What is castaneda? Encyclopedia of modern esotericism

First of all, this article is addressed to those who have already read Castaneda and have at least a general idea of ​​who he is and what his books are about. But in all the main positions, a parallel can be drawn with any other system of spiritual search that may be familiar to you.

For those who are not in the know. Castaneda is either an American writer, or an anthropologist, or a mystic. He became famous for writing a series of book reports about his training with the Indian shaman Don Juan, whose real existence, however, remains in question. General information can be gleaned from Wikipedia - there is enough there. Let's get to the heart of the matter.

The main criticism fell on Castaneda because of his first two books, where more attention is paid to magical practices associated with the use of various natural hallucinogens. And although Castaneda did not mean any drug propaganda, it so happened that the first books were perceived by many as a call to lick stamps, chew cacti and smoke weed.

But starting from the third book, Castaneda himself admits that he made a mistake by placing the emphasis incorrectly, and now he is telling the same story again, but in a completely different way. It is with the third book that Castaneda begins, who truly changed the course of many personal stories.

On this topic, we close the topic of the “narcotic” danger of Castaneda’s books as banal and boring, and move on to their psychological impact, which is much more interesting.

Don Carlos

The concept proposed by Castaneda describes in great detail the path of preparing a student from his complete social unconsciousness to a state of enlightenment. There is everything there: from solving basic socio-psychological problems that our usual psychology deals with, to technology for achieving fundamentally different and higher states of consciousness, which are usually dealt with by spiritual teachings.

The difficulty in understanding Castaneda’s books lies in the fact that these books are fiction, and as such, they do not have as their direct goal a coherent presentation of the esoteric system of knowledge. And although Castaneda tries several times to sort everything into pieces, the complete system can be restored only after repeated reading and comprehension.

But an excellent literary setting in itself has a powerful influence - it acts as a trap for the mind, forcing it, in pursuit of the plot, to plunge deeper and deeper into the magical world. And the format of diary entries gives the story an almost tangible realism and invites the reader to enter the door that is slightly open in front of him.

Whatever you say, Castaneda is an excellent writer who knows how to captivate the reader with him, tear him off the ground, from his usual mental constructs and throw him into a completely different world - mysterious, frightening, unpredictable, but fabulously alluring.

The main outline of the story unfolds around the Path of the Warrior - a special worldview and corresponding way of life, which gradually transforms an ordinary social person into a real sage, a Man of Knowledge. Both of these concepts are conditional, since no special militancy and no specific secret knowledge is implied here. These are just images that well convey the harsh spirit of confronting one's own demons.

In other traditions, the Path of the Warrior correlates with the system of practices necessary to purify and prepare the consciousness for future transformation, and the enlightenment that comes when the consciousness is finally ready for this corresponds to the status of the Man of Knowledge. As don Juan says, “When you become a man of knowledge, the path of the warrior ends.”

Thus, the Path of the Warrior is a kind of bridge from a socially conditioned state of consciousness, to a state beyond any conventions, to complete Freedom, which is the final goal of any Path.

The principles of the Way of the Warrior, without any contradictions, include all modern psychology, and even beyond that, they go far beyond its scope. Whether Castaneda drew inspiration from existing teachings or created something of his own is also not so important. Even if this is just a talented compilation, this does not detract from its value.

Castaneda's language is simple and biting, it knocks you off your feet, leaving no chance for the reader to escape the truth about himself. And with the expressive clarity of his formulations and the razor sharpness of his observations, Castaneda easily outshines all academic psychologists who are forced, for reasons of political correctness, to beat around the bush. Castaneda has a talent for calling a spade a spade, and any psychologist should learn this from him.

It is pointless to describe the theoretical basis and practical side of the Warrior’s Path here - thoughtful researchers fill entire volumes on this subject. If there is such interest, it will be possible to continue this topic in other articles, so write interested comments. For now we move on.

Wasted on soap

The first, most common and most unhealthy reason is the self-deception of a loser. Since nothing works out, I’ll join the warriors. Such people form the main backbone of any mystical movement. They are attracted by the opportunity to strike a pose and demonstrate their sublime uniqueness to everyone around them. Some people then go through this stage and move on, while others get stuck in it until the very end.

The second reason is a kind of spiritual nonconformism, the romance of searching or an escape from boredom. For these people, the Way of the Warrior becomes a hobby - an unusual entertainment to which they can devote some free time, and then brag to their friends about their discoveries. Again, some of them move on, but most simply find something else to do.

The third group is the smallest - those whom life itself presented with a choice, those whose survival was on the brink, and the Path of the Warrior became the only possible way out of the situation. There are few such people. Sometimes they meet their don Juan, as was the case with Castaneda (by the way, he was then on the verge of suicide), sometimes they find their way by touch, sometimes they find their teacher inside, as was the case with Jung.

One way or another, no one will leave their home of their own free will.

Only a leaky pot can try to become a man of knowledge of his own free will. A sober-minded person must be drawn onto the path by cunning. There will be a lot of people who will happily want to learn, but these don’t count. Usually they are already cracked. Like a dry pumpkin bottle that looks fine, but starts leaking the minute you pour water into it and pressure builds up.

