Esalen profiled in The Economist

The Economist recently ran an excellent profile on Esalen, the California retreat center that refers to itself as “an alternative educational centre devoted to the exploration of the human potential”. Back before holistic medicine and Tantra were relatively common parts of the American vocabulary, Esalen was in the midst of a spiritual exploration that ranged from the extremes of New Age platitudes, to hedonistic revelry, to some very serious intellectual and mystical pursuits. These days, apparently, the mainstream has co-opted so many of Esalen's pursuits that Esalen itself seems relegated to the fringe more than ever - or so the article's neat summary would have us believe. Regardless, it's an intriguing look at a joint that served host to more than its fair share of psychedelic wizardry in its day.