader.
Karen Axelrod is a certified somatic therapist and educator specializing in
craniosacral therapy. Based in Redondo Beach, Calif., she seeks to help clients
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Hank Wesselman
bio on page 47.
Know Your Sexual Self
Mike Lousada & Louise Mazanti
When we work consciously to expand and grow, sexuality is often
the last piece of the puzzle that we explore. In our hyper-sexualized
culture, we are still left on our own when it comes to discussing sex,
desire, and pleasure. Figuring out who we are sexually and what we
want—and why—can be confusing and frightening. Cultural expectations about what we should and should not desire color our beliefs
about ourselves and limit our capacity for pleasure.
This experiential workshop offers an opportunity for you to get
to a deeper understanding of your sexuality, your drives, motivations,
and blocks. Through a series of exercises, safely conducted on your
own and in small groups, we will guide you through exploring the
following questions: What limiting beliefs do you hold about sex
from your culture and upbringing? What are your motivations for
wanting or having sex? What deeper needs are you seeking to fulfill?
What desires are you comfortable with expressing, and which remain
unexpressed or even unacknowledged? What are the blocks that keep
you from experiencing sexual fulfillment? What are the different elements of your sexual life—and fully are they expressed?
There is no touch or nudity in this workshop.
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
Mike Lousada is a transpersonal psychotherapist, bodyworker, and clinical
sexologist. Known for being featured in Naomi Wolf’s bestseller Vagina, he is
founder of Psychosexual Somatics®, a pioneering body-mind therapy which is
changing the face of sex therapy. www.mikelousada.com
Louise Mazanti has a private practice in London as a psychotherapist specializing in Psychosexual Somatics®, supporting clients to overcome sex
and intimacy issues. The main tools in her practice are Erotic Mirroring
and Embodied Erotic Transference and Counter-transference. www.louise
mazanti.com
Weekend of September 30–October 2
Mindfulness and Lovingkindness Meditation
in neuroscience that offers this hopeful message: We can change and
reshape our brain to live healthier, happier lives. We will become
familiar with specific practices and techniques for cultivating greater
joy, ease, presence, and genuine compassion, and explore how to integrate these effortlessly into our daily lives. We will immerse ourselves
in the striking natural beauty of Esalen, allowing the sounds and
vistas of the ocean, the exquisite coastline, and bountiful gardens to
nourish and support our practice.
This workshop is appropriate for anyone curious about meditation
and how to deepen our connection with the beauty and mystery of
life. Be prepared for unexpected delight. This workshop is suitable for
all health care and education professionals.
Recommended reading: Shapiro and Carlson, The Art and Science of
Mindfulness; Salzberg, Lovingkindness.
Shauna Shapiro
bio on page 36.
Shauna Shapiro
Esalen® Massage—The Basics
Laurie Lioness Parizek & Oliver Bailey
During an Esalen Massage, we experience a remarkable web of interdependence: a listening touch, a deepening breath, a sense of connection with another. When we receive a massage we remember an easier
time and “come home.”
Esalen Massage seeks the interface between form and energy,
physical structure and the soul, and you and I. The long, integrative
bill tipper
Come learn how to rest in the heart of joy, ease and loving presence.
Drawing on practices of mindfulness and lovingkindness as well as
revolutionary research in neuroscience, we will explore the transformational power of meditation. We will discover how the weaving
together of lovingkindness and mindfulness supports us in healing
and living a joyful, vital, and compassionate life.
In this workshop, you’ll be taught simple yet potent meditation
practices, including loving-kindness practices, mindfulness meditation, and mindful movement. We will also learn about new research
51
C a meron Jordan
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
strokes build a sense of presence, while deeper focused work evokes
release of tension patterns. Both teachers have shared this grounding,
loving practice with many different people, and know the joy and
healing that this form of calming and revitalizing touch can bring to
many diverse cultures and personalities.
During this weekend retreat, through brief demonstrations,
one-on-one guidance, and plenty of practice time, you will have the
opportunity to awaken your own talent and resources to easily and
safely give and receive the basic elements of an Esalen Massage. To
support you in your massage learning experience, centering, grounding, and self-care exercises are also included in the workshop presentation. There is also plenty of time to breathe in the beauty of the Big
Sur Coast.
This course offers foundation skills for the newcomer, a fresh
approach for the experienced practitioner, and is especially useful for
those in the helping and healing professions in working with their
clients and patients.
yy CE credit for nurses and massage; see page 95.
Laurie Lioness Parizek graduated from the Montreal General Hospital
School of Nursing, McGill University. She studied and teaches hands-on
interactive and energy healing, and is a longtime teacher of Esalen bodywork.
Oliver Bailey is a practitioner and instructor of Esalen® Massage. His background includes training in Gestalt Practice, neurolinguistic programming,
intuitive work, and meditation.
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Week of October 2–7
Yoga, Meditation and Addiction Recovery Retreat:
A Celebration of Healing
Rolf Gates, Nikki Myers, Tommy Rosen, Melody Moore
& Will Kabat-Zinn
Join us as we bring together the ancient tools and practices of yoga
and meditation as ways to deepen the exploration of recovery from
addictions. Our world-class teaching staff represents a wide variety of
backgrounds and modalities in this dynamic field.
Addictive behaviors separate us from ourselves, one another, our
environment, and the divine. Yoga offers us a set of practices that
directly address the range of issues caused by the family disease of
addiction. Connected to our wholeness, we more readily recognize our
addictive behaviors and find the inner strength to move beyond them.
Mornings will begin with an asana and meditation practice that
embraces such concepts as surrender, letting go, acceptance, and
gratitude. Each day, we’ll offer different mini-workshops, which allow
participants to explore more fully the convergence of the path of
yoga and recovery. Our evenings will be filled with kirtan, speakers,
dancing, and free time to mingle, reflect, soak in the hot springs, rest,
rejuvenate, and connect. Through these magical five days, we will
celebrate the vision for our life paths.
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
This retreat welcomes everyone—all recovery, all addictions, family
members, and those who work in the field. There will be something
for everyone, with asana practices ranging from gentle to rocking
vinyasa classes. The meditation sessions will inspire the most novice
to the most seasoned meditator. Please bring a yoga mat.
conducts Vinyasa teacher trainings and programs internationally. His work has been widely featured in television and in print. As a former
US Army Ranger and social worker, Rolf brings his eclectic background to his
teaching and his life. He is the author of Meditations from the Mat.
Roxanne “Nikki” Myers is a yoga therapist, Somatic Experiencing practitioner, certified recovery specialist, and founder of CITYOGA School of Yoga
and Health. Nikki is the co-founder of Y12SR, the Yoga of 12-Step Recovery.
Tommy Rosen is a Vinyasa and Kundalini yoga teacher who focuses on
yoga for addiction recovery. His blogs and articles have appeared in LA Yoga,
Huffington Post, MindBody Online, and The Daily Love. Tommy’s first
book is Recovery 2.0.
Melody Moore, PhD, RYT, is an expert in eating disorder prevention and
recovery. She is the founder of Embody Love Movement, a clinical psychologist, international yoga teacher, author, social entrepreneur, and faculty
member for Off the Mat, Into the World.
Rolf Gates
Unstuck—Turning Towards Transformation
Tanya McGinnity
This transformative course is dedicated to a deep exploration of patterns in relationships with self and others to regain personal power
and radiant life-force. By quieting the mind and raising the awareness
of the body, we can contact, accept, and give meaning to our emotions
and intuition. If the outer world is to be transformed, the process
must begin within. If the inner world is to be transformed, it must be
understood in light of the outer forces that shaped it. Find out what
your current energy leaks are so that you can get unstuck, access your
vitality, boost your self-confidence, and tap into inner calm.
Course activities draw from integral coaching, transactional analysis, breath work, and body awareness, and are designed to address the
following aspects of self-transformation:
• Understanding the roles we play within ourselves and with others
• Discovering who we are in conflict: rescuer, victim, persecutor, or…
• Exploring the five key areas in authentic relationships: giving,
receiving, asking for what you need, saying no, and self-soothing
• Learning how to “get out of the head” through feeling the breath,
body, and those places where energy is stuck
Tanya McGinnity is an international facilitator and coach. Her passion is to
support groups and individuals with cutting-edge tools for self-mastery. Originally from Northern Ireland, she now lives in Barcelona. Tanya also runs
transformation workshops in Barcelona and online groups. She is a qualified
yoga and tai chi instructor.
An Introduction to Esalen® Massage:
The Art of Healing Touch
Carl Swanson & Robin Fann-Costanzo
This workshop is a wonderful opportunity for you to enjoy the beauty
of Big Sur and the healing waters of the Esalen hot springs, while gaining a foundation in the art and practice of Esalen Massage. During
the week, participants will be taught massage methods that address
the whole body: Esalen’s signature long flowing strokes that support
feelings of wholeness, connection, and integration; passive joint movement; and a variety of techniques to work with the major muscles
groups of the body. Each day will include a brief massage demonstration and instruction in various self-care methods, with plenty of time
to practice giving and receiving a massage.
Carl and Robin will work at the tables with each participant to
accommodate the group’s different skill levels. Beginners will be
taught the basic tools and techniques that will allow them to more
skillfully massage their partners, friends, and family. More experienced practitioners will be taught techniques that can easily be integrated into their massage sessions, inspiring and infusing their work
with a deep sense of presence and flow. This workshop is especially
useful for those in the helping and healing professions in working
with their clients and patients. Join us for a week of learning, healing,
nurturing, and play!
yy CE credit for nurses and massage; see page 95.
Carl Swanson is a full-time Esalen® Massage practitioner/instructor and a
yoga instructor. In addition to being a member of the Esalen massage crew, he
has been teaching weekly yoga classes in the Esalen Movement Program since
2004. He teaches massage and yoga workshops at Esalen and abroad.
Robin Fann-Costanzo has a lifelong background in dance and movement.
An Esalen® Massage practitioner, CranioSacral practitioner, and certified
yoga instructor, she has taught and assisted Esalen® Massage trainings, yoga
retreats, and Upledger Institute trainings. www.esaleninstructor.com
Weekend of October 7–9
Getting the Love You Want: A Workshop for Couples
Rick Brown
This workshop is designed to help couples understand at a deeper level
why they were attracted to each other, why they get stuck in endless
power struggles, and how to safely begin to work through those stuck
places toward a safer and more satisfying relationship. Couples share
only with their partner and are able to maintain privacy. Couples are
shown:
• New communication skills to break destructive cycles of relating
• How to channel the energy from arguments to create passion and
stability
• How the unconscious forces that attract partners to each other are
also the source of conflict
• New tools for re-romanticizing their relationship to reestablish the
passion of their early time together
• How to use their relationship for emotional healing and spiritual
evolution
Activities include lectures, written exercises, guided imagery, and
live demonstrations of communication skills and processes. Rick
Brown has been offering this workshop for more than twenty years,
and has appeared on Oprah. The methodology is based on Harville
Hendrix’s best-selling Getting the Love You Want. For more information, visit www.rickbrown.org.
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See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
Please note: This workshop is for couples only.
Recommended reading: Brown, Imago Relationship Therapy; Hendrix, Getting the Love You Want.
($20 materials fee for manuals will be added to the workshop cost)
Rick Brown
bio on page 16.
Color Yourself Calm: Mandalas
Paul Heussenstamm
You Can Heal Your Heart
David Kessler & Paul Denniston
The body remembers pain, and healing resides in the body. After a
loss, we often get stuck in our grief. It is a sacred healing truth that
the pain of loss is inevitable, but suffering is optional. In experiential work, you can—perhaps for the first time—know the end of your
suffering and understand that grief is not only an amazing tool for
healing, but also is an important window that reveals old wounds that
continue to diminish us. This workshop is designed to help you find
ways to heal distorted thinking that is often caused by the conclusions
we make in our hurt and grief.
This is a mind, body, and spirit retreat workshop that will be a
cushion of valuable healing insights for all kinds of grief, including
but not limited to a breakup, betrayal, divorce, or death. In addition,
Paul Denniston will lead a powerful beginning Grief Yoga class. The
workshop is a safe healing space filled with compassion, humor, and
an abundance of love. Please bring a yoga mat if you have one.
Recommended reading: Hay and Kessler, You Can Heal Your Heart;
Kübler-Ross and Kessler, On Grief and Grieving.
David Kessler &
Paul Denniston
Grief is one of the most challenging experience humans
ever encounter. It is easy
to feel isolated and overwhelmed after a relationship
ends, divorce happens, or
the death of a person or pet.
That’s where David Kessler and Paul Denniston come in. Both are potent
teachers who have dedicated themselves to helping people through what can
be the most intense and painful time of their lives.
David is a leading grief expert and author of five best-selling books on
grief and healing, one with Louise Hay and two with Elisabeth Kübler Ross.
One of the ways he begins to help others is to articulate how people deflect,
compare, or minimize their own experiences, and then help them steer themselves toward self-compassion and healing. David has not only studied grief
and of all kinds of loss for decades, he brings his own experience of the death
of his mother at a young age, as well as experience of a losing a home and
witnessing a mass shooting in his childhood. David is a contributing writer
for Oprah, The Huffington Post, and Dr Oz’s ShareCare and EHarmony. He
also founded grief.com.
Paul Denniston combines many forms of yoga to help people release sadness and anger. Through concentrated, gentle stretches, he helps people investigate where pain resides in the mind and body, embrace it, and let it go. Paul
took his own grief after a breakup, as well as grief he ran from, to the yoga
mat for healing. Now Paul teaches therapists around the world, and volunteers at one of the largest hospices in Los Angeles doing monthly grief yoga
classes as well as offering Heart Touch massage to the dying. He also taught
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movement at the Stella Adler Academy in Hollywood, and currently teaches
yoga at Core Power Yoga in Los Angeles.
A mandala is an ancient symbol whose basic form of nesting circles
and squares can represent both the universe and a doorway into the
individual human soul. Come discover the creative, calming, and
healing power of mandalas with Paul Heussenstamm, a painter and
teacher who has been exploring and creating them for twenty-five
years.
Participants will use Paul’s extraordinary mindful coloring books
for adults to gently transform their consciousness into a more centered
and focused awareness. The class will be a thorough introduction to
the transformational possibilities of creating your own mandalas.
This workshop also is an invitation to move away from technology
while you’re at Esalen and after you return home. Adding creativity and art to your life is valuable; once you’ve received the tools and
training, you can be more creative, share mandalas with friends and
children, and enhance your ability to engage your soul through the
creative process. The mandala is a magnificent teacher. No previous
experience necessary.
At the end of the workshop, each participant will take home a set
of four coloring books to continue the calming and transformative
process at home.
Note: Please bring a box of colored pencils and one of Paul Heussenstamm’s Color Yourself Calm coloring books.
comes from a family immersed in art and spirituality.
At 35, he began painting in earnest after a single art class expanded into
a consuming passion, a new profession, and a new perspective on life. He
understands mandalas as psychic maps and symbols of wholeness.
www.mandalas.com
Paul Heussenstamm
Color Yourself Calm: Mandalas — A Closer Look
Paul Heussenstamm is a fourth-generation artist who incorporates
sacred art from many traditions including Buddhism, Hinduism,
and Christianity. He has created more than 800 paintings and now
shares his gift by helping others explore their inner selves through
art.
“We are all circles on the great mandala, and by changing the intensity of color, we clarify the fullness of each circle. Every soul is a circle
with a unique combination of color and intensity. Each circle contains
two individual circles with a delicate membrane between them.” Paul
writes that this belief came through to him in a powerful dream voice
while he was painting in Hawaii.
“It clearly symbolizes the essence of my work as a painter where
soul patterns are colorfully manifested through the ancient symbol
of the mandala,” says Paul. “Mandala means circle or center and it has
literally been around for thousands of years, although not well known
here in the West.
“The mandala, for me, more than any other teacher in this lifetime,
has opened the doorway into the symbolic language of the soul. Once
this language is known, once the doorway into the unconscious has
been opened, once the dynamism of intuitive pattern reading is understood, then life as it is known changes suddenly and dramatically.”
Daniel Bianche t ta
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
Paul is the author of Divine Forces: Art that Awakens the Soul and
coauthor of Color Yourself Calm: A Mindfulness Coloring Book, The Art of
Mandala Meditation: Mandala Designs to Heal Your Mind, and Body and
Spirit Mandala Masterworks: Beauty. Stillness. Presence. His art has been
featured in spiritual and healing centers including Unity in Chicago,
Agape in Santa Monica, and Esalen.
Week of October 9–14
Dancing with Shadow and Light:
An Advanced Yoga Psychology Training
Ashley Turner & Daniel Stewart
Jung. Yoga. Psyche. Soma. Come integrate depth psychology, yoga,
and meditation as a path to self-awakening. This training is designed
for yoga instructors, psychotherapists, health care professionals, and
dedicated students who are ready to discover their authentic voices
and explore the fusion of eastern and western practices as portals for
healing and self-discovery.
Topics will include:
• Jung’s concept of the self and the yogic paradigm of Atman,
Brahman, and Ishvara
• The Hero’s Journey: Jung’s ego–self axis and individuation
• Sattva: Unifying the opposites mind-body, eros-logos, ego-self,
man-spirit
• Embodied Consciousness: Cultivating an embodied mind and a
mindful body
• Intimacy: Relationship as the basis of all consciousness
• Shadow Work: Bringing darkness into light
• Samskaras, kleshas, addiction, and avoidance
• Kriya yoga and Jung’s transcendent function - tools for
transformation
• Chakras as developmental psychology
• Bhakti yoga and kirtan for emotional healing
• Dharma dialogue: Weaving wisdom, philosophy, and psychology
into your teaching or practice
Explore your edge and refine your skills in this safe, nurturing environment. You can leave inspired and rejuvenated, and with
effective, lifelong tools to bring renewed passion to your teaching or
practice.
Note: Registration for this program is through Ashley Turner Yoga
only. To register, visit http://ashleyturner.org/yoga-psychology-training/.
Only after you have registered and paid tuition fees will you be able to
reserve accommodations at Esalen. For accommodations pricing chart,
see www.esalen.org/page/partner-program-pricing.
yy CE credit for yoga teachers through Yoga Alliance (31.5 CEUs).
Please contact the leaders for CE eligibility questions.
is a yoga-meditation instructor, registered marriage and family therapist intern, and writer. She has several best-selling yoga DVDs, is the
co-author of Aroma Yoga, and creator of popular digital programs that fuse
yoga and psychology. www.AshleyTurner.org
Ashley Turner
55
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
Daniel Stewart, LMFT, ERYT 500, is an acclaimed yoga-meditation
Barral Institute’s Visceral Manipulation 1
teacher, mind-body psychotherapist, kirtan leader, and the co-owner of Rising
Lotus Yoga in Los Angeles, Calif. Daniel leads innovative yoga and psychology
trainings. www.danielstewart.com
Dee Dettmann Ahern
Paul Heussenstamm
The practice of painting is healing and meditative. No experience is
necessary as we transform our everyday consciousness into the inner
artist that lives in each of us. The week is designed to introduce the
possibility that you are an artist, and that the artist path is one of joy,
insight, and awareness. It’s amazing that in just a few days, you can
finish a colorful painting that reveals many of the deep inner patterns that connect you with your soul. After seeing mandalas made
during Paul’s workshop, Eckhart Tolle commented, “These paintings
carry a healing presence.” Deepak Chopra said, “These paintings
are archetypal manifestations of higher consciousness.” After the
workshop, you will have the foundation for painting sacred art and
mandalas at home, as you continue on this path of self-discovery and
the newfound relationship to art and your soul.
Recommended reading: Heussenstamm, Divine Forces: Art that
Awakens the Soul and Color Yourself Calm.
($50 materials fee will be added to the workshop cost)
Paul Heussenstamm
bio on page 54.
The Art Barn serves as a venue
for a broad spectrum of workshops
including: painting, drawing, ceramics,
metal working, wood turning, stone
carving, and textile arts.
56
yy CE credit for nurses and massage; see page 95. CE credit for
acupuncturists and physical therapists in CA; see leader.
Dee Dettman Ahern, RPT, has been a manual physical therapist since 1978
and has studied with The Upledger Institute since 1984. A practitioner of
Visceral Manipulation since 1987 and a teacher since 1994, she teaches and
speaks internationally for the Barral Institute.
Daniel Bianche t ta
Art as a Spiritual Path: Paintings that Awaken the Soul
In this course, you will be introduced to the models and concepts of
functional biomechanics as viewed from Jean-Pierre Barral’s Visceral
Manipulation approach. This method of evaluation and treatment
is based on the concept that each of our internal organs rotates on a
physiological axis. Focus is on the abdominal cavity and includes the
organs, their membranes, ligaments, innervation, and their spatial
functional interrelationships. You will be taught basic manipulations
for correcting abnormal motions and stress patterns within this cavity. The manual techniques are not advised for pregnant participants.
Note: Registration for this workshop is through the International
Alliance of Healthcare Educators (IAHE) only. IAHE is a coalition
of curriculum developers united to advance innovative therapies
through high-quality continuing education programs. To register,
please call 1-800-311-9204. Only after you have registered with IAHE
and paid tuition fees will you be able to reserve accommodations at
Esalen. For accommodations pricing chart, see www.esalen.org/page/
partner-program-pricing.
