Just as in the education of children, where their parents teach them the meaning of things, it is also necessary for the teacher to teach the student their purpose. This can be the biggest challenge for those starting out, as […]
The path of knowledge with or without a guide or teacher Read More »
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.
A complete tonal is one that can maintain its attention on its entire island. But as long as there is an obsessive aversion or an exclusive focus on one or more items on the island, the tonal‘s attention becomes fragmented,
In spite of the amazing maneuvers that Don Juan performed with my awareness, over the years I stubbornly insisted on trying to intellectually evaluate what he did. Although I have written at length about these maneuvers, it has always been
The Eagle’s Gift – The Six Explanatory Propositions Read More »
In this log, Castaneda defines a “warrior guardian” as don Juan Matus’s term for a sorcerer—someone capable of interrupting their normal system of interpretation. He explains that the group known as the Chacmools was dissolved according to the dictates of energy, a force a warrior must obey. A new group selected by energy, the Energy Trackers, has replaced them. Castaneda relays don Juan’s explanation of energy tracking as following the trail of energy’s flow, which is experienced as a physical feeling rather than a visual sight. This new group naturally formed and developed this capacity, allowing energy to reveal itself to them.
Journal of Applied Hermeneutics – What are Warrior Guardians? Read More »
In this author’s note, Castaneda reaffirms the journal’s goal: to disseminate the ideas from don Juan Matus’s cognitive world. He recounts his early, unsuccessful attempts to publish the work, which was rejected for not fitting conventional formats. He then announces a significant change: the journal’s name is changed from “The Warriors’ Way” to “READERS OF INFINITY”. This new title is inspired by don Juan’s concept of “reading infinity,” a state of perception achieved through “inner silence” where a seer can read the infinity that reveals itself on the horizon. The journal is presented as an invitation for everyone to take up this challenge.
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Castaneda explores the philosophical method of Phenomenology, as developed by Edmund Husserl. He explains its core concepts, particularly the “epoché” or the “suspension of judgment,” a reduction intended to get back to the origin of experience. However, Castaneda argues from his experience with don Juan Matus that this suspension of judgment is impossible to achieve as a purely intellectual exercise. For sorcerers, suspending their interpretation system is not a philosophical choice but a practical necessity for survival required to perceive the unknown. He therefore proposes to correlate the intellectual propositions of Western philosophy with the pragmatic accomplishments of sorcerers.
Journal of Applied Hermeneutics – What is Phenomenology? Read More »
Castaneda presents the third premise of the warriors’ way: “Perception Must Be Intended In Its Completeness”. He relays that don Juan Matus taught that all perception is inherently neutral, and must be accepted without judgment. Don Juan distinguished his teachings as entries from a “book of navigation” detailing sorcerers’ direct perceptions. The key to this premise is reinterpreting energy without the mind, an act requiring the whole being. This complete interpretation is achieved through the union of the physical body and the “energy body”. Therefore, intending perception in its completeness means reinterpreting energy with both of these essential parts of oneself fully engaged.
In this entry, Castaneda explores a concept from ancient sorcerers: a vibratory, “agglutinating force” that holds humans together as a unit of energy fields. Don Juan taught that practicing the magical passes is the key to becoming conscious of this force. Castaneda recounts that while ancient sorcerers learned to use this force to dissolve their physical mass, they became obsessed with controlling it after finding they could not act in that state. He explains that modern practitioners, in contrast, seek only to become aware of this force for the sake of knowledge and well-being. According to don Juan, its only permissible use is for a sorcerer to employ it to burn from within at the moment of death.
Journal of Applied Hermeneutics – The Force that Holds Us Together as Fields of Energy Read More »
Castaneda proposes a new area for philosophical inquiry based on two core concepts from ancient Mexican sorcerers: “seeing” and “intent”. He defines “seeing” as the human capacity to directly perceive energy as it flows in the universe, using the entire organism. “Intent” is described as a conscious, universal force that sorcerers can engage with through the act of “intending”. Castaneda argues that the direct perception of energy can create a new form of subjectivity, free from the limits of language, allowing for a pragmatic and active intentionality that could transform philosophy into a practical discipline.
Journal of Applied Hermeneutics – A New Area for Philosophical Inquiry Read More »
