Magical Passes: The Fifth Series - The Masculinity Series.
Magical Passes ©1998 by Carlos Castaneda.
The Fifth Series - The Masculinity Series.
- The First Group: Magical Passes in Which the Hands Are Moved in Unison but Held Separately.
- The Second Group: The Magical Passes for Focusing Tendon Energy.
- The Third Group: The Magical Passes for Building Endurance.
Masculinity was the name given to a specific group of magical passes by the shamans who first discovered and used them. Don Juan thought that perhaps it was the oldest name given to any such group of magical passes. This group was practiced originally for generations only by male shaman practitioners, and this discrimination in favor of male shamans was done not out of necessity, but rather for reasons of ritual and to satisfy an original drive for male supremacy. Nevertheless, this drive was soon terminated under the impact of enhanced perception.
The well-established tradition of this group of magical passes being practiced only by men persisted in a pseudo-official way for generations while it was being practiced on the sly by female practitioners as well. The old sorcerers' rationale for including females was that for reasons of strife and social disorder around them, the women needed extra strength and vitality, which they believed was found only in males who practiced this group of magical passes. Therefore, women were allowed to execute the movements as a token of solidarity. In don Juan's time, the division lines between males and females became even more diffused. The secrecy and exclusivity of the old sorcerers was completely shattered, and even the old rationale for allowing women to practice these specific magical passes could not be upheld. Female practitioners performed these magical passes openly.
The value of this group of magical passes - the oldest named group in existence - is its continuity. All of its magical passes were generic from the beginning, and this condition provided the only instance in don Juan's lineage of sorcerers in which a whole party of shaman practitioners, whatever their number may have been, were allowed to move in unison. The number of participants in any parry of sorcerers, throughout the ages, could never have been more than sixteen. Therefore, none of those sorcerers were ever in the position to witness the stupendous energetic contribution of human mass. For them, there existed only the specialized consensus of a few initiates, a consensus which brought in the possibility of idiosyncratic preferences and more isolationism.
The fact that the movements of Tensegrity are practiced in seminars and workshops by hundreds of participants at the same time has given rise, as stated before, to the possibility of experiencing the energetic effects of human mass. Such an energetic effect is twofold. Not only are the participants of Tensegrity performing an activity that unites them energetically, but they are also involved in a quest delineated in states of enhanced awareness by the shamans of ancient Mexico: the redeployment of energy. Performing these magical passes in the setting of seminars on Tensegrity is a unique experience. It permits the participants to arrive, pushed or pulled by the magical passes themselves and by the human mass, at energetic conclusions never even alluded to in don Juan's teachings.
The reason for calling this set of movements Masculinity is its aggressive quality, and because its magical passes are very brisk and forcefully executed, characteristics easily identified with maleness. Don Juan stated that their practice fostered not only a sensation of well-being, but a special sensorial quality, which, if not examined, could easily be confused with strife and aggressiveness. However, if it is carefully scrutinized, it is immediately apparent that it is, rather, an unmistakable sensation of readiness that places the practitioners at a level from which they could strike toward the unknown.
Another reason that the shamans of ancient Mexico called this group of magical passes Masculinity was because the males who practiced it became a special type of practitioner who did not need to be taken by the hand. They became men who benefited indirectly from everything they did. Ideally, the energy generated by this group of magical passes goes to the centers of vitality themselves, as if every center made an automatic bidding for energy, which goes first to the center that needs it the most.
For don Juan Matus's disciples, this set of magical passes became the most crucial element in their training. Don Juan himself introduced it to them as a common denominator, meaning that he urged them to practice the set unaltered. What lie wanted was to prepare his disciples to withstand the rigors of journeying in the unknown.
In Tensegrity, the word Series has been added to the name Masculinity to put it on a par with the other series of Tensegrity. The Masculinity Series is divided into three groups, each consisting of ten magical passes. The goal of the first and second groups of the Masculinity Series is the tuning of tendon energy. Each of these twenty magical passes is short, but extremely focused. Tensegrity practitioners are seriously encouraged, as the shamanistic practitioners of ancient times were, to get the maximum effect from the short movements by aiming to release a jolt of tendon energy every time they execute them.
