Carlos Castaneda(Carlos Castaneda) (1925-1998) - American anthropologist, whose books, telling about the dramatic training of the Indian-Mexican sorcerer, set out the philosophy of existence, which became especially popular among representatives of the Western "youth culture" of the late 60s - 70s 20 in.

Very little is known about the official life of Carlos Cesar Arana Salvador Castaneda. But even what is known is intertwined with ambiguity and hoaxes, the origin of which he himself often contributed. Even the date and place of his birth are not exactly known. According to one version - entries in immigration documents - he was born on December 25, 1925 in the Peruvian city of Cajamarca, according to another - on December 25, 1931 in Sao Paulo (Brazil). Only by reading his books, which tell about a certain Don Juan, can we get some idea of ​​Castaneda the man. It is known that in 1951 Castaneda emigrated to the United States from Peru, and before that his family lived in Brazil, from where they fled, fleeing from another dictator. It is not known what he did before coming to the United States. In the USA, judging by the “transcript” of his dialogues with Don Juan, he worked as a taxi driver, wrote poetry, studied painting, and sold alcohol in a store. It is also known about his desire to penetrate the Hollywood environment.

It is known that he studied at the San Francisco Community College, taking courses in creative writing and journalism there, then entered the University of California at Los Angeles in 1955 and after seven years became a bachelor in anthropology. He taught at the university, was a teacher in Beverly Hills. In one of the episodes, he describes how he walked around the prestigious cinemas of Los Angeles with a special card from his girlfriend, the daughter of a Hollywood boss.

In 1968, Castaneda became famous. He was 37 or 43. Having integrated into the environment of the free-thinking intelligentsia, he was full of strength and ambitious aspirations. His ambitions were given direction by a grant from the University of California for his anthropological research. Under the terms of this grant, he went to central Mexico, where for several years he was engaged in "field work", which, however, did not end. scientific discovery, but a completely unusual novel for that time, “The Teachings of Don Juan: The Way of Knowledge of the Yaqui Indians”. Castaneda's literary and scientific searches were appreciated, and in 1973 K. Castaneda received his Ph.D. and became a professor at the University of California, where he defended a thesis in anthropology, almost identical to his third book Journey to Ixtlan (1972). The appearance of the first books, The Teaching of Don Juan (1968) and A Separate Reality (1971), made the author a celebrity, and Tales of Power (1974) and The Second circle of power” (The Second Ring of Power, 1977) also became bestsellers. The sixth of the books in this series, The Eagle's Gift, was published in 1981. The books were published in millions of copies, they were translated into 17 languages, including Russian.

The texts of Castaneda's works themselves claim to be a detailed presentation of the author's impressions and experiences (under the name "Carlos"), received while studying with an old Indian from the Yaqui tribe, don Juan Matus?, who allegedly knew some higher revelation, and his assistant don Genaro. As a fact-finding graduate student, Carlos is taking a bizarre course of study that is supposed to change his way of perceiving the world so that he can see, think, and live in a completely different way than before. The training consists in performing a sequence of ritually fixed actions against the background of taking narcotic herbal medicines, which don Juan gives and recommends. In addition to the natural hallucinogens that Carlos initially takes for his transformation, the old sorcerer emphasizes the importance of certain physical exercises, such as squinting the eyes for altered vision, or the "walk of strength" for moving safely through the desert at night. The result of the training was a complete transformation of the hero's personality and his entire perception of reality (which is quite natural for a person who has turned into a drug addict). Critics have always doubted the real existence of don Juan, and not without reason. Castaneda did not show the world any evidence of the existence of his Don Juan and in 1973 "sent" him along with a group of characters on a magical journey from which they never returned. However, students and admirers of Castaneda believe that the question of the authenticity of his stories has nothing to do with the problem of the truth of the "path of knowledge" proposed by don Juan.

It is known about the personal life of Carlos Castaneda that he was married. He divorced six months later, although he finally separated from his wife in 1973. There is a man who calls himself his son, Adrian Vachon (C. J. Castaneda), but whether this is actually so is unclear. Castaneda died in Westwood (California, USA) from liver cancer on April 27, 1998. In the last period, he led healthy lifestyle life”: he not only did not use alcohol and narcotic drugs, to the glorification of which he devoted his work, not only did not smoke, but did not even drink tea and coffee. The best-selling book makers exploited his "mysterious departure" for some time, claiming that he was "burnt from the inside", although he was cremated in the usual way and the remains were transported to Mexico. Castaneda was supposed to remain a mystery. Indeed, on the teachings of the unmercenary Don Juan, its author left behind a perfectly functioning industry with a multimillion-dollar income. His estate was valued at $1 million after his death (rather modest for an author whose books have sold around 8 million copies in 17 languages). All of it was donated to the Eagle Foundation established shortly before his death. The estimated total capital of the fund was 20 million.

Problems of the biography of Carlos Castaneda

expound biographical information everything about Carlos Castaneda is problematic, not only because the information about his life is extremely contradictory, but also because Carlos Castaneda himself had a negative attitude towards the public availability of information about himself, since this completely contradicted the esoteric, magical system that he practiced and popularized. In particular, he himself wrote: “The more others know who you are and what should be expected of you, the more it limits your freedom.”

Carlos Castaneda's teacher insisted that it is necessary to "erase personal history", which is a product of the human ego, preoccupied with a sense of self-worth, and therefore hindering movement on the Path to Freedom. Therefore, Carlos Castaneda, whenever possible, tried to avoid taking photographs, filming with a video camera or recording with a voice recorder.

