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A review by hsinclair
The Teachings of Don Juan: A Yaqui Way of Knowledge by Carlos Castaneda
2.0
Recommended to me by a friend based on my interest in mindfulness, meditation, and generally using my mind to make my life better, this book was ultimately disappointing.
The first half details the experiences of the author as he learns the "Yaqui Way of Knowledge" from his mentor Don Juan, using a whole lot of powerful drug trips. The second half of the book is the utterly incomprehensible and overly-complicated explanation of how Don Juan's teachings fit into a "system".
There were a few parts of this book that jumped out at me as quite profound, including how finding a "path with heart" is also one of the most significant Buddhist teachings (and a book of the same name by Jack Kornfield). The other is that Don Juan doesn't assign importance to what any person says unless it is truly important, which means he's never really pissed off at anything anyone says. This, I think I could take to heart.
If you're interested in meditation, mindfulness, or doing some soul searching, you can find a lot better books than this.
The first half details the experiences of the author as he learns the "Yaqui Way of Knowledge" from his mentor Don Juan, using a whole lot of powerful drug trips. The second half of the book is the utterly incomprehensible and overly-complicated explanation of how Don Juan's teachings fit into a "system".
There were a few parts of this book that jumped out at me as quite profound, including how finding a "path with heart" is also one of the most significant Buddhist teachings (and a book of the same name by Jack Kornfield). The other is that Don Juan doesn't assign importance to what any person says unless it is truly important, which means he's never really pissed off at anything anyone says. This, I think I could take to heart.
If you're interested in meditation, mindfulness, or doing some soul searching, you can find a lot better books than this.