DH

Only coercion makes nature move, including human nature. Nothing changes without need, least of all the human personality. It is monstrously conservative, if not inert. Only dire need can scare her away. Likewise, the development of personality obeys neither desire, nor order, nor intention, but only necessity: the personality needs motivating coercion from destinies, coming from within or coming from without.

Otherwise, unless there is a complete renunciation of all values, a person finds himself crucified on the cross of contradictory principles. Belief in the righteousness of the Warrior's Path no longer allows one to enjoy ordinary social games, and suppressed, but not discarded, social interests do not allow one to devote oneself entirely to the warrior way of life.

A monstrous internal conflict arises, from which a person becomes doubly unsure of himself: now he is both a worthless member of society and a lousy warrior - neither this nor that. And this makes my soul feel very heavy.

The Warrior's Path is just a wedge that is needed to knock out another wedge. No more. Ultimately, what matters is being true to yourself, not to this or that lifestyle. The value system of the Warrior's Path is important as a fulcrum that can be used to turn the world of your usual views upside down. Making a religion out of it is extremely dangerous.

Superpowers instead of enlightenment

The world of magicians described by Castaneda with their abilities to turn into animals, instantly move in space and be in two places at the same time - these are just flowers by the road. The essence of the Warrior's Path is not to develop these skills, and real progress along the path does not depend on them in any way. When a tree is cut down, the chips fly, but not the other way around.

Those who are most fascinated by superpowers are precisely those losers who were unable to establish themselves in social life, and now want to wipe everyone’s noses with their magic tricks. Sometimes they succeed, but psychologically they remain naive little people with exorbitant ambitions.

Castaneda repeatedly draws attention to the fact that the ultimate goal of the path is Freedom, and first of all, it is freedom from the need for self-affirmation, consolation, and recognition. A sense of self-importance is a very heavy burden. You can become a real magician, but still remain a complete nonentity.

And look at what the forums of Castaneda lovers are filled with - nothing but narcissism and the pursuit of special effects. As the Hindus predict, in the era of Kali Yuga, cheap, demonstrative esotericism becomes very popular.

The real Way of the Warrior is completely simple-minded - there is nothing to brag about and no one to brag about. No roof over your head, no solid ground under your feet - just complete uncertainty and complete loneliness. “A warrior has no honor, no dignity, no family, no name, no homeland, there is only a life that needs to be lived” - who needs such a journey?

An action of personal development is, in the eyes of an outsider, an unpopular undertaking, an unpleasant deviation from the straight path, a solitary originality. Therefore, it is not surprising that for a long time only a few have thought of such a strange adventure. If they were all fools, then we would have the right to exclude them from the sight of our interest as spiritual "private individuals." Unfortunately, however, the individuals are, as a rule, the legendary heroes of mankind, those who inspire admiration, love and worship, the true children of God, whose names “will not pass away through the aeons.” They are the true flower and fruit, the seeds that give birth to the tree of the human race.

K. G. Jung

Cult of the Absent Person

The respected Russian Orthodox Church, in its book on (popular) sect studies, lists several organizations operating in this direction, including in Russia.

This curious document names Castaneda as the founder of the sect, but directs the main criticism not at the essence of the teaching, but at the activities of these very centers, groups and societies of witnesses of Castaneda’s followers.

But the danger is not that, hypothetically, one can fall under the influence of these would-be sectarians from Castaneda, but in the very desire to find a spiritual refuge for oneself, a circle of like-minded accomplices.

Sooner or later, various kinds of parties begin to arise around any significant teaching. People communicate with each other, share experiences, discoveries and experiences, and at some stage such mutual exchange may well contribute to real development. But if you stay inside such a party longer than necessary, it quickly ceases to be a help and becomes an obstacle to further development.

In the case of Castaneda’s teaching, everything is further complicated by the fact that it itself implies the creation of its own group. Don Juan had a group of magicians, Castaneda also had one, so readers believe that they urgently need to look for a group or put together their own.

The same applies to the search for your personal Don Juan. It is mentioned several times in the books that only a teacher can show a student the "dark side of the force." And so followers of Castaneda from all over the world go to Sonora, collect crystals, look for Mescalito, wander through the desert with their eyes in a bunch, and pester old Indians in shabby hats. And others, for whom such an active search is neither affordable nor in their spirit, sigh and give up any search altogether - if don Juan is not at hand, then they will have to live an ordinary life.

However, the real search always takes place alone, alone with oneself, and the further you go, the deeper inner solitude it requires. A teacher, guru or benefactor, even with all their desire, will not turn a student into a Man of Knowledge. They can suggest, push, set an example, but the student can only cultivate a new personality within himself. Only he himself is responsible for the results of his search.

Don Juan says: “Trust in your personal strength, this alone will be enough to walk your path.” “But am I chosen for this path?” – the student doubts. And there is only one answer: the degree of one’s own chosenness can only be determined by the student himself, having entered the path and walked along it.

