http://krotonainstitute.org/programs/

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Fall-Winter Programs 2026

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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

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.

Click here to register.

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.

John Malloy is founder of “The Foundry School for justice-involved youth. He began his life of service at the age of 21 when he led a group therapy session for the county probation department. He eventually served as an intervention specialist with the Santa Clara County Unified School District and has been serving some of the most vulnerable populations in the San Francisco Bay Area for over 50 years. For the last 40 years, John has led free intergenerational community support groups focusing on grief and trauma. He has been the director of the 500 Mile American Indian Spiritual Marathon.

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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.

Click here to register.

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.

Click here to register.

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 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
“Orthodoxy in Theosophy is Neither Possible nor Desirable.” HPB’s Warnings for
Future Theosophists
The Founders declared in 1875 that the TS has no creed of its own. In The Key to
Theosophy, HPB warned about the setting up of a stereotyped creed in the Society. Is
there an authority in Theosophical studies? We will ponder on these and other
questions in a meditative enquiry.

Elena Dolvosantos
In the Still Heart of Suffering: Awakening Clarity, Peace, and Inner Freedom
From time immemorial, human beings have found themselves confronted by profound
challenges. Suffering, woven into the fabric of our lives, is often seen as the bane of our
existence. How might the ancient teachings articulated by H. P. Blavatsky help us to
understand the nature of suffering, navigate its complexities, and—more
importantly—discover the means to transcend it?

Michael Gomes
For Mind is Like a Mirror. HPB’s Approach to Mind Training
In her last published volume, The Voice of the Silence, H. P. Blavatsky offered the
methodology for mind training used in the School she was initiated into. “For Mind is like
a mirror / It gathers dust as it reflects / It needs the gentle breezes of Soul Wisdom to
brush away the dust of our illusions.” The phrase has a long history of its own and plays
a significant part in the development of Buddhism in China. This presentation will look at
its history and the assumptions conveyed by it.

Ananya Sri Ram
Practical Magic: The Transformative Power of Will, Wisdom, and Love
In Isis Unveiled, HPB writes that we are magicians. Within us lies the extraordinary
ability to work with forces of creation, not for our own benefit, but to harmonize with the
divine and allow ourselves to be instruments to benefit humanity.

Click here to register.

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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November 10 (Second Tuesday Series)

Rozi Ulics

Death Café: Tea, Cake, and Conversation

Tuesday 7:00-8:30 pm

Onsite only Krotona School

Inspired from the work of Swiss sociologist Bernard Crettaz’s “Death Mortels,” Death Cafes became more well known in the US by Jon Underwood and a team of other people. The objective behind a Death Café is “to increase awareness of death with a view to helping people make the most of their (finite) lives.” It is not a support or counseling group, but a place for people to sit together over cake and tea to discuss in an “accessible, respectful and confidential space” about death without “an agenda, theme or objective.”  We kindly ask that participants do not promote their business or services at this event. Spaces are limited to ensure an open, easy and comfortable setting. Preference will be given to those on our waiting list and those who have not attended before. Please register in advance through email schoolinfo@krotonainstitute.org or phone 805 646-1139.

Donations Welcomed

Rozi Ulics is a resident of Krotona Institute. She currently serves as vice president of the Theosophical Society in America (TSA). She has served in various offices for the Washington DC lodge and Mid-South Federation, as well as on the Board of the Theosophical Order of Service. Rozi recently retired as an economist for the U.S. federal government.

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diciembre 4 – 6
Seminario en Español.

Eneida Carbonell and Jorge E Expósito
Nosotros, El Buda y El Noble Óctuplo Sendero

In Situ y Zoom

¿Qué significa estar despiertos a nuestra verdadera naturaleza y a la profundidad de significados que la vida nos presenta? Exploraremos la vida del Buda y su enseñanza, en particular el Noble Óctuplo Sendero con miras a un despertar mas conscientes de la verdadera naturaleza interior y en relación con el mundo que nos rodea. 

Haz clic aquí para registrarte.

Eneida E Carbonell vive en Los Angeles CA y trabaja como Maestra de Matemáticas para el programa de Educación de Adultos. Ella es una dedicada y entusiasta estudiante de Teosofía y ha impartido Seminarios Teosóficos tanto en español como en inglés para la Escuela Teosófica de Krotona. Al presente es la presidente de la Logia España de la STA en Los Angeles.   

Jorge E Expósito nació en Camagüey Cuba, donde curso estudios de psicología.  Reside en el condado norte de San Diego CA, donde trabaja como Agente de Seguros de Vida y Salud.  Es autor de El otro tambor: historias de un buscador y de OCHO: 365 días para convertirse en Buda.  Es un buscador de la Sabiduría en las Tradiciones Espirituales y de su aplicación al mundo de hoy.  

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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.

Click here to register.

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.

Click here to register.

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