Castaneda/ finding your pace

[manitou]

Well, although apparently I took the wrong path, I'm pretty happy with my current state of understanding. Have at it, guys. But whatever you do, don't take the word of someone who has walked that path for years and come to the place of transcension.

[xor]

Yes that does seem pretty damning about the man himself. Sometimes the teacher can tap into things in you that he doesn't even have himself especially if he's studied many traditions. There are some things that just work despite where you got them. Even fiction. Some people dismiss their experiences and what they've learned when they realize their teacher was not what they thought. I think that's a worse mistake than following the fake...

[Maddie]

Well, although apparently I took the wrong path, I'm pretty happy with my current state of understanding. Have at it, guys. But whatever you do, don't take the word of someone who has walked that path for years and come to the place of transcension.

 

You know just recently I'd been pondering my own bad church / cult experience in a sightly new light. For years after I left I would shake my head and think about how much time I had wasted. But I delve deeper into Buddhism I realize that it wasn't all wasted time. The long hours of meditation now had a foundation laid for them by the long hours of praying then. The mindfulness I do now is very similar to the introspection I did then. Perhaps even some of the merit that led me to a better understanding was earned by the much giving of time and money to help others while in the church.

 

Yea the leader was and is a narcissist but karma will give him his due, but at least I got training when I was young in a type of dedication that most people in the west never know.

[Jetsun]

Even if Castaneda was a fraud there is some sort of power or level of truth in those books, which is why they have been so influential to so many thousands of people.

[manitou]

Mr. Castaneda was merely the messenger. The transfer of information is between the reader and don Juan Mateus, the nagual. If every master was judged by his subsequent students, I'm afraid we wouldn't have many masters left.

[xor]

So does anyone have contact with actual Toltecs? To hear them speak of their own tradition(or even related tribes) first would be what I'd like to do before judging. I've come across two rather interesting ideas from friends who liked CC:

 

- That there was no physical Don Juan but that he channeled a real being who is the source of his books.

- The other person's view is that he practiced methods himself that he borrowed from people like Gurdjieff and mixed them into what he'd read on anthropology and Don Juan is just a literary creation.

 

Not saying I believe in either of these... I actually learned today that the other person had an interest in CC and had read the books after I mentioned some ideas we've talked about here. I had no idea. It's interesting how far and wide his influence has been despite his person being what it is.

[manitou]

So does anyone have contact with actual Toltecs? To hear them speak of their own tradition(or even related tribes) first would be what I'd like to do before judging. I've come across two rather interesting ideas from friends who liked CC:

 

- That there was no physical Don Juan but that he channeled a real being who is the source of his books.

- The other person's view is that he practiced methods himself that he borrowed from people like Gurdjieff and mixed them into what he'd read on anthropology and Don Juan is just a literary creation.

 

Not saying I believe in either of these... I actually learned today that the other person had an interest in CC and had read the books after I mentioned some ideas we've talked about here. I had no idea. It's interesting how far and wide his influence has been despite his person being what it is.

 

 

Don't know the answer to the Toltec question - it's a tradition, that's been handed down, as in China, India, etc.

 

One who has walked the path often finds that things in the books start happening to them. It's crazy and magic at the same time. That was our experience some years ago. The knowledge has continued within my husband and I. Please don't feel that you have to make a judgment on Mr.Castaneda's work by speaking to others. If you are fearful about something, then the books are not for you. There is no one in the world that can convince me that there is 'nothing' to Castaneda's works. I've been there, done that, and it is an incredible journey which still continues.

 

Best wishes to you -

[xor]

By judging I mean if it holds something for me, blocking someone's path by judging theirs is not something I would do. I'm thankful for the conversation.