Don Juan Matus

The Active Side of Infinity – Beyond Syntax: The Usher

Ancient Cycle, Authors, Carlos Castaneda, The Active side of Infinity / By / 31 minutes of reading

In this chapter, don Juan introduces Castaneda to the sorcery technique of “the recapitulation”—a formal, meticulous recounting of one’s entire life in order to create a “space” for new knowledge. He explains the sorcerers’ view of the universe, where perception is assembled at the “assemblage point” as energy filaments from the “dark sea of awareness” are interpreted. The goal of the recapitulation is to offer one’s life experiences back to this cosmic awareness at the moment of death, thus saving one’s life force. To begin this process, don Juan tells Castaneda he must first find an “usher,” a single, powerfully clear memory that will illuminate all others. Left to the task, Castaneda vividly recalls a formative event from his childhood: being a billiards prodigy secretly employed by a notorious gambler, Falelo Quiroga. This arrangement culminates in Quiroga threateningly demanding that Castaneda throw a high-stakes game. Before Castaneda is forced to choose, his family moves away, leaving the dilemma unresolved. Don Juan explains this memory is the perfect usher, as it encapsulates the central, unresolved conflict of Castaneda’s life: being trapped between the desire to embrace infinity and the simultaneous urge to run away from it.

The Active Side of Infinity – Beyond Syntax: The Usher Read More »

The Active Side of Infinity – The Interplay of Energy On The Horizon

Ancient Cycle, Authors, Carlos Castaneda, The Active side of Infinity / By / 28 minutes of reading

In this final chapter, Castaneda describes the culmination of his recapitulation. The initial “usher” memory has unlocked an unstoppable and maddeningly clear flow of recollections, each one relived with an intensity greater than the original experience. He recounts traumatic memories of a near-fatal fall from a scaffold and a terrifying encounter with a dog, realizing he was literally re-experiencing them and “jumping” through time. Don Juan explains this is his “true mind” emerging and that a “foreign installation” is collapsing, a process that pulls sorcerers “out of their syntax.” Later, a series of vivid recollections reveals Castaneda’s deeply ingrained, lifelong need to control everyone around him. One night, this process climaxes as he experiences the “interplay of energy on the horizon” that don Juan had described: a pomegranate-red dot explodes into unreadable text and garbled voices. Don Juan confirms this was infinity’s “takeover” and tells him he must now learn to “read energy” directly, a perception that is an event “beyond the syntax of our language.”

The Active Side of Infinity – The Interplay of Energy On The Horizon Read More »

The Active Side of Infinity – Journeys Through the Dark Sea Of Awareness

Ancient Cycle, Authors, Carlos Castaneda, The Active side of Infinity / By / 19 minutes of reading

In this chapter, don Juan clarifies that Castaneda’s previous “dream-fantasy” of meeting him in town was, in sorcery terms, a real “journey through the dark sea of awareness,” made possible by his accrued inner silence. He distinguishes this from “dreaming,” which he redefines as the art of deliberately displacing the assemblage point to perceive other worlds. After Castaneda recounts a memory of “seeing” a sleeping person’s assemblage point shift, don Juan prompts him to undertake a deliberate journey. From a state of inner silence, Castaneda finds himself transported with don Juan to a hostile Yaqui town where he can suddenly understand their language, not word by word, but in patterns of thought. He then finds himself in another town, where he perceives people not as luminous eggs, but as strange, insectlike cores of geometric shapes with a stringlike filament on top. After these inexplicable journeys, don Juan explains that this is what inner silence does: it breaks the continuity of time and allows one to travel through the dark sea of awareness, guided by the force of intent.

The Active Side of Infinity – Journeys Through the Dark Sea Of Awareness Read More »

The Active Side of Infinity – Inorganic Awareness

Ancient Cycle, Authors, Carlos Castaneda, The Active side of Infinity / By / 21 minutes of reading

In this chapter, don Juan reveals that he is the leader of a group of fifteen sorcerers and did not actually live in the shack where they first met. He then introduces Castaneda to the concept of “inorganic awareness.” He explains that our world is a twin world, coexisting with a complementary world populated by “inorganic beings”—entities that possess awareness but no organism. He further classifies these beings, distinguishing between the “first cousins” from our twin world and the “scouts” or “explorers” from the depths of the universe, some of whom sorcerers call “allies.” To give Castaneda a direct experience, don Juan guides him on another journey from inner silence. In the Sonoran desert, Castaneda meets two beings who identify themselves as his allies. By staring at them, he is able to see past their humanlike appearance to their true form: vibrating, shapeless blobs of luminosity. Don Juan explains this is seeing energy directly, and that our normal cognition limits our perception by interpreting everything. He instructs Castaneda to henceforth gaze at any apparition with an inflexible attitude to see its true energetic nature.

