Esalen Institute is open! However, Highway 1 to the south is closed — please review the current travel advisory.
Learn More.

Learn more.

Due to road closures along Highway 1 to our north and south, Esalen is closed through April 11.
Esalen Institute is open! However, Highway 1 to the south is closed — please review the current travel advisory.

Esalen opens May 3, 2024

Visitors are now able to access Esalen as well as other businesses and trails in northern Big Sur via twice-daily convoys on Highway 1 operated by Caltrans.

Convoys run only at 7:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. each day. These are the only opportunities to travel into and out of Big Sur, so visitors must plan accordingly.

Learn more.

Simon Cox

Simon Cox is a martial artist, scholar, and teacher who spent six years training at Wudang Mountain, the spiritual home of Daoist culture and internal arts. Under Master Yuan Xiugang 袁修刚, he immersed himself in the Sanfeng lineage, studying tai chi, qigong, and Daoist meditation. His intensive training combined rigorous daily practice with rich cultural experiences, including performances and participation in Daoist events across China.

Following his time in Wudang, he earned a PhD in religion from Rice University, where his research focused on the history of the subtle body in Western intellectual traditions. His dissertation, The Subtle Body: A Genealogy, was published by Oxford University Press in 2022 and explores the history of the idea of the subtle body.

Now based in Penticton, British Columbia, he runs a thriving kung fu school with his wife, sharing the rich martial and meditative traditions of Wudang with a diverse community of students. He also contributes to the Esalen Center for Theory and Research, co-leading a Subtle Body initiative aimed at exploring the transformative potential of embodied practices. Through teaching, writing, and research, he continues to make ancient Daoist wisdom accessible and relevant for contemporary audiences.

Simon Cox is a martial artist, scholar, and teacher who trained extensively at Wudang Mountain. He holds a PhD in religion from Rice University and runs a Kung Fu school in British Columbia that blends Daoist traditions with practical teachings to inspire modern audiences

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Simon Cox

Simon Cox is a martial artist, scholar, and teacher who spent six years training at Wudang Mountain, the spiritual home of Daoist culture and internal arts. Under Master Yuan Xiugang 袁修刚, he immersed himself in the Sanfeng lineage, studying tai chi, qigong, and Daoist meditation. His intensive training combined rigorous daily practice with rich cultural experiences, including performances and participation in Daoist events across China.

Following his time in Wudang, he earned a PhD in religion from Rice University, where his research focused on the history of the subtle body in Western intellectual traditions. His dissertation, The Subtle Body: A Genealogy, was published by Oxford University Press in 2022 and explores the history of the idea of the subtle body.

Now based in Penticton, British Columbia, he runs a thriving kung fu school with his wife, sharing the rich martial and meditative traditions of Wudang with a diverse community of students. He also contributes to the Esalen Center for Theory and Research, co-leading a Subtle Body initiative aimed at exploring the transformative potential of embodied practices. Through teaching, writing, and research, he continues to make ancient Daoist wisdom accessible and relevant for contemporary audiences.

Simon Cox is a martial artist, scholar, and teacher who trained extensively at Wudang Mountain. He holds a PhD in religion from Rice University and runs a Kung Fu school in British Columbia that blends Daoist traditions with practical teachings to inspire modern audiences

Website

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