Do I have to read Carlos Castaneda?

[hal]

Is this stuff still required reading? Never got around to it, but I feel it's one of the holes in my knowledge even though I don't hear it talked about as much these days.

what say you people?

[Wags]

It does go good with peyote. Didn't he turn out to be a fraud?

[Black]

That was weird. Hi Phil or Rhonda!

Edit-- never mind-- Mr. Magoo moment.

[Inactive]

I'd vote yes. Even if it's fiction it's a good philosophical read. Peyote not necessary. :quotes:

[blooz]

No.

Actually, the first book is interesting and can read as factual if you ascribe any seeming "miracles" to peyote-think. But the philosophy can be found in other places, and more legitimate places, like Sufism.

he should have stopped with one book, but the more he wrote the less real his story became. in itself this is not a bad thing—when you read Sufis you see a lot of stuff that seems weird but isn't, in the context of their philosophy. however, Casteneda ended up living with three women who forsook family contact and who disappeared after his death. Sounds like a cult tome.

[August West]

I'm not sure that I can agree that Castenada's writings form the basis for a cult and Sufism doesn't.

[freeradical]

No. It's fiction.

[$tevie]

No.

[haikuman]

Try reading """Black Elk Speaks""" ...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Elk_Speaks

http://www.amazon.com/Black-Elk-Speaks-B...0803283598


""" Fools Crow """ James Welch

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Welch_(writer)

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0...etohanksvi


http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=The+Salmon+Ceremony&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8


Rudie

[GeneL]

I particularly loved two ideas that I picked up from "The Teachings of Don Juan: A Yaqui Way of Knowledge."

One was the idea of finding your "place" and the other was the comment that the mind controls the drug, the drug doesn't control the mind.

At one time or another, I've been in touch with both of those ideas and I clearly benefited from knowing them.

This was one book that I enjoyed immensely and would recommend.

But, as I always say, "that's just my opinion, I could be wrong." YMMV! :oldfogey: