The Art of Dreaming

If you've never read any of his stuff before I don't think you'll get much out of this book. Furthermore, their is a tremendous consensus in the academic world that Castaneda was not simply "telling it as he lived/observed it". His works, with the possible exception of the first book, are certainly not just the plain narratives they appear to be. For one thing: Castaneda's character in the stories is, at times, almost unbelievably dense if you consider his thoughts and actions in context. Furthermore, about half-way through the Castaneda series, he apparently starts all over again, describing totally different accounts of his relationship, and how he got to know Don Juan. Many of the details seem to contradict each other, eliminating the notion that Castaneda was simply telling details he left out. And then, as has been noted, he writes this book which seems a shift in focus, the introduction of Dreaming as what "it is really all about". One can also run across all sorts of other people who run workshops and write books claiming to have known Don Juan, or Carlos himself, which is all very hard to determine as Carlos simply disappeared from view. Apparently he died in the late 90's and it was only months later, or something like that, that anybody found out about it. I may have details wrong here but the above is the picture I gathered as I informally researched the context for this book.

The Art of Dreaming demands a back and forth approach. One should gain some experience with lucid dreaming, as another reviewer recommended, and try to understand what he says in that context. He has written down some novel techniques (the exercise of Dreaming attention for instance) although a lot of it coincides with other traditions. For instance, the talk of training the dreaming attention as a way of accessing and honing the energy body is found, in almost identical form, in Tibetan Dream Yoga (see the chapter called "developing the mayic body" in Chogyal Namkhai Norbus "Dream Yoga and the practice of Natural Light", or the Dalai Lamas sketching of dream yoga in the book "sleeping, dreaming, and dying"). After a period, it may be time to let Castaneda go, and then return to this book when you feel so compelled. Tentatively, it seems a weaving of a fictional story line with real experiences/insights. Approach it as such and one won't be very disappointed.


This goes beyond the normal lucid dream!   November 26, 2001
Pat Reed (TN USA)
14 out of 14 found this review helpful

I usually do not review the books I purchase - but seeing that none of the reviews, in my opinion, give this book enough credit, I will express why I believe this book is of extreme importance - especially to those whom intend to become conscious of the subconscious.

Now, as suspected, there are a lot of rumors concerning the 'authenticity' of Castaneda's experiences with a Yaqui Shaman named Don Juan and the teachings he revealed. I however, believe them all to be non-relevant in this particular instance. The fact is, Castaneda has torn a gapping hole in many peoples way of perceiving what they ythinky to be reality. And because of this, many of the critics and yegosy choose to turn their heads and deny any possibility that all we perceive is a just a very convincing hallucination.

yThe Art of Dreamingy gives the reader a first hand account of what a ypersony is capable of, that is, if his/her intention is strong enough to overcome the illusion of space, time, and self, and in so doing experience that which underlies and goes beyond our normal illusionary existence without trying to give it an objective meaning.

That said; I would like to justify why I believe (the majority of) this book is yauthentic,y and not just a good writers imagination and I would also like to remind everyone that they travel to the fourth dimension every night when sleep paralysis sets in and there energy bodies float out into his/her own small corner of the astral realm which we refer to as dreaming.

Anyone with any occult knowledge will automatically realize the significance of the wisdom enumerated in this book. The organic beings are called larvae that only bother those which cannot control there own emotions and desires. The energy body is the astral body or linga sharira. The assemblage point is a great insight into the subtle assimilation of our conscious perceptions. Astral projection is discussed. But towards the end I do believe Castaneda puts more imagination than fact, thus the four stars and not five, but again whose to say what fact is or isnyt? Nonetheless it makes an interesting reading.

When I first read it I did not realize the importance of the material, but after progressing in my practice by utilizing the much needed info in the below books, I realized Castenada gives the reader valuable tips for advancing beyond the normal lucid dream, tips that the dream yogays are very allusive in explaining.

And it is for this reason that I highly recommend anyone SERIOUS about becoming conscious of the subconscious to give this book a thorough study y but anyone just beginning to have lucid dreams I would recommend you research and read the following titles beforehand, which are also available on this web-site:

****** yThe Tibetan Yogas of Dream and Sleepy
****** yTsongkhapays Six Yogas of Naropay
****** yNatural Liberation, Padmasambhavays Teachingsyy
****** yInitiation into Hermeticsy

Oh, one more thing y the ythird and forth gatey is the secret of the homunculus.


The Art of Dreaming   March 29, 2000
Stephen H. Benedict (California)
13 out of 15 found this review helpful

This book disappoints some, I guess, because it is a bit of a departure from the previous books in the series. However, I thought it was very insightful, and continues the narrative of Carlos's growth into the world of don Juan's knowledge. I actually found it much more coherent and down to earth than Castaneda's previous two books, and seemed to reach some kind of culmination of his years with don Juan. The Art of Dreaming brings to fruition the technique of "dreaming" that began in the second book, A Seperate Reality, and continues in Journey to Ixtlan and Tales of Power. With Carlos's advancement in the "dreaming" technique, this book shows where it finally leads him, and the astonishing end results. For those who are really interested in the deeper aspects of the teachings of don Juan, this is a great book. Those who simply consider Castaneda's work to be entertaining fiction may not find this book to their liking.


Hmmmm.....   September 30, 2003
kaioatey (Awatovi, AZ)
13 out of 14 found this review helpful

Castaneda is always a valuable read. The man has, single-handedly, introduced more fundamental concepts into the contemporary mainstream of shamanic studies than anyone else I know. Assemblage point, luminous fibers, medicine plants, spiritual warrior, dreaming, stalking are now commonly accepted terms and, dare i say it, practices?! At the same time, the man himself -dead and alive - has eluded attempts at categorization; he is not as prissy as Eliade, simplifier and popularizer like Harner, neither does he seem to be in for the money, like perhaps the majority of book-writing modern would-be "shamans" and "sorcerers". Methinks this very fact should make one curious and interested.

The Art of Dreaming does not disappoint in this regard. It seems to be quite consistent with C's previous work and IMO C is quite effective in depicting the complexity of the worlds that may be accessed during one's dreams. For ordinary humans like you and me this work reads like fiction, because in order to access even the most rudimentary of these worlds, one would (according to Castaneda) need "energy" acquired through time-consuming and effort-full practices. We don't have this kind of energy. Yet myself, at the very least, have a deep respect and admiration for this wily old man who gave us so much food for thought. He seems to care for one thing above all others - freedom. AOD is about using one's dreams to become a freer person. That means living one's life with dignity and gusto and AOD certainly is something worth reading at the side of a pool on a sunny Sunday afternoon.