Personal development means loyalty to one's own law. To convey the word “faithfulness,” it seems to me that the most applicable Greek word from the New Testament, which, due to a misunderstanding, was translated as “faith.” However, it, strictly speaking, means trust, trusting loyalty. Loyalty to one's own law is trust in this law, loyal waiting and trusting hope, and at the same time - an attitude similar to the one that a believer should have in relation to God.

K. G. Jung

And still…

One might assume that this turn of events was related to the need for money, but this also does not seem convincing, since the royalties for books constantly reprinted around the world must have been fabulous. Maybe he was confusing some traces, maybe he was busy doing nothing, or maybe he finally moved on from his experiments.

There is a lot of controversy about Castaneda's real personality, what he really was like and how much he lived up to the ideals of the Way of the Warrior. There are all sorts of stories floating around – whether to believe them or not, let everyone decide for themselves.

Also, the gossip about whether Don Juan was a real person or just a collective image does not stop and will probably never stop. Castaneda stuck to his legend to the very end and claimed that don Juan and his line of sorcerers really existed, and he actually received training from them.

Whether Castaneda achieved his ultimate goal is also in question. The obituary says Castaneda died of liver cancer in 1998. There is a scan of the official death certificate of a certain Carlos Castaneda on the Internet, but for “believers in Castaneda” there is always hope that Don Carlos is still roaming the earth somewhere, and if not, it is not because he was killed by the disease of mere mortals , but because his time had come and, as befits a true Man of Knowledge, he was burned with fire from the inside.

And still… For many people, the books of Carlos Castaneda turned out to be that cubic centimeter of chance that opens the path to real Freedom. The stern masculine spirit of his tales about the Force is exactly what is so lacking in modern culture, drowning in infantile, boneless femininity.

The Warrior's Path is a mortal battle for one's own freedom, a fight with one's fears and demons, in which it is not yet known who will win. Castaneda does not talk about divine love and forgiveness; he is merciless in his judgments. Society is mired in self-pity, people are weak and stupid, but everyone has a chance to pull themselves out of this slumber.

Let’s end with another quote from the Swiss Don Carlos, who shared and preached the same values.

What prompts a person to choose his own path and thus break out, as if from a veil of fog, from an unconscious identity with the mass? It cannot be a need, because need comes to everyone, and everyone is saved by conventions. It cannot be a moral choice either, because people tend to choose conventions. What then inexorably inclines the choice in favor of the extraordinary?

This is what is called destiny; some irrational factor that fatally pushes towards emancipation from the herd with its beaten paths. A true personality always has a purpose and believes in it; has a pistis towards him, as towards a god, although this is - as an ordinary person would probably say - just a sense of individual destiny. This destiny operates, however, as a divine law from which it is impossible to evade. The fact that so many die on their own path means nothing to someone who has a destiny. He must obey his own law, as if it were a demon who was seducing him in new, strange ways. He who has a destiny, who hears the voice of the depths, is doomed.

K. G. Jung

If you still think that this was a criticism of Castaneda, I sincerely congratulate you - you have not understood anything! Throw all prejudices out of your head and re-read it again. If the article was called “What is dangerous about a scalpel” and talked about how easy it is to cut yourself with it due to your stupidity, would you also perceive it as a criticism of the scalpel?

The article is not about Castaneda being bad in any way. Like any tool, it has strengths and weaknesses. But the article is not about that either - it is about the problems that superficial familiarity and irresponsible use of any tool lead to.

Name: Carlos Castaneda

Age: 72 years old

Place of Birth: Sao Paulo, Peru

A place of death: Los Angeles, California, USA

Activity: Doctor of Philosophy in Anthropology

Family status: was married

Carlos Castaneda - biography

Writer, spirit seer, scientist, charlatan, businessman... All this can be said about Carlos Castaneda, and all this will be true. However, not all of them.

Very little is known about his life, and what is known is unreliable. After all, his teaching includes “erasing memory”: a warrior must tell as little truth about himself as possible. Therefore, the biography of the “great liar and faithful friend” (as Castaneda was called by his acquaintance Jose Bracamonte) is very contradictory. Even many of “his” photographs depict a namesake who has nothing to do with Carlos. The story below is disparate pieces of a mosaic assembled into a single picture. But who can guarantee that they cannot be folded differently?..

Carlos Castaneda - Misty Beginnings

Don Juan Matus: “All paths are the same: they lead to nowhere.”

The place and time of Castaneda's birth are lost in the fog. He was born in Peru, Brazil or Argentina, and his date of birth floats between 1925 and 1946. His father was a successful businessman, his mother died early. The greatest joy in the life of little Carlos was the whimsical stories of his Italian grandfather. Perhaps it was these wonderful stories that determined the fate of the mystical writer. Decades later, in one of his books, he will say goodbye to the spirit of his beloved relative...

Having matured, the young man went to study in the USA. According to the “official” version, he was 15 years old at the time, but skeptics move the event forward ten years and hint at a scandal with an illegitimate child that forced him to flee. Abroad, the young man plunged headlong into science.