"But do not think, don Juan, that every time I release this jolt of energy, I am actually wasting my tendon energy, and draining it out of me?" I asked him on one occasion.
"You can not drain any energy out of yourself," he said. "The energy that you are seemingly wasting by delivering a jolt to the air is not really being wasted, because it never leaves your boundaries, wherever those boundaries may be. So what you are really doing is delivering a jolt of energy to what the sorcerers of ancient Mexico called our 'crust,' our 'bark.' Those sorcerers stated that energetically, human beings are like luminous balls that have a thick peel around them, like an orange; some of them have something even harder and thicker, like the bark of an old tree."
Don Juan explained carefully that this simile of human beings being like an orange was somehow misleading because the peel or the bark that we have is located inside our boundaries, just as if an orange had its peel inside the orange itself. He said that this bark or peel was the crusted-down energy that had been discarded throughout our lifetime from our vital centers of energy, because of the wear and tear of daily life.
"Is it beneficial to hit this bark, don Juan?" I asked.
"Most beneficial," he said. "Especially if the practitioners aim all their intent at reaching that bark with their blows. If they intend to shatter portions of this crusted-down energy by means of the magical passes, that shattered energy could be absorbed by the vital centers of energy."
The magical passes of the third group of the Masculinity Series are broader, more extensive. What practitioners need in order to execute the ten magical passes of the third group is steadiness of the hands, the legs, and the rest of the body. The aim of this third series, for the shamans of ancient Mexico, was the building of endurance, of stability.
Those shamans believed that holding the body steadily in position while executing those long movements gives the practitioners a foothold from which they can stand on their own.
What modem practitioners of Tensegrity have found out through their practice is that the Masculinity Series can be executed only in moderation, in order to avoid overtiring the tendons of the arms and the muscles of the back.
Magical Passes: The Fifth Series: First Group - Magical Passes In Which The Hands Are Moved In Unison But Held Separately.
Magical Passes ©1998 by Carlos Castaneda.
The Fifth Series: First Group - Magical Passes In Which The Hands Are Moved In Unison But Held Separately.
1. Fists Above the Shoulders
The hands are held by the sides, clasped into fists, the palms facing up. They are raised then to a point above the head by bending the elbows so the forearms are at a ninety-degree angle with the upper arms. The driving force of this movement is equally divided between the muscles of the arms and the contraction of the muscles of the abdomen. As the fists are raised and the muscles of the front of the body are tensed, the body leans slightly backward by bending the knees (fig. 404).
The arms, with hands fisted, are brought down to the sides of the thighs by straightening the elbows a bit; as the arms move down, the body leans forward, contracting the muscles of the back and the diaphragm (fig. 405).
2. Using a Cutting Tool in Each Hand
The hands are made into fists, with the palms facing each other at the level of the waist (fig. 406).
From there, they move in a downward strike to the level of the groin, a foot and a half away from it, always keeping the width of the body as the distance between the fists (fig. 407).
Once the fists strike, they are retrieved to the position where they started, by the edge of the rib cage.
3. Polishing a High Table with the Palms of the Hands
The arms are raised to the level of the axillae. The palms of the hands face down. The elbows, acutely bent, protrude sharply behind the back (fig. 408).
Both arms are brought briskly forward to the maximum extension, as if the palms were actually polishing a hard surface. The hands are kept at a distance which equals the width of the body (fig. 409).
From there, they are retrieved with equal force to the position where the movement began (fig. 408).
4. Tapping Energy with Both Hands
Both arms are raised to the front, at the level of the shoulders. The hands are held in angular fists, meaning that the position of the fingers slants down heavily as they are held against the palm of the hands. The thumbs are held on top of the outer edge of the index fingers (fig. 410).
The palms of the hands face each other. A sharp jolt of the wrists makes the fists go down slightly, but with great force. The level of the wrists never changes; in other words, only the hand pivots down on the wrists.
