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.
past workshop

Sleep Alchemy: Secrets of Daoist Sleep Practices for Inner Peace and Renewal

April 7–11, 2025

Simon Cox with Guest Faculty Jeffrey S. Reid

What if sleep could be more than just crashing into your pillow at the end of a long day? What if it could be a portal to transformation and self-discovery? In this workshop, we’ll dive into the ancient Daoist art of sleep alchemy, where the Wudang Hibernating Dragon and Five Dragons Sleeping methods teach you how to transform snoozing into a practice of subtle awareness and metaphysical transformation.

Rooted in the Wudang Daoist Sanfeng lineage, these techniques harmonize body and soul, turning your nightly shut-eye into a discipline of deep peace. The cosmic journey would be incomplete without Daoist stories like Zhuangzi’s Butterfly Dream and Lü Dongbin’s Yellow Millet Dream, classic tales of metaphysical gaslighting that explore just how slippery the boundaries of reality and illusion can be.

We’ll also talk about practicalities within a Daoist framework, like how your food choices, lifestyle, and daily habits can affect your sleep quality. Expect to walk away with tools for cultivating transcendent rest, resilience, and an appreciation for Daoist cosmology. Along the way, we’ll keep it relaxed — the Dao is at ease. Sleeping in class is encouraged, though snoring will be punished with five hundred years in Daoist hell.  

Participants will practice introductory Wudang sleeping methods to enter, sustain, and deepen sleep states. By the end of the workshop, you will be intimately familiar with practical techniques to deepen sleep, enhance well-being, and dream the dream of life more deeply and lucidly.

Simon Cox

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.

Full Bio

Jeffrey S. Reid | Guest Faculty

Jeffrey S. Reid is a martial artist, author, and teacher dedicated to preserving and transmitting the Wudang Daoist tradition. He has trained extensively in martial arts, Daoist alchemy, and contemplative practices. Jeffery runs a Kung Fu school in Santa Cruz, California, where he helps students integrate these rich practices into the erratic rhythms of modern life.

Full Bio