DATING THE EVENTS THAT OCCURRED IN THE CARLOS CASTANEDA'S BOOKS

Here I will compile the dates of the events that Carlos Castaneda recounted in his books.

In his first three books, Castaneda was constantly setting dates.

His first encounter with Don Juan

Castaneda stated that he met Don Juan at the end of the summer of 1960.

At the beginning of the introduction to his first book, "The Teachings of Don Juan," Castaneda said it was in the summer of 1960.

In the interview that Jane Hellisoe conducted with Castaneda in 1968, he stated that it was the end of summer.

And in the interview that Theodore Rosak conducted with Castaneda in 1969, he again affirmed that it was in 1960.

But at the beginning of the introduction to his third book, "Journey to Ixtlan," Castaneda wrote that he had been in contact with Don Juan since 1961 (when above he had stated that it was since 1960). This is one of the numerous inconsistencies that Castaneda stated.

Events that occurred in the book "The Teachings of Don Juan"

In this book, the events are dated from June 23, 1961 to October 29, 1965.

Everything narrated in this first book by Castaneda must have happened before 1968, which was the year of its first publication.

At the beginning of the introduction to his first book, Castaneda indicated that his apprenticeship with Don Juan began in June 1961.

Castaneda also claimed that he abandoned his apprenticeship/training in September 1965, and that he did not see Don Juan again until April 1968 (claiming that he left him for almost two and a half years).

Events that occurred in the book "A Separate Reality"

In this book, the events are dated from April 2, 1968 to October 18, 1970.

It should be noted that Castaneda stated there: "I made the last entry in my field notes on October 16, 1970."  However, many pages later, he adds another entry dated October 18, 1970 (this is another example of the inconsistencies in Castaneda's writing).

Everything narrated in this second book must have happened before 1971, which was the year of its first publication.

Events that occurred in the book "Journey to Ixtlan"

In this book, the events are dated from December 17, 1960 to December 12, 1962, plus one event mentioned at the beginning of the book dated May 22, 1971.

Everything narrated in this third book must have happened before October 1972, the date of its first publication.

The manuscript of "Journey to Ixtlan" (or a part of it) had previously been shown to students at UC Irvine in the spring of 1972 in a graduate course taught by Castaneda.

Events that occurred in the book "Tales of Power"

In this book Castaneda only mentioned two dates, saying that one of the events he narrates had occurred in the spring of 1968, and another was in the fall of 1971.

Everything recounted in this fourth book must have happened before 1974, which was the year of its first publication.

Castaneda stated at the end of this book that he threw himself into an abyss after all the events he recounts in this book.

For the rest of his life, Castaneda maintained that Don Juan and his group left this world this day — except in this book where he claimed they remained on Earth for some time before departing (this is another of the inconsistencies in Castaneda's accounts).

Castaneda asserted that the events of "Tales of Power" begin in the fall of 1971, and it is evident from its content that this implies multiple trips to see Don Juan, but none of them are dated.

In his subsequent books Castaneda practically stopped including dates; I suppose he realized that he could be caught with those dates.

Events that occurred in the book "The Second Ring of Power"

Everything that appears in his fifth book must have happened before 1977, which was the year of its first publication.

Events that occurred in the book "The Eagle's Gift"

Everything narrated in his sixth book must have happened before 1981, which was the year of its first publication.

Events that occurred in the book "The Fire Within"

Everything that appears in his seventh book must have happened before 1984, which was the year of its first publication.

Events that occurred in the book "The Power of Silence"

 

Everything narrated in his eighth book must have happened before 1987, which was the year of its first publication.

Events that occurred in the book "The Art of Dreaming"

Everything that appears in his ninth book must have happened before 1993, which was the year of its first publication.

Additional notes

Any event related to Don Juan must have occurred before Don Juan "left." Castaneda stated that this happened in June 1973.

But given how immensely dishonest Carlos Castaneda was, there are many doubts about the legitimacy of those dates he put in his books and claimed in interviews.