The brainchild of two Stanford graduates, Michael Murphy and Richard Price, Esalen Institute on the Big Sur coast has had a profound influence on American religious history over the last half-century. Many of the practices and ideas the institute stood for at its inception in 1962—from meditation and yoga to the synthesis of evolutionary biology and theology—are now common features of American culture and discourse. Join us as we discuss the history and influence of a pioneering project that has long been on the leading edge of alternative and experiential education.
MICHAEL MURPHY
Michael Murphy began his journey toward the
founding of Esalen Institute when, by chance, he heard a lecture on
comparative religion by Frederic Spiegelberg in Cubberley Auditorium
during his sophomore year at Stanford in 1950. Among his many books
are Golf in the Kingdom and In the Zone: Transcendent Experience in Sports.
http://www.esalenctr.org/display/bio.cfm?ID=9
JEFFREY KRIPAL
Jeffrey Kripal is the J. Newton Rayzor
Professor and chair of the Department of Religious Studies at Rice
University. His book, Esalen: America and the Religion of No Religion, was recently published by the University of Chicago Press.