http://www.integrative-healthcare.org/mt/archives/2009/12/nudity_and_esal.html
Pioneered at Esalen Institute in California, Esalen massage is a
well-respected integration of bodywork and psychology. While nudity
is often associated with Esalen, its purpose and requirements are
often misunderstood.
by Nicole Cutler, L.Ac.
December 24, 2009
A variation on conventional Swedish massage, Esalen Institute has
trained bodyworkers in their unique, psycho-spiritual massage
approach for several decades. While many valuable aspects of Esalen
massage have been studied and incorporated into bodywork practices
across the nation, one native element remains controversial - nudity.
Although the clothing optional custom at Esalen Institute is believed
to enhance participating individuals' personal experiences, bringing
this routine into the outside world of bodywork poses a great ethical
challenge.
About Esalen Institute
Esalen is a non-profit organization that has been devoted to the
exploration of human potential since the 1960s. Historical luminaries
like Aldous Huxley, Joseph Campbell, Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg,
Joan Baez and countless others have gathered at Esalen to develop
revolutionary ideas, transformative practices and innovative art forms.
Esalen Institute, renowned for its healing natural hot springs, has
long been recognized as a world leader in alternative and
experiential education. Dramatically situated on Big Sur's cliffs
overlooking the Pacific Ocean, Esalen Institute is a premiere
incubator for mind-body-spirit techniques and has consistently
remained at the forefront of new developments and discoveries in the
fields of psychology and bodywork.
About Esalen Massage
Esalen Massage (EM) is known for its healing and nurturing touch; it
combines long strokes, gentle rocking and stretching, sculpting of
deep musculature and the precision of acupressure. However, EM goes
beyond the physical result of bodywork by focusing on energy exchange
and psychological well-being. Taught and trademarked by the Esalen
Institute, EM aims to tune the mind and body together to create a
sense of serenity and peace.
Ten key aspects of the Esalen technique for practitioners include:
1.Grounding yourself before giving a massage.
2.Waiting and listening to the client's breath before making initial contact.
3.Gentle rocking to help the body let go of rigidity.
4.Creating a unified and whole massage defined by long, lengthening strokes.
5.Making small circular movements around joints to encourage release.
6.Bringing the whole body weight into the movement.
7.A little unpredictability to ease away holding patterns.
8.Allowing time to pause.
9.Understanding that massage goes beyond the physical self.
10.Remembering that everybody loves and wants to be touched.
Esalen and Nudity
When visiting Esalen Institute, some guests may notice that there are
clothing optional areas. Although Esalen's clothing optional policy
has long been challenged, most guests go nude at the hot springs and
ardently defend their right to do so.
According to playwright and Esalen regular Lynne Kaufman, "I've been
at the baths naked for a period over 25 years. It was at Esalen,
through the baths and through the massage, that I saw my body as
natural. The amazing thing is that once people take off their
clothes, there is more commonality. It was the clothing that made for
differences. When released from that, they were just other organisms.
What I saw was an acceptance of all kinds of body types, which was a
very different experience: it was evolutionary. You see the youthful
bodies, the old men and women. You see life."
Author of the essay Fig Leaf in the Wind, Sharon Thom describes
Esalen's acceptance of nudity as an acknowledgment of personal
freedom. In her essay she explains, "Our need to hide, all of the
time, behind a variety of decorative devices and professional excuses
and whatever status we've managed to fluff up around ourselves, our
need to avoid one another at all costs, is what makes us less free.
Taking our clothes off lies a few steps short of authentic liberation."
Nudity in EM
While clients have the option of shedding their clothing during an EM
session at Esalen Institute, this decision is made by the client only
if he or she is completely comfortable with nudity. Because massage
recipients traditionally soak in the hot springs prior to their EM
appointment, this setting supports nudity as a natural state.
During the course of the massage, the EM client is draped with a
sheet or towel. When massage therapists are trained at Esalen, they
are instructed to proceed very gently and introduce people to massage
in the most non-threatening way possible. Outside of Esalen
Institute's setting, this means giving clients an option of being
fully clothed, wearing undergarments or going nude. Despite the level
of covering or uncovering massage recipients choose, professional
draping practices assures a non-threatening atmosphere.
In general, our society has very little acceptance of nudity. As a
massage practitioner, respecting client privacy is crucial for
professionalism and to prevent major psychological implications that
could result from bearing all. Esalen Massage's unique approach to
integrating the physical, emotional and spiritual selves has been
appreciated by clients and practitioners for decades. Regardless of
where the massage is performed, helping a client find serenity and
peace is independent of Esalen Institute's optional clothing
practice. Thus, if the idea of psycho-spiritual massage while being
surrounded by nudes inspires freedom and healing in your soul, book
yourself for a workshop or extended stay in California's Esalen
Institute. For everyone else, you can benefit from the innate wisdom
of Esalen's massage techniques and pass it along to your clients
while maintaining the professionalism and ethics required in a
legitimate massage therapy practice.
Recommended Study:
Esalen Massage DVD
Ethics: Therapeutic Relationships
Integrative Massage: Spirit
--
References:
http://atpeacemedia.com, Massage and Bodywork: Upclose Interviews,
Peggy Horan and Emma Ingrisani, At Peace Media LLC, 2008.
www.esalen.org, What is Esalen Massage?, Brita Ostrom, Esalen Massage
and Bodywork Association, 2008.
www.massage-classifieds.com, Esalen Massage, massage-classifieds.com, 2008.
www.positivehealth.com, Esalen Masage: Deep Connections, Lucia
Appleby, Positive Health Publications, Ltd., 2008.
www.well.com, Fig Leaf in the Wind, Sharon Thom, well.com, 2008.
www.wisegeek.com, What is Esalen Massage?, S.E. Smith, Conjecture
Corporation, 2008.
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