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
The Path of the Wisdompreneur: Shifting the Paradigm
Alison Raby & Paul Zelizer
The most powerful resource humans possess is attention—the capacity
to direct and concentrate the mind on ideas, questions, and innovation. Our modern work lives can be so busy that we gloss over this
fundamental fact. But what if we slowed down to hone and deepen the
quality of our attention, and give ourselves better tools to expand our
capacity for achievement and success?
Fortunately, there is an explosion of global interest in waking up at
work, and Wisdompreneurs is at the forefront of this nexus of transformation, innovation, and entrepreneurship. An international community
of more than 10,000 people, Wisdompreneurs exists to help wisdombased practitioners succeed in business, and to help entrepreneurs
incorporate wisdom practices into their lives and their organizations.
During the workshop, facilitators will guide attendees through
a combination of experiential and interactive exercises, guided
practices, practical tools, and personal exploration. This workshop
will provide participants with tools and resources to cultivate wisdom
practices, sustain creative potential, transcend troubling business
obstacles, create collaboration, build an inclusive mindset, tap into
inner wisdom and intuition, and create true social impact. Ultimately,
participants will also cultivate an increased sense of awareness,
empowering them to move the needle in every aspect of their lives
and affect global systemic change.
Please note: Registration for this workshop is through Wisdompreneurs only. To register, visit www.wisdompreneurs.com/esalenapplication.
Only after you have registered with Wisdompreneurs and paid tuition
will you be able to reserve accommodations at Esalen. For accommodations pricing chart, see www.esalen.org/page/partner-program-pricing.
Alison Raby founded and runs Mariposa Search, a retained executive search
firm dedicated to diversity, inclusion, and socially-conscious business. She is
the co-founder, CTO, and chief alchemist of Wisdompreneurs, and former
volunteer coordinator for Wisdom 2.0.
Paul Zelizer is one of the first business coaches to focus specifically on the needs
of wisdom entrepreneurs. He is the co-founder and chief weirdness officer of
Wisdompreneurs and the former director of social media for Wisdom 2.0.
The Path of the Wisdompreneur —A Closer Look
Alison Raby first came to Esalen when she was eight years old. “As a
child at Gazebo Park School, Esalen’s outdoor preschool, I felt a sense
of possibility and freedom that I’d never had before,” Alison said.
Those early memories stayed with her, but she returned to Esalen
under very different circumstances. “When I was seventeen my father
died. Ten years later, so did my partner.” Grieving, Alison signed up for
a Gestalt Awareness Practice (GAP) workshop with Christine Price,
who was carrying on and evolving the work of Esalen co-founder
Richard Price. “As the days unfolded, I started to unfreeze, to open;
not only to [Chris’s] teachings but once again to the place itself.” She
continued to study, heal, and learn at Esalen as a workshop participant,
Work Scholar, and on the grounds crew.
“Everything I learned at Esalen leaked into my professional life. I
had always been in two worlds: The business world as an entrepreneur
and in the personal development world through my work at Esalen.
The realization that these two worlds need not be separate was an a-ha!
moment for me.
“In 2013, I met Paul Zelizer, and we both knew that there was
a movement happening that we wanted to support and help move
forward.” Together, Paul and Alison co-founded Wisdompreneurs to
unite entrepreneurship with social responsibility and wisdom practices. Wisdompreneurs is now a diverse online community of 12,000+
members worldwide, and local groups in more than a dozen cities.
“From early on, we envisioned retreats at Esalen,” said Paul. “When
I came for the first time it was a magical and deeply healing experience: The food, the ocean, the baths, the open-hearted people, the
consciously built spaces. Now, we are bringing Wisdompreneurs
programming to this sacred place and I can’t imagine a better setting.”
The Wisdompreneurs Esalen workshop integrates wisdom and
awareness practices with innovative tools to increase creativity, transcend business obstacles, and deepen collaboration.
Weekend of October 14–16
Esalen’s 13th Annual Benefit Weekend
Join the Friends of Esalen in a Benefit Weekend celebrating gratitude as an expression of renewal. The festivities begin with a ribboncutting ceremony for the newly renovated Lodge. The weekend will
include several mini-workshops exploring various ways to harness
our human potential. Along with exciting keynote speakers and
performers, we will also celebrate Esalen Prize recipients Ken and
Maddy Dychtwald and Spirit of Esalen Award recipients Terry
Hunt and Marion Hunt. A renewal donation will be added to the
cost of the weekend. Please visit our website for more information:
www.esalen.org/2016benefitweekend.
Weekend of October 21–23
Into the Fire: The Sun Celebrates Personal Writing
Sy Safransky, Krista Bremer, Chris Dombrowski, Alison Luterman,
Heather Sellers & Sparrow
To write about ourselves in a way that touches others and reminds
them of our fundamental connectedness, we must be willing to take a
leap—with all our passion, fear, and longing—into the fire.
Since 1974, The Sun has published the kind of brave, revealing writing
that lives up to the magazine’s motto: “What is to give light must
endure burning.” We invite you to join Sun readers and contributors—
including Krista Bremer, Chris Dombrowski, Alison Luterman,
Heather Sellers, Sparrow, and editor and publisher Sy Safransky—for a
weekend of celebrating the written word. The authors will lead
exercises geared to bring forth the best in your essays, short stories,
and poems. There’s also a Readers Write session to help get your pen
moving. The weekend will include readings by the authors and Sy
Safransky.
You don’t have to think of yourself as a “writer” to attend, because
the best part of a Sun gathering is getting to meet people who appreciate the magazine’s compassionate, unflinching view of the world as
much as you do. We hope you’ll join us.
57
Daniel Bianche t ta
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
The Sun is offering four full scholarships to writers (the application
deadline is August 5). Please visit www.thesunmagazine.org for details.
A large enrollment is expected; we recommend registering soon.
is editor and publisher of The Sun.
is the author of A Tender Struggle: Story of a Marriage
and the recipient of a Pushcart Prize. Her essays have appeared in The New
York Times Magazine, O: The Oprah Magazine, and elsewhere.
Chris Dombrowski lives in Missoula, Montana, where he directs the
Beargrass Writing Retreat and the 406 Writers’ Workshop. He is the author
of two full-length collections of poems and his debut nonfiction book, Body of
Water, is forthcoming in 2016.
Alison Luterman is the author of three poetry books—The Largest Possible
Life, See How We Almost Fly, and Desire Zoo—and one e-book of essays.
She teaches creative writing at the Writing Salon and at workshops around
the country.
Sparrow’s poems have appeared in The New Yorker and The New York
Times, and he’s the author of America: A Prophecy—The Sparrow Reader.
He lives with his wife, Violet, in a doublewide trailer in Phoenicia, New York.
Sy Safransky
Krista Bremer
Week of October 23–28
Healing Art of Deep Bodywork:
Healing the Back, Hips and Shoulders
Perry Holloman & Johanna Holloman
Deep bodywork, practiced with great sensitivity, is one of the most
effective healing modalities available to the bodywork practitioner.
Through slowly opening the body’s deeper soft tissue layers, we connect the mind to normally unconscious, “stuck” areas of the physical
body, which can release enormous amounts of previously held energy.
This energy in turn becomes available to support the body’s innate
capacity to self-organize and self-heal, enabling practitioners to support clients in overcoming previously stubborn, seemingly intractable
physical conditions.
This program, designed for professional massage and bodywork
practitioners, will focus on exploring the modality of deep bodywork
58
as a healing art, and is designed for practitioners who seek to incorporate effective deep tissue techniques into their work. Whether in
private practice or working in a spa, the demand for practitioners who
have mastered the art of moving deeply into the body with skill and
sensitivity is growing.
Our areas of focus will include relieving chronic and acute pain in
the back, and around the major joints of the shoulder and hip. We will
spend time learning to recognize how to feel soft tissue lesions with
our hands wherever we find them, and learn why, at physiological and
energetic levels, competent deep bodywork needs to be done slowly to
be most effective.
The teachers will be available to answer questions of specific interest to students as they arise during our practice sessions. Professional
massage experience is highly recommended for this advanced level
class. Please visit www.deepbodywork.com for more information.
Recommended viewing: (DVD) Deep Bodywork I: Healing the Back,
Shoulders and Hips, available at www.deepbodywork.com.
yy CE credit for nurses, massage, and acupuncturists; see page 95.
Perry Holloman has been a teacher and practitioner of Esalen® Massage,
Deep Bodywork, and body-oriented approaches to Gestalt work for more
than 20 years. He teaches in the US, Asia, and Europe, and makes his home
in Big Sur, Calif. www.deepbodywork.com
Johanna Holloman is a German-born clinical psychologist, Diamond
Approach® teacher, and certified Esalen® Massage and Deep Bodywork
instructor, teaching at Esalen and internationally. She is a yoga teacher
(E-RYT 500) and created the Esalen In-house Yoga training program.
www.deepbodywork.com
The Breath as a Tool of Transition: Yoga in Our Daily Lives
Thomas Michael Fortel
The long, slow, conscious breath has the ability to stabilize and quiet
the fluctuations of the mind. Concurrently, the breath can act as a
medium through which we are able to connect to the formless dimension of being, to the invisible realms of spirit and soul. Whether we
are in the yoga room, changing jobs, or dealing with a shadow facet of
ourselves, the conscious breath can serve as an amazing tool of transi-
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
tion—it can calm us down in the corridors of change. We practice
the breath in pranayama and asana practice and become mindful
of the potential to integrate conscious breathing in our daily lives.
What begins as a support for calming the mind and nervous system
becomes an open door to the possibility of change and transition, on a
personal and a collective level.
This is the theme and focus for our week of yoga retreat. Our
mornings will begin with meditation and pranayama, leading into
mid-morning active yoga practice. We’ll gather in the afternoons at
various places on the Esalen property to observe the natural forces of
nature, and then return to our yoga room for twists, forward bends,
and restorative poses. Anyone with a minimum of three months of
yoga experience is welcome. Please bring a yoga mat.
Thomas Michael Fortel
bio on page 38.
Using lecture, video, discussion, creative process, and deeply embodied experiential play, we will weave scientific findings together with
wisdom from the world’s spiritual traditions and your own authoritative wisdom to explore deep shifts in consciousness, and how they can
be integrated into everyday life.
yy CE credit for MFTs & LCSWs and psychologists; see page 95.
Cassandra Vieten, PhD, is president and CEO of the Institute of Noetic
Sciences, a scientist at California Pacific Medical Center, and a licensed clinical psychologist. She is an international speaker and workshop leader, and
co-wrote Living Deeply: The Art and Science of Transformation in
Everyday Life. www.noetic.org
Painting the Outer and Inner Landscape
Adam Wolpert
Michaela Boehm
The Wild Woman is an archetype that represents a connection with
our “wildish” nature. This is the part of us that connects to the earth,
feels the movement of tides and stars, submerges in the waters, and
dances through realms of mystery. This is the part of each woman
that intuitively knows. Our wildish nature is unique in each of us;
no two women feel it alike. Yet, we all yearn to be more, move more,
feel more, and be fuller and more passionate. This experiential
course is a chance to discover who your Wild Woman really is, and
how she expresses herself. Through exercises, movement, dance,
immersion in the Esalen baths, and art, you can discover how you
express yourself as a woman and experience a deepening of your
relationship to yourself and those around you. This workshop is for
women only.
creates a dynamic experiential teaching style that combines 15 years of experience as a counselor with her in-depth training in the
yogic arts. She teaches artful intimacy and polarity with David Deida.
www.michaelaboehm.com
Michaela Boehm
Living Deeply: The Art and Science of Transformation
Cassandra Vieten
We are each always changing, always growing. But sometimes we
encounter moments or periods of life that are so potent, and so full
of potential, that they transform our consciousness, fundamentally shifting our worldview, our motives and priorities, and how
we relate to ourselves, others, and the world. Where we have been
limited, we expand. We become more open, balanced, and aligned
with our true values. Compassion for self and others arises more
naturally.
For more than a decade, research at the Institute of Noetic Sciences
has examined how these transformations happen and how they can
lead to greater meaning, joy, and purpose. No matter who you are,
where you come from, or what your current transformative path is—
whether you seek to transform your life completely or simply make
adjustments to add richness and depth—learning more about the
terrain of consciousness transformation can not only give you a map,
but also can help you become the cartographer of your own journey.
Painting can be a profound experience—one that engages all of our
senses, our minds, and our spirits. It brings together observation
with introspection, contemplation, and healing. One of the most
rewarding ways to explore painting is by painting outside. Faced with
nature’s dynamic forces, we develop visual sensitivity, flexibility, and
resilience. We come into deeper relationship with nature and with
ourselves. We begin to see the world as never before, and our paintings
give evidence of that new vision.
This workshop invites both beginners and experienced painters
to immerse themselves in the practice of oil painting. Daily sessions
will be devoted to painting out of doors as well as doing exercises in
the studio. Basic oil technique, instruction in setting up a palette, mixing colors, and brushwork will be balanced with slide presentations.
Workshop participants will learn from individual instruction and
each other as they share their paintings and experiences in a supportive environment. The spectacular beauty of Esalen, with its radiant
gardens, flowing waters, and rugged coastline, provides the perfect
setting to explore this exciting practice.
You may supply your own materials (material list provided upon
registration) or course materials can be provided for you with a $125
materials fee that will be added to the workshop cost.
is a painter, facilitator, teacher, and art program director at
the Occidental Arts and Ecology Center (www.oaec.org) in Sonoma County,
Calif. He has offered workshops and exhibited extensively throughout California. www.adamwolpert.com
Adam Wolpert
jens wa zel
The Wild Woman’s Way: Embodied Feminine Practice
59
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
Weekend of October 28–30
Zero Balancing Open Forum
Fritz Smith
This weekend is an opportunity for people practicing Zero Balancing to
reconnect with Fritz Smith, with Zero Balancing, and with each other.
“It is critically important,” says Fritz, “to periodically meet with
like-minded people and to openly, freely, and safely discuss problems,
insights, and successes of your work—in this case, the leading-edge
therapy of balancing energy and structure.”
The workshop’s agenda will vary with the needs of those who
attend, but will focus on personal nurturing and recharging, and will
include giving and receiving sessions, refining touch, honing the ZB
protocol, observing demos by Fritz, and looking at the newer emerging possibilities of ZB. Come and rekindle your sense of belonging, of
not being isolated in the world.
Recommended reading: Smith, The Alchemy of Touch and Inner
Bridges; Hamwee, Zero Balancing.
yy CE credit for nurses and massage; see page 95.
Fritz Smith
bio on page 35.
The Yoga of Deep Intimacy
Michaela Boehm
Whether you are starting an intimate relationship or want to deepen
passion with your partner, the principles of Intimacy and Polarity—
the spark that keeps passion alive—are always available to deepen your
experience. The process of cultivating masculine purpose and feminine love-light is the basis of passionate relating and deeper intimacy.
In this experiential course, you will be shown the building blocks,
practices, and disciplines of creating deeper connections in your life.
During this weekend together you can:
• Learn about the principles of creating and deepening passion and
intimacy
• Understand the difference in offerings of the feminine and
masculine, and the distinct gifts they bring to intimacy
• Discover how to bring your partner into his or her essence and
induce the play of polarity even after a day at work
• Explore new ways of bringing depth and excitement into your loving
• Bring home skills and tools for intimate connection
Note: This weekend workshop is open to singles and couples of
any sexual orientation. Participants should be prepared for extensive
experiential practice. Sex and nudity are not involved.
Michaela Boehm
bio on page 59.
Search Inside Yourself
Gopi Kallayil & Mirabai Bush
How can the modern workplace become a source of inner peace and
global transformation? During this workshop, Mirabai Bush and
Gopi Kallayil will explore why and how organizations such as Google
teach mindfulness and emotional intelligence skills and offer yoga
programs at work. These wellness initiatives are offered through inno60
vative experiential learning programs such as Search Inside Yourself
(SIY) and Yoglers. The SIY curriculum and methodology is based on
the realization that the solutions to many of our problems lie within
ourselves, and that by practicing mindfulness at work, we can become
more emotionally intelligent, recover from adversity more easily and
swiftly, and create possibilities for ourselves and our organizations to
flourish. Building on these ideas and best practices, participants can
learn how to create a community of mindfulness in their workplaces.
Participants will be taught contemplative practices including
methods designed for the workplace, like mindful emailing and
mindful listening. At work, these methods have been shown to
enhance mental fitness and clarity, develop agile and adaptive mindsets, reduce stress responses, increase resilience, enhance creativity, develop greater self-awareness and communication skills, and
increase overall well-being. This workshop is designed for individuals and also for workplace managers.
Gopi Kallayil &
Mirabai Bush
Esalen inspires mind/body/
spirit integration. But how
do you bring what you’ve
learned back to your everyday routines? The idea of a
mindful, emotionally centered work life is especially
difficult for many to imagine, but what better place to practice an integrated
life than at work, where we constantly collaborate with others and encounter
emotions ranging from stress to success?
Gopi Kallayil and Mirabai Bush have teamed up to inspire and guide
you toward just such integration at work. “What’s essential to realize is that
you don’t need to withdraw from the outer world in order to create a peaceful
space in your inner world,” Gopi writes in his new book, The Internet to the
Innernet: Five Ways to Reset Your Connection and Live a Conscious
Life. “We tend to think, I have my work life. Then I have my spiritual life.
But the same person with the same body shows up everywhere.”
Gopi Kallayil is an avid yoga practitioner, triathlete, public speaker, and
Burning Man devotee. He also happens to be Chief Evangelist for Brand
Marketing at Google. Mirabai Bush is a pioneer at the intersection of mindfulness, social healing, and organizational wellness. She co-founded the Center for Contemplative Mind in Society and co-created Search Inside Yourself,
a wellness program born at Google that uses the practices of mindfulness to
train emotional intelligence skills, leading to resilience, positive mindset, and
centered leadership. “Mindfulness really increases our attention and takes
us beyond distraction,” said Mirabai. “Distraction keeps us from being productive, and I think it leads us to not look deeply at situations, to stay at the
superficial level. Mindfulness will help us stay focused on what really matters
and help us make better decisions for the future.”
Together, Gopi and Mirabai offer a leading-edge experience designed to
help you utilize your innate capacities for wellness at work.
The Workshop of Doing and Being:
Rediscovering Creativity in Life, Love and Work
Barnet Bain
Come unlock the raw power of the creative self. By sharing leadingedge creativity principles and practices, Barnet Bain offers a map for
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
stepping beyond what we already know into a dimension of imagination from which innovation is born. Working from practical exercises
and techniques, discover how the dynamic qualities of will and action
come together with the receptive qualities of imagination and feeling to open up reservoirs of creativity, whether it’s in jumpstarting a
project, launching a new business, creating a work of art, experiencing more fulfilling relationships, or making other dreams come true.
Bain’s unique approach includes an exploration of these processes:
• Rewiring your brain to unleash ultra creativity
• Finding freedom from self-criticism, perfectionism, and other
obstructions to productivity and creative expression
• Harnessing the two forces of creativity: inspiration and action
• Discovering your emotions as the doorway to aliveness and
ingenuity
• Heeding the call of your Real Work, regardless of age, education, or
experience
• Seeing your whole life as a creative act
Step by step, you can discover how to stop being created by your
past and start consciously creating your present and future.
Recommended reading: Bain, The Third Story and The Book of Doing
and Being.
is an award-winning Hollywood producer and director, radio
personality, and creativity expert. He is a member of the Transformational
Leadership Council, founding member of the affiliated Association of Trans-
Introduction to Gestalt
Michael Clemmens
“We develop relationships with ourselves and others through the
physicality of our vision, smell, touch, and movement,” says Michael
Clemmens. “These relationships, or dances, shape what we believe is
possible and how we behave in the present. In this program, our focus
will be on the ways in which we create relationships through our
bodies. By attending to our present dance with others, we can become
more aware of our existing context and optional ways of interacting.
“The structure of the program will be experiential exercises,
practice sessions, and group discussion to develop our awareness of
self and the group. We will begin with our earliest movements (prior
to birth) and then explore how we co-create our bodily membership
in the more complex gestalts of family, groups, and cultures. Our goals
will be to experience how we create relationships through embodiment, and to develop skills in attending to ourselves and others.”
Michael Craig Clemmens, PhD, is a psychologist and trainer in Pittsburgh,
Pa. He is a faculty member of the Gestalt Institute of Cleveland and teaches at
the Metanoia Institute in London, and at Esalen. He is the author of Getting
Beyond Sobriety, and numerous articles on Gestalt therapy, body process,
and addiction.
richard tauber
Barnet Bain
formational Leaders, and author of The Book of Doing and Being (forthcoming, Simon & Schuster, 2015). www.barnetbain.com
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See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
Week of October 30–November 4
Regenerative Leadership: Attunement, Relational
Mindfulness and Deep Listening
Nina Simons & Deborah Eden Tull
By turning to nature’s wisdom and the teachings of interconnection
and oneness, we can find the tools, guidance, and clarity to embody an
emergent paradigm of leadership and engaged action, one that calls us
to bring greater presence to all of our relationships—with ourselves,
one another, and our world.
During this deeply restorative retreat, we will explore the leadership of interconnection through meditation, relational mindfulness,
deep time in nature, reflective writing, experiential practices, and
embodied learning. In this age of global transformation, we have
tremendous opportunity for accelerating change in ourselves and so
in the world.
What if attunement, relational awareness, and deep listening are
leadership’s most essential qualities for today’s world? If so, this is
an opportunity to learn how to lead from our whole selves. We can
exercise the wisdom of the feminine and masculine in balance, and
the commitment to personal sustainability and accountability that are
necessary to cultivate our own well-being and global sustainability.