His range of interests is unusually wide - philosophy, psychology, art. He published several of his poems in magazines and painted commissioned paintings to earn money. He married Margaret Runyan and had a son. Tens of years later, Margaret will publish the first biography of Castaneda, but he himself will deny the fact of his marriage to her.

Teachings of Don Juan

Don Juan Matus: “And I realized that the life I was leading was not worth living. So I changed it."

The turning point was Castaneda's field practice at the California Institute. While studying shamanic rituals, the young scientist met an Indian from the Yaqui tribe - brujo (sorcerer) Juan Matus. The old man invited Carlos to his hut; thus began the story that would later become Castaneda's first book. Trying to remain an outside observer, the anthropologist became increasingly drawn into don Juan's teachings. The consciousness of Western man rejected mysticism, and to “expand” it, the brujo disciple used peyote, a type of cactus containing the hallucinogen mescaline.

Castaneda always insisted on the reality of the events described in his books - they say, a European would not have been able to come up with such a character as don Juan. Skeptics found in them inconsistencies with known anthropological facts about the Indians. The author himself only added to the fog by making contradictory statements. Whether the old brujo actually existed or not, don Juan became the literary alter ego of Carlos Castaneda.

By 1965, due to financial problems, Castaneda had to leave his studies. Then he took up the field notes collected for his thesis. They turned into a novel. But only three years later, after many corrections, it was published by the university. And immediately - a huge success. New editions were already published in the most prestigious publishing houses in the United States. Fame came to the poor scientist - letters from fans, meetings organized by literary agents...

The latter turned out to be a shock for fans. Those who read “The Doors of Perception” by Huxley and the hippies who idolized Timothy Leary expected to see an author appropriate to their circle: bare feet, a mop of hair, a hazy gaze... Instead, what appeared before them was a squat and stiff-necked scientist in a strict gray suit.

Soon two more books were published: “A Separate Reality” and “Journey to Ixtlan.” The latter is based on a dissertation that in 1973 earned Castaneda a degree in anthropology. The criticism continued, but it became increasingly difficult to hear: the popularity of Na-Gwalism, the mystical teaching of don Juan, grew. And then Castaneda made one of those sharp turns with which his life was so rich: he retired forever from scientific activity.

Nagual Don Carlos

Don Juan Ma-tus: “Don't explain too much. Every explanation hides an apology."

Not far from Los Angeles, Castaneda purchased a mansion, which became his permanent residence. Many women appeared in his life. The first of them were former students of Don Juan, “who burned in an internal flame,” about whom Carlos claimed that he did not die, but moved to another level of existence. Now Castaneda himself has become the leader of the “party of nagual warriors,” the “Toltecs” - magicians whose traditions supposedly come from ancient Indian sages. New members were also accepted into the community: there was no shortage of volunteers. Following the example of their teacher, they “erased their biography” - changed their names, broke off relations with their families.

No one knows exactly what happened behind the walls of his house. One of the mystic’s wards, Emma Wallace, would later write the book “The Magician’s Apprentice. My life with Carlos Castaneda." In it, she describes life in a community of sorcerers as something between a totalitarian sect, a harem and a psychoanalysis group. However, the growing rumors only increased interest in Castaneda. It was during the years of “recluse” that a real cult developed around him. Sean Connery and Clint Eastwood sought meetings with him.

Federico Fellini himself was inspired by the idea of ​​adapting Journey to Ixtlan, but Don Carlos refused to even meet with the great director.

Fire from within

Don Juan Matus: “Death is a challenge for us. We are all born to take on this challenge."

The decline in popularity occurred gradually, with the general fading of the “flower children” counterculture. Castaneda continued to release one book after another, but they no longer caused a stir. The flow of criticism also diminished - a bad sign... The quiet period ended in 1992 - and very loudly: Castaneda announced the creation of the Cleargreen corporation. Now his goal was to teach magical passes to as many people as possible. Of course, not for free. Even the terminology has changed - “magic” has become “shamanism”.

A series of seminars, lectures, and trainings were launched. Business was going well: the company was quickly gaining capital, and the world was talking about Castaneda again. From now on, the public associated him not with hippies, but with the quasi-religious movement “New Age” (“New Era”), which was completely built into the system. Some were perplexed: why did sacred practices turn into a commodity? Castaneda reassured: they say, this is what Don Juan, “resurrected” once again, wanted.

According to nagualism, the magician at the end of his life must be “burned by fire from within” in order to be reborn in the transcendental world. In Tales of Power, Don Juan jumps into the abyss and never returns. Castaneda doubted that he would be able to follow the path of his teacher: he was seriously ill a lot. Among the members of his group, there was increasingly talk of ritual suicide...

On April 27, 1998, Carlos Castaneda died of stomach cancer and his body was cremated. In his will, he left all of Cleargreen's assets to the name of the corporation. After some time, its leadership made a statement that Castaneda did not die, but moved into a different energy state. Casta Neda Jr. filed a lawsuit for forgery of the will - unsuccessfully. The path of the magician ended in completely earthly strife.