The counter movement is to raise the fists with a jolt without changing the position of the wrists (fig. 411).
This magical pass is, for shamans, one of the best sources for exercising the tendon energy of the arms, because of the number of energy points that exist around the wrists, the backs of the hands, the palms, and the fingers.
5. Jolting Energy
This magical pass is the companion to the preceding one. It begins by raising both arms to the front at the level of the shoulders. The hands are held in angular fists, just as in the preceding magical pass, except that in this one, the palms of the hands are turned to face downward. The fists are moved in toward the body by a jolt of the wrists. Its counterbalancing movement is another jolt of the wrists that sends the fists outward so that the thumbs make a straight line with the rest of the forearm (fig. 412).
In order to execute this magical pass, it is required that the muscles of the abdomen are intensely used. It is the action of those muscles which actually directs the jolting of the wrists.
6. Pulling a Rope of Energy
The hands are held in front of the body, at the line that separates the left and the right bodies, as if they were holding a thick rope that hangs from above; the left hand is on top of the right (fig. 413).
The magical pass consists in jolting both wrists and making the hands jerk down in a short, powerful movement. As this movement is executed, the muscles of the abdomen contract, and the arms drop down slightly by bending the knees (fig. 414).
Its counterbalancing movement is a jerk of the wrists that jolts the hands upward as the knees and the trunk straighten up a bit (fig. 413).
7. Pushing Down a Pole of Energy
The hands are held to the left of the body, the left hand at the level of the ear, eight or nine inches above the right hand, which is held at the shoulder. They are held as if they were grabbing a thick pole. The palm of the left hand faces the right; and the palm of the right hand faces left. The left hand is the leading hand, by virtue of being on top, and guides the movement (fig. 415).
The muscles of the back by the area of the adrenals and the muscles of the abdomen contract, and a powerful push sends both arms downward to the side of the right thigh and the waist, as if they were indeed holding on to a pole (fig. 416).
The hands change position there; the right hand moves to a place by the right ear and becomes the leading hand, and the left moves below, by the shoulder, as if the hands were changing poles. The same movements are repeated.
8. Cut ting Energy with One Hand at a Time
The fists arc raised on the sides until they touch the edge of the rib cage; the palms of the fists face each other (fig. 417).
The left arm moves down in a diagonal line to a point two feet away from the thigh (fig. 418);
then it is retrieved (fig. 417). The right arm immediately performs the same movements.
9. Using a Plane of Energy
The left hand is raised to the level of the navel and made into a fist; the elbow is bent at a ninety-degree angle and is held close to the rib cage (fig. 419).
The right palm moves as if to slam on top of the left fist. The right hand stops an inch away from the left (fig. 420).
Then it moves four or five inches in front of the fist, in a sharp, cutting movement, as if cutting with the edge of the hand (fig. 421).
The left arm is retrieved all the way back by making the elbow protrude backward as far as it can, while the right hand is also retrieved, following the left hand and keeping the same distance (fig. 422).
Then, maintaining the same distance between the hands, both the left and the right arm shoot forward to a point a foot and a half or two feet away from the waist.
The same movements are repeated with the fist of the right arm.
10. Striking Energy with a Spike of Energy
The left arm is raised to the level of the shoulders with the elbow bent at a ninety-degree angle. The hand is held as if it had the hilt of a dagger in its grip; the palm faces down. The elbow strikes backward in an arc to a point at the height of the left shoulder, at a forty-five-degree angle behind it (fig. 423).
Then the arm returns with a strike along the same arc to its initial position.
The same movement is repeated with the other arm.
Magical Passes: The Fifth Series: Second Group - The Magical Passes For Focusing Tendon Energy.
Magical Passes ©1998 by Carlos Castaneda.
The Fifth Series: Second Group - The Magical Passes For Focusing Tendon Energy.
11. Clasping Hands
Both forearms are brought forward in front of the navel. The bent elbows almost touch the rib cage. The hands are made to clasp, the left hand on top. The fingers of each hand grab the other hand forcefully (fig. 424).
