My Friend:
Peace .. :o) .. Salam
My enlightenment is largely a result of my trying to fathom the truths that don Juan Matus and his friends imparted to Taisha Abelar, Carlos Castaneda, and Florinda Donner.
Armando Torres I have yet to read, but I look forward to it.
Abelar's, Castaneda's, Donner's, and Torres' 17 books are not a clear guide; ..
.. yet, the books do contain more clues than I have yet been able to assimilate into my life.
Don Juan and his friends had the keys to do anything and everything that is humanly possible.
These keys are revealed through these books, articles, etc. ..
.. I need only 'see' between the lines.
Your friend:
: o |
The quest for Total Freedom
is as open to women
as it is to men.
Taisha Abelar
and Florinda Donner
were taught by
the same group
of individuals
who instructed
Carlos Castaneda.
The three books written
by Florinda Donner
and the one
by Taisha Abelar
are extremely illuminating
from the female perspective.
Taisha Abelar's only book.
Florinda Donner's first of three books.
Florinda Donner's second of three books.
Florinda Donner's third book
Carlos Castaneda
wrote a series of twelve books
relating to his
twelve year relationship
with Juan Matus.
Juan was a link
in a unique lineage
which stretched back
for countless generations
over several thousands of years.
Juan had for years
been actively looking
for an individual
to replace himself
in the next generation
of his lineage.
When Juan saw Carlos,
Juan immediately recognized that
Carlos was the man he sought.
From that moment on
Juan adopted Carlos
as a student.
Carlos did not realize that
Juan had no intention
of letting him go
under any circumstances.
Carlos simply considered Juan
to be an excellent source
for his anthropological endeavors.
Juan spared no effort
in his intent
to break Carlos
into the very real realm
of our absolutely limitless
attainable
human possibilities.
Juan adapted himself spontaneously
in every situation with Carlos.
Juan recommended
countless techniques to Carlos.
Juan resorted to
playing the role
of Indian sorcercer,
and in that role
he employed the use of
mind altering plants
as a hook to Carlos'
wandering attention.
Unfortunately to us as readers,
Carlos believed
that mind alterants
were necessary
to break the barrier
into don Juan's world.
As a result,
drug-use served
as the central theme
of Carlos' first two books.
Carlos eventually
realized his error
concerning why
don Juan employed
the Indian psychotropics,
and Carlos acknowledges
this intense blunder
in the introduction
of his third book.
In spite of that,
the first two books
serve as an insightful initiation
into Juan's world;
and Juan's highly focused intent
shines through Carlos' words.
The tradition
to which Juan belonged
can not be accurately defined
with words because
it involves levels
of physical human awareness
well beyond thinking.
Words alone can only alude to,
and possibly lead to
remarkable realms
which are
largely ignored,
yet open to each of us.
Carlos Castaneda's first book,
The Teachings of don Juan,
spans the period
of about the first five years
of his relationship
with don Juan.
For the following three years,
Carlos considered himself
as having quit his apprenticeship,
but he still saw don Juan regularly.
Regardless of Carlos'
lack of realization of the fact,
don Juan continued his initiation process
during that three year period.
Carlos' second book,
A Separate Reality,
spans about two and a half years
beginning from the time when
Carlos consciously decided
he was again a student of don Juan.
We are also introduced
to don Genaro Flores,
a delightful member
of don Juan's generation
of shared purpose comrades.
This book takes us
to a point
several months beyond
Carlos' ten year aniversary
of having met don Juan.
In his third book,
Journey to Ixtlan,
Carlos retells the story
of his entire apprenticeship
from the beginning.
Carlos now realizes
with greater clarity
what it was don Juan
was attempting to do
from the moment they met.
As such,
this book is a more
in depth treatment
of multitple avenues
and openings
into the wonder of us
as aware living beings.
Journey to Ixtlan spans
to a point
about six or seven months
beyond the end of the second book,
or just short
of the eleven year anniversary
of Carlos' and don Juan's
first encounter.
Journey to Ixtlan is
the published version
of Castaneda's PhD dissertation
and is virtually indistinguishable
from the manuscript he submitted
to his UCLA graduate committe.
Carlos' fourth book,
Tales of Power,
picks up a few months
after the third book leaves off,
and spans the last year and a half
of Carlos' relationship with don Juan.
Within the Chapter,
"The Strategy of a Sorcerer",
don Juan describes to Carlos
what he had been trying to do
from the moment they met.
(Approximately 150 Paragraphs)
This book closes
with Carlos' saying good-bye
to don Genaro and don Juan
for the last time.
