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.
We humans are curious! Since time immemorial, many of us have thought deeply about non ordinary states of consciousness. Come September, embark on a weeklong, campus-wide transformative journey of self-discovery as we delve into the depths of the mind through African ritual and sacred art and through Stan Grof’s lineage practice, created while he lived at Esalen — Holotropic breathwork.
This second annual program is a unique opportunity to explore our capacity to reach an altered state of consciousness, expand awareness, and tap into the uncharted realms of the mind through our breath and body. Together with Marques Redd and Stacia Butterfield we will experience how when we alter our state of consciousness we can shift personal and global challenges into individual and collective opportunities.
While psychotropic plant medicines can induce altered states of consciousness, humans have been gifted with the ability to induce these states on our own. Using our breath and our dreams as portals, just as ancient cultures have been doing for centuries, we can open up and explore our individual and collective consciousness.
Join us in experiencing this Altered States themed week at Esalen through two pathways.
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According to Nigerian-Igbo myth-science, human history can be divided into Four World Ages: eras of Divine Unity, Separation, Civilization, and Chaos. Blending visual art, traditional African cosmology and ritual, along with creative expression, this pathway invites profound engagement with ancient wisdom and personal discovery. You'll experience these stages through guided visualizations and breath work after watching a film that explores the four stages, then have the opportunity to create personal oracle card decks based on images from the film for dream realm guidance.
Classes will be offered in a drop-in format and open to all guests at Esalen during this week.
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spot left!
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Explore Holotropic Breathwork® as a pathway to reach non-ordinary states of consciousness. For thousands of years and across many cultures, breath work has been used to induce enhanced states of consciousness as a strategy for meaningful transformation and self-exploration. This practice first came to Esalen and developed into a lineage practice through Stan Grof, who cultivated the practice while living at Esalen. Stacia Butterfield is a long-time student of Grof who continues this work.
Please note: These sessions are open only to those who register and are not available on a drop-in basis.
Marques Redd is a traditional African cosmologist, independent scholar, filmmaker, sculptor, and art curator based in Pittsburgh, PA. He has degrees from Harvard and UC-Berkeley and has trained in Afro-Cuban, ancient Egyptian, Yoruba, Dogon, Igbo, and Dagara spiritual systems.
Stacia Butterfield is a certified Holotropic Breathwork® practitioner with 15 years of dedicated service and close work with Stanislav Grof, the originator of Holotropic Breathwork and a pioneering psychedelic researcher. She has also been a senior staff member coordinating, facilitating, and teaching residential training retreats across the US for many years.