January 2006 Esalen Catalog
Transcription
January 2006 Esalen Catalog
The Esalen Catalog January– June 2006 ® DANIEL BIANCHETTA January – June 2006 Esalen — A convergence of mountains and sea, mind and body, East and West, meditation and action Esalen — A center for alternative education, a forum for transformational practices, a restorative retreat, a worldwide community of seekers Dedicated to exploring work in the humanities and sciences that furthers the full realization of the human potential, Esalen offers public workshops, residential work-study programs, invitational conferences, and independent projects that support our mission. As a center designed to foster personal and social transformation, we offer those who join us the chance to explore more deeply the world and themselves. Welcome to ® S contents Volume xlv, Number 1 Esalen Institute 55000 Highway 1 Big Sur, California 93920-9546 Catalog Requests: 831-667-3000, ext. 7100 Esalen Board of Trustees: DANIEL BIANCHETTA Alyce-Faye Cleese Juliet Johnson ex officio Mary Ellen Klee Nancy Lunney-Wheeler ex officio David Lustig Anisa Mehdi Michael Murphy Lyle Poncher Marilyn Schlitz Jeremy Tarcher Gordon Wheeler Sam Yau President & CEO: Gordon Wheeler Esalen Catalog Staff: Catalog Subscription Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 General Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3 Gazebo School Park Early Childhood Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3 Esalen Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 Friends of Esalen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 Continuing Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 Guide to Workshops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 Seminar Spotlight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 Esalen Seminars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 Special Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .80 Invitational Conferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .82 Work Study Program and Application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .83-86 Biographical Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .87 Reservation Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .94 Scholarship Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .94 Reservation Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .96 I slept and dreamt that life was joy. I awoke and saw that life was service. I acted and behold, service was joy. —Rabindranath Tagore, philosopher, author, painter, composer, Nobel laureate (1861–1941) 2 Editor: Peter Friedberg Administrative Liaison: Pamela Keenan Design & Production: Terry McGrath The Esalen Catalog is published triannually by the Esalen Institute, Big Sur, California 93920-9546. Printed on recycled paper. ©2005 Esalen Institute. All rights reserved. ISSN 1088-2782 Subscription Information: Subscription cost for one year is $15 for the United States and $25 for all other countries. Please send a check or money order (U.S. currency) in the enclosed subscription envelope, or mail it to: Subscriptions, Esalen Institute, Big Sur, CA 93920. Although we’re delighted to provide you with this issue of the catalog, if you are not currently a subscriber we would appreciate a $5 contribution to defray postage and production costs. Please use the enclosed subscription envelope. cover: “Timber Top, Big Sur,” a multi-block limited edition woodcut print, copyright by Tom Killion, 2005. www.TomKillion.com This catalog is printed on New Leaf Opaque, made with 30% post-consumer waste, processed chlorine free. By using this environmentally friendly paper, Esalen saved the following resources: trees: 64 fully grown solid waste: 3,014 lbs. water: 44,389 gallons greenhouse gases: 7,519 lbs. energy: 51 million BTUs R general information T he esalen institute was founded in 1962 as an alternative educational center devoted to the exploration of what Aldous Huxley called the “human potential,” the world of unrealized human capacities that lies beyond the imagination. Esalen soon became known worldwide for its blend of East/West philosophies, its experiential/didactic workshops, the steady influx of philosophers, psychologists, artists, and religious thinkers, and its breathtaking grounds blessed with natural hot springs. Once home to a Native American tribe known as the Esselen, Esalen is situated on the spectacular Big Sur coastline with the Santa Lucia Mountains rising sharply behind. There are various ways to experience Esalen, ranging from an overnight visit to a long-term stay as a seminarian. The weekend and fiveday workshops described in the Seminars section of the catalog are the standard route for coming to Esalen. The “Experiencing Esalen” workshops, scheduled periodically, offer an introduction to practices such as Gestalt, massage, sensory awareness, and meditation. From such a sampling, participants can then choose those approaches they are most attracted to and pursue them in subsequent seminars. Another way of being at Esalen which allows a greater involvement at a lower expense is the Work Study Program, an intensive 28-day workoriented program for individuals who want to make a directed commitment to self-exploration and growth, and a contribution to the Esalen community. For a full description of the Work Study Program, please turn to page 83. For those who wish an extended stay, there are periodic long-term programs which involve didactic seminars or professional trainings as well as experiential workshops. able by appointment with individual practitioners. There is also a community event schedule offered. Please check the bulletin board when you arrive. Esalen is a center for experimental education. We offer neither psychotherapy nor assurances of change. Esalen is a 45-mile drive south from Monterey, 11 miles south of Nepenthe, on Coast Route 1. From the south, we are 50 miles north of Hearst Castle. A lighted sign on the ocean side of the highway reads: Esalen Institute, By Reservation Only. The Hot Springs at Esalen We would like those people who are planning their first visit to Esalen to know that swimsuits are optional, and nudity common, in the hot springs, massage area, and swimming pool. We encourage each individual to choose what is most comfortable, either wearing a swimsuit or not, and emphasize that the environment we strive for at Esalen is one of personal sanctuary and respect for the human body. pony rides, learning about animal care, exploring nature, a real boat, the magic castle, and an Indian tepee. Evenings are spent with a teacher in the Gazebo Farmhouse, engaged in activities that are age-appropriate, such as reading, learning and playing with the computer, baking, arts and crafts, or buildingblock play. See page 95 for Gazebo reservation information. Disabled Access Here at Esalen, many of our paths, though paved, are extremely steep due to our cliffside location. We are in the process of increasing our disability access; however, access to some parts of our property remains difficult. Nonetheless, we are committed to accommodating guests who have disabilities. If you have a disability and think you might need assistance during your stay at Esalen, please discuss your needs when making your reservation, at least 72 hours in advance of your arrival, so that we can accommodate your needs as best as possible. If you are in need of sign language interpretation for an Esalen workshop, please notify us at least 2 weeks prior to your workshop to enable us to arrange for an interpreter. In all cases, we will do our best to meet your needs. Accreditation and Continuing Education Many formal educational institutions recognize the time spent at Esalen as being worthy of credit in their own curricula; check with your university or college. We would be glad to supply information to your school regarding any of our programs. Friends of Esalen Esalen is a provider of continuing education for psychologists, MFTs, LCSWs, nurses, teachers, and bodyworkers. See page 5 for details. We invite you to become a Friend of Esalen. Your donation of $50 or more will benefit our programs and help build Esalen’s long-term financial base (see page 4). As a Friend of Esalen you will receive the following benefits: Yet another way to experience Esalen is a Personal Retreat, which gives guests the opportunity to nourish body, mind, heart, and soul without participating in an Esalen workshop. Those on Personal Retreat may use the baths, attend yoga and movement classes, meditate in the Round House, create in the Art Barn, and enjoy the Esalen grounds. The Gazebo School Park Early Childhood Program • A $50 reduction in tuition for all workshops over the next 12 months • Friends of Esalen newsletters and the Esalen Catalog for one year • Eligible to book Personal Retreat stays at Esalen • A tax deduction under IRS section 501(c)3 for the amount of the donation Finally, there are other events that enrich life at Esalen. There are occasional forums in which writers and thinkers, both visiting and resident, share their ideas with the community. On Wednesday nights there may be lectures, films, dance performances, or other events. Bodywork of various kinds is avail- The Gazebo School Park is a unique educational experience for children one to six years. It is open year-round and has an average of 15 to 20 children in attendance each day. Esalen Is Tax-deductible The Early Childhood Program is available to children who come with their parents to experience Esalen. The program’s hours match parents’ workshop hours. Daytime activities for the children include gardening, Contributions to Esalen Institute are taxdeductible. The expenses of attending Esalen, including travel, are deductible for federal income tax purposes as an educational expense if incurred to maintain or improve professional or work skills. 3 R esalen notes On-line Reservations Available You can now register for Esalen programs online at Esalen’s website, www.esalen.org. Mid-Point House Available to Esalen Guests We can accommodate large groups (up to 175) on a space-available basis. Smaller groups may schedule private conferences in our renovated Big House. This facility is available for individuals who work together and would like to design their own Esalen program, drawing on our leaders and other resources. Ten bedrooms, nine bath- rooms, a kitchen, dining room, and meeting room make it possible to house group members together, thereby enhancing the retreat environment. We schedule all conferences a year in advance. To schedule or discuss possible formats, please contact conference coordinator Pamela Keenan at 831-667-3038. DANIEL BIANCHETTA Esalen’s Mid-Point House is available as an upgraded accommodation alternative for seminarians and Personal Retreat guests. Nestled behind the lush Esalen Garden at the edge of the coastal cliff, the Mid-Point House features a redwood deck overlooking the Pacific, a comfortably furnished living room, and a full kitchen. For details, please call the Esalen office at 831-667-3005. Scheduling Private Conferences at Esalen It is possible to arrange for your group or organization to hold its conferences at Esalen. the friends of esalen S A s a Friend of Esalen you can help ensure Esalen’s place in the world. It is through the generosity of friends like you that Esalen can continue its mission of developing human potential. Your support not only benefits current programs but helps secure Esalen’s long-term financial future. Donations provide support for the scholarship fund, the movement program, Gazebo School, special projects such as renovations and equipment replacement, and Esalen’s Center for Theory and Research. As a way of showing our gratitude, Friends who donate $50 or more will receive a $50 reduction on all catalog workshops for the next twelve months. Donors will also receive the Esalen Catalog and a triannual Friends of Esalen newsletter for one year and be eligible to book a Personal Retreat at Esalen. Donor Levels: • Sustaining Donors ($500+) and above receive a single-use day pass with lunch for two at Esalen, and acknowledgment in the newsletter (unless the donor wishes to remain anonymous). • Benefactors ($1000+) receive an autographed copy of Michael Murphy and George Leonard’s book, The Life We are Given. • Group 2000 Donors ($2000+) receive invitations to attend special events at Esalen with staff, board members, and other supporters. • Founders Circle Donors and above ($5,000+) receive special benefits, which may include personalized service for making reservations, recognition, and property privileges. Please call 831-667-3032 for more details. If you would like information on how to make a planned gift to Esalen, how to donate stock, or if you have any other questions about gifts to Esalen, please contact Nancy Worcester at 831-667-3032. 4 q q q q q Basic Donor...........................$50+ Supporting Donor ............$100+ Sustaining Donor..............$500+ Benefactor........................$1,000+ Group 2000 ......................$2,000+ q q q q q Founders Circle ................$5,000+ Partners Circle ................$15,000+ Patrons Circle..................$30,000+ Anniversary Circle ........$50,000+ Trustees Circle ..............$100,000+ Name_________________________________________________ Phone_______________________ Address _______________________________________________________________________________ City _________________________________________ State ____________ Zip ________________ E-mail _________________________________________________________________________________ Please make checks payable to Esalen Institute, in U.S. currency drawn on a U.S. bank, or use one of the charge cards listed below: q MasterCard q Visa q American Express Amount________________ Card No._________________________________________________ Signature____________________________________________ Exp. Date __________________ Please complete this form or the inside flap of the envelope insert included in the catalog and return with your gift. Check the box on the outside of the envelope marked “Friends of Esalen.” Thank you for your support. Esalen Institute is a nonprofit public charity corporation, exempt from income tax under IRC section 501(c)(3). Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent allowable by law. continuing education programs n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n TE D YW S BO n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n n 5 AC s ST GI & LC LO n n n n n UR HO n n s YC FT M n n O R HE KER RS S S No Sense: Awakening the Senses Visionseeker I: Shamanism Anatomy and Esalen Massage 28-Day Practitioner Certification Helping Communities at Risk Heart and Soul: Heart Disease Relationship: A Spiritual Journey The Psychology of Investing Voices of Creation Healing Art of Esalen Massage Balance: It's Never Too Late to Stop the Pain Recovery After the Loss of a Partner Finding Your Deepest Purpose Weekend Massage: Spring Renewal Creating a Culture of Peace BodyWave and SpiritWeaves A Labor-of-Love Yoga Retreat Enhancement of Peak Performance The “Pointing Out” Way—Meditation Overcoming Isolation and Mistrust Deep Tissue Techniques Transformation—The Work of Wilhelm Reich Curative Factors in Contemporary Psychotherapy The Soul of the African Drum Moment by Moment: Clinician's Guide Eidetic Imagery Training Program Awakening The Creative Double Your Creative Power Spiritual Massage: Lightbody Infusion Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy Leading Beyond Borders: Healing the Grieving Heart Weekend Massage Intensive Esalen Massage Intensive In Search of Optimum Health Prayer of the Heart Beginning Anew: Healing Battered Heart Quiet Spine, Calm Heart, Restful Mind Focusing: The Inner Relationship Eating, Food, and the Body/Self Upledger SomatoEmotional Release I Practical Shape Shifting Stronger at the Broken Places The Transformative Power of Storytelling Start Over: Choose Aliveness and Intimacy Mind, Mood, and Happiness Lesbian Relationships Using Finger Signals Senses Wide Open Herbal Medicine The Realm of the Sensuous Self-Healing Buddhist Insights for Psychotherapists Visionseeker II: Spirit Medicine Trauma, Consciousness, and the Body Longevity of Massage: Advanced Massage Mindfulness and Heartfulness Healing Back Pain Without Surgery The Body of Sacred Ground Awakening the Mind: Mastering Brainwaves LaStone Therapy: Hot Stone Treatment Meditation and the Brain Weekend Massage Intensive Realization Process Women Can't Hear What Men Don't Say Traditional Thai Massage: Sacred Bodywork Free Your Breath, Free Your Life SE E TL TI SE UR ES Mar 24-26 Mar 26-31 Mar 26-31 Mar 31-Apr 28 Mar 31-Apr 2 Mar 31-Apr 2 Mar 31-Apr 2 Apr 2-7 Apr 2-7 Apr 2-7 Apr 2-7 Apr 7-9 Apr 7-9 Apr 7-9 Apr 9-14 Apr 9-14 Apr 14-16 Apr 14-16 Apr 16-23 Apr 16-21 Apr 23-28 Apr 23-28 Apr 23-28 Apr 28-30 Apr 28-30 Apr 30-May 5 Apr 30-May 5 Apr 30-May 5 Apr 30-May 5 Apr 30-May 5 May 5-7 May 5-7 May 5-7 May 7-12 May 7-12 May 7-12 May 14-19 May 19-21 May 19-21 May 19-21 May 21-26 May 21-26 May 21-26 May 21-26 May 26-28 May 26-28 May 26-28 May 26-28 May 28-June 2 May 28-June 2 May 28-June 2 June 2-4 June 2-4 June 4-9 June 4-9 June 4-9 June 9-11 June 9-11 June 9-11 June 18-23 June 18-23 June 18-23 June 23-25 June 23-25 June 23-25 June 25-30 June 25-30 SW S RK n RS O n HE YW D n n n Chapman University), please refer to www.chapman.edu/k12 or contact Dr. Care Terkelson, 831-647-3723. ER s S n n n n n n Teachers interested in approved extended education credits (through PS n five-day workshops offer 26 hours. If you wish to receive a certificate, please notify your workshop leader. There is a $10 fee for each certificate of completion, payable to the office. CO n n n n n Please note: All two-day workshops offer 10 hours of CE credit and all AT n AC n n BO SE UR N n TE GI LC LO & HO YC M FT PS Constructive Living Revealing, Reinventing, and Renewing Music and Creativity, Sound and Rhythm The Art of Effortless Living Lasting Love: Real or Just a Fairy Tale? What's Next? The Path of Self-Renewal The I in the Storm: Self-Leadership Spinal Awareness—with Humor Vocal Power Bioethics and the Future Strengthen the Legs, Extend the Spine SoulCollage Deep Bodywork—Level II Trauma-Informed Child Therapy The Nuts and Bolts of Wisdom Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain Weekend Massage Intensive Nature and Sanity From Breakdown to Breakthrough The Courage to Be You The Circle of Life—Coach Training Finding Your Long-Lost Musician The Mind/Body Connection Couples' Communication Using Coaching In Therapy Finding Your Long-Lost Musician Consciousness Unleashed Gestalt Awareness Practice Radical Aliveness: Core Energetics Implications of Psychic Abilities Of Stone and the Self: Stone Carving Public Speaking, Effective Communication To Cross or Not to Cross Upledger Institute's CranioSacral I The Hidden Gifts of the Shadow Frontiers of Trauma Treatment Speaking Our Word: For Writers Esalen Massage and LaStone Therapy Qigong and Inner Alchemy Sex, Love, and Relationships An Introduction to Esalen Massage Not For the Feint of Heart Brain, Attachment, Early Development Retreat as a Spiritual Practice Intimate Connections The Body Keeps the Score CFR and the Feldenkrais Method The High-Performance Mind Esalen Massage and Beyond Solving the Puzzle of Chronic Pain Transforming Trauma with EMDR (Part 3) It Won't Hurt Forever Nervous System Energy Work Rosen Method Drugs, the Mind, and the Body Life Coaching for Results Shaman, Healer, Sage Advanced EMDR (Part 4) The Heart of the Shaman Upledger Visceral Manipulation I-A Our Wounds Can Lead to Healing Being Present for Your Life Introduction to Clinical Hypnosis Radical Rx for Health Professionals Acupressure Energy Writing About Our Lives Core Holoenergetics s TI SE UR CO ES AT D Dec 30-Jan 6 Dec 30-Jan 6 Dec 30-Jan 6 Jan 6-8 Jan 6-8 Jan 6-8 Jan 8-13 Jan 8-13 Jan 8-13 Jan 13-15 Jan 13-15 Jan 13-15 Jan 15-20 Jan 15-20 Jan 15-20 Jan 15-20 Jan 20-22 Jan 22-27 Jan 22-27 Jan 22-27 Jan 22-27 Jan 27-29 Jan 27-29 Jan 27-29 Jan 27-29 Jan 29-Feb 3 Jan 29-Feb 3 Jan 29-Feb 3 Jan 29-Feb 3 Feb 3-5 Feb 3-5 Feb 3-5 Feb 3-5 Feb 5-10 Feb 10-12 Feb 12-17 Feb 12-17 Feb 12-17 Feb 17-19 Feb 17-19 Feb 17-19 Feb 19-24 Feb 19-24 Feb 19-24 Feb 24-26 Feb 24-26 Feb 26-Mar 5 Feb 26-Mar 3 Feb 26-Mar 3 Mar 3-5 Mar 5-10 Mar 5-10 Mar 5-10 Mar 10-12 Mar 10-12 Mar 10-12 Mar 10-12 Mar 10-12 Mar 12-17 Mar 12-17 Mar 12-17 Mar 17-19 Mar 17-19 Mar 17-19 Mar 24-26 Mar 24-26 Mar 24-26 SW TL E ST S maintains responsibility for the program; California psychologists are required to report their hours to the NICEP Accrediting Agency); MFTs and LCSWs by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences (provider number PCE1594); and massage practitioners and bodyworkers by the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (NCBTMB) as a continuing education provider under Category A (provider number 043062-00). Workshops for which CE credit has been approved are listed below and also noted in the Seminars section. For further information, contact Brita Ostrom at 831-667-3040. The Board of Registered Nursing has approved Esalen as a provider of continuing education for registered nurses (provider number 01152). For additional information on CE courses for nurses, contact Mary Anne Will, R.N., 831-667-3010. N E salen is an approved provider of continuing education for: psychologists, approved by the American Psychological Association (Esalen D Q Q guide to workshops T his is a guide to the workshops offered in this catalog. Although many of them could be cross-referenced— and some resist easy categorization—most are listed only in their main subject area. If you have never been to Esalen or taken an Esalen workshop, you might consider the “Experiencing Esalen” workshop scheduled throughout the catalog and listed in the Integral Practices section of this directory. Please call the Esalen office if you have questions concerning a workshop. R ARTS & CREATIVITY Visual Arts Jan 15-20 • Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain Jan 22-27 • The Mystical Quality of Stained Glass Feb 19-24 • Artplane Feb 26-Mar 3 • Freeing the Artist Apr 23-28 • Painting with Oils in the Landscape Apr 30-May 5 • Awakening The Creative May 19-21 • Moving Pictures: Video Storytelling June 18-23 • Vision Painting Writing Jan 20-22 • Memory, Secrets, and Immortality Feb 3-5 • Getting Published Feb 12-17 • Speaking Our Word Mar 3-5 • A Workshop for Poets Mar 24-26 • Writing About Our Lives Apr 23-28 • New Poems Week Apr 28-30 • New Poems Weekend Apr 30-May 5 • Double Your Creative Power May 28-June 2 • The Writer’s Way June 18-23 • Before You Write Your Memoir… Music / Rhythm Dec 30-Jan 6 • Music & Creativity, Sound & Rhythm Jan 6-8 • The Brazilian Soul: Dance and Drumming Jan 8-13 • Vocal Power Jan 27-29 • Finding Your Long-Lost Musician Jan 29-Feb 3 • Finding Your Long-Lost Musician Feb 12-17 • Mandala: Sing the Desire of Your Soul Apr 2-7 • Voices of Creation Apr 21-23 • VoiceDance Apr 28-30 • The Soul of the African Drum May 12-14 • Harmonic Presence May 21-26 • Drumming: A Journey to the Source May 28-June 2 • The Song of the Drum Creative Expression Dec 30-Jan 6 • Big, New, Free, Happy, Unusual Life Jan 6-8 • Glass Mosaic Workshop Jan 8-13 • The MAX: Stretching Self-Expression Jan 8-13 • Alchemical Art: Glass Fusing Jan 13-15 • SoulCollage Jan 20-22 • Essence and Alchemy: Natural Perfume Feb 3-5 • Of Stone and the Self: Stone Carving Feb 12-17 • Speaking Our Word Mar 5-10 • Story Structure: Stop Boring Your Shrink… Apr 14-16 • Family Arts Program Apr 16-21 • Art in Action Apr 28-30 • Improv Alchemy Apr 30-May 5 • The MAX: Stretching Self-Expression May 12-14 • Big Sur Artists Tour: Living on the Edge 6 May 14-19 • The Art and Soul of Mask Making May 21-26 • Transformative Power of Storytelling June 4-9 • Ceramic Insights June 9-11 • Molten Memory: Short Course in Bronze June 9-11 • Body of Sacred Ground: Moving Dialogues June 16-18 • Actors are Wounded Healers R BODY & MOVEMENT Massage Jan 15-20 • Deep Bodywork—Level II Jan 20-22 • Weekend Massage Intensive Feb 12-17 • Essence of the Elements Feb 17-19 • An Introduction to Esalen Massage Feb 26-Mar 3 • Esalen Massage and Beyond Mar 26-31 • Refining Your Touch Mar 31-Apr 28 • 28-Day Practitioner Certification Apr 2-7 • An Introduction to Esalen Massage Apr 7-9 • Weekend Massage: Spring Renewal Apr 9-14 • BodyWave and SpiritWeaves Apr 21-23 • Esalen Massage: A Retreat for Couples Apr 23-28 • Deep Tissue for Massage Practitioners May 5-7 • Weekend Massage Intensive May 7-12 • Esalen Massage Intensive May 28-June 2 • The Realm of the Sensuous June 4-9 • The Longevity of Massage: Advanced June 18-23 • LaStone Therapy: Hot Stone Treatment June 23-25 • Weekend Massage Intensive June 25-30 • Traditional Thai Massage Somatic Practices Jan 8-13 • Spinal Awareness—with Humor Jan 29-Feb 3 • Radical Aliveness: Core Energetics Feb 5-10 • The Upledger Institute’s CranioSacral I Feb 12-17 • Essence of the Elements Feb 19-24 • Brain, Attachment & Early Development Feb 26-Mar 5 • CFR and Feldenkrais Feb 26-Mar 3 • Gestalt and Sensory Awareness Mar 10-12 • Rosen Method Mar 12-17 • Upledger Visceral Manipulation I-A Apr 2-7 • Balance: It’s Never Too Late to Stop Pain Apr 23-28 • Who Are You? Work of Wilhelm Reich May 19-21 • Quiet Spine, Calm Heart, Restful Mind May 19-21 • Focusing: The Inner Relationship May 21-26 • Upledger SomatoEmotional Release I May 21-26 • Practical Shape Shifting May 28-June 2 • Senses Wide Open June 16-18 • Aliveness, Pleasure, and Joy June 18-23 • LaStone Therapy: Hot Stone Treatment Yoga Jan 13-15 • Strengthen the Legs, Extend the Spine Jan 22-27 • Yoga in the Spirit of Deep Contemplation Feb 3-5 • Yoga—The Union of Opposites Feb 5-10 • Bringing It Home: Yoga and Meditation Feb 19-24 • Retreat as a Spiritual Practice Mar 3-5 • Advanced Yoga Practice for Beginners Mar 5-10 • Your Own Yoga from the Source Mar 24-26 • Yoga for the "Yogically Challenged" Apr 14-16 • A Labor-of-Love Yoga Retreat Apr 16-21 • Ecstatic Embodiment: Soma and Soul Apr 28-30 • Bhakti Urban Flow May 26-28 • Anchoring into Our Inner Being May 28-June 2 • The Realm of the Sensuous June 11-16 • The Second Annual Esalen Yoga Retreat June 16-18 • Advanced Yoga Practice for Beginners June 25-30 • Vinyasakrama Yoga Dance / Movement Jan 6-8 • The Brazilian Soul: Dance and Drumming Jan 15-20 • SoulMotion Feb 5-10 • The Great Escape Feb 17-19 • Being Danced: 5Rhythm Essentials Feb 19-24 • Open Floor—5Rhythms in Process Mar 10-12 • Rosen Method: Accessing the Unconscious Mar 26-31 • Acting Lab for Life: Alexander Technique Apr 9-14 • BodyWave and SpiritWeaves May 7-12 • Gyrokinesis Intensive May 14-19 • The Heart of the Matter June 4-9 • Soul Motion: Sanctuary June 9-11 • The Body of Sacred Ground June 18-23 • Mountains and Waves R PSYCHOLOGY & RELATIONSHIP Psychological / Transpersonal Process Dec 30-Jan 6 • Constructive Living Dec 30-Jan 6 • Revealing, Reinventing, and Renewing Dec 30-Jan 6 • Transition: Having What It Takes Jan 6-8 • Dreamwork Jan 6-8 • What’s Next? The Path of Self-Renewal Jan 8-13 • The I in the Storm Jan 8-13 • The MAX: Stretching Self-Expression Jan 15-20 • The Nuts and Bolts of Wisdom Jan 20-22 • Freedom from Fear Jan 22-27 • The Courage to Be You Jan 29-Feb 3 • Consciousness Unleashed Jan 29-Feb 3 • Gestalt Awareness Practice Jan 29-Feb 3 • Five Spirits: Search of Golden Flower Feb 3-5 • To Cross or Not to Cross Feb 5-10 • The Great Escape Feb 5-10 • What’s Right With You Feb 10-12 • Spirit In Action: Love, Life, Deep Healing Feb 10-12 • A Tender Invitation Feb 12-17 • Frontiers of Trauma Treatment Feb 12-17 • Passion and Wisdom Feb 17-19 • Setting Your Heart on Fire Feb 19-24 • Not For the Feint of Heart Feb 19-24 • Brain, Attachment & Early Development Feb 24-26 • The Body Keeps the Score Feb 26-Mar 3 • Gestalt and Sensory Awareness Mar 5-10 • It Won’t Hurt Forever Mar 5-10 • Integral Experiential Learning Mar 12-17 • Who Am I, Really? Mar 26-31 • From Symptom to Solution Apr 2-7 • The Psychology of Investing Apr 2-7 • Addictions and Recovery Apr 7-9 • Recovery After the Loss of a Partner Apr 7-9 • Finding Your Deepest Purpose Apr 14-16 • ’Tis A Gift to Be Simple Apr 16-21 • Overcoming Isolation and Mistrust Apr 21-23 • Gestalt Practice: Exploring Emotions Apr 23-28 • Who Are You? Work of Wilhelm Reich Apr 30-May 5 • The MAX: Stretching Self-Expression Apr 30-May 5 • Eidetic Imagery Training Program May 5-7 • Healing the Grieving Heart May 7-12 • Gratitude and Kindness May 14-19 • Systemic Constellations: Open Topic May 19-21 • Focusing: The Inner Relationship May 26-28 • Choose Aliveness and Intimacy May 26-28 • Mind, Mood, and Happiness June 2-4 • Dare to Say Yes to the Givens of Life June 4-9 • Natural Powers June 23-25 • The Happiness Makeover June 23-25 • Building a Vision May 19-21 • Eating, Food, and the Body/Self May 28-June 2 • Herbal Medicine June 2-4 • Self-Healing: Awakening Health & Vitality June 9-11 • Introduction to Living Foods June 9-11 • Mindfulness and Heartfulness June 9-11 • Healing Back Pain Without Surgery June 25-30 • Free Your Breath, Free Your Life Myth / Ritual / Shamanism DANIEL BIANCHETTA Jan 29-Feb 3 • The Way of the Shaman Feb 10-12 • Spirited Work: The Give-and-Get Path Mar 10-12 • Shaman, Healer, Sage Mar 12-17 • The Heart of the Shaman Mar 26-31 • Visionseeker I: Shamanism Mar 26-31 • At Play in the Fields of the Lord June 4-9 • Visionseeker II: Spirit Medicine June 25-30 • Dreaming the Soul Back Home Integral Practices Relationship / Communication Jan 6-8 • Lasting Love: Real or Just a Fairy Tale? Jan 13-15 • Close Yet Free Jan 27-29 • Couples’ Communication Feb 3-5 • Public Speaking, Effective Communication Feb 10-12 • The Hidden Gifts of the Shadow Feb 17-19 • Sex, Love, and Relationships Feb 24-26 • Intimate Connections Feb 24-26 • Valentine’s Day for the Challenged Mar 12-17 • The Intimate Couple Mar 31-Apr 2 • Relationship: A Spiritual Journey Apr 9-14 • Creating a Culture of Peace May 12-14 • Sharing the Path: Mothers and Daughters May 14-19 • Healing the Battered Heart May 19-21 • From Conflict to Closeness: For Couples May 21-26 • Stronger at the Broken Places May 26-28 • Lesbian Relationships June 2-4 • Relationship Enrichment for Male Couples June 9-11 • The Future of Love June 23-25 • Women Can’t Hear What Men Don’t Say Women’s / Men’s Issues Jan 13-15 • Women Explore Our Aging Faces Feb 5-10 • The Heroine’s Journey Feb 19-24 • Find Your True Self—For Gay Men Mar 3-5 • A Queer Home at the Center of the World Apr 9-14 • Reclaiming the Man in the Mirror Apr 16-21 • A Women’s Way Circle May 5-7 • Women and Aging May 7-12 • Women’s Integral Leadership Circle May 12-14 • Sharing the Path: Mothers and Daughters May 21-26 • Authenticity, Intuition, and Creativity May 26-28 • Lesbian Relationships June 2-4 • Relationship Enrichment for Male Couples June 16-18 • What It Means to Be Gay Hypnosis / Biofeedback / Intuition Feb 26-Mar 3 • The High-Performance Mind Mar 17-19 • Introduction to Clinical Hypnosis May 26-28 • Finger Signals to Tap the Inner Mind Professional Growth / Training Jan 15-20 • Trauma-Informed Child Therapy Jan 22-27 • The Circle of Life—Coach Certification Jan 27-29 • Using Coaching In Therapy Feb 3-5 • To Cross or Not to Cross Mar 5-10 • Transforming Trauma with EMDR (Part 3) Mar 10-12 • Advanced EMDR (Part 4) Mar 17-19 • Radical Rx for Health Professionals Mar 26-31 • From Symptom to Solution Mar 31-Apr 28 • Massage Practitioner Certification Mar 31-Apr 2 • Helping Communities at Risk Apr 14-16 • Enhancement of Peak Performance Apr 23-28 • The Conduct, Process & Curative Factors Apr 28-30 • Moment by Moment Apr 30-May 5 • Eidetic Imagery Training Program Apr 30-May 5 • Cognitve-Behavioral Therapy June 2-4 • Transforming Awareness: Buddhist Insights June 4-9 • Trauma, Consciousness, and the Body R HEALTH & HEALING / SPIRIT Contemplative / Spiritual Studies Jan 20-22 • Kosher Tantra Jan 27-29 • What If There Is No God? Feb 5-10 • The Mirror of Soul: Wisdom of Rumi Mar 17-19 • Being Present for Your Life Mar 19-24 • Uncovering Self-Betrayal Retreat Mar 24-26 • Zen and Tao: The Hero’s Journey Mar 31-Apr 2 • Change and Transformation Apr 16-23 • The "Pointing Out" Way: Meditation Apr 28-30 • Be Here (Wow!) May 7-12 • Prayer of the Heart May 12-14 • Harmonic Presence May 12-14 • Visionary State: California Spirituality May 26-28 • Mind, Mood, and Happiness June 18-23 • Meditation and the Brain June 23-25 • Realization Process: Essence of Being Religious Studies Mar 31-Apr 2 • Boundaries in Religion, Personal Life Apr 7-9 • The Abrahamic Family Reunion Health / Healing Jan 6-8 • The Art of Effortless Living: Jan 22-27 • From Breakdown to Breakthrough Jan 27-29 • The Mind/Body Connection Jan 29-Feb 3 • Five Spirits: Search of Golden Flower Feb 17-19 • Qigong and Inner Alchemy Feb 26-Mar 3 • Walking on Clouds: Tai Chi Mar 3-5 • Solving the Puzzle of Chronic Pain Mar 5-10 • Nervous System Energy Work Mar 10-12 • Drugs, the Mind, and the Body Mar 24-26 • Acupressure Energy Mar 24-26 • Core Holoenergetics: Healing with Love Mar 31-Apr 2 • Heart and Soul: Heart Disease Apr 2-7 • Addictions and Recovery Apr 30-May 5 • Spiritual Massage May 7-12 • In Search of Optimum Health May 14-19 • Vegetarian Cooking Jan 20-22 • Experiencing Esalen Feb 10-12 • Body and Mind Feb 12-17 • Wild Serenity Mar 12-17 • Body, Mind, Heart, and Soul Mar 17-19 • Experiencing Esalen Mar 24-26 • No Sense: Awakening the Senses Apr 9-14 • The Essentials Apr 14-16 • Experiencing Esalen May 5-7 • Leonard Energy Training May 12-14 • Sweet Mischief May 28-June 2 • Holistic Sexuality June 23-25 • Experiencing Esalen June 25-July 2 • Integral Leadership R SOCIAL ISSUES / EDUCATION Ecology / Ecopsychology / Wilderness Jan 22-27 • Nature and Sanity Apr 7-9 • Beyond Sustainability: Intro to Permaculture Apr 9-14 • Reading the Patterns of the Landscape Apr 21-23 • Wild Big Sur May 14-19 • Big Sur Wilderness Experience June 2-4 • Walk on the Wild Side: Hiking Big Sur June 18-23 • Mountains and Waves Social Conscience / Action Mar 17-19 • Fundraising From the Heart Apr 9-14 • Creating a Culture of Peace Apr 16-21 • Art in Action May 5-7 • Leading Beyond Borders June 25-30 • Heal Yourself Through Service Business / Workplace / Education Jan 22-27 • The Circle of Life—Coach Certification Feb 24-26 • The Noble Cause of Business Mar 3-5 • Dancing in Molasses Mar 10-12 • Life Coaching for Results May 7-12 • Women’s Integral Leadership Circle June 23-25 • Building a Vision June 25-July 2 • Integral Leadership Philosophical Inquiry / Intellectual Play Jan 13-15 • Bioethics and the Future Jan 27-29 • What If There Is No God? Mar 5-10 • Integral Experiential Learning Mar 31-Apr 2 • Boundaries in Religion and Society May 12-14 • Visionary State: California Spirituality May 12-14 • Evolutionary Activism May 19-21 • The Hidden Mirror June 2-4 • Dare to Say Yes to the Givens of Life 7 Seminar Spotlight—a Q closer look I n our efforts to expand our programming in new directions, we continue to present leaders whose names may not be as familiar to you as others in the Catalog. On this page we highlight a few of these offerings by providing a bit more information than you’ll find in the Seminars section. Marion Rosen & Jane Malek The work is about transformation—from the person we think we are to the person we really are. — Marion Rosen It is not every day that Esalen is graced with a pioneering eponym in mind-body work. Ida Rolf (1896-1979) was here during Esalen’s early years. So was Moshe Feldenkrais (1904-1984). This spring, another trailblazer in the field of somatics, Marion Rosen, will bring her work to Esalen. Now 91, Rosen trained in Munich in the 1930s, studying a combination of massage, breathing exercises, and Jungian psychotherapy. She emigrated to the U.S. in 1940, a time when no one was interested in bodywork, and so became a physical therapist instead. As her clients lay on the table, Rosen patiently observed, listening with her hands, as people cried, retrieved suppressed memories, released pain, resolved troubled relationships. She discovered that the key was deep relaxation. Here is how Rosen herself describes the process: “When you work on people, they remind me of flowers that have not yet gotten into bloom. So it is in the body that is closed and does not reveal anything of its life and beauty. The tension presents a picture of lifelessness and as we put our hands on those lifeless parts the body slowly starts to open. Like the bud that opens into a blossom of color and beauty, the human being emerges from the nondescript mass before us. As the breath starts moving through the body, its outlines change into something alive, its opening has the same effect as the flowering bud. The person becomes the beautiful being that was hidden away under a stern outside. This process never fails to touch me, the bodyworker, in my deepest being, so I open up towards the being under my hands. The contact thus created is one of deepest connection and trust and seems to open our channels of love on both sides. That is, I believe, the reason why we often do not know afterwards who was the one that gave the treatment and who received it.” Joining Rosen will be Jane Malek, a 25-year practitioner and teacher of the Rosen Method. Malek did much of her training with Marion Rosen and currently lives and practices in the Monterey area. Experience for yourself this remarkable work. See Rosen Method: Accessing the Unconscious through Touch, March 10-12. Mark Gerzon “Growing up in the American heartland, I appeared to be an ordinary basketball-crazed, girl-chasing boy with an identity shaped by Washington, Wall Street, and Hollywood,” recalls Mark Gerzon. “But the seeds were already planted that would never let me be shaped by any single culture.” Gerzon is an “expert in civil discourse” (according to The New York Times). He is the founder and president of Mediators Foundation), whose mission is to foster global leadership for a just, sustainable, and peaceful world. He has worked on the frontiers between Democrats and Republicans, Israelis and Palestinians, corporations and anti-corporate activists. Gerzon comes by his worldview naturally. “I was, first of all, an immigrant. If my father, a Dutch refugee during World War II, had been accepted at a university in Cape Town or Buenos Aires, I might be a South African or Argentinean. But he was accepted by Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, where I was born. Unlike my friends, whose families told stories about places like Nashville and Columbus and Lexington, my parents’ conversations alluded to places like Rotterdam (where my Christian relatives lived) and Auschwitz 8 (where some of my Jewish relatives were murdered) and Jogjakarta (where my mother, the daughter of Dutch missionaries, had grown up). “I kept looking for the parachute that had dropped me, undamaged but disoriented, in the city of Indianapolis. From even my earliest years, I was aware of the ‘whole’ of which Indiana, and even America, was only a ‘part.’ At age seven, I remember I learned to assemble the 48 pieces of the jigsaw puzzle of the states of the union. Just as I was inexplicably excited about how all these piece formed a country, so I was eager to learn how all the nations fit together to form the world. To some degree, every child knows there is a larger whole of which they—and their families—are a part. Anyone who has reflected on their ‘family tree,’ knows that he or she is only a twig on a branch. But, for many of us, as we grow up we ‘fit in’ more and more until, finally, we actually accept the identity we are given. We think of ourselves in terms of our neighborhood, or our nationality, and we forget the rest of our address. We forget that we are part of the whole. “As I look back, I realize that my greatest wound was also my greatest gift. My wound was that, although I grew up in America, I never felt like an American. My gift was that, since I never felt like an American, I began very early in life to identify with something larger. Like Tom Paine, I felt that ‘my country is the world. My fellow citizens are humankind.’ ” See Leading Beyond Borders: Transforming Conflict into Connection, May 5-7. For more information, visit www. mediatorsfoundation.org or read Leading Through Conflict: How Successful Leaders Transform Differences Into Opportunities. Suzanne Anderson, Susan Cannon & Julia Smith Is the realm of business a “man’s world?” It doesn’t have to be, says Suzanne Anderson. To create a corrective to the traditional masculine qualities of aggressiveness, decisiveness, and headiness, Anderson founded Kore Leadership (www.koreleadership.com), a collective of women “dedicated to developing leaders who are wellequipped to meet the extraordinary challenges of contemporary work and life.” And what was her impetus? “I started into this work in the early ’90s,” says Anderson, “after working as a management consultant to Fortune 500 companies and noticing that the women who were at senior levels had become ‘one of the boys,’ while the organizations they were leading were actually desperate for capacities that I would call feminine. They had grown up in their organizations within the masculine model of leadership and had become successful at the expense of a connection to the ‘ground of their being’ as women. I became very curious about this situation that women were in and went back to graduate school in psychology and studied the Feminine Principle in Leadership. At about that time, my individual coaching clients were urging me to create a Circle where they could explore these challenges with other women. Kore Leadership is now dedicated to this work with women, helping them to source their actions from a deeper ground of connection to their ground of being.” Joining Anderson in the weeklong Esalen seminar are Susan Cannon and Julia Smith. Cannon, cofounder and faculty member of the Women’s Integral Leadership Circle, holds a B.S. in engineering physics, an M.S in chemical engineering, and a Ph.D. in integral studies, and has worked in the traditionally male domains of the defense, semiconductor, and demolition industries. Smith is a co-developer and faculty member of the Women’s Integral Leadership Circle. A former practicing internist with 20 years’ experience in primary care, her current work synthesizes a lifetime of exploration: the science of the mind-body connection and the biology of cognition, ontological and linguistic coaching, meditation and aikido. These women aspire to live what they teach. They hope to raise awareness of the unique needs and contributions of the feminine aspect the human psyche—in both women and men. See Women’s Integral Leadership Circle: Bring All That You Are to All That You Do, May 7-12. 9 esalen seminars DANIEL BIANCHETTA S Week of December 30– January 6 A Big, New, Free, Happy, Unusual Life: Self-Expression and Spiritual Practice Nina Wise It is our nature to be free—and it is our nature 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 allows the creativity that resides within us to have a voice. “Everyone has a story to tell,” says Nina, “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 exercis10 es. 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.” 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, Nina’s work can be surprisingly, delightfully, holistically healing. Recommended reading: Wise, A Big, New, Free, Happy, Unusual Life. Constructive Living David Reynolds Constructive Living (CL) is an educational method based on two psychotherapies and their associated lifeways, with its origins in Japan. The action aspect of Constructive Living (Morita therapy) recommends the You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. sensible life strategy of accepting uncontrollable aspects of life (feelings, other people, weather, outcomes of actions, and the like) while using energy and effort to affect the single element of life which we control directly: our own behavior. This action element of Constructive Living prompts a minimum of talk during instruction and a puts a premium on the student’s homework assignments, which provide experiential understanding of the effectiveness of constructive action in maintaining a realistic lifestyle. Students learn that it is unnecessary to “fix” feelings or become “comfortable” with an activity before undertaking it. The reflection aspect of CL (Naikan Therapy) prompts a more authentic perspective on the reality of our past and present life. Students examine critically these commonly held views: that we have continuously struggled to overcome the obstacles others have placed in our paths; that we have succeeded thanks only to our own efforts; that we are only givers and not takers from the world; that we rarely get the rewards we deserve. Participants are invited to look at their lives from others’ points of view, not merely from their own self-centered perspectives, to discover that, imperfect though we are, people and things have continued to support us. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Revealing, Reinventing, and Renewing: A New Year’s Resolution for Singles Constance Jones Maas This workshop is about you and your relationships—with exes, family, friends, and, most of all, with your unique place in this limitless universe. Whether you are divorced, in transition, widowed, or a lifelong single, whether your hope for the New Year is to find the person of your dreams, to remain single, or something in between, this workshop is for you. You need only a desire to know more about yourself and a willingness to explore. In a safe yet challenging environment, you will have the opportunity to contrast your history with the future you want to create. Connie Maas writes: “Together we will explore the wonder of the opposite sex, commitment, community, and sexuality, along with the regrets, fears, and triumphs of who we are as people intimately connected to other people. We will utilize everything Esalen has to offer for revealing, renewing, and reinventing who we are and what our personal vision is. Using art, meditation, self-awareness games, Gestalt, group interaction, and the natural environment of Esalen, we will create a foundation for new ways of looking at ourselves and the world. Our group will be a circle of support for tears, fears, laughter, and love, as well as a springboard to create the future we truly want.” CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. Music and Creativity, Sound and Rhythm Adam Rudolph “Each of us is naturally gifted with the desire and capacity to create,” says Adam Rudolph. “In this workshop we will seek to reconnect with our creativity and nourish it in an environment of playful experimentation, nonjudgment, and support. Our practices will move us toward developing our creative potential through sound and rhythm, as well visual art, poetry, and dreamwork. We’ll explore a variety of creative music practices, including: • Overtone singing—that which creates emotional color and feeling in music. We’ll explore overtone singing techniques and create collective singing meditations. • Body rhythms—using simple movements and drum-rhythm vocalizations we’ll rediscover inner rhythms of breath, heartbeat, walking, even thought and speech. • Drumming—we’ll learn basic hand-drum techniques and international drum languages to create a drum circle of power and self-expression. • Improvisation and intuition—using guided melodic themes, we’ll tap into the freedom that musical spontaneity offers. • Creating personal songs—we’ll apply the methods we have learned, our imaginative spirit, and inner reflections to create our own songs. • Sound and the word—we’ll write poetry to weave into the creative fabric of our music. • Dream sounds—our dreams will become a springboard for experimental musical compositions. • Vibration as music and color—we’ll make visual art inspired by our music experiences and experiments.” No musical or artistic experience is required. Simply bring an open mind and open heart. Any musical instruments are welcome; instruments will also be provided. CE credit for teachers; see page 5. Transition: Having What It Takes David Schiffman “Are you a passionate, romantic, spiritually independent type facing a period of transition in your life?” asks David Schiffman. “Would you like to be inspired by your own dreams and blessed with practical support that you can depend on? Our mission for this week will be to face the emotional challenges of life changes, risk, and transition. Together, we will forge an ongoing community based in honest mutual interest, genuine support, and authentic personal presence. It will be a soulful exploration using a uniquely proven blend of natural powers, native intelligence, and wisdom teachings, both traditional and modern. “Emphasis will be on developing a keen, mature sense of self-appreciation and personal timing, and the life skills necessary for moving forward on your own terms. Communications skills—both energetic and expressive—will be investigated with potent, simple emotional clarity as our shared aim. This workshop is especially useful for the self-made, mystically inclined wisdom seekers who are guided by their own hard-won reckoning.” Weekend of January 6–8 The Art of Effortless Living: Healing Body and Soul from Stress and Chronic Pain Ingrid Bacci Healing from physical, emotional, and mental pain involves adopting a simple, powerful principle: Follow the path of least resistance, surrender to effortlessness. By paying attention to our bodies and using physical feedback to identify what feels naturally effortless, we can release the tensions that create pain and accept the rewards of effortless, vibrant vitality. When we embrace effortlessness over effort, we commit ourselves to a body-centered approach to living, as opposed to a goal-oriented approach. By placing our genuine needs first and focusing moment-by-moment on releasing physical, mental, and emotional tension, we can heal from chronic pain, become more productive, and lead more fulfilling lives. Ingrid Bacci began developing the techniques of effortless self-healing when her life was shattered by crippling pain. She discovered that the physiological emphasis on effortlessness, or flow, guarantees emotional, mental and spiritual growth as well as physical vitality. In this regard, she embraces ancient traditions that teach healing and self-realization through presence to the body. What she adds are specific techniques for body presencing and specific steps for each part of the journey into healing. This workshop is appropriate for persons suffering from chronic pain, for those seeking to transform stressful, goal-oriented lifestyles, and for healthcare professionals interested in helping clients heal themselves. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Dreamwork Seymour Carter Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, Life is but a dream... As anyone who has ever awakened from a startlingly lifelike dream knows, dreams have the ability to move us to our very core. During sleep, dreams emerge as emotionally compelling dramas or symbolic episodes. Often mysterious, absurd, or confusing, these nightly home movies need to be interpreted, for they contain resolutions to our current dilemmas. This workshop will provide participants with methods to unlock the power of their noctur- See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 11 nal visions. Dreams reflect our subconscious processes of evaluation and planning, presented as visual metaphors. This seminar will introduce practices to identify the hidden energies dormant in these imagistic events. Participants will learn to work with dreams— their own and others’—using techniques drawn from Gestalt imagery work, Ericksonian hypnosis, and contemporary maverick approaches. Lasting Love: Real or Just a Fairy Tale? Rich Berrett As we grow up, most of us think that love— being in a meaningful relationship, having a partner and children—leads to happiness. Living “happily ever after” is more than just a fairy tale; it is a pursued goal. Unfortunately these exciting expectations are all too often crushed by the reality of failed relationships, unhappy partnerships, “broken hearts,” and parenthood that makes us wish we were childless. The qualities of satisfying relationships are diverse and best explored in a nonproscriptive fashion. Deeply understanding the inner barriers to meaningful relationships that we carry, what is realistic in our love relationships, how intimacy can be obtained, and how we individually participate in the success and problems of love—this process involves an inquiry of our whole selves—mind, body, and spirit. This course uses role-playing, imagery, art, music, poetry, and individual and group work to help you experience how your current thinking, as well as your family of origin, influences your ability to achieve intimacy. The workshop will also examine the barriers to intimacy that exist within each participant. but an unfolding landscape of change, we will first review the process of adult development and the issues we face during key life transitions. Then we will introduce tools for discovering the emerging values and vision for the next phase of our lives.” During this weekend, Cida and Jayson offer a chance to experience the joyful spirit of Brazil-away-from-Brazil. This hands-on (and “feet-on”) workshop will explore the instruments, rhythms, music, and the samba dance do jeitinho brasieliro (“of the Brazilian way”). While the path of self-reinvention is not clearly laid before us, we do already possess the talent, life experience, and passion necessary for the journey. Participants will identify their strengths and resources (reevaluation) and discover the steps to launch a new path (renewal). There will be one-on-one interactions and group discussions that will help to deepen understanding of our current lives and emerging choices. Participants will begin the all-important planning process to integrate this new understanding with life and career goals. “My teaching,” Cida writes, “focuses more on movement than on technical aspects, so that participants can achieve a lively workout and, most important, have fun, until they begin to feel the movement emerging from their own body, heart, and soul.” Jayson and Cida believe that drumming and dancing are for everyone with the desire to join in. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. The Brazilian Soul: A Dance and Drumming Workshop This workshop is for anyone, of any age, who enjoys or wants to learn more about the aliveness of the Brazilian dance, music, and spirit. Please bring drums and/or any instrument (if you have them), along with a significant item to place on a communal altar as a way of sharing your essence. No previous dance or drumming experience is necessary. Cida Vieira & Jayson Fann In Brazil, dance and music are a large part of everyone’s life. A box of wooden matches becomes a musical instrument; a soccer field becomes a dance floor during games. Dance and music are everywhere, present in all events in which people celebrate love, friendship, connection, sensuality, and zest for life. The idea is that life is happening right now, and this alone is enough to become a celebration among friends, family, and community. Glass Mosaic Workshop Laurel True Unleash your creativity in this weekend mosaic workshop. In a lively, enjoyable setting, students will learn solid foundations for making glass mosaic art The program will feature lecture, demonstration, and lots of hands-on mosaic making. Through these processes you will move beyond these barriers to find the truth that lies buried: our human inheritance to be in valuable and valued relationships. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. What’s Next? The Path of Self-Renewal “Transitions and change happen again and again over the course of our lives,” write the leaders, “but we rarely allow ourselves the time to stop, pause, and focus on what is changing and what we want to do about it. In this workshop, we will learn how we can better identify the values that are important to us as we choose our next move. With the conviction that life is not a mountain with a summit 12 You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. DANIEL BIANCHETTA Mark Nicolson & Gustavo Rabin Classes will cover information on designing, setting, and grouting glass mosaics, with a special focus on making fun projects that last. The course will include information on selecting materials, adhesives, surfaces appropriate for future mosaic projects, use of glass-cutting and mosaic tools, and setting techniques. Students will explore their own creative style as they create one or more mosaic projects. Possible projects include: mirror frame, table lamp, wall hanging, small table-top, or flower pot. There will be a wide selection of colored glass, gems, and tesserae to work with. Absolutely no art or mosaic experience is necessary to make beautiful mosaics in this class. All are welcome! Laurel True has over 15 years’ experience making mosaic art. For more information, visit www.Truemosaics.com and www.InstituteofMosaicArt.com. The MAX is extremely challenging. Participants must commit to a rigorous exploration of the sources of their emotional limitations. Seminar hours are longer than usual early in the week (and shorter later in the week). Participants work individually in front of the room, playing to and with other group members. There are exercises that use raw emotion, role-playing, and “dress-up” assignments. This is an opportunity to experience yourself in a way you may have dreamed about but never imagined possible. The game is risk. The premise: You’re either daring or dead. This course is not for the faint of heart, but it is full of heart, humor, and irreverence, constructed with the understanding that this kind of risk taking requires a very safe workspace. If your heart beats faster when you think of taking this workshop, then maybe it’s just the thing to do. ($50 materials fee paid directly to the leader) Please note: Due to the intense and sequential nature of this workshop, attendance at all sessions is necessary. Week of January 8–13 Requirement: Bring a 1-3 minute memorized piece—monologue, poem, song, etc. The I in the Storm: Bringing Self-Leadership to Everyday Life Richard Schwartz All the mystical traditions agree that beneath our protective layers lies a Self, an untarnished essence from which flows healing, spiritual energy, and wisdom. Most of us rarely live from that state because, through life experiences, parts of us have absorbed extreme emotions and beliefs that not only obscure our Self but also govern our daily lives. In this workshop, participants will learn and experience concrete ways to help those parts trust that it is safe to remain in the calm, confident, and compassionate state of Selfleadership, not only during meditation but throughout the day, even in the face of strong provocation. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. The MAX: Stretching the Limits of Your Self-Expression Paula Shaw The MAX is an outrageous voyage through your own humanity—a journey to turn yourself inside out and explore the extent of your self-expressive power. It employs a variety of acting, communication, and observation methods designed to expand your limits “to the max” and move you into a new arena of personal creativity and self-expression. Spinal Awareness—with Humor: A Workshop for Bodyworkers and Aspiring Bodyworkers Patrick Douce Spinal Awareness is a way of learning, not a therapy or treatment. It is taught with movement, touch, and group interaction. Based on the work of Moshe Feldenkrais, ChineseIndonesian Martial Art, and the Esalen Experience, Spinal Awareness continues to evolve. In this workshop, students will apply these techniques specifically to the field of massage and other bodywork. Practitioners will be given specific tools to integrate into their own disciplines as well as hands-on methods specific to the needs of the members of the group. The work will focus on relearning to overcome limitations in movement and functioning. Problem chronic and acute conditions in the lower back, neck, shoulder, hips, knees, elbows, ankle, wrist, and jaw are only some of the conditions that often benefit from this approach. Special emphasis will be placed on Skeletal Awareness. Students will be given a new understanding of how tension and injury are often involved with the disorganization in the skeletal-muscular parts of the body. The workshop will integrate approaches derived from Chinese-Indonesian energetic systems to the field of bodywork. Touch and movement methods of protecting and energizing the practitioner—grounding, generating, circulating, and extending energy—will be shared. The use of joy and humor will be the undertone of this week. Real freedom in the body is also freedom of spirit and fun. For more information visit www.spinalawareness.com. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Vocal Power—Harnessing the Power Within Arthur Joseph In many traditions, the throat is the center of creative power. The voice reflects this power and has the capacity to help access our full creative expression. This course combines the powerful practices of Vocal Awareness with principles of creativity theory to help participants realize their creative potential. The Vocal Awareness approach—which views the voice as a metaphor representing an individual to the world—includes vocalizing, sound meditation, movement, song study, and development of the speaking voice as a means for deepening contact with the self. Participants work individually and in groups exploring breathing, toning, and vocalizing. Not only do singing and speaking offer an immediate outlet for creative expression, but the voice can also be a springboard for other forms of creative expression, such as writing, drawing, movement, and problem solving. Seen in this way, the voice represents the whole person as an integrated creative being. Consequently, this workshop can be not only a vocal training class but a step toward empowerment along life’s path. For further information visit www.vocalawareness.com. Note: Please bring a tape recorder, if you have one. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for teachers; see page 5. Alchemical Art: Glass Fusing Dana Zed Art is a happy kind of magic and glass is a particularly magical medium. Clear as water, strong as stone, transparent yet solid, glass can be invisible and yet act as a barrier. As a syn- See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 13 thesis of opposites, it is an ideal medium for us physical human beings to express our spiritual nature. Strengthen the Legs, Extend the Spine: A Beginner’s Yoga Intensive SoulCollage®: Creating and Consulting your Personal Deck Thomas Michael Fortel Seena Frost & Jeri Bodemar This workshop will present a variety of glasssculpture techniques for participants to give their ideas form. The course will begin with students making individual glass charms and talismans. From there, glass will become more familiar and participants can then choose to make items of their own choice. “When we initially approach the practice of yoga,” Thomas writes, “we are generally unaware of the deep and far-reaching changes which potentially lay before us. Yoga practice creates a situation in which we start to align our mental attention in the moment, in the body. The conscious breath is the most obvious and inherent tool; watching the breath allows our attention to drop deeply into our bodies. We focus a lot of attention on the feet and legs because this our physical foundation. We learn quickly that the strength of the legs translates into the extension of the spine. In addition, we ground the legs and extend the spine as a metaphor for being grounded on the earth and connected with the cosmic and spiritual forces. Using the easy tool of collage, plus your imagination and intuition, you will experience in this workshop just how creative you can be. The task will be to begin—or continue—creating very personal cards, each one symbolizing one aspect of your soul. These will include both your obvious and positive aspects and also your more hidden and shadowy ones. After the workshop you may want to add more cards to your deck, and work with them individually and in a group. The workshop is designed to be nonjudgmental and accessible. Participants will be encouraged to find the magician within. No art experience is necessary. ($50 materials fee paid directly to the leader) Weekend of January 13–15 Bioethics and the Future of the Human Race David Deamer & Ellen Suckiel Can we control the powerful new tools of biotechnology? Or will they control us? Led by philosopher Ellen Suckiel and biomolecular researcher David Deamer, this seminar is for anyone who is concerned about the extraordinary power arising from genomics and biotechnology. New genetic tools have made it possible to find the exact sequence of all three billion bases in the human genome, to genetically modify the food we eat, to produce clones of animals and perhaps human beings, and to create “designer babies” with enhanced genetic properties of our own choosing. The leaders write: “We will discuss the ethical dilemmas faced by researchers, physicians, businessmen, policy makers, and voters as we consider how to use these tools. We will play with the human genome in order to learn how it works, and will even compose music based on a human gene. And we will think about the following questions: How does philosophy guide us in developing ethical principles to make decisions as new genetic tools become available? How do the tools of genomics, proteomics, and molecular biology work, and how are they used? How do ethical considerations guide commercial development of new drugs and food? Answers to these questions will affect not only our individual futures, but have the potential to alter the evolutionary path of the human race.” CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. 