Immediately after Don Carlos, the women from his “nagual group” disappeared without a trace. In 2003, human remains gnawed by animals were found in the Mexican desert. DNA testing showed that one of the dead was a student of Castaneda.

The first full biography of Carlos Castaneda

The True Story of the Glowing Egg

Castaneda's books, written in the form of a scrupulous account of his magical adventures, already seem like a gigantic autobiography. The autobiography is all the more plausible because the author, on the one hand, never tires of being amazed at the improbability of what he describes as personal experience, and on the other hand, insists on belonging to the scientific circle of anthropologists who are able to keep a field diary, even while shitting their pants out of fear.

And yet: who is he, what is known about him, besides the information that Castaneda and his entourage found it necessary to communicate to the public? And what is the degree of truthfulness of the information they provided? These questions are by no means idle. The obituaries published by the world press in 1998 in connection with the death of the author of “The Teachings of Don Juan,” “Journey to Ixtlan,” “Tales of Power” and other bestsellers about the secret teachings of the Mexican Indians are not very accurate. The photo is fake, the year and place of birth are distorted, the real name is inaccurate. The machine of erasing personal history launched by Castaneda continued to work properly after his death.

There are memories about him. There are also plenty of analyzes of his work - enthusiastic and poisonous. But only now, with the appearance of a book by the Frenchman Christophe Bourceier, can we talk about the existence of a real biography of Carlos Castaneda. The definition of “real” in this case requires some clarification. The main difficulty that the researcher faced was the absence of any other sources regarding the magical side of the hero’s life, other than his own writings.

Nevertheless, there is enough evidence to restore the general outline of his “extramagical” existence, and this evidence often differs from what Castaneda preferred to tell about himself. “The Truth of Lies” is divided into six large chapters, each of which corresponds to one of the periods of his life. In my retelling, I keep the author's chapter titles.

1926–1951. Novel origin

Castaneda liked to say that his father was an eminent professor of literature, and his mother died young. In A Separate Reality, he delights in developing the dramatic potential of this touching fiction. There is a story here about how, from the age of six, half-orphan Carlos was forced to wander among his uncles and aunts, competing for their attention in a hostile environment of twenty-two cousins. Except that the reality looked a little different.

Castaneda's father, Cesar Arana Burungaray, having graduated from the Faculty of Liberal Arts of the University of San Marcos, preferred a bachelor's life in Lima among the local bohemia and bullfighters to the quiet, well-functioning life of a teacher. After getting married, he opened a jewelry store in Cayamarca, continuing his interest in literature, art and philosophy.

As for Carlitos's mother, Susana Castaneda Novoa, the Lord God turned out to be less inventive in her case, but much more merciful than her own son: in fact, she died when the latter was already twenty-two years old. The Italian theme in Castaneda's pseudo-biography arose in connection with the origins of his maternal grandfather. A fairly prosperous farmer, my grandfather had a reputation for originality and was especially proud of his design for a new toilet system. History is silent about whether it was introduced into everyday life.

In 1948, the Arana family moved to Lima. After graduating from school, Carlos entered the local Academy of Fine Arts. A promising sculptor, he was fascinated by the art of pre-Columbian America. A year later his mother died. The son was so shocked by her death that, locking himself in the room, he refused to attend the funeral. Having left the family nest, the young man shared an apartment with two classmates.

Their memories of their comrade are filled with good-natured humor: Carlos earned his living by gambling (cards, horse racing, dice), loved to create fog around himself (provincial complex?), and was very sensitive to the weaker sex, who willingly reciprocated his feelings. Not a handsome man, he had the gift of a charmer: velvet eyes, a mysterious smile with a sparkling gold tooth. And one more thing: after the death of his mother, the young man dreamed of leaving for the USA.

The last Lima passion of the young Don Juan was Dolores del Rosario, a Peruvian of Chinese origin. Having promised a gullible student that he would marry her, he abandoned her when he learned that she was pregnant. Apparently, it was this event that was the decisive impetus for his departure to the States. In September 1951, twenty-four-year-old Carlos Arana, after a two-day sea voyage, arrived in San Francisco, never to return to his homeland.

Poor Dolores, having given birth to an illegitimate child, the girl Maria, to avoid even greater shame - a Catholic country, early 1950s! – gave her to be raised in a monastery. For the runaway dad, this served as another beautiful autobiographical plot: he would later say that the main reason for his departure was the amorous pursuit of a certain Chinese opium addict.

1951–1959. Conquest of the United States

In Los Angeles, he enrolled in journalism and writing courses at one of the local colleges (Los Angeles Community College, LACC) - this time under the name Carlos Castaneda, a Peruvian citizen born on December 25, 1931. For most of his new acquaintances, he remained Carlos Aranja. In 1955, Castaneda-Arana-Aranja met Margarita Runian. Margarita was five years older than him, which did not stop them from falling head over heels in love with each other.

The hippie era had not yet arrived, but even then an atmosphere of fascination with all kinds of prophets and messiahs reigned in California. Margarita preached the ideas of Neville Goddard, one of the local gurus. Following her lover's example, she entered LACC, where she studied Russian and the history of religions. The Russian theme in the couple’s life does not end there: Carlos, in turn, highly valued Dostoevsky, adored Soviet cinema and admired Nikita Khrushchev.

But Castaneda's main hobby was the work of Aldous Huxley. It was Huxley who infected him with an interest in peyote cults, and “The Gates of Perception” became a reference book of those years. In 1956, the first publication under the name "Carlos Castaneda" was published in Collegian, the LACC magazine. The biographer reports on this work from the words of Castaneda's former teacher in writing courses. Apparently, it was a poetic work, from which he especially remembered the line about the “strange shaman of the night.”

The publication received a prize. Castaneda was increasingly attracted to literature, which found expression in a new family legend: to the story about his uncle, the national Brazilian hero, was added a story about an indirect relationship with Fernando Pessoa.

On what means did he exist during this era? Quite likely, with money sent by the family from Peru. For some time, Castaneda worked as an artist for a children's toy production company. In June 1959, he received his college diploma. Nevertheless, the years of training continued.

1960–1968. Towards the desert

On August 12, 1961, Margarita gave birth to a boy, Carlton Jeremiah, whose father was Carlos Aranja Castaneda. The child, without a doubt, was the prototype of the little boy, whom the author of the Don Juan cycle recalls with tenderness - as perhaps the only creature that connected him with the ordinary world. Paternity was formal. Having decided by that time to be sterilized, Carlos was no longer able to have children; the biological father of the child was one of their mutual acquaintances with Runian.

In September 1959, Castaneda entered the anthropology department at Los Angeles University. He chose ethnobotany as his specialization; This academic term defined the interest of an over-aged student in narcotic substances used by Indians during magical ceremonies. Not long before, Margarita introduced him to Andrij Puharich’s book “The Sacred Mushroom.” An openly delusional essay, it nevertheless caused great delight among Runian’s “advanced” friends, not leaving her lover indifferent.

To be fair, it should be said that Castaneda was inspired not only by Puharich. He diligently studied academic literature, including the research of his supervisor Clement Meighan. According to Castaneda, the decisive event in his life occurred in June 1961. He met Don Juan Matus, an elderly Yaqui Indian. Don Juan initiated the anthropology student into the secrets of the cults associated with the use of peyote, datura and the hallucinogenic mushroom psilocybe mexicana. Most often, their meetings took place in the Sonoran Desert in the southern United States.

Meighan read his mentee's reports with enthusiasm, having complete confidence in the materials he supplied. Castaneda himself did everything possible to maintain the image of a serious researcher in university circles - while leading a different, secret life full of strange adventures. In Acid Memoirs, Timothy Leary mockingly describes Castaneda's visit to the Mexican Hotel Catalina, where the famous LSD promoter and his adherents settled in 1963 after he was expelled from Harvard. (The name of the hotel will become Castaneda’s name for the evil magician.)

Having confused Leary with his close associate Richard Alpert, the stranger initially introduced himself as the Peruvian journalist Arana, who wanted to interview Alpert. Unable to win over his interlocutor in this way, he revealed to him a heartbreaking “secret”: it turns out that he and Alpert were twin brothers. Having suffered a fiasco, Castaneda turned to a local healer, asking her to help in a magical battle with an evil wizard named Timothy Leary. She, being familiar with the Harvard ex-professor, refused. The next morning, Castaneda reappeared at Catalina - this time with a companion, supposedly a famous curandera.

He found Leary, for some reason handed him two church candlesticks and a leather bag and proposed to conclude a pact: Leary accepts him as a student, and Castaneda shares with him information regarding the “path of the warrior.” Tired of all sorts of madmen constantly besieging him, Leary sent the annoying visitor away with nothing.

In addition to Meighan, among the professors, Castaneda was of great interest to Harold Garfinkel, who taught a course on phenomenology. A student of Husserl, Garfinkel developed the idea of ​​social consensus, as a result of which even the most incredible event can be recognized as true. A similar thesis will be consistently developed in Castaneda’s books: an ordinary person perceives reality not directly, but through images imposed on him by cultural tradition.

In his memoirs, M. Runian reports that Carlos was engrossed in Husserl and even received a certain ivory object that belonged to the German master as a gift from Garfinkel. As Castaneda told Runian, he gave the thing to Don Juan - in order to cement the union of philosophy and magic and. The mysterious old man studied it for a long time and eventually placed it in a box with “items of power.”

Despite the support of Meighan and Garfinkel, work on research on the magical doctrine of the Yaqui Indians slowed down. The need to earn a living, now not only for himself, but also for his son, forced Castaneda to leave the university in 1964; he worked as a cashier in a women's clothing store and as a taxi driver. In 1966, Runian decided to move to Washington, thus seeking to end their relationship, which had completely exhausted both of them.

Castaneda was left alone; Despite the pain of parting with the baby and his mother, the separation allowed him to return to his studies, finish his first book and begin publishing it. In September 1967, he signed a contract with his university publishing house. The Teachings of Don Juan: The Yaqui Way of Knowledge was published in June 1968. Rejecting two options for a fashionable psychedelic cover, Castaneda insisted that the book have the appearance of a scientific work. The release of the book was celebrated by him purchasing a strict gray suit.