This workshop is for passionate, engaged leaders of all kinds, and
change agents who seek to do the inner and outer work at the same
time, and thus gracefully embody regenerative leadership while bringing themselves purposefully, lovingly, and whole-heartedly to life.
Deborah Eden Tull &
Nina Simons
For decades, Eden Tull has
been asking herself the question, “How can I cultivate
more peace and sustainability in my life and help
others do the same?” This
question has led her on a
journey from city to farm and back many times, to sustainable communities around the world, to the life of a Zen monk, and now to a career as a
meditation and mindfulness teacher, writer, sustainability consultant, and
activist. Recently, she founded Mindful Living Revolution, an educational
network of thousands of people connected by a desire to change the world
from the inside out.
In 2010, Eden met Bioneers cofounder, social entrepreneur, and visionary thinker Nina Simons at a women’s permaculture conference. Immediately, they recognized a mutual passion and deep orientation toward a new
paradigm of leadership. According to Nina and Eden, “We drove together
down the glorious California coast, resonating like tuning forks. We envisioned co-creating an experiential transformative retreat. Our intention
was to create the conditions for people to evolve in dimensional and joyful
ways, while contributing to a diverse, equitable, verdant and peaceful future
on Earth. We agreed that we would work together, and have waited until
the time felt right. Now, as social and ecological upheaval are accelerating
globally, we’re elated to invite people to immerse yourselves in the regenerative nature of sacred relationship—with ourselves, each other and the
Earth.”
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Sharing Your Life Story: For the Page and the Stage
Ann Randolph
This is an invitation for you to discover your own unique and powerful story and the profound transformation that occurs when you
speak it out loud. You’ll learn how to trust your creative impulses, thus
embracing all of who you are. By becoming the author of your own
life and learning how to tell your own story, you will not only learn
to craft your experience into a compelling narrative, but you will also
unleash a sense of purpose in your own life that you never thought
possible. Through improvisation, writing exercises, and group discussion, you can cultivate a fearlessness in speaking your truth.
Ann Randolph creates a supportive, fun, and dynamic space in
which to create. All levels are welcome. This is a workshop for those
seeking to explore personal essay, memoir, solo performance, or the
sacred practice of journaling.
Topics include:
• Writing exercises to stimulate memory
• Learning to structure the narrative in a compelling way
• Discovering ways to create spontaneously
• Overcoming performance anxiety
• Utilizing tools to release yourself from the inner critic
• Transforming your ideas/stories into performance
Recommended reading: Pressfield, War of Art.
Ann Randolph is an award-winning writer, performer, and educator. Her
Off-Broadway hit, Squeezebox, was produced by Mel Brooks, and her current show, Loveland, just received Best Solo Show awards in Los Angeles and
San Francisco. Her personal essays have aired on NPR, BBC, and the Moth.
www.annrandolph.com
Stillness in Motion: Zen Practice and Wild Goose Qigong
Robert Rosenbaum
By combining Dayan (Wild Goose) Qigong with Zen Buddhist sitting
meditation, we can cultivate a way to realize each moment with our
whole body-and-mind.
In Zen we return to stillness and find there is movement at its
heart. In qigong we move energy in flowing streams that are grounded
in the earth and embraced by the sky. Participants in this workshop
will be shown the first set of Dayan Qigong, an especially comprehensive qigong which includes warm-up exercises, acupressure massage,
meditation, and a set of sixty-four flowing movements that remove
energy blockages and facilitate healthy energy flow in the acupuncture meridians. We will practice shikantaza (“just sitting”) Soto Zen
meditation as well as Taoist qigong meditation. We will explore the
foundations of these practices by studying verses from the Tao Te
Ching and Zen sutras.
By integrating Zen and qigong, participants can learn how to
approach each moment with effortless effort, using specific practices
so that even in the midst of busy daily activities, we all can find the
gateways to great ease and joy.
Recommended reading and viewing: Rosenbaum, Walking the Way:
81 Zen Encounters with the Tao Te Ching; Liu, Dayan Qigong: An Ancient
Health System for Today’s Modern Life; Dayan Qigong: First Set (DVD).
yy CE credit pending for acupuncturists; see page 95.
Daniel Bianche t ta
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
Robert Meikyo Rosenbaum, PhD, is entrusted as a lay Zen teacher by
Sojun Roshi, and a senior teacher of Dayan Qigong authorized by Master
Hui Liu. He has 30 years of experience as a neuropsychologist and psychotherapist. His most recent book is Walking the Way: 81 Zen Encounters
with the Tao Te Ching. www.zenqigong.com
After this weekend, you can take home tools you can use to dream a
better world, and better health, into being.”
Alberto Villoldo, PhD, is a medical anthropologist and psychologist who
studied the spiritual practices of the Amazon and the Andes for more than
30 years. While at San Francisco State University, he founded the Biological
Self-Regulation Laboratory. He is a best-selling author and founder of the The
Four Winds Society. www.thefourwinds.com
Weekend of November 4–6
Gratitude, Love and Easiness
One Spirit Medicine: The Mind of God,
the Brain of Man, the Heart of the Shaman
Alberto Villoldo
Are you ready to create a life filled with joy, prosperity, and peace?
“Shamans from South America learned how to wire the brain for
bliss,” Four Winds Society founder Alberto Villoldo writes. “They
called it One-Spirit medicine. They discovered that the heart was the
passageway between the visible and invisible world. They mastered
a path of power and wisdom based on the practice of dreaming the
world into being.
“It is simple: You dream your world or settle for the nightmare
dreamed by others. You dream health, and disease goes away. You
dream peace, and conflict ends.
“In this workshop, you will be shown how to upgrade the brain
through diet and nutrition so it is in service to the heart. You will
learn about cutting-edge neuroscience and ancient shamanic wisdom.
Janet Stone
“We gather at Esalen for a weekend to remember—with our bodies,
minds, and spirits—all that we have to be grateful for,” Janet Stone
writes. “This experience includes yoga, reflection, renewal, soaking in
the healing baths, walking on Esalen property, and detoxifying the
body, mind, and spirit. Before you step into the swirl of the holidays
this year, give yourself the gift of looking within. Immerse yourself in
a dynamic ritual of asana, pranayama, chanting, meditation, and yoga
nidra. Let’s recognize each breath as a gift, as we’re nourished by delicious organic meals, the natural hot springs, walks among the majestic
redwoods, or simply curling up in an ocean-view chair. Whether you
come alone or with loved ones you are sure to return to your daily
rhythm with a newfound sense of ease, inspiration, and deep gratitude
for the life you’re living.” Please bring a yoga mat.
Janet Stone
bio on page 46.
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See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
C all for Photos
Do you have a favorite photograph of Esalen? Please share
website, or in our eNews. Photos need to be at least 240 dpi.
Visit Esalen.org/page/call-photos.
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Daniel Bianche t ta
with us and it could be featured in the next catalog, on our
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
Week of November 6–11
Barral Institute’s Visceral Manipulation 2
Dee Dettmann Ahern
In this course, you will begin with a review of functional anatomy,
hand placements, and manipulations that were covered in Visceral
Manipulation: Abdomen 1, followed by additional concepts and techniques. Emphasis is on the kidneys, greater momentum, peritoneum,
spleen, and pancreas. See Visceral Manipulation 1, offered October
9-14, for more information.
Note: Registration for this workshop is through the International
Alliance of Healthcare Educators (IAHE) only. IAHE is a coalition
of curriculum developers united to advance innovative therapies
through high-quality continuing education programs. To register,
please call 1-800-311-9204. Only after you have registered with IAHE
and paid tuition fees will you be able to reserve accommodations at
Esalen. For accommodations pricing chart, see www.esalen.org/page/
partner-program-pricing.
yy CE credit for massage, acupuncturists and physical therapists in CA;
see leader. CE credit for nurses; see page 95.
Dee Dettman Ahern, RPT, has been a manual physical therapist since 1978
and has studied with The Upledger Institute since 1984. A practitioner of
Visceral Manipulation since 1987 and a teacher since 1994, she teaches and
speaks internationally for the Barral Institute.
Songwriting from the Heart—Progressing on the Journey
Johnsmith & Julie Baker
Come take your seat among other songwriters as we work to refine our
songwriting tools. We will go beyond the basic nuts and bolts of the
craft, working to take our skills to the next level. Get ready to develop
the ability to translate our own life stories into well-crafted, heartfelt
songs. Through writing exercises, song assignments, performances,
co-writing, and demonstrations, the inner muse will be coaxed and
cultivated. In a safe, supportive, fun workshop climate, we’ll share and
receive constructive feedback on our works in progress. Join us to discover and expand our boundaries and edges around the songwriting
process, to bridge inspiration and craft. At week’s end the group will
share its songs, new and old, with the Esalen community.
This workshop is for individuals who have experience in songwriting and are working on refining their musical voice. You should have
written some songs and be able to perform them from memory prior
to attending this workshop. Bring your musical instrument and dress
casually—we will do some dancing and moving. There will also be evening jams. Simple recording devices are strongly encouraged. Bring an
open heart and a curious mind.
Johnsmith has been writing heartfelt songs for more than 30 years. He’s won
national awards and contests, was a staff songwriter in Nashville, and has
recorded 6 CDs. He’s taught songwriting workshops nationwide, and has
been featured on NPR’s “New Dimensions.”
Julie Baker is a psychotherapist specializing in empowerment of the individual’s authentic voice, recovery from substance abuse, and navigation of life
transitions. She works with creative process as an expression of one’s inner
landscape. She has a private practice in Marin County, Calif.
Dreamgates: Exploring the Worlds of Soul, Imagination
and Life Beyond Death
Robert Moss
In this high adventure in Active Dreaming, you’ll be encouraged to
remember and live the deeper story of your life. This workshop is an
invitation to explore a deeper reality:
• You are here in this world on a mission
• You had a life before you were conceived, and you’ll have a life after
death
• You have counterparts in other times and in alternate realities
• You can visit the Other Side, have timely and helpful
communication with the departed, and make Death your ally
instead of your fear
• You can navigate by synchronicity (coincidence is when the
universe gets personal)
This is the way to dream 24/7. You’ll be taught practical methods
that can bring energy, guidance, and healing from deeper reality into
everyday life. You can discover how to project consciousness safely
beyond the body, how to open gates between the worlds—and how to
close them when necessary. You’ll be invited to rise to the knowledge
of the Higher Self. And we’ll all have wonderful fun, as we grow the
group energy that makes the extraordinary easy, and play creative
games and develop spontaneous rituals to honor our experiences
together.
Recommended reading: Moss, Dreamgates, Active Dreaming, and
Sidewalk Oracles.
Robert Moss is the creator of Active Dreaming, an original synthesis of
dreamwork and shamanism. His many books include Conscious Dreaming, Dreamgates, The Secret History of Dreaming, and Sidewalk
Oracles. He leads popular online courses for The Shift Network.
www.mossdreams.com
Dance of Oneness® : Radiant Balance
Banafsheh Sayyad with Tony Khalife
Overwhelmed, stressed out, tired, and struggling? Do you want to
shift into a dynamic, joyous, and energetic way of being that lasts?
Explore the balance between physicality and Spirit, your feminine
and masculine energies, being and doing. Center yourself with
empowering movement that connects you to the core of your being
and allows you to soften and open to the wisdom of your heart and
inner guidance.
Through an introduction to experiential anatomy, physiology, and
meridian theory including vital acupressure points, we invite you to
become more familiar with the miracle that you are, and integrate
your mind and body in a sacred union.
Join Banafsheh and Tony in a weaving of dance, live music, whirling, yoga, taiji, free-style movement, meditation, chanting, the poetry
of Rumi, wisdom teachings from the East and West, a sharing circle,
and lots of laughter. In this workshop, you will be taught invaluable
practical everyday tools to passionately live your full potential and
access peace and joy in any circumstance as you get into physical,
emotional, and mental vitality. This workshop is open to everyone,
and includes a performance and ecstatic dance celebration.
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See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
Banafsheh Sayyad, MFA, LAc,
is a Persian sacred dance artist, transformational teacher, and licensed acupuncturist. She is the founder of the
pioneering synthesis of embodied spirituality known as Dance of Oneness®
which beckons ALL to exalt. She teaches and performs worldwide.
www.banafsheh.org
Embodied Anatomy and Movement in Esalen® Massage
Peggy Horan & Vicki Topp
No one is ever competent enough, nor is any technique effective enough.
It is only the continuing growth of the practitioner that can guarantee
competence and effectiveness.
—Thomas Hanna
This advanced bodywork course is a continuation of the Esalen Massage journey. We will explore the relationship between sensitive and
structural touch and the balance between skeletal and organ support.
These concepts will open a deeper experience of embodiment for
both giver and receiver. The experiential knowledge translates to the
massage table bringing depth, detail, and presence into the bodywork
session. Self-care for the practitioner will also be highlighted.
The creative concepts and techniques learned in this workshop can
easily be integrated into your personal bodywork style. Sessions will
be devoted to embodied anatomy experiments and focus on massage
applications, with ample time to synthesize the new materials.
Side-lying work and other alternate client positions will be
introduced to aid in developing additional ways to address special
needs situations, such as pregnancy and working with the elderly.
These skills will enable practitioners to increase their ease in working
with diverse clientele. Sessions may include opportunities to discuss
theoretical issues and problem areas in your practice. Come prepared
to move and be moved in this extraordinary environment on this
journey of physical, emotional, and spiritual embodiment.
This workshop is also useful for those in the helping and healing
professions in working with their clients and patients.
yy CE credit for nurses and massage; see page 95.
has been practicing and teaching massage at Esalen for
more than 40 years. She has also been involved in childbirth education and
practiced midwifery in Big Sur for 15 years. Peggy is the author of the book
Connecting Through Touch.
Vicki Topp is a senior practitioner and instructor of Esalen Massage and
somatic bodywork. She teaches workshops and training groups internationally, and is a registered Movement Therapist and practitioner of Body-Mind
Centering. www.vickitopp.com
Peggy Horan
Weekend of November 11–13
Stories that Sicken, Stories that Heal:
Myth, Dis-ease and Self-Healing
Sam Keen
Human beings are biomythic animals, storytellers, myth makers, spinners of tales. Our conscious and unconscious myths inform our minds
and bodies, give shape to our lives, and may contribute to certain dis66
eases. By discovering the somatic aspects of our myths, the way they
shape our bodies, form our character armor, and structure our use of
energy, we can begin to recover the power to heal ourselves.
In this workshop, we will explore some of the following topics:
• Personal history: What did you learn about the body, sensuality,
and sexuality from your parents and family? What meanings were
assigned to special diseases?
• Social and political myths: What religious, economic, and cultural
myths are informing your life and death styles? What price do you
pay in health and happiness for living by the myth of competition,
success, progress?
• Somatic cryptology: How do you decipher the messages of pain
and illness? How do you listen to the voices of your health and
wellness?
• The art and techniques of self-healing. How do you use creative
imagination, memory, visualization, dreams, meditation, touch
to change your disease scripts and enter into a more healing
relationship with your self?
is the author of numerous books, including The Passionate Life,
Faces of the Enemy, Hymns to an Unknown God, and Learning to Fly.
www.samkeen.com
Sam Keen
Prescription for Happiness: The Work of Byron Katie
Roxann Burroughs
The Work of Byron Katie is a way to identify and question the
thoughts that cause suffering in the world. The Work is astonishingly
simple, accessible to people of all ages and backgrounds, and requires
nothing more than a pen and paper and a willingness to open the
mind. In this workshop, Roxann Burroughs (Byron Katie’s daughter)
will share her experiences in The Work and support you in finding
practical ways to live the insights you find through inquiry.
When you do The Work, you see who you are by seeing who you
think other people are. Eventually you come to see that everything
outside you is a reflection of your own thinking. You will practice
identifying your stressful thoughts and putting them on paper. You
will do inquiry on the concepts you identify by using the four questions and “turnarounds”: 1. Is it true? 2. Can you absolutely know it
is true? 3. How do you react, what happens, when you believe that
thought? 4. Who would you be without the thought? This workshop is
open to everyone.
Recommended reading: Katie, Loving What Is.
is a certified facilitator with more than 28 years of
experience doing The Work of Byron Katie for inquiry and stress reduction.
www.theworkwithroxann.com
Roxann Burroughs
Jump Start Your Memoir: Write it From the Heart
Nancy Slonim Aronie
This writing workshop is about reclaiming your voice. It’s about
using your own language, your own rhythms, and writing your own
story. It’s about honoring your own instincts, not trying to sound
like a “Writer” or trying to get an A from the teacher. It’s for anyone
who wants to write, has written, or wants a jump start on the road to
tapping into his or her power source of creativity. Get a jumpstart on
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
Yoga and Longevity: Optimum Health for Life
leaders will introduce the Prime of Life Yoga® lifestyle program.
The yoga, taught by Larry Payne, offers a safe, gentle, breath-oriented
approach based on the needs of the participants and inspired by the
teachings of Indian yoga master T.K.V. Desikachar. David Allen will
deliver lively lectures on longevity, the brain, and the heart.
In addition to the emphasis on breath and movement for general
conditioning, we’ll focus on movement of the spine, with special
consideration for lower and upper back problems and chronic knee
and hip ailments. The workshop will also include effective stressreduction practices, advanced breathing methods simplified for all
levels, biomechanical re-education, healthy lifestyle tools, and guided
meditation.
Please note: This workshop is not recommended for people with
acute back problems. It is also not recommended for those seeking a
vigorous yoga workout. For more information, contact Prime of Life
Yoga at 1-800-359-0171.
Please bring a yoga mat.
Recommended reading: Payne and Feuerstein, Yoga for Dummies,
New revised 3rd edition; Payne, Gold and Goldman, Yoga Therapy &
Integrative Medicine.
Larry Payne & David Allen
Larry Payne
your memoir, your poetry collection, or your songbook. Nancy Slonim
Aronie is a midwife for words that want to come out.
Aronie provides a safe space where you can celebrate who you are
without judgment, without evaluation, without the mental censor. She
believes that when you shake the inner critic of your “artist,” you have
a good shot at shaking the inner critic of your life. In this workshop,
you will laugh, you will cry, you will become an alchemist turning
your pain into gold. You will write with renewed innocence and
astounding power.
In this workshop, you cannot be wrong. It is a reminder that the
truth is healing and writing the truth is always right.
is the author of Writing from the Heart. A former
commentator for NPR’s “All Things Considered,” she received the Derek Bok
Teacher of the Year award at Harvard for 2 consecutive years, and the Isabella
Stewart Gardner Artist in Residence “Eye of the Beholder” award. She teaches
the Chilmark Writing Workshop on Martha’s Vineyard. www.chilmark
writingworkshop.com
Nancy Slonim Aronie
ali k auk a s
This workshop integrates the ageless wisdom of yoga with modern
integrative medicine, with a special emphasis on women and men
aged forty plus. In a balanced format of lecture and movement, the
was named one of America’s most respected yoga teachers by
the Los Angeles Times. He is coauthor of Yoga for Dummies and Yoga
Rx, and founder of Yoga Therapy Rx and Prime of Life Yoga certification
programs at Loyola Marymount University. www.samata.com
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ali k auk a s
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
David Allen, a graduate of UCLA School of Medicine, has 25 years of
experience in anti-aging and preventative medicine, as well as in alternative
treatment of acute and chronic diseases. He is board-certified in emergency
medicine, Chinese medicine, acupuncture, homeopathy, and body-mind
medicine. www.davidallenmd.com
Week of November 13–18
Creative Tai Ji Experience in Daily Living
Chungliang Al Huang
“This week, we will re-invent tai ji forms playfully with ancient Tai
Ji rituals, Five Moving Forces of Nature, as well as traditional Tai Ji
motifs,” Chungliang Al Huang writes. “We will explore, improvise,
and evolve, to find renewal and refreshed ways to dance the open
structures of this ancient wonder of movement meditation.
“To be truly creative is to learn not to consciously control yourself
with pre-conceived restrictions, but to allow yourself the freedom
to flow. Taoist wisdom calls it Wu Wei: Not interfering with what is
already happening. With more than fifty consecutive years of teaching
experiences since Esalen was founded, Master Huang will share his
unique ways of imparting Tai Ji experience to all levels of practitioners. Come enjoy this creative ‘Living Your Tao’ Tai Ji experience.”
Chungliang Al
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Huang teaches Tai Ji philosophy, East/West synthesis, and
the art of movement meditation. He is the founder-president of the Living
Tao Foundation and director of Lan Ting Institute in the Sacred Mountains
of China. He is the best-selling author of numerous books including Embrace
Tiger, Return to Mountain and Tao: The Watercourse Way, coauthored
with Alan Watts. www.livingtao.org
Hearth of Belonging
Susan Harper & Michael Molin-Skelton
Belonging is a powerful theme that is directly related to the capacity
for intimacy that is in every human being. In this five-day retreat,
we’ll explore the relational capacity of the heart. Through movement,
feeling, and perceptual explorations, we’ll refine the compass of our
genuine longing and fundamental belonging.
Using the awakening energy of dancing through the 5Rhythms®
and Soul Motion™ movement practices, we’ll move with the grace of
our belonging and the struggles of our exclusion. Through the organismic movements and sounding in the inquiry style of Continuum
Montage, we’ll explore the intelligent dynamics of the elements of
water, air, fire, earth, and space in our bodies, thus deepening our
inherent connection to our wild, breathing, planetary body.
