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Fall-Winter Programs 2026

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September 16 – October 7
Catherine Ann Jones

Great Films as Portals to Timeless Themes

Wednesdays 6:30 – 8:30 PT

Onsite Krotona Hall

Single Session $15 Series $50

Film is one of the most important mediums of our times. Producer David Putnam (Chariots of Fire, the Mission) once said, “If films were what they might be, there would be no need to go to church.” Four films will be screened as a catalyst to explore universal facets of human experience and philosophical themes. Catherine will introduce each film briefly. After screening an open dialogue will follow.

September 16 – The Way (2010) Directed by Emilio Estevez. Martin Sheen stars as a grieving father who walks the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage in Spain to honor his deceased son.

September 23 – A Man for All Season (1966) Paul Scofield’s memorable performance as Sir Thomas More who refused to sign the Oath of Supremacy allowing the annulment of King Henry VIII’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon.

September 30 – Seven Years in Tibet (1997) Based on the true-life story of Heinrich Harrer who visited Tibet and became tutor, mentor and close friend to the young Dalai Lama.

October 7 – Best in Show (2001) A mockumentary comedy film co-written by Christopher Guest and Eugene Levy. Five dogs and their owners, trainers, and handlers travel to Philadelphia to compete in the Mayflower Kennel Club Dog Show.

Catherine Ann Jones, M.A. is an award-winning author, playwright, and screenwriter (The Christmas Wife, Unlikely Angel, Touched by an Angel series) and author of eight books. A Fulbright Research Scholar to India with over 30 years of teaching experience at The New School University (NYC) and U.S.C. Film School (LA) along with workshops at the Esalen and Omega Institutes, and in Europe and Asia. Her six online courses at DailyOM have drawn over 60,000 subscribers. Blog, workshop schedule, writing and personal consultations: www.wayofstory.com

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September 19
Phil Cousineau

The Wisdom of the Odyssey:

An Ancient Map of the Soul for Modern Times

Saturday 10 am – noon, 2 – 4 pm PT

Onsite and Zoom

Single session $15 Series $30

Homer’s epic poem about the legendary ten-year-long voyage home of Odysseus after the calamitous Trojan War has been inspiring and relevant for the last three thousand years. This program will explore the overlap between Homer’s timeless themes–the desire to return and restore home, the origin of suffering, and the relationship between love and devotion. These issues make the Odyssey a bridge between ancient mythology and modern philosophy, traditional spirituality and modern science. Homer’s themes will be familiar to any spiritual seeker because this ancient Greek myth provides an ancient map of the soul.

To paraphrase the poet, we read in order to be surprised, and together we will explore the Odyssey as a timeless source of wisdom for seekers, travelers, artists, warriors, and parents.

Participants are invited to bring a journal to reveal their odyssey through life.

Phil Cousineau is an author, filmmaker, mythologist, and culture tour leader. He is the author of over 40 books, the screenwriter of over 30 documentary films, a consultant on myth in the movies for Warner Brothers, Pixar, Lucas Film, and the Discovery Channel. His books include: The Hero’s Journey: Joseph Campbell on His Life and Work, The Art of Pilgrimage, and most recently, Moonlight Over the Parthenon, and The Wisdom of the Odyssey.

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September 26

Michele and Pablo Sender

A Diagram of Meditation:
Practical Tools for Everyday Awakening

Saturday 10 – noon, 2 – 4 pm PT

Onsite and Zoom

Single Session $15, Series $30

What would it look like to carry meditation beyond the cushion and into how we move through the world, relate to others, and understand ourselves? Most traditions point toward the same horizon: the dissolution of the sense of separation — the felt experience that we are not a fragment, but the Whole itself, present in all forms, all time, all space.

In this workshop, Michele and Pablo Sender work with a little-known nineteenth-century document — a Diagram of Meditation dictated by H. P. Blavatsky, using it as a practical system for exactly that transformation. More than a sitting practice, the Diagram offers a comprehensive inner orientation: a way of moving through daily life that gradually loosens the grip of our limited self-identity and opens awareness to the deeper nature of who we really are.

Our work for the day:

– Meditating on Unity as our fundamental nature

– Dissolving the boundaries of here and now

– Cultivating equanimity as a way of meeting daily life

– Seeing through the illusion of separation

– Creating our own Diagram as a personal path of practice

Michele Sender has been a member of the Theosophical Society since 2006. She has a degree in education and has given lectures, classes and seminars on Theosophy and its practical application in daily life both here and abroad. She founded Fohat Productions to publish Theosophical books, for more information visit www.fohatproductions.com.