In Carlos' fifth book,
The Second Ring of Power,
we meet
the other members of Carlos'
shared purpose generation.
This group of individuals
struggle to understand
the legacy
that captured them.
Carlos' sixth book,
The Eagle's Gift,
continues the account
of the new generations' struggle.
The first half of the book
involves all the members;
but the second half of the book
involves only Carlos
and la Gorda
as they together
try to unravel
their inheritance's mysteries.
Carlos' seventh book,
The Fire from Within,
describes don Juan's
explanations to Carlos
about the New-seers goal
of Total-freedom.
In Carlos' words,
"This work deals with the
mastery of awareness".
It begins somewhere in the middle
of his apprenticeship,
and concludes at the point when
don Juan leaves the Earth.
Carlos' eighth book is
The Power of Silence.
This book is about
the abstract cores
of don Juan's lessons.
Carlos writes,
"I have not pursued
the subjects of the
abstract cores directly-
a virtual impossibility-
but have dealt with them
indirectly
through the concluding topic
of don Juan's instruction:
The stories of the New-seers
of past generations.
"Don Juan,
whenever it was pertinent,
used to tell me brief stories
about his lineage.
"I know now that
the stories were intended
more to open my mind
than to explain anything
in a rational manner."
Carlos' ninth book is
The Art of Dreaming.
In Carlos' words;
"I wrote The Art of Dreaming
in light of what I know now
about the parts of don Juan's
lessons in dreaming
to which I did not have
conscious access before."
Carlos' tenth publication,
Magical Passes,
describes a regiment
of physical movements
intented to tone the body
as a means of furthering one's
ability to sustain one's self
in the realm of the New-seers'
and their quest to
face infinity.
Carlos' eleventh book,
The Wheel of Time,
is a compilation
of brief quotes
from Carlos' first eight books.
It is a collection
taken one book at a time,
and is commented upon
at the end of
each book's grouping.
Carlos' twelfth and final book is
The Active Side of Infinity.
In Carlos' words,
"This book is a collection
of the memorable events
in my life.
"I gathered them
following the recommendation
of don Juan Matus.
"Don Juan insisted they were
a necessary part of the
preparation for facing
the definitive journey:
the journey that
every human being
has to take
at the end
of his or her life."
1 - The Sorcerers' Crossing http://www.castaneda.com http://www.castaneda.com/english/publications/detail.cfm?ID=6
01 - The Teachings of Don Juan Simon & Schuster, Inc. - http://www.simonsays.com http://www.simonsays.com/content/book.cfm?pid=405503 02 - A Separate Reality Simon & Schuster, Inc. - http://www.simonsays.com http://www.simonsays.com/content/book.cfm?pid=404426 03 - Journey to Ixtlan Simon & Schuster, Inc. - http://www.simonsays.com http://www.simonsays.com/content/book.cfm?pid=404027 04 - Tales of Power Simon & Schuster, Inc. - http://www.simonsays.com http://www.simonsays.com/content/book.cfm?pid=404206 05 - The Second Ring of Power Simon & Schuster, Inc. - http://www.simonsays.com http://www.simonsays.com/content/book.cfm?sid=33&pid=404515 06 - The Eagle's Gift Simon & Schuster, Inc. - http://www.simonsays.com http://www.simonsays.com/content/book.cfm?pid=404516 07 - The Fire from Within Simon & Schuster, Inc. - http://www.simonsays.com http://www.simonsays.com/content/book.cfm?pid=404554 08 - The Power of Silence Simon & Schuster, Inc. - http://www.simonsays.com http://www.simonsays.com/content/book.cfm?pid=404427 09 - The Art of Dreaming http://www.castaneda.com http://www.castaneda.com/english/publications/detail.cfm?ID=34 10 - Magical Passes http://www.castaneda.com http://www.castaneda.com/english/publications/detail.cfm?ID=3 11 - The Wheel of Time Simon & Schuster, Inc. - http://www.simonsays.com http://www.simonsays.com/content/book.cfm?pid=413186 12 - The Active Side of Infinity http://www.castaneda.com/ http://www.castaneda.com/english/publications/detail.cfm?ID=1
1 - Shabono HarperCollins Publishers - http://www.harpercollins.com/ http://www.harpercollins.com/global_scripts/product_catalog/book_xml.asp?isbn=0062502425 2 - Witch's Dream http://www.castaneda.com http://www.castaneda.com/english/publications/detail.cfm?ID=31 3 - Being in Dreaming http://www.castaneda.com http://www.castaneda.com/english/publications/detail.cfm?ID=5
1 - Encounters with the Nagual: Conversations with Carlos Castaneda http://www.thenagualbook.com