Also, do not forget that Carlos Castaneda himself was a very famous person, therefore, naturally, a lot of gossip and rumors spread around him, often frankly “yellow” content. Nevertheless, we can still, with a certain degree of relativity, restore the main milestones of his biography.

Childhood of Carlos Castaneda

The full name of Carlos Castaneda is Carlos Cesar Salvador Araña Castaneda. He was born on December 25, 1925, although some researchers of the biography of Carlos Castaneda also name other years of his birth, most often 1931 or 1935.

Carlos Castaneda was born in the city of Cajamarca in Peru, and, again, there are also discrepancies here, as some biographers call the city Mairiporan in Brazil.

Carlos Castaneda was born to very young parents - his mother at that time was fifteen years old, and his father was seventeen. Therefore, due to their youth, the son was transferred to the upbringing of one of the mother's sisters. True, she died when Carlos Castaneda was only six years old, but he had the warmest memories of her and he really treated her like his own mother.

Unfortunately, the personal "tragedies with mothers" did not end there. When Carlos Castaneda was twenty-five years old, his biological mother also passed away. All this affected his character, so many considered him a naughty and unbearable boy, always getting into various troubles.

Youth and youth of Carlos Castaneda

Carlos Castaneda's parents did not have a high level of parental responsibility and financial stability, so at the age of 10-12 they were forced to send their son to a boarding school in Buenos Aires. And right from there, fifteen-year-old Carlos Castaneda goes to America, where, in fact, officially, according to his passport, he becomes Carlos Castaneda.

The opportunity to move to the United States was apparently provided by a family from San Francisco, who decided to adopt him. Carlos Castaneda lived with them until he graduated from school. And only after that began his, more or less, independent life - he leaves for Milan to study at the Academy of Fine Arts. But, unfortunately, he quickly becomes convinced that art- not his element. And then Carlos Castaneda returns to California, where he completely devotes himself to literature and various humanities - he attends various courses in writing, journalism and psychology.

At this time, Carlos Castaneda is trying to earn a living on his own, working as an assistant to a professional psychoanalyst. All the work of Carlos Castaneda was to sort through the many tape audio recordings made during therapeutic procedures, of which there were several thousand. This work allowed him to look at his inner world from the outside, to see all your phobias, fears, problems, and so on, which, of course, made me completely reconsider my life. As a result, Carlos Castaneda decides to continue his education more seriously and enters the University of California at Los Angeles, which he graduates two years later with a degree in anthropology.

In January 1960, Carlos Castaneda marries Margaret Runyan, but they disperse almost immediately, although they officially divorce only thirteen years later - on December 17, 1973.

Carlos Castaneda and Don Juan

Naturally, the most striking event in the life of Carlos Castaneda is a meeting with his teacher - Don Juan. After all, it was this memorable event that became the starting point both for the cycle of his book about the path of the warrior, and for his own magical practice and, of course, world fame as the author of books on esotericism.

Carlos Castaneda himself has repeatedly described in his works how he met with Don Juan (Juan Matusa) - an Indian from the Yaqui tribe, a Mexican shaman magician who belonged to the Toltec tradition.

Carlos Castaneda's meeting with this amazing person happened in 1960.

Initially, Carlos Castaneda, as part of his anthropological research, planned to simply study the properties of peyote. Don Juan was recommended to him as one of the best experts on this plant. And, of course, at that time, Carlos Castaneda did not even think about any spiritual or magical practice - his goal was purely scientific. But events began to rapidly unfold in a completely different way.

Subsequently, it turned out that Don Juan himself saw special magical signs in Carlos Castaneda, in particular, that he was a nagual (a term quite difficult to understand by ordinary consciousness), which was reflected in the specific structure of his energy body. The signs of the nagual in Carlos Castaneda became not only a magical sign for don Juan himself, but also indicated that Carlos Castaneda himself was capable of becoming the leader of a group of "seers", that is, one around whom several magicians must gather in order to form a closed union of practitioners-shamans. It included dreamers, warriors, and so on.

After a memorable meeting, Carlos Castaneda for several years intermittently, from 1961 to 1965, was trained by don Juan, visiting his house in Sonora more than once. But in the fall of 1965, he stopped his studies for a while and devoted himself entirely to literary activity- a description of the "path of the warrior", which he passed under the guidance of his mentor.

The resumption of the apprenticeship will take place in 1968 until the "departure" of don Juan and his group of sorcerers.

Carlos Castaneda himself, having started the second stage of training, completely changes his life - he begins to “erase his personal history”, stops giving interviews and completely envelops his life in fog.

Books by Carlos Castaneda

In 1968, the University of California Press published Carlos Castaneda's first book, The Teachings of Don Juan. From that moment begins the triumphal procession of his works around the world. But first, for this work, he receives a master's degree from the university. And as the book quickly sells out in millions of copies, Carlos Castaneda also becomes a millionaire.

The next book by Carlos Castaneda, A Separate Reality, was published in 1971, and a year later, another one, Journey to Ixtlan. This work brings him even more fame and money, as well as a doctoral degree.

In Carlos Castaneda's latest book, the emphasis shifts from the use of auxiliary plants to the practice of increasing awareness, vision, and lucid dreaming. In a word, a more detailed and complete exposition of The Way of the Warrior begins, in particular the most important moments of "stopping the internal dialogue", the art of stalking and lucid dreaming.

In 1974, the most important book of the entire cycle of "teachings" of a direct description of communication with the teacher was published. It is in "Tales of Power" that the moment is described when Don Juan and his group of magicians leave this world, "burning from the inside."