Pablo Sender, PhD, has served the TS since joining in Argentina in 1996, including several years as a staff member at the international (Adyar) and American national headquarters. Pablo presents theosophical programs worldwide in English and Spanish, guides on-line classes, and contributes regularly to theosophical journals. www.pablosender.com

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October 1, 15, November 5, 19, December 3, 17

Maria Parisen and Ananya Sri Ram

The Genius of Annie Besant:

Reflections on The Spiritual Life

First and Third Thursday evenings 4 – 5:30 pm Pacific, 5 – 6:30 pm

Mountain, 6 – 7:30 Central, 7– 8:30 Eastern

Onsite and Zoom

Single Session $15 Series $75

Annie Besant’s remarkable life represents a mind full of curiosity and a heart full of compassion. Her altruistic life as a social activist enhanced her work as a Theosophical leader and teacher. The Spiritual Life, a selective collection of her lectures and essays from 1893 -1907, reflects Besant’s profound yet practical insights on how we may live a spiritual life in the world as it is today. Joy Mills suggests, “When answers come from a heart overflowing with compassion for the suffering of humankind, when they flow from a wisdom tradition that is timeless in its essence, then those answers are timeless, for they remind us that within us is the very truth we seek.”

Through our six weeks together, we will interactively explore various aspects of the spiritual life, considering Besant’s perspective and insights. Topics such as, “the difficulties of the inner life,” “the ceasing of sorrow,” “the value of devotion,” and “the future that awaits us” will offer an opportunity for creative ideas, inspiration and enthusiasm for our shared spiritual journey.

Maria Parisen has been a T.S. member since 1969 and active for 40 years in the T.S. in Detroit, has served on the national boards of the Theosophical Society in America, the Theosophical Order of Service and currently the Krotona Institute. A resident of Krotona since 2003, and director of its School of Theosophy for 15 years, she has taught for the T.S. internationally and compiled the Quest anthology Angels and Mortals: Their Co-Creative Power.

Ananya Sri Ram has been a student of Theosophy since 1983 and incorporates theosophical principles into her practice as a licensed therapist. Past president of the Theosophical Order of Service, USA, she co-teaches an introductory online theosophical course for the Theosophical Society in America (TSA) and contributes to the online journal Theosophy Forward. She currently serves as the director of the Krotona School in Ojai, California.

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October 9 – 10

Phil Borges

“CrazyWise”: Navigating Life in Transformation

Friday 7 – 8:30 pm, Saturday 9:30 am – noon, 1:30 – 4:30 pm PT

Krotona Hall

Single Session $15, Series $45 (Registration is limited)

Vegan Box lunch offered $12.00 extra

What can be learned from people around the world who have turned their psychological crisis into a positive transformative experience? Documentary filmmaker Phil Borges explored this question in his film CrazyWise. Through interviews with renowned people such as Joan Halifax, Dr. Gabor Mate and Robert Whitaker, Phil explores the growing severity of the mental health crisis in America dominated by biomedical psychiatry. He discovers a growing movement of professionals and psychiatric survivors who demand alternative treatments that focus on recovery, nurturing social connections, and finding meaning.

Come join us for an enriching program of discussion that may help change perception and open dialogue about an issue that impacts us all.

Program for Friday and Saturday

Oct 9 Friday evening

7 – 8:30 Welcome and Documentary: Community and Compassion in Indigenous Cultures, Q&A

Oct 10 Saturday Morning

9:30 – 11 am Welcome and screening of CrazyWise film, followed by break

11:15 – noon Q & A with Phil Borges

October 10 Saturday Afternoon

1:30 – 1:45 pm Summing Up and intro to Circle

2:00 Circle

Introduction to Circle

Circle of Inquiry: Exploring understanding, mutual concerns, priorities and actions with John Malloy.

4:30 Closing

Phil Borges has been documenting indigenous cultures and striving to create an understanding of the challenges they face for over 25 years. For his program, Stirring the Fire, Phil produced and filmed several short films, capturing the stories of women heroes and the issues they face all over the world. Phil has spoken at multiple TED talks and hosted television documentaries for Discovery and National Geographic.

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October 13 (Second Tuesday of the Month Series)

Heidi Volpe

Reflections on Measured versus Meaningful Time.

Tuesday 7 – 8:30 pm

Onsite and Zoom

Donations Welcomed

We all live by Kronos—the time of calendars, deadlines, and clocks. But the moments that truly shape us belong to Kairos: those unexpected, split-second benchmarks when everything changes. Our lives aren’t measured only by the hours we accumulate, but by the meaning we make. There are moments when time seems to stand still—when calendar and clock disappear—and time marinates in meaning. Those are the moments that transform us, deepen our gratitude, and remind us what matters most.

Heidi Volpe has more than 25 years of experience in photography and creative direction. She has guided visual storytelling across editorial, commercial, and brand platforms with a focus on authenticity and connection.

