06-17-2008, 12:00 AM
I spoke with my Atlanta friend again this past weekend. When we got to the topic of Castaneda , he said he only recalled don Juan telling
Carlos that the car lights behind him were the lights of death.
As synchronicity would have it , I read Chap 3 of " A Separate Reality " the next day. I was struck by how much this tale, in form though not in
content, was so like Indian mythology, or even like casual folk tales I heard as a child. Some years ago I read a book of plains Indian tales. Among the
characters was the Coyote spirit, and I was impressed by its similarities to the Norse god, Loki ; that is, a malevolent trickster.
Here in the Carolinas, storytellers speak of the Cherokee character Judiculla, or Spear-Finger, who lived in a cave on the cliff face of what is now known as
Devil's Courthouse on the Blue Ridge Parkway. As the name implies , Judiculla would use that finger to pluck out the livers of his prey for food! It is
said he preferred human children!
Now, my point is here that, for some reason, all of this makes sense to me. As don Juan talked of non-rational reality, and used it in his sorcery, these
tales are an Indian tradition that he drew upon for his work.
And I am sure that with Judiculla and Coyote out there, the little ones will not stray, unprepared!
Another interesting synchronicity: tomorrow, Wed 6/18, Cherokee scholar, Dr. Will Moreau Goins will protray Oglala mystic Black Elk , at an event here in
Asheville. He even looks like Black Elk! Wish I could go, but my fate keeps me away. He will take questions from the audience, and if I were there , surely I
would ask about his cousin, Crazy Horse , and his Dreaming. Wonder if the man could deal with that?
Carlos that the car lights behind him were the lights of death.
As synchronicity would have it , I read Chap 3 of " A Separate Reality " the next day. I was struck by how much this tale, in form though not in
content, was so like Indian mythology, or even like casual folk tales I heard as a child. Some years ago I read a book of plains Indian tales. Among the
characters was the Coyote spirit, and I was impressed by its similarities to the Norse god, Loki ; that is, a malevolent trickster.
Here in the Carolinas, storytellers speak of the Cherokee character Judiculla, or Spear-Finger, who lived in a cave on the cliff face of what is now known as
Devil's Courthouse on the Blue Ridge Parkway. As the name implies , Judiculla would use that finger to pluck out the livers of his prey for food! It is
said he preferred human children!
Now, my point is here that, for some reason, all of this makes sense to me. As don Juan talked of non-rational reality, and used it in his sorcery, these
tales are an Indian tradition that he drew upon for his work.
And I am sure that with Judiculla and Coyote out there, the little ones will not stray, unprepared!
Another interesting synchronicity: tomorrow, Wed 6/18, Cherokee scholar, Dr. Will Moreau Goins will protray Oglala mystic Black Elk , at an event here in
Asheville. He even looks like Black Elk! Wish I could go, but my fate keeps me away. He will take questions from the audience, and if I were there , surely I
would ask about his cousin, Crazy Horse , and his Dreaming. Wonder if the man could deal with that?