In his next works, Carlos Castaneda will describe his own memories of the "way of the warrior", which are what he received in an altered state of consciousness. This knowledge was hidden by his subconscious until the time, so the third stage of the path was precisely that Carlos Castaneda remembered this.

The remaining eight books Carlos Castaneda writes and publishes between 1977 and 1997. At the same time, for most of this time, he almost completely isolated himself from society - reducing the number of contacts to a minimum.

In 1998, the last two books of Carlos Castaneda were published. The first "Wheel of Time", which is, in fact, a collection of aphorisms from all past books with some comments. The second book, Magical Passes, describes the tensegrity system.

The Magical Life of Carlos Castaneda

After the release of the book Tales of Power, Carlos Castaneda completely immersed himself in his own magical practice, as well as working with his own group of magicians, which included Florinda Donner-Grau, Taisha Abelar, Carol Tiggs, Patricia Partin and several others. Some of them also wrote a number of books on topics similar to those of Carlos Castaneda.

The open life of Carlos Castaneda

Around the 1990s, Carlos Castaneda began to lead a more open lifestyle - he lectured at the University of California. At first, the seminars were free of charge, but then everything switched to a paid basis.

Five years later, on June 16, 1995, Carlos Castaneda founded his own publishing organization, Cleargreen, which is actively involved in the distribution of the tensegrity system and other activities.

Death of Carlos Castaneda

Carlos Castaneda left this world on April 27, 1998 in Los Angeles (USA). The official cause of death was liver cancer.

Naturally, the death of Carlos Castaneda gave rise to many rumors and gossip - from the most harmless "burnt from the inside" to the ridiculous - he and his associates committed suicide. But this does not matter, because all his life Carlos Castaneda was surrounded by an incredible number of different stories about himself, from exalted enthusiastic to frankly vulgar and vulgar. Most importantly, Carlos Castaneda left behind a great legacy that still lives on, awakening thousands of people to embark on the "Way of the Warrior."

© Alexey Kupreichik

Carlos Castaneda (1925–1998) was an American writer, anthropologist, ethnographer, and mystic. Author of an 11-volume chronicle of an apprenticeship with the Indian shaman don Juan, published in millions of copies in many languages ​​and becoming a worldwide bestseller. PhD in Anthropology.

The works of Castaneda are difficult to attribute to any particular genre - they represent a synthesis, exist at the intersection of literature, philosophy, mysticism, ethnography and psychology. The poetic-esoteric concepts introduced in his books form a coherent and complete theory, known as the “teachings of don Juan”. Numerous admirers and followers of Castaneda are engaged in its interpretation. Some concepts, for example, “assembly point”, “place of power”, etc., migrated from his books to the modern lexicon and life, reflecting the fashion for a variety of esoteric and exotic teachings and practices.

Will is what makes you win when your mind tells you that you are defeated.

Castaneda Carlos

Carlos Cesar Salvador Arana Castaneda was born December 25, 1925 in Cajamarca (Peru) in the family of a watchmaker and goldsmith, a native of Italy. His father owned a shop and was engaged in the manufacture of jewelry. In his father's workshop, the son received his first experience in artistic practice - he worked with bronze and gold. Among the usual impressions of the period of life in Cajamarca were curanderos - local shamans and healers, whose influence on the work of Castaneda later became obvious.

In 1935 the family moved to Lima, a city of art, monuments and museums of Peruvian art dating back to the Inca culture. Here Castaneda graduated from the National College and in 1948 entered the National School of Fine Arts. Leads a lifestyle typical representative bohemians - communicates with artists, poets, writers, dandies, attends exhibitions and poetry evenings.

As a student in Lima, obsessed with the desire to continue his studies and career professional artist in the USA. He is inspired by the example of his uncle, one of the most famous people in South America, Oswaldo Aranja, Brazilian Ambassador to the United States and Chairman of the UN General Assembly. After his return to Brazil, Castaneda finally decides to go to discover "his own America."

Anyone who enters the study has to give as much as he can, and the limits of learning are determined by the student's own abilities. That is why conversations about education are meaningless. Fear of knowledge is common; we are all subject to them, and there's nothing you can do about it. However, however terrifying the teaching may be, it is even more terrifying to imagine a person who has no knowledge.
("The Teachings of Don Juan")

Castaneda Carlos

In 1951 he moved to the USA - first to San Francisco, then to Los Angeles. Wanders along the Pacific coast, trying to earn money for further education. In 1955, he enrolled at the Los Angeles Community College (LAOC), where, in addition to the main classes, he attends lectures on journalism and seminars on literary skills. To pay for tuition and housing, he works wherever he has to. He continues to paint and sculpt.

In 1956 he met Margaret Runyan, his future wife. Margaret is aware of hobbies in the intellectual youth of the Pacific coast - these are psi-factors, extrasensory perception, various mystical teachings, and so on. She herself is fond of the teachings of the mystic Goddard Neville, who lectured on the search for the self and the practice of controlled dreams. They exchange books, discuss lectures, go to concerts, are fond of cinema, conduct experiments on extrasensory perception. Gradually, a narrow circle of friends, united by common interests, is formed around them.

Castaneda was greatly impressed by the book of the English writer Aldous Huxley, The Gate of Knowledge, about the influence of hallucinogens on the human mind. Castaneda developed this theme in his second-year term paper. In it, he emphasized the role language tradition, which, on the one hand, facilitates communication between people and helps to preserve the accumulated knowledge, and, on the other hand, “narrows” consciousness - words are taken for real objects, and not for their symbols, and gradually the whole breadth of the world is reduced to a set of general judgments.