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October 23 – 25

Leonie van Gelder

Foundations of Therapeutic Touch

Friday 7 – 8:30 pm, Saturday and Sunday 9 – noon, 12:30 – 4:30 pm

Onsite Only

Weekend $100.00 with lunch

Accommodation is available. Not included in program fee.

Therapeutic Touch® is a gentle, holistic, well-researched healing practice with significant presence in health care settings in the US and around the world. It incorporates the intentional and compassionate use of universal energy to support physical, emotional and spiritual well-being through conscious engagement with human energy fields (biofields). During a TT session, the practitioner uses her hands with focused intention and empathy to help restore balance and harmony within the energy system of another, bringing a sense of peace and well-being to those who are ill, dying, or simply in need of renewal from everyday stress. TT also empowers the individuals that practice it.

This beginner’s level hands-on workshop provides a foundation in the theory and practice of Therapeutic Touch and will include instruction, discussion, meditation, centering and experiential exercises, and TT practice. It is designed for anyone new to the practice of TT or anyone wishing to refresh their practice. (For those who seek the credential of “Qualified Therapeutic Touch Practitioner” it is the first of three required courses). Health care professionals, spiritual counselors, hospice volunteers, caregivers, and anyone wanting to support another in their healing process are invited to take this workshop.

Certificate of Completion: Participants will receive a certificate of completion for 12 hours. This can be used towards obtaining your Qualified Therapeutic Touch Practitioner (QTTP). It is also accepted by some state’s massage boards as continuing education hours.

CE Information: This continuing nursing education activity was approved by the American Holistic Nurses Association (AHNA), an accredited approver of continuing education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission of Accreditation for 12 CNE’s (AHNA approval 1961). Approval for contact hours through the American Holistic Nurses Association is based on an assessment of the educational merit of this program and does not constitute endorsement of the use of any specific modality in the care of clients.

For more information on Therapeutic Touch please visit Therapeutic Touch International Association (TTIA) at www.therapeutictouch.org.

Leonie Van Gelder, BA, Qualified Therapeutic Touch Teacher (QTTT), a long-time member of the Theosophical Society, she first learned Therapeutic Touch in the 1970s. Currently, Leonie is on the Board of Therapeutic Touch International Association, and on the Indralaya Therapeutic Touch program team. (Indralaya is a Theosophical center in Washington State.)

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October 27

Kat Alexander

An Introduction to The Artist’s Way

Tuesday 7 – 8:30 pm

Onsite Only

Session: $15.00

The Artist’s Way is far more than a program for artists. It is a practical process for anyone seeking greater authenticity, creativity, and freedom in their lives. Through a series of simple but powerful practices, Julia Cameron’s approach helps people identify and release the fears, assumptions, and self-limiting beliefs that often inhibit creative expression and personal growth.

Its emphasis is on direct experience rather than theory. Participants are invited to develop a regular creative practice, deepen their self-awareness, and cultivate a more trusting relationship with their own intuition and inner guidance. As creative blocks begin to dissolve, many discover renewed energy, greater clarity, and a stronger sense of purpose. While creativity is the entry point, the process often reaches much deeper. People frequently find themselves making meaningful changes in their work, relationships, and sense of self. The result is not simply increased creativity, but a greater capacity to live with confidence, curiosity, and freedom.

Copies of the book will be available for sale.

Kat Alexander worked closely with Julia Cameron and Mark Bryan during the early years of The Artist’s Way. She offers both a firsthand understanding of its origins and a wealth of experience in facilitating personal transformation. Her approach creates a safe and insightful environment in which participants can engage the work at a deeper level, allowing the creative process to become a catalyst not only for artistic expression, but for genuine healing, self-discovery, and lasting change.

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October 30 – November 1

Pedro Oliveira, Elena Dovalsantos, Michael Gomes, Ananya Sri Ram

Second Biennial Gathering

HPB Weekend: Wisdom Teachings for Challenging Times

Friday 7 – 8:30 pm, Saturday 10 – noon, 2 – 4 pm and Sunday 10 – noon.

Onsite and Zoom

Single Session $15 Weekend $50

Helena Petrovna Blavatsky (1831- 1891), one of the Theosophical Society’s founders, has influenced significantly the thought of the Western world and brought important insights to inter-spiritual dialogue. Her extensive knowledge of the philosophies and religions of the world, wisdom of East and West, symbolism, metaphysics, esoteric philosophy, and the practical applications of all these to life, is reflected in 15 volumes of her Collected Writings. (See H.P. Blavatsky and Her Writings, Theosophical Society in America pamphlet)

Krotona’s HPB Wisdom Teachings gathering will alternate with our biennial fall Secret Doctrine Forum, inviting a wider, ongoing exploraton of HPB’s work in the context of today’s challenges and our responsibilities for humanity’s future.

