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Esalen Institute
 | Parts of this article (those related to reopening after the 2017 highway closure) need to be updated. (November 2022) |
 Esalen buildings and hot springs | |
| Founders | Michael Murphy Dick Price |
|---|---|
| Established | 1962 |
| Focus | Humanistic alternative education |
| President | Gordon Wheeler |
| Key people | Camille Allen Jeffries CEO, CFO Ana Gadban, Director of Operations |
| Owner | Esalen Institute |
| Address | 55000 Highway One, Big Sur, CA 93920[1] |
| Location | , , , |
| Coordinates | 36°07′37″N 121°38′30″W / 36.12701°N 121.64159°W |
| Website | Esalen Institute |
  Esalen Location in California | |
The Esalen Institute, commonly called Esalen, is a non-profit American retreat center and intentional community in Big Sur, California, which focuses on humanistic alternative education.[2] The institute played a key role in the Human Potential Movement beginning in the 1960s. Its innovative use of encounter groups, a focus on the mind-body connection, and their ongoing experimentation in personal awareness introduced many ideas that later became mainstream.[3]
Esalen was founded by Michael Murphy and Dick Price in 1962. Their intention was to support alternative methods for exploring human consciousness, what Aldous Huxley described as "human potentialities".[4][5] Over the next few years, Esalen became the center of practices and beliefs that make up the New Age movement, from Eastern religions/philosophy, to alternative medicine and mind-body interventions, from transpersonal to Gestalt practice.[6]
Price ran the institute until he died in a hiking accident in 1985. In 2012, the board hired professional executives to help raise money and keep the institute profitable. Until 2016, Esalen offered over 500 workshops yearly[7] in areas including Gestalt practice, personal growth, meditation, massage, yoga, psychology, ecology, spirituality, and organic food.[8] In 2016, about 15,000 people attended its workshops.[9]
In February 2017, the institute was cut off when Highway 1 was closed by a mud slide on either side of the hot springs. It closed its doors, evacuated guests via helicopter, and was forced to lay off 90% of its staff through at least July, when they reopened with limited workshop offerings. It also decided to revamp its offerings to include topics more relevant to a younger generation.[9] As of July 2017, due to the limited access resulting from the road closures, the hot springs are only open to Esalen guests.[9]
- ^ "How to Contact Us | Esalen". www.esalen.org.
- ^ Goldman 2012, pp. 2–
- ^ Misiroglu, Gina, ed. (2009). American Countercultures: An Encyclopedia of Nonconformists, Alternative Lifestyles, and Radical Ideas in U.S. History. Armonk, N.Y.: Sharpe Reference. pp. 238–239. ISBN 978-0765680600. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
- ^ Kripal 2007, p. 66.
- ^ Anderson 2004, p. 64
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
economistwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Esalen Institute Launches Campus Renewal with Special Gift for Most Significant Renovation in 52-year History" (Press release). May 15, 2015. Retrieved October 21, 2016.
- ^ Kripal 2007
- ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference
kriegerwas invoked but never defined (see the help page).
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