Nothing is free in this world, and the acquisition of knowledge is the most difficult of all tasks that a person can face. A man goes to knowledge just like he goes to war - fully awakened, full of fear, awe and unconditional determination. Any deviation from this rule is a fatal mistake.
("The Teachings of Don Juan")

Castaneda Carlos

Neville's ideas about the possibilities of dream programming and "controlled imagination" were also discussed in Castaneda's circle. Topics were raised about the existence of a luminous sphere around a person with an "awakened" imagination. The idea was uttered that in the conditions of the modern world it is better to propagate a new teaching not on behalf of an adept - the bearer of the teaching, but on behalf of a student initiated into his mysteries. Many of these ideas later received a deep interpretation in the writings of Castaneda. In addition, young American intellectuals were seriously interested in studying the lifestyle and rituals of Indian shamans, which were treated with disdain by the middle class in Castaneda's native Cajamarca.

In 1959 he graduated from college with a degree from the Association of the Arts in the field of psychology. In 1960 he entered the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), and his specialization changed - now it is anthropology. Professor Clement Meighan, who supervised Castaneda in anthropology, encouraged the collection of interviews from representatives of the studied nationalities. To this end, Castaneda travels first to Arizona, then to Mexico. Establishing contacts with the Indians is facilitated by knowledge of the Spanish language, Latin American appearance and familiarity with the lifestyle of shamans in Cajamarca. The topic of his field interviews is the use of plants containing hallucinogens in Native American rituals. He drifts away from his friends and wife, misses business meetings, and spends more and more time in Arizona and Mexico. According to the reaction of Professor Meighan to the collected material presented in term papers, it becomes clear to him that he has entered a very interesting and little-studied direction.

The volume of field recordings became more and more extensive, Castaneda spends most of his time in Los Angeles at a typewriter. Money affairs are in decline, there is nothing to pay for education, and he leaves the university. After many doubts and alterations, by 1965 Castaneda had an impressive manuscript ready - a book called The Teachings of Don Juan: The Yaqui Way of Knowledge. It was distributed to UCLA professors for review and recommendations for publication. In the university environment, attitudes towards the book were divided - both its supporters (led by Professor Meighan) and those who feared that a personal, "non-academic" approach could discredit the objectivity of the university's scientific traditions appeared. But representatives of both camps agreed in assessing the work as bright and extraordinary.

Fear is the first inevitable enemy that a person must defeat on the path to knowledge.
("The Teachings of Don Juan")

Castaneda Carlos

It took three years to clarify the positions of the professors regarding the publication of Castaneda's book. Finally, in the spring of 1968, it was published by the University of California Press under the standard cover of university textbooks. Before our eyes, it became a bestseller and sold better than any other publication - in the first 2 years, 300 thousand copies were sold. Later, when the second book was ready, Castaneda turned to a professional intermediary agent, because. his works clearly had the potential for mass distribution and did not fit into the category of university textbooks. Under an agreement with the copyright holder, the UCLA publishing house, don Juan's Teachings were also published by the major publishing houses Bollentine and Simon & Schuster.

In the first book of Carlos Castaneda, The Teachings of Don Juan: The Way of Knowledge of the Yaqui Indians, it is about how one day, as a student, Castaneda, in search of an object for a research interview, meets don Juan - an old brujo Indian, i.e. magician, healer and master of ancient ritual. Indian, feeling in young man seeking nature, offers to get acquainted directly with the magical reality, without which it is impossible to understand the essence of Indian shamanic rituals. The anthropology student agrees and describes in detail the subsequent events and his feelings. He talks about "mitots" - ceremonies for the use of peyote and mushrooms, during which the participants gained the ability to interact with a magical reality full of some kind of friendly or hostile forces.

Don Juan makes an offer to Castaneda to become his student - he calls it: to take the path of a "man of knowledge", i.e. give up prejudice, open up to a new knowledge of the world, discarding the teachings hammered into it from birth. Castaneda is confused, brujo's proposal causes mixed feelings of apprehension and interest. Becoming a "man of knowledge", according to don Juan, includes a process of purification from personal worldly experience. The meaning of this requirement is in gaining a different understanding of oneself, a different worldview, in rethinking and often rejecting a previous life. The reader gets acquainted with the concepts of don Juan's teachings - "man of knowledge", "power", "place of power", "objects of power", "ally", etc. Four dangers on the path of a man of knowledge are also indicated - fear, clarity, strength and old age.

One of the most interesting interpretations of don Juan's teachings was offered by Jungian analysts. So, according to D.L. Williams (Crossing the border), a “man of knowledge” is a person who strives to live in harmony with his unconscious and follow all the vicissitudes of personal destiny, due to this harmony, “strength” is the ability to reveal the potential of his unconscious, "ally" - the inclusion of unconscious potential in the process of gaining selfhood, etc. And the mentioned four enemies of knowledge - fear, clarity, strength and old age are not enemies in themselves, but only when they are misunderstood. The book has a second part, written in the spirit of a methodical research development, duplicating the content of Don Juan's Teachings. It was included in the first publication, but later it is no longer printed, because. for the general public, it is precisely the “artistically” written version that is of interest, containing emotional impressions and personal experience a person immersed in the shamanic world.