Pedro Oliveira joined the Theosophical Society in 1978 and has worked for it in several capacities. Pedro has lectured extensively in many countries on the Perennial Wisdom, Spirituality, Mysticism and Comparative Religion. He is the author of N. Sri Ram: A Life of Beneficence and Wisdom (TPH Adyar, 2009), CWL Speaks: C. W. Leadbeater’s Correspondence concerning the 1906 Crisis in the Theosophical Society (2018) and Annie Besant in India (2021). His articles have appeared in a number of the Society’s international journals.

Elena Dovalsantos, Ph.D., serves as Resident Head of the Krotona Institute of Theosophy. A third-generation Theosophist, she has shared her insights and teachings across the United States and internationally, offering talks that illuminate both the depth and contemporary relevance of theosophical wisdom.

Michael Gomes is considered one of the best known historians of the Theosophical movement. He joined the Society in 1968 at the age of seventeen and has remained committed not only to to the ideals of the Society, but its co-founder, HP Blavatsky. His publications, which range from new editions of Blavatsky’s writings to examinations of contentious events in theosophical history, have contributed toward a better understanding of the modern theosophical movement. Michael Gomes is Director of the Emily Sellon Memorial Library in New York City.

Ananya Sri Ram has been a student of Theosophy since 1983 and incorporates theosophical principles into her practice as a licensed therapist. Past president of the Theosophical Order of Service, USA, she co-teaches an introductory online theosophical course for the Theosophical Society in America (TSA) and contributes to the online journal Theosophy Forward. She currently serves as the director of the Krotona School in Ojai, California.

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December 8 (Second Tuesday of the Month Series)

Luz Tamarit

Exploring the Enneagram

7 – 8:30 pm

Onsite and Zoom

Donations Appreciated

The Enneagram of Personality Types is a modern synthesis of a number of ancient wisdom traditions, but the person who originally put the system together was Oscar Ichazo, who created the Arica School as a vehicle for transmitting the knowledge that he had received, teaching in Chile in the late 1960s and early 1970s, before moving to the United States where he resided until his passing in 2020. Thus, the Traditional Enneagram dates back to the early 1960s when Ichazo first began teaching it, while the philosophy behind it stretches back into antiquity.

The personality types of the Enneagram identify the chief features of our inner landscape and gives us insights of how to move towards a more integrated way of being once we have observed ourselves and are willing to explore what lies beyond personality or false self. As self-understanding is the prelude to transformation, knowledge of the Enneagram Personality Types can be a wonderful addition to one’s spiritual path.

Luz María Tamarit was born in Valencia, Spain. A student of Theosophy for many years, she is past president of Logia Espana in Los Angeles, California. She currently resides at the Krotona Institute of Theosophy in Ojai where she serves as the guesthouse manager and a library volunteer.

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December 11 – 13

David M. Odorisio, PhD

Weekend Retreat:

Thomas Merton on Contemplative Prayer

Friday 7 – 8:30 pm

Saturday 10 am – noon, 2 – 4 pm

Sunday 10 am – noon

Onsite and Zoom

Single Session $20, Series $80.00

Thomas Merton’s (1915-1968) writings continue to speak to contemporary persons interested in deepening their spiritual lives. A Trappist monk and one of the leading spiritual authors of the twentieth century, his voice has the ability to cut through our hardness of heart and social personas to uncover a deeper or more hidden, even secret, aspect of ourselves. This interior dimension is marked by silence, inner peace, and a river of compassion. This weekend retreat draws upon writings from two of Merton’s most celebrated publications, New Seeds of Contemplation and Contemplative Prayer. Each serve as a foundation and guide for entering into our own hearts, reminding us who we are, and sharing in the contemplative peace that for Merton is a result of authentic prayer.

Participants are encouraged to read portions or the entirety of both books prior to the weekend, but this is not necessary. Themes and ample quotations from these and other of Merton’s writings will lead our discussions and guide our deepening into the silence of contemplative prayer. Participants will be invited to participate in gentle, guided contemplative practice to make this a true “retreat” experience. This is a nonsectarian gathering that encourages and welcomes participants from all faith traditions, denominations, and spiritual backgrounds.

Accommodation is available.

David M. Odorisio, PhD, serves as Dean of Academic Programs, and is Chair and Associate Professor in the Psychology, Religion, and Consciousness program at Pacifica Graduate Institute, Santa Barbara, CA. He is the editor of Thomas Merton in California: The Redwoods Conferences and Letters, and Merton and Hinduism: The Yoga of the Heart. David additionally serves as Co-Chair of the Mysticism Unit for the American Academy of Religion, and on the Board of Directors for the International Thomas Merton Society. www.ahomeforsoul.com