14 “Discomfort is normal in the yoga room; beginners should know this. Discomfort is completely natural as the patterns in the body, mind, and emotions are addressed. The old paradigm is shifting and the practice of yoga assists us in making the changes.” Recent yoga experience is recommended. Everyone is welcome. All props are provided. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. SoulCollage is a process that can be both surprisingly therapeutic and deeply spiritual. Plus, it’s fun. The cards are arranged in four suits: (1) the psychological (sub-personalities), (2) the communal (sentient beings), (3) the energetic (animal totems in the chakras), and (4) the archetypal (mythic guides and allies). You can create cards on any of these levels. Along with card-making sessions, time will be set aside for journaling from the images and for doing a personal reading. Teaching sections will be arranged for both beginning and advanced participants. For information about the SoulCollage process see www.soulcollage.com and the book SoulCollage by Seena Frost. Close Yet Free: The Path to Making a Good Relationship Even Better CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. Gerald Smith Let’s Face It: Women Explore Our Aging Faces How can we be open and vulnerable to love another person, and, at the same time, free in order to continue to grow as an individual? The balance of merging and still maintaining a clear sense of self is never completely worked out, because each partner is continually changing. But this dilemma of competing needs can be dealt with in ways that will add to the aliveness in the relationship. In fact, a thriving relationship will enhance each person’s deepest growth. Much of the participants’ time during this weekend will be spent with their partners, separate from other couples. The workshop will use verbal, nonverbal, and written exercises to increase openness, support, and affection, as well as skills to resolve differences without producing “scar tissue.” Also, since play is an essential part of a vital relationship, there will be experiences to spark the imagination and willingness to play together. Enrollment is limited to 12 couples. You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. Carole Pertofsky & Wendy Oser The leaders write: “Few transitions are as complex as when a woman recognizes that she is aging. While adapting to major biological changes, we are bombarded by media imagery and cultural messages that equate beauty, strength, and value with the bloom of youth. Not surprisingly, women may often feel emotionally confused and spiritually challenged, especially in the absence of good role models and support. “In this workshop we will use our faces as an entry point, and explore the problems, paradoxes, and opportunities of aging. Through conversation, and individual and group processes, we will explore how inquiry into growing older can lead us toward deeper acceptance and freedom. We will also view and discuss an award-winning documentary, Let’s Face It: Women Explore Their Aging Faces. As seven mid-life women address their ambivalent feelings about growing older, vanity, anxi- ety, humor, and compassion emerge through each woman’s personal revelation. “Participants can choose to experience a personal video feedback session as part of their workshop experience. By looking deeply at our changing faces, we enter the twin realms of humor and sacred inquiry. Through our open eyes and hearts, we may find wisdom and wit as we move through life’s passages with renewed appreciation for the evolving Self.” Women of all ages are welcome. Week of January 15–20 Deep Bodywork for Massage Practitioners—Level II: Healing Knees and an Introduction to the Psoas Perry & Johanna Holloman Today, demand is growing for practitioners who have mastered the art of moving into the body’s deeper soft-tissue layers with sensitivity and skill. 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 can connect the mind to normally unconscious “stuck” areas of the body, releasing enormous amounts of previously held energy. This energy then becomes available to support the body’s innate capacity to self-organize and self-heal, enabling practitioners to support clients in overcoming stubborn, seemingly intractable physical conditions. This Level II program is designed for massage and bodywork practitioners seeking to integrate effective Deep Tissue techniques into their work. It will build upon the knowledge gained in Level I by exploring new areas of the body. Focus will be on relieving chronic pain in the hip-joint and knee through working on the legs, and learning effective techniques for releasing the Psoas muscle and assessing its role in chronic back pain. Prerequisite for this program is experience as a professional bodyworker. This is an advanced course of study available to those interested in developing Deep Tissue skills, and addressing acute and chronic pain in their bodywork practice. Having attended Level I is recommended, although not necessary for the experienced practitioner. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. SoulMotion™ Vinn Martí I move the dance eternal and the dance is dancing me. I speak the word of recognition and the word is speaking though me. I breathe the spirit of love and that love provides the moving force for life. Writes Vinn Martí: “Soul Motion is a movement ministry devoted to the personal passage from the known to the unknown. It is a place of sanctuary to rattle the dream and realize the power of this moment. It is a covenant between the individual and the dancing village, joined in relation to the one, the many, and the One. Each time we assemble to dance we are poised at the open doorway to divine presence. All of creation celebrates as we dance in the eternal moment. The Universe takes notice each time we use our body and mind to shapeshift and tap the forms and textures of creation in one statement of acceptance and inclusion.” Adds Vinn: “All are welcome. All are needed!” Trauma-Informed Child/Adolescent Therapy: A Child Trauma Institute Workshop Ricky Greenwald This is a hands-on clinical-skills training for working with kids who have been exposed to significant trauma or loss. This in-depth training will cover child trauma theory, the impact of trauma and loss, the therapeutic relationship, identification and assessment of traumatized kids, working with parents and other caregivers to help traumatized kids, and directly helping kids to manage their symptoms and resolve their trauma/loss memories. The program involves lecture, demonstration, and in-class practice. The objectives are that participants be able to: • Explain how past trauma or loss can lead to ongoing problem behaviors or symptoms • Describe and implement the essential elements of a trauma-friendly therapeutic relationship • Describe and implement the essential elements of therapist self-care • Develop and implement a comprehensive trauma-informed treatment plan • Persuade parents and other caregivers to behave in ways that support the child’s healing • Teach kids how to control their impulsive/acting-out behavior • Help kids to face and work through their trauma/loss memories This is an experiential training; part of the learning is to practice the interventions with other participants. Although participants are always in charge of what they disclose, many individuals have reported that their participation led to facing personal issues. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. The Nuts and Bolts of Wisdom: Creating a Characterological Profile Alan Schwartz Characterology is the structure that envelops the sum total of who and what we are. Though we all passed through the same life stages to achieve adulthood, specific conditioning processes acted to form what we bring to the table in our world. Primary processes are heredity, environment, and luck, while secondary conditioning revolves around the effects of politics and spirituality in our lives. On this developmental journey we become a human life force, the combined movement of physiology, emotion, and the action of the brain and central nervous system (thought). Though we seek strength, our conditioning often causes divergence in our life’s journey. Though some experience what we term strength of character and perception, others have difficulty “standing on their own two feet.” This week is strength-building in three parts: first, the use of the group as an encyclopedia of characterology, learning in more depth how our conditioning has shaped us; secondly, with group support, experimenting with strength development, aided by Gestalt process and other appropriate modalities; thirdly, experimenting with a stronger sense of “how we stand in the world.” The result can be a more substantial strength of character on our journey toward wisdom. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain Lynda Greenberg In order to draw, you need neither previous art training nor manual dexterity. All that is required to draw is to learn to see. This workshop teaches basic strategies of seeing through a combination of studio exercises and lectures that pack a semester-long art course into five days. Following the lesson plan of Drawing on the See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 15 Right Side of the Brain by Dr. Betty Edwards, the lectures explain the principles of visual perception and creativity that allow you to successfully master the studio exercises. The studio exercises in turn lead to the integration of perceptual skills and the ability to produce high-quality finished drawings. Since it is the right side of the brain that processes spatial information, the exercises are designed to “trick” the left side—domain of linear data like language, naming, and categorizing—into surrendering control. In a carefully sequenced process, you are taught ways of seeing that enable you to skillfully draw your perceptions. More importantly, these new strategies of thinking are useful in general problem-solving. Consequently, the workshop teaches more than “techniques of drawing”—it teaches how to see in the broader sense, and how to record your perceptions in drawings. This is a supportive workshop for those who wish to write about self and family. The course will present and explore innovative techniques of creative nonfiction, including the incorporation of information received in dreams and other altered states. By honoring the deep feelings that emerge and using simple writing techniques, participants can “remember” and develop (or nurture) individual writing projects. Ione is the author of Pride of Family: Four Generations of American Women of Color, a New York Times Notable Book in 2004. Freedom from Fear David Richo Only a paradox comes close to comprehending the fullness of life. — C.G. Jung There are three simple steps toward handling neurotic fear: First, admit you feal fear. This breaks through all the rationalizations by which you talk yourself out of the fear or make it into something else. Instead of saying “I am uncomfortable around her,” say “I am afraid of her.” Please note: This workshop will have extended hours. A list of materials to bring will be sent upon registration. ($15 materials fee paid directly to the leader) CE credit for teachers; see page 5. Weekend of January 20–22 Experiencing Esalen Experiencing Esalen Staff We must answer anew the old questions. “What are the limits of human ability, the boundaries of the human experience? What does it mean to be a human being?” — From the 1965 Esalen Catalog This workshop is designed to introduce the various transformational practices of Esalen to first-time participants or to those renewing their acquaintance with Esalen. The emphasis will be on finding those approaches to selfawareness that work most effectively for each participant. Sessions may include: meditation, sensory awareness, Gestalt Practice, group process, art, movement, and massage. There will also be time to explore the magnificence of the Big Sur coast. Ione Personal writing is often the hardest to do. Can we dare to write the truth? By accessing and recording our memories do we preserve the essence of our lives for future generations? 16 You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. DANIEL BIANCHETTA Memory, Secrets, and Immortality: Writing the Stories of Our Lives Second, feel the fear fully, with no attempts to get rid of it. Shake, shudder, do whatever it takes to experience the emotion. Essence and Alchemy: A Natural Perfume Workshop Third, and most difficult, act as if fear could not stop you. Act as if you were fearless. This is the truth. Since you actually contain all opposites, you do have fearlessness inside you. It is only that you have not accessed it. This adds resourcefulness to your defenselessness. Fragrance has the instantaneous and invisible power to penetrate consciousness. It is at once tangible and intangible, earthly and ethereal, worthless and priceless, real and magical. To discover the art of natural perfumery is to participate in a spiritual process as well as an aesthetic one. Using essential oils, with their rich histories, properties, and symbolism, immerses the perfumer in a process of personal transformation as well. When you follow these three steps, you begin to trust that you really can live through fear. That makes courage real. You have counterpoised reality to unreality, true evidence to false. This makes you trust yourself and enriches your self-respect. Admit, feel, and act is paradoxical because you are doing the very thing that you feared! “I am afraid of this roller coaster, so let’s buy the tickets.” You trick yourself into getting over the fear. You fear the water and integrate it by learning to swim. The way to integrate fear is to admit it, feel it, and act over it. This is freedom from fear. This weekend workshop will be spent applying these principles to real-life situations. Mandy Aftel This experiential workshop will teach you the fundamentals of working with scent—how to blend a perfume and how to create a perfume formula. It is designed for all who wish to understand the world of scent and through it discover aspects of creativity and spiritual growth. No experience or special skills are necessary. The workshop will include meditation and plenty of hands-on participation with essential oils. Participants will create a liquid perfume and a solid perfume from their own original formula. Recommended reading: Aftel, Essence and Alchemy: A Book of Perfume. Kosher Tantra: Kabbalah and Sexual Desire ($25 materials fee paid directly to the leader.) Ronald Levine This workshop is for anyone who is interested in sex and the human spirit. Kabbalah (literally “Receiving”) is best known as Jewish Mysticism. Recently it has been popularized by celebrities such as Madonna as a New Age self-help system. In reality, it is a sophisticated, highly refined theological and psychological system, delving into all aspects of the human psyche. This is particularly evident in its description of human sexual desire. Its symbols are replete with rich sexual imagery. Its insights deepen our awareness of the nature and nurture of our sexual energy. Its principles magnify the Divine nature of sexual union. Using study, stories, meditation, and experiential lessons to awaken our awareness, this program will explore the wisdom of Kabbalah as it relates to human sexual desire. The workshop will incorporate Kabbalah with more traditional notions of sexual desire to address the following questions: How is sexual desire created? Once we have it, how do we keep it? When we lose it, how do we get it back? Weekend Massage Intensive David Streeter & Rachel Fann This weekend workshop will introduce the core techniques of Esalen Massage®. Through brief lectures and demonstrations, and with lots of personal supervision of hands-on work, the workshop will present essential tools and knowledge that can be effortlessly applied. Fundamental elements of bodywork, such as breath awareness, grounding, movement, and quality of touch will also be introduced. The workshop is designed to enable each student to return home with a firm foundation of Esalen-style massage to build upon. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Week of January 22–27 Nature and Sanity: Ecopsychology and Beyond Robert Greenway Come join in a joyous experience. Recommended reading: Laitman, Kabbalah for Beginners; Matt, The Essential Kabbalah. This workshop will (1) summarize the rapidly expanding field of ecopsychology as both a collection of theories and assumptions and as a practice; and (2) focus on the ecopsychological assumption that without a healthy relationship with natural processes, humans tend to be ‘crazy’—that is, they show evidence of serious psychological malfunctions. Such malfunctions are manifest in various diseases and other forms that seem counter to survival of the human species, not to mention all of life, as well. Among these are the delusion that humans can control nature; narcissism (i.e., nature exists for our personal and/or species’ benefit); cognitive distortions (almost an autism with regard to nature); and so on. The primary workshop method will be to seek to diagnose the disjunction between humans and nature, and to work with various experiential approaches to begin healing the disjunction on a person-by-person basis. Methods will be drawn from the following practices: exploration of bridges between humans and natural processes (such as sources of food and eating habits); sexual practices and habits; modes of providing ourselves with dwelling; breathing practices; interrelationships between mind and nature via meditation practices; Gestalt awareness practices; walks into surrounding wilderness; and opening to celestial events. Recommended reading and pre-workshop preparations will be sent to enrollees. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. Week of January 22–27 From Breakdown to Breakthrough: The Science and Soul of Radiant Wellness Erica Elliott Feeling tired for no reason? Saddled with aches and pains? Irritable and anxious and you don’t know why? Allergies getting worse, hormones out of balance, sleep unrefreshing? These are just a few of the long list of nonspecific chronic ailments so common today. You may not be “sick” in the conventional sense, but you know something isn’t right. Doctors may have told you your blood tests and physical exam were normal: “There’s nothing to worry about. You’re just under too much stress.” But so far, no one has been able to help you regain your previous health. Or maybe you have never fully experienced the joy of vibrant energy and a calm mind. Come join Dr. Erica Elliott and learn practical See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 17 tools for radiant health and vitality, including rapid methods of lowering your body’s burden of petrochemicals and heavy metals, nutrition for maximizing healing, and Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) for overcoming subconscious blocks to healing. Dr. Elliott has more than two decades of experience in successfully treating people for chronic ailments that defy conventional diagnosis and treatment. Her approach is clear and systematic and can be life-changing. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Yoga in the Spirit of Deep Contemplation Tias Little The Courage to Be You: Letting Go and Moving On “All the practice is held in the spirit of deep contemplation in order to cultivate inner listening that renews and brings a quality of fresh awakening. To support this contemplative approach, the weeklong immersion will plant the seeds of meditative awareness within the practice of the yoga postures. To this end, we focus less on the physical achievement and more on the practice of cultivating a sensitivity—a sensitivity toward ourselves and others—in order to live in the world as sentient beings.” This workshop will help you explore what you are holding in, holding onto, and holding back that keeps you from experiencing who you truly are. “The courage to be you” means the ability to appropriately express the repressed anger, fear, resentments, sadness, joy, and laughter that keep you stuck in old patterns. Using emotional release work, writing, movement, Gestalt, meditation, and silence, the workshop will provide a safe environment to explore your deepest emotions. The focus will be on: Please bring your own yoga mat. • Having adult relationships with partners, parents, and children Mary Goldenson Birds make great sky-circles of their freedom. How do they learn it? They fall, and falling, they’re given wings. — Rumi Much in life is beyond our control. Our choices lie in how we respond to these moments. We can develop the ability to move into these moments with aliveness and passion. This choice is an act of courage. DANIEL BIANCHETTA “Each morning will begin with sitting in stillness,” writes Tias Little. “Then, like a bird rising into the sunlight, we will practice standing poses in order to create strong legs and supple hips. Sometimes lifting, sometimes still, the morning practice builds from the sun, the birdsong, and the atmosphere of the morning. The morning focus will be on reducing asymmetry in the ankles, knees, and hips by applying the standing poses in a variety of ways. “The afternoon sessions will be deeply restorative, as we practice supported postures that allow muscles to lengthen and release and nerves to be drawn out like low tide. Breath patterns elongate as shadows of evening approach. At the end of the afternoon session we return back to sitting, elevated on clear spine—back to listening to tree sounds and wind, listening to the flow of prana, back and forth, from ocean to air to lung. The afternoon practice focuses on twists, supine poses, a variety of supported poses and inversions. 18 You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. • Taking full responsibility for your life • Discovering your own personal rhythm of closeness • Distinguishing accountability from blame The workshop constitutes an in-depth lifereview. All that is required is a willingness to engage wholeheartedly. This workshop may have up to 34 participants. Recommended reading: Goldenson, It’s Time— No One’s Coming to Save You. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. The Circle of Life — Coach Certification Training Rebecca McLean The Circle of Life is a nationally-certified holistic life- and health-coaching process successfully used in multiple contexts with thousands of people in hospitals, medical practices, nonprofit agencies, schools, churches, counseling practices, business, and more. The Circle of Life process is rooted in numerous empowerment and healing systems, ancient and contemporary, for supporting people in the realization of their full potential. The system emerged from work with thousands of individuals in programs over a twenty-five year period. Training as a Circle of Life Coach/Facilitator equips you to offer this life-transforming process to groups and individuals while experiencing the benefits of your own personal and professional growth. This training will teach you how to: • Give the Circle of Life assessment evaluating 12 areas of life • Use the Readiness for Change assessment • Use the Intention/Challenge/Action/ Accountability process • Use imagery and metaphors • Use The Healer Within self-healing techniques • Ask good questions to gain insight/ solutions • Access the wisdom and power of the group • Work with various populations and trouble-shoot potential problems • Start groups, determine fees, market successfully Note: To receive national certification, trainees must participate in four one-hour conference calls with the Trainer, as well as run 14 hours of a practice group. ($50 materials fee for the Circle of Life Coach Training Manual paid directly to the leader) CE credit for nurses; see page 5. The Mystical Quality of Stained Glass Esperide Ananas & Piovra Caffe This workshop provides an opportunity to work with two master artisans and educators who have devoted more than twenty years to the construction of the Temple of Mankind, a five-story underground temple in the Turin region of Italy, which features some of the largest stained-glass dome ceilings, doors, and windows in the world. The temple was built in a community called Damanhur, a vibrant artistic and spiritual community known for its advancements in the relationship between the arts and spirituality. Each participant will be shown the secrets of working with art glass: how to turn an idea into a suitable design, how to cut, mount, and solder. Participants will take home a piece that they have made during the week. Piovra and Esperide will share some of the techniques used by Damanhur’s artists to enhance creativity and artistic expression. Breathing techniques, inspirational drawing, the use of archetypal symbols and dance movements, as well as specific preparation for dreaming will be utilized to encourage a sense of freedom in the artistic process. This workshop is suitable for the total beginner as well as the advanced artist. For more information, visit www.damanhur.org. ($50 materials fee paid directly to the leader) Weekend of January 27–29 What If There Is No God? Sam Harris Religion has balkanized our world into separate moral communities—Christians, Muslims, Jews, Hindus, and so on—and these divisions are now a continuous source of human violence. One of the greatest challenges facing civilization in the 21st century is for human beings to learn to speak about their deepest personal concerns—about ethics, spirituality, and the inevitability of human suffering—in ways that are not flagrantly irrational. Societies have only two modes for resolving their disputes: conversation and war. It should be reasonably clear, therefore, that only a fundamental openness to evidence and argument will secure a common world for us. Such openness is the very antithesis of religious faith. Join Sam Harris for an extended consideration of these themes in the context of a medi- tation retreat. The goal of this retreat will be to introduce participants to an approach to spiritual life that does not require belief in anything on insufficient evidence. Lectures and group discussions will alternate with periods of sitting and walking meditation. Sam Harris, in addition to two decades of philosophical and spiritual study, is now completing a doctorate in neuroscience, studying the neural basis of belief, disbelief, and uncertainty with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Finding Your Long-Lost Musician David Darling David Darling’s music improvisation workshops have touched thousands of people from all walks of life, including corporate executives, school children, teachers, professional musicians, prisoners, and therapists, opening their hearts to the mystery of sound. David’s passion is to provide an environment in which each participant has a chance to discover and work with his/her own unique musical abilities—to find the tools for lifelong inspired musical enjoyment. He has spent the last forty years developing methods that bring people face-to-face with their own wondrous sounds and rhythms. Working in groups and individually, people will find the classes relaxed and humorous, yet intensely centered on the profound qualities of the wonders of music. Please bring any instruments you play or want to play. No experience is necessary. Piano and percussion instruments are provided. This workshop is also presented in a five-day format January 29-February 3. CE credit for teachers; see page 5. The Mind/Body Connection: Enhancing the Body’s Ability to Heal and Function Optimally Michael Sinel & Stephen Sideroff There are many physical and emotional holding patterns and habitual behaviors resulting from emotional pain and defenses. Along with stress, they cause muscle tension and nervous system reactivity. This impacts physical symptoms and interferes with healing and the body’s optimal functioning. Pain and other symptoms can also be maintained unconsciously as a distraction from emotional issues. By addressing the underlying issues and coping better with stress, the body is able to let go more readily. This See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 19 improves blood flow, effects biochemical balance, and improves physical health. This workshop will help you recognize and release emotional and physical holding patterns and learn more appropriate responses to stress. Thus your body will take care of itself and heal better. Discussion along with experiential work will facilitate self-awareness, emotional release, and body self-regulation. Topics include: • The connection between emotions, stress, and physical symptoms including pain • Identifying and resolving emotional holding patterns • Introduction to relaxation and biofeedback techniques • Coping with stress and correcting the chronic imbalance of your nervous system • Redesigning your body’s “fight or flight” response to enhance resilience • Dealing with anger and depression • Destructive patterns such as perfectionism, obsessiveness, and addictions • New and more effective ways of thinking and controlling thoughts • Creating your personal program for healing and optimal functioning CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Couples’ Communication Warren Farrell I’ve never heard someone say, “Warren, I want a divorce—my partner understands me.” At the deepest level, most coupled individuals do not feel understood by their partner. Promises of honesty and love begin to fade when we express genuine feelings that our partner perceives as criticism. Criticism begets criticism, and soon the fear of escalation leads to stuffing feelings and “walking on eggshells.” The children consume too much time to unravel the feelings, even as they also create a reason to stay together. The result: Couples remain legally married but psychologically divorced, developing a “silent deal” that looks too much like our parents’ and not enough like the initial promise. The most important component in this cycle is the inability to handle what our partner perceives as feelings and what we perceive as criticism. Active listening, the best solution, is rarely used. Dr. Farrell has modified active listening to avoid what prevents most couples from using it. When conflict can be fully expressed, he helps develop “conflict-free 20 zones.” Once the fear of “walking on eggshells” disappears, he works with couples to replace that fear with an atmosphere of positive associations. The outcome: reigniting passion without sacrificing stability. Once these methods are mastered with partners, Dr. Farrell helps participants apply them to our children, then our co-workers, and finally our own parents. Required reading: Farrell, Women Can’t Hear What Men Don’t Say, chapters 1-3. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Week of January 29– February 3 Finding Your Long-Lost Musician David Darling For workshop description see January 27-29. This five-day workshop is an opportunity to go deeper, further, and higher with your longlost musician. Consciousness Unleashed: Tools for Personal and Social Transformation Joe Arpaia Using Coaching In Therapy: Fundamentals and Practical Applications Maria Nemeth This workshop gives psychologists, therapists, and mental-health professionals specific coaching skills to add to their existing therapeutic repertoire. Coaching skills are valuable to the clinician because they are helpful across a broad spectrum of clients. Clients who resist, or are reluctant to change, or who are initially difficult to work with, often respond favorably to these methods. The techniques learned are designed to help clients achieve positive, measurable outcomes with clarity, focus, and ease. Participants will learn principles and practices of effective coaching including: • What coaching is and when to use coaching methods • Ways to move clients past self-limiting internal conversations • How to create an effective coaching alliance • Powerful questions that take your client from insight into action • Using coaching skills to clarify clients’ values and intentions, formulate meaningful goals, and create a specific strategy to achieve these goals • Seeing where and why clients get stopped in making important life changes, and how to create breakthroughs for clients in this area Coaching is a proactive, optimistic methodology that is about getting clients from where they are now to where they want to be. Therapists who use coaching skills report that their clients get more enjoyment out of life, have relationships that are fulfilling, and achieve balance and harmony. CE credit for psychologistss; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. This program reveals techniques for developing consciousness by cultivating the faculties of acceptance, intention, and awareness. Writes Joe Arpaia: “We will apply acceptance, intention, and awareness to body, thought, and imagination as vehicles for transforming ourselves and the world. Morning sessions will explain principles and theories. Afternoon sessions will explore consciousness through movement, meditation, and energy work. Evening sessions will deepen consciousness by connecting with Spirit through the imagination. Participants will learn through a blend of guided experience, lecture, and group discussion.” Students have the opportunity to take home the ability to handle difficult personal and social issues with increased efficiency and effectiveness, accomplished through the following processes: • Cultivating acceptance and intention as an antidote to aversion/desire • Developing three types of awareness: concentrating, attending, and opening • Using acceptance, intention, and awareness to deepen a physical, emotional, and cognitive connection with Spirit • Experiencing Spirit, which is formless, as Spirit friends, which are the myriad forms Spirit takes for us to interact with • Applying their individual connection with Spirit to personal and social transformation Expect a dynamic, challenging, and exuberant workshop. Please bring writing materials and comfortable clothing. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. The Way of the Shaman: Nature, Power, and Healing David Corbin & Nan Moss To the shaman’s eyes, the world around us is alive and inspirited. In this introduction to core shamanism, you can learn to see with those eyes, to explore the hidden worlds and to access the timeless wisdom known to our ancestors. Through initiation into the shamanic journey, you will learn skills of divination and healing, and experience the shamanic state of consciousness to help awaken spiritual awareness. You will be provided with methods for journeying to discover and study with your own spiritual teachers in nonordinary reality, a classic step in shamanic practice. You will also learn how to restore spiritual power and health, and how shamanism can be applied in contemporary daily life to help heal oneself, others, and the Planet. The course also provides an opportunity for advanced work with the spirits of nature in Esalen’s beautiful and powerful setting. By learning from the rocks and mountains, the wind and waters, and from sun, moon and stars, shamans helped their peoples live in harmony with the universe. In a world out of balance, the way of the shaman can teach us once again how to respect nature, the Earth, and its inhabitants at a deep spiritual level. This workshop includes two Foundation for Shamanic Studies courses, The Way of the Shaman, and Shamanism and the Spirits of Nature. Participants are qualified to take advanced trainings with Michael Harner and the faculty of the Foundation. Please note: Bring a rattle or drum (if you have one), a bandanna, and a pen and notebook to record your journeys. Gestalt Awareness Practice Christine Stewart Price & Guest Leader The Way, when declared Seems so thin and flavorless. Nothing to look at, nothing to hear— And when used—is inexhaustible. rebalancing are allowed and encouraged. The emphasis is intrapersonal rather than interpersonal. Participants are not patients but persons actively consenting to explore in awareness. The leader functions to reflect, clarify, and respect whatever emerges in this process. The aim is unfoldment, wholeness, and growth, rather than adjustment, cure, or accomplishment. The workshop will utilize group exercises, meditations, and discussion. The format combines introductory group work with the open seat form in which each participant will have the opportunity to work with the leader in a group context. Recommended reading: Perls, Gestalt Therapy Verbatim; Chodron, The Wisdom of No Escape. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Radical Aliveness: A Core Energetics Workshop Ann Bradney Ann Bradney writes: “There is a state in which you are fully alive, authentic, and spontaneous. You are open to all of your feelings, connected to your strength and your truth. You are not afraid to know anything about yourself. I call this radical aliveness. In this state you embrace your creativity and see life in all its possibilities. “Standing in the way of radical aliveness are chronic patterns formed in your past to survive. These live as frozen feelings and history in your body and no longer serve you. “Core Energetics is a powerful body-based system. It frees the frozen feelings and history in your body by working with the blocked and held energy. It helps you reconnect with deep parts of the self that you disconnected from as a child. It uncovers the power and goodness at the source of your most destructive patterns. It leads you to connection with your deepest essence. — Lao Tzu Gestalt Awareness Practice is a form—nonanalytic, noncoercive, nonjudgmental—derived from the work of Fritz Perls, influenced by Buddhist practice, and evolved by Richard and Christine Price. The work integrates ways of personal clearing and development that are both ancient and modern. To the extent that awareness is made primary relative to action, Gestalt Awareness Practice has a strong relationship to some forms of meditation. This form is similar to some Reichian work as well, in that emotional and energetic release and “Come to an exciting week of discovery. You will work individually and in groups to understand, transform, and release the past as you deeply explore, experience, and express your blocked and held energy. You will work on your relationship to yourself and explore relating to others in radically alive ways. You will find what stands in the way of your full potential for life.” Please note: An interview is required for admission. Please e-mail [email protected]. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. Five Spirits: In Search of the Golden Flower Lorie Dechar At the heart of Chinese medicine, we find a wisdom tradition called wushen, the Five Spirits, the Taoist psycho-spiritual map of the human nervous system. Wushen emerged from the Taoist cult of the Mysterious Feminine, a tradition that honors the earth and the body as sacred vessels of the divine, and that views our sexual and spiritual energies as innately intertwined. “In this workshop,” writes Lorie Dechar, “we will follow the path of the spirits as they descend from the illuminated peaks of our minds to the swirling depths of our instinctual impulses. In the process, we will reconsider our ideas about healing, creativity, relationship, gender, and sexuality, but most of all our ideas about the Self or what the Taoists referred to as the ‘Golden Flower.’ Through the spirits, we discover a way to integrate the ‘all of who we are’ so we can walk on the planet in the fullness of our own Tao.” This course will be useful not only to acupuncturists, psychologists, and healers, but also to anyone in the midst of challenging life transition, anyone longing to rediscover the sacred power, wisdom, and healing potential of their own body and the natural world. For more information, visit www.fivespirits.com. Weekend of February 3–5 Scientific and Spiritual Implications of Psychic Abilities Russell Targ What do the healer, the mystic, the psychic, and the spy all have in common? They are all in touch with their nonlocal mind and our community of spirit. During the 1970s and ‘80s, Stanford Research Institute carried out investigations of our ability to experience and describe distant events blocked from ordinary perception. This intuitive capacity was named remote viewing, and the research was supported by the CIA and many other government organizations for gathering intelligence during the Cold War. Physicist Russell Targ, cofounder of this previously secret psychic-research program, will present a summary of the very best evidence for extrasensory perception, intuitive diagno- See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 21 sis, and spiritual healing. This program will explore these applications, together with the spiritual implications of psychic abilities from the Hindu mystic Patanjali and the Dzogchen dharma masters down to the present time, as they might be applied to expanding one’s awareness. There will be discussion on how to recognize the actual psychic signal, and how to separate it from mental noise of memory, imagination, and analysis—and why we should we bother with ESP. Finally, and most important, there will be individual lessons in remote viewing, just as in the successful Stanford Research Institute program. thing truly personal. In this workshop, the process of stone carving is used as a creative vehicle for both artistic expression and selfdiscovery. The experience of selecting a stone, working with hand tools, and sharing this process in a group offers participants a chance to explore the medium and deepen their emerging creative potential. Thus this endeavor becomes a metaphor for our lives. Even if you have never carved stone, by the end of the workshop an artistic creation will emerge that is unique to your individual creativity. ($35 materials fee paid directly to the leader) CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. For further information, visit www.espresearch.com. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. Yoga—The Union of Opposites Sarah Mata The art of yoga lies within the power of relationship. There is a subtle dance in the relationship of exhaling and inhaling, forward and backward bending, movement and stillness, sound and silence—between what changes and what stays the same. Engaging all aspects of ourselves, these ancient and integrative practices offer a time-honored path to embody our radiance in the present. Within the experience of our bodies, our minds can be brought to a state of calm; as we deepen the awareness of our breath, contemplation deepens. In time we can reveal the link of our own heart with the essence of the yogic aspiration, which is, it could be said, to be in your life and meet the promise of it with open arms. Public Speaking, Effective Communication Mary Goldenson What you say is important, but how you say it determines the effectiveness of your communication. Virtually everything we do involves some aspect of our ability to communicate and present our point of view. Do anxiety and fear sabotage your ability to motivate, persuade, and hold the attention of an individual or group? What would it be like to experience yourself delivering a presentation with confidence? This course is designed to develop communication skills in formal and informal settings. In a safe, supportive environment you can learn to: • Deal with anxiety—learn dynamic steps to eliminate stage fright • Prepare and organize—develop clear, interesting presentations that engage your audience • Deliver—use stories, metaphors, and anecdotes for livelier presentations; create active involvement with the audience; and close powerfully • Persuade—master the dynamics that move listeners; distinguish between what you are saying and what the audience hears “In this practice,” Sarah Mata writes, “we will explore the interrelationship between body, mind, breath, sound, and silence. We will draw upon the ancient prayer to the light, the Gayatri Mantra, to structure a complete practice that weaves dynamic asana (vinyasa) and still postures, breathing practices (pranayama), and simple sounds (mantra) with the intention (bhavana) to arrive at the point of contemplation. It is within the relationships among all of these dimensions of practice that we become rooted and free.” Recommended reading: Goldenson, It’s Time— No One’s Coming to Save You. Please bring your own yoga mat. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Of Stone and the Self: Stone Carving for the Soul Arthur Weinfeld Stone is a medium that affords the opportunity to experience the deep satisfaction of transforming something inanimate into some22 This workshop may have up to 34 participants. To Cross or Not to Cross: Boundaries and Dual Relationships in Psychotherapy Ofer Zur This specialized and thought-provoking workshop explores touch, gifts, bartering, You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. home visits, walks in the park, self-disclosure, and other rarely discussed boundary issues in therapy and counseling. It also examines how therapists can ethically and effectively work in small or rural communities, with people they socially know, whether from retreat centers, meditation groups, twelve-step programs, co-ops, churches, synagogues, schools, or political action groups. The course will also cover dual relationships with people in ethnic, spiritual, gay and lesbian, disabled, or university communities. This workshop is designed to help therapists and clients clarify how to ethically deal with the complexities of boundaries in therapy with integrity and care. Participants will be able to present and discuss difficult situations they encounter in therapy, and learn how to enhance healing and reduce the risks to therapists and clients alike. The course will include didactic and experiential components as well as discussions. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. Getting Published Kate Gale This workshop is for you, the writer. Kate Gale, a professional with a decade of experience in the publishing field, covers everything from print to page: Is your manuscript ready to leave the nest? Which conferences are worth attending? Publicists—who needs them? What about the care and feeding of your publisher? What are the advantages of a larger or smaller publisher? What about an agent? You say you want one—but do you? From book contracts to book tours (and by the way, who books them?), this workshop will do practically everything but write your book. Other workshop topics include: • How to know if your work is ready—if not, how to make it ready • How to develop relationships with literary magazines • Finding a publisher and developing a working partnership • The difference between digital and offset printing The workshop also asks these telling questions: “Who is your model writer? In fact, who, in the entire universe, would you like to be? And, in so wishing, what are you asking of the universe?” Want to get published? Kate Gale will provide you with the nuts and bolts of how to take yourself there. DANIEL BIANCHETTA Week of February 5–10 The Upledger Institute’s CranioSacral I Sheryl McGavin 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. Please note: Registration for this workshop is through The Upledger Institute only. Please call 1-800-233-5880. Recommended reading: Upledger & Vredevoogd, CranioSacral Therapy (chapters 16); Upledger, Your Inner Physician and You. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. The Mirror of Soul: The Wisdom of Rumi Fariba Enteshari Unfold your own myth with Rumi’s poetry and storytelling. This workshop presents the teachings and wisdom of Jalal Al Din Rumi, the thirteenth-century Sufi mystic poet. Rumi invites us to listen to and reflect the song of the Soul. His teachings profoundly change us from the inside out and provide a key to interfaith understanding that can ultimately unite humanity on a global scale. He is a healer for our time. Rumi’s poetry can be an enormously powerful tool of self-discovery and healing as an individual explores his or her world within. The wisdom of Rumi’s teaching is hidden in the verses of his poetry. Teachings from the Mathnawi, Rumi’s masterpiece, invite individuals to discover the hidden dimensions of their being and inner strength. His poetry and stories take us from the path of duality to the path of unity of body, mind, and soul, leading us step by step to meet the Divine within ourelves—a journey toward Enlightenment. Open your heart to five days of listening, chanting, dancing, and reflecting on the Divine within the ocean of Rumi’s poetry. Bringing It Home: A Yoga and Meditation Retreat Baxter Bell & Nina Zolotow It’s easy to temporarily shed the stresses of your everyday life when you spend time away in an idyllic setting such as Esalen, where there are relatively few demands on you and the atmosphere is serene and peaceful. But See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 23 how do you take the feelings of relaxation and relief from stress with you when you return home afterwards? In this retreat, you’ll not only find relaxation and relief from stress during a week of asana and meditation practice, but you’ll return home with a toolkit for reconnecting to this way of being when your retreat is over. expression. The ultimate goal is to develop a centered presence informed by your heart instead of your mental judgments and selfimages. No previous experience is necessary. Participants will be filmed in solo, dyad, and group situations, with the opportunity to view the tapes. In this workshop, you’ll spend the mornings exploring vigorous asana practices that help release stress stored within your body. In the afternoons, you will learn how restorative practices can help soothe, calm, and deeply relax your physical and emotional body. The asana practices will be supplemented with short meditation and pranayama sessions that will support your ability to relax and revitalize yourself while cultivating a vibrant, creative mind. Finally, the workshop will provide you with several ten-minute routines that you can use to start a home yoga practice and it will teach you how to maintain your practice and adapt it to suit your particular needs and desires on any given day. What’s Right With You: Debunking Dysfunction and Changing Your Life Please bring your own yoga mat. The Great Escape: From SelfConsciousness to Self-Expression Karen Roeper & Peter Rosselli Do you ever find yourself stuck in images of how you are supposed to be? Or express yourself in ways that don’t support you moving freely and joyfully? This workshop presents Essential Motion (developed by Karen Roeper), an approach to deepening self-perception, self-awareness, and self-acceptance. Essential Motion combines improvisational movement, psychological and emotional inquiry, and group reflective process work. Movement is the forgotten language of the soul. Through movement work, you can reintegrate the physical intelligence and playful bodily ease of childhood to move through daily life with more grace, freedom, and power. Using movement, sound, interactive coaching, group mirroring, discussion, and video feedback, Karen and Peter create a provocative yet safe environment. They guide you through a discovery of your own personal vocabulary of expression and help you explore how these movements, expressions, and response patterns directly reflect how you function in your everyday world. These somatic insights create the possibility of greater choice. The workshop is especially designed for those interested in learning how to crack open selfbeliefs that constrain spontaneous, powerful 24 Barry Duncan We live in a world pervaded by the unspoken attitude that we are all basically flawed, broken, incomplete, scarred, or sick. We’re labeled as dysfunctional, codependent, depressed, you name it. Contrary to popular perception and drug company ad campaigns, fifty years of research shows that positive change does not primarily emerge from examining the disorders, diseases, or dysfunctions—all the stuff that’s wrong with us—that allegedly plague the masses. Change, in truth, comes from what’s right with the people attempting it— their strengths, resources, ideas, and relational support—not the labels they are branded with, the special expertise of doctors, or the magic methods or potions they peddle. Dr. Barry Duncan debunks the myth that only a therapist can help you change your life and shows how positive change really happens when you utilize your inherent strengths and resources and are supported by relationships that take your innate goodness as a given. This presentation offers you a plan designed to effect change in your life—for good! The Heroine’s Journey: Soul Work for Women Christine Warren This retreat is a mythic, spiritual exploration of the unique life journey of women and the soul purpose of women’s lives. The workshop—combining ancient myth, Jungian teachings, personal work, metaphysics, and earth-based ritual—includes: • The Heroine’s Journey: A map of the stages of women’s lives: individuation from Father and Mother, recovery of power and personal vision, facing loss and dark nights of the soul, and reclamation/integration of our human and sacred Selves • Our Inner Masculine and Feminine: Building relationship and dialogue with our inner male and female, balancing intuition and logic, feeling and intellect, love and power You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. • Healing with the Mother: Releasing and forgiving our history with our mothers, gleaning the gold from both the challenges and gifts of this pivotal relationship • Relationships with Women: How to build community with like-minded women and untangle from draining, caretaking, or negating relationships • The Gift of the Feminine Shadow: Transmuting jealousy, depression, and loss of self into greater integration, genuine power, and self-celebration • Journey through the Underground: Mining the gold from times of loss, descent, and darkness and discovering ways to navigate these difficult times • The Earth’s Guidance: Outdoor rituals and drumming, sacred circle, and guided experiences to attune to the ancient wisdom of ocean, earth, and sky for your life path • Women’s Rite of Passage: A culminating rite of passage that honors the Goddess in all of us, and blesses every woman on her journey home Note: Please bring a light pack or fanny pack and walking shoes for the outdoor session. Weekend of February 10–12 Body and Mind Huston Smith & Gael Ohlgren Huston Smith, who has taught at Esalen almost since its founding, is joined here by his daughter Gael, as they share their respective competencies in this workshop that pretty much covers who we human beings are and what it means to live a human life. Huston, for whom the word Mind includes Spirit, wrote what is still the classic text in his field, The World’s Religions. He was the subject of Bill Moyers’ 1996 five-part PBS series, “The Wisdom of Faith with Huston Smith.” Gael began her lifelong study of somatic practices at Esalen as a member of the Esalen massage crew. She went on to train with Ida Rolf, Judith Aston, and Peter Levine. She has studied with Emilie Conrad, founder of Continuum, for 30 years. An emeritus Rolf Institute Faculty member and international Continuum teacher, she maintains a private practice in the modalities of Structural Integration and healing through movement awareness. Both instructors believe that modern Western culture with its glorification of scientism creates blind spots. It turns our lives over to scientific data and authority and undermines the intuitive wisdom of our body and spirit. Underneath cultural programming, which tends to numb us, there is the wisdom of the body and our spirit’s promptings that lead us to balance our lives and to connect with the earth, animals, and people. This workshop seeks to recover human wholeness. Spirit In Action: Love, Life, Deep Healing Emmett Miller Who are you, really? What is your life’s purpose? How should you be expressing it at this point in time? These are crucial questions for us all. Dr. Miller will share the principles he has discovered for embodying essence and guiding it wisely and intentionally to create peak performance and creativity. He writes: “We will employ deep relaxation, imagery, music, movement, and good conversation to enrich and enliven the experience. When we surrender to the inescapable truth of Now, accept ourselves as we are, and become attuned to our inner rhythms, we discover they reflect the rhythms of the world around us. The result is a beautiful, pleasurable dance with our loved ones—and harmony in every phase of our lives. Excellence appears in our every endeavor and we radiate a sense of peace that empowers others to accept themselves. Our every word and action thus contributes to our own growth and betterment as well as that of our fellow human beings and the peace and wholeness of our planet.” Spirited Work: The Give-and-Get Path to Passion and Purpose Connie Grauds Do you want to do more of the spirited work of the heart that you like to do, and less of the heartless drudgery that you don’t? Hint: It’s not about what you do! Connie Grauds demonstrates how the shamanic laws of energy flow can take your life’s work to the next level. Out go boredom DANIEL BIANCHETTA Emmett Miller writes: “We’ll explore awakening that human Spirit—the Self—that lives in the core of your being and nurturing it to flower into as long a joyful, productive, integral life as ‘humanly’ possible. Spirit in action means breathing life, love, balance, and excitement into all our relationships as well.” and fatigue, in come passion and life purpose. In this Spirited Work workshop, you will learn the principles of C.O.R.E., a four-step process to spiriting your work and bringing forth your life’s passion and purpose. The secret of this process is positive reciprocal impact, the art of giving of yourself to get what you want in return. Connie not only presents didactic material, but leads participants on an experiential healing journey into the Four Chambers of the Heart. Once into your heart, you will make room for your life’s work to unfold. Come prepared to write your own personal Energy Prescription to change your life now. Leave the struggle behind and commit to a life of spirited work. Create a life of passion and purpose. A healer, shamana, and pharmacist, Connie is author of the critically acclaimed Jungle Medicine and the new The Energy Prescription. Connie’s work has changed the lives of thousands by helping them spirit their life’s work. For more information visit www.spiritedmedicine.com. The Hidden Gifts of the Shadow Charlie & Linda Bloom Although most of us are aware of what it takes to promote intimacy, trust, and deep connectedness in relationships, putting our knowledge into practice is often another thing altogether. We may find the challenge See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 25 DANIEL BIANCHETTA of creating loving relationships far more difficult than we expected. Our partner can bring out the worst as well as the best in us. In many cases the pain engendered by unsuccessful efforts to establish loving contact can become so intolerable that separation may appear to be the only acceptable option. Yet this need not be the case. In this workshop, participants will be encouraged to open more fully to those aspects of themselves that are relegated to the dark, as well as to the “golden shadow.” In thus coming to terms with ourselves we bring greater authenticity, playfulness, intimacy, and co-creativity into our relationships. Utilizing experiential processes, role playing, and group exercises, the workshop is designed to clarify the means through which we can learn to listen to and speak from the truth of each moment, even at those times when we find our hearts closed in pain. We can learn to harness the vast energies bound in the shadow and transform them into powerful healing and creative forces in our lives. Recommended reading: C. & L. Bloom, 101 Things I Wish I Knew When I Got Married. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. 26 A Tender Invitation David Schiffman “Our aims for this weekend are simple,” writes David Schiffman. “To join together and share the magical, timeless realities of Big Sur’s sea, sky, and mountains. To feel emotionally and physically restored, healed, and cleansed. To rediscover the lovingly creative inner resources of our own music, poetry, and prayer. To feel ready again to face whatever comes next in our lives. “Together we will create a mood of sanctuary and a time to be met by kindred spirits. The approaches utilized will be drawn from a wide variety of practices aimed toward physical, emotional, and spiritual attunement in order to restore our gratitude and appreciation for being alive.” Week of February 12–17 Frontiers of Trauma Treatment Bessel van der Kolk & Betta de Boer-van der Kolk This course presents current research about how people’s brains, minds, and bodies are affected by traumatic experiences. It explores You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. specific practical techniques—the therapeutic relationship, yoga, EMDR, mindfulness, theater, breathing, touch, and more—for affect regulation, the integration of dissociated aspects of experience, overcoming helplessness, and the reintegration of human connections. The past two decades have seen an explosion of knowledge about how experience shapes the central nervous system and the formation of the self, as well as what constitutes effective intervention. New research shows how brain function is shaped by experience and that life itself can continually transform perception and biology. Overwhelming experiences alter the capacity for self-regulation due to alterations in subcortical, i.e., “unconscious,” levels of the brain. This causes the entire organism to react to current experiences as a replay of the past. The memory imprints of the trauma(s) are held in bodily states and physical patterns. Effective treatment of the aftereffects of trauma consists in part of knowing what has happened and how those events have shaped one’s perceptions, but equally in addressing the imprint of trauma on the physical experience of oneself as helpless and in danger. Recovery needs to incorporate physical experiences that contradict feelings associated with helplessness and disconnection. The goal of treatment is to help bring the traumatic experience to an end in every aspect of the human organism. This includes experiencing physical mastery to initiate new ways of perceiving reality and promoting new behavior patterns. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Wild Serenity Lorin Roche & Camille Maurine Wild Serenity is a radically liberating, deeply revitalizing week of meditation, movement, and energy practices. The workshop explores the interplay between meditation and expression—the way that contact with the soul inspires dynamic engagement with the outer world, which in turn contributes to a rich inner life. Meditation can be defined as paying attention to the current of life and love flowing through us and riding it inward to our essence. This is an instinctive ability, a way of accessing inner wisdom, and we all can do it. The course alternates sitting and moving meditations that awaken the senses, soften the heart, and stretch the muscles of the mind. Through body awareness, sound, and breath, you gently and gradually let more life force stream through you. In this approach, you learn to embrace the fullness of your nature—vastness and vulnerability, sensuality and surging power. You will discover that what might seem like obstacles— raw emotions, restlessness, desire—are actually gateways into vitality, renewal, and creativity. Living and loving fully takes courage and all the inner resources one can muster. Drawing on three decades of teaching and 23 years of relationship, authors Maurine and Roche share their experience with humor and compassion. If you’ve given up on meditation, or are ready to take your practice to a new level; if you want to tap into more joy and inspiration; if you long for more intimacy with yourself and others, then perhaps it’s time for Wild Serenity. Recommended reading: Maurine & Roche, Meditation 24/7 and Meditation Secrets for Women; Roche, Breath Taking and Meditation Made Easy. Mandala: Sing the Desire of Your Soul Susie Self & Michael Christie The leaders write: “This is an experiential workshop in which participants will explore the soul-power of our natural singing voices through chanting with Tibetan singing bowls, releasing the energy of our chakras with vibrational and overtone singing, and connecting to our deepest creative inner vision through intuitive musical improvisation. “This workshop encompasses both writing and presentation exercises. The goal of our time together is to enable us to let go of our speaking and writing inhibitions and be fully free to express our work, on and off the page.” “Mandala, in Sanskrit, means ‘round painting.’ In many ways it is the visual equivalent of a Mantra (a repeated tune used as spiritual practice). Our aim is to connect our true selves with an easy vocal function that serves all musical styles, rather than creating a ‘manufactured’ voice to suit fixed expectations of how we should sound. On a deeper level we will explore the natural healing effect of singing on our soul’s journey, developing our art with visualization, Mandala vision painting, and creating our own unique music and voice.” Please bring a piece of writing you are currently working on, or ideas for a new project. Writers and speakers of all levels are welcome. For more information, Julie Daniels can be reached at 818- 623-8960, or visit www.teechspeech.com. Drawing on an eclectic mixture of visionaries from Jung, Zen Buddhism, John Cage, and Philip Glass, Susie and Michael welcome singers of all levels from beginner to professional. Please bring along any instruments that you play; a CD and voice book are included with the course. For further information, visit www.selfmademusic.org. ($10 materials fee paid directly to the leaders) Speaking Our Word: A Presentation Workshop for Writers Julie Daniels When you performÉ you are for minutes heroic. This is power. This is glory on earth. And it is yours nightly. — Agnes De Mille Julie Daniels writes: “From-the-page-to-thestage is our work in this empowering workshop. We begin the process of learning how to take our plays, short stories, and novels, and present them to the public with courage, charisma, and confidence. Participants will learn to celebrate the performer within, using these techniques: • Physical and vocal relaxation—Change nervousness into excitement • Diaphragmatic breathing—Access that powerful voice within you • Voice coloration—Distinguish your narrative from your character voices using pitch, resonance, humor, and timing • Body language—Develop gestures that are authentic to your work and appropriate for your audience • Improvisation—Improvise your writing, exploring greater depth of story and character CE credit for teachers; see page 5. Passion and Wisdom: Life Skills for Balancing a Whole Life David Schiffman A laundry list for a whole life might read: (1) a long, healthy life, (2) a satisfying and safe place to live, (3) an intimate circle of fulfilling relationships with family, friends, and colleagues, (4) sufficient, steady material success, (5) the freedom and the time to be, to dream, and to spiritually aspire, and (6) enough excitement, challenge, and change to keep learning and growing. If these measures reflect your own hopes and dreams, this workshop is aimed at exploring or supporting what it takes to know: • How much is truly enough? • How to minimize wasted time and unnecessary suffering • When and how to act effectively with emotional competence, authenticity, and authority • When and whom to ask for support, when to give way and wait with grace This workshop will provide time to seek wise counsel and allies in a circle based in goodwill, mutual honesty, and deep, soulful inquiry. Group activities and ceremonies will celebrate and remember the milestones of our self-realization and the challenges still ahead. This is an opportunity to strengthen the life skills, tools, and attitudes necessary for deepening physical vitality, mental acuity, and emotional integrity. Perspectives and practices from ancient and modern sources will be explored to evoke the vibrancy, freshness, and potency of our presence and commitment to our hopes and visions. Essence of the Elements: Esalen Massage® and LaStone® Therapy Peggy Horan & Ardell Hill Esalen Massage is the foundation for many modalities, with its focus on presence, its See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 27 emphasis on working with intention, and its principle of working with rather than on clients—listening, feeling, and sensing their needs. Long strokes bring integration to the client’s experience, as well as a feeling of wholeness and connection. At its foundation, LaStone Therapy shares the principles of Esalen Massage—the long connected strokes, staying in dialogue with the client, and feeling the instantaneous response to touch (temperature) on the tissue. This course will explore both modalities, blending their shared elements and finding new ways to expand both practices. Join Peggy Horan, a 35-year practitioner of Esalen Massage, and Deborah Ardell Hill, Master LaStone instructor, for a week of massage, movement, and creative fun. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Weekend of February 17–19 Being Danced: 5Rhythm™ Essentials the “form.” Qigong is not merely a technique; it is a “way of life,” the roots of which tap entire worlds—traditional Chinese medicine, Taoism (Daoism), Buddhism, Confucianism, ancient quantum systems, and the transcendental shamanic realms (Dancing Wu Li Masters). “In this workshop,” writes Roger Jahnke, “we will begin by exploring simple Dao Yin Qigong (self-healing, medical Qigong methods) to use and to share with family, friends, patients, clients, and colleagues. Then drawing on the ancient Tao Te Ching (Dao De Jing), we will cultivate the great ‘Way’ through very special Qigong methods—Natural Flow Qigong and the Seven Precious Gestures—to cultivate inner elixir. “Finally, we will explore the Secret of the Golden Flower, a highly refined form of traditional ‘elixir alchemy’ renowned for its merging of Taoism, Confucianism, and Buddhism. Health professionals, beginning students, and those who seek healing are all welcome, as well as experienced Qigong, Tai Chi, and Yoga practitioners and teachers.” For more information, visit www.FeeltheQi.com. Andrea Juhan It is a glorious moment when we feel at one with the creative life force that moves and breathes us. This workshop will provide a foundational structure for how we can allow those moments to multiply. The 5Rhythms ecstatic dance practice, with roots in Shamanic and Sufi traditions, invites us into an open dance form that catalyzes powerful emotional and spiritual energies to move through our physical bodies. By focusing our awareness in each of the 5Rhythms—flowing, staccato, chaos, lyrical, and stillness—we can learn to quiet the mind, become present and grounded, and allow our attention to expand beyond how we normally experience Being in our body. This is a practice that anybody—regardless of shape, size, or age—can engage in. All that is required is willingness, curiosity, and a longing for freedom. This course is open to beginners—no dance experience, 5Rhythms or otherwise, is necessary. Qigong and Inner Alchemy: Inner Elixir and the Practice of Pure Radiance Roger Jahnke No matter what form of Yoga, Qigong (Chi Kung) or Tai Chi you choose, the essentials of deepening your practice are not based in 28 Suggested reading: Jahnke, The Healer Within, and The Healing Promise of Qi. • Turn any relationship into a dance of selfdiscovery • Treat the entire global community as your very own beloved For more information, visit www.heartonfire.org. Recommended reading: Cushnir, Setting Your Heart on Fire, and Unconditional Bliss. Sex, Love, and Relationships: Combining Sexuality and Intimacy Lisa Firestone & Joyce Catlett What is healthy sexuality? What is love? During the initial part of this workshop participants will be challenged to provide answers to these questions from their own experience. Next, the presenters will describe the major barriers to developing intimate sexual relationships. They will introduce the concept of the fantasy bond, an illusion of connection that many couples form, which leads to a deterioration in close relating. They will describe the concept of the critical inner voice, a system of negative thoughts and attitudes toward oneself and significant others that contributes to relationship distress. These concepts will be illustrated by video excerpts of individuals talking about their relationships and sexuality. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Setting Your Heart on Fire: An Invitation to Live the Questions Raphael Cushnir What if you could fall absolutely in love with every moment of your life? What if you could use love’s transformative radiance to break though any personal block, including those about career, relationships, family, weight, self-esteem, and addiction? All of this is possible when you learn how to ask and answer two simple questions. Doing so requires you to become more open and present than ever before. Based on both of Raphael’s books, this safe and supportive workshop will help you to: • Experience all emotions with willingness and compassion • Uncover and transform your limiting beliefs • Employ acceptance as a tool for positive change • Allow the immediacy of death to bring you fully to life • Unleash the power of your dreams while wide awake You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. Participants will engage in exercises to explore attitudes about sexuality and relationship issues that may be interfering with their reaching their full potential for sexual intimacy. They will learn the techniques of Voice Therapy as applied to sexual issues and will have time to practice these techniques. The presenters will use a developmental perspective to explore the impact of childhood experiences on a person’s emerging sexuality. They will examine the impact of society and sexual stereotyping on sexuality. Video excerpts will illustrate these points, showing poignant examples of how personal experiences growing up affect an individual’s sexuality as an adult. Participants will explore the impact of their childhood experiences and learn strategies for overcoming these. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. An Introduction to Esalen Massage® Sylvia Guersenzvaig & Dean Marson During this weekend participants will receive a hands-on introduction to the basic concepts of Esalen Massage. The essence of this style of bodywork consists of long, flowing strokes that contribute to deep relaxation and a feel- ing of wholeness. The format of the course will be experiential with demonstrations followed by time for practice. Special attention will be given to quality of touch, breath awareness, and grounding techniques. The workshop will also include an introduction to meditation and body awareness to develop a deeper ability for presence and connection. There will be ample time to enjoy and be inspired by the magic of Esalen and the natural beauty of Big Sur. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Week of February 19–24 Not For the Feint of Heart Mariah Fenton Gladis This workshop is not for the feint of heart— nor the faint of heart. It is designed for people with a passionate commitment toward creating healthy relationships within healthy lives. It offers each participant the opportunity to benefit from intensive individual work, which may involve emotional injuries rooted in the past, recurring themes or patterns of dysfunction, or personal longings in the hereand-now. Whatever the content of your work, this workshop will help you: • Discover the issues that are immediately obstructing the quality of your life • Learn contact skills and understand their importance as a measure of healthy functioning • Risk working more deeply in an atmosphere of trust and mutual support • Develop more authentic and vital communication skills • Expand your capacity for generosity and compassion for yourself and others This workshop is particularly helpful for adult children of dysfunctional families, human-relations professionals, and those on a path of personal betterment. This experiential and didactic workshop will blend individual and group Gestalt work, spiritual practice, and bodywork. Mariah is also well known for her effective and innovative use of music to enrich the workshop experience. A twenty-four-year survivor of ALS, Mariah speaks with what she calls her “ALS accent.” She will be assisted by Bruce Cornwell, who has a background in psychotherapy and professional acting. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Brain, Attachment, and Early Development: Practical Interpersonal Neurobiology and Somatic Interventions with Individuals and Groups Marti Glenn & Paula Thomson Presented by the Santa Barbara Graduate Institute, this workshop offers practical applications of current advances in brain research, trauma treatment, and attachment theory. Participants will explore some of the most relevant and exciting work in the field of somatic and developmental psychology. Often this information is intimidating and challenging; however, neurobiological language will be fluidly incorporated into an integrative learning environment. Through lectures, video presentations, discussion, and individual and group somatic experiential explorations, participants will readily begin to understand and embody the neuroscience and attachment patterns and how they are formed. Participants will also work within the group context on their own early attachment issues. Note: This course is part of a certificate program that has five other segments. The segments may be done individually or as a whole program. See www.esalen.sbgi.edu for a more complete description. See Special Programs, page 80. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Retreat as a Spiritual Practice Thomas Michael Fortel “Throughout the ages,” says Thomas, “human beings have sought the solace and quiet of nature as a way of gaining perspective, clarity, and spiritual connection. When we go on retreat we remove ourselves from our daily schedules, from our homes, and our normal ways of life. This allows us open space to reflect on our lives, our direction, and life purpose. Retreat is an invaluable time to engage the spiritual practices, to spend time alone and be with uplifting company (the group field). Making a practice of going on retreat is itself one of our spiritual practices and a way to nourish and honor Self. “We will gather together on the cusp of this New Year to engage the spiritual practices of yoga: asana, dharina (visualization and mental focus), pranayama, and meditation. Engaging the spiritual practices is not about being serious or stern or shut down. The group field is lively and open, and fun is encouraged.” Please have minimum of 3 months’ recent yoga experience. All props are provided. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Open Floor—5Rhythms™ in Process Andrea Juhan 5Rhythms movement practice invites us to experience ourselves in a new way—beyond our personal life story and separate sense of self—as a physical experience of the healing power of ecstatic Oneness. This Oneness is collective Spirit, made up of each of us and the lives we lead day to day. Vital questions about who we are, where we have come from, what we need, what we fear, and what we have to give are all interwoven in the bones, breath, and muscles we use to dance with. Movement practice gives us a way to become more aware of our part of the whole. Our personal contribution to the collective group field is part conscious and unconscious, part beneficial and destructive. We explore this process through the body using the language of movement to articulate subtle states of being which may be too delicate to express with words alone. Process becomes poetry in motion. The patterns and emotions of our humanity are organically balanced, regulated, and shared by the communities we find ourselves in. These processes become exceptionally clear in our community of dancers on the Open Floor. Through the Open Floor structure, a combination of individual sessions and intensive group process, what is inner becomes outer, for all to see, support, and play with. We take what is mirrored by others to heart with our own body. We allow each and every part that emerges to have its dance. Then we offer it all to the spirit of the dance, transforming it back to the One. Prerequisite: Some 5Rhythms dance experience is required. Artplane Nicholas Wilton This workshop is a playful exploration of the creative image-making process. It presents practical principles of painting coupled with a fresh approach to working more freely and intuitively. In addition to demonstrations, critique, and extensive hands-on painting, this course offers clear, concise explorations of color theory, harmony, value, and design. “There will be little time to worry about suc- See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 29 cess or failure,” Nicholas Wilton writes, “as our process will take the form of a flowing series of small paintings or multiples. We will sometimes be painting on two or three pictures simultaneously. Working in this way helps to avoid the tendency to overly focus and constrict the creative process. The fundamental idea of this class is to recognize and remain in this state of high creativity—the ‘artplane.’ This process enables us to see the opportunities made possible by our mistakes and learn how to evaluate and improve upon our own work.” out to ourselves and discover our unique contribution to planet Earth.” Come prepared for a whirl of creative selfexpression and the weary, wonderful feeling of leaving a workshop with a collection of your own paintings which celebrate the process of inspiration, reclamation, and the journey of self-discovery. All that’s needed is life experience and a willingness to play. For more information, call Studio Zocolo at 415488-4710, or visit www.artplaneworkshop.com. Ron Loeb, Brother David Steindl-Rast & John King Recommended reading: Bayles, Art and Fear. All gay, bi, and trans men are welcome, regardless of age, HIV status, single or in relationship. Bring a generosity of spirit, your laughter, stories, and feelings, your hearts, and especially your uniqueness. Weekend of February 24–26 The Noble Cause of Business “The Noble Cause of Business” is a highly interactive course designed for leaders in the world of business, those who view business as having the potential for global transformation, and those who perceive that an essential premise for successful businesses in this emerging world is presence to “spirit” along with “competence.” ($80 materials fee. Details provided upon registration.) Reach Out to Find Your True Self— A Workshop for Gay Men Rob Bauer “As gay men,” writes Rob Bauer, “we constantly hear about ourselves from others. We have become an obsession of the media, entertainment, religious, and political machines. Yes, Gay Men of the 21st Century, for better or for worse, we are stars! “But whether damned or applauded, we must not lose awareness of who we are within, nor be deluded by society’s need to label us. We simply are who we are—men of many stripes and colors, with hearts and souls, surviving the wounds of childhood, prejudice, and ignorance. We have learned to communicate and be in relationship. We have found new ways to touch each other—emotionally and physically—in safe, nonthreatening ways. Yet many of us still live in frustration at finding that special someone, and have given up trying or are living in a relationship without intimacy. How can we find or trust someone else when we have not found or accepted ourselves? “This is a workshop to honor a vision of gay male wholeness, to reclaim the souls hidden beneath our personas. We will experience our diversity and claim our birthright to be fully both sexual and spiritual beings. We recognize that love begins within ourselves. Through self-listening, meditation, healing touch, and telling our stories, we will reach 30 The leaders write: “Those who select this course should be prepared for a rigorous journey into uncharted territory different from that found in any business school curriculum or manual of best business practices. Thomas Jefferson created the Declaration of Independence as a ‘noble cause.’ Our intention is that this concept lead us, as business practitioners or those who would like to be part of the development of the role of business into that of a global change agent, to yet unheard-of perceptions of how business can best realize its full potential as the most powerful institution in the world.” Intimate Connections Mariah Fenton Gladis & Bruce Cornwell Creating stable and fulfilling relationships is a challenge that everyone faces. To be successful, human relating must be understood as an activity, an ability that requires movement, purpose, emotional capacity, and contact skills. People often believe that good relating evolves naturally, but they discover in the routine of living with families, friends, and lovers that, in truth, they have not been adequately prepared to meet the demands of loving relationships. This workshop will focus on the nature and basic requirements of healthy relationships. It offers participants opportunities to assess their abilities and disabilities, to strengthen their lovability and love ability, to develop awareness, and to practice risking positive You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. action with others. It is for anyone who has “hit the wall” in a relationship, who has experienced being stuck at some seemingly impenetrable contact boundary and wants to break through, or for those who simply want to enhance an already successful love life. This experiential and didactic workshop blends individual and group Gestalt work, spiritual healing, bodywork, and personal metaphor. Music is a highlight and an integral part of the experience. Mariah is a twenty-four-year survivor of ALS and speaks with what she calls her “ALS accent.” CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. The Body Keeps the Score: Mind, Brain, and Body in the Transformation of Trauma Bessel van der Kolk & Peter Levine This workshop unites two of the leading figures in the field of trauma research and bodyoriented treatment approaches. Together they will explore the implications of recent findings in the neurosciences, from how the brain and body deal with emotional information to an understanding of effective therapeutic action. The leaders will show how the trauma response is a specific defensive bodily reaction that people initially mobilize in order to protect themselves, and then use against feeling the totality of their horror, helplessness, or pain. However, in the long range this response keeps them frozen, stuck in the past, unable to fully be in the here and now. Fixed in the defensive trauma response, the shame, defeat, and humiliation associated with the original event replays itself over and over again in the body, detached from history, but experienced in the present. Traditionally, therapies have attempted to change perceptions of the world by means of reason and insight, along with conditioning, behavior modification, drugs, and medications. However, perceptions remain fundamentally unchanged until the internal experience of the body changes. Even after the death of a loved one, physical injury, rape, or assault, people can learn to have new bodily experiences, then come to heal and accept what has happened and create new lives and new communities. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Valentine’s Day for the Chronologically Challenged February 26–March 5 Ginger Holladay & Dean Marson Come (belatedly) celebrate your relationship! Join Ginger and Dean this weekend to explore the joy of connecting with your partner through yoga, massage, and music. Listening to the beat of the heart and following the rhythm of the breath leads us to a profound experience of the present moment, where partners can truly be present together. Ginger and Dean write: “We will use gentle partner yoga to enhance trust and mutual support, freeing the body while opening softly to each other. Using a tender touch, participants will learn simple massage techniques to relieve stress and tension. Singing sacred sounds and love songs, we’ll explore musical expressions of the heart. Harriet Goslins, Sybil Krauter & Michael Meyer How we sit, stand, move, or respond to contact with others reflects patterns wired into our nervous systems by infancy. By early childhood, conflicting intentions distort these patterns. Feeling powerless, we attempt to survive and to win love by figuring out “big people’s rules.” The resulting strategies may protect us as children but, deeply ingrained in our muscular postures and movements, they imprison us as adults and limit our choices. They remain outside of awareness, causing discomfort and limitation. By reeducating the brain-muscle-emotion connection, restrictions in movement 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 This workshop is a relearning of 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 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. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Week of February 26–March 3 The High-Performance Mind: Awakened Mind Brainwave Training Anna Wise The high-performance mind is clearer, sharper, more flexible. Emotions become more DANIEL BIANCHETTA Nurture your relationship in a gentle atmosphere of relaxation and fun while opening to love with movement, touch, and song! For the heart, it’s never too late. Your Life Cannot Be Any Easier Than Your Movements: Cortical Field Reeducation® and the Feldenkrais Method® defense system and allowing a higher level of energy. See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 31 available, easier to transform. Information flows readily between the conscious, subconscious, and unconscious levels, increasing intuition, insight, and empathy. Having a high-performance mind means being able to enter at will the state of consciousness most beneficial for any given circumstance—and then understanding how to use that state. Through brainwave training for beta, alpha, theta, and delta, this workshop teaches you how to produce the components for an awakened mind, the brainwave pattern of peak experience, optimum creativity, and spiritual awareness. Working with both the state and the content of consciousness, you can learn to use these brainwaves to help develop a highperformance mind for self-healing, increasing creativity, improving relationships, and developing greater awareness. The workshop combines biofeedback monitoring with meditation, visualization, and deep psychophysiological relaxation to help you master your own states of consciousness. The Mind Mirror EEG will be used to measure brainwave patterns, and Electrical Skin Resistance Meters will measure the depth of arousal and relaxation of your autonomic nervous system, illuminating the interrelationship between your body and your mind. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Esalen Massage and Beyond: An Open Forum Pablo Piekar & Robin Fann-Costanzo Pablo and Robin write: “Some of the most exciting moments in our Esalen workshops occur just after the end of a class when the motivation runs so high that participants stay in the room, gathering spontaneously in small groups around the massage tables, sharing, discussing, exploring, and practicing what they’ve learned. In those moments we feel we are in the presence of the same spirit that gave birth to Esalen Massage®. In this workshop, we will re-create such moments by both giving to and being a part of the wisdom of the collective ‘body.’ “This forum is intended for the cross-pollination of ideas and practices of bodywork. We will enrich each other by sharing what we’ve learned along the way—exploring, allowing our creativity to emerge, opening to new forms and combinations of techniques, and, at the same time, reinforcing our own personal styles. All in an atmosphere of supportive learning and teaching, encouragement, and fun.” 32 Underlying themes will include self-care, effortlessness, and the harmonious integration of diverse techniques and approaches into Esalen Massage. Additional topics will be addressed according to the interests of participants. Yoga will be offered as a self-care and centering practice. This workshop is open to all massage and bodywork practitioners interested in (1) having fun, (2) honoring their creative spirit, and (3) both learning and participating in the creation of new massage skills (in that order). CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Gestalt and Sensory Awareness Seymour Carter Many potential sources for growth and aliveness reside in our unfinished issues, the developmental processes that we have not recognized and assimilated. These unclaimed potential talents, tendencies, and traits are a powerful reservoir within us waiting to be tapped. Sadly, much in us has become immobilized by early conditioning, emotional problems, and habitual patterns. The aim of this workshop is self-awareness, integration, and growth. The basis of this work is the Gestalt method, supported by sensory awareness. Sensory awareness is about developing a conscious feel for one’s actual state of being and thus experiencing and setting free the ordering and regenerating processes of one’s body. To regain the feeling of being at home in one’s body is the basis for all meaningful functioning and expression. Using practices of introspection and body-oriented intervention strategies, participants can begin to discover and utilize capacities within themselves for new possibilities in their lives. Each participant’s process of development will be encouraged, honored, and treated as unique. Each day will begin with a demonstration of the techniques to be used in that day’s process. You’ll explore a method of directing the pouring and blending of colors, saving the brightest-value whites as highlights. This process weaves back and forth from negative to positive painting spaces and creates fresh, loose watercolors. You’ll learn how watercolors that are worked on thoroughly wet surfaces can combine soft, ethereal areas of mystery with brilliantly vivid, crisp detailing. Painting meditations will help you understand how intuition is the motivating energy that allows the painting to come alive through you. What is going on within you is reflected in what you see and paint. Intuitive paintings unfold as you relax into a flow of creativity. For the absolute beginner as well as the professional artist. A list of materials to bring will be provided upon registration. Walking on Clouds: Tai Chi Kenn Chase Move like a river, Walk like a cat, Be still as a mountain. — Tai Chi Classics The focus of this Tai Chi workshop is effortless movement, with grace and serenity. A special shortened version of Yang-style Tai Chi will be introduced. This health form has twelve moves, which, if practiced regularly, increase Chi ( personal energy), improve balance, and promote strength and well-being. In addition to the Tai Chi postures, students will learn Feldenkrais Awareness Through Movement and Chi Kung techniques. The workshop will culminate in a group excursion to the New Camaldoli Hermitage for meditation followed by a trip to beautiful Sand Dollar Beach for Tai Chi by the sea. Weekend of March 3–5 Freeing the Artist: Intuitive Watercolor A Workshop for Poets Helen Malcolm Galway Kinnell You can learn how to create striking watercolors, unique to your individual expression, by seeing within the first blends of colors a theme that is waiting to be developed. Intuitive Watercolor is a painting practice in which you learn how to open and listen to your intuition as it guides you through the development of your painting. Galway Kinnell writes: “The group will meet on Friday evening to discuss our project of writing poems that are daring and new, and then again on Saturday and Sunday to discuss the poems that will have been just written. Participants should bring to the Saturday and Sunday sessions eleven copies of a poem written since arriving at Esalen. Also, if they have time, they should write a brief description of You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. a common thing. We will start the discussion of each poem by describing it, if it is in any way obscure. We will then try to find what succeeds in the poems, where its strengths lie. After that we will devote a short time to making ‘hopefully helpful suggestions.’ If we have time, we will hear some of the ‘descriptions.’ Someone who knows by heart a poem (by another poet) will say it to us to finish the session. “One-on-one discussions with me will be scheduled for Saturday late afternoon and early evening. At these meetings, we will discuss the poem of that morning or the poets’ plans or first drafts of their poems for Sunday morning.” Enrollment in this workshop is limited to 10 participants. Advanced Yoga Practice for Perfect Beginners Mark Whitwell According to Yoga master Krishnamacharya, Yoga was not meant to be a struggle to attain some future goal, but a direct participation in the nurturing force of Life. This course is designed to provide advanced Yoga understanding and practice for those new to Yoga. The program will also be helpful for Yoga students of any level who wish to understand the principles of Krishnamacharya, “the teacher of our teachers.” Participants will study how to apply these principles to the Yoga they already know (and love) in order to make it efficient, powerful, and safe. Emphasis will be given to developing a personalized practice, which you can take away from Esalen and continue to effectively practice for “peace and power in your daily Life” (Krishnamacharya). Please bring your own yoga mat. Solving the Puzzle of Chronic Pain Peter Levine, Maggie Phillips & Laura Regalbuto Pain is now the third biggest health problem in the U.S., following heart disease and cancer. More than half of the adult population over 50 will develop a chronic-pain problem. Standard treatments for chronic pain often fail because they center on medications that overtreat, undertreat, or further complicate the pain problem. This workshop examines the science as well as the art of treating acute, chronic, and atyp- ical pain syndromes. The program will emphasize how to understand and treat the multiple mechanisms of chronic pain, especially the dynamics related to unresolved fight/flight/freeze responses due to past injury and traumatic stress. The leaders will demonstrate how to restore equilibrium of the pain-modulation system using the Somatic Experiencing® (SE) model, based on study of the biological responses of animals to threat, injury, and stress. Participants will learn how to help prevent and reverse chronic pain through the application of SE with other effective methods, including EMDR, hypnotic suggestion, yoga, movement, and work with the subtle energy system. ing and honoring the inevitable resistance to new ideas. And, of course, the ideas themselves. Through theory, demonstration, and practice, participants will learn how to work with a wide range of otherwise difficult-to-treat pain conditions, including fibromyalgia, “whiplash,” migraine and tension headaches, chronic fatigue, severe PMS and pelvic pain, arthritis, lupus, and other autoimmune dysfunctions. Topics comprise the interface of pain and suffering and the understanding of illness and invasive medical procedures as potential traumatic stressors. Ken Page & David Greenan The workshop is geared for healthcare professionals and psychotherapists, but is open to anyone interested in the treatment of pain. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Dancing in Molasses: Best Practices for Creative People Working In, or With, Large Organizations Jeremy Sherman & David Jeffers The larger the organization, the harder it is to make or even propose change. Whether you’re one of your company’s designated idea people or are just brimming with ideas, the corporate life, even in innovative organizations, can be challenging. Part executive training, part best practices exchange, this workshop is a chance to share war stories, strategies, tactics, tips, and an Esalen weekend with your fellow corporate idea people. The course will cover all aspects of idea propagation—internal marketing and communication strategy, recruiting internal allies, coalition building, sticking your neck out while covering your backside, packaging your ideas to give them legs and maximize “brain Velcro,” reputation building, tactful firmness, corporate politics, maintaining your sanity, idea quality-control, providing proof of concept, and persisting even while appreciat- The workshop is led by Dave Jeffers, one of John Deere’s chief corporate creatives, and Jeremy Sherman, former corporate creative for the Body Shop International, specialist in marketing and evolutionary theory (and son of Gordon Sherman, President of Midas Mufflers), who after a weekend workshop at Esalen in the early ‘70s, became a wildly successful corporate creative. A Queer Home at the Center of the World The leaders write: “This workshop is for gay, bisexual, and transgender men who long to create deeper connections. As we develop networks of meaningful relationships, we create possibilities for happier and more fulfilled lives, and we begin to claim our role as healers. Partnering and parenting are the most obvious yet revolutionary ways GBT men reclaim ourselves; mentoring the young, savoring the wisdom of our elders, and creating community can be other aspects of family. “Gay, bisexual, and transgender men often create pockets of safety early in life that later become prisons of solitary isolation as we mature and outgrow our need to hide. Over the course of this weekend, we will explore possibilities for creating many types of family, free of the constraints of the heterosexual archetypes, in our journey to reclaiming our essential healing and loving natures. “Within the supportive community we create during this weekend, we will share our longing for connectedness and our struggles to achieve this goal, while supporting each other in envisioning and planning for the kinds of family and community we dream of. We will also explore the creative options to build family and community which exist in our current life situations.” Week of March 5–10 Story Structure: Stop Boring Your Shrink, Your Friends, Your Dinner Partners, and Learn How to Tell a Good Story Mickey Lemle How do you tell a story that could make people laugh, make them cry, hold their interest See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 33 and attention, and, if they are ready, potentially transform their lives for the better? Master filmmaker Mickey Lemle explores the art and craft of story structure, delving into the fundamentals of the creative process. Using his own films about His Holiness the Dalai Lama (Compassion in Exile), Ram Dass (Fierce Grace), and others as a starting point, Lemle will share his techniques and processes, and then each participant will use these to tell his or her own story. Transforming Trauma with EMDR: Advanced Clinical Workshop and Refresher Course (Part 3) Laurel Parnell This EMDR course is for participants who have completed either Level II training or an equivalent EMDRIA-approved course. Recommended reading: Parnell, Transforming Trauma: EMDR, and EMDR in the Treatment of Adults Abused as Children. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. It Won’t Hurt Forever: The Ordinary Miracle of Healing Peter Levine & Staff While trauma is a fact of life, it does not have to be a life sentence. In this workshop participants will have the opportunity to explore the possibility that the traumas and obstacles in their lives also hold the potential for genuine emotional and spiritual growth and self-trans- formation. For this to happen, it may mean having the courage to give up old “victim identifications” (that have long been our “friends”) and trust in the emergence of a deeper, more authentic sense of self. In this experiential and didactic workshop, Peter Levine, a pioneer in stress and trauma for thirty-five years and author of the bestselling book Waking the Tiger, Healing Trauma: The Innate Capacity to Heal from Overwhelming Experiences, will work with individuals in a supportive group setting. In addition, bodycentered awareness exercises, small-group work, and journaling will be used to support participants in their healing journey. This workshop is open to both professionals and nonprofessionals. There will be the opportunity, if participants wish, for short discussion of their work to enhance the learning process. Please bring a notepad and pen. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. DANIEL BIANCHETTA In this workshop participants will have the opportunity to refresh their technique and review EMDR protocols and procedures, consult on their difficult cases, watch demonstrations, and practice EMDR in small supervised groups. Instruction will focus on using EMDR with complex cases, resource development and installation, target development, and cognitive interweaves. 34 You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. Your Own Yoga from the Source Mark Whitwell If you can breathe, you can do yoga. — Krishnamacharya This workshop offers a detailed study of the technology of asana, pranayama, bandha, meditation and life as a seamless process. Krishnamacharya gave precise instructions so that an authentic and efficient yoga practice could be custom-built for each person, taking into account individual differences—age health, body type, and cultural background. The ancients perceived that the breath is the most critical function of a living organism. The purpose of an asana (yoga pose) is to participate in and enhance the breath. It is the careful selection off asana movements for each person that ensures that the breath is strengthened without struggle. Mark Whitwell can help you develop a personalized Yoga practice to maximize the benefits of this ancient practice. This workshop is suitable for beginners or advanced students and teachers seeking to incorporate the principles of powerful Yoga adapted to individual needs into daily life. Please bring your own yoga mat. Integral Experiential Learning: Organic Embodiment of Ken Wilber’s Theory and Methodology Bert Parlee One of the most exciting and all-inclusive paradigm emerging in the new millennium, Integral theory is a comprehensive and dynamic model of both self and reality. It is distinguished by honoring and encompassing all dimensions of body, emotions, mind, and spirit, as they exist in self, culture, and nature. As such, this workshop is designed to engage individuals cognitively, physically, emotionally, interpersonally, and spiritually. While exploring and discovering new truths, participants should also expect to recover and revitalize what may have become lost or unconscious elements of their current selves or worldviews. The Integral challenge is to claim ownership of all truths and perspectives, which include our “always/already” realized native condition and learning to recognize and embrace the same in others. An Integral curriculum involves learning new ways to feel, express, and think about experience, such that we are better able to become an authentic instrument of service and compassion. Overall, by developing new forms of embodied awareness via a range of experiential learning methodologies—voice dialogue, Gestalt, meditation, action inquiry, stories, film, triple loop learning, and more—our previously unexamined and untested assumptions can be revealed, reconfigured, and transcended. By risking vulnerability, and acting from a place of inquiry, mutuality, and integrity, we paradoxically discover a deep-rooted courage and strength of character that both exposes our limiting beliefs and affords novel means of reconceiving ourselves. The Foundations of Nervous System Energy Work Jim Kepner Jim Kepner writes: “Nervous System Energy Work (NSEW) is a hands-on energy method drawing on principles of healer Bill Gray, an energy healer whose remarkable healing ability was described in the book Born To Heal. We have extended his insights into a modern approach to subtle energy work which has profound implications for health and consciousness disciplines. “The nervous system is a magnificent system of subtle energy which nourishes and clears our cells, organs, and body systems, and enhances our vitality. NSEW is often experienced as having immediate and palpable effects on the body and on awareness. NSEW also links together the nervous system with the subtle energies of the chakra system, helping us to access profound states of consciousness, and offers a sophisticated approach to spiritual development and inner balance. Our work has been applied in areas as diverse as chronic disease, pain and pain syndromes, psychological and physical effects of trauma, body psychotherapy, and for personal and spiritual development.” This hands-on foundational workshop will teach the principles of NSEW including: • How to identify, match with, and run an individual's specific nervous system energy • Practices to fill and clear the nervous system and a basic treatment sequence • The relation of nervous system energy to health and disease • Meditations which open access to energy and flow through the nervous system This workshop will be of interest to integral health practitioners, massage therapists, energy workers, body-oriented psychotherapists, and anyone interested in subtle energy and consciousness. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Weekend of March 10–12 Rosen Method: Accessing the Unconscious through Touch Marion Rosen & Jane Malek Marion Rosen’s vision of Rosen Method Bodywork and Movement has brought her recognition as an international leader and pioneer in the field of body-oriented therapies. At the heart of her wisdom is a keen sense of seeing the true essence of people that is often hidden beneath chronic holding patterns. During her career as a physical therapist and health educator, she developed her approach to bodywork, movement, and self-transformation by observing the process of her patients, and at age 91 she continues to inspire and energize others with her work. “In this workshop,” the leaders write, “we use touch that accesses emotional material held in the unconscious parts of the body, so that you can learn to deepen your awareness, observe the wisdom of the natural breath, and experience living more from your personal truth.” The group process provided by this workshop supports the opening to feelings that have long been put away as muscular tension. Rosen Method Movement helps you integrate these feelings and physical changes as they arise. The movements help you to remain vital and joyful while moving to music. The workshop will explore how both modalities complement each other and emerge from the same theory. The fundamentals of Rosen Method can be incorporated into your own self-development and be applied to many professions. You’ll learn to: • Use hands that listen rather than manipulate • Notice how chronic muscle tension is held in the body • Use subtle changes in the breath to follow the relaxation process • Allow unconscious feelings, attitudes, and memories to emerge • Open to new possibilities in life CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. See Seminar Spotlight, page 8. See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 35 Drugs, the Mind, and the Body “knowing all the answers.” David Presti This course is designed to teach you how to coach others to: Chemical substances that influence the mind, brain, and body are more popular today than ever. From Prozac to melatonin to Saint John’s Wort, kava to coffee to Viagra, chocolate to marijuana to LSD to ayahuasca, drugs are a central part of contemporary society. This seminar provides a comprehensive overview of the biological, ethnobotanical, psychological, behavioral, and sociological properties of a variety of familiar and perhaps unfamiliar drugs, ranging from chemicals that are used to alter consciousness, to ones that are used to regulate mood and modify personality, to substances that are used to promote sleep, lose weight, and maintain a youthful body. • Think through their issues and problems • Manage from support instead of “authority and control” • Listen powerfully • Create partnership and trust in relationships For more information on the Inquiry Process visit www.theinquiryprocess.com. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Shaman, Healer, Sage: The Energy Medicine of the Americas Alberto Villoldo Medical anthropologist Dr. Alberto Villoldo has been researching the healing practices of the Ancient Americas for over twenty years. He is one of the foremost teachers of Energy Medicine and author of ten books on healing, including the best-selling Shaman, Healer, Sage. According to Energy Medicine, the luminous energy field envelops the human body and holds a template of how we heal, how we Participants will have the opportunity to develop a comprehensive and deep understanding of drugs, the mind, and the body, from molecular and chemical properties to historical and ritual relationships. The workshop will be of interest and value to anyone, including health professionals from all clinical areas, wishing to expand their knowledge about drugs that influence human behavior. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Life Coaching for Results: An Introduction to The Inquiry Process Amaran Tarnoff Einstein said, “Problems cannot be solved at the same level of awareness that created them.” The Inquiry Process is a particular kind of conversation, composed of asking and answering questions, which provides us with a post-psychological way of thinking and being. It is based on these premises: (1) Most of the time people already have the answers; what’s missing are the right questions; (2) It is much easier for people to listen to questions than to be told what to do; and (3) Something powerful happens in relationships when people ask questions of others instead of already 36 You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. DANIEL BIANCHETTA Whether you are a professional manager, therapist, consultant, or coach, or find yourself wanting to help your children, family, or friends deal with what’s stopping them from producing results, this course can give you the tools. It offers the same fundamental coaching tool—the Inquiry Process—that professionals have used for years to support employees or clients with life issues such as career, relationship, and well-being. become ill, and how we might die. It is a blueprint that contains a record of every emotional, physical, and spiritual trauma, of our health, and of our possible destiny. In this program you will study healing practices employed by shamans for tens of thousands of years. These methods are presented as a scientific and eminently practical system for healing through the luminous energy field. You will experience firsthand the luminous healing traditions of the Americas, and learn to bring balance to the body, to the soul, and to the Earth. The workshop will present ways to reconnect with nature, to engage in ancient ceremony, to practice shamanic journeying and Soul Retrieval, to learn to identify the presence of intrusive energies that can cause disease, and to practice the shaman’s way of seeing and working with the luminous energy field. This is a rare opportunity to learn secret and sophisticated spiritual healing practices from a scientist and explorer whose work has been quoted in The New York Times and National Geographic. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Clinical Case Seminar and Workshop for Advanced EMDR Practitioners (Part 4) Laurel Parnell This workshop is for advanced EMDR practitioners who want the opportunity for case consultation, discussion of selected topics, and practicum with colleagues at their experience level. Meditation instruction will be given each morning, followed by presentation and discussion of a topic. Topics will include: creative use of interweaves and resources, working with people with somatic disorders and physical illnesses, EMDR with challenging cases, EMDR as a transpersonal psychotherapy, and EMDR and creativity. Saturday afternoon, cases will be presented and discussed followed by practicum experience. This workshop is for EMDR therapists who are certified, EMDR consultants, or EMDR therapists who have completed an Advanced Clinical Workshop (Part 3) with Laurel Parnell. Recommended reading: Parnell, Transforming Trauma: EMDR, and EMDR in the Treatment of Adults Abused as Children. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Week of March 12–17 Body, Mind, Heart, and Soul: A Transforming Path of Practice George Leonard, Annie Styron Leonard & Pamela Kramer This workshop is devoted to Integral Transformative Practice (ITP), an experimental program founded by George Leonard and Michael Murphy. This practice is currently spreading throughout the U.S. and to many foreign lands. Studies of ITP at major universities suggest that it not only enhances our ability to realize more of our human potential but also serves in many cases to increase our capacities for self-healing. This primarily hands-on workshop is designed to be of value to those who have never heard of ITP as well as to those who already practice it regularly, for those who intend to start a practice group as well as those who simply want to enjoy a meaningful weeklong experience which can point the way toward a long-term, proven practice. You will have a chance to learn a forty-minute series that includes physical movement, transformative imaging, and meditation. You will practice balancing and centering, the use of chi, focused surrender, and the creation of effective affirmations. You will be introduced to the principles that underlie the practice. You will try out a form of “staying current” as well as other forms of interpersonal relations which can help you avoid misunderstandings and enrich your relationships. This workshop involves physical movement but is not strenuous. All that’s needed is a generous heart and a willingness to participate. Recommended reading and videotape: Leonard & Murphy, The Life We Are Given; Leonard, Mastery and The Tao of Practice (videotape); Murphy, The Future of the Body. The Heart of the Shaman Richard Yensen Pérez-Venero & Donna Dryer Pérez-Venero “The shamanic awakening,” write Richard and Donna, “is a mythic and poetic spiritual journey of initiation. In this work we learn to honor our innermost wounding experiences and use them as a portal into the spirit world. The journey of death and rebirth awakens our capacity to be compassionate and loving. A circle of trust developed through ritual will carry us through the crack between the worlds. Both ancient and modern practices will be used to enter shamanic trance, experience deep catharsis, and find the path with heart.” Come prepared to use this shamanic environment as a sacred vessel for deep personal exploration and spiritual growth. This workshop is physically demanding, personally revealing, and includes an all-night ceremony. Because of the special nature of this work, enrollment is limited. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. The Intimate Couple: An Integrative Body Psychotherapy (IBP) Workshop Jack Rosenberg & Beverly Morse Trust, love, erotic sexuality, and a core experience of self are building blocks for a vital relationship. Yet, unless our bodies are awakened, these remain elusive ideas rather than familiar body feelings. Until we recognize the themes that distort our views, cause our prejudgments, and perpetuate old defensive patterns, it is difficult to trust or be trusted. For a conscious relationship, or even just one that works well over time, we must know ourselves and have practical body-mind mentalhealth tools to resolve the inevitable dilemmas that interrupt our sense of well-being. Today, most couples want an equal and reciprocal relationship, but few know how to accomplish this attunement of partnership. Once you simultaneously experience the internal feeling of self and attunement with your partner—and know what gets in the way—you will know how you got there and how to achieve it again and again. Designed as a preventive model, this workshop can help you uncover the key undermining themes in your relationship and provide tools to deal with them before they become terminal problems. It will also provide tools for experiencing heightened aliveness, sustaining a sense of self in the body, making sex better, and an opening to existential/spiritual themes of intimacy and aging. With IBP, couples can learn how to regain their hope and excitement. Please note: This workshop is for couples only. Recommended reading: Rosenberg & Morse, The Intimate Couple; Rosenberg, Rand & Asay, Body, Self, and Soul; Rosenberg, Total Orgasm. The Upledger Institute’s Visceral Manipulation I-A Visceral Manipulation (VM) is a manual therapy that uses specifically placed pressure to See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 37 DANIEL BIANCHETTA encourage normal mobility, tone, and inherent tissue motion of the viscera (internal organs) and their connective tissues. The VM process is based on the concept that each of the internal organs rotates on a physiological axis. The VM techniques have the potential to affect the physiological function of individual organs, the systems they function within, and the structural integrity of the entire body. VM I-A is the first in the two-part introductory level of VM study. Participants will be given the basic manual skills to locate, evaluate, and normalize primary areas of dysfunction within the abdominal cavity (with the exception of the deepest visceral layer). Class work focuses on the dynamics of motion and suspension and their effects on internal organs, membranes, and ligaments. Please note: Registration for this workshop is through The Upledger Institute only. Please call 1-800-233-5880. Required reading: Barral, Visceral Manipulation; Netter, Atlas of Human Anatomy or Clemente, Atlas of the Human Body. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. 38 Who Am I, Really? How Our Wounds Can Lead to Healing Joe Cavanaugh essence of our soul, which is simply love. This frees our energy to love and accept ourselves for who we really are and develop empathy and compassion for the suffering of others.” Through love all pain is turned to medicine. — Rumi “Most of us,” writes Joe Cavanaugh, “have experienced some degree of loss, betrayal, or wounding of our hearts from simply being human in a world of drama, uncertainty, and change. It is easy to overidentify with our pain, get caught in our personal drama, and reinforce a false identity based on our past wounds. Or we may deny the drama all together, detach from our pain, and attempt to live ‘happily ever after’ in our heads. And then, to paraphrase Carl Jung, what we don’t handle consciously is relegated to the unconscious and happens to us by fate. Either way, we lose touch with who we really are and suffer the greatest wound of all—the illusion of separation from the sanctity of our soul. “Through personal and interpersonal processes we will create a safe space to heal our wounds, let go, and move on. Using selfawareness tools, we will learn how to access our Authentic Self and penetrate into the You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. Prerequisite: The willingness to abstain from alcohol and nonprescription drugs for the duration of the workshop. Recommended reading: Cavanaugh, Who Am I, Really? How Our Wounds Can Lead to Healing. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Weekend of March 17–19 Experiencing Esalen Experiencing Esalen Staff For workshop description see January 20-22. Fundraising From the Heart Lynne Twist All of us are asked to fundraise for an important cause at some point in our lives. Happily, anyone can learn to be effective in asking others for money. Fundraising is an opportunity to deepen your own principles and strengthen the integrity of your organization so that you are successful in raising the resources to fulfill your organization’s mission. This workshop is designed to empower you in your fundraising responsibilities so that you raise money with greater joy and confidence. Lynne Twist writes: “We will look at the nuts and bolts of how to design fundraising strategies and conversations that are irresistible, compelling, and that deliver phenomenal results for you, your organization, and your donors. We will also look at how to manage investors so that they stay with you for life— continuously increasing their level of contribution and participation.” In this workshop you can learn how to: • Fundraise successfully and effectively by communicating with passion, heart, and authenticity • Examine your relationship with money and cut through the barriers you have in asking others to contribute • Communicate effectively about your organization and your initiative • Raise money in a way that you don’t compromise your values in order to get the resources you need • Take care of your donors so they stay with you and increase their donations and commitment 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. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Introduction to Clinical Hypnosis 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 CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Eric Simon This seminar presents some of the basic theories, concepts, and applications of clinical hypnosis. Topics to be covered include: • • • • • The history of hypnosis Theories of trance and hypnosis The neurophysiology of hypnosis Traditional/directive hypnosis Ericksonian/indirective hypnosis Participants will learn beginner-level tranceinduction skills. This is an interactive, experiential workshop, and participants will learn through practice and application on fellow participants. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Radical Rx for Health Professionals: Heal Thyself Charlea Massion & Bob Stahl Being Present for Your Life: Introduction to Mindfulness Meditation Mindfulness meditation quiets the mind by cultivating nonjudgmental awareness and develops our potential to experience each moment, no matter how unexpected or intense, with serenity and clarity. Participants will learn practices such as the body scan as well as meditations during sitting, eating, walking, and stretching. These practices support the caregiver’s health and can be extended to families, colleagues, patients, and clients. “We care for others,” write the leaders, “but how about ourselves? Both in our training and our everyday work as health professionals, we focus on care of patients, clients, and their families. Daily we encounter people who are in pain, suffering intensely, and in major life crises. As professionals we are expected not only to apply knowledge and technical expertise but to respond with empathy and compassion, regardless of our own physical, emotional, and spiritual difficulties. Typically there are few opportunities to ‘metabolize’ the grief, sorrow, and discomfort that we intimately experience in our work.” This workshop—for health professionals—will focus on identifying, exploring, and improving health practices of the caregiver. Through mindfulness meditation, transformative writing, group discussion, and other modalities, participants will learn skills that support health professionals in caring for themselves as well as others. Week of March 19–24 Uncovering Self-Betrayal Retreat Gangaji & Eli Jaxon-Bear We all yearn for freedom and truth in the core of our being, and many people have experienced deep moments of profound realization. Yet, even in the face of this knowledge of the boundless truth of oneself, subconscious patterns of misidentification often persist. Insights gained from the Enneagram can help uncover these latent patterns and bring them to the foreground. This ancient “wisdom mirror” clearly describes the nine variations of self-betrayal—the nine ways in which the ego veils the limitless expanse of conscious intelligence that is the true self. “Uncovering Self-Betrayal” is for those who have heard the call of their heart and are ready to be finished with a life of suffering. This retreat provides a fresh, effective vehicle for self-inquiry, bringing subconscious patterns to light and exposing the roots of egoic constructs. When all false identification is seen through, the eternal, silent truth of oneself is revealed—and establishment in self-realization is possible. Audio and video recordings will be made at this retreat. A large enrollment is expected. Weekend of March 24–26 Zen and Tao: The Hero’s Journey Chungliang Al Huang & Robert Walter Tao master/scholar Chungliang Al Huang, a longtime collaborator with Joseph Campbell, joins Joseph Campbell Foundation president Robert Walter for a lively exploration of the Hero’s Journey and its manifestations in an array of eastern philosophies. See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 39 Over the course of the weekend, the program will delve into the deeper meaning of classic Chinese teachings and reflect on their application to modern living. Participants will explore an array of fundamental metaphors, trace the sequential stages of life, and chart the symbolic parallels between Zen teachings, Taoist insights, and the stages of the Hero’s Journey as outlined by Campbell in his bestselling book The Hero with A Thousand Faces. Prepare to be inspired, stimulated, provoked, and encouraged to be the hero of your own life as you follow your bliss and embark on your unique journey. Acupressure Energy Pauline Kirby Traditional acupuncture is a healing art and science that teaches one how to see the entire human being in relationship to the body, mind, and spirit. It is a form of healing that emphasizes balance and harmony, focusing on health rather than disease. This workshop will explore the five elements used in traditional Chinese medicine, following the metaphor that the body is a garden rather than a machine. The course will look closely at the body’s energy system and examine how these meridian pathways can enhance one’s health. Concepts of traditional acupuncture and acupressure will be demonstrated and discussed, including pulse diagnosis, the flow of meridian pathways, point location, an in-depth study of the five elements, and special application for stress reduction and health maintenance. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. and uplifts the spirit. Although this workshop is designed for the “yogically challenged,” everyone is welcome. With Big Sur’s coastal beauty, the power and spirit of the Esalen land, it is easy to fall into the natural rhythm of practicing yoga. sciousness. Participants will experience how subtle energy and intention can restructure physical matter (evidenced by verifiable changes in water, wine, and oranges) and effect profound change deep within the inner self. This seminar will help you learn how to: Please bring a yoga mat (available in the Esalen bookstore) and a sense of humor (not available in the bookstore). • Establish a loving, healing presence in alignment with your spiritual essence • Detect and evaluate subtle energies with your mind, heart, and hands • Activate the body’s immune system to help transform illness into wellness • Recognize, understand, release, and reform energy patterns that are sources of illness • Bring peace, power, and intuitive guidance into your life and the lives of others Writing About Our Lives Ellen Bass “The philosophy behind this workshop experience,” writes Ellen Bass, “is best expressed by Martha Graham, who said, ‘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.’ “This workshop will help keep the channels open. It will be an inspiring environment in which to write, share our work, and receive supportive feedback. We’ll help each other to become clearer, go deeper, express our feelings and ideas more powerfully. From beginners to experienced, all writers are welcome. Whether you are interested in poetry, fiction, nonfiction, or journal writing, this workshop will provide an opportunity to explore and expand your world.” CE credit for teachers; see page 5. Yoga for the “Yogically Challenged” Core Holoenergetics®: The Art and Science of Healing with Love Deborah Anne Medow Leonard Laskow Do you avoid yoga classes because you’re “of a certain age,” or you’re just too stiff, or you don’t have a “yoga body”? This is a yoga workshop designed with you in mind. Holoenergetic® healing, a process of “healing with the energy of the whole,” is based upon dissolving the illusion of separation which is at the core of illness. It takes enormous energy to maintain the misperception that we are not one interconnected whole but only many individuals. Through heart awakening, Holoenergetics can help us come into wholeness and liberate this bound energy, which can then be used for growth and healing. In this program—for people who ordinarily wouldn’t be caught dead doing the “corpse pose”—participants will be gently guided through breathing exercises (purifications), meditation, asanas (yogic body postures), and the coordination of breath and movement within the asanas. Additional emphasis will be on yogic philosophy and theory. With regular practice, yoga not only strengthens, rejuvenates, and helps to heal the body, it also calms the emotions, focuses the mind, 40 In this hands-on seminar, Dr. Laskow will introduce heart-focused energy healing and present breakthrough scientific research that integrates the advances of medical science with the unifying power of a loving con- You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. Recommended reading: Laskow, Healing with Love. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. No Sense: A Brief Primer in Awakening the Senses and Optimal Functioning Brita Ostrom & Guest Teachers Sometimes the world doesn’t make sense. At these times, we feel lost, not because of our senses, but because of their lack—we’ve lost the ability to inform intelligent functioning with our sensory experience. This workshop offers a sense-opening experience designed to dislodge hidden obstructions and reawaken our capacity to be fully present and responsive. Research indicates that as eyes and ears become overloaded and we lose touch with those around us, we experience a corresponding increase in depression, high blood pressure, and decreased productivity. Yet as we begin to track our sensations and emotional tones, we make more creative decisions, communicate more authentically, live life more fully. Brita Ostrom writes: “A moment spent perched cliffside or a short stroll through the Esalen Garden can rekindle sensory experience long forgotten in our too-busy world—to be fully present, fresh for the wind on our face and the smell of the earth. Brief massage instruction will tone our hands and bring ease to our body. Gestalt work will ground our thought process in our senses and reveal which parts of the picture we tend to ignore. Meditation will offer a regular practice in presence. Our awakened mind will become ‘response-able’ to our joys and sorrows, our relationships, and our healthy functioning.” This course is for those wanting a fresh perspective and fuller, more balanced functioning, couples seeking a a more intimate connection, as well helping professionals seeking new skills. Please bring comfortable walking shoes. Dialogue with the Dalai Lama; Gilligan, Therapeutic Trances: The Cooperation Principle in Ericksonian Hypnotherapy; Levine, Waking the Tiger: Healing Trauma; Rossi, The Psychobiology of Mind-Body Healing. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Visionseeker I: Shamanism and the Modern Mystical Movement Hank Wesselman & Jill Kuykendall Week of March 26–31 The rediscovery of shamanism has emerged as a major thrust in the spiritual reawakening of the Western world. The techniques of traditional shamans provide an extraordinary method for accessing hidden dimensions of reality and connecting with inner sources of power and wisdom. From Symptom to Solution: The Skillful Intervention— A Clinical Practicum Ronald Alexander Symptoms are unique forms of communication… — Milton Erickson Milton Erickson held that psychosomatic symptoms were a direct gateway to the healing power of the creative unconscious. Through the wisdom of this approach, one can see these symptoms as solutions, or psychological and spiritual learnings, for generating positive therapeutic outcomes for unusual and difficult cases. This course will provide training in Erickson’s revolutionary approach as well as clinical skills and advanced training in: • The function of pacing and leading for developing rapport • Naturalistic trance for the rapid treatment of trauma, pain, and destructive emotions • Framing, reframing, and de-framing patterns and core beliefs • Somatic approaches for regulating flowstate and peak performance; positive psychology for promoting optimal states of creativity and wellness • Gestalt-relational process work, field theory, and dialogue • Buddhist psychology and meditation training to enhance concentration and presence Hank Wesselman writes: “We will rediscover our indigenous heart through the classic shamanic journey, reestablishing connections with our spirit helpers, teachers, and ancestors, as we engage in visionary fieldwork and examine the nature of health, illness, and healing from the perspective of spirit medicine.” The workshop offers a clear introduction for those new to the shaman’s path, and, for the more experienced, provides unique material on the soul cluster from the Hawaiian kahuna perspective. Wesselman has worked for more than thirty years with scientists investigating the mystery of human origins in East Africa and has spent much of his life with indigenous people. In the 1970s, doing fieldwork in Ethiopia, he began to have spontaneous visionary experiences strikingly like those of traditional shamans. His wife Jill Kuykendall is a physical therapist and transpersonal medical practitioner, specializing in soul retrieval. Bring drums and rattles, a notebook, sketchpad, a small set of oil or chalk pastels, a bandanna or eyeshade, and a light blanket. Please refrain from alcohol during the workshop. feedback to teach improved use of the student’s body by identifying and changing habits that cause stress, fatigue, and pain. Participants will explore the principles developed by F.M. Alexander (an actor by profession) and apply these methods to activities from the routine to the creative and then on to performance. (Please bring along preselected poems, dance routines, acting monologues, drawing/painting materials, or a musical instrument.) Bringing into play the analogy of the performer, participants will discover, via the Technique, how our own interpretive clichés come from fixed postural sets. Students will work to undo these fixed responses, thereby inviting the more genuine to appear. The workshop will be comprised primarily of group activities with some individual handson work. It will involve movement, emotion, posture, conscious intent, individual spirit, personal expression, energy, psyche, the art of stopping, sensory awareness, voice, breath, gesture, guiding touch, and performance. Participants will experience how the Alexander Technique has applications on many levels, from the practical to the profound. No special talent or experience is necessary for this workshop. Your chosen art form is to be used as an exercise to access perception and deepen self-understanding. At Play in the Fields of the Lord: A Mythological Toolbox (13th edition, revised) Robert Walter & The Joseph Campbell Foundation In Memories, Dreams, Reflections, Carl Jung tells of the day when he suddenly realized “what it means to live with a myth, and what it means to live without one.” Asking himself what myth he was living by, he found that he did not know. And so, he writes, “I took it upon myself to get to know ‘my’ myth, and I regarded this as the task of tasks.” The program—a balance of theory and practice, direct experience and clinical demonstration, personal growth and professional development—is for all health professionals, educators, and consultants who want new clinical skills for changing the way they think and feel, and for creating opportunities for personal and/or systemic transformation. This training offers a deeper understanding to facilitate the healing of the body-mind—in the self, the organization, the group field, and with clients. Recommended reading: Wesselman & Kuykendall, Spirit Medicine; Wesselman, The Journey to the Sacred Garden, and The Spiritwalker Trilogy. John Baron As did mythologist Joseph Campbell. He cited Jung’s remarks to explain why he always celebrated his birthday by leading a workshop at Esalen. When Campbell died in 1987, the Joseph Campbell Foundation continued his annual exploration of the myths that shape our lives. This year’s program is devoted to discovering and transforming the myths that influence how we play the game of life. Recommended reading: Fryba, The Art of Happiness: The Teachings of Buddhist Psychology; Goleman, Destructive Emotions: A Scientific This workshop is an in-depth and entertaining exploration of the Alexander Technique, an educational process that uses verbal and tactile Individual exercises, small-group activities, and collective projects offer opportunities for both reflection and expression. There might CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Acting Lab for Life: A Creative Exploration of The Alexander Technique See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 41 be dancing, discussion, singing, or sitting quietly; making music or masks or medicine bundles; decoding films or dreams. Yet, always, the talk will be of transformation: Who were you? What childhood stories were impressed upon you? What were your favorite games? Who are you? What is enshrined on your mantel, or taped to your refrigerator door? What’s secreted in the attic? Who do you aspire to be? What new adventures do you envision? What’s set upon your metaphoric altar, emblazoned on your bumper, pursued in your fantasies? If a “butterfly metamorphosis” is appealing, you’re invited to join this springtime ritual of rebirth. Bring a favorite game to teach, a tale to tell, and a small totemic object that’s both meaningful and expendable. Foundation president Bob Walter orchestrates the festivities, joined by Tai Ji and Tao master Chungliang Al Huang, Caldecottaward-winning author-artist Gerald McDermott, playwright-novelist Lynne Kaufmann, singer-songwriter Terry Lupton, and other special guests. For more information contact the Foundation at www.jcf.org. Refining Your Touch— Anatomy and Esalen Massage® Laurie Lioness Parizek & Tom Case This workshop offers an opportunity to integrate the study of the body’s intricate structures with hands-on skills. It is designed to help participants develop “eyes in their hands,” to effectively combine anatomical knowledge with Esalen bodywork. Through demonstrations and practice, and using movement, awareness exercises, and meditation, the workshop focuses on helping students engage and enrich their handson capability by providing increased awareness of what lies beneath the skin, what the inner terrain looks like. This helps to deepen the effectiveness of the work as students become better able to visualize and feel what is under their hands. In addition to physical anatomy, the instructors will introduce energy anatomy, as applied to bodywork and massage, to help participants refine the quality of their touch and work with awareness of the energy body as well as the physical body. The anatomy lectures will be presented simultaneously with Esalen Massage instruction. The workshop will take place in a spirit of fun and exploration, and much of the learning will be experiential. It is suitable for all levels of experience, beginner to advanced. 42 Suggested reading: Clay & Pounds, Basic Clinical Massage Therapy: Integrating Anatomy and Treatment. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. March 31–April 28 28-Day Practitioner Certification Training: An Embodied Philosophy Dean Marson, Brita Ostrom & Pablo Piekar For workshop description see Special Programs, page 80. Change and Transformation: The Tao of Creative Transitions Chungliang Al Huang In this weekend workshop, Chungliang Al Huang—philosopher, Tai Ji Master, and mentor in Tao living—will share with participants ways of being throughout life’s many transitions, shaping these inevitable changes into creative process and powerful transformation. Through active spiritual, emotional, and physical meditative practice, the workshop will tap into the wisdom sources from East/West traditions, focusing on the insightful awareness and teachings of the I Ching, the ancient Book of Change and Transformation. Weekend of March 31–April 2 Essential Tai Ji warmups will be part of the program. The Problem of Boundaries in Religion, Personal Life, and Society Helping Communities at Risk Peggy & Don Shriver We all experience boundaries or limits on our behavior and involvement in the lives of other people, as they do in relation to us. This workshop explores the lines we draw, in both our thinking and our action, that establish those boundaries. They are necessary, inadequate, sometimes unfair, and need vigilant review. Do “good fences make good neighbors”? This workshop will look at the tensions in religion between exclusion and inclusion both in faith and practice—i.e. fundamentalisms of the religious right and left. Are permeable boundaries possible?Participants in the workshop will discuss their experiences both of inclusion and exclusion in relation to some religious groups. What draws some individuals toward one pole or the other? Similarly, the workshop will look at personal relationships, politics, and the criminal justice system to examine the role of boundaries. What are the important uses of forgiveness and repentance in these human and social relationships? Of “restorative justice”? Varied approaches and resources will be employed, such as film, poetry, case studies, storytelling and small sharing groups in addition to lecture/discussions. This public workshop is presented in connection with the Esalen Center for Theory and Research (CTR) invitational conference, “Symposium on Christian Fundamentalism,” April 2-7, at which the Shrivers are participants/presenters. You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. Mark Fairfield Harm reduction provides an approach to working with those who cannot consistently abstain from high-risk behaviors. Leaning on a Gestalt therapy foundation, Mark Fairfield will define a radical communitarian approach to minimizing harm among vulnerable communities. This approach supports individuals to increase awareness of the impact of risk behaviors on the broader environment while also raising community awareness of the needs of individuals for a different kind of support. A basic assumption of the Gestalt therapy/harm-reduction framework is that dependency is an unavoidable and often valuable connection with an ongoing support rather than unhealthy entrapment. This workshop offers training in Gestalt therapy and harm reduction to mentalhealth professionals and chemical-dependency counselors. Emphasis is given to working with those who are substancedependent, those who practice high-risk sexual behaviors, and the mentally ill and indigent. Multicultural themes will figure prominently. This workshop is a follow-up to the Harm Reduction training offered in June of 2005, though it is also designed to accommodate participants who did not attend the June workshop. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Heart and Soul: Before and After Coronary Heart Disease Henry Sibbing & Ken Bortin Coronary heart disease (CHD) is the leading cause of death and disability in the United States today. Participants in this workshop will learn proactive ways to prevent and reverse coronary heart disease. The program will address and offer information and analysis of lifestyle factors contributing to CHD as well as important facts and concepts regarding heart disease and its effect on the quality of one’s life. Experiential activities will create deeper levels of understanding of chronic problems and their solutions. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Relationship: A Spiritual Journey Mary Goldenson Relationships present profound opportunities for personal development and spiritual fulfillment. Healthy relationships are the foundation of healthy families and ultimately a healthy society. If we embrace the challenges of our relationships they become great teachers, mirrors reflecting unseen and often rejected parts of ourselves. Relationships provide the opportunity to experience both our greatest pain and joy. The challenge of this journey is to: • Open ourselves to all of life—suffering and joy, success and failure, gain and loss • Fully acknowledge to ourselves the truth of who we are • Commit to living our deepest values and dreams, and make powerful choices to actualize them This workshop is for all who wish to look deeply into themselves and their lives through their relationships: fathers and mothers, daughters and sons, lovers and partners. Come alone or together. In a supportive environment, you will have the opportunity to heal old wounds, learn new skills to help you in troubled times, and actively create the heartfelt and spiritual relationships you desire. The workshop will draw from Gestalt, Reichian work, dance, imagery, and meditation to make it easier to express your truth and take responsibility for your feelings. This workshop may have up to 34 participants. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. DANIEL BIANCHETTA Participants will learn behavioral skills that result in a healthier heart and a happier and more fulfilling life, such as: the role of exercise and diet in reversing coronary heart disease; living well after a cardiac event; the keys of reversing coronary heart disease; recognizing, facing, and educating about depression and loss of self-esteem; and an introduction to cardiac counseling. Participants will: • Develop a life-mission statement, including values and practices • Learn to act in concert with the life-mission statement • Learn organizational and time-management skills • Create a diet and exercise program • Learn strategies to manage stress • Participate in group sessions led by a licensed professional counselor who has himself had invasive heart surgery (a heart transplant) See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 43 Week of April 2–7 tion, including how to register, see Special Programs, page 80. The Psychology of Investing: A Survival Guide for 2006 and Beyond Approved for CMEs for physicians. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. John Schott cal journey, you’ll create bull-kelp and gourd rattles. The end of each day will be devoted to learning how to play these unique creations. All workshop materials will be provided. ($125 materials fee paid directly to the leader) CE credit for teachers; see page 5. This workshop, presented by Harvard Medical School, is designed to apply psychology and psychoanalysis to an understanding of the investment process. The course instructor, John Schott, is both a psychiatrist and a registered investment advisor with the SEC, as well as the author of Mind Over Money. The workshop will cover the psychology of money, greed, and aggression, and describe group dynamics, the psychology of crowd, and their relationships to the stock market. Participants will discuss quantitative methods for measuring these forces. Additional topics include the neurotic issues related to the handling of money and investments, and transference and countertransference issues related to money in psychotherapy. Addictions and Recovery Guillermo Martinez Richard Balaban & Julie Bowden This multifaceted program will unravel, through music, the connection that the original people of the Americas had with the earth. Experiential, informative, and creative, the workshop will intensively explore the historical significance of the musical trinity of flute, drum, and rattle. Were you a child growing up in a home where life revolved around alcohol? A teenager whose experimental substance-use developed into repetitive abuse? An adult whose spouse’s promises to quit drinking went unfulfilled? This workshop is designed for individuals and couples who wish to heal the psychological wounds caused by one’s own or a loved one’s addiction, and to move beyond pain and disconnection. This musical journey will begin as you make your own Native American flute using aromatic cedar, the traditional wood for a Northern Plains-style flute (no woodworking experience is necessary—basic woodworking skills like gluing, clamping, and planing will be thoroughly covered). Next, you’ll fashion a 16” hand drum of elkskin and maple, weaving a medicine wheel into the back of your heirloom-quality drum to make it something to cherish always. Finally, to complete the musi- Living with addictions makes the normal passage through life’s developmental stages difficult. Expression of feelings, awareness of needs, establishment of trust, intimacy, and self-esteem, success in relationships—these are but a few of the important tasks of growing into a competent human being that are thwarted by addictions. ATTILA VAAS This program is offered in conjunction with Harvard Medical School. For more informa- Voices of Creation: Native American Instrument Making and Playing 44 You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. The workshop will use a variety of psychotherapeutic modalities including experiential exercises, writing, role-play, and guided imagery. Write the leaders: “We will journey together in acknowledgement of an inner voice pointing us toward health, effective change, enhanced relationships, genuine intimacy, and spiritual growth.” Participants are asked to forgo alcohol and nonprescription drugs during this five-day period to help create a safe atmosphere where core issues and transformation are more likely to emerge. If there is unresolved pain keeping you from your best self, and if addictions have had too much power over your life, this workshop is for you. An Introduction to the Healing Art of Esalen Massage® Perry Holloman & Deborah Anne Medow This workshop is for anyone interested in learning the world-renowned practice of Esalen Massage. For beginners as well as experienced professionals, this program offers tools for transforming how we utilize touch. Esalen has long been a Mecca for creative pioneers in nontraditional approaches to health and well-being. In the area of massage and bodywork, great masters such as Ida Rolf (Rolfing), Moshe Feldenkrais (The Feldenkrais Method), Dr. Randolph Stone (Polarity Therapy), Milton Trager (Psychophysical Integration), and many more have graced Esalen’s grounds, profoundly impacting the evolution of Esalen Massage. Within the signature structure of long, flowing strokes, the best of their teachings has been incorporated into Esalen Massage sessions, which is highly creative as well as effective in relieving pain and unwinding stress. The leaders write: “Please join us for this journey into the oldest healing art practiced at Esalen. With our hands, we will learn to listen to and help each other find what may be out of balance in our bodies, minds, and hearts. With our sensitivity, we will support one another in restoring that balance, which brings with it vitality, clarity, and a sense of ease in our daily lives. With our spirits, we will dance with the powerful forces of the natural beauty of Esalen.” Please bring your favorite CDs for massage or movement, a welcoming heart, and a good sense of humor. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Balance: It’s Never Too Late to Stop the Pain Jean Couch How do you walk through the world? Are you open, strong, expansive, active, alive? Or are you closed off, weak, in pain, constricted, passive? How you walk, stand, and sit in the world reveals who you are. This workshop is for anyone from yoga practitioners to runners, walkers, or computer nerds, and everyone in between. The goal is to teach you—no matter what your age—the fundamentals of using your skeletal system to support your body in balance so that your muscles remain pliant, flexible, and powerful throughout your life. Aging is usually associated with stooped, shortened, weakened bodies. In this workshop, you will be shown how to achieve a balanced posture that increases your flexibility, maintains length in your torso, and dramatically reduces the stresses and strains that cause chronic pain and discomfort. You will learn to walk and sit in a way that frees you from pain and constriction, and empowers you with strength and selfconfidence. Other benefits: • Learn how to realign your bones as you walk, stand, sit, bend, and sleep • Dramatically improve your walking and running as you acquire balance • Dissolve aches and pains • Receive personalized feedback thoughout the class CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Weekend of April 7–9 Beyond Sustainability: An Introduction to Permaculture Larry Santoyo & John Valenzuela Permaculture is the art and science that applies patterns found in nature to the design and construction of human and natural environments. The principles, strategies, and techniques of Permaculture Design offer practical solutions for solving energy, food, water, and shelter needs but, more importantly, it gives us the necessary skills for decision-making, problem-solving and teaches us invaluable skills for “solution multiplying.” Permaculture Design is now being adapted to all systems and disciplines that human settlement requires. Architects, planners, farmers, economists, social workers, as well as students, homeowners, and gardeners can all uti- lize the principles of Permaculture Design. Come see what people are calling “tremendously hopeful” and “life-changing.” Procedures of ecological site-planning and property design will enable participants to adapt patterns of nature to their residential, ranch, retreat, or ecovillage projects. Learn about natural building, food forestry, and edible landscaping techniques to help design and develop your complete “Home Ecosystem.” Through lecture, storytelling, and direct observation of nature, renowned designers Santoyo and Valenzuela will introduce the concepts of pattern literacy, indicators of sustainability, and offer a simple frame work for sustainable design. This workshop examines the most inspiring examples of human ingenuity and sustainable solutions ever documented. The Abrahamic Family Reunion: How to Get Jews, Christians, and Muslims to Attend Joseph Montville The deeper we look into the core sacred literature of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, the greater the evidence of continuity in the social values of each. The key is in focusing on prophetic teaching. A pagan asked Rabbi Hillel, who lived in Palestine shortly before Jesus was born, to explain Judaism in the time that a man could stand on one foot. Hillel said, “Do not do to your neighbor anything that would hurt you. This is the whole teaching of Judaism. The rest is commentary.” Jesus, the pious, observant Jew, carried on this tradition with special blessings for the meek, the poor, and the peacemakers. And so did Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam, who stressed that social justice meant a society cared for the weak and the poor, the widows and the orphans, and even those who needed a loan to get back on their feet. Today’s bleeding-heart liberalism was born in the Torah, in the teachings of Jesus in the New Testament, and in the revelations of Muhammad in the Koran. But a harsh history has separated the three faith communities: exile for the Jews after the Romans destroyed the Second Temple in Jerusalem; writings in the Gospel of John that laid the basis for almost 2000 years of Christian persecution of Jews on the charge of being Christ-killers; dynastic battles by Muslim tribes who fought to rule after Muhammad died, launching an imperial expansion later pushed back by European See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 45 Christians who, in turn, imposed rule on Muslims from Africa to Indonesia. In the 20th century, the Holocaust gave the final thrust to the establishment of Israel; the resistance of Arabs and Muslims to that fact led to political upheavals, terrorism, and Israeli retaliation, with the Jewish-Muslim-Christian political conflict exploding into America in September 2001. This workshop will cut through the “story” to reveal the shared ethics of the prophets of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam that sparkle like jewels beneath the detritus of history. And it will outline healing, reconciliation processes that Jews, Christians, and Muslims can undertake individually and jointly to draw the Abrahamic family back together again. This public workshop is presented in connection with the Esalen Center for Theory and Research (CTR) invitational conference, “Symposium on Christian Fundamentalism,” April 2-7, at which Joseph Montville is a convener/presenter. Recovery After the Loss of a Partner: Taking Back Your Life and Moving Forward Gary & Kathy Young The death of a partner can affect you in illogical, unpredictable ways, for an unpredictable length of time. While many myths exist about the condition of grief and loss, reality, nurturing, and support are what’s needed. The issues are countless, the road to recovery difficult. The goal is, of course, quality survival: preserving the cherished memories for yourself and for the legacy of the person you lost. You are not alone. Gary and Kathy Young are national support leaders who both lost young spouses. Using simple exercises, support methods, and guidance, they will help you reclaim function as well as an appreciation for the mystery and beauty of life. Physical and verbal interventions will clarify your understanding, opening you to new growth. Improvisation, journaling, and hands-on techniques will bring you back to community. Some of the issues to be covered are: What is/is not grief? “Seeing” a future. Labels. Betrayal. Expectations (your own and others’). Pain, your unwanted “friend.” Unexplainable afterlife occurrences. Guilt. Sympathy. Fear of happiness. Anniversaries. Debts. Unexpected gifts. Crying. Humor. Children. Dating. Recovery does not mean forgetting or restor46 ing the past, but embracing it and moving ahead. Recommended reading: G. & K. Young: Loss and Found: Surviving the Loss of a Young Partner. inner state of healing consciousness from which to make contact, and by finding ease of movement in your own body, you’ll find that giving a massage can be as pleasurable as receiving one. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. All levels of experience are welcome. Finding Your Deepest Purpose CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Rich Berrett Many of us live much of our lives without presence or awareness of the way we are living. It is as though our lives are living us, rather than the other way around. One major indication of this is finding emptiness in our accomplishments. Academic degrees, monetary wealth, success, status—they often leave us asking, “Is that all there is?” Joseph Campbell recommended, as the most significant quest in life, that we seek our bliss. This workshop is an exploration of that all-toooften unexplored yet, paradoxically, most satisfying treasure: our purpose. This experiential course is designed to help you contact and express your deepest desires. Through imagery, movement, sculpting, art, reflective writing, and music, the workshop will help you connect with the wisest and most loving part of yourself, your inner wisdom, and explore the purpose of your life. By listening to your inner voice, you become more present to who you really are, beneath the familiar thoughts, habits, and patterns of living. In addition, there will be exercises to enable your imagination to create a personal “special place,” a place which is beautiful, peaceful, secure, and rich in wisdom. With these resources from within, you can achieve your deepest desires. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. Weekend Massage: A Spring Renewal Intensive Char Pias & Jessica Fagan Replenish your spirit with the healing power of nature and the healing nature of touch. With its nurturing contact and long integrative strokes, Esalen Massage® provides a feeling of deep relaxation and wholeness. Through brief lectures, demonstrations, and practice, you will become familiar with the long flowing strokes, which are the heartbeat of Esalen Massage. The course’s focus will be on quality of touch and effortlessness. The workshop will also emphasize self-care as well as body- and breath-awareness through movement and meditation. By developing the You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. Week of April 9–14 Creating a Culture of Peace: Communication, Connection, Freedom Jean Morrison & Martine Amita Algier This workshop is an opportunity for a deep consciousness shift directly related to how we can each effectively contribute to building a sustainable, worldwide culture of peace. The workshop’s co-created processes—interactive, playful, experiential learning and time spent connecting creatively in small-group or paired exchanges—focus on liberating ourselves from judging self and others; taking things personally; acting from fear, duty, obligation, and guilt; and suffering in anger and depression. This enables the experience of more joy and freedom by expressing ourselves honestly without blame, shame, or criticism; hearing others’ pain without trying to fix them; seeing our needs as gifts; and creating new strategies that meet core needs. This workshop is designed so that you’ll leave with: a deeper understanding of the habits of mind and culture that promote misunderstandings, discord, and even violence; skills for transforming conflict into peaceful dialogue; and ways to shift relationships from surviving to thriving. The workshop is led by two Certified Nonviolent Communication (NVC) Trainers with over 40 combined years of experience in working with individuals, couples, families, schools, businesses, and groups. NVC is being shared around the world by its founder, Dr. Marshall B. Rosenberg, and over 200 certified trainers. It is now widely known for its dramatic successes in war-torn countries, in schools, homes, prisons, corporations, healthcare, and government institutions for social change, and with intimate personal relationships. Recommended reading: Rosenberg, Nonviolent Communication. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for teachers; see page 5. Reading the Patterns of the Landscape: An In-depth Introduction to Permaculture Design Larry Santoyo & John Valenzuela Permaculture Design is a modern distillation of our ancestral understanding of natural processes and their connection to the success of human endeavors. In the geometry of nature, predictable patterns emerge—orders of streams, the branching of trees, even the blowing wind is filled with valuable lessons of natural design—all to teach us the highest and most effective use of energy and the best use of Earth’s precious resources. Participants in this workshop will study ancient arts of earth stewardship and develop their own set of sustainable living skills. Within the flow of Earth’s elements lie the energies that shape the landscape, the natural landscape of plants and animals, and the landscape of culture: that of people, commerce, and community. By understanding the patterns of the natural landscape we can better understand the patterns of the cultural landscape. Permaculture thus offers a framework for design and simple protocols for decisionmaking and problem-solving. Learn natural building, food forestry, and edible landscaping techniques to help you create a complete “Home Ecosystem.” Finding your right livelihood, as well as strategies for ecovillages and community projects, will also be explored. Through storytelling and experiential exercises, renowned Permaculture Designers Santoyo and Valenzuela will lead students through the procedures of planning and design. Participants will learn practical solutions that adapt patterns of nature to their home, farm, retreat or ecovillage projects. The Essentials: Simple, Reliable Skills, Tools, and Perspectives for Mastering Life’s Challenges David Schiffman In celebration of his 35 years of uninterrupted devotion to Esalen’s uniquely integrative views of body, mind, and spirit, David Schiffman writes: “Learning how to help people minimize wasted time and unnecessary suffering has been my greatest lesson. This workshop will be aimed at creating a more economical, hopeful, wise, clear-eyed estimation of our potential as we answer the essential questions: Am I ready to: • Show up for the life I want to live? • Know myself thoroughly and well— emotionally, physically, and spiritually? • Accept exactly who I am at this stage of my life without shame and hesitation? • Act wisely and clearly from my knowledge? • Go after what I really want, in a good way, and ask for the help I need to do it? • Accept graciously what I get, without losing hope or momentum? • Know where I belong and who I belong with? • Have a clear mission/vision/dream at the heart of my life? “Together we will cultivate elegant ways of being that ground us in essential authenticity—to stand strongly for the fundamental truths of our lives. We will open to and consider the emotional intelligence necessary to express our needs with astute appreciation for timing and attunement in all our relations by using the practical skills and tools of open, heartfelt sharing, energetic studies, creative movement, music, appropriate use of ceremony, and spirit-family-style celebration.” Reclaiming the Man in the Mirror: Sex, Love, and Commitment for Gay Men Joe Kort This workshop focuses on sex, love, and intimacy among gay men. “Most people,” writes Joe Kort, “gay and straight alike, do not know if their sexual fantasies and/or sexual acts are healthy versus unhealthy. The secret logic of sexual fantasies and desires can help unlock information stored away in a gay man’s history that can help him enjoy his sexuality even more. There is an erotic intelligence that can teach a person how to know and understand himself in a deeper way.” This workshop starts out with the sexual aspects of relationships and moves to love and commitment. Gay men will learn the mystery of why they are drawn to Mr. Right and how to stay connected and partnered with the man of their dreams. This workshop will focus on how to incorporate sex, love, and intimacy, and how to keep and maintain a relationship. Weekend of April 14–16 BodyWave™ and SpiritWeavesª Carl Chase (CC) & Michael Skelton Carl Chase (CC) and Michael Skelton have combined their love for bodywork and dance to bring about a union of flow, motion, inspiration, and a profound connection to the inner self. BodyWave, developed by CC, is a style of bodywork that keeps the body in a constant state of motion and touch, instilling a deep state of relaxation using simple rocking movements. This fluid state reminds us of how our life began—in the womb—and creates a sense of relaxation and openness that allows easy access to the tense places we hold in our bodies—and in our lives. In counterpart, Michael Skelton’s SpiritWeaves teaches dance as improvisation, inspiring liberation in the body through movement, supporting individuals in unmasking the mystery of their own dance, letting go of that which is resisted, and moving into the center of the self. Both teachers are passionate about supporting others through their different, yet complementary, connections with the body. They invite anyone who would like to experience more freedom within and without to come share in this singular integration of physical art forms. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Experiencing Esalen Experiencing Esalen Staff For workshop description see January 20-22. A Labor-of-Love Yoga Retreat Thomas Michael Fortel “Many of us come to the yoga practice to heal and fine-tune our physical bodies,” writes Thomas. “Others come because of a gnawing feeling that something is not complete, that there must be more to life than what meets the eye. Truly, the physical practice of hatha yoga opens many doors to our own spiritual mansion. The apparent paradox is that the physical practice which grounds us in our bodies actually encourages the opening of the chakras (energy centers). The opening of the heart chakra is the doorway to the higher spiritual self. In yoga we call this bhakti—love and devotion for the divine, the unification of personal love with universal love. “This is the theme of our weekend retreat. As we explore the love of our practice, ourselves, and each other, we can have the experience of lightness, fun, playfulness, and bliss. Sat chit ananda is the nature of the Supreme Reality. Sat is Being, that which exists in all times, in all places, and in all things; chit is Consciousness, See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 47 that which illumines all things; and ananda is supreme Bliss. Participants will engage the practices of pranayama and meditation in the early mornings, have an active asana practice midmorning, and a more restorative practice in the afternoon. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Enhancement of Peak Performance in Sports, the Performing Arts, and the Worksite Daniel Brown This workshop, presented by Harvard Medical School, is designed for health professionals who work with clients wishing to enhance performance in avocational or professional sports, the performing arts, or their daily work. The seminar will familiarize participants with the research on peak performance and teach interventions for emotional states and conflicts that hinder and enhance peak performance, as well as interventions for relaxing and energizing the body. Additionally, the course will present mentalimagery skills for peak performance and interventions for training concentration skills. It will help participants identify attentional problems that hinder peak performance and familiarize them with a variety of applications of peak-performance interventions through case illustrations. The workshop will be a balance of lecturing, demonstration of methods, practice, and case presentations drawn from recreational and professional sports, dance and music performance, and managerial worksite training. This program is offered in conjunction with Harvard Medical School. For more information, including how to register, see Special Programs, page 80. Approved for CMEs for physicians. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. ’Tis A Gift to Be Simple David Schiffman This workshop is for people who would like to return to the simplicity of the values we treasure most. Its aim is to create a climate of mutual support and encouragement for exploring how to best cultivate the spirit of real generosity and faith in dealing with ourselves and others. This process will embrace the following elements: 48 The methods will be drawn from a wide variety of practices, both traditional and nontraditional, all aimed at restoring our gratitude and appreciation for being alive. nature of mind. A balance of mental-stabilization and realization-of-emptiness practices will serve as a foundation for many types of advanced or “extraordinary” practices, such as tantric meditations based on complex visualizations to transform affective states, and working with energy transformations within the body, both of which serve direct realization of the nature of mind. This relationalbased instructional style emphasizes directly pointing out the meditation methods used and the states likely to occur, balanced with actual practice, followed by a description of experiences and further instructions. The emphasis is on short, repeated meditationpractice periods, with additional, more refined instructions interspersed between each practice set. Family Arts Program Please bring a meditation cushion, if you have one. • Sanctuary—the opportunity to step away and pause, to create a mood of peace • The company of kindred spirits—a chance to be met with honesty, empathy, and wisdom in an atmosphere of soulful support • The emotional freedom to be—the right to let down and be sad, glad, or mad in order to clear the air and move on, making room in our hearts for new possibilities • The right to feel free and alive in our bodies—the use of movement and touch to restore the vitality of feeling truly alive and physically at ease Jayson Fann & The Esalen Arts Center Staff This workshop, at the Esalen Art Barn, is for parents, children, and any and all family members who want to immerse themselves in a weekend of fun and creative expression. Painting, clay sculpting, mask making, drumming by a bonfire, games, and outdoor explorations of the magnificent Esalen grounds are some of the activities participants will explore during a weekend made memorable by sharing it with loved ones. All children must be accompanied by an adult. ($35 materials fee paid directly to the leader) April 16–23 The “Pointing Out” Way of Tibetan Buddhist Meditation Daniel Brown This workshop—designed for either novice or advanced meditators—serves as an integrative approach to the practice of meditation, with an emphasis on intensive concentration meditation using the traditional Tibetan Buddhist “Nine States of Mental Calming/Staying,” a widely-used method for training the mind to stay on its meditation object and to calm mental content. This approach was developed to correct common problems that develop in meditation practice, such as bad habits that prevent realizations, or reaching a plateau that makes progress difficult. Participants will also be introduced to classic Tibetan emptiness-meditations as well as the “directly pointing out” practices about the You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Week of April 16–21 Art in Action: Art, Poetry, Cosmology, and Social Change Alli Chagi Starr & Drew Dellinger Creativity ignites the spirit of joy we need to cultivate a sustainable future for all of us. Art is one of our most powerful tools for promoting social change, building community, and sharing our deepest humanity. In this workshop, longtime arts activist and cultural worker, Alli Chagi Starr joins with poet, teacher, and activist Drew Dellinger to offer an experiential exploration of art, poetry, cosmology, and activism, and their power to create personal and social change. Through art-making, poetry, sharing stories, dance, song, and “dream-writing,” participants will stimulate their passions and learn fun strategies to make collective art that can transform our world. In addition, the workshop will engage cultural issues of cosmology and solution-oriented processes addressing the ecological and social challenges of our time. The program will explore both the 13-billionyear history of the universe and current movements for justice and ecology, sharing stories and images from contemporary movements and art actions. The workshop may culminate in an art exhibit and live performance crafted by participants. Please note: Bring one or two of your favorite DANIEL BIANCHETTA poems, written by you or someone else, comfortable clothes, and an open mind. All experience levels are welcome. Everyone is an artist! to living with meaning, richness, and vitality.” Ecstatic Embodiment: A Yogic Exploration into Soma and Soul Brian Mahan, a body-centered therapist with 20 years’ experience specializing in the physiology of stress, will be a guest teacher. This workshop is open to people of all physical abilities, no experience necessary; just curiosity, willingness, and openness. Hala Khouri, with Brian Mahan Please bring your own yoga mat. “Imagine feeling focused, grounded, centered, empowered, in the moment, safe, and joyful!” Hala Khouri writes. “During this week together we will explore somatic (body) awareness and what it means to truly inhabit our bodies. How do our bodies communicate with us? What are our sensations trying to tell us? Are we listening? How do we meet the world and breathe in life? Conversely, how do we disassociate from the body and disconnect from our surroundings and our community? We will journey into the soma and its hidden mysteries through yoga, felt-sense awareness, embodied meditation, visualization, orienting and boundary work, music, free dance, art, and journaling. “Our innate, intuitive intelligence transcends linear thought and logic. This somatic intelligence exists in all living beings and connects us to ourselves, the animal kingdom, the environment, our ancestors, as well as future generations. Knowing this in our core is the key Energetics, founded by John Pierrakos, and Process Work, developed by Dr. Arnold Mindell, we will explore body/mind, emotions, relationships, group dynamics, and inner authority.” Note: An interview with Bill Say is requested prior to registration. Please call 510-548-8703. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. Overcoming Isolation and Mistrust: Healing the Special and Betrayed Child A Women’s Way Circle Bill Say “The goal of this week together,” writes Barbara Lee, “is to co-create a women’s circle where, in a safe environment, we can discover how our intuition can guide us to a place of emotional and spiritual wisdom. The intention is to soften our fears of loving and allow ourselves to be empowered with the qualities we have been searching for in our families and relationships. We will explore the ways that we are unique and validate these gifts in each other. The intention: to have the experience, as the week unfolds, of real sisterhood with one another through deep sharing and caring. Our culture and families often support power and control, independence and being special. But the price that we pay for living these patterns is huge. We are often lonely, mistrustful, and addicted to achievement and feeling special. Our needs are repressed. We stay in control and may even abuse our power. We fear being “wrong” or failing, being vulnerable or “weak.” We feel we can trust no one and must depend only on ourselves. This experiential workshop will explore relationship patterns, power and control, needs and vulnerability, intimacy and trust in connections with others. Bill Say writes: “Using awareness as our guide, we will find the way back to our deepest humanity and trust in life. Using two powerful approaches, Core Barbara Lee “We will also apply the path of creativity to heal past wounds, using collage to create a deck of ‘Women’s Emotional Wisdom’ cards, which we can all take home with us.” See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 49 DANIEL BIANCHETTA Weekend of April 21–23 Wild Big Sur Steven Harper, with Michael Newman “Big Sur in springtime declares ‘Green!’” writes Steve Harper. “This workshop is an immersion into the raw, emerging springtime beauty of Big Sur—and our selves. Spring is a season of re-creation, a time for the rebirth of creative energies. With wild nature—both inner and outer—as our inspiration we will set forth on day-hikes into Big Sur’s wild backcountry to let our souls (and soles) be touched.” The group will venture out on two day-hikes, 3-6 miles in length. Each hike begins after breakfast and concludes in time to enjoy the hot springs and a hearty meal at Esalen. Evening sessions include an introduction to basic awareness practices from aikido and meditation, informal sharing, and useful outdoor skills. All levels of experience are welcome. Participants should be prepared for the invigorating challenge of physical activity as well as the opportunity to simply sit still in quiet reflection. More information will be sent upon registration. 50 Gestalt Practice: Exploring Emotions Dorothy Charles Experiencing and expressing emotions are integral to being alive. Yet, for many people emotions remain mysterious, confusing, and difficult to constructively express. As a result, relationships may be unsatisfying and the choices we make may not reflect our innermost desires or our true selves. Learning to fully experience feelings and express them in healthy ways enables us to be authentic and to have more fulfilling relationships. This experiential and didactic workshop will blends individual and group Gestalt work with dyadic exercises. long flowing strokes, attention to breath, and body awareness. The course will also emphasize communication, movement, and effortlessness. The skills introduced will be useful in reducing stress and pain, increasing your capacity for relaxation and pleasure. You will have the opportunity to give and receive loving touch with your partner in a supportive environment, with plenty of supervision and hands-on instruction. This retreat is for beginners, as well as those with previous massage experience. Come with an open heart and mind. VoiceDance Emile Hassan Dyer ® Esalen Massage : A Retreat for Couples Tom Case & Robin Fann-Costanzo If you would like to learn new skills to improve and enhance your relationship with your loved one, this workshop is for you. Take time out from your everyday lives to be with each other in a beautiful, peaceful environment and learn the basics of Esalen Massage. During this weekend, Robin and Tom will share the practice of using loving, compassionate touch with you and your partner. Characteristics of Esalen Massage include You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. If you can walk, you can dance! If you can talk, you can sing! — African proverb For thousands of years, all across the globe, singing has traditionally been a communal activity. Every culture on the planet sings together in one form or another. Singing was and continues to be used for teaching, play, prayer, healing, social bonding, and entertainment. In our present-day culture, many believe they cannot sing, or have been told, in various ways, not to sing. They leave that joy to others: the performers, the entertainers, the media stars. It is time to heal the wound… It is time to commune… It is time to move and to be moved… Participants will engage their whole beings in the time-honored tradition of learning through Sacred Play, as they learn songs from a wide variety of traditions and cultures, such as West African, Australian (Aboriginal), Russian, Celtic, South African, Asian, Native American, and more. They will also practice traditional and urban beatbox vocal-percussion styles, explore their own voices, and play with improvisational layering in a safe and encouraging environment. The morning sessions will focus on active listening, rhythmic exploration, and toning, interspersed with chants and songs from around the world. In the afternoon, a review of the morning’s material will lead to more focused concentration on differing oral traditions by combining the morning’s material with new songs to be expanded upon. Bring a recording device, if you have one. Week of April 23–28 New Poems Week Sharon Olds Critics who love imagery, risk taking, and an accessible voice have praised the poetry of Sharon Olds. Michael Ondaatje has called Olds’s poems “pure fire in the hands.” Says Sharon Olds: “This workshop is a time for writing new poems and practicing a deep openness and alertness to each other’s work. Each of us will hope to write first drafts which in some way move beyond what we have written before.” There will be no writing exercises or assignments, and during the gatherings no xeroxed copies. To apply, send a letter with your name, address, phone number, e-mail address, and three pages of recent poems, typed (no more than one poem per page). Do not include a SASE; poems will not be returned. Send them to Olds 5-Day Poetry Workshop, c/o Esalen Institute, Big Sur, CA 93920. Be sure to specify that you are applying for Sharon Olds’s 5Day workshop. Your poems must be received by February 12, 2006. Participants will be notified of their acceptance by March 5, 2006. This workshop is offered in a weekend format April 28-30 (if accepted into either workshop, it is not possible to switch). Deep Tissue Techniques for Massage Practitioners: Healing the Shoulder and Carpal-Tunnel Syndrome Perry & Johanna Holloman Practiced with sensitivity, deep bodywork is one of the most effective healing modalities available to the bodyworker. 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 then becomes available to support the body’s innate capacity to self-organize and self-heal, enabling practitioners to support clients in overcoming seemingly intractable physical conditions. Two areas of the body with which bodyworkers are frequently confronted are the shoulder and the forearm/wrist. Because of the complexity of these structures, and the intense, chronic pain they often produce, practitioners may be reluctant to touch them for fear of doing more harm. This seminar will introduce effective deep-tissue techniques to address both the acute and chronic types of pain encountered in these areas. Students will practice learning how to feel “soft-tissue lesions” with the hands, and learn why, at physiological and energetic levels, deep bodywork needs to be done slowly to be most effective. The course will also present an overview of the aggravations which often occur within 48 hours of treatment, and how to guide clients through such occurrences. Perry and Johanna will make themselves available to answer questions of specific interest to participants, and will provide in-depth understanding of the anatomy and function of the shoulder, arm, and hand. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Painting with Oils in the Landscape Adam Wolpert Painting out-of-doors is a profound experience, one that engages all of our senses, our minds, and our spirits. Faced with nature’s dynamic forces we are challenged to develop visual sensitivity, flexibility, and resilience. We come into deeper relationship with the world and with ourselves when we open to the living landscape around us. 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 landscape painting. Daily sessions will be devoted to painting rapid sketches and more developed small oil paintings out-of-doors. Basic oil technique, instruction in setting up a palette, mixing colors, and brushwork will be balanced with slide lectures on visual theory, composition, and special issues in landscape painting. Participants will learn from individual instruction and each other, and have opportunities to 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. Bring a sun hat, layers of clothes and a portable easel if you have one. ($100 materials fee paid directly to the leader) Who Are You? Transformation— The Work of Wilhelm Reich Richard Blasband & Patricia Frisch The trap is man’s emotional structure— his character structure. — Wilhelm Reich The leaders write: “If you are over 13 years of age, you probably don’t know who you are. How could you when your spirit, your ‘core,’ is trapped within decades of emotional armoring? We doubt if we will be able to find this person and introduce you to him/her in five days, but it is a good bet that we will be able to show you who you are not, despite your protestations. “When we are open we experience pleasure, liveliness, and vitality. All too often, however, we are contracted and feel tension, lack of sexual desire, frozen, heavy, trapped, and ill. These symptoms are communications from our past, rooted in the present in our character structure and body armor. To find out who we are we must first become conscious of the ways we have distorted our natural selves into the unnatural adults that grab, push, cop out, or ‘play possum’ in the struggle to survive in the trap. This workshop is a confrontational, personally demanding process for those who wish to restructure their armored character at deep levels of biophysical being. The course will discuss Reich’s findings of a bioenergetic basis of character formation and use direct interventions in the body armoring to mobilize blocked bioenergy. Jung’s concepts of transformation will provide a complementary framework in which to understand the changes wrought in deep personal work. See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 51 “Dreams, guided imagery, and movement will deepen the exploration and provide material for a trusting exchange within the workshop community. As we shed unnecessary layers of armor and facade we begin to discover our true, naturally sexual and spiritual natures.” Dr. Richard Blasband and Dr. Patricia Frisch have a combined clinical experience of over fifty years in the use of these techniques. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. The Conduct, Process, and the Curative Factors in Contemporary Psychotherapy Anna & Paul Ornstein In this workshop the careful examination of the therapist-patient interaction—their verbal and nonverbal contribution to the treatment process—will highlight the essential aspects of all psychotherapies. The clinical examples chosen for such microscopic examination will include patients with various disorders: depression, addiction, post-traumatic responses, and child psychopathology. The focus will be on difficult moments in everyday treatment situations as well as the treatment of patients whose severe psychopathology requires periodic hospitalizations. Examples will be offered from diverse treatment settings: psychoanalysis, long-term psychotherapy, and brief, focal psychotherapy. This seminar, presented by Harvard Medical School, is designed for all health professionals. Drs. Anna and Paul Ornstein will outline the basic steps in the therapeutic dialogue, and enumerate and describe three of the curative elements in the therapeutic experience. They will also explain why “feeling understood” is a key element of the curative process. This program is offered in conjunction with Harvard Medical School. For more information, including how to register, see Special Programs, page 80. Approved for CMEs for physicians. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Weekend of April 28–30 New Poems Weekend Sharon Olds For workshop description see April 23-28. This weekend workshop differs from its fiveday counterpart in duration only. 52 To apply, send a letter with your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address, and three pages of recent poems, typed (no more than one poem per page). Do not include a SASE; poems will not be returned. Send them to Olds Weekend Poetry Workshop, c/o Esalen Institute, Big Sur, CA 93920. Be sure to specify that you are applying for Sharon Olds’s Weekend workshop. Your poems must be received by February 17, 2006. Participants will be notified of their acceptance by March 10, 2006. Be Here (Wow!): A Buddhist Workshop for Cynics in Recovery ting go of your programmed patterns and discovering the joy of spontaneous creation. The first premise of improvisational theater games (which Robin Williams claims unleashed him) is to “go in blank.” Within the game structures, participants are coached to be receptive: stop, look, and listen; deny nothing; release control; let go of planning ahead. This process can help you to trust your own intuition, sense of humor, eloquence, and physical grace, and it allows you get out of your own way to convert the raw material of spontaneous impulse into glittering nuggets of creative gold. The workshop is also just a lot of fun. Beginners and shy people are welcome; no experience is necessary. Prior improv experience will be forgiven. Wes Nisker Oh wondrous creatures, by what strange miracle do you so often not smile? — Hafiz, Sufi poet “At this very moment,” writes Wes Nisker, “there are apparent miracles taking place all around us and within us. We have only to look closely in order to become amazed and to fall in love with ourselves and the world. In this workshop we will make creative use of some of the most important Buddhist meditation techniques, as we explore the wondrous experience of being human. With an attitude of curiosity and playfulness, we will examine the workings of our bodies and minds, our nature ‘as’ nature, and our place in the grand scheme of things. In the process we will hopefully find some relief from our personal dramas, and a new sense of value and meaning in our lives.” The workshop sessions will include guided meditations on the life of the body; on our vital “animal” conditioning; on death and dying; on the nature of consciousness. The talks and discussions will present both traditional Buddhist views of self and reality as well as some of the latest information from evolutionary biology and psychology to support and guide the meditations. The humor of “crazy wisdom” will also be present in the workshop. The Soul of the African Drum Ayo Adeyemi & Carole Zeitlin Adeyemi We are all drummers and dancers—ever since the beginning of time. Our first drum is our heartbeat. Everything we do or say, or even think, has a rhythm, a dance, a song. This workshop provides an opportunity for participants to gather as a community to learn the language of the Drum and the sacred ritual rhythms, dances, and chants to praise the Orisas. When we immerse ourselves in a culture, we find that the music, dance, art, and traditions of the culture are all connected by its spiritual teachings. In the Yoruba tradition of Orisa worship, drumming is a highly respected source of healing and prayer. Ori means head, asa means to cultivate. We cultivate our head, or higher self, by drumming for the spirits. We celebrate life by giving thanks. This weekend will culminate with an authentic ceremonial celebration, Yoruba-style. Bring white ceremonial dress and something for the altar that represents all that is good and everlasting. Aboru, Aboye, Abose. May your prayers and your offerings be accepted. CE credit for teachers; see page 5. Improv Alchemy: Brewing Something from Nothing Moment by Moment: The Clinician’s Guide to Psychotherapeutic Interventions Paula Shaw Martha Stark The spontaneity of theater games can open you up to extraordinary surprises, to unknown abilities, even to brilliance—a brilliance born of generating from a blank slate, from the nothing and nowhere of beginner’s mind. This workshop is an exploration of let- How do we position ourselves, moment by moment, in relation to our clients and how does that position inform both what we come to know about our clients and how we then intervene? The objectives of this program, presented by Harvard Medical School, are to: You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. • Explain the distinctions between formulating interpretations, responding empathetically, and engaging authentically • Utilize different interventions to address different clinical situations • Understand the process of transforming relentless hope into the capacity to relent, to forgive, and to let go • Analyze the role of mutual enactment in the therapeutic encounter • Assess the clinician’s “use of self ” to inform both understanding and intervention This program is offered in conjunction with Harvard Medical School. For more information, including how to register, see Special Programs, page 80. Approved for CMEs for physicians. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Bhakti Urban Flow Rusty Wells Rusty Wells’s high-intensity and transcendent style, called Bhakti Urban Flow, blends music, movement, and spirit. His teaching has been influenced by elements from the Ashtanga, Bikram, and Sivananda traditions, as well as many teachers including Dharma Mittra, Swami Sivananda, and Baron Baptiste. Wells blends challenging sequences with a genuine and natural spirituality. His optimism and love for the practice are contagious: you will sweat, laugh, and sing. And while it may be the hardest thing you’ve ever done, you’ll step away feeling peculiarly lighter, stronger, and clearer. Wells has helped thousands of students transform through this combination of dance and prayer. Emotions flow, mental obstacles rise and fall, and the heart of compassion opens: You are on your yoga path. Week of April 30–May 5 The MAX: Stretching the Limits of Your Self-Expression Paula Shaw Standing alone onstage, looking out, breathing, making connection inside and out, brings up what’s between you and being present, here and now, fully able to to express yourself—emotionally, creatively, and truthfully. In this course, a battery of acting, communica- tion, observation, and sense-awareness skills are used to move you out of your circumscribed system. You can go at your own pace, with your own willingness, and experience an extraordinary version of yourself emerge. You do not have to do all the work yourself: Witnessing others going through this process encourages and inspires you to break through along with them. You may discover yourself far beyond who you have hitherto known yourself to be—which is the purpose of this workshop. Exercises using raw emotion, role playing, and dress-up assignments allow you to greatly expand the arena of your expression. The typically outrageous results come directly out of commitment and risking, and an extremely safe structured environment is provided for such an intense level of stretching. This workshop is a strong metabolic enhancer, full of heart, humor, and humanity. It is challenging, exhilarating, and revitalizing and can be a life-changing event. For those who are ready (or not): Step right up, step right up! Note: As each segment of this workshop builds on what comes before it, attendance at all sessions is necessary. Workshop hours will be longer earlier in the week and shorter later on. Requirement: Bring a one- to three-minute memorized piece (monologue, passage, poem, song, etc.). Eidetic Imagery Training Program Jaqueline Lapa Sussman & Leslie Dagnall The work [eidetics] has the quality of revelation and should be read by all. — Joseph Campbell The Eidetic Imagery Training Program is for those in the helping professions, artists, poets, philosophers, scientists, and for people wishing to heal themselves. This experiential training program joins Eastern philosophy with Western scientific psychology using eidetic images. (Eidetic, pronounced eye-DET-ic, is associated with the Greek words eidos, meaning “form,” and idein, meaning “to see.”) Eidetic images of one’s life experiences are neurologically recorded in the brain. These images access personal history and impact current emotions, mental states, and physiological health and well-being. One sees the image, feels it in all its dimensions, and knows what it means. This knowledge resides within the mind; the eidetic holds the key to who we are and opens up our greater potentials. The eidetic image, as it is known in contemporary psychology, is intimately connected with Akhter Ahsen, Ph.D., the founder of Image Psychology, who says: “The process of seeing is also a process of deeply knowing the true fire in the psyche, which connects with the third mental eye, representing the penetrating vision of a unifying consciousness.” The training program will be a balance of lectures, demonstrations of methodology, experiential exercises, and case presentations. Participants will fully explore their own eidetic images in a step-by-step process and will learn specific applications for their professional lives. For more information, including special registration instructions, see Special Programs, page 80. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. Awakening The Creative Stewart Cubley & Staff Awakening The Creative is a journey into the wild territory of painting directly from intuition, an unpredictable venture into color, form, and image where no rules apply. The potential is to tap into an extraordinary resource: the vibrant, driving force of your own creative spirit. In this workshop, everyone is a beginner— people from all levels of experience are welcome, including those who have never picked up a paintbrush. The goal is free expression, with the emphasis on the creative process rather than on technique or expertise. You will be given the environment, methods, facilitation, and overview with which to do in-depth self-exploration that can lead to pivotal insight and authentic change. Awakening The Creative is an opportunity to embark on the greatest of all human journeys: embracing your own path and confidently following it. Stewart Cubley (coauthor of Life, Paint & Passion) and his staff are passionately committed to the imperative of self-knowledge in action. They are a group of professionals with extensive experience working on the front lines of human change, and they have made a difference in the lives of countless people interested in exploring their full range of possibilities. All materials are supplied. ($50 materials fee paid directly the leaders) CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for teachers; see page 5. See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 53 Double Your Creative Power— An Intuitional Secret-Story Writing Workshop S. L. Stebel First I dream the painting, then I paint the dream. receiving healing knowledge from the spirit world—is familiar to much of the population. In 1979 she came to Esalen and was sponsored by Esalen cofounder Dick Price while she learned Spiritual Massage from Brazilian healer Luiz Gasparetto. — Vincent Van Gogh This course is for everyone, from coffeehouse scribblers to published authors, who has felt the pull of a story struggling to emerge from an ocean of words, only to fall back, unable to determine the story’s direction before it slips away. The story is not irretrievable. Using techniques developed over decades, Sid Stebel—whom Ray Bradbury calls “the best writing teacher that ever was!”—will help participants realize their creative potential. First, we dream… Through simple exercises participants will be asked to produce, during that twilight zone between sleep and waking, the kind of inner-directed automatic writing that comes from the subconscious. Next, with input from the group, under Stebel’s guidance, each individual will attempt to decipher what at first may appear to be random meanderings. During this process a story emerges, emotionally meaningful not only to its author but to its audience as well. By its creator connecting in this deeply-felt way with the story, the story will connect in a similar way with its audience, becoming, almost by definition, profound and universal. Then we paint the dream… Once the story has emerged, its author can bring to bear all the storytelling talents of which s/he is capable. Using guidelines espoused by Aristotle, as expounded upon by Stebel in his book, a variety of structural devices and storytelling techniques for enhancing the story will be discussed, with the goal of choosing those that best realize the story’s potential. For more about Stebel, see www.slstebel.com. Recommended reading: Stebel, Double Your Creative Power! CE credit for teachers; see page 5. Spiritual Massage: Lightbody Infusion Maria Lucia Bittencourt Sauer Spiritual Massage is a hands-on healing practice that works directly on the energy body, balancing the chakras, cleansing old thought forms, and gently facilitating release of emotional, physical, and spiritual blockages, allowing for infusion by the Lightbody. Born into a family of healers with a generations-old tradition, Maria Lucia studied with healers in her native Brazil, where Spiritism— 54 This workshop presents practical methods for using the hands as instruments of physical and spiritual healing. Incorporating hands-on and energetic work, it emphasizes intentionality as the fundamental tool of any healing art for moving energy. The course includes exercises for grounding and attuning to energy as well as Afro-Brazilian shamanic practices for self-protection. Special exercises will help prepare the group energy field for channeling sessions done by Maria Lucia (please bring questions). Emotional release work and group process will be integrated as they emerge. This work is accessible to anyone—nurses, bodyworkers, businessmen, therapists, and all those interested in working with energy and people’s bodies. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy: A Review and Clinical Update Robert Goisman The influence of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is widening as the importance of costeffective, empirically validated, shorter-term treatment increases. Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) is a highly effective and very popular form of cognitive-behavioral treatment for patients with borderline personality disorder. This course, offered by Harvard Medical School, is designed to prepare participants to: • Utilize specific techniques for anxiety reduction in patients with anxiety disorders • Describe specific CBT interventions used in panic disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, phobias, and PTSD • Apply cognitive therapy techniques to manic patients and depressed patients • Prepare a typical DBT curriculum • Discuss social-skills training and cognitive restructuring as they apply to schizophrenia This program is offered in conjunction with Harvard Medical School. For more information, including how to register, see Special Programs, page 80. Approved for CMEs for physicians. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. Weekend of May 5–7 Leading Beyond Borders: Transforming Conflict into Connection Mark Gerzon From our nuclear families to the global family, conflict is everywhere. What is your way of handling it? Do you try to avoid it? Do your efforts often just make conflict worse? Or do you have ways to transform it into something positive, creative, and life-affirming? “In this workshop,” says Mark Gerzon, “we will explore how each of us deals with conflict. As we learn together, we will ask the deeper and larger question: How can we help humanity deal with the larger conflicts that threaten human survival?” This workshop is presented as part of Esalen’s renewed commitment to having a positive impact on the world. Participants from outside North America are especially invited to bring their voices and experiences to this workshop. Special emphasis will be focused on cross-cultural, multinational conflicts that emerge from the life experiences of workshop participants. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. See Seminar Spotlight, page 8. Leonard Energy Training (LET): An Introduction to the Extraordinary George Leonard & Annie Leonard There exists within each of us an inborn capacity for manifesting the sort of special powers that are called siddhis in Sanskrit. Some of these powers require a lifetime of dedicated practice. Others, largely neglected by modern Western culture, are readily available to all of us. In this hands-on workshop, participants will have the opportunity of learning how what we call “mind” can influence our own bodies, others’ minds and bodies, and even the material world in ways that bypass strictly mechanical, electronic, or sensory means. Exercises will include: • Becoming aware of and using ki, or chi • Scanning and balancing your own and others’ bodies • Becoming measurably stronger through mental changes of context • Learning a more relaxed and also more powerful way of moving • Locating partners at a distance with eyes closed • Remote viewing • Deepening your connectedness with nature and other people Over the last three decades, the Leonards have introduced LET to more than 50,000 people in the U.S. and abroad. Both hold black belts in the martial art of aikido, the initial source of much of this work; George Leonard, a fifth-degree black belt in the art, is co-owner of Aikido of Tamalpais in Mill Valley, Calif. This workshop involves physical movement but is not strenuous. All that’s needed is a generous heart and a willingness to participate. Recommended reading: Leonard & Murphy, The Life We Are Given; Leonard, Mastery and The Way of Aikido. Healing the Grieving Heart ficult and arduous, not simply because of the nature of the territory, but because most of us are so ill-prepared for the journey. As inhabitants of a death-denying culture, there is little support available for the process of coming to terms with loss. Yet with proper guidance, we can not only survive the unimaginable, but we can become more whole, more loving, and more fully human in the process. This workshop will explore the connection between mind, body, heart, and soul as a roadmap to healing loss in whatever form it has come to us. Through a blend of process work, guided dialogue, music, and nature, participants will become aware of the tools that most effectively support the needs of their unique situations. This workshop is appropriate for those who have experienced grief and loss of any form at any time in their lives. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. Ken Druck & Charlie Bloom Women and Aging: An Ageless Conversation Paula Shaw We are never truly prepared for the reality of aging. Even though we witness others going And inevitably we get there. The free ride of youth is over. We see the effects of aging in the mirror, feel it in our bodies, notice it in our minds. What, if anything, lies beyond this deterioration? How will all of our raised consciousness help us navigate this passage? Where is the growth in “growing old?” “This workshop,” writes Paula Shaw, “is an irreverent exploration of the issues inherent in this journey. We will examine our concerns around aging so as to actualize the wisdom we’ve gathered along the way—to experience that which is ageless in each of us. The course consists of personal processes and group interaction that explore different aspects of our lives as we age. Themes include completion, connection, compassion, creativity, and comedy (a high manifestation of the ageless perspective). We will aim to transform the experience of aging into the context of agelessness—a way to hold it all as a fascinating and potentially inspiring adventure into the DANIEL BIANCHETTA Grief is perhaps the most universal, yet misunderstood emotion of all human experience. Not simply a single feeling, grief is actually a collection of emotions, including sorrow, anger, guilt, anxiety, and ultimately peace. The path that begins with the experience of loss and ends with understanding and acceptance can be dif- through it, typically there is a high degree of personal denial that we ourselves will grow old—maybe we won’t live that long, maybe it won’t happen that way for us, maybe we even delude ourselves that old age will be conquered by the time we get there. See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 55 essential truth of life, with its ultimately mysterious ending.” Bring along a story, poem, or anecdote that exemplifies your aging experience. Weekend Massage Intensive Pablo Piekar & Sylvia Guersenzvaig Giving a massage is as pleasurable as receiving a massage once we develop the qualities of acceptance, relaxation, and peacefulness. Discover these qualities for yourself in an Esalen Massage® program led by two teachers devoted to sharing their skills and their passion for Esalen Massage. “This is a massage workshop for honoring and celebrating the gift of touch,” say Sylvia and Pablo. “Brief lectures, demonstrations, and plenty of hands-on supervised class time will lay the foundation for this healing practice. There will be explorations in body awareness, breath, and grounding and centering practices, together with movement, meditation, and, of course, playtime.” This workshop is for both beginners and more experienced bodyworkers interested in learning new and effortless approaches to massage. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. DANIEL BIANCHETTA Week of May 7–12 Women’s Integral Leadership Circle: Bring All That You Are to All That You Do Suzanne Anderson, Susan Cannon & Julia Smith in spite of it. Using a whole person, integral approach—body, mind, heart, and soul— designed to address the unique developmental issues of women you will: In the rush and busyness of your work and life, how often are you able to act from your own “ground of being,” that deepest source of authenticity, insight, and joy that you as a woman know? When your work environment encourages action over reflection, logic over intuition, decisiveness over empathy, how often are you able to listen to your own deepest instincts? Yet how often do you feel your actions might have been more satisfying and effective if you’d drawn on the full spectrum of your wisdom? Possibly, in the predominantly masculine culture of work, you feel you’re speaking a foreign language; no matter how fluent you’ve become, it’s not your native tongue. • Deepen the connection to your authentic nature • Deconstruct beliefs that limit your effectiveness as a leader • Develop and integrate your feminine and masculine capacities • Develop intuitive and body-based ways of knowing that complement analytical, logical ways • Deepen your sense of purpose and meaning in life and work • Develop an integrated set of practices to support your ongoing growth as a leader This workshop will help you explore how to lead effectively because you are a woman, not The workshop uses a variety of tools—creative arts, dialogue, storytelling, somatic awareness 56 You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. exercises-—to facilitate transformation and expand not just what you know, but fundamentally how you know. It will help you uncover your deepest gladness, so that you may bring all that you are to all that you do and a make a difference in the world. See Seminar Spotlight, page 8. Gyrokinesis® Intensive Juergen Bamberger Gyrokinesis is a complete movement system based on circular motion. Incorporating elements of yoga, dance, gymnastics, and tai chi, Gyrokinesis uses the natural movement possibilities of the spine to increase circulation of vital energy. Undulations, spirals, and ripples are the movements used to stimulate and activate all tissues and systems of the body. The movements are composed to rhythmical movement rituals that reach the entire body. Pressure on all joints is released while major muscle groups are activated and gently stretched. The result is an overall sense of reconnection, aliveness, and an awareness of center. In this workshop participants will go through these formatted movement rituals on a daily basis as well as explore aspects of breathing, self-massage, sound vibration, physical structure, and subtle energy flow. This workshop is an opportunity for an indepth Gyrokinesis experience, whether you are new to this work or have prior experience. Please note: This is not a teacher training. Gratitude and Kindness Howard Joel Schechter & Barbara Lee My religion is kindness — The Dalai Lama This life we are given is a precious gift. Our natural response to this privilege, were we not so distracted by planning and worry, is gratitude. When we are in gratitude we are passionately present and alive to the beauty of creation. Then joy floods in, and kindness is our response. We seek to repay the gift of Life with our gift of kindness—kindness to our intimate partners, friends, casual encounters, the earth and all its creatures. Howard and Barbara write: “In this workshop we cultivate gratitude and kindness by allowing the dark side to arise, working with it, and then loosening its hold upon us, following the ancient proverb: ‘It is better to light a single candle than to curse the darkness.’ Gratitude and kindness help release old resentments and pain, and serve as a force for growth. The reason so many are transformed after a life-threatening experience is that gratefulness for life becomes predominant. Our intention is to nourish this natural inclination—without having to experience such dire circumstances.” Discussion, interactive exercises, and facilitation for those who wish to work on specific issues will be blended with interventions that meet the needs of the group. The movement of the group from one process to the next will be determined by individual needs in the moment. The approach is grounded in the spiritual traditions of East and West and is guided by the dynamic psychological techniques of psychosynthesis, Gestalt, Process Oriented Psychology, family systems, and the expressive arts. Esalen Massage Intensive Peggy Horan & Vicki Topp Esalen Massage® is a creative form of somatic bodywork that is continually evolving. The essence of Esalen Massage is the awareness and presence the practitioner brings to addressing individual needs, balancing the whole person, and honoring the healing power of touch. This workshop will provide a safe and supportive environment for you to learn connection through Esalen Massage. The fundamental elements of Esalen Massage—breath awareness, quality of touch, long integrative body strokes, and creative table movements—will be presented through brief lectures, demonstrations, and hands-on practice. The integration of movement into each session will allow the practitioner to effortlessly impart a sense of fluidity and ease to the recipient. Sessions will include plenty of personal instruction and assistance to support the process of learning. The goal is to create a firm foundation of massage which feels as satisfying to give as to receive. This workshop is for individuals and partners interested in learning the current Esalen approach to massage and bodywork. Come prepared to touch and to be touched, both in the workshop and by the beauty, power, and spirit of Esalen and the Big Sur coast. All levels of experience are welcome. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. In Search of Optimum Health Dennis Gates We are what we eat, what we drink, what we breathe, what we think, what we feel, what we practice. We are our own energy. Optimum health means having the energy to live life without effort. Why has modern life made our ability to understand our health, and to have sufficient energy, so difficult and complex? Wisdom dictates it should be simple. Andrew Weil developed a natural plan for this in his classic book, Eight Weeks to Optimum Health. Leonardo da Vinci, in the 15th century, discussed his concepts of “wise health” (besides being a painter, inventor, and astronomer, Leonardo was a nutritionist and a “gentle vegetarian”). Dennis Gates, a former orthopedic surgeon and currently director of the Optimum Health Center in Chicago, has taken the wisdom of history’s health gurus, from the cavemen to da Vinci to Andrew Weil, enveloped it with his own learning and experiential knowledge, and produced a prac- tical, commonsense workshop to help you to reach optimum health—and have fun doing it. Gates will gently guide you through the principles of optimum health. Nutrition is only one aspect of health—this course goes far beyond that. Didactic and interactive sessions, relaxation sessions and exercise sessions, will be intermingled so that when you leave this workshop, you will have the knowledge to live a healthy life in its simplest form. For more information, go to www.optimumhealthchicago.org. Recommended reading: Weil, Eight Weeks to Optimum Health; Pasternak, Five Factor Fitness; MacCurdy, The Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Prayer of the Heart Olga Louchakova The Spiritual Heart is the most important subtle energy center in the body, opening into universal dimensions of the Self. Heart meditation on the Self is central to the mystical traditions of the Christian East, Sufism, Kundalini Yoga, and Advaita Vedanta. Awakening the Spiritual Heart leads to deeper self-knowledge and personal growth, and promotes dialogue and lasting peace between people of different cultures and religions. In the West, the Prayer of the Heart was transmitted from the Gnostics to the early Desert Fathers, Sufis, and Byzantine monks, and is preserved to this day by Indian saints and Russian hermits. It transcends formal religion and can be used by spiritual seekers of any orientation. The practice begins with cultivating wakefulness—attention to body sensations, emotions, energy, and thoughts. Students will be taught how to concentrate on the Spiritual Heart and work with the psychological and emotional issues blocking it. They can individualize their practice by exploring relationships with spiritual archetypes through sacred images and guided visualization. There will be periods of silent meditation/prayer. Participants will learn to understand their experiences in the light of the developmental stages of the prayer and meditation. The format accommodates new students and deepens the practice for the more experienced. Working in small groups, participants will be offered individualized guidance and learn dialogue techniques for the practice of the prayer. This workshop is useful both for psychology and health professionals as well as See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 57 anyone interested in deepening their selfknowledge and spirituality. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. Weekend of May 12–14 Harmonic Presence: Primordial Wisdom and the Music of the Spheres David Hykes From the harmonic sound waves of the stillechoing Big Bang to healing sounds, from String Theory to sacred chant, the harmonic nature of vibrational Reality, heard inside and out, resounds in heart, mind, and spirit. Tune in on that eternal source through Harmonic Chant, with the original Western overtone pioneer and meditation teacher, David Hykes. Harmonic Chant is a universal sacred music integrating key principles common to Tibetan, Indian, Tuvan, Mongolian, and European sacred chant. You’ll undertake a deep journey to the original template of all music and harmony, the harmonic series, present in all our voices, and an awareness key to harmonious relationship on every scale. You’ll experience, in a new way, through chant and contemplative exercise, movement and visualization, something deeper about the harmony at work right now, and the silent listening awareness from which it arises…pure mystery! The (nonverbal) musical work includes deepsound meditation practices and yogic awareness exercises with the breath, listening, and sound sensation. The sessions present the essence of Harmonic Chant and the Harmonic Presence work, and cover wide ground musically and spiritually. All those interested in source teachings relating music, meditation, and healing practices are invited. For more information, see www.harmonicpresence.org. Recommended listening and reading: CDs (including Harmonic Meditations: Music from the Heart of the Cosmos) and writings by David Hykes. Sweet Mischief: A Lighthearted Path for Self-Realization and Restoration David Schiffman Step right up, step right in, come and enjoy the trouble you’re in. — Coyote Old Man. The radiance of a light heart changes for the better everything it reveals. It bathes us in an 58 atmosphere of playfulness, hope, and goodwill. It is born of innate wisdom and is a blessing for all who share it. If you feel that living a passionate, lighthearted, authentic life is a necessity, not a luxury, if presence to deeper, wiser, more naturally uninhibited spirits helps you balance out the needs and demands of others with your own, if you feel being free and whole in your own skin is the proper foundation for a real life lived—then you’re ready for the lighthearted path of sweet mischief. Come join David Schiffman and friends in a weekend of high spirits, joyful antics, and deep contemplation amidst all things considered. “Our aim together,” writes David, “is to express our deepest thoughts and feelings in a dreamtime celebration of lighthearted intention. We will call on the uplifting spirit medicine of ceremony, touch, dance, music, and song, along with the powers of spirit-family and personal daring and sharing. Our mission: to reconnect with what is free, natural and alive inside usÉ A joyful tune-upÉ A time designed to leave you feeling more nimble, poised, and able to face the challenge of making the life you hope for. The Visionary State: California’s Spiritual Frontiers Erik Davis For well over a century, California has been host to a dizzying number of exotic religions, new sects, and all manner of psychospiritual practices. From Esalen to the Crystal Cathedral, from Aldous Huxley to Starhawk, from Hollywood astrologers to UFO cultists, California has pushed the boundary of spiritual experience and religious community. In this workshop, Erik Davis will explore the idea that California’s alternative spirituality is a distinct religious tradition on its own. Using photographs, film clips, and music, the course will provide an overview of “California consciousness” and the fascinating reasons that this new-edge sensibility set down roots on the West Coast. In particular, the course will focus on four major dimensions of the California consciousness: nature, the body, the evolution of consciousness, and media technology. The author of the celebrated The Visionary State: A Journey through California’s Spiritual Landscape, lavishly illustrated with Michael Rauner’s photography, Erik Davis spent a number of years traveling the state, interviewing seekers, and visiting sacred sites and spiritual architecture. For this workshop, he will You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. be joined by Michael Rauner, who will present images of the unusual sacred spots that tell the story of California’s spiritual history. By discovering why the human potential movement and other psychospiritual trends emerged on the West Coast, participants will encounter ancestors and secret histories buried in the spiritual landscape that surrounds us. Big Sur Artists Tour: A Celebration of Living on the Edge Jayson Fann & Big Sur Artists Throughout its colorful history, Big Sur has drawn distinguished artists and creative individuals from all over the world. This legacy, combined with its magnificent, elemental landscape, has produced a unique cultural heritage, a rich blending of artistry and self-sufficiency applied to every aspect of living. This workshop offers a rare opportunity to visit and learn from some of the most talented artists of the Big Sur coast at their home studios and at the Esalen Arts Center. The weekend will include classes in landscape painting, poetry, and music, as well as other creative adventures to stimulate, inspire, and renew the spirit. The goal will be to maximize your creativity and explore the magical ocean and mountain landscapes of Big Sur. ($35 materials fee paid directly to the leader) Evolutionary Activism and the Mutation of Consciousness Alan Sasha Lithman Can we resolve the unprecedented complexity of crises we face through a return to past wisdoms? Or are these accelerating crises the evolutionary catalysts challenging the absolutes of our spiritual and scientific traditions, pressing us toward a mutation of consciousness? If these crises are in fact the terrestrial labor pains preceding the birth of a new principle of being, then we are the first sufficiently selfaware species to consciously participate in its own mutation. But how to proceed? How do we develop the evolutionary skills to de-traumatize the transition, discovering a more trustworthy inner compass than ego to guide us through the turmoil ahead? This workshop will address these questions, helping participants learn to think in evolutionary terms and timeframes so we can better prepare ourselves and our systems to handle the intensities of the transformational DANIEL BIANCHETTA process, and become more effective agents for change at the personal, cultural, ecological and cellular levels, integrating mysticism and activism. Through a series of experiential exercises, participants will explore concepts such as “evolutionary triage,” “changing our genetic psychology,” “Love as Healer,” “phased metamorphosis,” and “evolutionary activism.” This process is designed to help participants identify practical strategies for personal/collective transformation and build community from the group of participants to demonstrate the critical role of Community and Compassion in our future unfolding. Recommended reading: Lithman, An Evolutionary Agenda for the Third Millennium: A Primer for the Mutation of Consciousness. Sharing the Path: Mothers and Daughters Carol Adrienne & Sigrid Matthews The leaders, a mother-daughter co-facilitation team, write: “The closest relationship we ever have is with our mothers. We come from mothers, and we may well become mothers. This biological bond, potentially as strong as the oldest oak tree, is all too often severed, taken for granted, or in need of healing. In this workshop, we create a warm, safe environment to explore the shared destinies and the shadows. Whether you come alone or with your own mother or daughter, you will have a chance to examine how you are alike, how you are different, and how you may be living out the unconscious patterns of this primary relationship, which affect other realms of your life.” Gentle yoga exercises will help to open the body and release stored unresolved issues. Reflective writing exercises and frank discussions—with humor—will help to spotlight the messages you received from your mother, what she received from her mother, and how these may need to be transformed so that you can both grow. It’s never too late to clear the past. You may be surprised at how the obstacles, concerns, or anxieties you face in career and relationship can be tied to family myths that keep you from having the life you want. This workshop offers specific strategies and principles to take the heat off any issues you have (or have had) with your mother, and to give you tools for improving your relationship and communication. Week of May 14–19 Vegetarian Cooking: Live Longer, Eat Better Charlie Cascio Where’s the beef? It’s hiding in such fatal diseases as cancer, stroke, and heart failure. Many people accelerate their own failing health and premature death by what they eat even though medical science has proven that by changing to a vegetarian diet you can add many more enjoyable years to your life. Charlie Cascio, former longtime Esalen kitchen manager, is both a culinary artist and a catalyst. He also has been eating a vegetarian diet for the past 38 years. His mission is to help people find a healthy way of eating without compromising taste. Exploring the cuisine of meatless cooking requires creativity to be successfully accepted by the meat-eaters that you feed. Cascio writes: “Let’s gather up our creative culinary interest, along with the greens, rice, and beans, and start to learn the different approaches to a healthy meatless cuisine. Our topics will include: quick and easy vegetarian meals, gourmet main courses, soups, See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 59 salads, desserts, sauces, dressings, and breads. We will also explore vegan and wheat-free recipes. And we’ll discuss in depth the health benefits of a vegetarian diet, product information, and nutrient consideration.” This is a hands-on course where participants will be preparing most of the meals that they will be eating during the week. Systemic Constellations: Open Topic Jane Peterson Constellation work, as developed by Bert Hellinger, offers an exploration of the hidden systemic orders operating in human relationship systems. In this workshop you will have the opportunity to work with the internal dynamics of your own system, be it family-based, organizational, existential, or ecological. Tim Beckwith In a vast range of expression and function, from the lightness of decorative elegance and humor to the depths of shamanic ritual, people have since ancient times created masks that bridge the inner and outer worlds in a uniquely powerful way. They are both works of art and tools for transformation. To make a mask with the intention to wear it can stir a deep and passionate excitement that feels different from any other form of art making. Using a variety of materials, this workshop will investigate the infusion of spirit and artistic expression in the maskmaking process while learning the basics of how to make a mask that is truly wearable. As a group, participants will create a supportive opportunity to wear the completed masks and surrender into an exploration of their spirit and nature through dramatic improvisational movement and vocalization. ($50 materials fee paid directly to the leader) Beginning Anew: Healing the Battered Heart Susan Weitzman All relationships contain rocky roads, but some contain interactions that are both disabling and undermining for the partners. When such patterns endure, the effect is the erosion of self-esteem, decrease in emotional vigor, and even the decaying of physical wellbeing. So how do we recognize such patterns and move beyond them? And how do we recover once we have left such a situation? This workshop, based upon Susan Weitzman’s “Leaving Behind, Beginning Anew” retreats, is for anyone who has experienced or is currently involved in a life-draining relationship, and who is seeking ways to “begin anew.” Participants will have the opportunity to learn how to internalize healthy-partnering communication styles and increase self-love, both of which lead to an increasing intolerance of dysfunctional relationship patterns in our lives. The workshop will also focus on recognizing early warning signs that will guide us on our paths to healthy and happy connectedness. Using methods designed to facilitate deep expression as well as ritual, special emphasis will be placed on the letting go of the past and healing the scars the battered heart sustains. Throughout this journey, the program will explore how the down-points can be transformed and experienced as turning points for individual growth. This program can also be useful for those in the helping professions. Recommended Reading: Weitzman, Not to People Like Us: Hidden Abuse in Upscale Marriages. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. DANIEL BIANCHETTA “Join us for this ‘open’ workshop,” Jane Peterson writes, “as we use the deeper knowing of our bodies, our sense of relationships in space, and the very wisdom of our bones to explore issues ranging from family and relationship to business and existential dilemmas. We will use the form of systemic constellations as a jumping off point to discover the truths of our soul and engage with the Mystery in the knowing field.” The Art and Soul of Mask Making 60 You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. The Heart of the Matter Kathryn Altman & Jonathan Horan “The Heart of the Matter,” the leaders write, “is a field trip into the land of forgotten feelings, where we learn the art of befriending our emotions, expressing them with purity and directness. In our time together we will reawaken the fluid stream between our emotions (the heart) and our bodies (the matter). Gradually, we’ll shake off the layers of protection that leave so many of us hungering for intimacy with ourselves, friends, and lovers, a community. “Dancing Gabrielle Roth’s 5Rhythms, a cathartic form of ecstatic moving meditation, we free our bodies and feel what is held in our hearts. Taking refuge from the world of doing, we’ll dance in this land where mountains meet ocean, and remember our true nature: the wild and tender beating hearts that lie just below the surface. And along the way, we reclaim our power to love.” Recommended reading: Roth, Sweat Your Prayers and Maps to Ecstasy. 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 weeklong workshop will venture out on five day-hikes, 4-10 miles in length. The leader will draw from a wide range of contemporary and age-old wisdom traditions, borrowing from psychology, meditation, aikido, ecology, and the natural sciences to weave together a wholistic 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 will be sent upon registration. Weekend of May 19–21 Quiet Spine, Calm Heart, Restful Mind Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen This workshop will explore the psychophysical relationships of the spine, heart, and mind that underlie a deep, resilient, restful state. Bonnie Cohen writes: “We will be working directly and specifically with our anatomical structures in embodying small and subtle changes in our bodies that bring profound changes in our cores, our actions, our expression, and our communication with others.” • Quieting your spine provides a balanced container for your skeletal and organic structures. It manifests as deep rest in your central vertical core of self. • Calming your heart provides access to your feelings and embodied emotions. It manifests as deep rest within the turmoil and challenges of your karmic path. • Balancing your senses provides a full spectrum from which to perceive the world you live in. It manifests as deep rest in perceiving each moment. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Focusing: The Inner Relationship Ann Weiser Cornell Focusing is a body-centered technique for reaching beyond familiar thoughts and feelings to an underlying “felt sense” of something. Instead of the usual internal chatter, you start to listen in a relaxed and friendly way to the parts of yourself that do not normally get attention. Out of this deeper bodily listening, creative and transformative openings can emerge. This experiential workshop is a deep introduction to the spirit, attitudes, and methods of Focusing. You’ll learn how to tune in to “felt senses,” messages from your deeper self that are held in your body. You’ll learn how to create a climate of acceptance and welcome within so that you can hear from these parts of yourself without judgment. You’ll learn how to receive the messages that lead to relief and release in your body when you do. The workshop will provide a safe and supportive atmosphere in which your inner sense of rightness is respected, even to whether and when you speak in the group. You’ll learn how to guide yourself through a Focusing process, and you’ll practice partnership skills that support making Focusing a regular and trusted part of your life. Those who aren’t familiar with the Focusing process will begin to learn to use it immediately. Those who are familiar with it will go even deeper. Helping professionals will learn powerful tools for working with clients. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. Eating, Food, and the Body/Self Jerome Front Eating, food, and the body/self are intimately intertwined. Tapping into these connections using the practices and metaphors of food and the body can lead to healing, transformation, and awakening. In a retreat atmosphere, you’ll be taught contemplative, somatic, and psychological tools for feasting on the experience of being alive. Dimensions of eating and food that are experienced with mindful awareness can lead to a reopening of psychological depth, a fuller embodiment, and a deeper sense of the creative, relational, and spiritual aspects of being alive. Otherwise, unacknowledged hungers, unrecognized feelings, trances, wounds, and personal mythologies around eating and the body misdirect our energies into filling these voids and away from being free and fully alive. This workshop offers neither a diet plan nor medical advice, but it does provide tools to help you focus on sources of true nourishment. Topics include: • Your unique food mythologies, patterns, and trances • Interconnectedness of Self, Other, and Cosmos • Communal stories and release of shame and secrets • Eating and the body as practice for renewal, contemplation, and meditation There will be silent community meals, selfassessment stories, music and ritual, meditation, and deep relaxation. Teachings and activities will alternate with periods of silence. Open to all, the workshop is an especially rich resource for therapists and nurses. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 61 DANIEL BIANCHETTA From Conflict to Closeness: A Workshop for Couples Susan Weitzman & Richard Goldwasser This workshop is specially designed for couples who are tired of the excessive ups and downs that are abundant in their relationship. While any two people invested in being part of a couple are bound to have conflicts, the ideal situation is an atmosphere in which your conflicts become stepping stones and learning experiences, rather than walls and a feeling of ever-growing distance between you. This workshop will explore ways to increase communication and work toward greater intimacy. The experience will include discussions, both in group and alone together, in which to practice new skills for resolving conflict, use tools for “fighting fair,” and rekindle the energies that drew you together in the beginning. The leaders write: “Having spent much of our professional careers working with couples, as well as devoting ourselves to the importance of relationship in our personal lives, we are excited about this workshop because it offers 62 couples a unique opportunity to get away and focus solely on themselves and their relationship. Hopefully, participants will take home with them some tools for increasing communication skills, tips for negotiation and conflict resolution, and, most important, a greater sense of closeness.” Moving Pictures: Video Storytelling for Beginners Haydn Reiss Good video cameras and affordable desktop editing are everywhere. What’s still needed is how to take those tools and use them to tell your stories. The emphasis of this workshop is away from the technical world of equipment, and toward learning the building blocks of great documentary storytelling. Exercises will include writing a simple script or outline (from family history or other personal experience), developing a production plan (identifying what are the elements your story needs), practicing the art of the interview (the backbone of documentaries), learning about affordable resources (such as stock You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. footage and license-free music), and laying out a “paper edit” of your film. “In short,” writes Haydn Reiss, “we will imagine our film and draft a plan to create it. We will also screen some classic documentaries for inspiration and insight. The world of personal filmmaking is continually expanding with plenty of room for innovation. Just as there isn’t one way to write a story, there isn’t one way to make a documentary. Yet, as with any craft, there are some tried-and-true skills that distinguish amateur from more professional work. The goal of the workshop is to explore those skills and also discover our own personal approaches to video storytelling.” The Hidden Mirror: Magic and the Byways of Western History Marco Pasi “What is magic?” writes Marco Pasi. “This question has haunted generations of scholars and intellectuals. Many answers, and different definitions, have been given, often divergent or contradictory. Tens of thousands of pages have been written on the subject, whose pres- ence remains so conspicuous, even today in our society, despite all predictions of its demise, finally conquered by the light of Western rationality. Yet, magic still stands fast against all its foes, and, well, it may even be gaining ground. “Positivists and fundamentalists alike may ask, ‘What went wrong?’ Nothing at all—the worm was in the apple right from the start (or was it a serpent?). The aim of this workshop is to talk with the worm and ask him what the taste of the apple is. We will focus on a series of key moments in the history of magic in order to show how discourses on magic have been instrumental, and fundamental, for the shaping of Western cultural identity.” This public workshop is presented in connection with the Esalen Center for Theory and Research (CTR) invitational conference on Esotericism, May 14-19, at which Marco Pasi is a participant/presenter. Week of May 21–26 The Upledger Institute’s SomatoEmotional Release I SomatoEmotional Release (SER) is a healing process that helps rid the mind and body of residual effects of past trauma and associated negative emotional experiences. Joint research efforts by Dr. John Upledger and biophysicist Dr. Zvi Karni led to the discovery that the body often retains (rather than dissipates) physical forces resulting from accident, injury, or emotional trauma, and then isolates the dysfunctional area, creating an “energy cyst.” Although a reasonably healthy body can work and adapt to “energy cysts,” extra energy is required to perform normal bodily functions. As the years pass, the adaptive pattern of the body loses its effectiveness, and symptoms and dysfunctions begin to appear which become more difficult to ignore or suppress. In SER I, students learn how to assist the patient/client in physically identifying and expelling the “energy cyst” and in reexperiencing and resolving unpleasant memories. Before participating in this course, students must complete Upledger CranioSacral I and II, either at Esalen or elsewhere. Please note: Registration for this workshop is only through The Upledger Institute. Please call 1-800-233-5880. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Practical Shape Shifting Lavinia Plonka O wad some Power the giftie gie us To see oursels as ithers see us! — Robert Burns The relationship that got away, the deal that fell through, the awful party: The inadvertent signals we send with our unconscious postures, gestures, and breath affect every interaction—both with others and with ourselves. But these habitual gestures are almost impossible for us to see, like asking a fish how the water is. Yet, there is a precise science to reading others, and a practical way to begin to observe your own body language in order to “shift” towards the kind of manifestations that can get you what you really want in life. This workshop—for teachers, performers, healers, and students of life—is based on Lavinia Plonka’s book, Walking Your Talk: Body Language Keys To Unlock Your Personal Power. Her synthesis ranges from the ancient Sanskrit Natyasastra through 19th-century teacher Francois Delsarte to contemporary researchers like Paul Ekman. Applications from commedia dell’arte to Alba Emoting blend with lessons from The Feldenkrais Method®, in a refreshing approach to self-study. This wild, sometimes hilarious, sometimes moving adventure will provide fascinating information and practical tools to align your dreams with the life you want to be living. You’ll never look at yourself or others the same way again. For more information, visit www.laviniaplonka.com. Recommended reading: Plonka, What Are You Afraid Of? A Body/Mind Guide to Courageous Living. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Stronger at the Broken Places: Relationship Challenges as Initiatory Experiences Charlie & Linda Bloom The mind seeks an easy relationship. The heart seeks a spiritual partner. Many factors draw us into relationships: physical attraction, a desire for intimacy, financial concerns, to name a few. Then there are our deeper, often unconscious agendas, matters of the heart that are usually less apparent, although no less compelling. A soulmate is someone with whom we can learn the lessons required for our deeper purposes to be fulfilled. These lessons have to do with free- ing ourselves from limiting patterns of behavior and beliefs that interfere with our ability to be free, whole, and loving. This process of liberation often pits us against challenges that stretch our capacities, that confront us with unhealed wounds and incompletions. This is the deeper purpose of relationships: to compel us to go beyond the edges of our familiar reality and into the terrain of the unknown. Each time we successfully move into and through these painful ordeals of the heart we claim increasingly larger aspects of ourselves, bringing us to progressively higher levels of consciousness. In this workshop, participants will learn how to embrace and take full advantage of the teachings that relationships provide for us as we strengthen the capacity to stand more firmly and openly in the face of the fire. Singles as well as couples are welcome. Recommended reading: C. & L. Bloom, 101 Things I Wish I Knew When I Got Married. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. The Transformative Power of Storytelling Karen Dietz Imagine what could be possible for you if you could reach the hearts and minds of people every time you speak. Imagine if you could easily tell stories that inspire others. Then perhaps it’s time you turned your attention to learning how to tell magical and powerful stories. If you want someone to remember you or your material, then tell a story. Stories convey ideas, knowledge, and wisdom faster than any other form of communication. They are remembered long after facts and figures fade, and are inspiring and fun. In this workshop, you’ll learn to develop powerful, meaningful stories that are uniquely yours. You’ll also find out just how enjoyable speaking and storytelling can be. In a safe and positive environment, you’ll experience the magic and transformative power of storytelling, no matter what your skill level. • Learn to transform content into a compelling message that moves others • Increase your ability to bring out the best in people • Develop material that touches the hearts and minds of others • Learn to find and craft the powerful stories that are all around you • Deliver your stories authentically See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 63 • Discover the deeper meaning of your stories in work and life • Clarify your goals and intentions If you have questions, feel free to contact Justin Hecht at 415-673-0283 or [email protected]. CE credit for teachers; see page 5. Drumming: A Journey to the Source Weekend of May 26–28 Abbey Onikoyi Everything in the universe is in rhythm. Rhythm is a living fabric of time in which we are all woven and making music is one of ultimate ways of creatively participating with life itself. — Anu Binbinjene Embark on a rhythmic journey to the heart and soul of the drum. Immerse yourself in the waters of rhythm—rhythms of healing, rhythms of strength, rhythms of celebration and joy. This class—for all levels—is a playful exploration of rhythmic music and percussive instruments from around the world. You’ll have the opportunity to learn rhythms from Africa, the Middle East, Brazil, and the Caribbean. In addition, you’ll explore voice and body percussion, create your own rhythmic compositions, learn to play with others, and, most important, you’ll find your way to the heart and soul of music: rhythm. Authenticity, Intuition, and Creativity—For Gay and Bi Men Justin Hecht “Many gay and bisexual men long for a more authentic and satisfying life,” writes Justin Hecht. “Having grown up in a rejecting and hostile culture, we may continue to feel empty and inhibited—long after we think we’ve dealt with our sexual orientation. “In this healing and affirming workshop, we will create an intentional community to support our growth and individuation. We will develop our authenticity through sustained group process, challenging and supporting each other to be deeply honest. Through music and meditation, we will allow our intuition to emerge and inform our souls. Through small-group and paired-coaching exercises, we will encourage each other to take risks and commit to living more creatively.” Please note: Music has played an integral part in this workshop for many years. To introduce yourself to the group, please select two pieces of music that are deeply meaningful to you. Your selections should be no longer than five minutes and should be in CD or MP3 format. If you prefer, you are welcome to bring a meaningful piece of art in another format, such as poetry or painting. 64 Start Over: Choose Aliveness and Intimacy Mary Goldenson We have all experienced moments of feeling totally alive, yet much of our life is spent in a half-asleep, half-committed state of being. While there are many life-situations beyond our control, we choose how we respond to these events. The choice to be passionately alive is an act of courage. To choose life is to: • Open ourselves to all of life—suffering, joy, success, failure, love, and grief • Fully acknowledge the truth of who we are • Commit to living our deepest values and dreams • Define what we must change in our relationships • Learn new ways to heal, forgive, and communicate The challenge is to honestly address the ways in which we have compromised, given up, or lied to ourselves and others. This workshop is designed to bring to awareness our unconscious choices of how we deaden ourselves and to create the possibility for new aliveness and passionate involvement. Come alone or with a partner. A safe, supportive atmosphere will be provided, using communication skills, movement, Gestalt, and Reichian work. This workshop may have up to 34 participants. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. Mind, Mood, and Happiness: Meditation and MindBody Healing Ronald Alexander People can learn to grow—to change their thinking and behavior in ways that enhance happiness and well-being. Studies in the fields of health psychology and learned optimism confirm this. For 2,500 years, the wisdom teachings of the East have utilized what their texts refer to as “skillful methods” for the study and transformation of the mind/body. These meditation and visualization practices help to cultivate self-regulation through awareness, concentration, mindfulness, and other attention skills, leading to You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. clarity of mind, spaciousness of self, and greater compassion. Using techniques from modern psychology and Tibetan Buddhism along with non-dual teachings (Advaita-Vedic), participants will be taught skills to calm the mind, regulate affect states, develop trust with the unconscious, and explore inner resources for activating creativity, vitality, and a sense of well-being. Methods include: • Developing skills for accessing the resources of the core self • Utilization of the unconscious for activating internal healing resources • Meditation (insight, Tibetan, and non-dual) and psychological skills to deepen concentration, promote insight, and develop presence • Exploration of natural mind/body healing rhythms (yogic and somatic breathing methods) • Buddhist psychological methods for dealing with unpleasant or painful “afflictive” states of mind • Discussion of mind, self, and happiness from both Western Self-psychology and Buddhist psychology perspectives • Practices that promote lovingkindness Recommended reading: Goleman, Healing Emotions: Conversations with the Dalai Lama; Csikszentmihalyi, Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience: Fryba, Art of Happiness: Teaching of Buddhist Psychology. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Anchoring into Our Inner Being: An Anusara Yoga Journey Ulrika Engman Ulrika Engman writes: “For this Spring weekend we will open up the gateway of our hearts, breathing life and love into the beautiful inner garden of our Yoga practice. Together we will create sacred time and space to water the seeds of inspiration deep within, rekindling the fire that drew us into Yoga. Through the contrast of dynamic and soft asana/poses, universal flow of alignment, and intention, we will surrender into the current of breath to soften the edges of our outer body/mind. Throughout the journey we will stop in various poses and explore three powerful focal points of stillness: the core of the the pelvis, the heart, and the upper palate. We will reflect on how living fully connected to these focal points brings us in contact with a state of being that is Yoga, a magnetic sacred union with the inner state of balance. By gaining this inner awareness we attain greater access to the gateway of the heart where we are clear, open, and freer to live our Yoga on and off the mat, truly anchored in our inner being.” Please bring your own yoga mat. For more information about Ulrika, please visit www.Yoga-Journeys.com. Lesbian Relationships: Intimacy and Interdependence Diana Gray “Lesbians have the capacity to form intense heart connections to each other,” writes Diana Gray. “However, this emotional capacity also creates for us the challenge of being loving toward others while being loving toward ourselves. Our desire to be close can also bring up fears of intimacy and abandonment. Often we feel blocked in being able to create a vision of relationship that allows us a balance between independence and dependence.” The workshop is open to lesbians by themselves or with their partners. It is also helpful for professionals who work with lesbian couples. Please wear comfortable clothing. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. Using Finger Signals to Tap the Wisdom of the Inner Mind Adam Crabtree Everyone has experienced the power and wisdom of the inner mind for bringing about healing and growth. The question is how to be able to tap this rich resource when we have the need, and, importantly, how to be able to obtain information from the inner mind that is free from the distortions that arise from rigid analytical thinking, irrational subconscious complexes, and the influence of the expectations of the group and cultural forces that surround us. What is needed are approaches that can bypass these obstructions and allow the wisdom of the inner mind to come through undistorted. This workshop will explore the use of finger signals and other methods that circumvent the blocks and filtering mechanisms arising from these influences. The approaches explored make use of “automatisms” that avoid ordinary conscious thinking and its verbal expression. The workshop will help participants become familiar with methods for establishing these “ideodynamic” signals for themselves and helping others use them. It will also offer ideas for employing finger signals as an aid in the practice of various healing arts, including psychotherapy, counseling, and emotional bodywork. This public workshop is presented in connection with the Esalen Center for Theory and DANIEL BIANCHETTA This workshop will use a variety of structured experiences to help lesbians increase their capacity to be in more satisfying, balanced, intimate relationships with themselves and others. Music, small- and large-group discussion, presentations, and drawing will enable you to get closer to your relationship vision. You will learn how to more easily connect with your own strength, creativity, sensitivity, flexibility, and ability to compromise. You will leave feeling more confident about creating the balanced heart-connection you desire. See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 65 Research (CTR) invitational conference, “Survival of Bodily Death,” May 21-26, at which Adam Crabtree is a participant/ presenter. tive. Your muscles tense. You can’t seem to get in a romantic mood. Your body says, I really don’t like the way this feels. You tell yourself, There must be something wrong with me. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. Our body, in its wisdom, continually sends us signals. We know we should pay attention, but our mind takes over. We reject the body as wrong—too weak, too lustful, too fat, too old. Instead of listening to our body’s natural wisdom we do the opposite, then wonder why we don’t feel better. Week of May 28–June 2 Senses Wide Open: An Active Exploration of Presence Johanna Putnoi Scene: You shake hands with a stranger. Warmth and kinship seem to flow into you. Your body says, Pursue this relationship. You tell yourself, I must be imagining things. You turn away. Scene: You go on a long walk. You return home feeling fit and refreshed. Your body says, I feel great. But when you look in the mirror you tell yourself, I’ll never look the way I should. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Holistic Sexuality: A New Integral Approach Ramon Albareda & Marina Romero This workshop is for individuals who wish to access the full potential of their vital primary energy, and explore how this energy can be creatively expressed and integrated at somatic, emotional, mental, and spiritual levels. It is designed to teach you how to connect with this energy not only as a creative force in everyday life, but also as a bridge to the deepest dimension of reality and a catalyst for a grounded spiritual growth. It will also assist you in the discovery of your own unique path of integral evolution through the grounding of your consciousness in your own vital potentials. The leaders write: “We understand Sexuality to mean the vital primary energy of the person, and Holistic refers to the different levels— DANIEL BIANCHETTA Scene: Your lover’s touch feels rough, insensi- Learning to live fully in your body changes your relationship to everything—to yourself, to others, to the earth. This workshop in the Lomi Somatic tradition integrates Western psychological and bodywork perspectives with Eastern spiritual disciplines. The tools are presence, perception, contact, and practice. The disciplines used are meditation, conscious movement, bodywork, breathwork, and Gestalt. This is an opportunity to practice interrupting your habits of body, heart, and mind by expanding your ability to see, hear, sense, feel, and be existentially present. Recommended reading: Putnoi, Senses Wide Open: The Art and Practice of Living in Your Body. 66 You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. somatic, emotional, mental, spiritual—in which this energy is transformed as well as the totality of this transformation.” The principles and practices that shape Holistic Sexuality are inspired by life’s natural processes as organic references for transformation and healing. The fruit of decades of research and experience, Holistic Sexuality is affiliated with neither tantra nor other methods of working with sexuality. The leaders will facilitate group process as well as counsel each participant individually to design personalized practices. You will learn how to safely self-regulate your own process from an awareness of your present capabilities and necessary boundaries. This workshop will guide you in: • Developing a path of self-knowledge, regeneration, and creative evolution • Transforming the limiting unconscious tendencies of your vital primary world • Working through conflicts that hinder your sexual self-expression • Integrating sexual and spiritual energies to enhance the quality of your life Please note: Instruction given in Spanish, with English translation provided. The Song of the Drum Gordy Ryan & Bruce Langhorne “Our goal,” the leaders write, “is soulful, downto-earth communication as we play and sing on a cultural journey from West Africa to New Orleans. As we open our ears, our voices, and our hearts we become vehicles for the expression of Spirit, bringing the muse of sweet inspiration to our lives.” This workshop is a celebration of funk and fun in an environment of compassion and interaction among friends on the path of a living cultural energy. Each session includes a clear presentation of hand-drumming fundamentals that will be applied in the rhythmic arrangements of the songs to be played. There is a place in this orchestra for everyone who loves music—begining to advanced players are equally welcome. Songwriting and creativity will be nurtured. treating schoolmates with homemade herbal remedies. Later she spent two and half years in the Ozarks eating only wild plants. She brings a lifetime of experience to this workshop. Participants will explore the edible and healthful properties of local plants, herbal preparations, effective dosages, and safety issues. Brigitte will provide information on using herbs to treat common health conditions such as insomnia, fatigue, and depression; to improve immunity; as natural first aid; and to enhance energy, sexuality, and longevity. The workshop will provide participants with an understanding of how the flavors of plants correspond to their properties. Participants will learn to incorporate herbs, food, and essential oils for health and vitality. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. The Writer’s Way: Another Path Through the Wilderness Nancy Bacal At the tip of the pen confusion blossoms into riches. This is an invitation to join a dynamic community of writers, gathered together for five days to experiment, share material, permit our writing to be coaxed to a new level. The mission: to explore the human condition by writing the stories of our own lives, to move courageously past the critic, beyond blocks and shame, to translate the bittersweet paradoxes of life onto the page. The process is risky, evocative, joyous. Each writer is met with wisdom and compassion on his or her own level, challenged to move beyond habit into the realm of art. Life is not tidy. Writing will not change this, but it will provide a grateful container to receive it. Old students are particularly welcome. For new people interested in this process, an open mind, heart, and some writing experience is preferred. The Realm of the Sensuous: Esalen Massage® and Partner Yoga Ellen Watson & Daniela Urbassek Herbal Medicine Brigitte Mars Brigitte Mars first became interested in herbs watching her French-Canadian grandmother practicing folk medicine. As a teenager she developed her passion for herbal medicine by “Partner yoga is an exciting new development in the ancient practice of yoga,” writes Ellen Watson. “While individual practice cultivates awareness, focus, and clarity of oneself, partner asana takes us a step further, into the world of relationship with another. Working with a partner can support deeper, stronger poses, greater balance, and requires the consistent dance to and from awareness of self to awareness of another. This supports development of the desired presence for learning the fine art of Esalen Massage.” “Esalen Massage is a healing art form, evolved over 45 years at the Esalen baths. Influenced by the rhythms of the Pacific, this form of touch engages all the senses and offers deep release and relaxation to both giver and receiver. The dynamics of partner yoga translate well to the relationship that develops on the massage table: giving and receiving energy and weight, while paying exquisite attention to oneself and another.” Mornings will begin early with chanting, meditation, and ecstatic dance. After breakfast, Ellen and Daniela will teach the essentials of Esalen Massage. As the sun lowers over the Pacific, the group will gather again for partner yoga to cultivate awareness and presence and develop inner balance and harmony. Friday morning, there will be a special closing ritual at the baths. This workshop is designed for every body, regardless of yoga or massage experience— bodyworkers, lovers, family, and friends. Bring loose, comfortable clothing, an open heart, and an inquiring mind. Recommended reading/viewing: (book) Ackerman, A Natural History of the Senses; (DVDs) Watson, The Art of Essential Touch; White, Partner Yoga; The Esalen Massage DVD. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Weekend of June 2–4 Self-Healing: Awakening Your Power to Create Health and Vitality Meir Schneider Do you want to see better or get rid of your glasses? Release chronic tension from stress and computer use? Overcome problems that lead to suffering and paralysis? Meir Schneider is an internationally respected health educator, pioneer, therapist, author, and founder of the San Francisco-based School for Self-Healing. Self-Healing is body-mind work that grew out of Meir’s personal journey as a teenager from blindness, caused by congenital cataracts and other serious vision disorders, to full functional vision, using eye exercises. See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 67 During this period of intense self-discovery, with Braille-sensitive hands, Meir began to craft massage and movement regimens for disabled people that brought about dramatic improvements. Self-Healing can unlock the healing potential within you. Experience specific techniques— through gentle movement exercises, self-massage, visual imagery, and breathwork—that teach you to use your body in balance. Release physical limitations and the restricted concepts of health which accompany them. Highlights include: • Methods to let go of deeply-held tension and stress • Natural vision improvement exercises, including a starlight walk to improve nighttime/peripheral vision, weather permitting • Pool/hot tub exercises to enhance joint mobility • Exercises to overcome back pain and stiffness • Strategies for preventing and overcoming repetitive strain injuries Recommended reading: Schneider, The Handbook of Self-Healing. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Transforming Awareness: Buddhist Insights for Psychotherapists Constance Hills & Daijaku Judith Kinst At the heart of Buddhism and psychotherapy is a deep commitment to compassionate awareness. This awareness is essential for successful psychotherapy, and can also be a source of support for the psychotherapist. The leaders write: “In this workshop we will kindly tend to our bodies and minds, practice meditation, and explore, through teachings and dialogues, how Buddhist practice enriches and restores our personal and professional lives. Meditation instruction will be given in both the Soto Zen and Vipassana traditions. Periods of formal silent meditation will be interspersed with walking meditation, guided body awareness and scanning meditation, and metta or lovingkindness meditation.” Topics in Buddhism and psychotherapy presented will include: (1) Buddhist insights into the nature of the self/no self; (2) tools for supporting the capacity to be simply present and for applying the insight that arises from meditation to psychotherapy with clients; 68 and (3) how meditation can be useful in reducing and managing psychological stress. The instructors will facilitate discussions on the integration of Buddhism and psychotherapy in three areas: theory, in meditation practice, and in working with clients. Nonlicensed psychotherapists are welcome to attend. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. 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 simple,” says Steve Harper. “We day-hike the mountainous paths into the wilds of Big Sur, breathe in the fresh mountain air, we soak in Esalen’s natural hot springs overlooking the waves of the Pacific—in short, we let ourselves 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 (3-10 miles in length) begin after breakfast and return 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 will be sent upon registration. Muir wrote, “The mountains are calling me and I must go.” Dare to Say Yes to the Givens of Life David Richo Everything changes and ends. Suffering is part of growth. Things do not always go according to plan. Things are not always fair. These are not just conditions of existing but of evolving. They make us the fascinating characters we are and our human story the intriguing plot that it is. Only in a transitory You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. world can we aim for the timeless. Only through suffering do we find inner strength, compassion, and our need for others. Only in an unpredictable universe do we expend all the effort we can muster. Only in the face of injustice do we work for justice and act with mercy. “The biggest risk,” says Han Hung, “is to trust that these conditions are all that we need to be ourselves.” This workshop offers specific techniques to declare, in Jung’s words, “an unconditional yes to the conditions of existence without protest.” When this happens, the givens open and we find the best of religion and depth psychology: Everything changes and endsÉ yet can be renewed—the archetype of Resurrection. Suffering is part of growthÉ yet we keep finding ways to bring good from evil—the archetype of Redemption. Things do not always go according to planÉ yet we can find the equanimity to say yes to what is—the archetype of Synchronicity, of a divine plan that makes our destiny a larger one than ever we imagined. Things are not always fairÉ yet we can be fair, even generous, giving us a sense of justice and a commitment to fight for it—the archetype of Karma, of atonement and forgiveness. Relationship Enrichment for Male Couples Michael Cohen & Daniel Merchant “For many gay men,” write the leaders, “finding a good relationship is a challenge. Once we are in one, the real work begins. Most of us are surprised at the work it takes to make a relationship succeed, and we often feel unprepared. Relationships between men need special support in our culture, which is so steeped in homophobia. “If you and your partner find yourselves in need of enrichment and/or new skills to deepen your relationship, this workshop will help. We will create a safe group of couples where we can learn about ourselves individually and as partners. We will have an opportunity to support one another toward a mutual goal: building and sustaining a rich, meaningful, and dynamic partnership. “The time will be spent working mostly with your partner, as a couple, and working together with other couples. The intentions are to: • Help you appreciate the current strengths of your relationship • Identify areas that need your attention • Learn exercises that will deepen your communication • Feel a true heart connection with each other • Experience physical and emotional support from your partner • Learn techniques to resolve repetitive disagreements • Receive support from other couples “We’ll use storytelling, intentional dialogues, movement, and humor to achieve a safe and nurturing community of male couples.” This workshop provides in-depth training in shamanic healing. At its core lies a cross-cultural overview of the nature of illness, healing, and healthcare. Hank Wesselman writes: “We will expand our connections to inner sources of power and wisdom, 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 Jill will provide her unique approach to soul retrieval.” 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 Week of June 4–9 Soul Motion: Sanctuary nature of reality, forms the foundation. This training will be most useful to those who have completed the Visionseeker I workshop or its equivalent. If in doubt, please contact Hank Wesselman before registering at PO Box 2059, Granite Bay, CA 95746, or e-mail him at [email protected]. Note: Bring a rattle, a drum, a notebook, a bandanna or eyeshade, and a light blanket. Please refrain from alcohol use during the workshop. Recommended reading: Wesselman & Kuykendall, Spirit Medicine; Wesselman, The Journey to the Sacred Garden, and The Spiritwalker Trilogy. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Vinn Martí sanc•tu•ar•y n, pl, sanc•tu•ar•ies. 1. A sacred place, such as a church, temple, or mosque. 2. A place of refuge or asylum. The wild holy man entreats us to “dance as if no one is watching.” Okay then, says Vinn Martí, let’s take that directive and create sacred space for all to move within. Soul Motion is the dance practice design developed by Martí for his mystical movement ministry which allows inquiry into consciousness through dance and expressive arts. “During this week together,” he writes, “we awaken the spirit of innovative action and creativity as we hold a high watch for one another to stumble and fumble our way toward awareness. The four relational landscapes of Soul Motion—self, other, all, One— become the ground we launch our dances from. We will identify and release what no longer serves and restore our vision to clearly see who we are and what we are doing here. “This Soul Motion experience begins and ends with the viewpoint that each and every one of us sings a song no other can. We gather alone together to support and encourage this crooning.” Visionseeker II: Spirit Medicine Hank Wesselman & Jill Kuykendall See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. DANIEL BIANCHETTA Today interest in complementary and alternative therapies is on the rise, and increasing numbers of people are rediscovering the healing modalities pioneered by indigenous peoples. The time-tested techniques of the traditional shamans are being reconsidered and reworked, providing nontribal Westerners with effective methods for healing and problem solving. 69 Trauma, Consciousness, and the Body Janina Fisher Using a multimodal approach (integrating lecture, videotapes, experiential exercises, and live demonstration), this workshop will present new advances in treatment that address the bodily effects of trauma, as well as the effects on trust, hope, and sense of safety in the world. The objectives of this course, presented by Harvard Medical School, are to: • Summarize the implications of neuroscience research for assessment and treatment of traumatized individuals • Recognize the common somatic markers of traumatic activation • Identify appropriate body-based interventions for specific trauma-based symptoms • Describe the therapist’s role as neurobiological regulator of the client This program is offered in conjunction with Harvard Medical School. For more information, including how to register, see Special Programs, page 80. Approved for CMEs for physicians. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Natural Powers: Making a Real Life out of Our Heart’s Desire The Longevity of Massage: An Advanced Massage Workshop the fire with its own imprint of the Big Sur coast.” Carl Chase (CC) & David Streeter No previous experience is required to enjoy this workshop, and it provides an opportunity to truly immerse oneself in a uniquely compelling medium of self-expression. If you are a massage professional or an advanced student of massage, this workshop is designed for you. Bodywork can be a lifetime exploration and with proper preparation and self-care the practitioner’s body can be a lifelong instrument. Carl Chase (CC) and David Streeter both have strong practices in Chi Gung and Asian movement disciplines; they make it part of their daily practice not only for personal growth and maintenance but also for their professional careers as massage therapists. They believe that it is possible to work productively and efficiently in a demanding workplace and still avoid burnout or injuries to the hands, wrists, forearms, and other parts of the body. In this workshop they will demonstrate how to incorporate movement forms into a massage practice, turning it into a vehicle for mindfulness, centering, and transformation. The focus will be on body mechanics for the more advanced moves, presenting alternatives to meet the needs of each individual style and body type. Come and explore the creative edge of movement in bodywork. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. David Schiffman “This workshop,” writes David Schiffman, “is for people who seek the courage, skill, and support to live their lives with true originality, passion, and integrity. It will be a time to explore the realms of unconventional logic and the mysteries of spirit, the fundamental realities of those who are self-made, spiritually independent, and visionary in orientation and ways. Our aim will be to cultivate the resources, rhythms, and wisdom that come from deep self-knowledge and self-mastery. “In a climate of mutual support, simple trust, and honest interest in each other, our aim will be to bring ourselves entirely toward whatever we hope for and cherish. A wide variety of psychological themes and attunement practices, both dynamic and meditative, will be used to illuminate the character of our commitment to ourselves and our style of relating to others. Together we will see what we can do to strengthen our faith and adeptness at applying the logic of our hearts to our own self-care as well as to our relationships, careers, community, and the understanding of our life’s true mission.” 70 Ceramic Insights Embree De Persiis “This workshop explores the infinite creative possibilities offered by that most primal of substances: clay,” Embree De Persiis writes. “The material used will be a smooth and tactile porcelaneous clay that is ideally suited to the ancient method of stone-burnishing with agates to produce a lustrous sheen. A palette of colored clays will be available to further enrich the surfaces of our work. As spontaneous forms emerge, many techniques can be investigated to help achieve one’s personal vision: inlaying of colored clays, pinching, coiling, and sculpting. “A variety of firing techniques based on ageold methods of pit-firing will be applied in daily (and nightly) firings, so that the results of our work can be studied on an ongoing basis. Big Sur seaweed will be an important ingredient in our firings as it imparts its minerals to the clay surfaces. The concluding event will be a celebratory pit-firing on a cliff above the ocean—each piece will emerge from You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. ($20 materials fee paid directly to the leader) Weekend of June 9–11 The Future of Love Daphne Rose Kingma Relationships are changing dramatically. Half of all marriages now end in divorce. Multitudes of people live in relationships that don’t follow the traditional marriage format. Have we become a culture of relationship failures, or are these changes like Roman candles lighting the way to a higher love? This provocative/comforting workshop reveals how love is being born anew. As old forms fall apart, we have an opportunity to inhabit the powerful place where soul energy enters our intimate relationships and invites them to become the chalice for an even greater love. If your relationship life has followed an unfamiliar path—if you aren’t still married to your high-school sweetheart, if you’ve changed your gender preference midway in your relationship life, if you’ve had a lifelong series of relationships—you may have wondered why the norm has eluded you. Through meditation, lecture, exercises, and conversation, this workshop uncovers the deeper meaning of these new relationship forms, explores what it means to be a relationship pioneer, and reflects the peace and illumination that come when we realize that the soul itself is urging us to expand our capacity for love. The workshop is for all individuals— those who are baffled or inspired by their seemingly unusual relationships, singles whose paths haven’t followed the norm, those in committed relationships (marriage or otherwise)—who want to take their relationships to a place of greater spiritual depth. Recommended reading: Kingma, The Future of Love. Introduction to Living Foods and the Raw Food Diet Charlie Cascio This is an introductory course in preparing live raw foods. The raw, or living food, diet is based on eating organic, uncooked plantbased foods, which have a high content of essential living-food enzymes. These enzymes help to digest and assimilate the food we eat without putting extra work on the body. When we cook food above 116°F the heat destroys these essential enzymes, along with a large amount of the food’s vitamins and minerals. Digestion takes longer and the body works harder to complete this task. Many of the fats, proteins, and carbohydrates of cooked food don’t completely digest and end up clogging arteries and intestines. The benefits of a living raw-food diet are increased energy levels, improved digestion, weight loss, reduced risk of heart disease, and improved appearance of skin. This course will introduce various methods used in preparing live foods, including sprouting seeds, nuts, grains, and beans; growing wheat and other grasses; making sauerkraut and other fermented foods; making nut milks; using a dehydrator; and the art of blending, juicing, and chopping to prepare raw meals with creativity and taste. This is a hands-on workshop in which participants will be eating the meals they prepare for themselves. ($15 special-foods fee paid directly to the leader) Mindfulness and Heartfulness: The Healing and Transformation of Mind and Body Mark Abramson & Fred Luskin This program is designed to integrate the practice of mindful awareness with directed heartfulness in order to facilitate growth, healing, and change. It is based on Dr. Luskin’s research at Stanford Medical School on the healing effects of forgiveness and heartfulness and Dr. Abramson’s work as the director of Stanford’s Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Program. The workshop introduces the practical application of techniques of mindfulness and heartfulness to transform emotional states and unleash the great potential for deep healing of the body. The goal: to learn new ways of relating to experience that allow greater opening, understanding, and the possibility of transformation. “Our work,” write the leaders, “has shown us that this creates an increasing experience of gentleness, kindness, and respect for oneself and others.” The program offers guided practice in mindfulness meditation, body movement, breath- ing practices, and heart opening, interspersed with lecture and interactive discussion. While the practices are especially helpful for people who are experiencing emotional or physical concerns, the universality of the experience makes this program valuable for all. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. jump-start their creativity. It will introduce the ancient process of open-faced sand casting, using a small-scale propane-fired furnace. The course will explore the allure of molten metal as a metaphor for transforming your fluid ideas into artistic form. The workshop will also utilize visualization and the beauty of Big Sur to support group members in carrying their ideas forward to completion. Healing Back Pain Without Surgery: Techniques for Relieving the Experience of Pain Participants will return home with a finished bronze of their own design. All levels of experience, from beginner to professional, are welcome. Stephen Sideroff & Michael Sinel Back pain affects approximately 80% of Americans at some point in their lives and is a leading cause of disability in persons under the age of 45. There is considerable confusion as to the actual cause and best treatment approaches for low back pain. This results in a significant amount of avoidable back surgeries and often unnecessary pain and suffering. Stress, tension, and long-standing habit patterns have been determined to be leading causes of back pain but are often misdiagnosed. You can learn to reduce many of these factors. Dr. Michael Sinel is a nationallyrenowned back-pain expert who has specialized in diagnosing and treating stress-related back pain. Along with Dr. Stephen Sideroff, a recognized expert in stress management, this workshop will assist you in diagnosis and treatment strategies for curing back pain without surgery. Self-diagnosis and management of stress-related back pain will be explored. The workshop will also help you recognize and release physical and emotional holding patterns that contribute to back pain, and learn more effective responses to stress. The format will combine lecture and discussion with experiential work designed to facilitate self-awareness, relaxation, and resilience. Participants will be given their own biofeedback monitoring devices during the workshop to assist in the process of retraining the body. The workshop will conclude with participants creating their own personalized healing program. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Molten Memory: A Short Course in Bronze Bob Lamp This workshop is for all those looking to The Body of Sacred Ground: Moving Dialogues between Life, Art, and Healing Rana Halprin Rana Halprin writes: “This workshop is designed to embrace the territory of the body as sacred ground. Our life experiences are embedded into our physical being; attending to the body and listening to its messages brings opportunity for healing. “The weekend will be an experiential introduction to the Halprin Life/Art Method. This world-renowned method of movement-arts and expressive-arts work is grounded in bodily experience. The approach will be multimodal: Students will learn tools for heightened movement awareness, integrating the universal language of the body with breath, kinetic drawing, body dialogues, imagery, creative writing, and dreams. “Individuals will learn to identify feeling states and have the opportunity for selfexpression through the creative process. The tools presented will include movement rituals and games, breath, and authentic feeling responses to body states linking feelings to movement. We will explore self-images through the use of graphic visualization, and relationship to Nature through our own inner nature and Esalen’s awesome natural environment. We will vitalize the spirit that moves us to express our ‘story’ which longs to speak out.” Though much of this weekend will be experiential, time will be set aside for personal integration, supportive dialogue, feedback, and applications. Individuals will have the opportunity to explore in groups, dyads, and individually. Please come prepared to move—and have fun. Wear comfortable clothing and bring a journal with pencil or pen and a large drawing pad. See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 71 Yoga of Action, Action of Yoga Week of June 11–16 The Esalen Yoga Retreat Shiva Rea Bailey, Mark Whitwell, Seane Corn, Thomas Michael Fortel & special guest Michael Franti Why just stretch when we can reach? W elcome to Esalen’s second annual Yoga Retreat. This year’s gathering explores yoga as a form of spiritual activism. How can we show up in the world once we’ve stepped out of the yoga room? How can we begin to use what we’ve cultivated internally to make a difference in our external environment? Join our circle for a week of consciousness raising, high vibration, and global consideration. Karma Yoga is the yoga of selfless action and service. According to Hindu philosophers, it is by means of action that one promotes a harmonious relationship between people, deities, flora, and fauna, and thus keeps the “wheel of creation” moving. All created beings are interdependent. Thus action has a cosmic significance; when done without any desire for personal gain it becomes spiritual action. The retreat begins on Sunday evening with an opening gathering to set intentions for the week to come. Early mornings will be devoted to pranayama and meditation, followed by a variety of active asana practices: dynamic vinyasa flow, energetic and alignment-based hatha yoga, and the breath-centered teachings of Krishnamacharya. Afternoons will be free to receive massages, soak in Esalen’s hot springs overlooking the Pacific, rest, recharge, and connect with other yogis. Sessions will reconvene in the late afternoons to explore restorative yoga and PM asana yoga. Evenings will feature dance and speakers, along with performances by special guest, socially conscious singer and spiritual yogi Michael Franti. The final evening will be a celebration and a reflection on the week spent together. During this week, immersed in the natural splendor of Esalen, we will practice yoga asana and pranayama, chant and meditate, dance and sing, and participate in a beautiful yajna, a fire offering. We will be working together through our practice, learning about causes, and gathering resources to help a community in need. You’ll have an opportunity to do a yoga mala—108 sun salutations—with the intention of invoking global awareness and healing. DANIEL BIANCHETTA This retreat will be full and spirited—expect to sweat and be in full classes with yoga mats close together. There will be some mats and props on hand but we recommend you bring your own for hygienic purposes. You’ll need a yoga mat, towel, a zafu or cushion for meditation, block, strap, and two blankets for restorative yoga. 72 When registering, please choose the level that best fits your practice. All classes will integrate inner yoga, energetics, philosophy, and meditation but the physical dimensions of each class are described here so that you can safely register for the group that matches your experience. Every level will have each teacher at least twice; it’s important that you stay with your group throughout the week. You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. Level 1: Less than three months of practice (about ten classes)—For students who are new to yoga and may have physical limitations or are working with very tight muscles or injuries. Learn the fundamentals of posture, breathing, and relaxation. Level 2: From three months to one year of practice (about thirty classes)—Refine the basics and gain more awareness of the body through more advanced breath work. Classes introduce and focus on alignment, relaxation, bodily awareness, yogic breathing, and energy flow as students deepen their understanding of how their bodies work. Level 3: From one to three years of practice—Practice will explore advanced standing and seated poses and begin integrating inversions. A firm understanding of bodily alignment and stamina is essential for this class. Students must be able to do both handstand at the wall and Urdhva Dhanurasana with straight arms without assistance. Level 4: More than three years of devoted practice with a home practice—For very experienced yogis who want to intensify their strong asana practice by developing a deeper internal understanding of yoga. This class practices more complex pranayama and asanas such as arm balances, binding poses, headstand and handstand away from the wall, lotus, and deep backbends. Not suitable for yogis with major physical limitations or injuries. Teachers: Seane Corn—A longtime activist for various political, social, and health efforts, Seane uses her influence and national platform as a yoga teacher to raise awareness and money for important causes. She was honored with the 2005 Sacred Sounds of Arts Conscious Humanitarian Award for her “Off the Mat, Into the World” campaign to benefit YouthAIDS, and is committed to helping globalize the yoga community to raise awareness and funds for HIV/AIDS. Her vinyasa classes are an eclectic fusion of various healing and spiritual modalities making them challenging, intuitive, insightful, and uplifting. Thomas Michael Fortel—“Over the years,” writes Thomas, “I have learned the value of going on retreat, being in uplifting company and doing work for the community. As we come to our yoga retreat, we pay to be here, we do our practices, and we offer our seva (selfless service) for the uplift of the community. This mutual respect and way of service is basic in the practices of yoga and in the Esalen community: we do our part for the maintenance of the whole.” Mark Whitwell—Yoga is love and love is action, known in the traditions as Karma Yoga. Mark Whitwell gives every type of per- son an authentic yoga practice that is powerful, efficient, and safe. It restores health and transforms your everyday life to intimacy with everything. Mark has enjoyed a lifelong relationship with the teachings of Krishnamacharya, “the Teacher of our teachers.” He has studied for many years with Desikachar and Srivatsa Ramaswami. Shiva Rea—“Yoga serves life in all forms. Just to relax the control of our breath is a form of spiritual activism. We have all been transformed by personal forms of service and activism. For me, this has been both local and global while living in Africa and India, and currently with the Sva Dharma Project, empowering visionary change. Being on retreat in nature allows us to reflect, transform, and align ourselves with a deep connection to our life force, individually and collectively giving fuel to the healing fires of love and change at this time of need. The rhythmic and breath-infused flow that I offer will be for this transformative fire.” Michael Franti—In nearly two decades of music-making, Michael has grown from a black-booted voice of youthful rage as lead singer of Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy into a barefoot clarion for social justice with Spearhead and with his solo albums. It has always been his aim to enrage, enlighten, and inspire through his words and music. “Right now, people ask me, ‘What can one person do to change what’s going on with the world?’ I don’t know what one person can do except to connect with other people. In doing that, each of us play our roles,” he says. “My role is as a storyteller and a songwriter. I’m somebody who is trying to keep the spirits of other people up, despite all the chaos and fear around us”. See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 73 Weekend of June 16–18 Working Toward More Aliveness, Pleasure, and Joy Brooke Deputy A Weekend of Restorative/ Regenerative Yoga Mark Whitwell In this workshop, Mark Whitwell, one of the teachers in the just concluded Esalen Yoga Retreat, offers a weekend of restorative Yoga especially for Yogis and Yoginis who have just performed a week of intensive Yoga at Esalen and would like to unwind with regenerative, healing Yoga. Suitable for all levels of experience, this course will help you continue to refine your own individualized practice. Please bring your own yoga mat. Actors are Wounded Healers: Method Acting for Non-Actors Shelley Mitchell Our society has achieved startling results with the discovery of new mechanical processes of communication, but we have somehow forgotten that the process of living demands the ability to respond, to make contact, and to communicate one’s experience to another human being. Only artists have managed to break through this vicious wall by using their special sensitivity and particular skill in communicating their experiences… It is my firm belief that the discoveries and procedures essential for the actor’s capacities are equally, if not more, necessary for the layman. — Lee Strasberg Method Acting is closely associated with Stanislavsky, the Actors Studio, and legendary acting coach Lee Strasberg. Shelley Mitchell was one of Strasberg’s favorite students. This workshop offers a rare opportunity to work with an extraordinary artist with over 20 years’ experience teaching “Method” acting as a spiritual path for non-actors. Shelley Mitchell writes: “We will learn how and why actors are constantly searching for meaning, intention, and grace in the ordinary and extraordinary interactions of everyday life.” Workshop exercises focus on self-awareness, self-expression, and moment-to-moment communication skills. Participants will enact scenes from classic plays and films, transforming withheld emotional energy into the creative and healing realm of art where “we gain insights into ourselves as well as the inner life of the characters we are playing and the big picture of the story they are telling.” 74 It is the opening of eyes long closed It is the vision of far off things seen for the silence they hold. It is the heart after years of secret conversing speaking out loud in the clear air. — David Whyte What is the feeling of being grounded? What is it like to feel alive? What is the experience of having energy, freedom of movement, awareness? Working with the body and mind to find new ways of being can bring new aliveness and lead to increased pleasure and joy on a daily basis. Once we begin to discover the nature of our character armor—the chronic muscular shapes and tensions of the body— of which we are largely unconscious, we can begin to free the silence and “speak out loud” by releasing the flow of energy held in our bodies. Open, we naturally experience more pleasure and vitality. Participants will focus on finding those sensations and feelings that have been held inside, often beneath conscious awareness. Individuals will work to bring about the healthy integration of body, heart, mind, and spirit in order to have energy—energy for pleasure instead of for maintaining the defensive processes. With an emphasis on understanding our patterns of defense, holdings, tension-releasing emotion, and freeing energy, the workshop will use bioenergetics, meditation, and dance as well as bodywork and conscious movement to expand the ability to see, hear, sense, and feel. Understanding and Celebrating What It Means to Be Gay Arnie J. Vargas Although the Gay Movement has come a long way since its beginning in 1969, various factors in society at large continue to contribute to a negative image of what it means to be gay in today’s world. In this workshop, participants will have the opportunity to reflect on the messages they have received about what it means to be gay, how these messages have been internalized and continue to play a role in every gay man’s life, and how to embrace one’s identity in order to celebrate and live a happy, integrated life with a self-image in which sexuality plays such a major role. Through group dynamics, exercises, and dialogue, this workshop is designed to enable You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. participants to walk away with greater awareness and positivity in order to move toward whichever next step they feel called to take. Week of June 18–23 Awakening the Mind: Mastering the Power of Your Brainwaves Anna Wise Inside each person lives a wealth of knowledge, capacities, and power rarely transmitted to the conscious mind. Brainwave training, combined with meditation and biofeedback monitoring, can help develop these deeper resources, allowing access to greater creativity, reduced stress, and a deeper awareness and understanding of the inner self. After assessing the brainwave patterns of hundreds of unusually high-functioning people, the late C. Maxwell Cade of London’s Institute for Psychobiological Research began to see similarities in the patterns of optimal states of mind. Drawing upon Cade’s work, Anna Wise has developed a program to help access these optimal states. Brainwaves are affected in specific ways by different methods of meditation, visualization, and psychophysiological relaxation, as well as by specific acts such as tongue, eye, and body positions. This workshop presents techniques for brainwave development of beta, alpha, theta, and delta, and helps you determine which practices are best for your particular brainwave pattern. It also addresses how to use these optimum states for creativity, mental flexibility, self-healing, problem solving, and spiritual development. The Mind Mirror™ EEG will be utilized to demonstrate brainwave patterns, and each participant will be able to use an Electrical Skin Resistance Meter to measure the depth of arousal or relaxation of the nervous system. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Before You Write Your Memoir… Linda Trichter Metcalf & Tobin Simon Every successful memoir writer, before beginning Chapter One, has had to extract her life’s themes from her experiences. For some of us these themes may be unclear or obscure. This workshop presents a method for delving into your experience to recognize your own life themes, and in the writings you produce here it can help you pinpoint some of those themes. DANIEL BIANCHETTA increasingly refined awareness practices to enhance sensitivity to all that wilderness can offer, to reawaken those elements of wilderness within. During the indoor Continuum sessions, participants will explore movements that express and embody what they have taken in during the hikes, enlivening their ability to feel what they experience in nature as well as in their own inner nature. In this sensual environment, the group will play with movement, breath, sound, dreams, and ritual. This will be a time for contact with nature and wilderness, inside and out. Participants need not have previous experience in hiking or movement practices. Co-leaders Steven and Susan are a brotherand-sister team who have taught this everevolving program annually for 20 years. Proprioceptive Writing (PW) is a simple but powerfully effective method that teaches you to listen to your thoughts and reflect on them in writing. An adjunct to the healing arts, it is practiced to music in twenty-minute sessions, under stress-free conditions, alone or in groups. Through practice you can learn to transform your most personal subject matter into a rich storehouse of raw material to draw on for your memoir. Led by the creators of PW, this workshop can teach you to: • • • • • Be bold Banish confusion Find your voice Mine your experience Identify your themes Recommended reading: Metcalf & Simon, Writing the Mind Alive: The Proprioceptive Method for Finding Your Authentic Voice. arms, and elbows, allowing the practitioner to work deeper without causing pain afterward. With the use of chilled stones it is possible to promote reduction of inflammation caused by deep tissue work, injury, or chronic or acute pain. The cool stones break the painspasm-pain cycle and reduce the chemical response that causes muscle tissue damage. Physiologically this treatment can balance the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems through the use of alternating shortand long-term temperatures. LaStone Therapy is designed to enhance muscle relaxation, tissue repair, grounding, balancing, and release of blocked memories. Please note: This course is for massage therapists with a minimum of two years’ experience. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. LaStone® Therapy: The Original Hot Stone Treatment Mountains and Waves: Wilderness and Continuum Mary Nelson & Ardell Hill Susan Harper & Steven Harper LaStone Therapy is a massage modality that offers the ability to bring sustained temperature to a massage through the use of hot and cold stones (heat through basalt stones, chilled temperatures through marble, sardonyx, or jade stones). This workshop, led by LaStone Therapy originator Mary Nelson and reflexologist Ardell Hill, provides a comprehensive introduction to this unique blend of deep tissue massage, energy work, and ritual. Wilderness is a primary teacher of movement, creativity, and awareness whose richness and beauty awakens our senses to the world around us. Continuum is a unique movement practice, an inquiry into our capacity to innovate and participate with the essential movement processes of life. Continuum takes us inward in a dynamic inquiry, rotating between inner investigation and the flow of unfolding creative expression. Integrating day-hiking in the magnificent Big Sur backcountry with the subtle internal explorations of Continuum movement, this workshop combines and weaves together these two practices. Warmed muscle tissue is easier to address, manipulate, and massage. Using heated stones to warm the tissue is grounding for the client and easier on the therapist’s hands, fore- The hikes will introduce participants to Vision Painting Helen Jerene Malcolm What is your vision for your life? What makes your heart sing and brings peace and fulfillment into your life? Vision Painting will help you to access deeper levels of consciousness and bring to light your soul’s vision. In Vision Painting, you explore how your intuitive responses to color reveal information about the state of your body, mind, and soul. In Vision Painting’s meditations, you allow color to express itself through you—in any shape and form. Concepts of “right” and “wrong” are dropped in order to enter a flow state in which you learn to paint with intuitive receptivity, letting the painting unfold of its own accord. Natural feelings of excitement and fear that often accompany creative endeavors become catalysts to transform emotion into color and passion into imagery. Prompted by guided meditations, music, and movement, you’ll translate the unique perspective of your experiences through your Vision Paintings. Allowing your “inner light” to be expressed in a wide variety of colors brings awareness to the areas of your life that seek healing. Release your expectations of how you should paint and you’ll be surprised at the power and wisdom of what comes through you. ($45 materials fee paid directly to the leader) Meditation and the Brain Zoran Josipovic Through the inspiration of the Dalai Lama, research into the effects of meditation on the brain is gaining unprecedented public and See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 75 scientific attention today. Current research shows that the practice of meditation has profound effects on the brain, inducing changes both in the functioning and, over time, in the anatomy of the brain itself, thus permanently optimizing human potential. Weekend of June 23–25 Experiencing Esalen Experiencing Esalen Staff For workshop description see January 20-22. This seminar will introduce the fascinating field of meditation and brain research. Theoretical presentations in the form of lectures and videos will be combined with meditations and experiential exercises. The workshop will explore a gamut of meditation techniques, from basic to advanced, and examine how they affect our being and consciousness. The material in this seminar will be easily accessible to all, as participants visit one of today’s liveliest and most interesting fields of study, combining science and the humanities: research into the nature of human consciousness. M.J. Ryan Life is short and it’s up to you to make it sweet. — Sarah Delaney Does the experience of happiness frequently elude you? It’s often said that happiness is a choice. That’s a bit simplistic. No one can be happy on demand. Rather, happiness is a feeling that arises as a result of thoughts we choose to hold and actions we choose to take. Based on current brain research, this experiential workshop is intended to help anyone, regardless of their life circumstances, to experience greater happiness. Through discussion, lecture, journaling, and one-on-one and smallgroup interactions from a blend of emotional, DANIEL BIANCHETTA CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. The Happiness Makeover: How to Train Your Brain to Enjoy Life More No matter what challenges we face, we can experience happiness on a daily basis, rather than just as “peak moments” on special occasions—our wedding, a trip to an exotic place, the birth of a child. This doesn’t mean that we ignore or deny the challenges, sorrows, and grief in our lives. They are real. And it doesn’t mean that we feel fabulous all the livelong day. But the possibility of experiencing the joy of being alive, of appreciating what we can, of letting go of unnecessary burdens, of giving to others, is also real. In every moment, we can choose where to focus our attention and therefore how we feel. 76 You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. spiritual, and practical perspectives, participants will practice how to enjoy life more. inspired by the magic of Esalen and the natural beauty of Big Sur. The difficulties of our lives get a lot of our mental airtime and sap our life force. How about giving equal time to happiness? Suitable for individuals or couples. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Building A Vision Judith Blackstone Mark Nicolson & Gordon Bloom All spiritual traditions refer to an essential dimension of existence, calling it fundamental consciousness, True Self, non-duality, and many other names. This dimension is not an abstract concept. It is the core of our own true nature and can be experienced by anyone willing to approach it with patience and openness. Fundamental consciousness is experienced as clear, luminous space, pervading our bodies and our environment, transcending the duality of self and object. It is deeper than the physical and energetic levels of our being and beyond our psychological defenses, projections, images, and archetypes. Realization Process is a precise method of attuning to fundamental consciousness. Developing a vision is a courageous act. Making it public can be even more daunting— raising the possibility of skepticism, loss of momentum, or disappointment. Yet with a vision we are able to inspire the participation of others and to discipline our choice of action. A particular challenge we face is that many of us are trying to develop our vision in relative isolation. This is a dynamic and creative workshop with four essential elements: constructive but nonjudgmental support, dialogue that helps us connect deeply to our inspiration and purpose, the mentoring of insightful guides, and a framework for support and action. “You have within you more resources of energy than have ever been tapped, more talent than has ever been exploited, more strength than has ever been tested, more to give than you have ever given” wrote John Gardner. With these aspirations, first you will articulate and write down the two essentials of any vision: the guiding values and philosophy behind it, and a tangible description of it. You will also develop a creative strategy for identifying the support and resources to make it happen. This is a workshop devoted to dreaming boldly and finding the capabilities to advance your vision, be it for yourself, your family, your business, or your organization. Realization Process: Attuning to the Essence of Being This workshop offers ways to: integrate fundamental consciousness with the body and breath/energy system; experience oneness with nature and people (while remaining grounded in one’s body); and see, hear, and touch on a subtler level. Realization Process attunement exercises will be combined with sitting and movement meditations, sound and breath work. This workshop will also discuss how fundamental consciousness can facilitate psychological and physical healing. Please come prepared for deep, concentrated work. Recommended reading: Blackstone, The Subtle Self, The Enlightenment Process, Living Intimately. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Weekend Massage Intensive Dean Marson & Rachel Fann During this weekend participants will receive a hands-on introduction to the basic concepts of Esalen Massage®. The essence of this style of bodywork consists of long, flowing strokes that contribute to deep relaxation and a feeling of wholeness. The format of the course will be experiential with demonstrations followed by time for practice. Special attention will be given to quality of touch, breath awareness, and grounding techniques. The workshop will also include an introduction to meditation and body awareness to develop a deeper ability for presence and connection. There will be ample time to enjoy and be Women Can’t Hear What Men Don’t Say Warren Farrell I’ve never heard a couple say, “Warren, I want a divorce, my partner understands me.” Warren Farrell’s workshops help both sexes understand each other via role-reversal exercises in which the sexes “walk a mile in each other’s moccasins,” not just intellectually but emotionally. As each participant “becomes” the other sex, the laughter transforms criticism into compassion. For example, women who feel critical of men’s “fear of commitment and intimacy” or “preoccupation with sex and success” increase their compassion for men’s perspective. Conversely, men who feel that women say they want sensitive men but, in fact, choose successful men, learn compassion for women’s perspective. Farrell’s research (in Women Can’t Hear What Men Don’t Say) identifies the Achilles’ heel of most relationships as our inability to handle personal criticism, not only with our significant other but with co-workers, family, and friends. Innovative group-participation exercises will assist both sexes in giving and receiving personal criticism. Farrell will incorporate the findings from his latest books, Father and Child Reunion (2001) and Why Men Earn More (2005). Recommended reading: Farrell, Why Men Earn More, Father and Child Reunion, Women Can’t Hear What Men Don’t Say, Why Men Are The Way They Are, The Myth of Male Power. CE credit for psychologists; see page 5. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. June 25–July 2 Integral Leadership and Transformative Practice for Generation Next Jamie Wheal In hearing of the Way, the best study it, The mediocre pick it up for a while and then put it down. But the fool, on hearing of the Way, just laughs, and if it were not so, it would not be the Way. — Lao Tzu Jamie Wheal writes: “Are you committed to making a life of meaning and purpose, but tired of sifting through practices and teachers that promise far more than they deliver? Do you strive for excellence in your academic, athletic, or professional life, and insist that same standard inform your personal growth? “This is a ‘crash course’ in integral leadership and transformative practice, studying the works of Michael Murphy, George Leonard, Robert Kegan, Ken Wilber, and others, learning proven practices that allow you to take the reins of your future and reach for your deepest potentials. Each day will begin with focused physical training, ranging from Astanga yoga to Aikido to proprioceptive balance play. From there, we will spend mornings developing our own Integral Transformative Practice: comprehensive lifeplans that address our intelligence—kinesthetic, emotional, cognitive, and spiritual. We will begin to assemble custom-designed See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 77 Come and join this comprehensive immersion into an ancient healing art. Required reading: Gold, Thai Massage: A Traditional Medical Technique. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Dreaming the Soul Back Home: Self-Healing and Everyday Magic Robert Moss DANIEL BIANCHETTA Soul-loss, in shamanic understanding, is a primary source of illness, depression, and mental confusion. We lose vital soul energy through pain, trauma, and heartbreak, through wrenching life choices, and by giving up on our big dreams and ceasing to live the soul’s purpose. When we lose the energy of soul, the magic goes out of life. We are often fatigued for no apparent reason, we can’t experience joy or love, and there is a gaping hole we try to fill with addictive behaviors. Soul-loss can put us among the walking dead, playing roles that other people cast us for, not knowing why we are in this world. The Iroquois say that if we have lost our dreams, we have lost our souls. But when we reopen to our dreams, they can show us where our soul energy has gone, and how to bring it home. integral practices that cultivate our deepest needs for alignment, authenticity, and effectiveness, and encourage us to lead ourselves as a vital prerequisite for leading others. Evenings will be dedicated to exploring common ‘sticking points’ of practice, like sex, money, drugs, and gurus. We will share our thoughts in Council and celebrate being alive together, including regular soaks in Esalen’s hot springs. “This course demands that students—between the ages of 18 and 22—bring their best to it. It is not for the cynical or gullible, but rather, for the Rational Mystic who insist that the roots of his or her life anchor as deeply into the earth as the branches aspire towards heaven.” For further information, contact Jamie at [email protected] or 410-259-7003. Week of June 25–30 Traditional Thai Massage: Sacred Bodywork Richard Gold What in the Western world we call Traditional Thai Massage is known in Thailand as “Nuad 78 Bo’Rarn.” Nuad is a Thai word that translates as “to touch with the intention of imparting healing.” Bo’Rarn is derived from Sanskrit and translates as “something ancient and revered.” Historians date this system of traditional medical practice from approximately 500 B.C. Thai Massage fulfills the Buddhist principle of bringing spiritual philosophy into everyday life and work, allowing both practitioner and recipient an opportunity to experience the four Divine States of Mind: Loving Kindness, Compassion, Mental Equanimity, and Vicarious Joy. This workshop is an immersion into the practice of Thai Massage. An extensive curriculum in Northern (Chiang Mai) style will be taught and practiced. The course will focus on the meditative aspects of this traditional healing art, with significant emphasis on proper body mechanics. Combining aspects of yoga, acupressure, and assisted stretching, Thai Massage is a highly therapeutic and deeply relaxing form of bodywork. Practitioners learn to work with their feet, knees, forearms, and elbows, as well as with their hands. Thai Massage is practiced very slowly, on a futon or mat placed the floor, with the client dressed in loose-fitting clothing. No oils or lotions are utilized. You can now register for Esalen workshops on-line. Find out more at www.esalen.org. “In this adventure in healing and transformation,” writes Robert Moss, “we’ll help each other to open the dreamgates, become shamanic healers for our own family of selves, and welcome the energy and magic of soul back into our bodies and our daily lives. We’ll learn how to grow a dream for someone who does not have one. We will practice Active Dreaming techniques including Lightning Dreamwork, dream reentry and journeying, shared dreaming, timefolding, dream theater, and navigating by synchronicity. We’ll learn how to enter each other’s dreamspace (with permission) to facilitate soul recovery and recall our sacred contracts. We’ll grow the sacred space and compassionate circle energy that make the extraordinary easy.” Recommended reading: Moss, Dreamways of the Iroquois and The Dreamer’s Book of the Dead. Free Your Breath, Free Your Life Dennis Lewis The ever-increasing speed, stress, and disharmony of the modern world not only conditions us to a way of living in which the future is often felt to be more important than the present, but also cuts us off from the immediate experience of ourselves as living, breath- ing beings. As a result, many of us live as unconscious, breathless automatons, rushing faster than time itself into an imaginary future, seldom present to the mystery and miracle of our lives right now and here. Our breathing is so constricted and incomplete that it undermines our health, our vitality, and our consciousness. Such breathing also deprives us of one of the great joys of living on this earth: the expansive sensation of a free, easy, boundless breath that engages the whole of ourselves and opens us to the miracle of “the breath of life.” Using ideas, insights, and practices from his book Free Your Breath, Free Your Life, Dennis Lewis will take you on a journey of presence into the physiology, psychology, and spirituality of natural, boundless breathing. You will learn and practice the seven basic self-directed ways of working with the breath: conscious; controlled; focused; movement-supported; position-supported; touch-supported; and soundsupported breathing. Through safe, powerful exercises—as well as through special movements, postures, sounds, meditations, qigong practices, dialogue, and work with presence— you will learn how to integrate conscious, whole-body breathing into your life to support your health and your quest for self-realization. Recommended reading and listening: Lewis, (book) Free Your Breath, Free Your Life; (CD) Natural Breathing. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs; see page 5. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. Heal Yourself Through Service: A Bodhisattva Approach to Living Stan Goldberg People look inward to change what they don’t like about themselves. It may involve career choices, relationships, or a multitude of other things. They hope through self-analysis they can change into what they wish to be. But the inward journey is often endlessly repeated. These failures have less to do with effort, and more with not knowing where to look. This workshop is about looking outward for healing and growth, incorporating 2000-yearold principles of the Bodhisattva’s approach to living. You’ll heal, not by spending time on what you don’t like, but rather by channeling your passions into serving others. You’ll learn how to receive lessons in living as you provide service to others—lessons so profound they act as self-correcting tools, removing or lessening those things about your life you find unacceptable. The workshop will explore: • Using what you are passionate about to serve others • Using universal principles of change to become a better person • How to receive and understand lessons in living • How to heal by serving others • Identifying specific lessons coming from service (e.g., compassion, letting go, gratitude, patience) The workshop rests on lessons drawn from 40 years of service beginning with the civil rights movement of the 1960’s, advocating for the rights of the disabled and poor, training and counseling parents, and serving at the bedside of dying adults and children. Vinyasakrama Yoga S future programs The programs listed below are scheduled for the next catalog period. This is not an invitation to register, but information to assist you in your long-range plans to participate. Please call the Esalen office or see the next catalog for more specific information. July 2–7, 2006 Esalen Arts Festival This will be the third annual celebration of the Creative Spirit, in whose name the entire Esalen property is turned over to arts and arts-related programs. Srivatsa Ramaswami “Vinyasakrama Yoga is an ancient practice of physical and spiritual development,” Srivatsa Ramaswami writes. “It is a systematic method to study, practice, teach, and adapt yoga. This Vinyasa Krama (movement and sequence methodology) approach to Yogasana practice is unique in all of yoga. The legendary 20thcentury yogi Sri T. Krishnamacharya, my guru of 30 years, brought this method of yoga back to use and prominence. By integrating the functions of mind, body, and breath in the same time frame, a practitioner will experience the real joy of yoga practice. Each of the important postures (asanas) is practiced with many elaborate vinyasas (variations and movements). Each variation is linked to the next one by a succession of specific transitional movements, synchronized with the breath. The mind closely follows the slow, smooth, deliberate Ujjayi yogic breathing, and the yoking of mind and body takes place with the breath acting as the harness.” During the course of the program about 500 vinyasas contained in ten classical sequences will be taught. Further important yogic breathing exercises like Kapalabhati pranayama will be explored in depth. An introduction to yoga philosophy, key chants, and important aspects of meditation will also be presented. This program will be useful to serious students. Teachers can add considerably to their knowledge base of yoga. November 5–10, 2006 Esalen Yoga Retreat Esalen will host another Yoga Retreat, as these popular events become a biannual happening. Some of the teachers on tap for the fall retreat are Judith Lasater, Scott Blossom, Elise Browning Miller, Ramanand Patel, and Jillian Chelson. November 19–December 17, 2006 28-Day Massage Practitioner Certification Program The Esalen monthlong massage program provides comprehensive instruction in basic massage skills. The training provides a minimum of 150 hours. After the monthlong program, students wishing to fulfill certification requirements have six months to complete and document 30 massage sessions. Upon payment of a $100 processing fee, a California state-approved Certificate of Completion will be issued. To request an application, contact the Esalen office at 831-667-3000. Recommended reading: Ramaswami, The Complete Book of Vinyasa Yoga, Yoga for the Three Stages of Life, and Q&A on Yoga—An American Student Talks with his Indian Teacher (Summer, 2006). See pages 94-95 for reservations, fees, accommodations, scholarship information, and discounts. 79 S special programs T he programs listed below are either part of an ongoing series, formatted unusually, or longer than the standard Esalen workshop. March 31–April 28 28-Day Massage Practitioner Certification Training: An Embodied Philosophy another. Body mechanics, self-care, and innovation will be emphasized. Upon satisfactory completion, and after documenting 30 additional massages at home, students will be issued a California State-approved Certificate of Completion. The certification fee is $100. This is a professional training with limited admission. Please request an application from the Esalen office (831-667-3000). Dean Marson, Brita Ostrom & Pablo Piekar This training is for those who plan to pursue massage (or any other body-mind discipline) professionally, as well as for those seeking an indepth experience in bodywork. It offers the Big Picture of the Esalen approach: an interweave of body-mind-spirit, sensory awareness practice, meditation, psychological aspects, self-care, and more. CE credit for nurses; see page 5. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. Friends rate: Standard accommodations: $4620 Bunk bed room: $3590 Regular rate: Standard accommodations: $4670 Bunk bed room: $3640 The Santa Barbara Graduate Institute Embodied Psychotherapy Certificate Program in Relational Somatic Psychology The Certificate Program gives participants a foundation in the leading-edge field of somatic psychology. It is designed to meet the needs of The Embodied Psychotherapy Certificate Program is composed of six five-day courses at Esalen. The program is derived from the graduate-level classes and provides experiential learning, current theory, and practical applications. Each of the six segments may be taken individually for a certificate of attendance. The Embodied Psychotherapy Certificate is awarded to participants who have satisfactorily completed all six segments. The segments are offered approximately every four months with the entire program presented in approximately two years. Graduate course credit is also available (see below). The Six Courses for the Complete Certificate Program Brain, Attachment, and Early Development: Practical Interpersonal Neurobiology and Somatic Interventions with Individuals and Groups— Faculty: Marti Glenn, PhD, and SBGI Faculty; February 19-24 Bodily Expression and Experience in Psychotherapy: Character and Somatic Dimensions of DANIEL BIANCHETTA Massage will be studied as a tool for optimal well-being and stress-reduction as well as a valued component of transpersonal growth. The teachers distill more than a half century of experience to offer 150 hours of comprehensive massage basics: centering skills, lengthening integrative strokes, movement and stretches, detailed structural work, and an energetically balanced approach. Brief anatomical explorations will link each segment. Students will have ample time for guided practice with one Recommended reading: Kripal, On the Edge of the Future: Esalen and the Evolution of American Culture. professionals and practitioners (educators, healthcare professionals, therapists, psychologists) as well as individuals interested in learning an in-depth somatic/psychological perspective. SBGI faculty or affiliates teach all courses. An approved application is required. Complete the application on the Internet at www.esalen.sbgi.edu and allow one week for processing and for you and Esalen to be informed of your status. 80 Developmental Psychology—Faculty: Michael Sieck, PhD, Dyrian Benz, PsyD, and JoAnna Chartrand; Summer 2006 The Body, Soul, Self, and the Relational Field in Somatic Psychotherapy: Enhancing Immediacy and Intimacy—Faculty: Dyrian Benz, PsyD, and JoAnna Chartrand; Fall 2006 Somatic Psychology: The Essentials for Embodied Psychotherapy Practice—Faculty: Dyrian Benz, PsyD, and JoAnna Chartrand; Spring 2007 Integrating Somatic Awareness, Breath, and Touch into Clinical Practice: Principles, Ethics, and Practice—Faculty: Christine Caldwell, PhD, and Dyrian Benz, PsyD; Dates to be announced. All courses taught by faculty or affiliates of Santa Barbara Graduate Institute. Graduate Ph.D. Course Credit in Relational Somatic Psychology This program can also be taken as a more scholarly course of study which includes additional reading and writing for students who would like to earn graduate credit toward a doctoral degree program at Santa Barbara Graduate Institute. To use this training as credit towards a Ph.D. degree, students must first apply and be accepted in the Professional Specialty Ph.D. program at SBGI. Information on the Somatic Psychology Foundations Certificate and Ph.D. Professional Specialty Program is available on the SBGI website: www.sbgi.edu. For information or to register, call 805-963-6896 or email [email protected]. Please note: An approved application is required; contact Esalen for registration only after your application has been accepted by SBGI. The International Imagery Association Eidetic Image Psychology Certificate Training Program The Certificate Program gives participants a foundation in the cutting-edge field of Eidetic Image Psychology, a mind/body consciousness psychology, founded by Akhter Ahsen, Ph.D. It is designed to meet the needs of healthcare professionals, bodyworkers, educators, psychologists and mental-health professionals, as well as those interested in the use of eidetic imagery in various applications for themselves and for their professions. Faculty from the International Imagery Association’s Master Practitioners teach all courses. Dr. Akhter Ahsen will be a special guest lecturer. The Eidetic Imagery Training Program is comprised of four five-day courses at Esalen. The curriculum is the comprehensive program used in National and International Eidetic Centers and in graduate schools that leads to certification. The program, both didactic and experiential, provides a solid foundation in Eidetic methodology and practice and encourages individual applications for specialized research projects. Each of the four segments may be taken individually. The Eidetic Imagery Training Certificate, sponsored by the International Imagery Association, is awarded to participants who have completed all four segments and a special project either concurrent with, or following, the training program. There will be reading assignments from books and articles, which will be an additional fee (about $250 over the course of the entire program). The segments are offered approximately every six months during two years. Graduate course credit is also available (see below). The Four Required Segments for the Certificate in Eidetic Training Program 1. Eidetic Imagery: A consciousness psychology; The Essential Eidetic (ISM) and discriminating other imagery processes; How to use this image in mind/body healing practice; Eidetic empathy; Hemispheric images; Test to targeting developmental themes; Marital, family, relationship counseling; Expanded principles and techniques of Eidetic Therapy. April 30–May 5. 2. The mythological dimensions in Imagery of Healing; Age Projection Test 1; Eidetic targeting and resolution of hysterias, phobias, and traumatic themes; Brief Treatment therapy models; Principles and practice of group work: Eidetic empathy groups. Dates to be announced 3. Comprehensive overview of Ahsen’s Image Psychology; Accident trauma and post-traumatic stress syndrome; consciousness and the traumatic image. Dates to be announced. 4. Imagery and altered states of consciousness; Imagery treatment of alcohol and drug abuse; Hot and cold Imagery and neurophysiology; Heart images; sexuality, self, and society. Dates to be announced. Graduate MA & Ph.D. Courses in Eidetic Image Psychology added readings and writing assignments, case presentations, supervision, and research projects supervised by Ph.D.s in psychology. Each student must apply to her/his educational program for approval of the course of study. For information please contact [email protected]. To Register: An approved application is required: contact Esalen for registration only after your application has been accepted by the Eidetic Training Institute. For application information and fees, please contact [email protected] or [email protected]. The application form can be found on www.jaquelinesussman.com or www.eidetictraining.com. The Harvard Medical School Continuing Education Series Esalen has been selected to host Continuing Education courses offered by Harvard Medical School (HMS). To reserve a space in any of these courses, you must first contact HMS at 617-998-5028. Only after you have reserved your place in the course through Harvard will you be able to reserve your accommodations through Esalen at 831-667-3005 (course fees and accommodations are separate). The dates, instructors, and courses offered during this catalog period are: April 2-7: John Schott, MD— The Psychology of Investing: A Survival Guide for 2006 and Beyond April 14-16: Dan Brown, PhD, ABPP— Enhancement of Peak Performance in Sports, the Performing Arts, and the Worksite April 23-28: Anna Ornstein, MD & Paul Ornstein, MD—The Conduct, Process, and the Curative Factors in Contemporary Psychotherapy April 28-30: Martha Stark, MD— Moment by Moment: The Clinician’s Guide to Psychotherapeutic Interventions April 30-May 5: Robert Goisman, MD— Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy: A Review and Clinical Update June 4-9: Janina Fisher, PhD— Trauma, Consciousness, and the Body This program can also be taken as a graduate program, on Masters and Ph.D. level, with 81 S invitational conferences S ince 1962, Esalen has convened invitational conferences that promote personal and social transformation. From these meetings have come pioneering projects and frontier inquiry in education, medicine, ecopsychology, somatics, meditation and consciousness research, physics, SovietAmerican relations, global ecology, evolutionary theory, and other fields. Esalen Center for Theory and Research (CTR) Invitational Conferences 2006 In 1998, to solidify our commitment to pioneering conferences and collaborative projects, Esalen created the Center for Theory and Research (CTR). The Center gathers scholars, innovators, and activists from a variety of fields to explore the growing edges of their work, promote creative fellowships, and critically evaluate new theories and research that are often neglected by mainstream academic and religious institutions. Some conference series have resulted in long-term partnerships and projects. In 2006, CTR will be convening several exciting conferences. Some of the highlights are: Beyond Religious Fundamentalism: Eminent theologian and President of the Foundation for a Global Ethic, Hans Kung has said that there can be no global peace without peace among the religions. In concert with this premise, CTR’s conference series on religious fundamentalism is directing Esalen’s attention and resources toward the thoughtforms and worldviews that are most resistant to fostering an ecumenical peace in our time. In April, CTR will host and co-sponsor with TRACK II: A Center for Citizen Diplomacy the third symposium in a five-part series on global fundamentalism. Having addressed Hindu and Islamic forms of fundamentalism in previous symposia, the April meeting will turn attention closer to home with a discussion about Christianity. Facilitated by a pioneer in international diplomacy and conflict resolution, Joseph Montville (who facilitated the previous events as well), this conference will gather scholars, activists, ministers, and theologians to discuss the psychological, historical, and political roots behind the growing religious intolerance on the part of some forms of Christianity. It will focus on forging new alliances that can bring greater healing, transformation, and open-mindedness to intolerant and rigidly self-reinforcing strains 82 of Christianity. After this conference at Esalen has concluded, the participants will move forward with various action steps, including proactive community networking among key ministers and voices in the Christian community. Overall, the participants will use the Esalen conference as both an inspirational springboard and a time for planning practical steps toward spreading greater tolerance within the polarized forms of this religion. In September, CTR and Track II will join forces once again for the fourth conference in the fundamentalism series, which will address Jewish, and particularly Zionist, forms of fundamentalism. Joseph Montville has already started building networks and attracting key figures to make this a highimpact event. Like the previous conferences, the goal will be to forge strong networks of solidarity and hope among key leaders who can then influence the broader public. Some of the goals for this conference include: 1) developing greater understanding of the complex psychological and cultural undercurrents that have driven the political and territorial ambitions of the extreme Zionist movement; 2) building greater empathy on the part of Christian participants in the conference toward acknowledging their historic role in oppressing Jewish communities in Europe and America; 3) coordinating tactical approaches toward beneficially influencing the corrosive relationship between fundamentalist Christians in America (some of whom financially support the Zionist movement) and their counterparts in Israel. The anticipated outcomes of this conference include not only creating greater empathy and understanding between these diverse groups, but also mapping out effective strategies toward reducing the militancy that informs the psychology and political platforms of the most extreme Zionist groups. Citizen Diplomacy: In April 2006, the CTR and TRACK II: An Institute for Citizen Diplomacy (formerly the Russian-American Center) will gather many of the primary participants involved in the citizen diplomacy projects initiated by Esalen’s Soviet-American Exchange Program during the 1980s, as well as those involved thereafter in the citizen diplomacy projects initiated by The RussianAmerican Center. Some of the most notable achievements of what are now sister organizations include: • initiating the entry of the Soviet Writer’s Union into the International Pen Club as a primary part of Gorbachev’s glasnost; • helping start the Association of Astronauts and Cosmonauts; • creating the first Soviet-American live television exchanges, or “space bridges”; • organizing groundbreaking Soviet-American environmental and health conferences; • holding symposia for Soviet and American athletes, coaches, and sport psychologists; • sponsoring Boris Yeltsin’s first trip to America in 1989; and • creating the Loutchkov Library of Psychological Literature at Moscow State University—Russia’s largest English-language library of psychological literature (a TRACK II project). The reunion of participants in this groundbreaking diplomatic work will have three main aims: first, to share what we have learned about citizen diplomacy; second, to archive our reflections; and third, to explore ways in which we can apply what we’ve learned to some contemporary global issues, such as Muslim-American relations and peace in the Middle East. Survival of Bodily Death: In late May, the CTR will host its 8th annual gathering of scholars who are inquiring into the evidence for life beyond the death of the human body. The conference has been approaching this often marginalized and deeply misunderstood topic with both scientific rigor and philosophical open-mindedness. Currently, the conference facilitator, Ed Kelly, of the University of Virginia, is nearing publication of a book that was inspired by the discussions in these conferences. Titled Irreducible Mind: Toward a Psychology for the Twenty-first Century, it will look at the broad range of issues and evidence that bear upon a more complete understanding of the human mind and consciousness. At the upcoming 2006 gathering the conference participants will be looking at different theoretical models that might help explain some of the evidence that is suggestive of the “survival hypothesis.” The conference participants are not dogmatic about belief in survival of death, but they do seriously assess the current evidence that is suggestive of this possibility. In short, they are looking for better ways to explain it, rather than explain it away. For further information about the CTR and its conferences, including longer conference summaries and many colorful pictures of the conferences themselves, please see our website at http://www.esalenctr.org. To discuss making a tax-deductible gift to Esalen’s CTR, please contact Jane Hartford at 415-459-5438. S work study program The goal is to study what can be used to call up native intelligence and spirituality to maximize our physical, emotional, and soulful realization in dealing with life changes. In addition to the evening sessions, there will be weekly time for counsel and problem solving in smaller groups. DANIEL BIANCHETTA In massage and bodywork, there is a depth that comes not from physical pressure but from being contacted by a quality of presence, acceptance, and clarity of intention. This kind of touch affects not only our bodies, but our total being. A month with Pablo Piekar focuses on the healing power of touch, beginning with an exploration of self, our innate talents, and the qualities that we most value, then uncovering the powerful healing effect we can have upon others as these qualities translate into presence and touch. Practices from various bodywork and massage modalities will be introduced, together with concepts from somatic and humanistic psychology. The process is one in which trust and emotional safety are valued, and the boundaries, timing, and needs of each participant are honored. T he Work Study Program is a 28day program for those interested in an intense involvement with the Esalen environment. A work- and service-oriented program, it is emotionally and physically challenging, and only rarely is it restful. Participants work 32 hours per week in one of Esalen’s departments and participate in that department’s program. During four to five evenings a week and one weekend intensive, work scholars are together in one of two groups (see below). Each group emphasizes one type of growth practice, such as Gestalt, meditation, creative arts, massage, or somatics work, and has a specifically assigned leader(s) who is with the group throughout the month, coordinating the study schedule and facilitating many of the evening sessions. Applicants must state their preferred group and be prepared to stay at Esalen for the entire month. In addition to the evening program, work scholars may participate in regularly scheduled movement classes, use the Art Barn (if available), attend the weekly Wednesday night programs, and enjoy round-the-clock access to the Esalen baths. Selection of work students is done by Student Services Coordinator Mary Anne Will. Since this is a work and service program, preference CE credit for nurses and bodyworkers. is given to applicants who are open and willing to learn about themselves within the work context as well as within the study/ process groups. Because the work can be physically challenging (lifting, bending, etc.), it may not be suitable for all who wish to apply. First-month work students, in particular, are assigned to departments largely on the basis of community need (usually the kitchen or housekeeping). 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.” Work Study Programs scheduled for this catalog period are as follows: January 8 –February 5 A month with David Schiffman is intended for people in transition who would like to cultivate the life skills necessary for dealing effectively with change and uncertainty. The program will focus on individual and community reflection using movement, ceremony, and guided group exercises. A unique blend of ancient and modern practices, the curriculum will emphasize developing resourcefulness, imagination, and honest self-assessment. February 5–March 5 Shamanism is the oldest spiritual system in the world. David Corbin & Nan Moss offer a monthlong exploration of the shaman’s ancient and universal methods to enter non-ordinary reality for problem solving, well-being, and healing. Participants will be guided to enter the shamanic state of consciousness and be initiated into the shamanic journey to experience the same sources of profound wisdom and compassion known to our ancestors. The group will seek to restore spiritual power and to apply shamanism in contemporary daily life to help heal oneself, others, and the planet. Experiencing and expressing emotions are integral to being alive. Yet, for many of us, emotions remain mysterious, confusing, and difficult to constructively express. As a result, our relationships may be unsatisfying and the choices we make may not reflect our innermost desires or our true selves. Learning to fully experience feelings and express them in healthy ways enables us to be authentic and to have more fulfilling relationships. In this month of Gestalt Awareness Practice and group process with Dorothy Charles, participants will develop awareness of self and other, 83 explore feelings as sensations in the body, and learn self-expression and communication skills. Mini-lectures, paired exercises, and expressive arts will be part of the curriculum. ($20 materials fee paid directly to the leader) March 5–April 2 “Soul” is a quality of being that we know when we experience it, yet may find difficult to define or even describe. A moment of deep reflection, a lover’s touch, a sense of awe in the presence of great beauty, a broken heart—all these are soulful experiences. A soulful life has depth, meaning, and passion. The world in which we live, however, is geared toward matter rather than essence, doing rather than being, attachment rather than presence. Despite the pull of the outer world, it is possible to create soulfulness in our lives on a daily basis. Charlie Bloom will facilitate a journey into the province of soul in which participants can experience what it means to live a more soulful life. This inquiry will include process work, guided meditation, mindfulness practice, and interpersonal dialogue. CE credit for MFTs, LCSWs, and nurses. Helen Jerene Malcolm guides a month of Vision Painting—painting as a process to expose the limitations of the conditioned mind. An atmosphere of exploration and acceptance encourages participants to suspend judgment, enabling the creative impulse to play, take risks, and face fears. The course utilizes emotional awareness, visualization, meditation, music, and dream images to evoke creative expression from a deep inner source of intuitive wisdom. Through the language of color, the soul can unfold its message to the painter. There will be painting-gestalt sessions to explore the soul-talk of Vision Painting. ($45 materials fee paid directly to the leader) April 2–30 Maria Lucia Bittencourt Sauer will lead a monthlong program teaching spiritual massage and healing—the laying on of hands. This practice integrates both hands-on and energetic healing. Beginning Silat (Balinese martial art) movements, dance, and shamanic practices will be incorporated to complement this energy work and to help bring participants in tune with their bodies. The program will integrate emotional release work as it organically emerges. The highest qualities of yoga and improvisation arise from silence and express themselves uniquely through each individual. This program, “Laughter and Silence,” will be a liberating month of improv and yoga, exploring the joyful meeting place of the expressive and the healing arts. Jim Gallas will lead sessions of improvised games, movement, and storytelling, followed by deeply relaxing restorative yoga practices. Other yoga sessions throughout the week will focus on asana (postures), pranayama (breath), and meditation. The weekend intensive will include guest performers to inspire the group with their singular approach. Open to the moment and just say “Yes!” Beginners are welcome. Please bring a yoga mat, belt, and block. ($10 materials fee paid directly to the leader) April 30–May 28 Demand is growing for practitioners who have mastered the art of moving into the body’s deeper soft-tissue layers with skill and sensitivity. Perry Holloman will lead a month in the healing art of deep bodywork: deep-tissue techniques for massage practitioners. The program will focus on freeing the deep soft-tissue layers surrounding the spine as a way to give the body greater ease of movement and freedom from chronic pain. Following work on the back, the program will cover techniques for the neck, chest, and hips, presenting material designed to give participants a well-rounded set of deeptissue skills to enhance any bodywork practice. Some experience is recommended. CE credit for nurses and bodyworkers. We come to Esalen, a place of safety, risk, and growth, with many agendas, most involving change from one stage of life to another. This program with Alan Schwartz will identify where we are along that life-continuum and deepen the strength and clarity to enhance our journey. This involves recognizing that we exist as a range of polarities. We are, for example, good and bad, honest and dishonest, courageous and fearful. We love and hate, accept and reject. Acknowledging these elements of self and allowing them to be seen by others contributes to the strength necessary to achieve wholeness. Wholeness is our ground, our stability, as we face what life offers us. The curriculum includes Gestalt processes, experimenting with how our physical energy moves or is restricted, becoming friendly with risk as well as with the fun of pure joy and foolishness. CE credit for MFTs and LCSWs. CE credit for nurses and bodyworkers. 84 May 28–June 25 Each of us is born with an inherent drive for self-expression. As we grow up, our sense of self and our ability to be spontaneous often become blocked. Knowing who we are, and what we feel and want, can be difficult when our self-knowledge is distorted by family experiences and cultural expectations. The focus of a month with Dorothy Charles will be Gestalt Practice, using group process to enhance communication and conflict resolution skills and to develop empathy for self and others. Expressive arts will be part of the curriculum. ($20 materials fee paid directly to the leader) The theme of a month led by Johanna Holloman & Nora Matten is “Moving Into Presence.” Yoga, dance, and Esalen Massage are powerful tools for expanding beyond the armor of our habitual tension patterns and into an immediate experience of the present moment. Within the safe container of the group, participants will engage in the practice of “fully landing” and staying in contact with their own experience—in the midst of life and relationship. The art of Esalen Massage will support the sensitivity and mindfulness necessary for this exploration of authentic contact. The program is designed to increase presence as it manifests through body-awareness, vitality, and a sense of connectedness to oneself, others, and the unfolding mystery of life. June 25–July 23 A month with Peter Meyers will be a dynamic exploration of theater as a playground and a springboard to personal discovery. The group will develop ensemble skills in movement, voice, and improvisation while promoting individual self-assurance, physical presence, and communication skills. The program is designed to create a safe and supportive environment for experiencing heightened awareness within the group and developing a form to communicate a collective vision. Emphasis will be on listening to the creative impulse, trusting the intuitive response, expanding expressive skills, and, finally, preparing an original theater performance for the Esalen community. Patrick Douce will lead a month of healing (with humor), an in-depth experience of Spinal Awareness. Spinal Awareness is a way of learning that improves body awareness, flexibility, posture, and most chronic and acute conditions of the body. Taught with movement, touch, and group interaction, it is based on the work of Moshe Feldenkrais, Chinese-Indonesian martial art, and the Esalen Experience. Spinal Awareness emphasizes learning how to move in ways that stimulate your awareness of your own body. The month will include hands-on lessons, safe and noninvasive, to greatly speed improvements. The program will evolve with humor and playfulness. Fun partner lessons will be intermixed to help bring about not only freedom in the body but a return to the childlike energy essential to us all. CE credit for nurses and bodyworkers. July 23–August 20 Many of us live suspended between the yearning for self-expression and the fear of exposure, the tendency to hide and the desire to offer ourselves to the world, the oneness of spiritual unity and the complexity of human interactions. These paradoxes are the focus of a month led by Zuza Engler. Exploring movement from the inside out and the practice of presence—through SoulMotion™ and Gestalt Awareness Practice—students will be guided in discovering the unfolding of their own dance and supported in opening to life’s constant pulsation between contraction and expansion, between dropping into oneself and extending toward another. Participants will practice skills for moving fluidly with the challenges of relationship, attuning to the generosity of an undefended heart, and accessing the larger Presence that breathes us into Being. A month with Ann Bradney is about becoming fully alive. Core Energetics will be used to free the frozen feelings and history in the body by working with blocked and held energy. Through individual and group processes participants will work to reconnect with deep parts of themselves from which they disconnected as children. They will experience the power and goodness at the source of their most destructive patterns. Relationship and deep connection to self and others will be explored through work with transforming and releasing the past. Participants will have opportunities to develop power, presence, and pleasure. Expect to discover parts of yourself you never knew. August 20–September 17 Jim Gallas leads “Streams Of Energy,” a pro- gram of Eastern bodywork and movement, including 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. CE credit for bodyworkers; see page 5. “We spend most of our lives building an identity, thinking that is who we really are,” says Oliver Bailey. “At some point, we begin to question what we have created and ask ourselves, ’Who am I?’” This program explores that question using meditation to still the mind and self-inquiry to probe the identity that the ego and mind have created. Combined, these methods can create a deep transformation and assist in our journey from the perimeter of identity to the still center of Being. This exploration requires a sense of fun and adventure and a willingness to explore using art, guided imagery, movement, Gestalt awareness, individual and group process, and a sweat lodge. The process will enhance your ability to see, moment to moment, how psychological habit and personal “stories” block our connection to essence. Commitment to the Work Study Program is from 4 PM of the first Sunday to 7:30 PM of the final Sunday. Inasmuch as the Work Study Program is a complete program in itself, please do not plan to take regularly scheduled catalog workshops during your stay. Fees: A deposit of $400 in U.S. currency is required with your application. You may pay in full at the time you apply. The work scholar fee schedule is $895 for the first month, $845 for the second month, and $795 for the third month. Work students may be invited to remain for a second or third month depending on space available and community needs (foreign nationals should contact the Work Study office for information on staying longer than one month). There are no scholarships available for the first month of the Work Study Program. 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, usually at South Coast Center, a staff complex located 1.5 miles north of Esalen. Housing and meals, often with home-grown organic produce, are included in your tuition. Transportation: When making travel plans, note that the closest airport to Esalen is Monterey. With at least 48-hour advance reservations, van service to Esalen is available from the following locations on the Sunday of your arrival: Monterey Airport: Departs 2 pm. Cost: $40 Monterey Transit Center: Departs 2:20 pm. Cost: $40 San Francisco Airport: Departs 11:45 am. Cost: $80 For van reservations call 831-667-3010 or e-mail [email protected]. Please note: Application is not registration in the program. Registration is made only after approval of application. If you do not pay in full at the time of application, the balance of the fee is due on arrival and is nonrefundable thereafter. 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. Please mail the application form (see next page) with your personal statement and deposit to: Work Study Program Esalen Institute 55000 Hwy 1 Big Sur, CA 93920 or fax to: Work Study Program 831-667-3069 We will contact you regarding your status within 14 days of receipt of your application. For more information contact the Work Study Office at the above address or phone: 831-667-3010; fax: 831-667-3069; e-mail: [email protected] 85 Q work study program application please print legibly. Name _______________________________________________________________________________________ o Male o Female Today’s Date __________________________________________ Phone: Evening ( ————— ) ____________________________________ Day ( ————— ) ____________________________________ Cell ( ————— ) _______________________________________ Home Address __________________________________________________________________________ City/State/Zip __________________________________________________________________________ Country _____________________________ E-mail Address _________________________________________________________________ Date of Birth _________________________ Age ___________ Occupation (previous, if retired)_________________________________________________________________________ Do you have any limiting physical/emotional conditions (e.g., bad back, severe depression) which might affect your full participation in this program? o Yes o No Are you currently taking any medication? o Yes o No If yes to either of these questions, please include details in your personal statement. If a former Work Scholar, list where you worked and approximate dates _________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ The Work Study Program is for 28 days, beginning at 4 pm on Sunday and ending at 7:30 pm on the final Sunday. Sometimes particular dates and/or leaders are not available. List below, in order of preference, the dates/leaders for which you are available. Please note: Space may become available up until the program start date. You must let us know if you wish to be removed from a wait list; if you’re on a wait list and space becomes available, you will be automatically placed and then notified. If you cancel after placement, you will be charged a cancellation fee. start date Choice 1 ________________________________________ Preferred Leader __________________________________________ If full, wait list? o Yes o No Choice 2 ________________________________________ Preferred Leader ___________________________________________ If full, wait list? o Yes o No Choice 3 ________________________________________ Preferred Leader ___________________________________________ If full, wait list? o Yes o No Choice 4 ________________________________________ Preferred Leader ___________________________________________ If full, wait list? o Yes o No If your application is approved and we cannot give you your first choice, we will place you in your next available choice. Work students may be invited to remain for a second or third month, depending on space availability and the needs of the Esalen community. Please indicate your availability for such an invitation (no obligation): o No extension o One-month extension o Two-month extension We encourage ridesharing. Are you bringing a vehicle? o Yes o No; Are you willing to give a ride? o Yes o No; Receive a ride? o Yes o No; I wish to rideshare from (if different from above address) ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Assignments to departments are made according to community labor needs (usually kitchen or housekeeping). However, if you have preferences in housekeeping, kitchen, maintenance, gardening, or groundskeeping, please list them below (skills not always necessary). o Place me wherever I’m most needed – or – note my preferences below. Choice 1 __________________________________________________ Skills/Experience ________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Choice 2 __________________________________________________ Skills/Experience ________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Choice 3 __________________________________________________ Skills/Experience ________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Please attach a personal statement about your interest in the Work Study Program, telling us why you’d like to participate and what you hope to take with you when you leave. All applicants are required to sign a standard release-from-liability and assumption-of-risk form as a condition of participation in the Work Study Program. This form will be mailed to you upon acceptance to the program. Do you want van service? From o Monterey Airport, 2 pm ($40 fee); o Monterey Transit, 2:20 pm ($40); o San Francisco Airport, 11:45 am ($80). Payment o $400 deposit o $895 Card No. _______________________________________________________________________________ o Check (U.S. banks only), attached and payable to Esalen Institute Credit Card Expiration Date _____________________________________________________ o MasterCard o VISA o American Express Name and phone number (if different from above) _______________________ If you are making a credit card deposit, the balance will be automatically charged to your card five days before your arrival. ____________________________________________________________________________________________ Authorizing signature ______________________________________________________________ Please Note: No pets, drugs, or violence allowed. We cannot accommodate children of work scholars. Applications cannot be considered without a deposit and a personal statement included. 86 R biographical information A Mark Abramson is a part of the Stanford Center for Integrative Medicine and heads the Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Program at Stanford Hospital and Stanford University. He teaches at Stanford’s School of Medicine and is on staff at Stanford Hospital. p. 71 Ayo Adeyemi was born in Ijebu, Nigeria and cofounded (with his wife Carole) Yoruba House in Los Angeles. In addition to being a master of the Yoruba rhythms, he is a Babalowo in the Ifa’ religion. p. 52 Carole Zeitlin Adeyemi cofounded Yoruba House in Los Angeles in 1992 with her husband Ayo. Together they have introduced thousands of people to the Yoruba culture and the spirituality of community drum and dance. p. 52 Carol Adrienne is an internationally known life coach and author of The Purpose of Your Life as seen on Oprah. She and her daughter Sigrid Matthews have taught together for 9 years. p. 59 Mandy Aftel is an artisan natural perfumer and author of three books on natural perfume including Essence and Alchemy: A Natural History of Perfume. p. 17 Ramon V. Albareda is a clinical psychologist, theologian, and sexologist. He is the founder/director of Estel, a center of personal growth and school of integral studies in Barcelona, and creator of Holistic Sexuality. He is the coauthor of Nacidos de la Tierra: Sexualidad Origen del Ser Humano. p. 66 Ronald Alexander has explored Buddhist meditation and healing disciplines since 1971. He conducts trainings in the U.S., Europe, and Australia in MindBody Healing Therapies. A psychotherapist and consultant to the entertainment industry, he focuses on leadership coaching, creativity and communication. His website is www.ronaldalexander.com. p. 41, 64 Martine Amita Algier, a founding member of the West Marin Community Mediation Board, teaches and consults privately with families, business groups, schools and other organizations. She is passionate about community building and a culture of peace. p. 46 Kathy Altman is on the teaching faculty for Gabrielle Roth’s institute, The Moving Center, and has studied with Gabrielle for 25 years. She cofounded The Moving Center School in California, and maintains a teaching practice in Mill Valley. p. 61 Esperide Ananas leads seminars on healing, inspiration, and perception worldwide. A graduate of Damanhur’s School of Spiritual Healers in Italy, she is a member of Damanhur’s Way of the Oracle, researching dreaming and subtle energies. She is the author of Damanhur: City of Light. p. 19 Suzanne Anderson is a leadership consultant, executive coach, and president of Kore Leadership. Through her research, workshops, retreats, and individual coaching she assists women to develop leadership capacity able to meet the challenges of today. Her website is www.koreleadership.com. p. 56 Joseph Arpaia, coauthor of Tibetan Wisdom for Western Life, is a psychiatrist who integrates spirituality and medicine in his private practice. He also teaches for the doctor of ministry program at Rev. Matthew Fox’s University of Creation Spirituality in Oakland, Calif. p. 20 B Nancy Bacal, lyricist, screenwriter, and longtime Esalen leader, edited Leonard Cohen’s anthology Stranger Music and wrote and produced Raga, a film starring Ravi Shankar. She conducts ongoing writing workshops in Los Angeles and San Francisco. p. 67 Ingrid Bacci is the author of The Art of Effortless Living and Effortless Pain Relief. A somatically-based healer in private practice near New York City, she is certified in the Alexander Technique and Craniosacral therapy, and teaches Craniosacral nationally for the Upledger Institute. p. 11 Oliver Bailey is a practitioner and instructor of Esalen Massage. His background includes training in Gestalt Practice, neurolinguistic programming, intuitive work, and meditation. p. 85 Richard Balaban, a licensed clinical psychologist and certified group psychotherapist, has taught at Indiana University and SUNY at Buffalo. His passion is for his family, his work, and life’s journey. p. 44 Juergen Bamberger, a Gyrotonic Master Trainer, is an internationally recognized educator and a pioneer in Gyrotonic. His teaching, encompassing 20 years, is infused with his background in dance and bodywork, as well as his spiritual practice based on “The Light Body” and the “Roselight” school. p. 56 James Baraz has taught vipassana insight meditation retreats and classes since 1977. Cofounder of Spirit Rock Meditation Center in Marin County, Calif., he holds an MA in psychology and has a counseling practice in Berkeley. p. 39 John Baron worked as an actor with many leading theater companies in the U.K. and played several leading roles in TV films. He has been a teacher of the Alexander Technique for 20 years in the U.S. and Europe. p. 41 Ellen Bass has supported and inspired writers for 30 years. Her books include No More Masks!, The Courage to Heal, and Mules of Love. She’s received the Pablo Neruda Prize, Larry Levis Prize, and a Pushcart Prize. p. 40 Rob Bauer has been working with gay men for over 17 years as a body-centered psychotherapist. His workshops have been presented across North America, including Omega and Esalen Institutes, Easton Mountain, and Rowe. He has a practice in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. p. 30 Jeri Bodemar, certified in Psychosynthesis and Transpersonal Integration, has been involved in the healing arts for over 20 years, specializing in the body/mind therapies, self-care movement, astrology, chakra work, and SoulCollage. p. 14 Tim Beckwith is a mask maker, sculptor, painter, and musician with over 20 years’ teaching experience. He has a lifelong passion for the art of mask making and his work has been seen worldwide in films, television, and dance performances. His website is www.beckwithdesign.com. p. 60 Kenneth Bortin is a spcialist in internal medicine with a practice in cardiovascular disease in Milwaukee, Wisc. p. 43 Baxter Bell is featured in Yoga Journal’s DVD Yoga Step-by-Step for Stress Management, and has written articles for Yoga Journal and International Journal of Yoga Therapy. Trained at the Piedmont Yoga Studio Advanced Studies Program, he teaches workshops throughout the U.S. p. 23 Richard Berrett has committed the past 35 years of his professional life to enhancing awareness. A clinician, university professor, and past president of Imagery International, he has a background in body awareness, imagery, family systems, Gestalt, and deep learning. p. 12, 46 Judith Blackstone is founder of Realization Process, a method of integrating nondual realization, embodiment, and psychological and relational healing. She is a psychotherapist and author of The Subtle Self, The Enlightenment Process, Living Intimately, and the upcoming Intersubjectivity and Nonduality. p. 77 Richard Blasband, an internationally recognized exponent of Wilhelm Reich’s work, is a psychiatrist in private practice in Sausalito, Calif. Formerly on the medical faculty of Yale University, he is past-president of the American College of Orgonomy. p. 51 Charlie Bloom is an educator, therapist, and seminar leader. He and his wife Linda are cofounders of Bloomwork and coauthors of the widely acclaimed book, 101 Things I Wish I Knew When I Got Married. He has facilitated workshops throughout the world since 1982. p. 25, 55, 63, 84 Gordon Bloom teaches about, and inspires the development of, social change organizations at Harvard University’s Kennedy School, where he is founder and director of the Social Entrepreneurship Collaboratory (SE Lab). p. 77 Linda Bloom is a licensed clinical social worker, educator, and seminar leader. She and her husband Charlie are cofounders of Bloomwork and coauthors of the widely acclaimed book, 101 Things I Wish I Knew When I Got Married. She has facilitated workshops throughout the world since 1986. p. 25, 63 Julie Bowden, psychotherapist and author, specializes in childhood trauma, substance abuse, and forgiveness. Coauthor of Recovery: A Guide for Adult Children of Alcoholics and Genesis: Spirituality in Recovery from Childhood Traumas, she has been teaching at Esalen for 17 years. p. 44 Ann Bradney was a senior faculty member of Core Energetics East for many years. She teaches and leads workshops on Core Energetics internationally and is codirector of the Community Healing and Leadership program in El Cerrito, Calif. She has a private practice in New York City. p. 21, 85 Daniel Brown is an assistant clinical professor of psychology at Harvard Medical School. He is author of 12 books, including Transformations of Consciousness (with Ken Wilber and Jack Engler) and Hypnotherapy and Hypnoanalysis (with Erika Fromm). p. 48 C Piovra Caffe is an accomplished painter and sculptor who specializes in artistic glass techniques, including Tiffany. She supervises all artwork for the Temple of Humankind at Damanhur (Italy) and is directly involved in designing and making art pieces for its halls. p. 19 Susan Cannon is a developmental futurist and scholar-practitioner of transformative learning in human systems. She is currently affiliated with Kore Leadership, The Arlington Institute, and Pacific Integral, participating in projects supporting the unfolding of integral consciousness worldwide. p. 56 Seymour Carter, Gestalt and Sensory Awareness teacher at Esalen for more than three decades, is a lifelong student of the ever-evolving models of personal identity. He combines studies in family systems theory with Buddhism and other body/mind practices. p. 11, 32 Charlie Cascio managed the Esalen kitchen for 6 years. He is a chef, restaurateur, consultant, and lecturer on vegetarian and living foods who has worked and taught in the U.S. and throughout Europe for more than 30 years. p. 59, 70 Tom Case has been practicing massage for the past 13 years. He has been on the Esalen massage staff since 1993. p. 42, 50 87 Joyce Catlett coauthored Fear of Intimacy and is collaborative author with Robert W. Firestone on 7 books including The Fantasy Bond. She also produced Glendon Association’s 37 video productions, and has just coauthored a new book, Sex and Love in Intimate Relationships. p. 28 Joseph Cavanaugh is a licensed psychotherapist in private practice in the Sierra foothills and a psychology instructor at a local community college. He has facilitated personal-growth workshops throughout California for the past 30 years. p. 38 Dorothy Charles is a teacher of Gestalt Awareness Practice. She leads workshops in the U.S. and Asia. p. 50, 83, 84 Carl Chase (CC), developer of the CC Flow, is a renowned teacher of massage, the gift of touch, and its life-enhancing power. He has worked and taught at some of the world’s leading spas and healing centers, and is currently on the Esalen massage staff. p. 47, 70 Kenn Chase has taught traditional Yang-style T’ai Chi Ch’uan for 30 years and has studied with several T’ai Chi masters. A certified Feldenkrais teacher, he is a stress management consultant for Cardiology Associates of Marin. p. 32 Michael Christie, trained at the Royal College of Music, London, England, is a cellist, composer, and teacher. His opera, “The Standard Bearer,” was performed by the Royal Opera House in 1991 to considerable critical acclaim. p. 27 Jean Couch, author of The Runner’s Yoga Book, is director of the Balance Center in Palo Alto, Calif., gleaning new knowledge about fitness by studying populations of people who have no back or joint pain. p. 45 Drew Dellinger is a spoken-word poet, teacher, and activist. He is founder of Poets for Global Justice, and author of the collection of poems, love letter to the milky way. Dellinger has presented and performed at hundreds of conferences across the country. p. 48 Adam Crabtree is a Toronto psychotherapist and writer in the history of hypnosis, multiple consciousness, and psychotherapy. He is a member of the Esalen Survival Colloquium. His latest book, Trance Zero, is about trance states in everyday life. p. 65 Embree De Persiis has worked and taught at her Big Sur studio for more than 20 years. Her work has been exhibited in galleries and private collections throughout the United States and Canada. p. 70 Stewart Cubley’s work has carried him throughout the world in facilitating groups to access the potential within the human heart and imagination. Originally a scientist, he has led seminars in creativity for more than 25 years. p. 53 Raphael Cushnir, a popular contributor to O, The Oprah Magazine, has been a teacher, activist, screenwriter, and film director. His own heart was rekindled after a period of profound grief. Since then, he has developed the Living the Questions process and shared it around the globe. p. 28 D Leslie Dagnall, past president of the Humanist Society of New York, is Director of Training for the International Imagery Association and has presented programs across the U.S. and abroad on the use of eidetic imagery applications. She has trained extensively with Dr. Akhter Ahsen. p. 53 Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen is the founder and educational director of the School for Body-Mind Centering. She began studying yoga in 1968 and continues to explore its essence through the body systems and developmental movement. She is the author of Sensing, Feeling, and Action. p. 61 Julie Daniels is an actress, playwright, and speech teacher. She has worked on the regional theatre stage as well as in voiceover and television. Her Los Angeles company, Professionally Speaking, coaches clients in oral and written presentation. p. 27 Michael Cohen works as a psychotherapist and as a life coach. A certified Imago Couples Therapist and an erotic educator for the Body Electric School, he travels the country teaching men about the ecstatic potential of their bodies and hearts. Find him at www.lifecoachmichael.com. p. 68 David Darling is a cellist, teacher, and composer. He is cofounder of Music for People, an organization dedicated to selfexpression through music and improvisation. His latest recordings include 8-String Religion, Darkwood, and the Grammynominated Cello Blue. p. 19, 20 David Corbin is a shamanic practitioner and teacher with a private practice in shamanic counseling and healing in Maine. He is a faculty member of the Foundation for Shamanic Studies. p. 20, 83 Erik Davis is a writer, editor, and lecturer living in San Francisco. Author of The Visionary State: A Journey through California’s Spiritual Landscape, as well as the cult classic TechGnosis, he has led workshops at Esalen, the California Institute of Integral Studies, and the New York Open Center. p. 58 Seane Corn is an accomplished yogini who has been featured in numerous magazines (including Allure, Self, and Yoga Journal). Chosen by Nike to represent yoga in a national campaign, she was seen in commercials and print worldwide. p. 72 Ann Weiser Cornell has taught Focusing in fifteen countries on five continents. She is a student and colleague of Gene Gendlin, the developer of Focusing. Her book is The Power of Focusing: A Practical Guide to Emotional Self-Healing. p. 61 Bruce Cornwell has combined Gestalt, yoga, meditation, and dynamic theater forms for the past three decades—whether leading workshops, working with clients and actors in his L.A.