Today I’m going to write what I thought of “The Art Of Dreaming,” by
Carlos Castenada. For those of you unfamiliar with Castenada, I recommend you read a little about him at least, as he has done many things in the field of perception, most notably his tutelage under a Yaqui Indian “Sorcerer” named Don Juan. This is the second Castenada book I’ve read, the first being “A Separate Reality.” The Art Of Dreaming deals with what the title suggests, namely Dreaming.

Don Juan says that dreaming is useful for training different types of perception (or for anybody familiar with the luminous egg concept, he says that perception is a ball about three feet behind the shoulder blades. If it is moved to intersect with different filaments or even with the same ones in different places, a different perception occurs. This is non-nonsensical until cohesion is reached, but that is too much for me to cover.) If that sounded interesting, stop by the library, they’d probably have it. Or at the worst, get it online. What is really interesting about this book is that it not only deals with Lucid Dreaming (being aware of dreaming while dreaming) but what can be accomplished by it. One can open the doorways of perception through dreaming, and visit other worlds, according to Castenada and Don Juan. Later in the book he even begins to go these places physically, but that usually happens by accident. Don Juan mainly focuses on the “Seven Gates of Dreaming” of which Castenada crosses four during the book. The first gate is relatively simple, it is basically becoming lucid in a dream, and how to maintain that. The second is a little more odd, it involves traveling to the world of “inorganic beings.” I could talk a while about them, but I will not, sufficient to say they are very interesting to talk about, and essential to all sorcerers, says Don Juan. The third gate has to do with “perfecting the energy body.” The fourth gate is a little more abstract, and involves entering other’s dreams, as far as I could tell. These are just the VERY most basic ideas behind each gate, there is much more.

Another aspect of this book that was very exciting to me, as a one who practices lucid dreaming, was that I could relate to some of it. Once he got past the first gate, not as much, but on that level I could identify things I had personally experienced that matched what Don Juan had described. I also noticed many similarities between what Don Juan describes and what
Robert Monroe, the author of “Journeys Out Of The Body” describes. That book merits a read as well, by the way. There are many similarities to what Monroe describes and what Castenada describes, which says to me that this isn’t too fluffy. Robert Monroe had a very scientific approach, and hap a scientist help him do laboratory experiments with out of body experiences. So to all of you out there who may wish to read this book, I would encourage you to do it. And if you’re interested in the parallels it has to Monroe’s book, read that as well. Both are extremely interesting and good reads, as long as you keep an open mind.

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