R.D. Laing in the 21st Century: What is Authenticity?
With Michael Guy Thompson and Nita Gage
July 14 - 19, 2019
One of R. D. Laing’s most seminal influences was the existential philosophical tradition, especially Sartre, Heidegger and Nietzsche. The core principle that binds these disparate thinkers together is the concept of authenticity. There is no better term to characterize Dr. Laing’s ethical approach to clinical intervention. We will devote our five days together to exploring what it means to be authentic. What is the relationship between authenticity and ethics? The self? Happiness? Can the search for authenticity drive us mad, or make us sane? Is authenticity something we can strive for, or is it innate? Is authenticity inherently narcissistic, or a way of genuinely coming into one’s own?
This workshop, designed for those seeking answers to the most existential aspects of human nature, is a continuation of our previous Esalen workshops that focused on Dr. Laing’s relation to the nature of sanity and madness, the therapeutic relationship, altered states and love. Workshop leaders will be joined by co-presenters (most of whom worked intimately with Dr. Laing) to assess the question of authenticity at the most basic level. The workshop will be comprised of theoretical presentations, panel discussions and experiential exercises to demonstrate practical aspects of Dr. Laing’s legacy. Guest speakers include Douglas Kirsner, Edie Irwin, Will Hall, Michael Cornwall, Dina Tyler, Chuck Knapp and others. Note: Participants must first contact Michael Thompson at michaelguythompson@mac.com for pre-screening.
Recommended Reading: Capra, The Systems View of Life; Gage and Wolf, Soul Whispering: The Art of Awakening Shamanic Consciousness; Thompson, The Death of Desire.
For continuing education syllabus, see https://www.esalen.org/rd-laing-what-is-love.
CE credit for MFTs, LCSWs, LPCCs and LEPs; see page xx.
CE credit for nurses; see page xx.
About the Leaders
Michael Guy Thompson
Michael Guy Thompson, PhD, is a psychoanalyst who worked with R.D. Laing for many years. He continues to work with extreme states, and has been training therapists for more than 30 years. He has lectured all over the world and his books include The Death of Desire: An Existential Study in Sanity and Madness (2nd, […]
Learn more about Michael Guy ThompsonNita Gage
Nita Gage, DSPS, trained with R.D. Laing at the Philadelphia Association in London. She also trained with shamanic teachers and specializes in integrative psycho spiritual healing, and is a teacher with Hoffman Institute. Nita is the author (with Linda Star Wolf) of Soul Whispering: The Art of Awakening Shamanic Consciousness (Bear and Company). www.hoffmaninstitute.org
Learn more about Nita GageCategories : (Old) Mind & Psychology, (Old) Transpersonal Psychology, Familiar or New, FF/FC, Product Type, Target Attendees, Target Generation