1968–1972. Prophet in a gray suit

The audience, which consisted mainly of hippie youth, was perplexed when he refused a joint, passed around to the sounds of the Grateful Dead rehearsing nearby, or demanded that the dogs brought with them by the hairy “flower children” be removed from the hall.

The success of the book provoked serious academic controversy. The scientific community was divided into two opposing camps. Castaneda's supporters perceived her as a new word in anthropology, combining scientific sobriety and high poetry. Opponents insisted that the author was, at best, a talented writer. “Dear Mr. Castaneda,” the most authoritative anthropologist Robert Gordon Wasson addressed him, “I was asked to make a critical analysis of the “Teachings of Don Juan” for Boteni Economists.

I read it and was impressed by the quality of the writing as well as the hallucinogenic effects you experienced." And yet: “Am I right in my conclusion: You have never tried [hallucinogenic] mushrooms or even seen them?” What followed was a harsh analysis of the book, which made me seriously doubt its veracity. Wasson, in particular, pointed out that these mushrooms simply do not grow in the Sonoran Desert, and the method of their consumption described by Castaneda smacks of obvious fantasy. Finally, he questioned the existence of Don Juan.

Despite accusations of scientific dishonesty, Castaneda's authority grew, as the circulation of his books grew rapidly. The second book, “A Separate Reality. Further Conversations with Don Juan" (1971), published by Simon and Schuster, one of the largest American publishing houses. At the same time, its author received an invitation to lead a seminar at the University of Irvine, a town located in southern California. The seminar was called “Phenomenology of Shamanism”, lasted a year and became the only case when Castaneda agreed to act as a university teacher.

During the seminar, he was mainly engaged in retelling his own magical adventures. One day he organized a trip to a “place of power” in the Malibu Canyon area. The students were informed that Don Juan had seen this place in a dream. There, Castaneda performed a series of mysterious body movements that marked the “lines of the world.” The rest imitated this choreographic fantasy as best they could, which was reminiscent of both baroque dance and exercises in oriental martial art. The most devoted members of the seminar, mostly women, became part of the group of students who later formed the intimate circle of “Nagal Carlos.”

Other tricks with which Castaneda liked to amaze his acquaintances included assurances that he could be in two places at the same time. One of the journalists recalled how, having encountered Castaneda in a New York cafe, he tried to strike up a conversation with him, to which he received a significant answer: “I don’t have much time, since I’m actually in Mexico now.” And this is not the only evidence of this kind.

1973–1991. It's time to darken

Since that time, his image has changed noticeably. The gray-suited anthropologist turned into the hiding leader of an esoteric group, the nagual, who became the head of the line of sorcerers after Don Juan left this world in 1973. The general public readily accepted the new rules of the game. Journalists compared Castaneda with the great invisible figures of American literature - Salinger and Pynchon.

Rumors made him a victim of a car accident, a hermit living in Brazil, a patient in a mental hospital at the University of Los Angeles, a participant in a top-secret government program to control dreams... In 1984, Federico Felinni conceived a film adaptation of The Teachings of Don Juan, inviting Alejandro Jodorowsky to participate in the writing script. The great Italian persistently searched for a way to contact Castaneda and even in a fit of despair went to Los Angeles, hoping for a personal meeting. The trip was in vain.

All this time, Castaneda preferred to communicate with the outside world through students, known to readers mainly under fictitious names. According to his will, drawn up in 1985, his estate was to be divided between Mary Joan Barker, Marianne Simcoe (Taisha Abelar), Regina Tal (Florinda Donner) and Patricia Lee Partin (Nuri Alexander).

On August 24, 1985, he unexpectedly arranged a meeting with readers at Phoenix, a famous bookstore in Santa Monica. Castaneda admitted that it was a gesture of despair on his part. The era of the psychedelic revolution ended, giving birth to a completely respectable “new age”. His books still sold well, but the noisy debate around them was replaced by the silence of criticism, and the former electric contact with the reader no longer existed.

1992–1998 Apocalypse cum figuris

In fact, Castaneda's "Tensegrite" was a set of bizarre movements, or "magic passes." The project, which fully corresponded to the then general passion for aerobics and Chinese gymnastics, was received with a bang in the New Age environment. Those who wanted to become enlightened could do this by enrolling in expensive courses and/or purchasing videotapes with exercises.

Periodically organized seminars attracted large audiences, reminiscent in the degree of exaltation of the rock festivals of the good old days. Having danced to their heart's content under the guidance of Castaneda's students, the audience listened to many hours of reasoning by the main "tensegrist".

The relations between Castaneda and his inner circle, in which men were rather the exception, were of a harem-sectarian nature. Preaching sexual abstinence, the aging guru had an insatiable sexual appetite, satisfying it with the help of his female students who were mutually jealous.