All the muscles of the arms and the back are contracted. Then the tense muscles are relaxed and the hands change positions so that the right hand is on top of the left, without letting go of each other, using the hard part of the palm at the base of the fingers as a pivoting surface; the muscles of the arms and back are contracted again.
The same movements are repeated, beginning with the right hand on top
12. Left and Right Body Clasp
The forearms are brought in front of the body, again at the level of the navel. This time, however, the right forearm is held extended out in a straight line with the hip. It is held close to the rib cage while the left forearm, with the elbow away from the body, puts the left hand over the right one in a clasping position. Great pressure is applied to the palms and the fingers of each hand by the tension of the muscles of the arms, the back, and the abdomen. The tension is relaxed, and the hands are made to pivot on each other's palms, as they move across the body from right to left. There, they are forcefully clasped again, using the same muscles, this time with the right hand on top (fig. 425).
The same movements are repeated from this position.
13. The Sharp Turn of the Two Bodies
The hands are clasped at the level of the waist, to the right. The left hand is on top of the right. In this magical pass, (In- squeeze- of the hands is not as pronounced as the one in the two preceding ones, because what is sought is a sharp turn of the two bodies, rather than the sharp strikes of the two preceding passes.
The clasped hands are made to draw a small circle to the right that goes from the front to the back, and ends in the same position where it started. Since the leading hand is the left hand, by the fact that it is on top, the circle is drawn following the impulse of the left arm, which pushes the hands out first to the right, and around in a circle to the right of the body (fig. 426).
Then the clasped hands move across the front of the body to the left side. Another circle is drawn there, again following the impulse of the left hand. Being on top, it pulls the other hand to make a circle that goes to the back first, out to the left, and back to the place where it started (fig. 427).
The same sequence of movements is performed with the right hand in the lead, starting at the left by the waist. This time, the impulse of the right arm is followed in order to draw the circle, which goes to the left first, and then back to the same place where it started (fig. 428).
The clasped hands move across the front of the body to the right side by the waist. There, following the impulse of the leading hand, they are pulled back, then to the right, and back where they started, making a circle (fig. 429).
It is important that as the circles are drawn, the trunk of the body is turned sharply to the side. The legs remain in the same position, without compensating for the turn by letting the knees sag.
14. Pushing Clasped Energy with the Elbow and Forearm
The hands are clasped by the right side at the level of the shoulder. The upper part of the right arm is held fight against the chest, and the elbow is sharply bent with the forearm held in a vertical position. With the palm of the right hand facing up, the back of the hand is held in a ninety-degree angle with the forearm (fig. 430).
The elbow of the left arm is extended in front of the left shoulder, held at a ninety-degree position. The two hands clasp forcefully (fig. 431).
The right arm slowly pushes the left one forward by straightening the elbow quite a bit. At the same time that the clasped hands are pushed forward, the left shoulder and shoulder blade are also pushed forward to maintain the ninety-degree angle of the left elbow (fig. 432).
The right arm retrieves the left hand to the initial position.
The clasped hands are shifted to the left side by pivoting on the palms, and the same movements are repeated there.
15. The Short Stab with the Hands Clasped
The hands are clasped at the right side, just as in the preceding magical pass. This lime, however, the hands are at the level of the waist, and the right arm, instead of slowly pushing the left one forward, stabs fast (fig. 433).
It is a powerful movement that requires the contraction of the muscles of the arms and the back. The clasped hands are brought forcefully to the left, as if to augment the driving force of the left elbow, which is pushed all the way to the back (fig. 434).
The clasped hands move around the front of the body to the right, as if to aid again a powerful movement of the right elbow which is thrown all the way to the back.
The same sequence of movements is performed by starting it on the left side with the right hand in the lead.
It is important to note that when the clasped hands are stabbed to the front, the hand at the bottom gives the direction, but the force is supplied by the leading hand, which is on top.
16. Jolting Energy with Clasped Hands
The hands are clasped to the right; the right elbow and upper arm are held against the side of the rib cage. The elbow of the right arm is at a ninety-degree angle with the extended right forearm. The left elbow is also held at a ninety-degree angle, at a straight line away from the left pectoral muscle (fig. 435).
