Carlos Castaneda
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Carlos Castaneda (December 25, 1925 – April 27, 1998) was an American author.
Starting with The Teachings of Don Juan in 1968, Castaneda wrote a series of books that describe his training in shamanism, particularly with a group whose lineage descended from the Toltecs. The books, narrated in the first person, relate his experiences under the tutelage of a man that Castaneda claimed was a Yaqui "Man of Knowledge" named don Juan Matus. His 12 books have sold more than 28 million copies in 17 languages. They have been found to be fiction, but supporters claim the books are either true or at least valuable works of philosophy.
Castaneda withdrew from public view in 1973, living in a large house in Westwood, California from 1973 until his death in 1998, with three colleagues whom he called "Fellow Travellers of Awareness." He founded Cleargreen, an organization that promotes "tensegrity", which Castaneda described as the modern version of the "magical passes" of the shamans of ancient Mexico.
See also
- Neoshamanism
- New Age
- Peyote song
- Rainbow body
- William Patrick Patterson
- Gregory Bateson
- Marlo Morgan
- Amy Wallace