Carlos Castaneda's first book was a fantastic success, translated into 17 languages ​​and is still one of the super bestsellers. Disputes about its genre do not subside: some consider it a unique esoteric textbook, others consider it a no less unique literary and philosophical hoax, others consider it a surreal allegory, etc. For the author himself, its publication, among other things, helped improve his financial situation and, finally, get the opportunity to pass the exams for the title of master. At this time, he is fond of philosophy, attends lectures on phenomenology, gets acquainted with the works of Husserl, Parsons, Wittgenstein.

When a person starts learning, he never has a clear idea of ​​the obstacles. His purpose is vague, his intention is unstable. He expects a reward that he will never receive, because he is not yet aware of the upcoming trials. Gradually, he begins to learn - at first a little, then more and more successfully. And soon he is confused. What he learns never coincides with what he pictured for himself, and fear seizes him. Teaching is always not what is expected of it.
("The Teachings of Don Juan")

Castaneda Carlos

The second book, A Separate Reality: Continued Conversations with Don Juan (1971, New York, Simon & Shuster) is also a fictional documentary account of encounters with Indian brujos. New characters appear - don Juan's colleague don Genaro. He weaned Castaneda from addiction to Western logic and rationalism, demonstrating the violation of the Aristotelian laws of space and time. Don Genaro floats above the floor, moves in an instant to a mountain ledge 10 miles away, dances on the edge of a waterfall. The reader has the right to think that the Indians are manipulating Castaneda's mind. From this point of view, one can also consider the transformation and flight of Castaneda himself in the form of a crow, described in the book. Don Juan continues to acquaint him with the system of shamanistic views of the world, with the concepts of "warrior" and "hunter", living simultaneously in two worlds, with the concept of "vision", i.e. ability to feel for real events of this world the Great Nothing, with the rule of "controlled stupidity" - the principle of life in the world of people, etc.

The soon-to-be-published third book, Journey to Ixtlan (1972, New York, Simon & Shuster), contains a more systematic presentation of the basic principles of don Juan's teachings than the previous ones. Castaneda once again turns to his notes of the first years of his acquaintance with don Juan, revises them and finally decides to embark on the path of apprenticeship of an Indian brujo. The last three chapters contain material on the third stage of the apprenticeship, which began in May 1971. Castaneda understands that one who has set foot on the path of the warrior - "the path with a heart" - can never turn back. Don Juan continues to discover aspects of this path - the art of being unattainable, the principle of erasing personal history, building relationships with and fighting with one's "ally", the concept of death as an advisor, the need to take responsibility for one's actions, and so on.

For this book in 1973 Carlos Castaneda received the title of Doctor of Philosophy in anthropology. At the same time, he becomes a millionaire thanks to the fabulous circulation of his works. Now he is a popular personality, he is interviewed and invited to give lectures to students.

Man must challenge his four eternal enemies and slay them. Anyone who defeats them becomes a man of knowledge.
("The Teachings of Don Juan")

Castaneda Carlos

Tales of Power (1974, New York, Simon & Shuster) book four is based on data on the final stage of discipleship in 1971-1972. Castaneda is being prepared for the initiation rite. In the desert, don Juan reveals his secrets to him and gives detailed explanations about the magician's strategy. At this point in his apprenticeship, Castaneda feels his own consciousness is cracking. He is convinced that the usual picture of the world (or the tonal) is only a tiny island in the endless, unknowable and indefinable world of magic - the so-called nagual. The tonal and the nagual are the central concepts of don Juan's teachings: the tonal is the world given, systematized and rational, the nagual is the world of magical possibilities, will and transformations. Between them there is a crack, or a qualitative break, and the path of a warrior presupposes the ability to exist and act in both worlds. After the initiation rite, Castaneda and two other students of don Juan and don Genaro, having said goodbye to their teachers forever, jump from the top of the mountain into the abyss - into the crack between the worlds. Don Juan and don Genaro are supposed to leave this world forever that same night. So in the books of Castaneda ends the story of the period of his direct study with don Juan.

Immediately after the appearance of the first books about don Juan, the question arose about the degree of reliability of his image - whether he was a real person and whether a prototype existed, or whether he was a product of fiction. In favor of the possibility of the existence of a real prototype or prototypes is the fact that Castaneda's colleague at the University, Douglas Sharon, long before he met Castaneda, also took an apprenticeship course with the Peruvian curandero Eduardo Calderon Palomino. In conversations between themselves, Castaneda and Sharon noted a huge number of coincidences between the teachings of Eduardo and don Juan.

At the same time, when analyzing Castaneda's writings, it becomes clear that many of the views and theories he expounded are connected with existentialism, phenomenology, and modern psychotherapy. This circumstance suggests that the figure of don Juan could have been invented by a person with a university education, i.e. Carlos Castaneda. This question remains unanswered.

Any path is just one of a million possible paths. Therefore, a warrior must always remember that the path is only the path; if he feels that he does not like it, he must leave it at all costs. Any path is just a path, and nothing will prevent a warrior from leaving it if his heart tells him to do so. His decision must be free from fear and ambition. Any path must be looked at directly and without hesitation. All paths are the same: they lead nowhere. Does this path have a heart? If there is, then this is a good way; if not, then it's useless. One path makes the journey along it joyful: no matter how much you wander, you and your path are inseparable. The other way will make you curse your life. One way gives you strength, the other destroys you.
("The Teachings of Don Juan")

Castaneda Carlos

Castaneda's life became more and more like the lifestyle of a modern guru. He divorces Margaret, leaves his adopted son, to whom he was strongly attached, moves away from his former friends and finally plunges into the study of shamanic practices. He writes books, gives lectures, maintaining an aura of mystery around his figure. In the spirit of his theory of erasing personal history, he is reluctant to give interviews, does not allow himself to be photographed, drawn, etc. Some themes from his books sometimes migrate to real life. So, sometimes after a conversation with some person, he could claim that it was not he himself who was present at the meeting, but his “double”.

