“The Topic of Topics” by B. Brown

(A follow-up to the post by Alison Bell titled “The Active Side of Infinity”)

“They eat our energy”!

A statement such as this would surely have any student on the edge of their seat. This student was Carlos Castaneda and “They” are Mudshadows and were often referred to as “flyers” by Carlos’ teacher and his team of sorcerers known as the “Naguals Party of Warriors”. Don Juan who taught Carlos had casually mentioned these beings earlier in his teachings without being specific, only saying that “a foreign installation” has interrupted our journey. He saved the subject to be one of the last lessons in his teachings. This knowledge of the Mudshadows nearly proved too much for Carlos and it must have been clear to him why it was saved for last. Don Juan introduced the Mudshadows to Carlos, calling them “The Topic of Topics” saying to him, “they feed on our awareness” which is also how they keep us under their control.

When a human is born into this world it’s awareness is complete and is viewed by one who “sees” energy as being on the outside of its luminous cocoon like a furry glowing coat. This configuration makes us not only vulnerable but tasty as well, for these “flyers” consume this glowing coat of awareness “down to the tops of our toes”.

The idea of an alien creature feeding on us is not novel by any stretch, and the Sorcerers of Don Juan’s lineage were not the only people who were aware of them. These creatures have also been described at length by Gnostics Mystics who call them “Archons”.

Since the Universe is predatory in nature, the Archons have found a perfect place to indulge in their favorite repast. According to Don Juan these “flyers gave us their mind!” A mind that is afraid of being discovered at any moment. A mind that is unreliable, fickle, fearful and malevolent. The result of this arrangement is the world we have now, since this describes the social creatures we have become. Don Juan taught that our violent nature comes from the latent knowledge of what we used to be. We have no way to fight it so we lash out. We are no threat to our masters, only to ourselves. Our fur has already been shorn.

Our violent tendencies and giant egos can cause the little awareness we have left to flare-up, and it is this flare-up of energy that is consumed by the “flyers”. They are expert at causing these flares of energy and the result of us “having their minds” is a world in which every human on this planet reacts in the same way to similar stimuli. Don Juan asked Carlos, “How else can you explain the contradiction between Man the builder, and Man the destroyer?” We can watch the news any day of the week and confirm this contradiction.

Don Juan states that, at some point in the past Man was a complete being. His “coat of awareness” was whole, and this completeness gave man peace, inner silence and instant knowledge of the world around him as well as abilities that more than likely account for many of the myths and legends alive to this day. Don Juan and his” party of warriors” lived these myths and were also the last in a long line of complete beings.

Don Juan could not say when the “flyers” entered Mans’ world. One could speculate about how and when, but it would be merely speculation. The only question worthy of the energy we have left is, what do we do about it? Don Juan provided answers in the form of his lessons to Carlos Castaneda. Over a period of thirteen years the old Nagual helped Carlos lead a better life. A Warriors life. A life filled with magic, discipline and wonder. Don Juan’s convictions held that a disciplined mind, free of the encumbering thought processes we have learned can become unwholesome food to these “flyers” and we can become free beings. No longer slaves to a master we cannot see. Don Juan also stated to Carlos that the problem is no one wants to be free. It’s easy to understand that last statement for a variety of reasons. After a lifetime of imprisonment why leave the prison? There is a way out of the prison without losing your marbles according to Don Juan.

When we can stop the incessant self-talk –internal dialog- we have with ourselves then we begin to store energy, because in the world of Don Juan and his “party of warriors” upholding our idea of ourselves consumed the greatest amount of energy. The “internal dialog” we have with ourselves is how we maintain our illusion of self-importance. “Stopping the internal dialog” then is what Don Juan prescribed to Carlos, the Warriors method of disrupting our continuity. “Stopping the internal dialog” makes us less appealing to the “flyers” and with discipline and persistence they will leave us alone making us free beings.

Don Juan said we have to accept responsibility for our choices as Warriors. We can choose a life of magic, discipline and wonder or we can choose to continue what was chosen for us. Docility!

B. Brown