Edited by Andrew Willett
Written by Tom Kovach
IN THIS ISSUE: Our 2026 Intensives schedule, our upcoming silent auctions, an invitation to return to the CBE, and notes on three upcoming workshops — Ambassador Training, What Now?, and Motions of Tenderness.
Explore New Depths: The Body Electric School Announces 2026 Intensives
Get ready to deepen your journey with The Body Electric School! We are thrilled to announce our 2026 intensives, featuring a blend of beloved favorites and brand-new workshops designed to inspire, connect, and transform. Mark your calendars and prepare for an unforgettable year of growth and exploration.
- New Year Visions in Costa Rica Step into the new year, December 30t,h 2025,-January 4th with intention, connection, and celebration. New Year Visions is an immersive, one-of-a-kind Body Electric experience nestled in the lush Qasa (formerly Jungle Gayborhood) retreat center in Costa Rica.
- Erotic Brotherhood 2026 A six-month hybrid program running January 10-June 13, focused on cultivating an intentional and erotic male community.
- Mature Eros An in-person intensive in beautiful Punto Jimenez, Costa Rica, February 21-28, celebrating the journey and sexuality of older gay men.
- Held in the Whisper of Touch March 24-30 in Blue Ridge, Georgia, this in-person intensive invites you to experience intimacy through the language of slowness.
- Touching the Heart of Stillness A unique hybrid of silent meditation practice and erotic ritual, 24-May 1 at the Bodhi Manda Zen Center in Jemez Springs, New Mexico.
- Tantra 2 May 2-7 at the Bodhi Manda Zen Center.
- In the Garden of Life & Advanced Sacred Intimacy These two intensives run concurrently June 12-18 at Easton Mountain in Greenwich, New York. In the Garden of Life is a week of personalized erotic healing, while Advanced Sacred Intimacy is a rare opportunity for practitioners to refine their skills and define their practice.
- Rekindling the Communal Heart. First offered in 2021, this experience is updated and refocused on connection and intimacy in Big Bear, California, June 29-July 5.
- Erotic Massage Training Develop your technical skills at the Bodhi Manda Zen Center. from July 27 to August 2.
- Creativity, Ritual, and the Erotic Impulse Join us at Easton Mountain, August 3-9 for a week where creativity and the erotic impulse meet through ritual and play.
- Body Electric Erotic Massage Training for All Genders August 26-31 at the Bodhi Manda Zen Center.
- Erotic Nourisment, a brand new intensive for women+(for women and femme-identified people), September 11-17 at the Bodhi Manda Zen Center.
Spaces for these unique workshops are limited and fill up quickly. Stay tuned for more details and registration information coming soon!
Returning to the Root: The Enduring Power of CBE in Albuquerque
We recently celebrated a significant milestone: bringing the foundational Celebrating the Body Erotic workshop back to Albuquerque, New Mexico, the very city where it was first offered. Despite the logistical challenges of a new venue and schedule changes, the effort was immediately and profoundly validated.
Stepping into the space and seeing the look of anticipation on every face confirmed why we do this work. Among the participants was one individual whose 20-year wait for a workshop finally ended that night, a powerful reminder of the impact our community has.
This experience beautifully illuminated the wisdom of our dear friend Alan Armus, who took over 50 Body Electric workshops and returned to the CBE dozens of times. Alan always said that every CBE was unique because of who showed up.
I attended this CBE, and despite having taken advanced classes and intensives, I intentionally approached it with a beginner’s mind—setting the goal to be fully present as a witness to others and to my own experience.
I had grown in the years since I began my Body Electric journey, and that changed and enriched my experiences at this CBE. Familiar rituals and exercises were fresh and deeper for me. I now better understand Alan’s wisdom in going back to enjoy and reconnect with these experiences, which are now more meaningful than ever for me.
Because I had grown, the experience was transformed. Familiar exercises felt richer, leading to profound moments, including the most intense out-of-body experience I had ever had during the Taoist Erotic Massage. And Alan was correct: It was the people who made each CBE unique and special, and with our great group of adventurers was a new me.
Alan’s legacy reminds us that a foundational workshop is never “just a repeat.” It’s a chance to measure your own growth, deepen your understanding, and witness the magic of new beginnings through fresh eyes.
If you’ve been waiting for the right time to return to the core curriculum, or to encourage a friend to finally attend, consider this your invitation.
I encourage you to reconnect with the Body Erotic. Use code BEAlumni! to get $200 off your next foundational workshop registration.
Continuing the Journey: The Body Electric School Unveils “What Now?” and Welcomes Back the Ambassador Training
The Body Electric School is excited to announce two powerful programs designed to help our community members deepen their connection to the work and become ambassadors for erotic healing and aliveness. Whether you’ve just completed your first workshop or are looking for a way to give back, these programs offer a perfect next step on your journey.