In the works written by Castaneda in the 1970s-90s - the Second Ring of Power, the Gift of the Eagle, the Fire from Within, the Power of Silence, the Active Side of Infinity, the Art of Dreaming - there is a further description of the teachings of don Juan and tells about the ups and downs of the fate of the modern magician. The latest book, The Wheel of Time, is a kind of author's summary of the most important concepts and comments on the works of Castaneda.

In The Second Ring of Power (1977), after jumping off a cliff into an abyss, Carlos survives and returns to Mexico to find out how real that incredible jump was. Here he meets with a group of female magicians - students of don Juan, and in a duel with them he discovers in himself the magical ability to leave his body in the form of a powerful understudy. After contacts with the female warrior La Gorda, Carlos assumes responsibility as the leader of the new nagual party.

The things that people do cannot, under any circumstances, be more important than the world. And thus, the warrior treats the world as an infinite mystery, and what people do as an infinite stupidity.
("A Separate Reality")

Castaneda Carlos

In The Eagle's Gift (1981), a former apprentice tries to lead a new band of mages, but conflicts between him and the other apprentices escalate. With the help of La Gorda (Florinda Donner), he realizes that due to the peculiarities of his energy device, he cannot be their leader. The paths of the magicians diverge, but La Gorda remains with him. They leave for Los Angeles, where they practice dream travel together and, in a state of heightened awareness, try to remember their years of apprenticeship while practicing magical principles. In The Fire Within (1984), Castaneda recalls his encounters with don Juan, his concept of petty tyrants, viewing any negative situation as a learning tool. By continuing to work on himself, he gets rid of his sense of self-importance and gains integrity. An explanation is given of the new terms of don Juan's teachings - "assemblage point", "position of the assemblage point", "stalking", "intention" and "dream position", "overcoming the barrier of perception".

In The Power of Silence (1987), reflecting on his encounters with don Juan, his disciple speaks of the world and the sorcerer's world, the modality of time and the mastery of intention. He is convinced that magic is needed so that we know: the power is in our fingertips, we just need to realize our power, which everyone really owns. New terms appear - "manifestation", "push", "trick", "descent of the spirit", "demand" and "control of intention". The Art of Dreaming (1994) builds on don Juan's concept of controlled dreaming. Dreams are the only access to the world of the nagual available in the tonal, fixed by the mind in mystical images. Unlike the Freudians, who are engaged in the symbolic interpretation of dreams, the Indian magician offers to infiltrate and perceive it as some other reality that can be controlled.

The active side of infinity is dedicated to living and working from home in Los Angeles. Castaneda tries to relate the problems of his friends and colleagues to don Juan's teachings. We are talking about the practice of inner silence - a way to "stop the world", the ability to see the flow of energy in the universe and subdue the vibrating force that holds us as a whole in the form of a conglomerate of energy fields.

Human eyes are designed to perform two functions: one of them is to see the energy flows of the Universe, and the other is to "look at things in this world." Neither is better or more important than the other, but to train the eyes only for looking is a shameful and senseless waste.
("A Separate Reality")

Castaneda Carlos

In addition to the fascinating exposition of the teachings of don Juan, in the 10-volume epic of Castaneda, the plot of spiritual discipleship is clearly traced - the vicissitudes of the relationship between the student and the Teacher. The stages of apprenticeship, the figure of the teacher and his power are of great interest to readers, as they contribute to the transformation of an "ordinary" person into a creative person.

In 1993-1995, Castaneda's associates developed a modern version of the "magic passes" "discovered" by the shamans of ancient Mexico. Of these, a set of exercises for psychoenergetic training was compiled, called tensegrity - (from the English tension - tension, stretching; and integrity - integrity). The goal of tensegrity is the training of redistribution of energy - in the books of Castaneda, don Juan teaches it to his closest students: Taisha Abelar, Florinda Donner-Grau, Carol Tiggs and Carlos Castaneda. With a preface by Castaneda, books on tensegrity, video cassettes are published, seminars are held in which Castaneda's associates, who first appeared in the 1970s in his writings as female magicians, take an active part. Taisha Abelard and Florinda Donner write books - a "female" version of Castaneda, telling about their own destinies and the experience of apprenticeship with don Juan. All of them take an active part in the promotion of the "mystical product" of Castaneda in the form of books, videos and tensegrity seminars. Don Juan's teachings, like the name of Castaneda, are increasingly being commercialized and turned into a popular brand and trademark. Castaneda founds the Cleargreen Company, establishes the Eagle Foundation, which owns the rights to his legacy.

Castaneda's commercial projects in the 1990s toned down the "spirituality" associated with his writing. At the same time, the implied but not declared connection of Castaneda with the New Age movement - the New Age, or the New Era - became obvious. New Age is a popular social movement that has its own philosophy and aesthetics - a bizarre mixture of religious, cosmic, environmental theories, seasoned with psychotherapy and traditional, mostly Eastern, psychotechniques.

The warrior must first of all know that his actions are useless, but he must carry them out as if he did not know about it. This is what shamans call controlled stupidity.
("A Separate Reality")

Castaneda Carlos

On June 18, 1998, it was reported that on April 27, 1998, at his home in Westwood (California), USA, Carlos Castaneda died of liver cancer. There was no funeral, the body was cremated on the same day, the remains were transported to Mexico. Castaneda succeeded in conveying in an accessible and entertaining way to a wide range of readers the ideas that initially circulated in a rather closed circle of university intellectuals. The pathos and contagious power of don Juan's teachings is not in the promise of happiness at the end of the path or in another dimension, but in the understanding of the need to find one's true destiny and find a way in this world.

