To: The Ixtlan Mailing List
Date: Mon, 22 Dec 1997 20:24:27 +0000
Saturday December 13, 1997
The seminar was held at the Expotek 2001 on Lafragua in Mexico City. The site is about one half block from the Monumento a la Revolucion and about 4 blocks from la Alameda in the central part of the City.
At a bit after 9:00 AM, Florinda walked into the room to general applause. She introduced herself as usual by saying "I am Florinda Donner Grau". She began her lecture discussing the origins of Tensegrity and covered all of the material discussed at the Denver and Omega workshops in regard to the sorcerers of ancient Mexico.
She explained how the ancient sorcerers had learned the magical passes in dreaming and how the passes create a special awareness. Florinda then said that for years she, Carol, Taisha and Carlos had thought that Not Doings were all the crazy things that don Juan had them do.
For example she told the story again of how don Juan had made her change her attitude about clothes. Clothes were very important to her. She was brought up to dress very elegantly. Don Juan first had her not tie one shoe, then to wear different laces on each shoe, then later to wear different shoes on each foot, then one high heel and one low heel. Then don Juan told her to get rid of all of her clothes so she did and she went around naked. She wasn't embarrassed at all about it so don Juan said why not add ornaments to your beautiful body?
When Florinda was happy she pasted dead butterflies on her breasts, when she was sad she used dead flies. Next don Juan suggested she tie bits of tomato to her pubic hairs. None of this bothered her, so don Juan said to her "cut your hair". Florinda had beautiful hair. She didn't want to cut it, she whined "who will love me if I cut off my beautiful hair"? Don Juan told her not to worry, that he would always love her. She didn't tell him that she wasn't concerned with an old man loving her. She was worried that "Quique and Tito" wouldn't love her anymore.
She went back to Los Angeles and went to a psychiatrist who told her not to listen to this crazy old Mexican and that she shouldn't cut her beautiful hair. Eventually, she ended up cutting it in stages until it was her current length. She said that now her hair won't grow any longer than that anymore.
She said that Carlos had started writing a book about the not doings several times but he would always destroy it before he was done because he sensed that what he was writing about was not really what don Juan meant by the "Not Doings".
Zaia and Miles led the morning Tensegrity session. They taught the Heat series and then the Masculinity series.
After lunch, Florinda again introduced herself and then continued talking about the not doings. She stated that they are not weird behaviors, that the behaviors are a result of the not doings. There is a vibratory force in the Universe that holds all things together, including ourselves. The not doings create a lull in this force. The result is indescribable and must be experienced, even then the understanding is not "ah yes, it is like this...". The understanding gained is more of a feeling.
We have luminous cocoons and shamans see that the only awareness we have is at the ankle level. Tensegrity brings energy to the vital centers and makes it available. The results occur whether we want them to or not. Florinda suggested doing some passes before a meeting, a surgery or any event you want more energy for.
Most of us are bored fucks. She re-told the story she told in Los Angeles about a couple she knows. They go to bed every night wearing their night caps and flannel pajamas and once a month the man says "oh, what's this?" He then climbs on top of his wife and they have sex both thinking of something else. You must honestly examine what type of parents you had and then decide if you are the product of bored sex or not.
In the past people would come to the seminars and say that the sorcerers were stealing energy from them. This is impossible. We are sealed units from which no energy may leave or enter. When we say we are tired or have no energy, what has happened is that our energy has disbanded to the edges of our cocoons. Tensegrity brings it back to our vital centers. Florinda asked the participants to suspend judgment and to put our prejudice aside and just do the movements.
We are always fixated on the self. Me, me, me. Don Juan asked how she was once. Florinda responded "fine". He then said "Are you OK?" and she said "Yes". "Is there anything the matter?" said don Juan. "No" was her response. Then she said "you went out to dinner without me last night." Don Juan said, "You said you were tired." and Florinda said "Yes, but you could have at least asked me to come". Don Juan said "If you were hungry, you should have just come along." Florinda said to him "but I didn't want to spoil the good time you were going to have with Carlos, Taisha, Carol and old Florinda".
We want to be begged for our attention, made to feel special.
As we do Tensegrity and we gain more energy, the luminosity that covers our cocoon begins to grow and our behavior changes on its own. We will become less fixated on the self simply by doing Tensegrity. The passes for Not Doing cause a shift in our awareness that by itself changes our behavior.
Miles and Zaia then taught the 2 long forms based on the videos. They were called simply the 1st and 2nd video long forms. The first one was the same one shown at Omega this year and the second video long form was I believe the same one as shown in Phoenix.
After supper Florinda walked out on stage and said "Do you see that light behind me? That's my assemblage point." She then sat down and said "Guess who I am? That's right, I'm Florinda Donner Grau". After the laughter died down she said that she was only going to give a very short lecture and then have a question and answer period. She said she wanted only questions about the topic of the seminar, no personal questions and didn't want to hear anyone's account of their dreams. Then she said "Yes, this is a dictatorship".