The New “What Now?” Program
After the profound and transformative experience of a Celebrating the Body Erotic (CBE) workshop, many participants find themselves asking, “What now?” The answer is here. The brand new What Now? program is an online workshop specifically created for those who have completed a CBE and want to continue their exploration.These will be monthly on the 3rd Sunday.
This program serves as a bridge, helping you integrate the lessons and insights from your CBE experience into your daily life. It’s a space to connect with other graduates, share your ongoing journey, and receive guidance on how to keep the erotic fire alive long after your workshop ends. This is the perfect opportunity to solidify your understanding and ensure that the powerful lessons of The Body Electric School become a lasting part of who you are.
The Return of BE Ambassador Training
We are also thrilled to welcome back the popular Body Electric Ambassador Training. This program is for anyone who has been affected by the school’s work and feels a calling to share it with the world. As an Ambassador, you become a living testament to the power of our mission—fostering personal and communal healing through erotic awakening.
This training provides a comprehensive foundation for telling your Body Electric story clearly and authentically. You will delve into the school’s rich history and its core philosophy and learn how to communicate the profound nature of this work to others. More than just a class, the Ambassador Training is an entry point for those who want to be more deeply involved with The Body Electric School, whether as a volunteer or in other leadership capacities.
The Ambassador Training is a one-day, online program and a prerequisite is the completion of a “Celebrating the Body Erotic” workshop.These will be monthly on the 4th Saturday.
Take Your Next Step
Both What Now? and the Ambassador Training represent the heart of The Body Electric School’s commitment to continuous growth and community. They provide the tools and support needed to not only explore your own aliveness but also to inspire others to do the same.
We invite you to take the next step on your journey and continue to learn, heal, and grow with us.
Managing the Many Forms of Grief
Loss can tear us from our connection to ourselves and our communities on every level: not merely emotional but also spiritual and physical. To help us navigate this transition, the Body Electric School has created “Motions of Tenderness: Navigating Grief with Eros as a Guide.” This new Four-Day starts on October 30th workshop offers a unique approach to processing loss by integrating the power of grief with the life-affirming energy of Eros. Held at Easton Mountain in New York, it’s designed to help participants navigate different kinds of grief through a compassionate, embodied, and communal experience.
Understanding the Landscape of Grief
Grief is a complex and multifaceted response to loss, and it’s important to recognize that it comes in many forms beyond the response to the death of a loved one. The workshop’s focus on both individual and collective sorrow acknowledges this broad spectrum, which can include:
- Anticipatory Grief: This is the grief felt before a loss has occurred, such as when a loved one has a terminal illness or is facing a life-changing transition. This type of grief allows for a different kind of processing, often involving preparing for the future while still cherishing the present.
- Disenfranchised Grief: This refers to grief that is not openly acknowledged, publicly mourned, or socially supported. Examples include grieving a secret relationship, a miscarriage, a pet, or a loved one who was estranged. Because this grief is often hidden, it can be particularly isolating.
- Collective Grief: This is the grief experienced by a community or society as a whole. This can be in response to events like natural disasters, acts of violence, or a pandemic, in which the shared experience of loss creates a collective sorrow that binds people together.
- Ambiguous Grief: This type of grief lacks a clear resolution or a sense of closure. It can be caused by the loss of a person who is physically present but psychologically absent, such as someone with dementia, or by a loved one who is physically gone but whose fate is unknown.
The Workshop’s Approach: Embracing Grief With Eros
The Motions of Tenderness workshop provides a safe and supportive community to explore these forms of grief. It operates on the principle that grief is not something to be avoided but rather a natural and vital part of life that can be transformed. Instead of suppressing sorrow, participants are guided to embrace it as a catalyst for healing and personal growth.
The core of the workshop’s philosophy lies in using Eros as a guide. The Body Electric School defines Eros as the practice of cultivating profound sensations in the body to achieve a release. In this context, it is not about sexuality in the conventional sense but rather the life-affirming energy that is connected to aliveness, pleasure, and our deepest sense of self.
By combining the acknowledgment of sorrow with embodied, tender practices, the workshop helps participants move through their grief in a way that is both cathartic and restorative. Through group rituals and compassionate sharing, the experience aims to:
- Acknowledge and Process: Create a space for both individual and collective sorrow to be seen, heard, and honored.
- Foster Connection: Provide a community where people can connect over their shared experiences of loss, reducing the isolation that often comes with grief.
- Cultivate Resilience: Transform the pain of loss into a source of release and recognize its role on the path to experiencing profound pleasure and joy.
The Motions of Tenderness workshop offers a powerful journey to anyone ready to face their grief and discover the healing and transformative potential that lies within it.