Jungian analyst Donald Lee Williams notes another aspect of don Juan's teachings. Jung believed that the Indians in the American unconscious are the bearers and symbols of heroic actions, spiritual visions, eros and a deep sense of kinship in all manifestations of life. Castaneda, becoming a translator of the magical philosophy of the red man, made one of the most serious attempts in the 20th century. to convey to white Americans the wisdom born on this earth.

A strict analyst can detect in Castaneda many inconsistencies and collisions of textual and behavioral contexts, which gave rise to calling him a great mystifier. But isn't this the peculiarity of his creative method? Discrepancies and the play of sometimes contradictory concepts, ideas and images (spirituality and commerce, seriousness and hoax, scientific facts and fiction, etc.) give a powerful creative impetus. “Only by pushing two ideas against each other, you can, wagging between them, get into the real world,” Castaneda wrote.

The common man is too concerned with loving people and being loved. A warrior loves, that's all. He loves everyone he likes and everything he likes, but he uses his controlled stupidity to not worry about it. Which is the exact opposite of what the average person does. Loving people or being loved by them is far from all that is available to a person.
("A Separate Reality")

Castaneda Carlos

Don Juan's teachings have generated a mass of followers and fans, who often quite seriously try to master the methods and instructions of the Indian brujo. In the Soviet Union, Castaneda's works first appeared in samizdat in the 1980s and enjoyed great popularity. Since 1992, the Kiev publishing house "Sofia" has taken up the systematic publication of his legacy. Since 1992 Castaneda's works have been published 72 times in Russia and Ukraine.

As in other countries, in Russia the followers of Castaneda gather in societies, hold sessions, go to seminars of the “great Nagual” in America. Interest in the legacy of Castaneda, as a master of world significance, remains. Castaneda created works that represented a fusion of literary fiction with scientific research, characteristic of the 1960s and 1970s. The crisis of a society that drives its members into the framework of a consumer and programmed existence, disappointment in scientific and technological progress initiated the search for a new, true meaning of being.

In order to realize the reality familiar to another, it is first necessary to free oneself from one's own reality; but it is not at all easy for a person to get rid of the usual picture of the world, this habit must be broken by force.

The presence of a teacher or guide is not superfluous, but it is not absolutely necessary either. What is really needed is a daily effort to accumulate silence.

Carlos Castaneda is one of the most popular esoteric authors. His name evokes a picture in which a shaman sits near the fire and listens to wolf howl. The author's books are not clear to everyone, perhaps it is in this mystery and style of the author that all the charm is. Let us consider in more detail the biography of Carlos Castaneda.

Author identity

Who is Carlos Castaneda, fact or fiction? Wikipedia and other sources of information hint that he did exist in reality, only this reality was unusual for other people. The date of birth of the writer is unusual - it falls on Catholic Christmas. The future esoteric was born on December 25, 1925 in Peru. But, his biography was not without conflicting data.

Researchers of the biography of the writer and mystic say that the name Carlos Aranha is written in the documents, and the surname that brought him fame belongs to his mother. Carlos was known as a writer, he also had the fame of a researcher of Indian magic. In his books, he shared with readers about how to expand perception and about tools for understanding the Universe. Even the date of the mystic's death is a mystery. Officially, she is considered April 27, 1998, but the world learned about the loss only on June 18.

Childhood and youth

Like any hermit who came to esotericism, Carlos Castaneda had difficult fate. The author said that his parents were not poor, but very young. The father was 17 and the mother 15 when they had a little son. The boy was given to be raised by his aunt, but she died when he was six. Young Carlos was often punished for breaking school rules and getting into bad company. At the age of ten, the boy went on a journey, finishing it in a boarding school in Buenos Aires. When he was fifteen, he went to the family of foster parents who lived in San Francisco. The guy studied at Hollywood High School, and after graduation he moved to Milan. The young man became a student at the Brera Academy of Fine Arts, but did not discover the ability to draw and returned to California.

Carlos began to show interest in journalism, literature and psychology. For four years he went to City College, located in Los Angeles, and supported himself with hard work. One day he became an assistant to a psychoanalyst and had to arrange notes. Having received US citizenship, the young man became a student at the Faculty of Anthropology.

Time magazine insisted that the writer was born in northern Peru in the city of Cajamarcay. The publication also cites data according to which Castaneda was a student at the College of the Holy Virgin Mary, and then entered the National School of Fine Arts, located in Peru.

Creative activity of the writer

Castaneda wrote works on medicinal plants used by the tribes of North American Indians, and on one of his business trips he met Juan Mantus. The knowledge gained in the process of communicating with him, the author used in his books. Juan mastered shamanistic practices that the scientific world was not ready to accept. Castaneda had followers who continue to follow his ideas today. In the books, the author presented a new arrangement of the world, alien to Europeans. Don Juan's disciples lived by rules called the Way of War.

According to the shaman, people and all living things on earth perceive not objects, but energy signals. Taking them, the body and the brain create their own model of the world order. Any knowledge is limited, and it is impossible to know everything. A person perceives a tonal - a small part of all the information in space. The Nagual is the part that contains all parts of the life of the universe. A person focuses maximum attention, stopping the internal dialogue. In 1968 the book A Separate Reality was published. After the release of Journey to Ixtlan, Carlos' career took off. In twenty years he created eight books.

