''The Teachings of Don Juan: A Yaqui Way of Knowledge'' was published by the

University of California Press The University of California Press, otherwise known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish scholarly and scientific works by faculty ...

in 1968 as a work of

anthropology Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Social anthropology studies patterns of behavi ...

, though it is now widely considered a work of fiction. It was written by

Carlos Castaneda Carlos Castañeda (December 25, 1925 – April 27, 1998) was an American writer. Starting with '' The Teachings of Don Juan'' in 1968, Castaneda wrote a series of books that purport to describe training in shamanism that he received under the ...

and submitted as his

Master's thesis A thesis ( : theses), or dissertation (abbreviated diss.), is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.International Standard ISO 7144: ...

in the school of Anthropology. It purports to document the events that took place during an apprenticeship with a self-proclaimed

Yaqui The Yaqui, Hiaki, or Yoeme, are a Native American people of the southwest, who speak a Uto-Aztecan language. Their homelands include the Río Yaqui valley in Sonora, Mexico, and the area below the Gila River in Arizona, Southwestern United Stat ...

Indian Sorcerer,

don Juan Matus Carlos Castañeda (December 25, 1925 – April 27, 1998) was an American writer. Starting with ''The Teachings of Don Juan'' in 1968, Castaneda wrote a series of books that purport to describe training in shamanism that he received under the tu ...

from

Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Sonora), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is d ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

between 1960 and 1965. The book is divided into two sections. The first section, ''The Teachings'', is a first-person narrative that documents Castaneda's initial interactions with don Juan. He speaks of his encounters with Mescalito (a teaching spirit inhabiting all

peyote The peyote (; ''Lophophora williamsii'' ) is a small, spineless cactus which contains psychoactive alkaloids, particularly mescaline. ''Peyote'' is a Spanish word derived from the Nahuatl (), meaning "caterpillar cocoon", from a root , "to gl ...

plants), divination with lizards and flying using the "''yerba del diablo''" (lit. "Devil's Weed"; Jimson weed), and turning into a blackbird using "''humito''" (lit. "little smoke"; a smoked powder containing ''

Psilocybe mexicana ''Psilocybe mexicana'' is a psychedelic mushroom. Its first known usage was by the natives of North and Central America over 2,000 years ago. Known to the Aztecs as teotlnanácatl, from the Nahuatl ''teotl'' ("god") + ''nanácatl'' ("fungus"). T ...

''). The second, ''A Structural Analysis'', is an attempt, Castaneda says, at "disclos ngthe internal cohesion and the cogency of don Juan’s Teachings." The 30th-anniversary edition, published by the University of California Press in 1998, contains commentary by Castaneda not present in the original edition. He writes of a general discouragement from the project by his professors (besides

Clement Woodward Meighan Clement Woodward Meighan (1925–1997) was an archaeologist who made notable contributions to reconstructing the prehistory of southern California, Baja California, and west central Mexico. Early life and education Meighan was born in San Francisc ...

, a professor who supported the project early in its conception. In the foreword, Castaneda gives "full credit" for the approval of his dissertation to Meighan). He offers a new thesis on a mind-state he calls "total freedom" and claims that he used the teachings of his Yaqui shaman as "springboards into new horizons of cognition". In addition, it contains a foreword by anthropologist

Walter Goldschmidt Walter Rochs Goldschmidt (February 24, 1913 – September 1, 2010) was an American anthropologist. Goldschmidt was of German descent, born in San Antonio, Texas, on February 24, 1913, to Hermann and Gretchen Goldschmidt. He earned a bachelor's deg ...

, who was a professor of anthropology at

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

during the time the books were written, and an introduction by the author. A 40th anniversary edition was published by the University of California Press in 2008. The book was a ''New York Times'' best-seller, and it—along with its sequels—sold over 10 million copies in the United States.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Teachings of Don Juan, The 1968 non-fiction books Academic studies of shamanism Anthropology books Neoshamanism books University of California Press books Works by Carlos Castaneda Written fiction presented as fact Theses

See also

References