-based psychotherapy practice, or directing and acting in professional films and theater productions. p. 30 88 David Deamer is Professor of Biomolecular Engineering at UC Santa Cruz. His research interests are DNA sequencing and the origin of life. He and Ellen Suckiel initiated a course in bioethics and have co-taught it over the past four years. p. 14 Lorie Eve Dechar has been practicing Chinese medicine for 20 years. She is the creator of Alchemical Acupuncture, a healing system that integrates acupuncture, archetypal psychology, and Taoist alchemy. She is the author of Five Spirits. p. 21 Brooke Deputy has been a student of bioenergetics for more than 20 years, studying with some of the world’s senior teachers, including founder Alexander Lowen. An Esalen-trained massage practitioner, she has studied tai chi and dance, and teaches in the Esalen Movement Arts Program. p. 74 Karen Dietz is executive director of the National Storytelling Network, an association of storytellers across the U.S. She has over 20 years of experience working with Fortune 500 executives, professional speakers, community leaders, and activists in stories and storytelling. p. 63 Patrick Douce, one of Moshe Feldenkrais’s first American students, has been associated with Esalen since 1972. Since 1986 he lives half of each year in Bali, developing programs with Indonesian Silat martial-arts-for-health schools. p. 13, 84 Ken Druck began the Jenna Druck Foundation in 1996 following the death of his daughter Jenna. The Foundation’s Families Helping Families program reaches thousands of bereaved parents annually. He leads “Healing Your Life After the Loss of a Child” workshops throughout the U.S. p. 55 Barry Duncan is an international lecturer, a therapist with over 17,000 hours of clinical experience, the author of 13 books, and a frequent national media guest, with appearances including “Oprah” and “The View.” p. 24 Emile Hassan Dyer, vocalist, percussionist, dancer, storyteller, and teacher, believes it is imperative for the future of the planet that the songs, chants, and dances from the world’s many cultures be shared. He recently had the honor of performing inside Stonehenge in a ceremony for the victims of 9/11. p. 50 E Erica Elliott is board-certified in family practice and environmental medicine, with a busy practice in Santa Fe. She lectures frequently on nutrition and the health effects of environmental toxins and allergens and is the author of Prescriptions for a Healthy House. p. 17 Zuza Engler has been passionate about movement and awareness practice as a path of healing and self-discovery for over 15 years. She has taught Tibetan energy work, yoga, and dance since 1992. Her website is www.transformativedance.com. p. 85 Ulrika Engman has been dancing on the Yoga path for 15 years, leading workshops worldwide. Certified in Anusara Yoga and the Halprin Life/Art Process, she combines the transformative power of Yoga with the expressive arts into a celebration of the heart. p. 64 Fariba Enteshari was born in Shiraz, Iran, where she grew up with the poetry of two famous Sufi poets, Hafiz and Saadi. Fariba has studied the Mathnawi, Rumi’s book of Enlightenment, in its original Farsi for 10 years, and has taught Rumi at USC and Santa Barbara City College. p. 23 F 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. Her website is www.firewithin.ws. p. 46 Mark Fairfield is the clinical director at Common Ground-The Westside HIV Community Center in Santa Monica and is in private practice in West L.A. His particular interest is community building and group work. He is the current president of the Gestalt Therapy Institute of Los Angeles. p. 42 Jayson Fann, Esalen Arts Center coordinator, has 17 years of experience as a musician, performer, visual artist, costume designer, composer, and musical director. He studied music in Africa and the Caribbean, and has taught at Cal State University, Monterey Bay. p. 12, 48, 58 Rachel Fann joined the Esalen massage staff in 1993. Her work integrates Esalen Massage with approaches from CranioSacral Therapy, aikido, Chi Kung, breathwork, and meditation. p. 17, 77 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. p. 32, 50 Warren Farrell, author of Why Men Are the Way They Are; Why Men Earn More; Father and Child Reunion; The Myth of Male Power; and Women Can’t Hear What Men Don’t Say, has been a pioneer in both the women’s and men’s movements, and has appeared on over 1,000 television and radio shows. p. 20, 77 Lisa Firestone is Director of Research and Education with the Glendon Association. A practicing clinical psychologist, Dr. Firestone is coauthor of Conquer Your Critical Inner Voice, Creating A Life of Meaning and Compassion, and the new Sex and Love in Intimate Relationships. p. 28 Janina Fisher is an instructor and supervisor at the Trauma Center in Boston, and a consultant on trauma to the Cambridge Hospital Family Clinic. She is also an EMDRIA consultant, a certified teacher of Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, and a former instructor at Harvard Medical School. p. 70 Thomas Michael Fortel 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. His website is www.yogawiththomas.com. p. 14, 29, 47, 72 Michael Franti is the lead singer of the band Spearhead, an accomplished songwriter, and producer of the annual Power to the Peaceful festival. For 20 years, he has been a leader in the struggle for social and political justice. His website is www.michaelfranti.com. p. 72 Marti Glenn, founding president of Santa Barbara Graduate Institute, has been a pioneering psychotherapist in prenatal, perinatal, and somatic psychology for over 25 years, as well as a professor of clinical psychology, working with early development, attachment, and trauma. p. 29 Patricia Frisch is a licensed psychologist, Reichian therapist, family therapist, and experienced group leader. She is director of Counseling and Training Consultants, which provides communications training for inmates and staff in California State prisons. p. 51 Robert Goisman is director of medical student education at Massachusetts Mental Health Center and associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. In 2001 Dr. Goisman received the Outstanding Psychiatrist Award from the Massachusetts Psychiatric Society for Public Sector Service. p. 54 Jerome Front is an adjunct faculty at Pepperdine University and teaches about eating, food, and mindfulness-based approaches. He has worked at the Rader Institute for Eating Disorders, leads retreats, and is an MFT in private practice in Studio City, Calif. p. 61 Seena Frost is a psychotherapist whose present practice consists mostly of teaching the SoulCollage process that she originated and developed with her clients over many years. Jean Houston was a primary influence in birthing this process, and the work of James Hillman is central. p. 14 G Kate Gale teaches at Cal Arts. She is managing editor of Red Hen Press, president of Pen USA, and editor of The Los Angeles Review. She is the author of seven books and editor of four anthologies. p. 22 Jim Gallas, a Shiatsu teacher for over 10 years, has led workshops in California and internationally. Creator of the video Table Shiatsu: Deep and Effective Body Work With Ease, Jim also teaches Reiki, yoga, and Chi Kung, and is a member of a theater improvisation group. p. 84, 85 Gangaji, internationally renowned teacher, has since 1990 offered thousands of people the invitation to directly experience the true peace and absolute freedom that are our essential nature. Her books include The Diamond in Your Pocket and Freedom and Resolve. p. 39 Dennis Gates is an integrative medicine physician in Chicago, after practicing orthopedic surgery for 27 years. He teaches optimum health and the integration of holistic and standard medical care. A graduate fellow of Andrew Weil, he has conducted workshops for patients as well as medical staffs. p. 57 Mark Gerzon, author of the forthcoming Leading Beyond Borders, has conducted leadership trainings worldwide. He is the director of the Global Leadership Network, a team of 20 practitioners from every continent who each brings his/her unique skills and experience to their work. p. 54 Mariah Fenton Gladis, founder/director of the Pennsylvania Gestalt Center for Psychotherapy and Training for nearly three decades, leads workshops and trainings around the U.S. and in Europe. She is recognized for the sensitive and creative way she practices the art of Gestalt. p. 29, 30 Richard Gold has been practicing and teaching Oriental healing arts since 1978. A graduate in Thai Massage from the Old Medicine Hospital in Chiang Mai, Thailand, he is chairman of the board of the International Professional School of Bodywork in San Diego. p. 78 Stan Goldberg is a prolific writer and winner of many honors including the Templeton Foundation’s Power of Purpose award. He lectures and leads workshops in the United States, Central America, Europe, and Asia. He currently serves as a hospice volunteer and change consultant. p. 79 Lynda Greenberg is an exhibiting sculptor who has taught drawing nationwide since 1981. She has been a colleague of the center for the Educational Applications of Brain Hemisphere Research since its founding in 1985. p. 15 Ricky Greenwald is founder and director of the Child Trauma Institute in Greenfield, Mass. He is the author of EMDR in Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy, Trauma and Juvenile Delinquency, and the forthcoming Child Trauma Handbook. p. 15 Robert Greenway, a transpersonal psychologist, counselor, and writer, is one of the founders of the field of ecopsychology. Professor emeritus from Sonoma State University and founding dean of Franconia College, he is currently an organic farmer in northwest Washington State. p. 17 Sylvia Guersenzvaig is a student of intuitive pathways to healing with over 20 years of experience in the fields of somatic and visionary practices. She has been a massage practitioner and an astrologer at Esalen since 1982. p. 28, 56 H Mary Goldenson is a clinical psychologist, chiropractor, and certified Radix teacher in Los Angeles. She has a private practice specializing in relationship therapy and transitions, and leads mediation trainings and workshops around the country. p. 18, 22, 43, 64 Rana Halprin has been professionally involved in dance, the expressive arts, and integrated fields throughout her life, and has performed and taught nationally and internationally. Her primary focus is to share healing work with the most vulnerable population: children of war and poverty. p. 71 Richard Goldwasser, director/ founder of the Biofeedback and Stress Management Clinics of Manchester and Chicago, has spent 30 years training people in self-regulatory techniques, anxiety reduction, and pain control. He is the inventor of Validation: A Test To Monitor Memory©. p. 62 Steven Harper is a wilderness guide, author, artist, and Big Sur resident. He has led both traditional and experimental wilderness expeditions internationally for over 25 years. He has an MA in psychology and his work focuses on wild nature as a vehicle for awakening. p. 50, 61, 68, 75 Harriet Goslins originated Cortical Field Reeducation. A Feldenkrais practitioner and Integrated Awareness teacher, her background is in psychosynthesis, applied kinesiology, muscle energy, craniosacral work, and social anthropology. She has been teaching at Esalen for 23 consecutive years. p. 31 Connie Grauds, a shamana of the Amazon jungle tradition, is president of the Association of Natural Medicine Pharmacists, assistant professor of Clinical Pharmacy at UCSF, director of the Center for Spirited Medicine, and author of The Energy Prescription and Jungle Medicine. p. 25 Diana Gray is a lesbian psychologist in San Francisco specializing in working with the lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender community. She has written articles and presented workshops on lesbian issues, and trains helping professionals to facilitate psychotherapy groups. p. 65 David Greenan, a psychologist and family therapist, is executive director of The Minuchin Center for the Family in New York City where he consults to programs for inner-city families. He is on the faculty of Columbia University, Teachers College, and NYU/Bellevue Hospital Center. p. 33 Susan Harper teaches Continuum workshops in the U.S., Canada, Europe, and Japan. She also offers Quest trips—for celebrating what is still wild, inside and out—in the wilderness and in Asia. p. 75 Sam Harris is the author of the international bestseller The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason. He is a graduate in philosophy from Stanford University and has studied both Eastern and Western religious traditions, along with a variety of spiritual disciplines, for 20 years. p. 19 Justin Hecht is a Jungian psychologist in private practice and a clinical faculty member of the department of psychiatry at UCSF. He teaches meditation and leads groups and workshops designed to awaken authenticity and creativity. p. 64 Ardell Hill is a licensed massage therapist and reflexologist experienced in a variety of modalities. Author of Spiritual Reflexology, she also offer integrations using quantum physics theories. p. 27, 75 Constance G. Hills has practiced Vipassana meditation for 15 years, and is a student of Dr. Rina Sircar. She is the director of the Psychology Program at the Institute on Aging, and maintains a private practice in San Francisco. She is a licensed psychologist. p. 68 Ginger Holladay’s first calling was as a professional singer, recording with Elvis Presley, Linda Ronstadt, and Joan Baez. Her personal journey led her to the healing arts, and she now works as a massage practitioner, yoga instructor, and voice coach for individuals and groups. p. 31 Johanna Holloman is a Germanborn clinical psychologist, Gestalt and deep bodywork practitioner, and teacher. Now living in Big Sur, she is a certified Esalen Massage teacher and a professional yoga teacher on the Esalen Movement staff. p. 15, 51, 84 Perry Holloman has taught at Esalen and in Europe for over 20 years, focusing on the physical, energetic, and emotional causes of chronic pain. He is on Esalen’s bodywork staff and teaches somatic approaches to Gestalt Therapy at the Gestalt Institute in Dortmund, Germany. p. 15, 45, 51, 84 Jonathan Horan is Gabrielle Roth’s son and closest collaborator. He is on the core faculty of her international institute, The Moving Center. Jonathan has been immersed in the 5Rhythms practice throughout his life and continues to be a key catalyst in its evolution. p. 61 Peggy Horan has been practicing and teaching massage at Esalen for 35 years. She has also been involved in childbirth education and has practiced midwifery in Big Sur for 15 years. p. 27, 57 Chungliang Al Huang teaches Tai Ji philosophy, East/West synthesis, and the art of movement meditation. He is the founderpresident of the Living Tao Foundation and director of Lan Ting Institute in the Sacred Mountains of China. p. 39, 42 David Hykes, composer, singer, meditation guide, founder of the Harmonic Presence work and the Harmonic Chant, and pioneer in harmonic sound and related meditative practices, has released 10 CDs, co-hosted evenings with the Dalai Lama and the Gyuto and Gyume monks, and teaches and performs worldwide. p. 58 I Ione is the author of Pride of Family: Four Generations of American Women of Color, a New York Times Notable Book. She is a counselor and educator specializing in heritage and women’s issues. She is also a playwright and director who teaches throughout the world. p. 16 J Roger Jahnke has practiced Chinese medicine clinically for over 25 years. He has traveled to China eight times to explore the secrets of Qi in hospitals, temples, and sacred sites. He is the author of the acclaimed The Healer Within and, more recently, The Healing Promise of Qi. p. 28 Eli Jaxon-Bear teaches and leads retreats worldwide through The Leela Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to world peace and freedom through universal s elf-realization. His books include The Enneagram of Liberation: From Fixation to Freedom and Sudden Awakening— Into Direct Realization. p. 39 89 Dave Jeffers has been an innovative entrepreneur in his 27 years with John Deere, a traditional manufacturing company. His varied life experiences have helped prepare him for this work (including a stint as a nightshift supervisor at the Arizona State Mental Hospital for the Criminally Insane). p. 33 Arthur Samuel Joseph is a teacher of voice who over 40 years ago established the Vocal Awareness system, a method integrating mind/body/spirit in the vocal arts. He is author of Vocal Power—Harnessing the Power Within plus other books and multiple audio and video series. p. 13 Zoran Josipovic is a research associate at Rutgers University, studying the neural correlates of nondual awareness and the effects of meditation on visual/spatial cognition. He has also worked as a psychotherapist, bodyworker, and workshop leader for over 20 years. p. 75 Andrea Juhan is an enthusiastic student, scholar, and teacher of the 5Rhythms movement work of Gabrielle Roth. She is on the teaching faculty for the Institute for Integrative Body Psychotherapy (IBP) and a long-term practitioner of Gestalt Awareness Practice. p. 28, 29 K Jim Kepner is a psychologist and the author of Body Process and Healing Tasks. He teaches internationally on the application of Gestalt Body Process Psychotherapy to healing in trauma, stress, and illness. Jim is the co-originator of Nervous System Energy Work (www.pathwaysforhealing.com). p. 35 Hala Khouri is earning a Doctorate in Somatic Psychology and works with Somatic Experiencing. She has a private counseling practice, teaches yoga, and leads workshops nationally. Her website is www.halakhouri.com. p. 49 John King is a nationally recognized senior teacher, coach, and program leader who, over the past three decades, has trained and coached more than 25,000 people to excellence in their fields. He coauthored The Coaching Revolution and Managing Across Generations. p. 30 Daphne Rose Kingma is a therapist, lecturer, and teacher of relationships as a spiritual art form. She is the best-selling author of seven books on relationships, including Coming Apart, Finding True Love, and the forthcoming 9 Types of Lovers. p. 70 Galway Kinnell has taught poetry in colleges and universities around the globe. Most recently he has been Erich Maria Remarque Professor of Creative Writing at NYU. He has published a dozen books of his poetry and his translations of Villon, Rilke, and Bonnefoy. He lives in northern Vermont. p. 32 Daijaku Judith Kinst, is a Soto Zen teacher and priest who leads retreats in a variety of settings and teaches graduate courses in Buddhism and contemplative psychology. She is a Marriage and Family Therapist and maintains a psychotherapy and consulting practice in San Francisco. p. 68 90 Pauline Kirby, a teacher and health practitioner for over 25 years, has a background in both traditional medicine and a variety of complementary medical practices including acupuncture, herbs, and homeopathy. p. 40 Joe Kort is a psychotherapist and author of 10 Smart Things Gay Men Can Do to Improve Their Lives. He works with gay men individually, in couples, and in group therapy, and leads workshops as well. His website is www.joekort.com. p. 47 Pamela Kramer is a certified ITP trainer and coordinator of Community ITP in Mill Valley. She is a performance consultant, career counselor, and transformational teacher who has worked with individuals and organizations for 25 years to facilitate positive growth and authentic creative expression. p. 37 Sybil Krauter teaches Integrated Awareness and Cortical Field Reeducation. Her background is in clinical hypnosis, neurolinguistic programming, and education. Currently her focus is on how we create reality. p. 31 Jill Kuykendall is a physical therapist and transpersonal medical practitioner who has worked in the standard Western medical paradigm for 25 years. She is now in private practice specializing in soul retrieval, and is the author (with Hank Wesselman) of Spirit Medicine. p. 41, 69 L Bob Lamp is a mixed-media artist. He spent four years as the foundry technician for the School of Art and Design at San Jose State University. He currently teaches a wide range of sculpture classes at Monterey Peninsula College and maintains a studio in Ben Lomond, Calif. p. 71 Bruce Langhorne is a legendary recording artist and composer who has been nominated for an Academy Award in film scoring. He is the inspiration for the Bob Dylan song “Tambourine Man,” as his playing is infectiously joyous. p. 67 Leonard Laskow is a Stanfordtrained physician who has studied the healing power of love for more than 25 years. He is the developer of Holoenergetic healing and author of Healing With Love: A Breakthrough Mind/Body Medical Program for Healing Yourself and Others. p. 40 George Leonard is the author of 12 books, including Mastery, The Ultimate Athlete, and The Way of Aikido. He is a fifth-degree black belt in aikido, founder o f Leonard Energy Training (LET), and cofounder (with Michael Murphy) of Integral Transformative Practice (ITP). p. 37, 54 Peter Levine is an internationally recognized authority on trauma and a pioneer in stress research and healing practices for trauma survivors. Dr. Levine is the founder of the Foundation for Human Enrichment in Lyons, Colo. p. 30, 33, 34 Ronald Levine is an ordained rabbi and licensed clinical psychologist in Van Nuys, Calif. Upon receiving his Ph.D. in 1978, he participated in the Human Sexuality Training Program at UCLA. For the past 25 years his private practice has focused on marital and sex therapy. p. 17 Dennis Lewis, a longtime student of the Gurdjieff Work, Taoism, and Advaita, teaches the transformative power of presence through breathing, qigong, and meditation. He is the author of Free Your Breath, Free Your Life, The Tao of Natural Breathing, and the audio program (CD) Natural Breathing. p. 78 Alan Sasha Lithman, author, visionary, evolutionary activist, spent 21 years in Auroville, India, where he integrated body-based transformational practices with multicultural community-building and hands-on environmental restoration. p. 58 Tias Little brings to his teaching a wonderful play of metaphor and imagination. He is trained in Iyengar and Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga, massage, Rolfing, and cranial-sacral therapy. Tias earned a Masters degree in Eastern Philosophy and directs Yogasource in Santa Fe, N.M. p. 18 Ron Loeb, a retired corporate lawyer, has served on the board of directors of Mattel, Inc., since 1970. Former Senior Vice President and General Counsel of WilliamsSonoma, Inc., he is presently engaged in projects related to the role of business in society and spirituality in business. p. 30 Olga Louchakova, founding director of the Hridayam School, has for more than 20 years guided spiritual awakening in Eastern Europe and the U.S. She teaches Prayer of the Heart and Kundalini Yoga, and is a core faculty member at the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology. p. 57 Barbara Lee has been a circlemaker for more than 25 years. Her primary focus is on the heart-centered remembrance of the Divine. She is the author of Loving Yourself. p. 49, 57 Frederic Luskin is a Senior Fellow at the Stanford Center on Conflict and Negotiation. A licensed psychologist, he directs the Stanford Forgiveness Projects and is the author of Forgive for Good: A Proven Prescription for Health and Happiness. p. 71 Mickey Lemle is a multi-award-winning filmmaker who has been called “Cinema’s Soul Man” by the Utne Reader because of the intimate, moving films he has made about some of the great spiritual teachers and themes of our time. p. 33 M Annie Styron Leonard is executive director of the Energy Training Institute in Mill Valley, Calif., the certifying organization for Leonard Energy Training (LET). She holds a black belt in the martial art of aikido and is one of the founding leaders of Integral Transformative Practice. p. 37, 54 Constance Jones Maas, an MFT for over 10 years, developed the human sexuality course material at Mt. San Jacinto College. She currently teaches at Chapman University in San Diego, and practices and provides facilitation in Gestalt and family systems training. p. 11 Helen Jerene Malcolm is an artist, consultant, and teacher who works with a visionary consulting team designing longrange vision paintings for individual clients and Fortune 500 corporations. p. 32, 75, 84 Jane Malek trained with Marion Rosen. She is a teacher of Rosen Method Bodywork and a Rosen Movement Training teacher who began studying Rosen Method in 1980. Jane has a practice in the Monterey area as well as teaching internationally. For more information visit www.JaneMalek.com. p. 35 Brigitte Mars is an herbalist and nutritional consultant from Boulder, Colo., who has been working with natural medicine for over 30 years. She is the author of Rawsome, Addiction-Free Naturally, and Sex, Love, and Health. p. 67 Dean Marson teaches in Esalen’s Massage Program and Movement Arts Program, incorporating meditation and selfcare practices to assist people in awakening and de-stressing their bodies. He has led workshops at Esalen, in Europe, and in Asia for over 20 years. p. 28, 31, 42, 77, 80 Vinn Martí is a movement artist, teacher, and spiritual friend, living in Portland, Ore. He teaches SoulMotion internationally, and is a certified Chaplain and Prayer Practitioner through the New Thought Alliance of Churches. p. 15, 69 Guillermo Martinez, a native tribesman from the highlands of Michoacan, Mexico, is a master instrument maker who lives in Modjeska, Calif. He has performed as part of the group America Indigena, which has been nominated for three NAMMYs (Native American Music Awards). p. 44 Charlea Massion is a family physician and women’s health specialist. She teaches in the Division of Family and Community Medicine at Stanford University Medical Center and is on the advisory board of the American College of Women’s Health Physicians. p. 39 Sarah Mata is a certified yoga teacher trained in the traditions of Krishnamacharya. Her work ranges from the vigorous flow for the very fit to the user-friendly application of yoga for people with heart disease and musculoskeletal injuries. p. 22 Nora Matten-Lindborg is a member of the Esalen massage and movement staffs. Her work draws on a wide range of teachings, especially Vinn Marti’s SoulMotion, Forrest yoga, vipassana meditation, and Gestalt Awareness Practice. p. 84 Sigrid Matthews is a certified personal trainer and yoga instructor with 20 years’ experience. She and her mother Carol Adrienne have taught together for 9 years. p. 59 Camille Maurine is the coauthor of Meditation 24/7 and Meditation Secrets for Women. A dancer and performing artist who has been teaching since 1975, she is the creator of kinAesthetics and the transformational Moving Theater process. p. 27 Sheryl McGavin maintained private practices simultaneously in Ohio and Florida for more than eight years, working with pediatrics, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, and addictive behaviors. In 1999 she joined the Upledger staff and today she lectures, teaches, and works with clients. p. 23 Rebecca McLean is a national trainer and author of The Circle of Life who has worked in mind/body healthcare and life coaching for over 25 years. She has facilitated support groups for hospitals, schools, parishes, agencies, and businesses, and coached hundreds of individuals. p. 19 Deborah Anne Medow, Esalen workshop leader and bodywork practitioner since 1969, teaches yoga, massage, creative movement, awareness practices, and related healing disciplines throughout the U.S. and Europe. She is also a certified nutrition educator. p. 40, 45 Daniel Merchant is a Gestalt therapist practicing in New York City who has integrated 30 years as a student of Buddhism and the healing teachings of indigenous cultures into his work. A certified Imago Couples Therapist, he regularly presents a workshop called The Healing Power of Imagination. p. 68 Linda Trichter Metcalf, author and educator, created the practice of Proprioceptive Writing (PW) in the mid1970s. Founder of the Proprioceptive Writing Center in New York City, she teaches group and online PW classes, conducts PW therapy, and leads the PW Teacher Certification Program. p. 74 Michael Meyer has taught Cortical Field Reeducation at Esalen since 1993 and The Feldenkrais Method for the past ten years. He lives in Laguna Beach, where he specializes in working with seniors and those with neurological impairment. p. 31 Peter Meyers, founder and director of the Vector Theater Conservatory in San Rafael, Calif., received the Golden Bell Award for outstanding achievement in educational planning. He has directed numerous theater shows and performed on television and film. p. 84 Emmett Miller is widely recognized as a founder of mind/body medicine and as the inventor of the guided-imagery audiocassette/ CD. He is the author of Deep Healing and has recorded more than 50 deep-relaxation meditations and talks. p. 25 Shelley Mitchell is best known for her acclaimed performance of the 1943 Holocaust diary Talking with Angels. She is artistic director of The Actors Center of San Francisco and was recently nominated as best solo performer by the Bay Area Theater Critics Circle. Visit www.shelleymitchell.org. p. 74 Joseph Montville spent 23 years as a diplomat in the Middle East. He became a political psychologist, wrote articles, edited books, and conceived of track-two citizen diplomacy at Esalen Institute while working on the Russian-American relationship. p. 45 Jean Morrison began her career in communication coaching, training, and mediation after her foundational work in the fields of health, education, business, and restorative justice. She is a founding member of NVC Santa Cruz (nvcsantacruz.org). p. 46 Sharon Olds teaches in New York University’s Graduate Creative Writing Program and is the New York State Poet Laureate. She has published many books of poems, including The Father, The Wellspring, and, most recently, Blood, Tin, Straw. p. 51, 52 Beverly Kitaen Morse is a marriage and family therapist in private practice in Santa Monica, Calif., and executive director of the Rosenberg-Kitaen Integrative Body Psychotherapy Central Institute and the 12 IBP International Institutes. She is coauthor of The Intimate Couple. p. 37 Abbey Onikoyi, a native of Nigeria, grew up in a family that was one of the founding royal families of Lagos, with a tradition rooted in arts and culture. His goal is to impact humanity with “a whole new love” through art, music, and communication. p. 64 Nan Moss is a faculty member of the Foundation for Shamanic Studies. As a shamanic practitioner she teaches workshops on shamanism, and has a shamanic counseling and healing practice in Maine. p. 20, 83 Anna Ornstein is a lecturer on psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and professor of child psychiatry (Emerita) at the University of Cincinnati. Dr. Ornstein authored numerous papers on the process of psychotherapy, aspects of self-psychology, and survival following extreme conditions. p. 52 Robert Moss is a world-renowned dream teacher, a shamanic counselor, a novelist, and a former professor of ancient history at the Australian National University. Among his many books are Dreamgates and the new Dreamways of the Iroquois. His website is www.mossdreams.com. p. 78 N Mary Nelson is the originator and founder of LaStone Therapy, Inc. A former bionutritionist, she is a licensed massage therapist with a private practice in Tucson, Ariz. Her work is inspired by her metaphysical studies of Christian and Native American traditions. p. 75 Maria Nemeth is a psychologist, master coach, speaker, and author of The Energy of Money. Founder of the Academy for Coaching Excellence, an ICFaccredited program, Dr. Nemeth’s work, using coaching methods she designed, has touched thousands of lives. p. 20 Michael Newman is an attorneymediator, surfer, and lifelong resident of the Big Sur coast. He has an MA in psychology and promotes the integration of wilderness into contemporary life. p. 50 Mark Nicolson runs Ventana Group, a consultancy which facilitates transformative learning in leaders and organizations committed to social change. He is a graduate of Oxford, Stanford, and the Esalen Extended Student program. p. 12, 77 Wes “Scoop” Nisker is a radio commentator, Buddhist meditation teacher, and performer who has practiced Buddhist meditation for 30 years. His books include Essential Crazy Wisdom and The Big Bang, The Buddha, and the Baby Boom. He is the founder and coeditor of the Buddhist journal Inquiring Mind. p. 52 O Gael Ohlgren met and trained with Ida Rolf at Esalen in 1968 and ‘69 and later served on the Rolf Institute faculty. After studying and practicing Continuum for 25 years she became a Continuum teacher both at home and internationally. p. 24 Paul Ornstein is a lecturer on psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and professor of psychiatry and psychoanalysis (Emeritus) at the University of Cincinnati. Dr. Ornstein, in addition to authoring many papers, edited and introduced the four volumes of The Search for the Self. p. 52 Wendy Oser is a filmmaker and producer of the award-winning documentary Let’s Face It: Women Explore their Aging Faces. She pioneered the use of video feedback for self-discovery, leading workshops internationally since 1976. Most of the time she enjoys looking her age. p. 14 Brita Ostrom, a licensed MFT, has led massage and other workshops at Esalen for over 20 years. She is trained in Gestalt awareness work and participated in Esalen’s two-year somatics education project. p. 40, 42, 80 P Ken Page is a psychotherapist, lecturer, and the director and cofounder of numerous well-known GBT men’s spiritual retreats, including the Rowe Labor Day Retreat and the Spring Retreat for GBT Men. He is the founder of Deeper Dating (www.deeperdating.com). p. 33 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. p. 42 Bert Parlee, a licensed clinical psychologist and published author, serves as Chief of Staff and lead seminar trainer at Ken Wilber’s Integral Institute in Colorado. Bert has a private psychotherapy and personal and executive coaching practices in Mill Valley, Calif. p. 35 Laurel Parnell is a clinical psychologist and author of Transforming Trauma: EMDR and EMDR in the Treatment of Adults Abused as Children. She is currently writing her latest book The Art of EMDR: Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing in Clinical Practice. p. 34, 37 Marco Pasi is an assistant professor in the History of Hermetic Philosophy at the University of Amersterdam. He is the author of several essays on modern Western esotericism and of a book on Aleister Crowley and politics. p. 62 Donna Dreyer Pérez-Venero studied the shamanic tradition of the Hmong hill tribes in Thailand. She is a transpersonal psychiatrist and serves on the faculty of the University of Maryland Medical School. p. 37 Richard Yensen Pérez-Venero studied the shamanic tradition with Carlos Castaneda and Maria Sabina. A psychologist, he has served on the faculties of Harvard Medical School and Johns Hopkins University. p. 37 Carole Pertofsky is director of Stanford University’s Health Promotion Services, co-founder of Spiritual Tools For Healing Center for cancer survivors, life coach, and national facilitator of health and wellness seminars and workshops. p. 14 Jane Peterson is a master practitioner of neurolinguistic programming, a certified clinical hypnotherapist, and a Ph.D. student at Fielding Graduate Institute. Involved with Hellinger’s work since 1998, she has developed an innovative training program for constellation facilitators. p. 60 Maggie Phillips is an expert in the field of abuse and trauma, and in the treatment of posttraumatic and dissociative disorders. Coauthor of Healing the Divided Self and author of Finding the Energy to Heal, Dr. Phillips is director of the California Institute of Clinical Hypnosis. p. 33 Char Pias, a member of the Esalen Massage Staff since 1980, teaches internationally, focusing on the energetic, emotional, and spiritual aspects of bodywork. She is a Reiki Master/Teacher, a Circle of Life facilitator/coach, and a licensed graduate of The Center for Spiritual Healing. p. 46 Pablo Piekar, originally a psychotherapist from Argentina, has been on the Esalen Staff since 1988. In addition to being a leadership and team development consultant, he has been practicing bodywork professionally for 15 years. He teaches Esalen Massage internationally. p. 32, 42, 56, 80, 83 Lavinia Plonka spent 25 years in theater before discovering The Feldenkrais Method. Her book, What Are You Afraid Of? A Body/Mind Guide To Courageous Living has been translated into 5 languages. She is director of the Asheville Movement Center and teaches workshops internationally. p. 63 David Presti is a neuroscientist and clinical psychologist who teaches at the University of California in Berkeley. His expertise ranges from the treatment of drug addiction to the use of drugs and plant medicines for healing through ritual and alterations of consciousness. p. 36 Christine Stewart Price is a teacher and ongoing student of Gestalt Awareness Practice and other approaches to developing awareness. p. 21 91 Johanna Putnoi is a dancer, writer, and somatics educator who leads workshops and trainings in Lomi somatics, the movement arts, and the enneagram throughout the U.S. and in Europe. She has a private practice in Menlo Park, Calif. p. 66 R Gustavo Rabin is a licensed psychologist with a practice based in Palo Alto, Calif. He specializes in the personal and professional development of individuals, teams, and organizations. Gustavo’s work is also focused on facilitating life transitions. p. 12 Srivatsa Ramaswami studied for over three decades with the legendary Sri T. Krishnamacharya and was his longeststanding student outside of the teacher’s family. He has written scores of articles, three books, and recorded about 40 CDs and cassettes of Sanskrit mantras. p. 79 Shiva Rea has been living yoga for 17 years. She is known for bringing the roots of yoga alive for modern practitioners through the integration of movement meditation, yogic philosophy and art, nature’s vitality, spontaneous humor, and joy. p. 72 Laura Regalbuto, in addition to being a psychiatric social worker and psychotherapist, teaches yoga, tai chi, and dance. She leads yoga retreats and seminars. p. 33 Haydn Reiss is the producer of the award-winning film Rumi: Poet of the Heart. Other credits include William Stafford and Robert Bly: A Literary Friendship and How Democrats and Progressives Can Win: Solutions from George Lakoff. p. 62 David K. Reynolds is recognized as the leading Western authority on Japanese psychotherapies. Former faculty of UCLA and the USC School of Medicine, his books include The Quiet Therapies, Constructive Living, A Handbook for Constructive Living, and Playing Ball on Running Water. p. 10 David Richo is a psychotherapist, teacher, and writer in Santa Barbara and San Francisco, who emphasizes Jungian, transpersonal, and spiritual perspectives. He is the author of When Love Meets Fear, Shadow Dance, and How To Be An Adult in Relationships. p. 16, 68 Lorin Roche has been in love with meditation since 1968. His work, Instinctive Meditation, is set forth in Meditation 24/7, Meditation Secrets for Women, Meditation Made Easy, Breath Taking, and Whole Body Meditations. p. 27 Karen Roeper is a senior teacher at the Rosen Bodywork Institute in Berkeley, Calif., and has maintained a private practice in bodywork and movement for over 15 years. Her lifelong focus has been to explore the relationships between body, emotions, mind, and spirit. p. 24 Marina T. Romero is a therapist and teacher. She is director of Estel, a center of personal growth and school of integral studies in Barcelona, and creator of Holistic Sexuality. She is the coauthor of Nacidos de la Tierra: Sexualidad Origen del Ser Humano. p. 66 92 Marion Rosen trained in Munich in the 1930’s, giving breathwork and massage to the psychoanalytic patients of Carl Jung. She devotes much of her time to Rosen workshops and trainings in Europe and the U.S. She is the author of Rosen Method: Accessing the Unconscious through Touch. p. 35 Jack Lee Rosenberg is in private practice in Venice, Calif. Founder and clinical director of the Rosenberg-Kitaen Integrative Body Psychotherapy Central Institute and the 12 IBP International Institutes, he authored Total Orgasm, and coauthored Body, Self, and Soul and The Intimate Couple. p. 37 Peter Rosselli cofounded Cor Communications, LLC, a consulting and training company specializing in communication skills. Developer of programs in improvisation, presentation skills, and team building, he has consulted with companies such as Apple, AT&T, and IBM. p. 24 Adam Rudolph is a composer, percussionist, and educator who has released numerous CDs and performed extensively worldwide for the past 30 years. His book Pure Rhythm will be published in early 2006. p. 11 Gordy Ryan performed worldwide with Babtunde Olatunji for three decades while maintaining a prolific career as a recording artist and composer. His band OBA has released two CDs, One Breath Away and Beautiful Game. See www.obatheband.com. p. 67 M.J. Ryan is one of the creators of the Random Acts of Kindness series and the author of The Happiness Makeover, The Power of Patience, The Giving Heart, and 365 Health and Happiness Boosters. Her work utilizes current brain research to maximize the cultivation of wisdom. p. 76 S Larry Santoyo, ecological land use planner and director of Earthflow Design Works, is among the most experienced Permaculture educators in the U.S. His designs, combining artistry with ecology for home, business, and community, integrate eco-economic development strategies with natural-systems management. p. 45, 47 David Schiffman is a longtime group leader at Esalen. His primary interest is in facilitating people in transition toward a more heartful, unstrained existence. p. 11, 26, 27, 47, 48, 58, 70, 83 Meir Schneider, an internationallyknown therapist and educator, is the founder of the School for Self-Healing in San Francisco and the author of SelfHealing: My Life and Vision, The Handbook for Self-Healing, Yoga for the Eyes, and his latest book, Movement for Self-Healing. p. 67 John Schott is a clinical instructor in psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Schott was also a stockbroker for ten years, and for many years pursued a dual career as a practicing psychiatrist/psychoanalyst and a practicing investment advisor. p. 44 Alan Schwartz is a first-generation Gestalt therapist and one of the early teachers to conduct bioenergetic workshops some thirty-plus years ago at Esalen. His research deals with the superimposition of characterology on the workplace and culture. p. 15, 84 Richard Schwartz is a former associate professor in the Department of Psychiatry, University of Illinois College of Medicine. He is director of the Center for Self Leadership in Oak Park, Ill. Author of six books, he is the developer of the Internal Family Systems model. p. 13 Susie Self is a singer/composer who has starred in London’s West End and sings in Europe’s finest opera houses. Her opera “Heroic Women” tours internationally, and her second symphony “Memories, Dreams Reflections,” based on the life of Jung, is released this spring. p. 27 Paula Shaw, a professional actress and acting teacher for over 25 years, conducts workshops in expanding self-expression, well-being, and creativity for non-actors across the United States and Canada. p. 13, 52, 55 Jeremy Sherman has spent over 35 years in idea marketing. Former director of public affairs for the Body Shop, and campaign designer for several big green companies, he has spent the last decade conveying complex ideas at the cross between Taoism, evolutionary biology, and decision theory. p. 33 Maria Lucia Bittencourt Sauer has practiced spiritual healing in Brazil and the U.S. since 1982. She has been a resident student and teacher at Esalen and conducts trainings and seminars internationally. p. 54, 84 Donald W. Shriver, Jr. is president emeritus of Union Theological Seminary in New York, and is an author, lecturer, and Presbyterian pastor. His most recent books are An Ethic for Enemies: Forgiveness in Politics and Honest Patriots: Loving a Country Enough to Remember its Misdeeds. p. 42 Bill Say codirects the Community Healing & Leadership Training, is a faculty member of JFK and Naropa universities, and has had a private practice in body/ mind/relationship therapy in Berkeley, Calif., since 1989. His website is www.CoreCommunity.com. p. 49 Peggy L. Shriver former Assistant General Secretary of the National Council of Churches, is a religious researcher, social activist, and poet, whose books also include The Divided Church: Moving from Diatribe to Dialogue and The Bible Vote: Religion and the New Right. p. 42 Howard Joel Schechter is interested in learning and teaching about emotional and spiritual liberation. He is the author of Rekindling the Spirit in Work and Jupiter’s Rings: Balance from the Inside Out. p. 57 Henry Sibbing is a licensed professional counselor with the Lake Geneva Wellness Clinic in Lake Geneva, Wisc. His emphasis is in family and cardiac counseling, and he is a heart transplant recipient (2002) and frequent speaker on organ-donor awareness. p. 43 Stephen Sideroff is a clinical psychologist and peak-performance consultant in Santa Monica, Calif. He is an assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences at UCLA and the author of several audiocassette programs in behavioral medicine. p. 19, 71 Eric Simon is a renowned expert in clinical and medical hypnosis. He has published extensively on how mental states can improve clinical outcomes, and is certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology. p. 39 Tobin Simon, author, educator, and poet, cofounded the Proprioceptive Writing (PW) Center in the mid-1970’s, formerly in Maine, now in New York City. A devoted coach, he has long used PW to teach poetry as well as to help students articulate their deepest feelings. p. 74 Michael Sinel is director of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, California Orthopedics and Rehabilitation, Beverly Hills, in private practice, and an assistant professor in the school of medicine at UCLA. He is the coauthor of Win the Battle Against Back Pain and Back Pain Remedies for Dummies. p. 19, 71 Michael Skelton teaches dance in Los Angeles, where he cofounded Fumbling Toward Ecstasy, a movement class attended by more than 150 people weekly. He leads workshops in Australia, Bali, and across the U.S., and has performed and choreographed internationally for 15 years. p. 47 Gerald Smith is a licensed psychologist in private practice in San Mateo, Calif. He has written two books about relationships, Couple Therapy and Hidden Meanings. He has been leading couples groups at Esalen since 1966. p. 14 Huston Smith, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy, Syracuse University, is the country’s preeminent scholar of world religions. Author of The Religions of Man (republished as The World’s Religions) and the best-selling Why Religion Matters, Smith has influenced generations of seekers. p. 24 Julia Smith is a physician, somatic educator, and coach promoting conscious embodiment as an essential literacy for health, well-being, and sustainable living. Julia leads programs in Body Literacy and is an associate and program faculty member with Kore Leadership in Seattle, Wash. p. 56 Bob Stahl is the director of mindfulnessbased stress reduction programs at hospitals in Santa Cruz and the Bay Area. He is a longtime meditation practitioner who lived in a Buddhist monastery for over eight years, and has trained with Dr. Jon KabatZinn. p. 39 Martha Stark is a clinical instructor in psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and on the faculty at the Boston Psychoanalytic Institute. She has authored four books, including Working with Resistance and Engagement in Relationship: A Clinician’s Guide to Psychotherapeutic Interventions. p. 52 Alli Chagi Starr founded Dancers Without Borders and Cultural Links in San Francisco, and is cofounder of Art and Revolution, a multi-city movement of artistactivists who revitalize political action using nonviolence, street theater, dance, music, poetry, and giant puppetry. p. 48 Laurel True is a Bay Area artist specializing in ceramic tile, glass, and mixedmedia mosaic works. Her True Mosaics Studio specializes in architectural mosaics, public art, and community mosaic projects. She is the founder and director of the Institute of Mosaic Art in Oakland. p. 12 S. L. Stebel, award-winning screenwriter, playwright, and novelist, has won wide renown as a story “dowser,” working as a consultant on novels, plays, and scripts for the publishing and film industries. He is a popular teacher at major writers’ conferences and universities. p. 54 Lynne Twist is a global activist, fundraiser, author, and founder of the Soul of Money Institute. She has devoted her life to service in support of ending world hunger, global sustainability, human rights, economic integrity, and spiritual authenticity. p. 38 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. p. 30 David Streeter, a certified sports massage practitioner on the Esalen massage staff, has taught yoga and anatomy and worked as an athletic trainer. Before joining the Esalen faculty, he lived as a Camaldolese monk. p. 17, 70 Ellen Suckiel is Professor of Philosophy and Provost of Stevenson College at UC Santa Cruz, teaching courses in the ethics of genetics and ethics of biotechnology. She is the author of two books on William James and numerous scholarly articles. p. 14 Jaqueline Lapa Sussman, psychotherapist and seminar leader, is the Director of Projects for the International Imagery Association, one of the foremost practitioners of Eidetic Imagery, and a collaborator with Dr. Akhter Ahsen. She is the author of Images of Desire and Freedom From Failure. p. 53 T Russell Targ is a physicist and author who was a pioneer in the development of the laser and laser applications, and was cofounder of the Stanford Research Institute’s investigation into psychic abilities in the 1970s and 1980s. p. 21 Amaran Tarnoff, a licensed MFT, is the founder of Results/Support Seminars, and has been teaching the Inquiry Process for over 20 years as a professional coach. He is currently writing a book titled The Inquiry Process: Learning Together to Produce Results. p. 36 Paula Thomson, professor in the areas of attachment, neurobiology, and clinical practice, is a licensed clinical psychologist and sport psychologist in Tarzana, Calif. She works primarily with those who have trauma histories, dissociative disorders, and/or issues with blocked creativity. p. 29 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. p. 57 U Daniela Urbassek is a longtime member of the Esalen massage staff. Her work is strongly influenced by her studies in craniosacral work, movement, yoga, and dance. p. 67 V John Valenzuela is a horticultural consultant and teacher with over 15 years’ experience working with a diversity of ecosystems in Hawaii, Costa Rica, Washington State, and California. He specializes in an ecologic approach to home gardening using aboriginal agriculture systems and ethnobotany. p. 45, 47 Bessel van der Kolk is a clinical psychiatrist whose work integrates developmental, biological, psychodynamic, and interpersonal aspects of the impact of trauma and its treatment. He is the author of Psychological Trauma and over a hundred scientific articles. p. 26, 30 W Robert Walter, Joseph Campbell’s editor for a decade, is president of the Joseph Campbell Foundation and a poet/playwright with several decades of experience as group leader, teacher, publisher, and theatrical producer/director/designer. p. 39, 41 Christine Warren has led programs at Kripalu Center for 27 years. Former director of Kripalu’s Leadership Center and cofounder of New Resources for Growth, she has led more than 50 corporate retreats in vision and team building. p. 24 Ellen Watson is a teacher/student of transformational practices including Gabrielle Roth’s 5Rhythms, Trance Dance, yoga, and Esalen Massage. She has been at Esalen since 1984, practicing and teaching on the massage and movement arts staff. p. 67 Arthur Weinfeld is a clinical psychologist and passionate stone carver. He has been able to blend the two into helping himself and others along the journey to self-discovery. p. 22 Susan Weitzman has a doctorate in clinical social work and is a psychotherapist in Chicago. She has researched, treated, and lectured on relationships and narrative theory both nationally and internationally. She conducts her “Beginning Anew” healing retreats nationally. p. 60, 62 Rusty Wells teaches Bhakti Urban Flow in the Bay Area. He has been inspired by many teachers including Shri Dharma Mittra, Swami Sivananda, Baron Baptiste, and pretty much everyone he gets to meet. His classes fuse together elements from Ashtanga, Bikram, and Sivananda. p. 53 Betta de Boer-van der Kolk is a licensed clinical social worker in private practice at the Center for Integrative Healing in Watertown, Mass. She is trained in hypnotherapy, EMDR, Internal Family Systems (IFS), Pesso-Boyden Systems Psychomotor Therapy (PBSP), and the Rubenfeld Synergy Method (RSM). p. 26 Hank Wesselman is an anthropologist who conducts research in Ethiopia and teaches in two colleges in Northern California. He is the author of The Spiritwalker Trilogy; The Journey to the Sacred Garden; and (with Jill Kuykendall) Spirit Medicine. p. 41, 69 Arnie J. Vargas is a psychoanalytically trained psychotherapist with a private practice in New York City and Cape May, N.J. For the past 15 years he has worked with various populations specializing in the integration of spirituality, sexuality, and psychology. p. 74 Jamie Wheal has devoted his career to empowering learners of all ages. A scholar and outdoorsman, he writes and lectures on transformative experiential education, is trained in wilderness medicine, surf rescue, and ski patrol, and has led students to 23,000’ on the Tibetan North face of Everest. p. 77 Cida Vieira, born at the heart of the dance circles of Brazil, has choreographed and performed in the U.S., South America, and Europe, with dance groups and artists including Xuxa, Ray Charles, Daniela Mercury, and Airto. Currently, Cida is on the Movement Program staff at Esalen. p. 12 Alberto Villoldo, psychologist and medical anthropologist, has studied with shamans and healers in the Amazon and Andes for over 20 years. He is the author of Shaman, Healer, Sage and directs the Healing the Light Body School, which trains practitioners in Energy Medicine. p. 36 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. p. 33, 35, 72, 74 Anna Wise is an internationally recognized authority on EEG and consciousness. She is the author of The High-Performance Mind: Mastering Brainwaves for Insight, Healing, and Creativity and Awakening the Mind: A Guide to Mastering the Power of Your Brainwaves. p. 31, 74 Nina Wise is a performance artist whose provocative and original works have been honored with seven Bay Area Critics’ Circle awards and three National Endowment for the Arts fellowships. Her written pieces have appeared in numerous magazines. p. 10 Adam Wolpert is a painter, teacher, and art program director at the Occidental Arts and Ecology Center (www.oaec.org) in west Sonoma County. He has offered workshops and exhibited extensively throughout California. His work can be viewed at www.adamwolpert.com. p. 51 Y Gary Young is executive director of the Lifetime Achievement Foundation as well as a nationally produced playwright. He has 20 years of experience with illness and death issues, and has conducted workshops nationwide since 1969. p. 46 Kathy Young has 15 years of experience with illness and death issues. A former schoolteacher who has authored several children’s books, Kathy has traveled extensively around the world and has worked with children in Afghanistan and Indonesia. p. 46 Z Dana Zed has been making glass talismans and temples for over 20 years. She has exhibited in museums and galleries throughout the U.S. and has been published worldwide. p. 13 Nina Zolotow is the coauthor (with Rodney Yee) of Yoga: The Poetry of the Body and Moving Toward Balance. Trained at the Yoga Room Advanced Studies Program, she loves sharing what she knows about home practice and yoga for emotional well-being. p. 23 Ofer Zur is a licensed psychologist in practice in Sonoma, Calif., as well as a forensic consultant on therapeutic ethics and boundaries. He coauthored Dual Relationships and Psychotherapy and The HIPAA Compliance Kit, and offers online courses and free articles at www.drzur.com. p. 22 Nicholas Wilton has been working professionally as an artist for over 19 years. His paintings are exhibited in numerous galleries and private collections, and have been featured internationally in magazines, children’s books, and print and digital media. p. 29 93 Q reservation information Making Contact with Us General information on Esalen workshops, massages, Personal Retreats, FAQs, and other information is available via our website, by e-mail, or by phone. Phone messages for guests can be left through the general information voicemail. Website: http://www.esalen.org Reservations can now be made on-line. E-mail: [email protected] General Information: 831-667-3000 Mailing address: Esalen Institute, 55000 Highway 1, Big Sur, CA 93920 Workshop Reservation Fax: 831-667-2724 Workshop Registration & Reservations Preregistration for workshops is required prior to arrival. The most effective way to register is on-line. You may also mail or fax your reservation, making sure to include a completed reservation form (available on page 88). Phone Reservations: 831-667-3005 Our phone lines can be busy at peak times. For those who have previously taken a workshop at Esalen, reservation information can be left on our Express Reservations voicemail. Express Workshop Reservations: 831-667-3000 ext 7321 Phone Reservation Hours (Esalen can be extremely difficult to reach by phone. The most opportune hours to call are after 2PM . Web registration is also available at www.esalen.org.): Monday–Thursday: 9 am to 7 pm Friday–Sunday: 9 am to 5 pm Other Reservations (besides workshops): Preregistration is also necessary for Personal Retreats, massage, transportation, and night bathing. Reservations for these can be made through the general information voicemail: 831-667-3000. Messages: 831-667-3000 ext 7402 Fees and Accommodations All workshop fees include: • Workshop tuition • Food: Esalen serves a wide variety of food. Whenever meat is served, a vegetarian and a vegan option are available. Much of Esalen’s produce is organically grown on our farm and picked fresh just hours before mealtime. • Lodging: Friday and Saturday night accommodations for weekend workshops; Sunday through Thursday night accommodations for 5-day workshops; Sunday through Saturday night accommodations for 7-day workshops 94 • 24-hour use of hot mineral-spring bath facilities, the Arts Center (except when a workshop is scheduled), meditation Round House, and the entire Esalen grounds • Participation in movement classes scheduled during time on property • One-year subscription to the Esalen Catalog Accommodations at Esalen are almost always shared. Couples will be housed privately. A variety of accommodation options is possible with workshop registration. Since some of these fill more quickly than others, it is advisable to sign up as early as possible. Please indicate your second choice for accommodations and workshop in case your initial choice is unavailable. We cannot guarantee specific room requests. Mid-Point House: Esalen’s Mid-Point House is available as an upgraded accommodation alternative. Nestled behind the Esalen Garden at the cliff edge, the Mid-Point House is a selfcontained suite with a furnished living room, full kitchen, and redwood deck overlooking the Pacific. It can house up to 2 adults and 2 children. The Mid-Point House is available for workshops or Personal Retreat at $500 per day (in addition to Own Accomodation fees). Reduced Rate Options Various rate reduction options are available. Please request the discount at the time of registration. Scholarship: Esalen is able to provide some scholarship assistance to workshop participants in exchange for a work commitment (housekeeping/kitchen). Scholarship is limited to one scholarship per person, per year, to allow as many guests as possible to benefit. Approved scholarship recipients will receive their work schedules upon arrival at Esalen. Weekend: $50, 4 hrs 5–7 days: $100, 8 hrs Prepayment: A $10 per workshop discount is available if payment in full is received at the time of reservation. Prepayment also allows for express check-in upon arrival. This discount does not apply to scholarship recipients, sleeping bag or own accommodations, or the Ongoing Residence Program. Senior Citizen Discount: A discount is available for workshops only to guests over 65 years of age. Please note, this discount is available for workshops only. Discounts: Weekend: $25; 5 days or longer: $50 Standard Accommodations: This is shared housing, two or three persons per room. In some cases, bathrooms are shared. Friends Rate Regular Rate Weekend 5-Day 7-Day $545 $595 $1010 $1060 $1605 $1655 Bunk Bed Accommodations: This is shared housing, four or more persons per room. Friends Rate Regular Rate Weekend 5-Day 7-Day $405 $455 $745 $795 $1200 $1250 Sleeping Bag Accommodations: Esalen meeting rooms are sometimes used as shared sleeping bag space. Storage space outside the meeting rooms is available for those using sleeping bag space when the rooms are being used for meetings (9 am–11 pm). Friends Rate Regular Rate Weekend 5-Day 7-Day $260 $310 $475 $525 $785 $835 Own Accommodations: If you are attending a workshop, and staying off property, the following rates apply: Friends Rate Regular Rate Weekend 5-Day 7-Day $320 $370 $580 $630 $950 $1000 Single housing sometimes is available on a limited basis for an additional $100 per day. Workshop Deposit In order to reserve a space in any workshop, we require full payment of the following deposits: Weekend: $150 12-14 day: $400 5-7 day: $300 More than 14 days: $600 Deposits paid by credit card will automatically have the workshop balance drawn from your credit card five days before arrival. Deposits are payable in U.S. currency only; overseas residents must pay by checks drawn on U.S. banks or credit cards and are nonrefundable. Workshop Cancellation Policy: Workshop cancellations must be made by phone with one of our reservations staff. If you cancel or change any part of your reservation at least 5 full days before the start of the workshop(s), your nonrefundable deposit, less a $50-perworkshop processing fee, will be transferred to a credit account in your name to be used within 12 months and the balance returned to you. If you cancel with less than 5 days’ notice, the entire deposit will be forfeited. If the entire fee was paid in advance, Esalen will retain the deposit and return the balance to you. Donations to the Friends of Esalen are nonrefundable. Ongoing Residence Program Offered beginning mid-September and ending mid-June, the Ongoing Residence Program is designed for those who would like an intensive workshop program over a long term. A Residence Program stay is 26 days (four “weeks” and three weekends). Participants may select any of the five-day workshops offered during their stay, with weekends open to enjoy room and board. Occasionally workshops are cancelled, so second choices are advised. The specially discounted cost is $4225 per 26-day period for standard accommodations and $3335 for bunk-bed rooms. No other discounts apply. If you cancel or change any part of your Residence Program reservation at least five full days before its start, there will be a $150 cancellation fee. If you cancel with less than five days’ notice, the cancellation fee is $330. Personal Retreat Fees A Personal Retreat at Esalen offers an opportunity for individual education and personal growth. Resources available to Personal Retreatants are drawn from movement, yoga, somatics, dance, and improv classes, as well as Art Barn facilities, meditation center, contemplative baths, and community presentations. To book a Personal Retreat you must be a current Friend of Esalen by making a taxdeductible donation of $50 or more. Additional benefits of becoming a Friend are listed on page 3. Rates (including meals) are per person, per day: Fri/Sat Sun-Thurs Standard Accommodations (2-3 persons per room) $180 $150 Bunk Bed (4 or more persons per room) $110 tion, other types of sessions may also be available to outside guests. Reservations must be made and paid for in advance by credit card through our reservation line: 831-667-3005. Public Bathing in the Hot Springs In addition to round-the-clock availability for Esalen guests, the hot springs are open to the general public, by reservation only, between 1 am and 3 am, for a cost of $20 per person, payable by credit card only upon reservation. Reservations can be made at 831-667-3047. Transportation to Esalen Ridesharing: We encourage ridesharing to reduce the number of cars on the road and at Esalen. See the reservation form for ridesharing options. Van Service: A van service is available between Monterey Airport/Monterey Transit Plaza and Esalen on Fridays and Sundays. The incoming service departs Monterey Airport at approximately 4 pm, and arrives at Monterey Transit Plaza approximately 4:20 pm. Return service departs Esalen at approximately 5:30 pm. The drive is approximately 1 1/4 hours to Monterey Airport, so please plan plane flights accordingly. Van service reservations must be made with Esalen at least 24 hours prior to arrival. The $60 one-way fee (subject to change) is payable to Esalen upon arrival. Gazebo School Reservations Reservations for Gazebo School should be made at least a month in advance. Call the Gazebo Farmhouse, 831-667-3026, for more information and reservations. Weekend: $250 $105 Personal Retreat Cancellation Policy: Personal Retreat cancellations must be made by phone with one of our reservations staff. If you cancel or change any part of your reservation at least 5 full days before the start of your personal retreat, you will be charged a $50 processing fee, per reservation. If you cancel with less than 5 days’ notice, 50% of your fee will be forfeited and the balance will be returned to you. Massage Many Esalen guests choose to enhance their experience by receiving a luxurious Esalen Massage or other bodywork during their stay, usually provided at our new baths. In addi- Week: $450 Internship Program: This is a three-month program for those who wish to have intense exposure to life at the Gazebo School Park and its unique educational resources. The Internship Program offers experience with children, the Gazebo environment, and its teaching philosophy. Applicants must have completed at least three work scholar months at Esalen before being considered for this program. Call the Gazebo Farmhouse, 831-667-3026, for more information or reservations. 1st month: $450; 2nd: $400; 3rd: $350 Schedules Check-in/Check-out: Guests are welcome to arrive at Esalen any time after 2 pm; rooms become available after 4 pm. Check-out time is 12 noon on departure day. Workshops: Workshop schedules normally begin on 8:30 pm on the first evening and end at 11:30 am on the final day. For Your Information Esalen is located approximately 45 miles from “civilization.” This isolation and tranquility can deepen your experience at Esalen yet for many guests it can be a significant change in environment. We have minimal electronic communications available (there are some pay phones and terminals available for internet connection, though speed is slow and availability limited). There is no cell phone service at Esalen. Health Services: Esalen has no medical ser- vices or pharmacy on site. If you will require medical attention or supplies during your stay, please come prepared to administer to your own needs. Money: Esalen is able to accept cash, checks, and credit cards. Please bring sufficient funds for incidentals as Esalen does not have an ATM, nor are we able to cash checks. Smoking: Esalen is a non-smoking community. Smoking is not permitted in any accommodations, meeting rooms, or other indoor spaces. Snoring: All of our accommodations are shared. You or your roommate may snore. Please come prepared (nose guards, ear plugs, etc.) for this possibility. Illegal Drugs: In accordance with state and federal laws, the possession or use of illegal drugs on Esalen grounds is strictly prohibited. Camping: To limit the impact on our land, camping is not available at Esalen. A variety of campgrounds is available in the Big Sur area. Pets: Other than animals in service, pets are not allowed on the property. Guests as Volunteers: Esalen is a learning community/organization made up of guests, students, staff, and volunteers. A variety of contributions goes toward enhancing this community. Guests contribute to this in many ways, including making their beds and bussing their dishes. Guests are also welcome to contribute a couple of hours to work with the Esalen staff, usually in the kitchen. Your help enables us to meet the pressures of peak working times and enables you to experience Esalen from the inside out. Recommended Reading and Mail Order Merchandise: All recommended reading is available online through our website www.esalen.org. All other bookstore merchandise is available via mail order. For ordering information, please call 831-667-3049. 95 S esalen institute reservation form and each workshop applied for must accompany this form. (Please see Reservation Information, page 94, under Fees and Accommodations, Making Contact with Us, and Cancellation Policy.) Reservations can This form is for your convenience in reserving a space in Esalen workshops. If you wish to make reservations for more than one person, please photocopy this form so that each registrant has his/her own form, unless you are registering as a couple with the same address and phone number. A nonrefundable deposit for each person registering now be made on-line at www.esalen.org. Name of Registrant___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ PLEASE PRINT Address ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Sex: M o F o Couple o E-mail _____________________________________________________ City ______________________________________________________________________________________ State __________________________________________________ Home Phone ( __________ ) ____________________________________________________________ Work Phone ( __________ )___________________________________________________________________ o Check if you have previously been to Esalen and this is a new address. Passenger Van Service: I want transportation from (check one): o Monterey Airport at approximately 4:00 pm on Ridesharing: We support ridesharing and hope you will too. If you are driving to Esalen and willing to give a ride to someone from your area, check here o Occasionally there are unexpected situations that require us to contact you immediately before your stay here. If you will not be at the above numbers during the two weeks prior to the workshop, where may we reach you? ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Please mark your first and second choices for housing after referring to page 94 for accommodation descriptions and rates. Total cost includes workshop fees, lodging, and meals. o o o o Zip _______________________________ Check for standard accommodations, if available. Check for bunk bed room, if available. ___________________________________________________________________________________ (date of arrival, Fridays and Sundays only). o Monterey Transit Plaza at approximately 4:20 pm (corner of Pearl and Alvarado, next to Ordway Drug) The $60-per-person charge (subject to change) is payable on arrival at Esalen. Please prepare to arrive at the airport well before 4:00pm so you do not miss our van. Esalen cannot be responsible for taxi fare or other transportation costs. If your plans for use of the passenger van service change after you have made your reservation, please notify us. The only departing van Check for sleeping bag space, if available. service from Esalen is on Fridays and Sundays at approximately 5:30 pm. If you plan on taking this van please make sure that your plane reservations are after 8:00 pm. Passenger van service is not available at any other time. Check if you wish to room as a couple. Write here the name(s) of any person(s) with whom you wish to room. _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Other Notes: All workshop reservations require a nonrefundable deposit. The balance will be All of our rooms are non-smoking. If you smoke, please plan to do so outside. automatically drawn from your credit card five days before your arrival. Your signature below authorizes Esalen to charge your credit card for the balance. No pets allowed. Workshop Date Leader’s Name Fee ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Workshop Deposits Enclosed __________________________ Tax-deductible contribution to Friends of Esalen (Optional, see page 4) __________________________ $5 Catalog Contribution (Optional) __________________________ Subtotal __________________________ Total Amount Enclosed __________________________ o o o o Check here for $10 prepay discount (see page 94). Check here if this is your first visit to Esalen. Check here if you need directions to Esalen. Check here if you are a senior. o Check here if you do not want your phone number given out for ridesharing. Please make checks payable to Esalen Institute, in U.S. currency only. (There will be a $15 fee for returned checks.) Overseas residents must pay by checks drawn on U.S. banks or with one of the charge cards below. Checks or credit card information must accompany the reservations form. Or, you may fax this form to us at 831-667-2724. If you do so, you must include payment via one of the credit cards below. Your reservation can be charged to: o MasterCard o Visa o American Express Name on Card ____________________________________________________________________ Card No. ____________________________________________________________________________ Expiration Date __________________________________________________________________ Authorizing Signature _________________________________________________________ FOR OFFICE USE ONLY DATE REC. RES INITIALS CIRCLE DEPOSIT DEPOSIT AMT. RES. BK CC AUTH. # DATE TYPED TYPED INITIALS 96 Snoring: All of our accommodations are shared. Please come prepared for the possibility of rooming with a snorer. PP SCHOL CC CK LIMO CA SUS SENIOR Thank you for your reservation. As soon as it is processed you will receive by return mail a receipt for your deposit and a notice of confirmation. Please review your confirmation for accuracy. Esalen Institute is a center to encourage work in the humanities and sciences that promotes human values and potentials. Its activities consist of public seminars, residential work-study programs, invitational conferences, research, and semi-autonomous projects. If you move, please let us know your new address. It helps us save trees and money. Esalen Institute 55000 Highway 1 Big Sur, California 93920-9546 Non-Profit Organization U.S. Postage PA I D Permit No. 2543 Las Vegas, NV