Through movement and ritual, we’ll explore the meaning of how
and where we belong in ourselves and our lives, and the places we feel
exiled from ourselves and others. We will actively step into the participation required to belong, responding to the call that stirs a deep inner
longing to fall into the place we call home. We will experience the
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
possibility of resting through our bodies and listening to the silences
within; to trust and surrender as gravity repeatedly tells us “I have a
place for you: it is called here.”
bio on page 31.
Michael Molin-Skelton holds many things sacred, including the love of his
life anneli, the miracle they named jaylan, friends that cherish and challenge
him, dancing alone, and dancing with you. Michael is a senior faculty member of the Soul Motion™ school. www.spiritweaves.com
Susan Harper
Brilliant Body: Fundamentals of Conquering Injury
and Pain via Spinefulness
Jean Couch & Jenn Sherer
Do chronic tension, stress, or aches and pains plague you? Are you fit,
but injured? Do you feel tight all the time? In our cultural love affair
with muscles, we have overlooked a key component of wellness: our
skeleton. Whether you are a high-performance athlete or sit in a chair
all day, making your bones work for you instead of against you can
put you on a path of unimaginable wellness and efficiency. Spineful
healing begins with an understanding of alignment patterns that
cause premature aging, tension, pain, and/or injury. This course will
re-examine alignment patterns of everyday activities including sitting,
standing, bending, sleeping, and walking. With new Spineful patterns
for these daily fundamentals, you can shed pain and tension and go
home with a healthy regimen that easily and timelessly integrates into
everyday life. Simple yet profound changes will give you a new relationship with your body—one you used to have as a child. This course
will bust many exercise, health, and pain myths of our time. Each participant receives individualized understanding of his or her specific
vulnerabilities in the back and joints through hands-on adjustments,
and photographic and video feedback. What you learn about your patterns in these fundamental activities can be applied to your physical
activities of choice and make you a stronger, more efficient, longerlasting human machine. Join us and never look back. Spinefulness
directly helps nurses understand alignment mechanics of their bodies
so they can prevent and recover more quickly from injury as well as
become more efficient in the physical component in working for and
with clients/patients.
Recommended reading: Iyengar, Sparks of Divinity; Sawyer, Put Your
Back at Ease.
yy CE credit for massage and nurses; see page 95.
Jean Couch, originally known for her classic Runner’s Yoga Book, has
shown thousands of people of all ages how to improve their health. She most
recently taught 50 physicians and their spouses, one of whom wrote, “I now
have hope for me and my patients.” www.balancecenter.com
Jenn Sherer is a certified Balance Instructor, and she co-owns and co-directs
the Balance Center, in Palo Alto, Calif. www.BalanceCenter.com
Abandonment to Healing:
Overcoming your Self Defeating Patterns
Susan Anderson
Abandonment is a primal human fear and the underlying cause of
emotional distress and dysfunction. Susan Anderson, psychotherapist
and author of Taming Your Outer Child and Journey from Abandon-
ment to Healing, will share powerful tools of emotional and spiritual
healing to help you reverse abandonment’s universal wound. You
will be taught exercises for each of the five stages of abandonment:
shattering, withdrawal, internalizing, rage, and lifting; how to conquer
“abandoholism” and other outer child behaviors; how to make new
connections; and steps for healing abandonment. Whether you’re
experiencing a recent breakup, a lingering wound from the past, or
struggling to overcome self-defeating patterns, the tools will propel
your growth, help restore your sense of self, and increase your capacity
for love.
Recommended reading: Anderson, Taming Your Outer Child,
Journey from Abandonment to Healing, and Black Swan: 12 Lessons of
Abandonment Recovery.
Susan Anderson, is a psychotherapist who has spent 30 years of research and
clinical experience working with the victims of abandonment trauma and
loss. Founder of “Abandonment Recovery,” she is author of Journey from
Abandonment to Healing, Taming Your Outer Child, Black Swan:12
Lessons of Abandonment Recovery, and Abandonment Recovery
Workbook.
Weekend of November 18–20
Grateful Heart, Joyful Heart
James Baraz & Jane Baraz
Research shows that those who practice gratitude increase their
feelings of joyfulness, enthusiasm, interest, attentiveness, and energy.
Gratitude also activates other positive emotions such as kindness,
compassion, generosity, awe, delight, love, and contentment. With
gratitude we tend to see what is filling and fueling our lives rather
than what is missing. You don’t have to wait for moments of gratitude
to descend on you. You can consciously cultivate it through practice.
When we pause to notice what we usually take for granted, a new
world of possibilities opens up. It’s as if we’ve changed the station
instead of being stuck on our own little “drama channel.” With
practice we can develop our “appreciation radar” and let ourselves be
touched by the simplest things—a child’s laughter or the beauty of a
flower—as well as appreciating in a more vivid way all of our blessings.
We start seeing what is good in our life, giving a greater context with
which to hold our difficulties.
As we approach Thanksgiving, join us as we deepen our gratitude
using a variety of simple and effective practices that can open us to
greater well-being throughout the year, including guided meditation,
journaling, and interactive exercises drawn from Buddhist psychology
as well as neuroscience and contemporary psychology.
Recommended reading: Baraz, Awakening Joy: 10 Steps to Happiness
(particularly chapter three).
bio on page 41.
Jane Baraz has been practicing meditation since 1976 and leads Awakening
Joy workshops internationally. She served on the board of directors at Spirit
Rock Meditation Center and helped start the Spirit Rock Family Program.
Jane is a life coach who helps women live with more purpose, balance, and
fulfillment.
James Baraz
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See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
The Rhythms and Stories of Our Lives:
5Rhythms® and Motion Theater®
Lucia Horan & Davida Taurek
Movement is medicine. — Gabrielle Roth
Experience the freedom and transformative power of self-expression
through the catalytic practices of the 5Rhythms and Motion Theater.
Motion Theater, a form of improvised autobiographical storytelling
grounded in a lively physicality, simultaneously functions as performance art, healing method, and spiritual practice. The 5Rhythms is
a dynamic moving meditation practice that invites us to embody our
psyche and awaken our soul.
Together we will dance, vocalize, share our stories, and play simple
theater games that ignite the creative collective spirit. The skills and
tools you will learn will inform your daily life, bringing acceptance,
grace, and play wherever you need it.
This workshop will provide techniques to translate our inner life
stories into art, while offering the opportunity to express ourselves
freely in a safe and supportive environment. Expect to surprise yourself and perhaps even leave with a greater sense of vitality, ease, and joy.
bio on page 24.
has a diverse background in the creative arts and is a
certified instructor of Watsu®, WaterDance®, Motion Theater®, and the
5Rhythms®. She is core faculty for the Moving Center School in California
and leads classes and workshops worldwide. www.davidataurek.com
Lucia Horan
Davida Taurek
The Essential Qi-Gong Exercises of China
Chungliang Al Huang
This weekend, Chungliang Al Huang will teach the most essential
Qi-Gong exercises of China for all who wish to sustain a daily practice
for personal mind-body-spirit well-being. Master Huang will teach
easy-to-absorb and adaptive exercises of this ancient Qi-Gong practice,
and assist the seminarians through metaphors, visualization, sonic
chanting mediation, and deep circular breathing methods. It will be
joyful and fun for all levels and all ages of the practitioners, to catch
this healthy habit for good: “Wei Wu Wei”—doing by not doing, spontaneously. Beginners and “advanced beginners” are welcome.
Chungliang Al Huang
bio on page 68.
NeuroMovement® for Whole Body Fitness and Vitality
mental clarity. Each lesson focuses on different areas of the body, mapping it more fully to the brain. You will have the opportunity to gain
theoretical and practical tools that you can use to continue enhancing
your fitness level at home.
Anat Baniel best-selling author of Move Into Life and Kids Beyond Limits, is the creator of the Anat Baniel Method™, a powerful practice that takes
advantage of the brain’s ability to change itself at any age to heal both body
and mind. www.anatbanielmethod.com
Neil Sharp, MD, finds the neuroscience, learning, and creativity of the
Anat Baniel Method forges his diverse passions into a common purpose.
He has collaborated with Ms. Baniel since 2006, teaching private sessions,
groups, and doing research. He also is a professional musician.
www.anatbanielmethod.com
NeuroMovement® —A Closer Look
As Anat Baniel describes it, the brain is either in a learning mode—
with the learning switch on—or not. As children, many of us naturally
had our learning switch on, but with age, stress, and repetition, the
switch inevitably turns off. “For the brain to properly do its job, the
learning switch needs to be on,” says Anat.
The learning switch is one of nine essential practices that make
up the core of NeuroMovement, a holistic approach to enhancing the
body and brain connection. Other essentials include movement with
attention, variation, and subtlety. NeuroMovement is based on the
understanding that movement is the language of the brain, and as the
brain goes, so goes the body. With an enhanced connection between
body and brain, the brain has more information to better support
physical performance as well as cognitive, creative, and social skills.
The implications for NeuroMovement are far-reaching, from wellor high-performing adults, to supporting children with special needs
to transforming rehabilitation therapy. Anat recalls watching a news
segment about a wounded Iraq war veteran suffering an injury to
his leg and his therapist encouraging him to take another step. “My
heart broke,” she said, because despite good intentions and dedicated
efforts, the brain in this situation is being trained for limitations not
for growth.
A clinical psychologist, Anat studied under Dr. Moshe Feldenkrais
in Israel and evolved his method into her work today. She has trained
more than 1,000 practitioners during the course of her career.
Week of November 20–25
Anat Baniel & Neil Sharp
Our bodies are magical. 37.2 trillion cells work together to create each
one of us, and our bodies are designed to move! From birth onward,
through a multitude of experiences, our brain apprentices itself to our
body, mapping the body to itself and forming patterns that allow us
our thoughts, feelings, and action. This process slows down as early as
our teenage years, leading to many of our limitations. The good news
is that the brain, at any age, is constructed to change itself for the better, thus ridding us of aches and pain and getting us—body and mind—
to much higher levels of performance.
In this workshop, you can experience your brain waking up. Easy,
pleasurable, fun, and safe movement lessons can provide your brain
with new information that leads to greater flexibility, strength, and
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The MAX: Expanding the Limits of Your Self-Expression
Paula Shaw
For more than twenty years, THE MAX has held an honored status
among the Esalen staff and is considered by many to be an essential
rite of passage for community members. The purpose of THE MAX is
to discover yourself beyond who you know yourself to be. It is a voyage through your own humanity—a journey to discover the extent of
your self-expressive power. Employing a variety of acting, communication, and observation techniques, it’s designed to expand your limits
“to the max” and move you into a new arena of personal creativity and
self-expression.
doug ellis
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
In THE MAX, participants undertake a challenging exploration
of the sources of their emotional limitations. Working individually,
“on stage,” each person is encouraged and supported to go at their own
pace, playing to and with other group members. With strong guidance, people move through lifelong fears of being “on the spot,” emerging into greater authenticity and enhanced “presence.”
There are exercises that use raw emotion, role-playing, and dress-up
assignments. This is an opportunity to experience yourself in ways
you may have dreamed about but never thought possible. The course is
for those committed and courageous in their process. And it has been
constructed with the understanding that this kind of risk requires a
very safe workspace. If your heart beats faster when you think of taking THE MAX, it may be just “the thing to do.” For details visit www.
themaxwithpaulashaw.com. Highly recommended: Please consider
taking Paula Shaw’s Improv inspiration weekend workshop that
immediately follows THE MAX. It is a delicious dessert to top off an
extraordinary entrée, and is a very satisfying way to end this transformational journey.
Please note: Due to the intense and sequential nature of this work-
shop, attendance at all sessions is necessary. There will be a celebratory Thanksgiving dinner in the Esalen Lodge.
Requirement: Bring a one- to three-minute memorized piece—
monologue, poem, song, etc.
Paula Shaw, a professional actress and acting teacher for more than 40 years,
has conducted workshops for those interested in expanding their self-expression, well-being, and creativity in the US, Canada, Germany, and the UK.
www.themaxwithpaulashaw.com
5Rhythms® : Gateways
Lucia Horan
Come to dance and be danced! Move until you are moved.
Dance until the dancer disappears and only the dance remains.
—Gabrielle Roth
The gateway of the body is a powerful vessel that allows us to move
and be moved. In a wild world of distraction, do you know how to find
your way into focus and connection? The 5Rhythms teaches us skills
71
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
and tools to use in our everyday life that help us facilitate this union.
If we have the courage to move the body, the heart and mind can follow. Come open the gateway to your potential and see what is waiting
for you on the other side.
The 5Rhythms is a moving meditation practice. The rhythms,
Flowing, Staccato, Chaos, Lyrical, and Stillness, allow us to explore the
true nature of who we are and how our energy moves in this world.
No experience is required. All workshop hours contribute to
5Rhythms® teachers training prerequisites.
Please note: There will be a celebratory Thanksgiving dinner in the
Esalen Lodge.
yy CE credit for massage; see page 95.
Lucia Horan
bio on page 24.
Thanksgiving Retreat: Gratitude, Love and Easiness
spirit. Before you step into the swirl of the holidays this year, give
yourself the gift of looking within.
“Gratitude opens our hearts, and we can immediately experience
easiness and the joy of being alive. We will use yoga as a path to gratitude. Asanas (physical postures), pranayama (breath), restorative poses,
and meditation will be our support and guidance throughout this special week. One breath at a time, one asana at a time, we can let go of old
beliefs and allow the raw freshness of the present moment to awaken
us. Being in a state of gratitude is an antidote to negativity and other
ways we block ourselves from enjoying life. Please bring a yoga mat.”
Please note: There will be a celebratory Thanksgiving dinner in the
Esalen Lodge.
Charu Rachlis, born and raised in Brazil, has been teaching yoga in San
Francisco since 1997. She teaches in a Bhakti lineage. She has a 20-year
history of Tibetan Buddhist meditation, and is strongly influenced by Iyengar
and Ashtanga yoga. www.yoginicharu.com
Charu Rachlis
“What a blessing to take time away from our daily schedules and allow
ourselves to relax, rejuvenate, and celebrate life in the sacred land of
Esalen,” Charu writes. “We will gather in a sacred healing circle for
yoga, meditation, reflection, renewal, soaking in the healing baths,
walking on Esalen property, and detoxifying the body, mind, and
Spinal Awareness (with Humor):
The Essence of Feldenkrais® and Energy Work
Patrick Douce
Spinal awareness is a combination of the Feldenkrais Method®, Taoist
energetic science, and the Esalen experience. In this workshop,
For more than 40 years, the Esalen Farm & Garden has provided
a holistic model of local food security and sustainability, growing
organic food that sustains, heals and educates the community of
Daniel Bianche t ta
people who live at and visit Esalen every year.
72
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
participants will experience movements that help bring new awareness as well as maintain health and assist in the rehabilitation of pain,
tension, stiffness, limitation, and injury.
The use of joy and humor will be the undertone of this time
together. Real freedom in the body is also freedom of spirit and fun.
Lessons adapted from Indonesian Silat originating from the monasteries of China and Tibet will be shared which greatly expand the
scope and effectiveness of each session. The concepts of grounding,
extending, generating, protecting, circulating, and efficiently using
our energies will be experienced.
Safe, non-invasive touch lessons will be used to help in the understanding of our spines, as well as to loosen and improve each person
in the workshop. Fun partner lessons will add to the learning and the
freedom to be experienced in our bodies.
By increasing awareness and fluidity in the spine, students will
find new ways of being sensitive to and improving their work with
patients and clients, in their own yoga practice and teachings. Those
persons with chronic or acute tension, stress, stiffness, or pain will
find tools specific to their needs that will help in their improvement
and often healing.
Please note: There will be a celebratory Thanksgiving dinner in the
Esalen Lodge.
Social Entrepreneurship: From Spiritual Values
to Effective Action
yy CE credit for nurses and for massage; see page 95.
Susan Collin Marks, a South African, has been an international peace-
Patrick Douce, one of Moshe Feldenkrais’s first American students, has been
associated with Esalen since 1972. Since 1986 he has lived some months of
each year in Bali, developing programs with Indonesian Silat martial-artsfor-health schools. www.spinalawareness.com
Weekend of November 25–27
Susan Collin Marks & John Marks
Many of us feel a growing longing to have a positive impact on the
world. We hold a vision of infusing our spiritual values into the
political, economic, and social life of our planet to create a kind and
dignified world for all.
During this workshop, Search for Common Ground Founder
John Marks and Peace Ambassador Susan Collin Marks take you
deep within yourself to unfold and define your personal vision. You
can discover the Principles of Social Entrepreneurship, and the possibilities that abound when you grasp your inner potential to make a
real difference, right now. Search for Common Ground grew out of
meetings at Esalen in the early 1980s into one of the world’s largest
non-profit peacebuilding organizations, with offices in 35 countries.
The keys to Search’s success have been profound creativity, nimbleness, and an unswerving, compassionate vision, reflected in the range
of their work: TV and radio soap operas that reach millions, countering extremism in the Middle East, participatory theater in Africa, and
Congressional conversations on race in the US. For more information,
visit www.sfcg.org.
maker for more than 25 years, and works as Peace Ambassador for Search for
Common Ground. She is a Skoll Awardee for Social Entrepreneurship and
holds an honorary doctorate from the University for Peace. www.sfcg.org
John Marks founded Search for Common Ground, a peacebuilding NGO
with offices in 35 countries. He was a best-selling, award-winning author,
a US Foreign Service Officer, a US Senate aide, a Skoll Awardee for Social
Entrepreneurship, and an Ashoka Senior Fellow. www.sfcg.org
Improv Inspiration: Wit and Wisdom in an Instant
Tending the Heart Fire: Regenerating the Body of Love
Thanksgiving Yoga Journey
Paula Shaw
Shiva Rea
This workshop is an adventure in releasing programmed patterns
and discovering the delight of spontaneous creation. The joy of playing improvisational theatre games comes from surrendering to the
process. Each game has focus points that allow you to suspend your
accustomed automated and controlled thinking. The liberation that
follows fully opens up your mind to imaginative freedom, your voice
to new and surprising sounds, verbal humor, eloquence, and flowing
physical grace in movement.
In this work, you are never alone. The easy-to-follow instructions
and coaching tune you in with the other players, and when that connection is made, instantaneous creativity issues forth effortlessly.
Once you’ve allowed yourself to join in, each improvised piece takes
flight, with truly amazing results. As a participant in these games, you
go back and forth from being a player to being the audience. You play
from both positions, and both are filled with fun.
The program is an experience of how wonderfully well life can
flow when you get out of your own way, and the learning is what it
means to be able to do that. It is also full of falling-down laughter.
All are welcome. This is an excellent entry workshop for first-timers to this work. Prior improv experience will be forgiven.
“Join our annual Thanksgiving retreat to tend your heart fire as the
center of wisdom, soul satisfaction, and most of all the transforming
power of love,” writes Shiva Rea. “For many years, we have retreated
to the warm springs of Esalen during the Thanksgiving weekend for
a ritual deepening and renewal of the heart fire. This popular retreat
always changes and yet is constant in the regeneration of the ‘body
of love.’”
From our physiology to spiritual realization, tending the fire of
love is one of the highest and most regenerative practices we can
offer ourselves, our partners, families, and the world. This practice
releases a positive cascade that elevates every aspect of being alive. In
a distressed world, tending the heart fire is the practical awakening of
the regenerating power of the body of love as a living practice in yoga
and daily life.
Together we will explore:
Paula Shaw
• Prana Flow Movement Alchemy: Energetic Vinyasa Ritual Practice
(morning)
• Mudra, Mantra, and Yoga Nidra (Deep Relaxation) Meditation
• Ayurvedic and Tantric practices for Cultivating Ojas
• Fire-ritual under the night sky (weather permitting)
bio on page 71.
73
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
The retreat is open to experienced practitioners and all yogadventurers familiar with the sun salutations.
Recommended Reading: Rea, Tending the Heart Fire—Living in Flow
with the Pulse of Life.
is a yogini firekeeper, sacred activist, global adventurer, and innovator in the evolution of vinyasa flow yoga that integrates the tantric bhakti
roots of yoga, Krishnamacharya’s teachings, and a universal, quantum approach to the body. www.shivarea.com
Shiva Rea
The Luminescent Body: Soul Motion™ and Gestalt Practice
Zuza Engler & Scott Engler
Be inspired by the flame
where everything shines as it disappears.
– Rainer Maria Rilke
“What in your life could use some breath, space, movement, flow, or a
sprinkle of humor?” ask the leaders. “Where are you called toward a
more passionate participation—or toward a deeper letting go? What if
you had ways to show up with change, impermanence, and the whole
everyday mess of the human condition while in touch with the deathless Presence in which everything dances?
“This weekend, you are invited to a simultaneous and paradoxical
dive into the body and dissolution into space: we will use the movement practice of Soul Motion, body-based inquiries of Gestalt Practice,
and ancient meditative traditions as an experiment in expressive aliveness. By including conscious movement, awareness training, inner
inquiry, and stillness practice, we will travel alone and together across
the landscapes of relating—to self, other, the world, and the great Mystery that we also are.
Open to all who are willing to breathe, move, listen to, and inspire
each other, soften, open, and relax, relax, relax ... one timeless movement moment at a time.”
has been on the spiral path of kinesthetic investigation into
consciousness for close to three decades, in motion, stillness, and process inquiry. She is a Soul Motion™ teacher and trainer, designer of Embodied
Inquiry, and a long-term practitioner of Buddhism and Gestalt Practice.
www.transformativedance.com
Scott Engler, a longtime student of presence and healing, supports adults,
children, and infants through Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy and workshops in trauma resolution for the family. He holds a second-degree black belt
in aikido. www.heartofstillness.com
Zuza Engler
Week of November 27–December 2
tional leaders in our work. WOC alumni are now directors, VPs, and
senior consultants advising and executing some of the most powerful digital work on the planet and making waves inside groups like
Greenpeace, Presente,org, 350.org, National Council of La Raza, and
the SEIU.
At Web of Change, we:
• Build a deep trust network of people working at the leading edge of
their field
• Improve the mastery of work produced in our sector
• Provide leadership and whole person support to future leaders
• Create a culture of radical openness and collaboration in our
community
• Co-create a week of personal and professional transformation in a
community that fosters insight, connection, and fun
During the time they’re here, WOC participants will have the
entire Esalen property as a place to learn, grow, and connect with
one another. We carefully select attendees based on their fit with
our goals and culture. We strive for a representation of attendees
that reflects the diversity of the communities we serve. Speakers and
workshop leaders are selected from the community of conference
attendees to lead sessions on topics including campaign strategy;
employing tech and new media tools for movement building; and
leadership development.
Note: Applicants must be approved prior to registering. Approval
and registration is through Web of Change only. For more information and to register, please visit www.webofchange.com or contact info@
webofchange.com. Only after you have registered with WOC and paid
tuition fees will you be able to reserve accommodations at Esalen.
For accommodations pricing chart, see www.esalen.org/page/partnerprogram-pricing. Some scholarships are available.
See program highlight on page 5.
uses a highly participative model to
produce a conference that supports participants in evolving. Board members
are leaders in some of the nation’s most progressive organizations: technology and engagements experts at ACLU, NARAL Pro-Choice America, and
Greenpeace, and digital campaigners at organizations like Digital Democracy
and 18MillionRising.org. www.webofchange.com
Web of Change Board of Directors
Weekend of December 2–4
Calling in “The One”: Transforming Your Core Love
Identity Beliefs
Katherine Woodward Thomas
Web of Change
Web of Change Board of Directors
Web of Change (WOC) is an innovative and dynamic community that
connects diverse leaders working at the frontiers of technology and
social change. It’s where committed practitioners come to up their
game. Over five days of deep conversation and energizing encounters,
we candidly share frontline experiences, reflect deeply on our impact,
and find the network and meaning we need to become transforma74
Many of us are challenged when trying to find a loving, happy,
healthy, and long-term relationship because it would literally be
outside our identity to be loved, supported, nourished, safe, and valued
by a person we love and respect. To “call in” a great love, and sustain
happy, healthy love over time, we must identify and release our old
limiting beliefs, and claim the deeper truth of our value and our worthiness to receive the love we are looking for.
In this workshop, you’ll explore the following topics:
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
• Identify your limiting core beliefs about your worthiness to love
and be loved, and awaken your power to create the relationship of
your dreams
• Learn a liberating five-step process that can empower you to
graduate forever from old disappointing patterns in love
• Find out what it means to love yourself before you can love another
• Discover how to create a life that mirrors your true value back to
you each day
Amory Lovins
Half of America’s oil and gas and three-quarters of its electricity can
be saved more cheaply than supplying them from existing facilities.
Dramatic advances in efficiency technologies, ways to combine and
integrate them, and ways to market and implement them are synergistic with parallel revolutions in low- or no-carbon energy supplies.
All are rapidly expanding. For example, “micropower” (cogeneration
plus distributed renewables) already provides a fourth of the world’s
electricity and half its new electric capacity.
Together, efficiency and alternative supplies offer profitable, business-led solutions to such problems as climate change, oil dependence,
c a meron jordan
Katherine Woodward Thomas is author of the NY Times bestseller,
Conscious Uncoupling: 5 Steps to Living Happily Even After and the
national bestseller, Calling in “The One:” 7 Weeks to Attract the Love Of
Your Life. She is a licensed psychotherapist and has taught hundreds of thousands to find greater happiness in love. www.FemininePower.com
Advanced Energy Efficiency and Alternative Supplies
for Profitable Climate Protection
75
angie smith
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
and nuclear proliferation. Drawing on three decades of practical experience at the forefront of the energy transition and on his pathfinding
March 2007 lectures as MAP/Ming Professor at Stanford University,
Amory Lovins will lead an integrative, wide-ranging, state-of-the-art
exploration of energy technologies, design and business innovations,
implementation, and implications for a cooler, richer, fairer, and safer
world.
This transdisciplinary workshop will be most useful to intermediate and advanced practitioners, executives, activists, and concerned
citizens, and will emphasize opportunities and needs in the private
sector, chiefly in oil (www.oilendgame.com) and electricity (www.rmi.
org). The latest insights from Reinventing Fire (www.reinventingfire.com),
and from its recent extension to China, will be discussed.
Recommended reading: Lovins, Datta et. al, Winning the Oil Endgame; Lovins, Small is Profitable; Hawken, Lovins & Lovins, Natural
Capitalism; Lovins & Burns (ed.) The Essential Amory Lovins; Lovins &
Rocky Mountain Institute, Reinventing Fire.
Amory Lovins is chairman and chief scientist of Rocky Mountain Institute.
Published in 31 books and more than 450 papers, his innovations linking
energy, design, security, environment, and development have received many
global awards. He has advised major firms and governments in 50+ countries
for 40+ years on advanced energy and resource efficiency. www.rmi.org
76
The Writing Life
Ellen Bass
There is a vitality, a life-force, an energy, a quickening that is translated through
you into action. And because there is only one of you in all time, this expression
is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium, and
be lost. The world will not have it. It is not your business to determine how good
it is, nor how valuable, nor how it compares with other expressions. It is your
business to keep it yours clearly and directly, to keep the channel open.
—Martha Graham
“This workshop,” writes Ellen Bass, “will allow us to leave the rush of
our busy lives and be still enough to hear the stories and poems that
gestate within us. We’ll write, share our writing, and hear what our
work touches in others. We’ll help each other to become clearer, go
deeper, take new risks. With the safety, support, and inspiration of this
gathering, you will have the opportunity to create writing that is more
vivid, more true, more complex and powerful than you’ve been able to
do before.”
Whether you are interested in poetry, fiction, nonfiction, memoir,
or journal writing, this weekend will provide a rich opportunity to
immerse yourself in the writing life. Both beginners and experienced
writers are welcome.
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
Recommended reading: Bass, Like a Beggar; eds. Addonizio and
Laux, The Poet’s Companion; Gornick, The Situation and the Story.
Ellen Bass has supported and inspired writers for 45 years. Her books include Like A Beggar, The Human Line, and Mules of Love (poetry), and
the best-selling The Courage to Heal. She teaches at Pacific University’s
low-residency MFA program. www.ellenbass.com
Advanced Esalen® Massage
Daniela Urbassek & Rob Wilks
Experienced Esalen Massage and Bodywork practitioners Daniela
Urbassek and Rob Wilks will offer unique explorations in the practices of gentle extensions and dynamic mobilization, along with soft
and deep tissue release work. Range of motion and passive release
techniques will also be brought onto the table, creating an atmosphere
of innovation and exploration.
Come prepared to practice and learn new methods of massage,
while enjoying Esalen’s natural beauty and healing waters. Previous
massage training is required. This workshop is also useful for those in
the helping and healing professions in working with their clients and
patients.
yy CE credit for nurses and massage; see page 95.
is a longtime member of the Esalen massage staff. Her
work is strongly influenced by her studies in craniosacral work, movement,
yoga, and dance.
Rob Wilks is a full-time bodywork practitioner and yoga teacher at Esalen.
He specializes in Deep Bodywork®. He has taught experiential leadership
education in the US and Eastern Europe.
Daniela Urbassek
December 4–23
100-Hour Esalen® Massage Certification Program
Brita Ostrom & Dean Marson
Esalen offers numerous levels of basic massage certification. For an
overview of these offerings, please visit www.esalen.org/page/esalenmassage-certification-programs-overview.
The 100-Hour Professional Certificate in Esalen Massage Course
offers a comprehensive training for certified bodyworkers who wish
to add the Esalen approach to their professional repertoire. Esalen
Institute pioneered many approaches that integrate body, mind, and
spirit, and Esalen Massage builds on this rich history in the depth of
its curriculum. It also offers an experience of the “bigger picture” of
how to use simple human touch to support healing within the whole
person.
The course begins with training in centering, grounding, awakening the senses, and developing the art of being present. The initial
focus is on quality of touch, Esalen’s holistic approach to massage,
and the signature long strokes. By means of lectures, demonstrations, and supervised practice, the course moves into detail work and
assisted movement, with attention to body mechanics and somatic
considerations. Relevant Anatomy and Physiology concepts are also
highlighted. Students will learn communication skills for interact-
ing with clients in a clear, compassionate manner. This certificate in
Esalen Massage is open only to massage practitioners with 150 hours
of massage training at a state-approved school, and some massage
practice.
Upon satisfactory course completion, successful evaluation sessions, and documentation of thirty additional massages at your home
site, an Esalen Institute-recognized Certificate in Esalen® Massage
for 100 hours will be issued. The certification fee is $115. Esalen is
an approved School by the Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education (school code 2700571). This course is especially useful for those
in the healing professions in working with their patients and clients.
This is a professional training with limited admission. Please request
an application form by contacting massagecert@esalen.org or calling
Esalen Reservations. Tuition is $3750 for standard shared accommodations and $2850 for a limited number of bunk-bed accommodations.
Bunk beds and other scholarship are awarded based on financial need
and social impact.
($20 materials fee will be added to the workshop cost)
yy CE credit for massage and nurses; see page 95.
Brita Ostrom has led massage and somatic workshops at Esalen and
internationally for more than 40 years. She is a founding member of the
Esalen Massage School, practices Gestalt awareness work, and participated in
Esalen’s two-year somatic education program. She is also a licensed psychotherapist.
Dean Marson teaches Esalen® Massage and Ocean Yoga. He integrates
meditation, movement, and bodywork practices to assist people in enlivening
their bodies and their lives. He has led workshops at Esalen and internationally for more than 20 years. www.beEnlivened.com
December 4–11
Your Life Cannot Be Any Easier Than Your Movements:
Healing with Cortical Field Reeducation®, Feldenkrais®
and Brain Plasticity
Harriet Goslins, Laura Kunysz & Melissa Krikorian
How we sit, stand, move, or respond to contact with others reflects
patterns wired into our nervous systems in infancy. By early childhood, conflicting intentions distort these patterns. Feeling powerless, we attempt to survive and to win love by figuring out “the
rules.” The resulting strategies may protect us as children but, deeply
ingrained in our muscular postures and movements, they limit our
choices as adults. These engrams remain outside of awareness, causing discomfort and dysfunction. By reeducating the brain-muscleemotion connection, restrictions can be released, freeing lifelong
behaviors that have organized around that movement, restoring
freedom of choice. The protective postures are altered, deeply affecting the body’s habitual defense system and allowing a higher level of
energy.
This workshop begins the process of relearning the ease, fluidity,
and openness taken for granted as a child and lost somewhere along
the way. It is for the sedentary; for the active who want to increase
physical skills and reduce risk of injury; for those dealing with aftereffects of injury or emotional trauma, and the professionals who work
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See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
with them; for the chronically tired and stressed who want to take better care of their necks, shoulders, and backs; and for those who want
to improve their posture, flexibility, and breathing while deepening
their sense of connection and belonging. This workshop is also useful
for those in the helping and healing professions in working with their
clients and patients.
yy CE credit for nurses and massage; see page 95. CE credit for physical
therapists for an additional $300 fee; see leader.
developed Cortical Field Reeducation. A Feldenkrais practitioner and Integrated Awareness teacher for 31 years, her background is in
psychosynthesis, applied kinesiology, muscle energy, craniosacral work, and
social anthropology. She has been teaching at Esalen for 29 consecutive years.
www.cfrhealing.com
Laura Kunysz is a senior CFR instructor and cranio-sacral therapist. She
has a background in Esalen Massage, Somato-Emotional Release work, the
Chickly Brain Curriculum, energy healing, and lymph drainage. She is in
private practice in California.
Melissa Krikorian, MPT, is a physical therapist and CFR® practitioner
with a 20-year private practice. She conducts CFR intensives at her
Westlake Village, Calif. clinic and co-teaches CFR workshops at Esalen.
www.nexusphysicaltherapy.com
Harriet Goslins
Week of December 4–9
Awakening the Creative: The Painting Experience
Stewart Cubley
Explore the world of spontaneous creation, an unpredictable territory beyond the expected where no rules apply. In a respectful and
nurturing studio environment, you’ll receive individual attention and
gentle guidance to help you open to inspiration, creativity, growth,
and change. Using the powerful tool of “process arts,” you’ll be supportively invited to:
• Discover a creative voice that’s entirely your own
• Trust your intuitive perception, not the mind’s critical chatter
• Follow your energy rather than what looks good or makes sense
• Overcome blocks by embracing their hidden message
• Experience your imagination as intelligent—a doorway to deeper
knowing
• Explore process painting as a genuine path to spiritual awakening
In The Painting Experience, everyone is a beginner; people from
all levels of experience are welcome, including those who have never
picked up a paintbrush. The Painting Experience is about your creative process, not technique or training. There will be no judgment
of your work or comparison with others. Instead, you are given the
E sale n
VV
V i deo Library
We offer an extensive video library featuring many of
Esalen's teachers past and present. Guests are welcome
to watch during their stay. Visit www.esalen.org/page/
esalen-video-lending-library.
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opportunity to embrace your own creative voice and confidently follow it. All materials are supplied—all you have to bring is you!
Recommended reading: Cassou and Cubley, Life, Paint & Passion.
($50 materials fee will be added to the workshop cost)
yy CE credit for nurses and MFTs & LCSWs; see leader.
Stewart Cubley has traveled the world for nearly 40 years, working with
individuals and groups to access the potential within the human heart and
imagination. He has conducted seminars at learning-based organizations,
corporations, monasteries, prisons, and other public forums.
www.processarts.com
Relational Gestalt Process: The Transforming Power
of Emotion
Dorothy Charles
Each of us finds our true selves through our emotions. In order to
become whole, we must discover how our experience is organized in
limiting, unconscious patterns and through that process, learn how to
organize our experience in new ways.
When we begin to expand and integrate a broader range of emotions, we move toward wholeness because the ability to experience
and to express emotions is integral to the experience of aliveness.
Learning to fully experience feelings and to be able to articulate them
in healthy, meaningful ways enables us to have more pleasurable and
fulfilling relationships.
This experiential and didactic workshop will blend individual and
group Relational Gestalt work. The intention of Relational Gestalt
Process is to expand emotional range by feeling, expressing, and building emotional tolerance in order to strengthen our relationships. We
will experiment with tracking our emotions, learning to recognize
them as signals that call for awareness and attention, rather than as
something to be avoided.
Recommended reading: Yontef, Awareness Process and Dialogue.
has been a student and teacher at Esalen since 1982. A
student of Esalen cofounder Richard Price, she combines Esalen body-centered
Gestalt with relational Gestalt theory, and leads workshops in Asia, Europe,
and the US. www.dorothycharles.com
Dorothy Charles
Total Immersion for Total Transformation
Raphael Cushnir
This workshop is right for you if
• You’re willing to perform a rigorous emotional and spiritual selfassessment
• You want to determine which aspects of your life are calling for
healing and change
• You’re ready to begin that healing and change on the very first day
of the workshop
• You want to take a giant leap forward in consciousness
• You can support a small, like-minded community committed to
the same leap
Raphael Cushnir will create a safe and gentle environment to help
call forth your very best, using tools that include emotional release
work, journaling, small group exercises, meditation, movement, yoga,
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Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
chant, collage, subtle energy practices, and mind-heart attunements.
As a highlight of this workshop, you will co-design and experience a
unique transformational experience all your own. In addition, you’ll
leave the workshop with a practical roadmap for real-life integration.
Recommended reading: Cushnir, The One Thing Holding You Back.
Raphael Cushnir has written 6 books, including The One Thing Holding
You Back and Setting Your Heart on Fire. He lectures worldwide and
contributes to O, The Oprah Magazine, Psychology Today, and the Huffington Post. His heart opened through profound grief. www.cushnir.com
Weekend of December 9–11
Recapturing Your Posture: Release Biomechanical Stress
and Maximize Your Energy
in our movement and without awareness of our energy systems, our
bodies begin to break down faster and earlier than expected. Is your
body heading down this path? Has your once pristine temple turned
into a fixer-upper? Good news! You can change this course and refortify your foundation starting now. The key is to uncover the “what”
and the “how” of healing and aligning your own body.
Come join us for a playful weekend of exploring proven self-help
practices to release tension in your system. Incorporating functional
anatomy and biomechanics with the principles of yoga, chi gong, and
pranayama, we will draw from various methods of healing to help you
regain balance and harmony in your body and mind. Come prepared
to unwind and laugh, and to fill your toolbox with simple do-it-yourself tactics to maximize your energy. It’s time to excavate the healer
that lives inside of you. Arrive curious, depart aligned! This workshop
is especially useful for those in the health and healing professions in
working with their clients and patients.
Harvey Deutch
yy CE credit for nurses and massage; see page 95.
Sometimes it is sudden, but more often it is a slow realization that our
posture and energy have started to slump and drag. We assume positions and engage in tasks that our bodies are not meant to do nor were
ever taught how to perform correctly. Without mindfulness and grace
Harvey Deutch
teaches yoga with a unique blend of precise technical expertise and signature humor. He has been a physical therapist and yogi since
1982. He is well known for making two-dimensional anatomy come to life,
off the page and onto the mat.
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See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
When Water Becomes Gold: The New Alchemy
Amory Lovins, Ian-Michael Hébert & Peter Mullin
Esalen Institute is blessed by three powerful waters: the Pacific Ocean,
the healing hot springs, and the freshwater creek that flows through
the property. These sacred waters have offered people a place to heal
and nourish themselves for thousands of years.
However, taking this precious commodity for granted as a limitless
resource is increasingly risky as we face hundred-year-drought conditions, which a temporary El Niño deluge will not solve—our thousands of years old aquifers are increasingly depleted.
Co-led by local Big Sur water-innovators and Amory Lovins, one
of the world’s leading authorities in energy policy, this workshop
explores an array of possible solutions, including growing our vegetables and cooking herbs via hydroponics with up to 90% water savings;
fish cultivation through aquaponics; drinking water extraction via the
atmosphere; and the latest in waste water recapture technology. All of
these methods preserve clean water, our “New Gold.”
Our visit to a local model farm will include a special luncheon to
sample “farm to table” fresh organically grown food combined with
top rated California wine pairings. The faculty will include experts
in each of the subjects described above as we explore and adopt new
methods of preserving our most precious asset.
bio on page 76.
serves Esalen Institute in many capacities, including as
the primary director of the historic Campus Renewal. Much of his life’s work
Amory Lovins
When Water Becomes Gold —A Closer Look
Up to 60% of the human body is made of water. Water is the most
essential ingredient for life, and right now it is more precious than
ever. California’s current drought highlights larger climate and energy
crises we face as a global community. Now is the time to deepen our
understanding of how water can be used wisely, reclaimed from new
sources, and conserved for the future. Thankfully, new innovations
are rising to meet the challenge, and there is a new paradigm developing for sustainable water and energy use.
This extraordinary workshop will introduce you to new water
technologies in the context of Esalen’s own waters: ocean, hot springs,
and creek. Participants also will visit a local model farm for demonstrations, hands-on learning, and a special lunch that showcases food
produced by sustainable water practices.
“This workshop was inspired during a tour that entrepreneur and
experimental farmer Peter Mullins gave me of his model facilities
next door to Esalen,” said workshop co-leader Ian-Michael Hébert.
“Peter’s aquaponics system and the general architecture of his prop-
jens wa zel
Ian-Michael Hébert
has focused on community development, integral psychology, and the embodiment of sustainable living principles.
Peter Mullin is founder and chairman of M Financial Holdings Inc. He
and his wife Merle produce olive oil, wine, honey, and raise Cinta Senese
pigs at their home in Italy. They also have created and operate a hydroponics/
aquaponics model farm near Esalen, and are partners in Sonoma's Ram’s
Gate winery.
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Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
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erty honor the many waters of this majestic Big Sur region. Through
a series of ponds with fish, he collects fertilizer from the fish waste,
and then uses it to test various approaches to vegetable production,
including hydroponics. Other technologies are being tested around
the property to produce and use water in innovative ways.”
Bringing together a leading-edge team of visionary thinkers and
on-the-ground practitioners, the workshop aims to educate, nourish,
and inspire.
“At this pivotal moment in history, we as a human species need to
learn to come into right relationship with the resources and other life
forms of earth,” said Ian-Michael. “This workshop is meant to inspire
and inform participants about the vital need for greater consciousness
in our collective relationship to water. The convergence of the hot
springs, ocean, and mountain/spring-fed creek are a perfect setting for
a water-honoring gathering to take place.”
The Science of Happiness and Well-being
June Gruber & Hedy Kober
What brings us true happiness? We know from research that we often
fail to correctly predict the things that will bring us happiness, and
forget to nourish those things that truly bring our soul contentment.
Is there only one kind of happiness, or several? Are all types of happiness the same? Is happiness always good for us? How does happiness
differ from fulfillment, meaning, and purpose? This workshop is led
by two nationally-known early career psychologists in the science
and psychology of happiness, human emotion, and flourishing. You
will learn about the science behind emotion and pleasure, as well as
ways to cultivate happiness in your own life and to identify your own
individual fulfillment profile. This multidisciplinary workshop will
include science-based teachings, interactive videos, and group discussions, as well as yoga, breathing, and meditation practices.
Recommended reading: Gruber and Moskowitwitz, Positive Emotion: Integrating the Light Sides and the Dark Sides.
June Gruber, PhD, is an assistant professor of psychology at Yale University
and director of the Positive Emotion and Psychopathology Laboratory. She
is a licensed clinical psychologist who has authored more than 60 journals
and articles and received several early career awards from the APA, SRP, and
NARSAD.
Hedy Kober, PhD, is an assistant professor of psychiatry and psychology
at Yale University and director of the Clinical and Affective Neuroscience
Laboratory. She has authored more than 40 articles and received several
awards including from the College on Problems of Drug Dependence, and
the National Institute of Drug Abuse. She has been practicing meditation for
over a decade.
Week of December 11–16
Esalen® Massage, Deep Bodywork® and Subtle Energy
Perry Holloman & Johanna Holloman
Subtle phenomena can frequently arise during an effective massage
or bodywork session. When clients enter deep states of relaxation, different kinds of releases occur that support innate processes of tissue
repair and organismic healing. Often, the practitioner can feel pulsing
and other kinds of subtle motion. Changes in the quality of these
movements can indicate important shifts in the state of well-being of
the client. In this workshop, you will be taught how to assess, support,
and direct energy supporting these rhythmic processes to help your
work integrate into the framework of an overall session.
One of the most important things that happens during effective
bodywork is the therapeutic pulse. A therapeutic pulse arises due to
a fundamental shift in the physical, mental, and/or emotional state of
the client. Because chi is connected with the fluid components of the
physical body, shifts in the strength and quality of our energy system
can be felt as a change within the body’s pulsation processes. Learning
to develop our presence and awareness to open, support, and modify
our client’s energy in support of their natural self-healing capacities
will be an important focus of our time together.
This course is designed for experienced massage and bodywork
practitioners who are interested in learning how to use Esalen Massage as an effective healing modality.
yy CE credit for nurses, massage, and acupuncturists; see page 95.
Perry Holloman
bio on page 58.
bio on page 59.
Johanna Holloman
Mindful Self-Compassion Intensive Training
Kristin Neff & Christopher Germer
Self-compassion is the heart of mindfulness. It is warm-hearted,
connected presence during difficult moments in our lives. Selfcompassion provides emotional strength and resilience that allows us
to admit our shortcomings, motivate ourselves with encouragement,
forgive ourselves when needed, care for others, and be more fully
ourselves. Rapidly expanding research shows that self-compassion is
strongly associated with emotional well-being, lower levels of anxiety
and depression, healthy habits such as diet and exercise, and more
satisfying personal relationships.
Fortunately, self-compassion is a skill that can be cultivated by
anyone. You will learn how to:
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doug ellis
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
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Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
• Practice mindfulness and self-compassion in daily life
• Understand the science of self-compassion
• Handle difficult emotions with greater ease
• Motivate yourself with kindness rather than criticism
• Transform challenging relationships, old and new
• Manage compassion fatigue
• Practice the art of savoring and self-appreciation
• Teach simple self-compassion practices to others
This program is a larger intensive training program rather than
an intimate retreat. It is a condensed version of the eight-session,
empirically-supported Mindful Self-Compassion training developed
by Christopher Germer and Kristin Neff. MSC is an experiential
journey—an adventure in self-discovery and self-kindness—supported
by the beautiful Esalen campus. This program fulfills a prerequisite
for becoming an MSC teacher.
Note: Registration for this program is through the Center for
Mindful Self-Compassion. Please go to www.centerformsc.org to
register. Please email info@centerformsc.org with questions. Only after
you have registered with the Center for Mindful Self-Compassion,
and paid tuition fees, will you be able to reserve accommodations at
Esalen. For accommodations pricing chart, see www.esalen.org/page/
partner-program-pricing. This workshop is limited to 70 participants.
Recommended reading: Neff, Self-Compassion: The Proven Power of
Being Kind to Yourself; Germer, The Mindful Path to Self-Compassion
yy CE credit for psychologists, nurses, and MFTs & LCSWs; see page 95.
bio on page 36.
Christopher Germer, PhD, is a clinical psychologist in private practice,
a clinical instructor in psychology at Harvard Medical School, and a founding faculty member of the Institute for Meditation and Psychotherapy. He
leads workshops internationally on mindfulness and self-compassion, and
is author of The Mindful Path to Self-Compassion. www.MindfulSelf
Compassion.org
Kristin Neff
Weekend of December 16–18
During this retreat we will use meditations, ritual, time in nature,
inquiry, and group exercises and discussion as ways to explore this
theme of transition. Participants can leave clear and courageous to
take the next steps to create an inspired life.
Mark Coleman is author of Awake in the Wild. He has studied Buddhist
meditation since 1984. He is a Spirit Rock meditation teacher and has led
wilderness meditation retreats from Alaska to Peru. Mark is also a coach and
therapist. www.awakeinthewild.com
Lori Anne Schwanbeck is a mindfulness-based somatic psychotherapist.
Lori developed Sense and Sensibility, a sensory-focused mindfulness treatment
for emotional regulation, which she teaches internationally. She is cofounder
of Mindfulness Therapy Associates, located in San Francisco.
www.mindfulnesstherapy.org.
Aligning With Nature: A Winter Solstice Yoga Retreat
Sarana Miller
For centuries, winter solstice has been a time of reflection. Today, the
holidays can be a hectic time of doing, leaving us feeling stressed and
depleted. During this retreat we will use the practices of yoga (asana,
meditation, and chanting) in the exquisite and healing natural environment of Esalen to revitalize the body and calm the mind. Together,
we will focus our attention on being rather than doing.
The word solstice is derived from the Latin sol (sun) and sistere (to
stand still), because at the solstices, the seasonal movement of the sun’s
path appears to come to a stop before reversing direction. Winter solstice is a time to pause and reflect; a time to cultivate vitality and take
extra care to nurture ourselves. Moving into stillness, we can return to
our lives refreshed and strengthened for the new year to come. Please
bring a yoga mat.
has been a faculty instructor at Yoga Journal and leads annual retreats at Esalen and Wilbur Hot Springs, and in Mexico and Alaska.
Trained in the Iyengar and Forrest Yoga traditions, she has built her life
around sharing the benefits of the practice of yoga. www.saranayoga.com
Sarana Miller
Mindful Communication: Truth Without Blame
Solstice Meditation Retreat
Jean Morrison
Mark Coleman & Lori Anne Schwanbeck
Do the words you express often create walls when you are hoping for
connection or understanding? Are you OK in relationships yet desire
something deeper with more meaning and heart?
This workshop provides practices to integrate the principles and
processes of Nonviolent Communication (NVC), an internationally
recognized process for resolving conflict and clarifying and living
one’s values. Also known as “the language of life,” it’s a powerful tool
for social change, and a language of compassion for any life situation.
In a fun, lively, and supportive environment, we integrate practices
that support you to examine the way you think, communicate, and
relate to yourself and others in your life, and to help liberate you from
the following habitual patterns:
Following ancient traditions on this winter solstice, we will take this
poignant time to retreat, slow down, and enter stillness, silence, and
inner exploration. While the natural world appears to be dormant,
the inner realms are alive with transmuting the passage between the
old and the new. The solstice asks how we stand open hearted in face
of the darkest night while holding faith in the returning light. On
a practical level it is a time of sorting what wants to be released that
is no longer serving our potential, and what wants to be called in to
help us fulfill that journey. In this retreat we will be exploring these
questions:
• What needs to end to make space for a new beginning?
• How do you resist letting go of things that need to be released?
• What are you welcoming in?
• What is your relationship to transitions, to beginnings and
endings?
• How is it to stand in the unknown?
• Judging self and others
• Taking things personally
• Acting from fear, obligation, and guilt
• Suffering in anger and/or depression
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See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
NVC can support you to express honestly without blame, judgments
or criticism; hear others’ pain without trying to fix it or them; and
become more effective in living your values and meeting your goals.
Recommended reading: Rosenberg, Nonviolent Communication.
($15 materials fee for booklet and handouts will be added to the
workshop cost)
yy CE credit for nurses; see page 95.
Jean Morrison, MA, has been a certified NVC trainer since 1989. She also
is an author and materials designer with a background in psychology and
counseling. In all of her work, she emphasizes whole-brain learning and
thinking, and holistic health. www.groktheworld.com
Week of December 18–23
Living a Mindful and Compassionate Life
Mark Coleman
Awareness and love (metta) are essential and beautiful aspects of
any spiritual life. Awareness as developed through mindfulness
practice leads to clarity, insight, and understanding. Love opens
the heart, allows a kind embrace of ourselves, and connects us
intimately with life. The fusion of love and mindfulness supports a
compassionate response to the pain that we encounter in ourselves
and in life.
In this creative week of meditation practice, you can discover
how these qualities are intimately related and mutually supportive,
and why they are necessary in any journey of awakening in learning to live wisely and kindly in the world. We will draw guidance
from the teachings and practices of the Buddha, and inspiration
from the other great teachers and poets who beautifully expressed
in words and actions the power of awareness and compassion in the
world.
In this retreat there will be comprehensive meditation instruction
for sitting and walking meditation, as well as talks, group discussions,
and mindful movement. Suitable for beginning and experienced
students.
Mark Coleman
bio on page 83.
Yoga Practice Intensive: Mindful Transition
Noah Mazé
Join Noah Mazé for a week of celebration, practice, and contemplation as we plan and prepare for an easeful transition into the New
Year. We will dedicate time each day for yoga/asana and contemplative practices including inquiry, mantra, meditation, and satsang.
We will spend time together setting intentions and articulating our
goals in addition to checking in with our bodies. Expect to work
hard and play deeply in the asana practices with a blend of focused
yoga asana, philosophical teachings, and reflection. Expand your
capacity and connect to what lies at the foundation of your relationship to yoga. Ganesha, the diety of transitions/thresholds and
beginnings, will mythically inspire this week of transformational
yoga. Sessions will feature step-by-step sequencing, strong work in
fundamental poses, refinements, and intermediate options, and lots
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of fun! Bring a journal. Kick off your New Year in a great way! Please
bring a yoga mat.
Noah Mazé has a fierce and compassionate dedication to yoga that inspires
and holds space for students to journey deeper into body, heart, mind, and
spirit than they ever could have imagined. Noah teaches internationally
and online, and lives with his family in Los Angeles, Calif.
www.noahmazeyoga.com
Shift Happens: Learning to Bounce Back from
Disappointment and Difficulty
Linda Graham
The ability to cope effectively with the challenges and crises of life
is the core of our resilience and well-being. Developing flexible and
adaptive strategies for dealing with everyday disappointments—even
disasters—is the heart of any personal growth process.
Modern neuroscience illuminates how the brain encodes its strategies for coping in the first place, and informs how we can learn to use
our own self-directed neuroplasticity to rewire new strategies that
allow us to navigate the twists and turns of our lives with more courage and flexibility.
The rush and expectations of the holiday season can cause particular challenges and stressors. It is the perfect time to pause, change our
habitual patterns, and learn new skills. In this experiential workshop,
you’ll be taught to reverse the impact of stress and trauma, which can
help decrease anxiety, depression, grief, loneliness, guilt, and shame,
and rewire the inner critic. You can learn to deepen self-compassion
and empathy, and connect to inner resources and to healthy and
nourishing relationships. Through mindful awareness and reflection,
we all can discern options and make wise choices that lead to thriving
and well-being for ourselves and the larger world as we enter a new
year.
Linda Graham, MFT, is the author of the award-winning book, Bouncing
Back: Rewiring Your Brain for Maximum Resilience and Well-Being.
She integrates modern neuroscience, mindfulness practices, and relational
psychology in her nationwide trainings. Her monthly e-newsletter, Healing
and Awakening into Aliveness and Wholeness, is archived at www.linda
graham-mft.net.
A Time to Reflect
This is a special opportunity for people to experience Esalen
without taking a workshop. During this period, we have a limited
number of spaces available for people who would like to participate in the Esalen learning culture in their own unstructured way.
Deeply nourish your body, mind, heart, and soul through beautifully
prepared and healthy meals, daily yoga and movement classes, the
hot springs and massages, time in the meditation center, tea with
new friends, or even an evening program, lecture, or open workshop
session, when available. Space in the program is limited, so we recommend you register early.
We recommend that you bring the following: journal, digital camera, art supplies, hiking/walking shoes, a good book, and a map of the
Big Sur coast. Special pricing applies. Please contact Esalen Reservations for details.
jens wa zel
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
The Gift of Touch: An Esalen® Massage Holiday Retreat
Deborah Anne Medow & Ellen Watson
Give thanks by celebrating the holiday season and enjoying the natural beauty of the Esalen land, while learning how to give an Esalen
Massage. This seasonal workshop offers the talents of two experienced
teachers and five days of touch. This week of mutual giving and receiving is for those of you who wish to learn the fundamental elements
of Esalen Massage. The essence of the Esalen style of bodywork is
the awareness and presence with which one approaches massage. In
support of this awareness, this workshop offers basic bodywork skills:
the signature long, flowing, integrative strokes of Esalen Massage,
and instruction in grounding, centering, breath awareness, and detail
work.
Sessions will include plenty of personal instruction and assistance
to support the learning process.
This holiday retreat is for individuals and partners who would like
to offer loving, non-sexual touch to others, and for anyone interested
in experiencing the Esalen approach to massage and bodywork. Come
prepared to be nurtured by the healing waters of the Esalen baths and
to revel in the natural beauty, power, and spirit of Esalen and the Big
Sur coast during this special solstice time and the holiday season. All
levels of experience and inexperience are welcome. This workshop is
especially useful for those in the helping and healing professions in
working with their clients and patients.
Please bring an open heart, your favorite massage and dancing
music, and a sense of humor.
yy CE credit for nurses and massage; see page 95.
Deborah Anne Medow, longtime Esalen workshop leader, yoga instructor,
and bodywork practitioner, teaches yoga, massage, creative movement, awareness practices, and related healing disciplines throughout the US, Europe, and
Japan. She is also a certified nutrition educator, Zumba® dance instructor,
and manager of the Esalen Healing Arts Department.
Ellen Watson travels extensively, sharing the essence of her 26 years at
Esalen. Ellen founded MovingVentures, whose mission is vocational education in the fields of breathwork, and somatic and movement arts. Since
1998, she has focused on supporting the people of Bali, Indonesia.
www.movingventures.org
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See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
December 23–30
Kind Awareness: Meditations and Reflections
on the Buddhist Path of Awakening
author of Dharma Punx and other books. www.againstthestream.org
Vinny Ferraro has been practicing meditation since 1993. He has taught
meditation to incarcerated youth and adults, and is the head trainer for
the Mind Body Awareness Project. He also is a Spirit Rock Community
Dharma teacher.
Noah Levine & Vinny Ferraro
Using a hybrid of mindfulness and loving-kindness meditation techniques, Noah will offer an experience of the teachings and practices
of the Buddha. We will learn how to develop a greater sense of care
for ourselves and for our world through these revolutionary spiritual
teachings of the Buddha. The workshop explores the way that true
spiritual practice is an engagement with life that goes against the
norms of our confused society and is therefore an act of rebellion.
This ancient path of awakening our own deepest wisdom and compassion is accessible to all who choose it. Instructions in meditation and
guidance in the Buddhist path to liberation will be offered.
Please note: There will be a celebratory Christmas Eve dinner in the
Esalen Lodge.
Noah Levine is the founder of the Against The Stream Buddhist Meditation Society with centers in Los Angeles and San Francisco, Calif. and
affiliated groups internationally. He created a process of addiction recovery
based on the teachings of the Buddha called Refuge Recovery. He is the
Qigong for Health and Happiness
Mingtong Gu
Join Master Mingtong Gu for a week dedicated to healing and balancing body, mind, heart, and spirit through the powerful movement,
sound, and visualization practices of qigong. This retreat is a great
way to take a vacation for yourself, journey inward with deep nourishment, and recharge with renewed energy, clarity, and vitality.
Qigong supports you in releasing limitations and expanding into new
possibilities for balance, wellness, deep fulfillment, and lasting joy. By
bringing the mind back into the body, this technique and teaching of
awakened consciousness can be not only life changing but also a gift
for lifelong health and happiness.
Whether you are addressing specific conditions such as cancer,
Parkinson’s, diabetes, Lyme’s disease, immune deficiencies, addiction, chronic pain, or trauma, or are working with patients with these
conditions; whether you need to relax and rejuvenate from excessive
The Esalen kitchen team, comprised of
both professional chefs and students,
crafts each meal with mindfulness and
care, featuring produce and herbs from
Daniel Bianche t ta
the Esalen Farm & Garden.
86
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
stress; whether you want to support others in their healing journey
and/or deepen your own understanding and practice of qigong, the
retreat environment is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to tap your deepest
potential for healing and joy. By participating in this healing retreat,
you can:
• Learn to clear and balance the emotions so that deeper healing can
occur on all levels
• Develop a quiet and creative mind to most effectively realize
healing
• Learn the ultimate methods to build and transmit chi (energy) for
healing of self and others (called FaChi)
• Organize a chi field with others to accelerate healing ·
• Learn about profound theories and practices of energy healing to
better understand and activate our healing capacity
Please note: There will be a celebratory Christmas Eve dinner in the
Esalen Lodge.
yy CE credit for acupuncturists and MFTs & LCSWs; see leader.
CE credit for nurses; see page 95.
is an internationally recognized teacher and healer who
received his training from a variety of Grandmasters in China and at the
world’s largest Qigong hospital. www.chicenter.com
Mingtong Gu
Soul Motion™ : Tenderness at the Heart of the Dance
Zuza Engler & Scott Engler
“Soul is flow, an ever-changing cloudscape of textures, hues, sensations, scents, and feelings,” writes Zuza. “Soul is how the deathless
Presence meets and moves a finite human body. In this workshop, we
will reclaim the body-in-motion as a doorway to the soul’s flow, to the
life that is unfolding just under the surface of everyday forgetting.
“Soul Motion is a meeting with self and other in a dance that is
deeply nourishing, creative, intelligent, emotionally savvy, heartbreaking, soul-making, spirited, and transforming. It is a movement toward
the dynamic stillness at the center of all things, the place of rest at the
heart of sound and motion. We will gather to listen deeply and hover
on the threshold between doing and being, solitude and togetherness,
awkwardness and grace.
“Dancing at the edge of the continent, the edge of another beginning, the edge of Love despite all odds, we will move with our delight
and our sorrow, inspired by the promise of light returning into the
heart of darkness. This formless dance form allows for passionate
full-bodied movement as well as mindful inner explorations, art making, ritual, and luscious lounging. To follow the divine choreography,
we learn to fall and flounder. Going deeply into contact with self, we
awake enveloped in communion. The permission to relax, restore, and
rejoice in community invites a shift from alone to All One—from ‘my
dance’ to the One Dance.”
Bring an object, a poem, or an image for the altar to be created
as a symbol for the simultaneous possibility of self-expression and
belonging.
Please note: There will be a celebratory Christmas Eve dinner in the
Esalen Lodge.
Zuza Engler
Scott Engler
bio on page 74.
bio on page 74.
December 30–January 6
The Natural Singer: Finding Your True Voice
Claude Stein
Come and celebrate the awesome healing power of your voice.
Whether you already sing or have always wished you could, this
workshop can change your life. During this week, you will be shown
how to find and use your true, natural voice. There will be great
individual attention with exercises to relax the throat, build confidence, increase range, sing in key, and project with power. Then,
using favorite songs, participants will develop the extraordinary
gifts we are all born with. It is a thrilling, positive experience for
everyone. The results can be simply amazing as each of us, no matter
what level of experience, triumphs over the physical, emotional, and
self-conscious patterns that limit us—even if you’ve never been able
to carry a tune!
You can find confidence through the gentle whisper of a lullaby,
release emotion with the cry of the blues, or rekindle your passion
with a driving rhythmic chant. No special talent or previous experience is necessary. Whether you already sing in public and want to take
the next step, or you just want to hit the notes when you sing in the
car, you’ll find yourself communicating freely and singing like you’ve
always wanted to. Therapists, coaches, and workshop leaders will
also find the techniques valuable for use with their clients. Space is
limited. Please register early.
Please visit www.naturalsinger.com for stories, videos, testimonials,
and pictures.
Note: Bring instruments, CDs, and songbooks if you like.
Claude Stein has 29 years of experience blending psychology and voice training. His clients include RCA, Warner Bros., Sony, Atlantic, Island Records,
Juilliard, the New York Actors Institute, Sprint, Siemens, JPMorgan, NASA,
and the U.S. House of Representatives. www.naturalsinger.com
Weekend of December 30–January 1
New Year Meditation Retreat:
Self-Love and Kindness that Benefits All
Mark Abramson
Meditating in noble silence offers a special opportunity to focus
inward, and to deeply connect with oneself, create intentions, and
reflect on life goals. New Year’s, with its connection to the Winter
Solstice and new beginnings, is the perfect time to silently journey
inward. Participants will set intentions and explore, through seated
and moving meditation, themes of self-kindness, self-care, and nurturing. This retreat offers a quiet, reflective New Year’s celebration with
the opportunity to discover a deep, centered place within.