Constantly replacing anger with mercy, and mercy with anger, bringing some closer and pushing others away, he practiced what was called in their circle “tough love.” The apotheosis of “tough love” was the “Theater of Infinity”, which was held during Sunday meetings for close associates. Participants in the meetings led by Nuri Alexander parodied each other in front of Castaneda, who was seated in the center of the hall. Getting rid of the “ego” was also supposed to be facilitated by a complete severance of ties with loved ones.

Amy Wallace's memoirs quite vividly depict the habits of the “nagual Carlos” in the last years of his life. The daughter of a successful writer, Wallace met Castaneda in 1973 in Los Angeles. The seventeen-year-old hippie beauty, who was interested in otherworldly matters, immediately made an impression on the family guest.

Since then, he did not lose sight of her, periodically calling and sending her his books. Their real rapprochement occurred much later, in 1991, which turned out to be difficult for Amy. She just lost her father and got divorced. In addition, bats took up residence in her house, which only worsened her depression. On one of these days, Castaneda called. Carlos reacted with warm sympathy to her troubles. Having learned about the bats, he demanded that she expel them by force of will, and declared that he felt the spirit of a deceased parent in her house.

Florinda Donner and Carole Tiggs, who arrived a few days later with an “inspection,” forced Wallace to destroy valuable autographs of famous writers from the family archive - as the first important step towards abandoning her former life.

In 1997, Castaneda was diagnosed with cancer, which was rapidly progressing throughout the body. In addition, he suffered from diabetes and his legs were failing. In the last months of his life, he almost never got out of bed, watching old films about the war on video. Every morning meetings at his bedside turned into a sadistic nightmare.

Castaneda listened to a brief retelling of newspaper news, and then, choosing the next victim among those present, literally mixed him with dirt. The idea of ​​a “final journey” like the one Don Juan had made was in the air: members of the previous nagual’s group had jumped off a cliff with him in the Mexican desert to dissolve into infinity and become pure awareness. Translated into normal human language, this meant collective suicide.

According to the first option, the group of “nagual Carlos” was supposed to rent a ship and sink it with them in neutral waters. Navigation books were ordered online; Taisha Abelar, Nuri Alexander and Fabrizio Magaldi traveled to Florida to look after the vessel. According to the second option, the “travelers” killed themselves with firearms, which were also hastily purchased.

On April 27, 1998, at three o'clock in the morning, Castaneda's attending physician pronounced him dead. Secret cremation took place at Spalding Cemetery in Culver City near Los Angeles. The ashes were handed over to the immediate surroundings. That same day, the phones of Florinda Donner, Taisha Abelar, Talia Bey and Keely Lundahl were permanently disconnected. The death was officially announced only on June 19.

In February 2003, the remains of four bodies were found in Death Valley, California, in the place where Michelangelo Antonioni filmed Zabriskie Point. The local sheriff recalled that not far from there in May 1998 there was an empty abandoned car. The corpses were so eaten up by wild animals that they could not be identified.

At the scene, police found an unusual item: a French five-franc coin with a blade embedded in it. The thing was too unique for those who knew the truth to make a mistake. Belonging to Patricia Lee Partin (Nuri Alexander), the coin was most likely given by her to one of those who went on the "ultimate journey."

Carlos Castaneda is one of the most popular esoteric authors. His name brings to mind a picture in which a shaman sits near a fire and listens to a wolf howl. The author’s books are not understandable to everyone, perhaps this is the mystery and style of the author that is all the charm. Let's take a closer look at the biography of Carlos Castaneda.

Author's 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 writer’s date of birth is unusual – it falls on Catholic Christmas. The future esotericist 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, and he also gained fame as a researcher of Indian magic. In his books, he shared with readers how to expand perception and the tools for understanding the Universe. Even the date of the mystic’s death is a mystery. Officially, she died on April 27, 1998, but the world only learned about the loss on June 18.

Childhood and youth

Like any hermit who came to esotericism, Carlos Castaneda had a difficult fate. The author said that his parents were not poor, but very young. The father was 17 years old and the mother was 15 when they had a little son. The boy was sent 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, ending it in a boarding school in Buenos Aires. When he turned fifteen, he went to a family of adoptive 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 his ability to draw and returned to California.

Carlos began to show interest in journalism, literature and psychology. For four years he attended City College in Los Angeles and supported himself by hard work. One day he became a psychoanalyst's assistant and had to organize 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 provides 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 North American Indian tribes, and on one of his business trips he met Juan Mantus. The author used the knowledge gained in the process of communicating with him in his books. Juan possessed shamanic practices that the scientific world was not ready to accept. Castaneda gained followers who continue to follow his ideas today. In the books, the author presented a new structure 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. By accepting them, the body and 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 the parts of life in the Universe. A person focuses maximum attention, stopping the internal dialogue. In 1968 the book “Separate Reality” was published. After the release of Journey to Ixtlan, Carlos's career took off. In twenty years he created eight books.

Later years and death

Carlos's attempts to comprehend magic removed him from society until the early nineties. He became a teacher at the University of California, and later began giving seminars for a fee. Shortly before his death, he published two works: “Magical Passes” and “The Wheel of Time.” The writer was killed by liver cancer; this disease usually affects those who drink a lot of alcohol.