II. A SEPARATE REALITY.
(FURTHER CONVERSATION WITH DON JUAN)
First English edition 1971
This book contains, on the one hand, the recapitulation of what the Castaneda apprentice lived with his teacher Don Juan in the first learning stage (1961-1965), and the resumption of his learning, as of April 1968, two and a half years after having "definitely" abandoned it. Castaneda says that when he received the first copy of his book, the teachings of Don Juan, he feels a strong desire to show it to Don Juan. This event places him again in the toltequity knowledge path, in a second learning cycle, according to Castaneda was "very different from the first".
Castaneda does not want to resume learning, or at least does not have a conscientious desire to do so. Much less keen to repeat his terrible experiences with plants of power. However, he "mysteriously" feels the need to resume learning. The main don Juan effort at this stage focuses on teaching Castaneda to "see". The difference between "look" and "see" is basically that "looking" is being able to confirm through our sight that the world is as our reason tells us that it is, and "seeing", is the ability of men of knowledge to perceive the world through energy charges.
Don Juan insists to Castaneda that he must resume his encounters with "Humito", because that way he will have "the speed required for a glimpse at the fleeting world". Don Juan tells him that the only way in which a man of knowledge may know is "seeing" beyond the surface of things. The "Humito", says Don Juan, will help you "see" how men are actually a conglomerate of light fibers circulating from the head to the navel, which make any man (King or beggar) appear as a luminous egg. Luminous fibers unite man with his surroundings, giving him balance and stability. The simple fact of thinking back to the previous experiences with "Humito" terrifies Castaneda and he tries to avoid it at all cost.
Within the skills of "seeing" is being able to differentiate between men and "those who are not people, that is the "allies"[1] from the witches. The smoking mix, explains Don Juan, will lead him to his ally and he when "becomes one with his ally", will no longer have to smoke to invoke him as many times as he wants, in order to do what he asks.
Don Juan states that when a man manages to "see" that all are eggs formed of luminous fibers, realizes that nothing can change them, and realizes that everything in the world is the same and that therefore nothing is more important than other
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- ↑ The "allies", according to Don Juan, are forces, neither good nor bad, that witches use for their own purposes. These forces typically take human aspects and when a man of knowledge "sees" them they retain their human aspect, which betrays them. These beings are inorganic.
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