The Active Side of Infinity – Inorganic Awareness Read More »

Author’s Note – The Art of Dreaming

Ancient Cycle, Authors, Carlos Castaneda, The Art of Dreaming / By / 8 minutes of reading

In this introductory note, Carlos Castaneda clarifies his use of the term “sorcery” to describe the teachings of his mentor, don Juan Matus, distinguishing it from conventional definitions. He explains that for don Juan, sorcery is about manipulating perception to access other real worlds, a practice called “the art of dreaming.” Castaneda recounts his own experiences learning this art, his interactions with two distinct groups of apprentices, and the challenges of reconciling his experiences in the “second attention” with everyday reality. He states that the purpose of this book is to rearrange and present don Juan’s lessons on dreaming in a linear fashion, made possible by years of dedicated practice, and to ultimately explain the legacy don Juan left to his final students as an act of gratitude.

Author’s Note – The Art of Dreaming Read More »

Journal of Applied Hermeneutics – Queries about the Warriors’ Way: What is the point of doing all those Practices?

A Journal of Applied Hermeneutics, Ancient Cycle, Authors, Carlos Castaneda, Nagualism, Warrior Path, Way of the Warrior / By / 4 minutes of reading

In this section, Castaneda addresses two common questions. The first concerns when a practitioner will achieve “seeing,” the direct perception of energy. He explains that while practices are important, the crucial element is to “intend” the outcome—the state sorcerers call “stopping the world,” which is achieved by obliterating self-importance. The second question is about fear over strange physical sensations during Tensegrity. Castaneda recounts how don Juan Matus explained such feelings not as external manipulation, but as natural physiological responses or a product of one’s own victim mentality. Don Juan’s advice was to counter fear by being “impeccable”.

Journal of Applied Hermeneutics – Queries about the Warriors’ Way: What is the point of doing all those Practices? Read More »

The Teachings of Don Juan: The Four Natural Enemies on the Path of Knowledge

Ancient Cycle, Authors, Carlos Castaneda, Nagualism, Stalking, The Teachings of Don Juan / By / 10 minutes of reading

Carlos Castaneda presses don Juan to reveal the nature of the “man of knowledge” and the formidable obstacles on the path. Don Juan explains that a man of knowledge is someone who has faithfully navigated the difficulties of learning by confronting and overcoming four natural enemies: Fear, Clarity, Power and Old age.

The Teachings of Don Juan: The Four Natural Enemies on the Path of Knowledge Read More »

The Author’s Commentaries on the Occasion of the Thirtieth Year of Publication of The Teachings of Don Juan: A Yaqui Way of Knowledge

Ancient Cycle, Authors, Carlos Castaneda, The Teachings of Don Juan / By / 18 minutes of reading

In this commentary, Carlos Castaneda reflects on the thirtieth anniversary of his book, “The Teachings of Don Juan: A Yaqui Way of Knowledge.” He discusses the initial challenges of his anthropological fieldwork with the Yaqui shaman Don Juan Matus, highlighting the support of Dr. Clement Meighan and Professor Harold Garfinkel, whose influences shaped his deep immersion into the study of shamanistic cognition. Castaneda explains that his work evolved from mere data collection to internalizing the shamans’ unique perception of reality, which centers on energetic facts like “seeing” energy directly and the concept of the assemblage point. He elaborates on the shamans’ understanding of the cosmos, awareness, and the “definitive journey” beyond death, presenting these insights as a “cognitive revolution” offered by Don Juan.

The Author’s Commentaries on the Occasion of the Thirtieth Year of Publication of The Teachings of Don Juan: A Yaqui Way of Knowledge Read More »

Journal of Applied Hermeneutics – What is Hermeneutics?

A Journal of Applied Hermeneutics, Ancient Cycle, Authors, Carlos Castaneda / By / 1 minute of reading

In this section, Castaneda introduces the concept of hermeneutics, tracing its evolution from a method for interpreting sacred texts to a broader philosophical discipline concerned with interpreting the world. He then states the purpose of the journal: to apply these principles to the teachings of don Juan Matus, a Yaqui sorcerer. Castaneda’s aim is to focus on the practical application of don Juan’s interpretive framework, hence the name “applied hermeneutics,” which emphasizes a sorcerer’s practicality over abstract philosophical reflection.

Journal of Applied Hermeneutics – What is Hermeneutics? Read More »

Translate »