Later years and death

Carlos' attempts to comprehend magic removed him from society until the early nineties. He became a teacher at the University of California, later he began to give seminars on a paid basis. Shortly before his death, he published two works: Magical Passes and The Wheel of Time. The writer was killed by liver cancer, usually such a disease occurs in those who drink alcohol a lot.

"The Teachings of Don Juan" tells about the unexpected acquaintance of the author, an anthropology student, with don Juan. Castaneda shows interest in medicinal plants and does not yet suspect that this meeting will forever change his fate. After some time, don Juan decides to teach Carlos the secret knowledge he possessed.
Castaneda managed to collect extensive material from the stories of don Juan, but he understands that the only way to true knowledge is to experience everything yourself. Only this will lead him to acquiring the Force...

Separate Reality (1971)

The reality of Indian sorcerers and their allies is so dangerous for the ordinary system of perception that Castaneda, having created his first book, tries to forget about it forever. But the Force disposes differently - after 2 years he returns to start new stage his training with magicians. "A Separate Reality" is the author's account of an experience that he is not yet fully aware of and understands. It is not for nothing that many esotericists advise leaving reading this book to the end, but first getting acquainted with the main provisions of the teachings of don Juan ...

Journey to Ixtlan (1972)

After many years of training with the Indian magician don Juan and a thorough, in-depth knowledge of the essence of his teachings, the fate of the hero of the book changed. Now his vision and attitude to the world is completely different. Don Juan led his student to this moment for a long time and persistently, gradually forming in his mind the image of a new reality, which differs from the usual and traditional picture of the world. Having learned about all this, Carlos will have to take the last step - to leave the world ...

Tales of Power (1974)

Tales of Power is Castaneda's most incredible and fantastic book.
Readers will learn that the picture of the world familiar to us is only a small island in the endless world of magic - the nagual. In this book, Castaneda completes his account of his training with don Juan. To achieve a complete cycle, only an incomprehensible jump into the abyss remains. Carlos and two other students need to jump from the top of the mountain. On the same day, Master and Benefactor leave this world forever...

Second Ring of Power (1977)

He threw himself off a cliff into an abyss and survived. Castaneda decides to return to Mexico to find out if this fantastic jump was real. On the way, he meets several female magicians, students of don Juan, and it is at this moment that he discovers in himself an incredible ability to leave his body, turning into a powerful double. He understands that all the attacks on him were made by don Juan himself so that he could discover his abilities and realize himself in a different guise. As a result, Carlos is ready to take responsibility for the new batch of the Nagual...

Eagle's Gift (1981)

"The Gift of the Eagle" tells how the author decides to become the leader of a new detachment of magicians. But at first things go very badly. Students, one by one, experience strange memories of events that did not and could not occur in the world of habitual perception. Because of this, quarrels begin between Castaneda and his wards. La Gorda comes to his aid, thanks to which the Nagual remembers that due to the specific structure of his energy body, he is not capable of being their leader. As a result, the students leave him, and he, along with La Gorda, goes to Los Angeles ...

Fire from within (1984)

"Fire from within" tells about the new stage that Castaneda is going through. This time there is a complete revolution in his perception of don Juan's teachings. Through these experiences, the author can finally find his integrity. Don Juan also reappears in the book, and describes the interesting concept of "petty tyrants", which calls for viewing any negative life event as a means of learning and getting rid of self-importance ...

The Power of Silence (1987)

In his new work, The Power of Silence, the author continues to tell readers about the teachings of the famous don Juan. He will present a unique knowledge that was a glimpse that illuminated the deep recesses of the human mind. Magic is presented as the main need of the individual. After all, only non-standard methods and superpowers make it possible to know oneself and our world with its riddles and secrets. Castaneda presents a system that will allow a person to develop himself and realize himself in society ...

The Art of Dreaming (1994)

After a six-year silence, Castaneda presents his new work, The Art of Dreaming. This book again becomes a real revelation for readers. She reveals techniques by which dreams can be used to discover the world of the Spirit, as well as turn them into lucid dreams.
After studying this book, readers will be able to find out why the paths to other realities lie through lucid dreams and how great shamans and magicians have been actively using this for a long time...

Active Side of Infinity (1995)

The Active Side of Infinity - Book 10 famous writer 20th century.
This book includes not only memories of conversations with don Juan and magical practices, but also completely unique information - about the life and work of the author in Los Angeles - in completely non-magical conditions ...
In addition, the author will explain why we are not able to be the real ones that we are - powerful beings? Why did it happen? And can it be fixed?...

Wheel of Time (1998)

The Wheel of Time is a book by the immortal Carlos Castaneda, which differs significantly from his previous works in that it is a collection of the most striking quotes and sayings. The book contains all the magical wisdom of the shamans of ancient Mexico, which was studied through the magician don Juan. Thanks to the books of Castaneda, millions of people were able to change their understanding not only about the world, but also about their destiny...
"Wheel of Time" is a wonderful collection of quotes that carries a strong charge of something otherworldly that goes beyond the human consciousness...

Magic Passes (1998)

Magical Passes is the final book in the series by Carlos Castaneda, which was published in 1998. In his work, Carlos Castaneda describes the "tensegrity" system of energy exercises, which he learned from Don Juan Matus. These magical passes and exercises are performed to achieve a state of physical and mental well-being.
The book is divided into 3 parts. In the first part, the author talks about the origin and purpose of the magical passes. The second tells about the system of exercises tensegrity. The third, most informative, part includes a detailed description of the technique for performing 6 series of tensegrity.