Castaneda

[epetro]

What i dont understand is that Steve had never mention Carlos Castaneda.

It seems strange to me - Steve reads and recommends a lot of authors. Maybe because my own interest in personal development (PD) began after reading books about Don Juan. So modern works about intention-manifestation, lucid dreaming, taking responsibility and other great topics seem to have a lot of common with Castaneda books.

Given that Steve read over 600 (or 800) PD books, didnt he missed such a great (imho) author or what are the reasons to ignore him (ignore means not recommend or mention)?

P.S.
Reccently I've read a pair of Dan Millman books recommended by Steve. Compared to Castaneda they are for kids.

[RandomJohn]

Perhaps he has just not come across them in his on PD path.

[AndyMartin]

Or...Castaneda is pretty esoteric. While there is direct application, I think you have to absorb a lot before you can distill it down.

On the topic of Castaneda, let's delve a little deeper. What have you read and what have you gotten out of it?

The Art Of Dreaming was the first thing of his I read, and naturally I found it fascinating. Some of the techniques make a lot of sense, but what strikes me is that he's mapped one of many paths through the non-physical, but done so in great detail. There are so many ideas out there that explain or hint at other paths, but even the most advanced "explorers" tend to accept their path as is rather than examining how and why it worked. And those that have tend to take a pessimistic outlook so they are charted out over great lengths of time. I wonder if other paths could be identified, mapped and correlated. And whether, by doing so, some distillation might emerge that could fuse the most effective parts into a potent new whole.

That's where Castaneda sends my thinking. What about you?

[epetro]

I think you have to absorb a lot before you can distill it down.

Yes, i agree - there's TEN books (i dont count books about tensegriti (?)).

First book i've read in 1993(?) was "Journey to Ixtlan".
Then books were published in Russia from first to tenth. It was a very fascinating reading for me over years.

Really i didnt get out much of that reading. Maybe just the way of thinking.

After "Art of Dreaming" I've tried to see my hands in a dream. And after a while (i didnt remember how long) it occured. Its all real. Its all available to us. But i didnt go further due to feelings of fear that overwhelming me after some seconds in lucid dream. After getting out to normal state i could remember what the dream was.
For those interested: my enter to lucid dream when go sleep occured more frequent if i have a nap during the day.
i'm not practicing that for i dont know the reason why.

I'm interesting now in "small" things. Please don't laugh. I'm in 30 day trial period of making knot my tie every morning and undo it every evening. And it is fascinating.

[valpal215]

to have read Castaneda!

[sourceofmiracles]

what I like about Castaneda is that there are times in his books that are so intense that it scares the ************ out of me. In that sense, his books have really raised the bar for me. Such that I am not satisfied with anything less then something revolutionary.

It makes me question EVErYTHING I have been taught.

[traderdad]

I was wondering about the lack of mention for Castaneda also. I'm 47 and have heard about Castaneda for a long time now. I'm only getting around to reading him now, starting with the Teachings of Don Juan. I am nearly halfway through the first Part and am left wondering: will he talk about non-hallucinogenic plant paths to enlightenment, or is it all about the plants?

Can't wait to find out....

[Savage]

I guess you missed that I quoted Castaneda in the very first article I posted on this site:
http://www.stevepavlina.com/articles...onsciously.htm

Here's the quote:

Before you embark on any path ask the question, does this path have a heart? If the answer is no, you will know it and then you must choose another path. The trouble is that nobody asks the question. And when a man finally realizes that he has taken a path without a heart the path is ready to kill him.
- Carlos Castaneda