Gestalt practice is a contemporary form of personal exploration and integration developed by Dick Price at the Esalen Institute.

[1][2] The objective of the practice is to become more fully aware of the process of living within a unified field of body, mind, relationship, earth and spirit.

[11] Otherwise, the primary influences on the development of Gestalt practice were Fritz Perls, Wilhelm Reich, Alan Watts, Nyanaponika Thera, Shunryu Suzuki, Frederic Spiegelberg, Rajneesh, Joseph Campbell, Gregory Bateson, and Stanislav Grof, as well as many other scholars who were in residence at Esalen Institute during the two decades that Price led the Institute.

[13] Gestalt practitioners teach mindfulness skills, using a wide variety of methods not limited by the psychotherapeutic model.

Phenomenological techniques like these are based upon the belief that subjective experience is worthy of direct attention, without the interference of preexisting ideas or interpretations.

And movement exercises such as tai chi, yoga, dance, art, hiking, chanting, singing, and massage may be used to integrate awareness of the body.

[19] A neutral moderator may assist with interpersonal encounters, although this is not necessary, in keeping with the Gestalt practice principle of equality among participants.

[citation needed] Dreamwork is a common Gestalt awareness practice, in which enactment and integration of dream elements are favored.

[citation needed] Taoism, as it was expressed by Lao Tzu in the Tao Te Ching, provides a non-judgmental backdrop for non-intervention with an initiator’s process, allowing whatever happens in a Gestalt work session to unfold naturally in the present moment.

[19] These techniques, and many others beyond the ambit of therapy, are regularly used in Gestalt practice, with the same objectives of enhanced awareness, spiritual growth,[22] and respect for the natural environment.