I
had proposed to publish here, once a year, texts by Carlos Castañeda,
an anthropologist who influenced my generation with his tales of
meetings with Mexican sorcerers. For lack of space, I have not done so
since 2004. Today I woke up thinking: Castañeda, despite all his
critics and all his work that later on seemed so disorderly to me,
should not be forgotten. So here we present some of his reflections.
Intention is the important thing:
for the old sorcerers of Mexico, intention (intento) is a force that
intervenes in all aspects of time and space. To be able to use and
manipulate this force calls for impeccable behavior. A warrior’s final
goal is to be able to lift his head above the rut where he is confined,
look around him, and change what he wants. To do so he needs to have
discipline and pay attention all the time.
Nothing is easy:
nothing in this world is given as a present: everything has to be
learned with a great deal of effort. A man who seeks knowledge must
have the same behavior as a soldier going to war: absolutely attentive,
afraid, respectful and utterly confident. If he follows these
recommendations, he may lose the odd battle but he will never cry over
his fate.
Fear is natural: fear of the freedom
that knowledge brings us is absolutely natural; however, no matter how
terrible the apprenticeship may be, it is worse to live without wisdom.
Irritation is unnecessary:
becoming irritated with others means giving them the power to interfere
in our lives. It is imperative to overcome this feeling. By no means
should the acts of others distract us from our only alternative in
life: coming in touch with the infinite.
The end is an ally:
when things begin to get confused, a warrior thinks about his death and
immediately his spirit returns to him. Death is everywhere. Think of
the headlights of a car following us along a winding road; sometimes we
lose sight of it, sometimes it appears to be too close, sometimes the
headlights go out. But this imaginary car never stops (and one day
catches up with us). The very idea of death gives men the necessary
detachment to go ahead despite all their tribulations. A man who knows
that death is approaching every day tries everything, but without
feeling anxiety.
Paulo Coelho
www.warriorofthelight.com