“The weekend will be spent in periods of noble silence with two
extended periods a day in various meditation practices,” writes Mark
Abramson. “Participants will have the opportunity to enjoy eating
lunch at a silent table and continuing their meditation or joining the
open activities of the day at Esalen in mindfulness. I will guide you
87
c a meron jordan
See pages 8–9 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts.
through a series of practices of both stillness and movement, which
will build the momentum of concentration and awareness. We will
practice mindfulness meditation utilizing the rich, sensual experience
of Esalen, with the sounds of the ocean, the feeling of the air, and the
beauty of seeing the colors and textures as well as the rich experience
of our own bodies and minds. Evenings will be open to mindfully
enjoy Esalen’s beauty and community or choose to continue silence in
inner retreat. New Year’s Eve at Esalen usually includes a communitywide celebration of some kind, which is an option for participants, but
not required.
Please note: This program can be taken on its own or together with
Mark Abramson’s January 1—6, 2017 workshop, New Year Meditation
Retreat.
is part of the Stanford Center for Integrative Medicine
and heads Stanford’s Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Program. He
teaches at Stanford’s School of Medicine and is on staff at Stanford Hospital.
www.drtmjsleepapnea.com
Mark Abramson
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The Promise: Advanced Yoga for Everyone
Mark Whitwell
Refresh your life in the New Year with a powerful and nurturing yoga
practice designed especially for you. Yoga is not a linear process. It is
direct intimacy with life, and it is available to everyone. This weekend,
Mark Whitwell offers yoga’s advanced practices in a way that you can
integrate and make your own, whether you are just beginning to practice or have years of experience. The workshop involves an interwoven
promise: You promise to practice yoga, and in return you receive the
promise of yoga’s gifts, including health, intimacy, well-being, and
joy. In order to experience these benefits, your yoga practice must be
adapted to you, not you to yoga. With Mark’s skillful and heartfelt
guidance, you will:
• Explore the five principles of advanced personal practice
• Dive into asana, pranayama, and meditation as a seamless process
• Discover how yoga transforms life into an intimate celebration
with everything
Register online at www.esalen.org or by calling 888-8-ESALEN (888-837-2536).
• Experience the nurturing principle as a constant in your life from
now on
• Return home with understanding and the embodied felt sense of
your own joyful practice
This program is a regenerative and joyful event that will continue
to reverberate through your daily life in very practical ways. For all
levels; no prior yoga experience needed. Please bring a yoga mat.
Recommended reading: Whitwell, Yoga of Heart and The Promise of
Love, Sex, and Intimacy; Desikachar, The Heart of Yoga.
Mark Whitwell has enjoyed a lifelong relationship with the teachings of
Krishnamacharya through his students T.K.V. Desikachar and Srivatsa
Ramaswami. He travels the world teaching yoga and is the author of Yoga of Heart: The Healing Power of Intimate Connection and The Promise
of Love, Sex and Intimacy.
Week of January 1–6, 2017
New Year Meditation Retreat
Mark Abramson
Meditating in noble silence offers a special opportunity to focus
inward, and to deeply connect with oneself, create intentions, and
reflect on life goals. New Year’s, with its connection to the Winter
Solstice and new beginnings, is the perfect time to silently journey
inward. Participants will set intentions and explore, through seated
and moving meditation, themes of self-kindness, self-care, and nurturing. This retreat offers a quiet, reflective New Year’s celebration with
the opportunity to discover a deep, centered place within.
“The week will be spent in periods of noble silence with two
extended periods a day in various meditation practices,” writes Mark
Abramson. “Participants will have the opportunity to enjoy eating
lunch at a silent table and continuing their meditation or joining the
open activities of the day at Esalen in mindfulness. I will guide you
through a series of practices of both stillness and movement, which
will build the momentum of concentration and awareness. We will
practice mindfulness meditation utilizing the rich, sensual experience
of Esalen, with the sounds of the ocean, the feeling of the air, and the
beauty of seeing the colors and textures as well as the rich experience
of our own bodies and minds.
Evenings will be open to mindfully enjoy Esalen’s beauty and community or choose to continue silence in inner retreat.
Please note: This program can be taken on its own or together with
Mark Abramson’s December 30—January 1 workshop, New Year Meditation Retreat: Self-Love and Kindness That Benefits All.
Mark Abramson
tice or have years of experience. The workshop involves an interwoven
promise: You promise to practice yoga, and in return you receive the
promise of yoga’s gifts, including health, intimacy, well-being, and
joy. In order to experience these benefits, your yoga practice must be
adapted to you, not you to yoga. Mark’s skillful and heartfelt guidance
will help you:
• Explore the five principles of advanced personal practice
• Dive into asana, pranayama, and meditation as a seamless process
• Discover how yoga transforms life into an intimate celebration
with everything
• Experience the nurturing principle as a constant in your life from
now on
• Return home with understanding and the embodied felt sense of
your own joyful practice
This program is a regenerative and joyful event that will continue
to reverberate through your daily life in very practical ways. For all
levels; no prior yoga experience is needed. Please bring a yoga mat.
Recommended reading: Whitwell, Yoga of Heart and The Promise of
Love, Sex, and Intimacy; Desikachar, The Heart of Yoga.
Mark Whitwell
bio on page 89 (above).
Designing the Life You Want: Self-Renewal in the New Year
Mark Nicolson
You have never been where you are today. You have never been the age
you are today, or had the experience you have today. The river of life
flows and we find ourselves in places we have never been before. At
times, you must pause and reflect: Have you created the life you want?
Are you going in the right direction? Are you who you want to be?
Rarely, however, do we allow ourselves the time to stop and look at
what is changing and what will prepare us for the next phase. Drawing
on psychological principles and ancient wisdom traditions to guide
us, we will create a unique environment in which peers can come
together for a rare opportunity of deep personal learning and exploration. Our goal is renewing the self, and designing and creating the
year and the life we want.
You will develop a set of tools, practices, and intentions as a foundation for the next year and next stage of life. Together we will create
a supportive community to make this experiential workshop safe,
enlivening, and nurturing.
is an organizational consultant based in Silicon Valley,
Calif. He specializes in leadership development and in the effectiveness of
teams and organizations. He is also the co-founder of Ventana Group, which
works with visionary social change leaders. www.nicolsongroup.com
Mark Nicolson
bio on page 88.
The Promise: Advanced Yoga for Everyone
Mark Whitwell
Refresh your life in the New Year with a powerful and nurturing yoga
practice designed especially for you. Yoga is not a linear process. It is
direct intimacy with life, and it is available to everyone. This week,
Mark Whitwell offers yoga’s advanced practices in a way that you can
integrate and make your own, whether you are just beginning to prac-
Vo i c es
VV
o f E salen
Enjoy listening to conversations with
featured faculty as part of our new
Voices of Esalen podcast. Available
now on iTunes.
89
Work Study Program
T
he Work Study program is a 28-day immersion in Esalen’s
integrative approach to personal and social development. The
program combines a rigorous course of study in one area of transformative practice with the opportunity for deep relationship with the
Esalen land and community. Work Study is a rich and challenging way
to embody the idea that mental, physical, emotional, spiritual, and social
dimensions of the self are inextricably connected. Please see the following
pages for descriptions of Work Study courses.
At the heart of the Work Study experience are the evening sessions.
During these meetings, which occur four to five evenings per week,
workscholars in each discipline meet together for core studies. The group
leader or leaders for each discipline are highly experienced teachers who
coordinate the course of study and guide scholars throughout the month.
As a complement to their studies, workscholars participate in Esalen’s
daily operations by volunteering 32 hours per week, usually in the housekeeping department or the kitchen, in exchange for their housing and
meal costs. Contemplative and transformative practices are woven into the
work environment at Esalen, so each day there are valuable opportunities
for self and group exploration, including group process and check-in.
The Legacy Program is a second type of 28-day work study experience at Esalen. With class sessions meeting just twice a week, with one
intensive day of classes during the month, Legacy workscholars have
more flexibility in their schedules to attend residential education classes
(regularly occurring learning events designed for Esalen staff) and daily
movement arts programs. Legacy programs are usually a mix of workscholars and Esalen staff. Legacy workscholars also volunteer 32 hours per
week with an Esalen department, and the tuition for Legacy is the same as
the traditional Work Study program.
Workscholars are selected by application only. After applications
have been accepted, participants may register for the program. Some of
the work can be physically challenging, including lifting, bending, and
repetitive movements. Please be sure you are capable of the work you may
be assigned. Workscholars are assigned to departments on the basis of
community need, so please be ready to jump in anywhere.
Please note: The Work Study program is designed to explore and apply human
values and potentials. It is not intended as a substitute for therapy or as a “cure.”
Esalen encourages workscholars to refrain from alcohol use during their stay.
No pets, drugs, or violence allowed. We cannot accommodate children.
Commitment to the Work Study program is from 4 pm of the first
Sunday to 7:30 pm of the final Sunday. Do not plan to take regularly
scheduled catalog workshops during your stay.
Fees: A deposit of $400 in US currency is required with your application.
Fees will not be processed until your place in a program is secured and you
have accepted. The workscholar fee is $1,250 for the month. Fees are subject
to change and are due upon your arrival. Workscholars may be invited to
remain for a second month depending on space and community needs.
Occasionally it is possible to stay for a longer period as an extended student.
Food and Housing: Accommodations are shared (occasionally co-ed),
with up to four people to a room. Some workscholars stay at South Coast
Center, a staff complex located 1.5 miles north of Esalen. Housing and
meals are provided in exchange for 32 hours of volunteer work.
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Cancellation Policy: If you choose to cancel, you will be charged the
following amount: 15+ days prior to start, $100; 8–14 days, $200; 3–7 days,
$300; 0–2 days, $400.
To Apply: Visit www.esalen.org/workstudy-application to download the
application. Please email your completed application to workstudy@
esalen.org and then send your deposit by mail, or mail your application
and deposit to:
Work Study Program
Esalen Institute
55000 Hwy 1
Big Sur, CA 93920
We will contact you to confirm that we received your application
within 14 days of receiving it. We will inform applicants of admission
three months prior to the program’s start date. After that time, there are
generally wait lists for Work Study programs.
Work Study Programs
July–december 2016
Month of July 3–31
Work Study – High Performance Leadership:
How to Unleash Your Full Potential
George Kohlrieser
This program is part of our Integral Leadership Program Summer Leadership Series.
Why do some leaders overcome impossible barriers, go beyond
unbearable pressure and frustration, and persevere in order to achieve
extraordinary outcomes in situations where others would give up? The
answer to that question has never been clearer. Through their desire for
relentless improvement, leaders at the edge can unlock the highest levels
of performance from themselves and others, making work a more exciting
place to be for themselves and those around them. Leading at the edge
enables people to “play to win” rather than simply “playing not to lose.” It
is a profound process of leading oneself and others.
People are facing intense pressure like never before. There are so many
complex changes and challenges today, which create the necessity for high
levels of engagement to reach high performance. Drawing on research on
high performance from the world of sports, business, medicine, music,
theater, military, and hostage negotiation, George Kohlrieser will lead
participants through mini theory presentations, action learning, group
process, role playing, and action planning designed to foster cutting-edge
leadership skills, including how to take appropriate risk, inspire trust,
drive change, and create opportunities to foster success for themselves,
their teams, and their organizations.
Esalen’s Integral Leadership Program (ILP) targets college-aged and
recent graduates. For more information and to apply, visit http://www.
esalen.org/integralleadership.
George Kohlrieser
bio on page 25.
Caroline Harvey
This program is part of our Integral Leadership Program Summer Leadership Series.
“There are truths bellowing from our bones, stories nudging up from
the root and into the mouth,” Caroline Harvey writes. “We cradle these
stories under our tongues, aching to communicate authentically, longing
for vibrant engagement with our beloved world. But we’ve received mixed
messages: maybe we were told to stay quiet, that we were ‘too much’;
maybe our stories are traumatic, so we locked them away. Doubts emerge:
Is my truth welcome? Can I say this aloud?
“This course invites safe vulnerability, encouraging a confidence that
yes, your voice counts, and yes, no matter what came before, there’s a community that welcomes your honest word. We’ll pursue critical leadership
skills including creative expression, compassion, cultural competency,
and more. To do this, we’ll address our silencing mechanisms, discover
our urgent stories, and sculpt conscious dialog. We’ll examine traditional
and contemporary poetry; investigate Guerilla Theater; explore writing
prompts and mindfulness; and create original Spoken Word. You’ll have
a tremendous opportunity to embody new conviction as a leader, and be
better equipped to communicate, wherever you are.
Esalen’s Integral Leadership Program (ILP) targets college-aged and
recent graduates. For more information and to apply, visit www.esalen.org/
integralleadership.
Caroline Harvey
bio on page 28.
Month of July 31–August 28
Work Study – Performance Theater
Peter Meyers
This program is part of our Integral Leadership Program Summer Leadership Series.
To create lasting transformation in any environment, we need to first
transform our ideas of leadership and performance. Luckily, the latest discoveries in technology, nature, and systems theory give us an entirely new
model of both performance and leadership—a model that is not dependent
on the decisions of a single charismatic leader but the collective wisdom
that picks up and follows the pulse of the group.
As in jazz improvisation, this new model involves a constant giving
and taking, a process in which everyone contributes and the dross falls
away. When we find the connections between one another and follow
what is present, the interdependence of all things guides us. It is in those
moments of responsiveness, agility, and generosity that a unique bond of
trust is formed and the creative contributions of the group emerge—sometimes as chaos and sometimes as sublime.
Nowhere is this more evident than in the performing arts, where the
principles of ensemble-theater (working as a group) have been practiced,
developed, and demonstrated on stages for centuries. What can the theater
teach us about ways to channel the collective wisdom of the group for new
ideas and breakthrough performance?
The program will focus on developing presence, creativity, and leadership.
Integral Leadership Program (ILP)
Summer Leadership Series
During July and August, Esalen continues its third annual ILP
Summer Series with two Work Study programs that showcase
the talents of leaders across a variety of disciplines. Esalen’s ILP
provides students with the opportunity to supplement university
learning with an unparalleled immersion into the Esalen experience.
The ILP curriculum focuses on critical skills for leaders: emotional
intelligence, self-expression, compassion, ecological awareness,
conflict resolution, and cross-cultural communication. Esalen’s
ILP is open to university-enrolled, college-bound, or “gap-year”
students and recent graduates. Participants will receive a certificate
upon completion and may be eligible for college credit. Visit
www.esalen.org/integralleadership or contact integral.leadership
@esalen.org for more information.
Veteran stage director, author, and global leadership consultant Peter
James Meyers will guide the group through the process of creating an
original ensemble theater performance developed over four weeks and
offered as a gift to the community at the end of the month.
Recommended reading: Meyers, As We Speak: How to Make Your Point
and Have it Stick.
Esalen’s Integral Leadership Program (ILP) targets college-aged and
recent graduates. For more information and to apply, visit www.esalen.org/
integralleadership.
Peter Meyers
bio on page 36.
Legacy Group – Exploring Symbol and Personal Meaning
through Artistic Expression Branan Freeman
This program is part of our Integral Leadership Program Summer Leadership Series.
During this month-long artistic journey led by Branan Freeman, you
will immerse yourself in the stunning Big Sur landscape as you explore
personal connections to symbols and archetypal imagery related to
nature, animals, and organic and geometric shapes. As you uncover and
create meaning based on the images most potent to you, you can develop
your own personal mythology by discovering and reflecting aspects of
yourself through your creations.
This art practice will be a form of mindfulness as the group engages in
a variety of approaches and media, including printmaking, drawing and
painting, nature-journaling, and collage. You will explore key conscious
leadership skills, including self-expression, compassion, and ecological
awareness, throughout the art-making process. You will come together
each session for hands-on studio art time and will also take time as a
group during the month for shared discussion about your art and artmaking experience and a final group project.
All experience levels are welcome. No art background is necessary,
and the course embraces “beginner’s mind” as all participants learn
through observation, practice, and artistic risk taking in a supportive
91
Cliff Warner
Legacy Group – Tongue and Pen:
Spoken Word at the Edge of Poetic Experience
Branan Freeman is an artist and art educator with more than 15 years of experience. She was an art and museum educator at the San Diego Museum of Art
and the Children’s Museum San Diego. Currently she is the residential education
manager at Esalen. www.brananbird.com
Patrice Ward
environment. The group will work indoors and outdoors, and explore the
farm, garden, and local landscape for inspiration, thus broadening our
ecological awareness and enhancing our creations. ($45 materials fee paid at
the time of registration)
Esalen’s Integral Leadership Program (ILP) targets college-aged and
recent graduates. For more information and to apply, visit www.esalen.org/
integralleadership.
Legacy Group – Leadership and Presence
Suzanne Scurlock-Durana
Month of August 28–September 25
Work Study – Present-Moment Experience and
Depth in Psychotherapy, The Hakomi Method
Robert Fisher & Julie Murphy
Experience the nuances of working with mindfulness and the present
moment to unfold the creative and healing capabilities of the psyche.
Based on Hakomi Mindfulness-Centered Somatic Psychotherapy, this
course presents advanced skills of assessment, loving presence, and
intervention that utilize present-moment experience in elegant and
gentle ways.
Through talk and discussion, live demonstrations, internal exercises,
and practices to develop skills for healing, you can experience for yourself
and learn to guide others with the following:
• Basic principles and techniques of the Hakomi Method
• How to use mindfulness in experiential psychotherapy and selfdiscovery
• How to track the many languages of the unconscious
• How to notice present-moment experience and the underlying models
of the world that shape us
• How to connect deeply with clients based on their moment-tomoment experience
• How to engage in mindful exploration of the psyche
• Creative approaches that bring live experience into therapy
• How to become an ally to your own and your client’s defenses and
resistance
Authors, professors, and international Hakomi trainers Rob Fisher
and Julie Murphy will help guide you in exploring your inner world
and learning these skills, which can deepen work with others. Through
these practices and exercises, you can learn to connect more deeply with
yourself in compassionate and forgiving ways that permit change to occur.
Rob will teach the first two weeks of this course, and Julie Murphy the
second two weeks. This course is designed for all levels and no experience
is required.
Recommended Reading: Weiss and Johanson, Hakomi Mindfulness
Centered Somatic Psychotherapy.
bio on page 40.
MA, LMFT, is a professor, author, international Hakomi trainer,
and somatic psychotherapist. With a background in anthropology, contemplative psychology, attachment theory, Buddhism, and poetry, Julie has developed
numerous programs that integrate cutting-edge research with humanistic and
contemplative approaches.
Robert Fisher
Julie Murphy,
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The more present we are in ourselves, the more present we can be with
someone else.
Presence is the hidden key to successful leadership. This seemingly elusive skill is learnable, and this Legacy program led by Suzanne
Scurlock-Durana contains the steps, through experiential work that is
designed to help you pay attention to the subtle cues you receive from
your body and the surrounding environment all the time. This will then
give you access to your own, highly valuable inner landscape—the wisdom
of your body-mind-spirit—which significantly enhances your ability to be
more fully present as a leader. In this month we will share how to:
• Assess your energy reservoir and refill when you are depleted
• Be more able to BE present vs. DOING all the time
• Be aware of, but not absorb, the emotions of others
• Make healthy connections (empathy vs. sympathy)
• Stay open hearted and clear headed
• Have more powerful leadership conversations
The deeper layer of this program will help you more fully utilize the
navigational system of your body, including wisdom of the heart, gut,
bones, feet, and legs.
If you feel overwhelmed at times by your feelings or those around you,
this course will help you develop your body and energy field into a container that can hold and modulate the whole range of human emotions.
Learning to build this capacity within your navigational field enables you
to have feelings and learn from them. Please bring a journal for reflection
time and notes, as well as a binder for handouts.
This workshop is especially useful for those in the helping and healing
professions in working with their clients and patients.
Required reading and listening: Scurlock-Durana, Full Body Presence:
Learning to Listen to Your Body’s Wisdom, book and audio download or CD.
yy CE credit for massage; see page 95.
Suzanne Scurlock-Durana
bio on page 20.
Month of September 25–October 23
Work Study – Deep Bodywork®
Rob Wilks & Paul Wehrman
Deep Bodywork, as created by Perry Holloman over the last twenty-five
years at Esalen Institute, is a method that integrates the qualities of a
flowing Esalen® Massage with the therapeutic effectiveness of deep tissue work. Using deep tissue methods, massage practitioners can enter
the body’s deeper soft tissue layers, freeing previously dense, hardened
areas, which may have become chronically painful due to a lack of fluid
exchange and energy flow. As these areas soften and “re-organize,” their
chronic tension patterns release, revitalizing living tissues with blood,
lymph, and chi (life) energy. Because living systems like the human body
require a constant flow of chi energy to self-organize and heal, blockages
to that flow within our tissues can create longer-term health problems like
joint and soft tissue pain, movement restriction, and circulatory problems.
