Our podcast showcases in-depth interviews with the dynamic teachers and thinkers who are part of Esalen Institute. Hosted by Sam Stern, a former Esalen student and current staff member, the podcasts have featured engaging conversations with authors Cheryl Strayed and Michael Pollan, innovators Stan Grof and Dr. Mark Hyman, teachers Byron Katie, Mark Coleman and Jean Houston, Esalen co-founder Michael Murphy, and many more.
These podcasts are made possible in part by the support of Esalen donors and are licensed under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 2.0 license.
Listen to the latest episodes here, and subscribe to Voices of Esalen on Spotify, Stitcher, Soundcloud, Apple Podcasts or Google Podcasts.
Today we take a small step back in time to speak with Phillip Burrus, longtime member of the Esalen community and former Executive Chef.
Recorded in the spring of 2017, only days before Phillip and his wife Isabel Chave-Manso set off for the next chapter of their lives in Spain, host Sam Stern spoke at length with Phillip about his take on sustainability, the importance of locally-grown produce in food preparation, land stewardship, and community in Big Sur.
Phillip is a brilliant guy. If you want to learn more about what goes on in one of the best healthy kitchens in California, have a listen.
Music for this episode is by Nico Holloman.
Byron Katie was severely depressed in her early thirties. For almost a decade, she spiraled down into rage and self-loathing, battling constant thoughts of suicide. Then one morning in February 1986, she experienced a life-changing realization: "I discovered that when I believed my thoughts, I suffered, but that when I didn't believe them, I didn't suffer. Freedom is as simple as that. I found that suffering is optional."
In this episode, Katie and Voices of Esalen host Sam Stern discuss The Work, the philosophy and process of self-inquiry that Byron Katie has brought to millions of people across the world, as well as her new book A Mind at Home with Itself, written with her husband Stephen Mitchell.
Please enjoy this remarkable and revelatory conversation.
Look for upcoming workshops with Byron Katie.
Ken Dychtwald — gerontologist, psychologist, educator, lecturer, television host, and lifelong friend of Esalen — interviews executive director Ben Tauber during a recent weekend at the Esalen Institute, covering new ground to the delight of a lively audience.
Music produced by Nico Holloman.
Michael Murphy is the co-founder of Esalen Institute, a key figure in the human potential movement and an extraordinary human being. He is the author of many remarkable books, including Golf in the Kingdom, The Future of the Body, Jacob Atabet, and In the Zone: Transcendent Experience in Sports.
In this interview, Voices of Esalen host Sam Stern spoke with Michael about the 1960's and how Esalen was born, touching upon his encounters with notables like Hunter S. Thompson, Alduous Huxley, Richard Alpert (Ram Dass), Timothy Leary, Sri Aurobindo, Abraham Maslow, and Esalen's co-founder Richard Price.
Michael also describes his own origin story, from his altar boy roots to his journey to India, Big Sur, and beyond.
Music for this episode was created by Esalen's own Daniel Knipprath.
Jeff Kripal is Chairman of the Board of Esalen Institute and holds the J. Newton Rayzor Chair in Philosophy and Religious Thought at Rice University. His fascinating work includes the history of psychic phenomena, comparative erotics and ethics in mystical literature, American countercultural translations of Asian religions, and Esalen Institute itself.
He is the author of the foundational text Esalen: America and the Religion of No Religion, a must-read for anyone interested in Esalen Institute. His present areas of writing and research include the articulation of a New Comparativism within the study of religion that will put “the impossible” back on the table again, a robust and even conversation between the sciences and the humanities, and the mapping of an emergent mythology or “Super Story” within paranormal communities and individual visionaries.
Have a listen to our conversation on the cultural and historical forces at play during the origin of Esalen Insitute.
The theme music for this episode is Hallon by Christian Bjoerklund, used under an Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 International License.
Shauna Shapiro, Ph.D. is an internationally recognized expert on mindfulness.
She is also a licensed clinical psychologist, an Associate Professor of Psychology at Santa Clara University, and co-author of the books The Art and Science of Mindfulness and Mindful Discipline: A Loving Approach to Setting Limits and Raising an Emotionally Intelligent Child.
Shauna and Voices of Esalen host Sam Stern discuss a way into meditation and mindfulness that is, somewhat surprisingly, not predicated around spirituality — rather, one that is focused on science and research.
Their conversation covers several of Shauna's clinical research studies, which include work with women with breast cancer, as well as increased empathy with physicians.
The music for this episode is called Tell the Future by Cory Gray, used under an Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 International License.
Look for upcoming workshops with Shauna Shapiro.
Paul Selig is considered one of the foremost mediums working today. He is the author of several extraordinary works of channeled literature, including I Am the Word, The Book of Love and Creation, The Book of Knowing and Worth, and The Book of Mastery.
Voices of Esalen host Sam Stern spoke to Paul at length about his work before becoming a medium, when he was a well known playwright and director of the MFA in Creative Writing Program at Goddard College.
They discuss the creative process and explore connections between creativity and the work of channeling before turning to the content of Paul's work and the remarkable message of his guides.
This is a must-listen episode for those who are fascinated by the art of channeling, and those who find their interest piqued by the message of the Word.
The music for this episode is Slow Dissolve, courtesy of http://www.purple-planet.com.
Look for upcoming workshops with Paul Selig.
"The purpose of THE MAX is to discover yourself beyond who you know yourself to be. It is a voyage through your own humanity—a journey to discover the extent of your self-expressive power."
Paula Shaw has been leading a workshop called "The Max" at Esalen for nearly 30 years. Today, we talk to her about the roots of The Max, touching upon her history with est and her experiences with the Actor's Theater of New York.
The music for this episode is Sleep Seeds by Graham Bole from the album "First New Day," licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.
Dr. Sam Berne is known internationally as a pioneer in vision science, integrative health, and subtle energy therapies. He has developed innovative methods for healing the mind-body-spirit through eye therapy.
In this episode, Dr. Berne talks through a process and offers concrete techniques to host Sam Stern to strengthen his vision, while exploring somato-emotional territory.
Michaela Boehm is a teacher and clinician specializing in deep intimacy and the art of maintaining healthy polarity within self and relationship.
She received a formal, classical Tantric education from a female teacher in a Kashmiri Shaivism tradition from the age of 16. She is also the co-founder of a Malibu celebrity drug rehabilitation center, and for 13 years has taught with David Deida.
This conversation is a lot of fun, and touches upon Michaela's life and her ten-year marriage, the possibility of healthy sexual media, polygamy and its pitfalls, and ways to maintain a healthy balance with a partner.
The theme song for this episode is Daily Beetle by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com), Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0.
Look for upcoming workshops with Michaela Boehm.
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