She then introduced "Dr. Zaia Alexander, a professor of languages and Germanic studies at the University of California" and "Dr. Miles Reid, a physician and a surgeon". She explained that these "Doctors" get along so well because because they share an energetic connection.
It never ceases to amaze us (CC, Carol, Taisha and Florinda) how much men and women hate each other. In ancient times women were on the throne. They turned sorcery from something abstract and sublime into something pragmatic, applicable to the everyday world. The men eventually de-throned them but the result of this discord caused back then is still felt today. Currently Zaia and Miles are the only pair that can teach the not doings together. There are others that are currently working on it. She then told the story of two tensegrity instructors that are so similar that they have the same walk, the same way of talking and they look like brother and sister. They even drive exactly the same way (never a bit over 55 mph). They hate each other. Florinda said "we hope someday they will get over it".
Question and answers:
Is the energy body related to dreaming?
Yes, of course.
How are dreaming and not doing related?
When shamans dream they are moving their assemblage points to experience other energetic views. The not doings have the same goal.
(A question about recapitulation)
Recapitulation is critical in order to recognize our patterns of behavior. We only have 2 or 3 ways to deal with the world. We like to think we are complex, but in fact we are very boring. We learned how to deal with our parents when we were 2 years old and we deal with everyone the rest of our lives in the exact same way. We think we are special, but how can that be? If we are special, that means the person next to us can not also be special. It is imperative to recognize our socialization and to reject our behaviors that are a result of the habits of socialization.
What should we be concentrating on?
All of it. There is no one thing that will lead you to glory. If there was, we would be doing it.
How does stalking fit in with Tensegrity?
Stalking is another thing all together. It is a topic so broad that it should be the subject of another seminar. It is the stalking of the self...
When did Carlos die?
Don't be ridiculous. He's still alive.
What happened to the apprentices talked about in the books?
La Gorda died in 1985, the others all left at different times.
Where is don Juan?
He is beyond.
Will you join don Juan?
We'd love to and in my dreams (which are just mental masturbations) I see us doing that, but it probably won't happen.
What is total freedom?
The journey to infinity.
What is your relationship with Carlos Castaneda?
Carlos is a Nagual which means he is no longer a man. Well, I mean he still has a penis and whatever else a man has, but he is no longer a normal man. We are all connected (Carol, Taisha, Florinda and Carlos). He promised us he would take us with him. He could have burned from within years ago, but he is doing the impossible and remaining until we are all ready. He could have left long ago, but he is staying for us.
(Question about the womb)
Women have this extra organ that gives them a connecting link to silent knowledge. This gives them a great advantage over men which really isn't an advantage because women never use it. Men love abstract constructs, building ideas. Women just don't care. Once a man has really decided to enter the world of shamanism, nothing will deter him. A woman will change her mind all the time, following whatever suits her purpose best. If we could have a man with a womb, that would be true evolution.
What is the difference between ordinary discipline and a sorcerer's discipline?
Ordinary discipline is a routine. Sorceritic discipline is not a routine. It is doing Tensegrity but not every day an hour before you go to work. It is being a Tensegrity practitioner and doing the work, always, whenever. An example of sorceritic discipline would be making sure you have no routines.
(Question apparently related to sex and aging)
If you have to compulsively have sex, then have it!
The sorcerers way avoids the pitfalls or at least smooth the way while we age. We all grow old, it is the natural way, but that doesn't mean we have to suffer the effects of aging. By doing Tensegrity we can avoid the wrinkles, the illness. Yes we grow old, but we can grow old with vigor and vitality. When I first met don Juan he was at least 80 years old. He had all white hair and his face was all wrinkled, but you never thought of him as old because of his vitality.
The not doings were then presented. Six new sets of two not doing passes each were taught. Each set consisted of an "opening" and a "closing" movement. These movements were arranged around groups of the not doing passes taught in Denver and Omega.
First we practiced the 18 not doings that were shown before, then the new passes and then finally we did the 18 passes in the order of the sorcerer's code, but each group of 3 passes from the sorcerer's code was prefaced by an opening movement and ended with a closing movement. The effect was to group the 30 passes into 6 units of 5 individual passes, An opening pass, 3 passes from the sorcerer's code, and a closing pass.
Sunday, December 14th
Before we began the review of all the passes, Miles said he had three things to mention to us. First he talked about mass. He said it was the reason that we were able to learn the passes so quickly. Tensegrity deals with energy as it flows in the Universe and since flowing energy is changing, the Tensegrity movements change too. Thats why the movements change from time to time. Next he said that Zaia and he were trying to form a bridge to show us what is possible when neither of two people need to be in control. It was more difficult this time than at other seminars because Zaia doesn't speak Spanish but they had tried to convey this feeling anyway.
Finally Miles said "You have been an ideal group of Tensegrity practitioners. You opened up a gate last night." I know we said last night not to practice the not doings much and not to practice the sorcerer's code at all, but because of you and what you all did last night, you can now practice the not doings including the sorcerer's code any time you want to.
