Warrior With No Importance

Each time apprentice sorcerer Carlos Castaneda came to see his guide Nagual Juan Matus, the teacher pointed to his pupil that he still gained weight. Or the sorcerer is spreading sarcasm on his student’s way of soiling his clothes when the fear is too strong.

The fear, in the practice of Castaneda, is always waiting for him. The apprentice Carlos never does anything right in the eyes of his mentor, who pointed out to him at every moment. One day the situation became so bloody hilarious that the old master weep with laughter. Distraught, Carlitos takes refuge in his note taking as a studious pupil. The hilarity of Juan Matus doubled.  Castaneda is eventually upset.

“You call yourself too seriously,” said Don Juan. “You’re too damn important, at least according to the idea that you make from yourself. That’s what has to change. You’re so important that you can allow you to leave when things do not go as you please. You’re so important that you think normal to be upset by it. Maybe you think that this indicates a strong personality. That is absurd! You’re weak, you’re conceited.” (source)Carlos Castaneda, Journey to Ixtlan

On several occasions, Juan Matus returns to the obligation of losing one’s own importance. This is the direct corollary of the previous point. When the warrior has no past, it’s not too hard loosing his own importance, changing his perspective on himself.
“Self-importance is our greatest enemy. Think about it – what weakens us is feeling offended by the deeds ans misdeeds or our fellowmen. Our self-importance requires that we spend most of our lives offended by someone” said Don Juan. 

When we discover the infinity of possible worlds, our importance is taking a beating. When we discover the complexity of the wonders of the afterlife, how would we puffed up with pride? The next step, moreover, will lead us to humility. No choice.

Your Death For Guide

“Death is our eternal companion. It is always on our left, at arm’s length.” (source)Carlos Castaneda, Journey to Ixtlan Castaneda buys a thrill: he is not at all familiar with these concepts. Suddenly he jumps: he has just seen his death next to him. He is such a dramatic guy.

“When you’re impatient, only turn around to your left and seek advice from your death. All that is pettiness is forgotten at the instant when death moves toward you, when you catch a glance, only when you feel this companion is there ever observing you.” (source)Carlos Castaneda, Journey to Ixtlan

From there, you are just passing through. You are looking for places of power, the doors to other worlds. Gradually, you become inaccessible, you are fading away to be available to power. You will seek for it in the wilderness at dusk on a friendly hill where the wind blows. “At dusk, there is no wind. At this time of day, there is only power.” (source)Carlos Castaneda, Journey to Ixtlan, page 70 

Totally Responsible

You learn to walk, night vision enables you to run in the dark without tripping over any obstacle.

You assume full responsibility for your actions, what is the minimum. And you also assume full responsibility for everything that happens to you, what characterizes the Nagual sorcerers. They never say: “Bad luck” but always “Thanks”. They expect nothing. What happens to them is always the best. They control their lives thus they accept whatever happens. They assume all of the incomprehensible Rule – the only guide for the warrior in “this immensity out there.”

There is only one thing bad in you: you think you have eternity before you.

Castaneda is not an easy learner. Suddenly, Juan Matus should make him suffer all kinds of exercises that are for the reader, wonderful instructions, accurate and reproducible. So for him to learn to practice the “do-not-do”, he shows how to get on a mound, a bed of strings.

Those who have tried it will tell you the most good. Experiencing is better than any drug. You floats, all the sensations and perceptions are incredibly sharp.

And the body remembers this old technique that Juan Matus called:

Do-not-do

“Do-not-do is very simple but extremely difficult. The point is not to understand but to control it. Seeing is of course the crowning finale of a man of knowledge, and seeing is only obtained when you stopped the world by the technique of do-not-do.” (source)Carlos Castaneda, Journey to Ixtlan

Of course, Castaneda doesn’t get a thing, neither do we. Understanding is useless. Just do it. Your body knows better, let it go. Ignore your mind, always wanting to explain, willing to understand all!

What a pride in this little kinglet! Since our childhood we were taught to do. It is the doing of all humans, placed end to end, which assembles the narrow plan that we call the world. Narrow world, presented as the only horizon, when there are infinities of parallel universes and we all know it.

Do not be a believer, do not swallow all, resist, doubt, think, open your mind and your eyes to the new world that is coming. And the best way to be oneself, to finally be pure, it is the diligent practice of do-not-do.

Do-not-do means you stop considering anything for granted, as you were taught to do. You must undo your sensations, undo the familiar objects, undo these illusions that constitute the world of doing. Then, suddenly, this ready-made world collapses. The warrior stopped the world. Now he can see.

Now he needs to tighten his life, make it compact.
Then he can dream.

A warrior treats the world as an infinite mystery,and what people do as an unlimited folly.

Never forget this fact: “Sorcerers can never build a bridge to reach people of this world, but if people want to, they must build a bridge to join the sorcerers.” (source)Carlos Castaneda, The Power Of Silence