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.

Sravana Borkataky-Varma

Sravana Borkataky-Varma is a historian, educator, and social entrepreneur. As a historian, she studies Indian religions focusing on esoteric rituals and gender, particularly in Hindu Śākta (Goddess) Tantra traditions. As an educator, she is the Instructional Assistant Professor at the University of Houston. At present, she is a Center for the Study of World Religions fellow at Harvard Divinity School, Harvard University. In the past, she has taught at Harvard University, the University of North Carolina-Wilmington, the University of Montana, and Rice University.

Sravana is currently working on four book projects: Divinized Divas: Superwomen, Wives, Hijṛās in Hindu Śākta Tantra; The Serpent's Tale: Kuṇḍalinī and the History of an Experience; Living Folk Religions; and Religious Responses to the Pandemic & Crises: Isolation, Survival, and #Covidchaos. Details of her already published works can be found on her website.

As a social entrepreneur, she is the co-founder of a nonprofit, Lumen Tree Portal. Sravana invests in building communities with individuals from various faith backgrounds who believe in kindness, compassion, and fulfillment. She is also a Board of Trustee at Esalen Institute, California, and an Advisory Board Member for Compassionate Houston, Texas. In a previous non-academic avatar, Sravana worked in customer service in the financial and IT industry.

Sravana Borkataky-Varma, PhD, is a historian, educator, and social entrepreneur. As a historian, she studies Indian religions focusing on esoteric rituals and gender, particularly in Hindu Śākta (Goddess) Tantra traditions. As an educator, she is an instructional assistant professor at the University of Houston. At present, she is a Center for the Study of World Religions fellow at Harvard Divinity School, Harvard University.

Sravana Borkataky-Varma

Sravana Borkataky-Varma is a historian, educator, and social entrepreneur. As a historian, she studies Indian religions focusing on esoteric rituals and gender, particularly in Hindu Śākta (Goddess) Tantra traditions. As an educator, she is the Instructional Assistant Professor at the University of Houston. At present, she is a Center for the Study of World Religions fellow at Harvard Divinity School, Harvard University. In the past, she has taught at Harvard University, the University of North Carolina-Wilmington, the University of Montana, and Rice University.

Sravana is currently working on four book projects: Divinized Divas: Superwomen, Wives, Hijṛās in Hindu Śākta Tantra; The Serpent's Tale: Kuṇḍalinī and the History of an Experience; Living Folk Religions; and Religious Responses to the Pandemic & Crises: Isolation, Survival, and #Covidchaos. Details of her already published works can be found on her website.

As a social entrepreneur, she is the co-founder of a nonprofit, Lumen Tree Portal. Sravana invests in building communities with individuals from various faith backgrounds who believe in kindness, compassion, and fulfillment. She is also a Board of Trustee at Esalen Institute, California, and an Advisory Board Member for Compassionate Houston, Texas. In a previous non-academic avatar, Sravana worked in customer service in the financial and IT industry.

Sravana Borkataky-Varma, PhD, is a historian, educator, and social entrepreneur. As a historian, she studies Indian religions focusing on esoteric rituals and gender, particularly in Hindu Śākta (Goddess) Tantra traditions. As an educator, she is an instructional assistant professor at the University of Houston. At present, she is a Center for the Study of World Religions fellow at Harvard Divinity School, Harvard University.

Website

Past Workshops