This month with Rob Wilks and Paul Wehrman will focus on exploring the modality of deep bodywork as a healing art, and is designed for
massage and bodywork practitioners seeking to incorporate effective deep
tissue techniques into their work. We will explore the common areas
(back, neck, shoulders, hips, etc.) where these chronic tension patterns
tend to stagnate. Students will be taught how to effectively address these
areas using gravitational energy, proper use of body mechanics, the importance of working slowly, and self-care practices.
Professional massage experience is highly recommended for this
advanced-level class. Please visit www.deepbodywork.com for more information.
Recommended viewing: Deep Bodywork I: Healing the Back, Shoulders
and Hips (DVD), available at www.deepbodywork.com.
autobiographical performance. Her provocative and original works have been
honored with 7 Bay Area Critics’ Circle Awards and 3 National Endowment for
the Arts fellowships. www.motiontheater.org
yy CE credit for massage; see page 95.
yy CE credit for massage; see page 95.
Rob Wilks bio on page 77.
Jim Gallas,
Month of October 23–November 20
Work Study – Streams of Energy
Jim Gallas
This program of Eastern bodywork and movement includes Reiki 1
Certification, a thorough overview of Shiatsu Massage, an introduction to
meridian theory, and an easy-to-learn, powerful Chi Kung form. Various
meditations, self-massage, and improv games will be used to encourage
awareness and expression. The program is designed to open students
to their own innate healing potentials, to the power of safe, therapeutic
touch, and to being more fully present in their ongoing unfolding. Participants will also receive valuable tools to facilitate the healing of others. In a
spirit of compassion, laughter, and expanding awareness, students will be
nurtured and nourished by the group interaction and by a deeper connection to Self. ($10 materials fee will be added to the workshop cost)
Paul Wehrman
is a guest practitioner of the Esalen Massage crew, and former
resident of Esalen. As a Deep Bodywork specialist, he resides in Santa Barbara,
Calif., where he maintains a private practice and teaches Yin Yoga.
a Shiatsu teacher for more than 15 years, has led workshops in California and internationally. Creator of the DVD Zen Thai Table Shiatsu: Deep
and Effective Body Work with Ease, Jim also teaches Reiki, anatomy, yoga,
and chi kung. www.relaxedfocus.net
Legacy Group – Motion Theater ® : Dreaming on Your Feet
Legacy Group – Embodied Relational Gestalt
Nina Wise
Michael Clemmens
It is our nature to be free—and to express that freedom spontaneously and
without hesitation through song and dance, poetry and play. Moreover,
we each have the ability to wake up to who we already know ourselves to
be: people dedicated to a sane and just world made up of individuals who
celebrate their common humanity and this planet of indescribable beauty
through singing, dancing, playing, and caring for all sentient beings.
This improvisation workshop in Motion Theater allows the creativity
that resides within us to have a voice. “Everyone has a story to tell,” says
Nina Wise. “And stories reside as much in the body as in the mind. So
we begin with movement—slow stretches to open the body. We open the
voice with playful classical- and jazz-based exercises. We meditate to calm
the heart, dance to free the spirit, find a way to effortlessly compose with
language. This journey leads to giving voice and physicality to the private
characters and inner realities that live in the subconscious mind and the
cells of our bodies.”
The sessions will include meditation, gentle and vigorous movement,
exploring the range of vocal expression, writing exercises, as well as solo,
duet, and ensemble improv games.
This workshop is like dreaming on your feet. Expect to surprise yourself and to become more playful and at ease before an audience. You might
even find that the sense of wellbeing achieved during the workshop not
only expands your creative abilities, but also enhances your experience
of daily life. And while it is not therapy, the work can be surprisingly,
delightfully, holistically healing.”
“We develop relationships with ourselves and others through the physicality of our vision, smell, touch, and movement,” says Michael Clemmens.
“These relationships, or dances, shape what we believe is possible and how
we behave in the present. In this program, our focus will be on the ways
in which we create relationships through our bodies. By attending to our
present dance with others, we can become more aware of our existing
context and optional ways of interacting.
“The structure of the program will be experiential exercises, practice
sessions, and group discussion to develop our awareness of self and the
group. We will begin with our earliest movements (prior to birth) and
then explore how we co-create our bodily membership in the more complex gestalts of family, groups, and cultures. Our goals will be to experience how we create relationships through embodiment, and to develop
skills in attending to ourselves and others.”
Nina Wiseis
a performance artist and founder of Motion Theater, a form of
Michael Craig Clemmens bio on page 61.
Month of November 20–December 18
Work Study – The Art of Skillful Living:
Leadership, Love and Freedom
Coby Kozlowski
We are all called to leadership as agents of inspiration, purpose, and
change. Leadership is about being of service to the world, and every
moment is an opportunity for leadership. Leadership also is an inward
93
journey to the depths of what it means to be human. Leadership is about
being fully expressed, about being called to your greatness, and about
having the courage to act in ways that are in alignment with your highest
and awakened self.
The world is shifting; this rapid change is an invitation to participate in
the evolution of consciousness. In this program led by Coby Kozlowski,
students will have the opportunity to deepen the meaning of leadership
by investigating belief systems, understanding the nature of consciousness, diving into emotion regulation, discovering the key to collaboration,
and facilitating change using the lens of contemplative wisdom, yoga
philosophy, expressive arts, and group discussion. Through this interactive, lecture-based, and highly experiential program, students can begin
to embody the integral leadership model, discover the leader within, and
connect with and act on a personal calling. By liberating the heart/mind
and stepping fully into authenticity, you can inspire others to do the same
and become agents of change. This is the new way of leadership.
Coby Kozlowski
bio on page 24.
Legacy Group – Nonviolent Communication:
The Language of Life
We all have the ability to access the innate wisdom and compassion of the
heart—all we have do is turn inward through meditation and eventually
we will uncover an endless source of happiness.
During this course, Noah Levine will be joined by Spirit Rock Community Dharma teacher Vinny Ferraro for a program that combines
the regular and Legacy work study groups for a unique synergy. Legacy
work scholars will have the opportunity to join the regular work study
group for some portions of the course, and vice versa. Together, Levine
and Ferraro will guide you into your heart’s depths through a series of
guided meditations, small group explorations, lectures, and dialogue. The
month will be based upon the Buddha’s teachings of the Divine Abodes of
heart—kindness, compassion, appreciation, and equanimity, as well as an
in-depth process of forgiveness.
All levels of experience are welcome, but be warned you will be asked
to open your heart and stand undefended in the presence of your own
truth.
Please note: Esalen will have a property-wide silent retreat between
January 8 and January 15, 2017.
bio on page 86.
Vinny Ferraro bio on page 86.
Noah Levine
Jean Morrison
This month we’ll rigorously integrate the internationally recognized
process called Nonviolent Communication (NVC), which is also known
as Compassionate Communication. With certified NVC trainer, Jean
Morrison, you are offered the opportunity to strengthen your ability to:
• Honor your authentic self
• Live from a consciousness of compassion, for yourself and with others
• Make peace with conflict, which affects emotional health and wellbeing
• Replace habits of mind and language that create distress and walls of
separation with new habits that create connection, understanding, and
healing
• Liberate your thinking and reactions in order to transform the gifts of
anger, hurt, and guilt into energy and expressions that serve life
• Clarify and express your emotions and needs, distinct from blame
• Make empowering requests distinct from demands and expectations
• Apply NVC principles and skills to your goals and aspirations
The sessions include a balance of playful exploration, thoughtful
inquiry, powerful exercises for skill-development, and sharing of best
practices with participants’ real situations. Each participant will receive
a 30-page binder and booklet. Journal pages are included in the binder
with simple tracking of key events of the day and short processes to connect with the content of the course. For more information about Jean and
NVC, please visit www.groktheworld.com.
Jean Morrison
bio on page 84.
Work Study Programs
January–june 2017
Please visit www.esalen.org/page/work-study for complete program descriptions, and to apply.
January 15–February 12
Work Study – Opening the Creative Channel with Johnsmith
Legacy– How We Change and Why We Don't: The Art and Science
of Transformation with Cassandra Vieten
February 12–March 12
Work Study – Beyond the “Revolving Door”: Gestalt Relational
Constellations with Gordon Wheeler & Nancy Lunney-Wheeler
Legacy– Inspired by Nature: Creative Expression in Esalen’s Big Sur
Landscape with Christina Dauenhauer
March 12–April 9
Work Study – Relational Gestalt Practice with Dorothy Charles
Legacy– Deep Bodywork ® with Rob Wilks
April 9–May 7
Work Study – Write Your Life for the Page and the Stage with Ann
Randolph
Legacy– Transforming Your Identity, Discovering Your Authentic
Self
Month of December 18–January 15
Work Study – The Heart of Buddhism
Noah Levine & Vinny Ferraro
The Buddha offered a timeless teaching on how to live a life that is
sourced from kindness, compassion, and appreciation. These teachings
and practices are as applicable today as they were two thousand years ago.
94
with Tanya McGinnity
May 7–June 4
Work Study – Embodied Relational Gestalt with Michael Clemmens
Legacy– Unveil Yourself through Mindfulness, Yoga and Conscious
Dance with Jovinna Chan
June 4—July 2
Work Study – TBD
Legacy– Truly Human Leadership: Leading from the Heart of Self
with Nina Merrens
Continuing Education Programs
E
salen’s status as a provider of continuing education is approved
by the following boards:
• Psychologists and MFT/LCSW: Esalen Institute is approved by the
American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education
for psychologists. Esalen maintains responsibility for this program and
its content. (California psychologists are required to report their hours
to the MCEP Accrediting Agency.)
• Massage practitioners and bodyworkers; The National Certification
Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (provider number
043062-00) and the Bureau for Private Post-Secondary Education
(school code 2700571)
• RNs; California Board of Registered Nursing (Provider No. 01152)
• Registered Dietitians; Commission on Dietetic Registration*
• Acupuncturists; State of California Acupuncture Board (Provider No. 946)*
n
Aug 14-19 Transformational Enneagram n
Aug 14-19
Gratitude & Forgiveness Aug 19-26 EMDR (Parts 1 & 2)
n
Aug 21-26
Zero Balancing—Part 1
n
Aug 28-Sep 2 Compassion, Mindfulness & Joy
n
Sep 2-4
Your Heart’s Blueprint n
EFT for Healing
n n n
Sep 4-9
Unwinding Meridians July 17-24 Japanese & Western Films
n n
Sep 9-11
Couples’ Communication
July 22-24
The Power of Intuition
n n n n
Sep 18-23
Mindfulness & Yoga
July 24-29
Full Body Presence
n n
Sep 23-25 July 29-Aug 5 Healing the Pelvic Floor
n n
n
July 1-3
The Magical Family
July 3-8
Mindfulness as a Wisdom Practice
July 3-8
Advanced Esalen ® Massage
July 10-17
The Family in Film 1
July 17-22 Buddha, the Brain, Bach
n
July 17-22
Embodying Your Love: Couples
n
July 17-22
n
July 31-Aug 5 5Rhythms ® : Connections
n
n
n
n
n n n
ych
mf O
Ts LO
NU & GIS
RS Lc TS
Bo ES sw
s
d
Ac yworker
up
un
ct s
uri
st
s
ps
ps
ps
ych
mf O
Ts LO
NU & GIS
RS Lc TS
Bo ES sw
s
d
Ac yworker
up
un
ct s
uri
st
s
E
TL
TI
SE
UR
CO
S
AT
E
D
**Acupuncture and dietitian workshops are approved on a case-by-case basis.
Please refer to the Esalen website prior to registration for updated CE status.
ych
mf O
Ts LO
NU & GIS
RS Lc TS
Bo ES sw
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Ac yworker
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s
Workshops for which CE credit has been approved are listed below and
also noted in the Workshops section. For questions regarding continuing
education, contact ce@esalen.org.
megan Handy
All approved weekend workshops qualify for 10 hours of CE units, and
approved five-day courses qualify for 26 hours of CE units. Please check
workshop listings online at www.esalen.org for any updates to CE credit
offered. In order to receive a certificate for continuing education units,
participants must meet the following requirements:
• Attend and sign the attendance sheet for all sessions (please see leader)
• Fill out the evaluation form distributed by the leader and turn it in to
the Esalen main office with a $25 processing fee
Oct 23-28 Art & Science of Transformation
Oct 28-30
Zero Balancing Open Forum
n n
n n
Nov 6-11 Visceral Manipulation 2
n n n
Nov 6-11 Esalen Massage n n
Nov 13-18 Conquering Injury & Pain n n
n
Nov 20-25
5Rhythms ® : Gateways
n n n
Nov 20-25
Spinal Awareness n n
Dec 2-4
Advanced Esalen ® Massage
n
Dec 4-9
Awakening the Creative Full Body Presence n n
Dec 4-11
CFR®, Feldenkrais ® n n
Sep 23-25 Medical Qigong Certification
n
n
Dec 4-23
100-Hour Esalen ® Massage n n
Sep 25-30
Tai Chi Easy™ Certification n n n
Dec 9-11
Recapturing Your Posture n n
CranioSacral Therapy 2
n n n
Dec 11-16
Esalen ® Massage n n n
n n n
n n n
n
n n
n n
n n
July 31-Aug 5 Taiji (T’ai Chi) & Qigong n
n
Sep 25-30 Aug 5-7
Taiji (T’ai Chi) & Qigong n
n
Sep 30-Oct 2 Esalen ® Massage n n
Dec 11-16
Mindful Self-Compassion
Aug 7-12
Advanced CranioSacral n n n
Oct 2-7 Intro. to Esalen ® Massage n n
Dec 16-18
Mindful Communication n
Aug 7-12
R. D. Laing in the 21st Century 1
Oct 9-14 Visceral Manipulation 1
n n n
Dec 18-23
Esalen ® Massage Holiday Retreat
n n
Aug 12-14
The Embodied Life™
Oct 23-28 Art of Deep Bodywork n n n
Dec 23-30
Qigong for Health & Happiness
n n
n
®
n n n
n n
95
n
Faculty Index
Mark Abramson 87, 89
Dee Dettmann Ahern
56, 65
Leah Alchin 44
David Allen 67
Katchie Ananda 47
Susan Anderson 69
Nancy Slonim Aronie 66
Karen Axelrod 50
B
Oliver Bailey 51
Barnet Bain 60
Julie Baker 65
Banana Slug String
Band 20
Anat Baniel 70
James Baraz 41, 69
Jane Baraz 69
Ysaye Barnwell 30
Ellen Bass 76
Sera Beak 37
Isabelle Benarous 12
Jennifer Berezan 29
Micheline Berry 19
Michaela Boehm 59, 60
Barbara Bogatin 17
Sylvia Boorstein 17
Ann Bradney 43
Krista Bremer 57
Rick Brown 16, 53
Robert Browning 38
Roxann Burroughs 66
Mirabai Bush 60
C
Fritjof Capra 6, 27
Sheva Carr 38
Jovinna Chan 94
Dorothy Charles 78, 94
Dawson Church 16, 19
Michael Clemmens 61,
93, 94
Mark Coleman 83, 84
Jean Couch 69
David Crow 22
Stewart Cubley 78
Raphael Cushnir 78
D
Christina Dauenhauer 94
Russell Delman 28, 30
Paul Denniston 54
Harvey Deutch 79
Chris Dombrowski 57
Patrick Douce 72
Lama Drimed 31
E
Scott Engler 74, 87
Zuza Engler 74, 87
F
Jessica Fagan 12
Robin Fann-Costanzo 53
Warren Farrell 41
Vinny Ferraro 86, 94
96
Robert Fisher 40, 92
Thomas Michael Fortel
37, 59
Branan Freeman, 91
G
Jim Gallas 93
Michelle Gannon 15
Rolf Gates 52
Christopher Germer 81
Stan Gerome 27
Mariah Fenton Gladis
15, 16
Esther Gokhale 38
Soren Gordhamer 23
Harriet Goslins 77
Linda Graham 84
Marci Graham 28
Schuyler Grant 13
Diane Greenberg 44
June Gruber 81
Mingtong Gu 86
H
Anna Halprin 6, 15
Daria Halprin 15
Rick Hanson 36
Steven Harper 12, 21, 40
Susan Harper 31, 68
Caroline Harvey 28, 91
Susan Hauser 35
Ian-Michael Hebert 80
Paul Heussenstamm
54, 56
Lee Holden 36
Johanna Holloman 58, 81
Perry Holloman 58, 81
Lucia Horan 23, 24, 70, 71
Peggy Horan 66
Chungliang Al Huang
68, 70
Russ Hudson 30
Christian de la Huerta 12
I
Ira Israel 44
J
Roger Jahnke 47, 50
Sam Jinich 15
Johnsmith 65, 94
Catherine Ann Jones 35
Andrea Juhan 11
K
Will Kabat-Zinn 52
Gopi Kallayil 60
Byron Katie 43
Sam Keen 66
Sally Kempton 39
David Kessler 54
Tony Khalife 65
Tama Kieves 14
Alan Kishbaugh 18
Hedy Kober 81
George Kohlrieser 25,
26, 90
Ken Koles 39
Steven Kotler 29
Coby Kozlowski 24, 93
Melissa Krikorian 77
Jeffrey Kripal
Laura Kunysz 77
L
Ivy Mayer Lavie 10
Noah Levine 86, 94
Brad Lewis 11
Mike Lousada 50
Amory Lovins 75, 80
Francis Lu 14, 17
Nancy Lunney-Wheeler
94
Alison Luterman 57
M
John Marks 73
Susan Collin Marks 73
Sarah Marshank 20
Dean Marson 77
Vinn Arjuna Martí 40
Mark Matousek 35
Louise Mazanti 50
Noah Mazé 84
Tanya McGinnity 53, 94
Deborah Anne Medow 85
Nina Merrens 94
Peter Meyers 35, 91
Kia Miller 13, 26
Sarana Miller 83
Michael Molin-Skelton
68
Melody Moore 52
Jean Morrison 83, 94
Chad Morse 45
Robert Moss 65
Charles Muir 44
Peter Mullin 80
Julie Murphy, 92
Nikki Myers 52
N
Silvia Nakkach 39
Kristin Neff 36, 81
Mark Nicolson 89
O
Judith Orloff 19
Brita Ostrom 77
P
Laurie Lioness Parizek 51
Laurel Parnell 32
Terry Patten 20
Larry Payne 67
Char Pias 12
Anna Pierce-Slive 45
R
Alison Raby 57
Charu Rachlis 72
Ann Randolph 62, 94
Lissa Rankin 44
Shiva Rea 73
Daniel Rechtschaffen 11
Stella Resnick 18
Ha milton Perier a
A
Eliza Reynolds 33
Sil Reynolds 33
John Robbins 47
Tommy Rosen 52
Robert Rosenbaum 62
S
Sy Safransky 57
Clifford Saron 17
Banafsheh Sayyad 65
Lori Anne Schwanbeck
83
Suzanne ScurlockDurana 20, 22, 46, 92
Paul Selig 32, 33
Heather Sellers 57
Shauna Shapiro 36, 51
Neil Sharp 70
Paula Shaw 70, 73
Robert Sheeler 24, 25
Jenn Sherer 69
Daniel Siegel 36
Nina Simons 62
Fritz Smith 33, 60
Steve Sorkin 27
Sparrow 57
Claude Stein 87
Brother David SteindlRast 6, 14, 17
Daniel Stewart 55
Janet Stone 45, 63
Vignesh Swaminathan 11
Carl Swanson 53
T
Davida Taurek 70
Katherine Woodward
Thomas 74
Michael Guy Thompson
27
Vicki Topp 66
Deborah Eden Tull 62
Ashley Turner 55
U
Daniela Urbassek 77
V
Cassandra Vieten 59, 94
Alberto Villoldo 63
W
Ellen Watson 85
Web of Change 74
Paul Wehrman 92
Hank Wesselman 47, 50
Jason Weston 28
Jamie Wheal 29
Gordon Wheeler 94
Mark Whitwell 88, 89
Rob Wilks 77, 92, 94
Nicholas Wilton 40
Nina Wise 93
Adam Wolpert 59
Y
Yang Yang 24, 25
Z
Paul Zelizer 57
Movement, Meditation
and the Power of Silence
Coming January 6-8, 2017 + January 8-13, 2017
Sustained silence is a traditional Buddhist practice that allows
us to recognize and discard unhealthy habits of thinking and
speaking, and usher in new capacities for compassionate
attention and connection.
MOVEMENT, MEDITATION AND THE POWER OF SILENCE
is a unique opportunity to immerse yourself in silence with
some of the foremost teachers in yoga, dance, and Buddhist
practice. Through the support and connection of the sangha
(intentional community), we will remain in social silence
outside the class sessions in order to allow a deepening of our
relationship to ourselves, to one another, and to nature.
Join our entire community and start the new year by
experiencing the power of silence
VISIT WWW.ESALEN.ORG/SILENTRETREAT2017
TO LEARN MORE.
Esalen Institute
55000 Highway 1
Big Sur, California 93920-9546
If you move, please let us know
your new address. It helps us
save trees and money.
facebook.com/esaleninstitute
twitter.com/esaleninstitute
pinterest.com/esalen
CONVERSATIONS
ON THE EDGE:
Love, Sex and the Evolution of the Masculine and Feminine
BE A PART OF A RADICAL CO-CREATION.
SEPTEMBER 11-16, 2016
VISIT WWW.ESALEN.ORG/WORKSHOP/CONVERSATION2016
FOR MORE INFORMATION.
WWW.ESALEN.ORG
|
888.837.2536
|
INFO@ESALEN.ORG