The right arm lifts the left one, changing the position of the elbows from a ninety-degree angle to a forty-five. The clasped hands reach the level of the right shoulder (fig. 436).
Then they are made to jolt with a very short movement in which only the wrist is involved. The clasped hands hit down, but without changing the level at which they are held (fig. 437).
From there, the clasped hands are retrieved to the left near the waist, in a forceful movement that makes the left elbow protrude at the back (fig. 438).
The wrists are rotated and the hands made to pivot on each other, reversing their position. The same movements are repeated on the left.
17. Jolting Energy by the Knees
The hands are clasped to the right by the thigh. They change positions slightly by the supporting right hand, which is on the bottom, becoming slightly more vertical with a twist of the wrist, held in check by the pressure of the left hand (fig. 439).
Both hands swing to the left, following the contour of the knees, and deliver a strike, the potency of which is enhanced by a downward pull of the wrists (fig. 440).
The hands change position by rotating on each other's palms, and the same movements are repeated from left to right.
18. Driving Down a Spike of Energy
The hands are clasped vertically with the left hand in the lead, at a point about a foot from the navel, right on the division line between the left and right bodies. Both hands are lifted a few inches with a slight jolt made by bending the wrists without moving the forearms. Then they are brought down with the same jolt of the wrists (fig. 441).
This magical pass engages the deep muscles of the abdomen. The same movements are performed with the right hand in the lead.
19. Using the Hands Like a Hatchet
The hands are clasped at the right. Both are lifted to the level of the shoulder (fig. 442).
Then they deliver a diagonal strike that takes them to the level of the left hip (fig. 443).
The same movements are done on the left.
20. Hammering a Spike of Energy
The hands are clasped at the right. They swing to the level of the shoulders, aided by a rotation of the trunk to the right. Making a small vertical circle in front of the right shoulder, the hands are brought to the division line between the two bodies and down to the level of the waist as if to hammer a spike of energy there (fig. 444).
The same movements are done on the left side.
Magical Passes: The Fifth Series: Third Group - The Magical Passes for Building Endurance.
Magical Passes ©1998 by Carlos Castaneda.
The Fifth Series: Third Group - The Magical Passes for Building Endurance.
21. Cutting Energy in an Arc
The hands are clasped on the right, fight against the crest of the hipbone. The left hand is on top of the right. The right elbow protrudes to the back, and the left forearm is held against the stomach. In a powerful extended strike, the clasped hands slice in a horizontal arc across the area in front of the body as if going through a heavy substance. It is as if the hands were holding a knife, or a sword, or a cutting instrument that rips something solid in front of the body (fig. 445).
All the muscles of the arm, the abdomen, the chest, and the back are used. The muscles of the legs are tensed to lend stability to the movement. On the left side, the hands are pivoted. The right hand is on top, in the lead, and another powerful cut takes place.
22. Slashing Energy with a Sword-like Cut
The hands are clasped with the left hand on top of the right in front of the right shoulder (fig. 446).
A powerful jolt of the wrists and the arms makes the hands move forward about a foot, delivering a powerful blow. From there, they cut across to a point on the left, at the level of the shoulder. The end result is a movement that resembles cutting something heavy with a sword. From that point on the left, the arms change position by rotating, without losing their clasping position. The right hand takes the lead and gets on top, and again slashes across to a point about two feet away from the right shoulder (fig. 447).
The initial position of the hands are changed, and the movements begin on the left.
23. Slashing Energy with a Diagonal Cut
The clasped hands are raised to the level of the right ear and pushed forward, as if to stab something solid located in front of the body (fig. 448).
From there, they slash down to a place about a foot away from the side of the left kneecap (fig. 449).
On that point, the hands rotate at the wrists to change positions so that the right hand takes the lead on top. It is as if the cutting instrument that the hands seem to be holding is made to change directions before it slashes from left to right, following the contour of the knees (fig. 450).
The hands change place, and the whole sequence is done again, starting from the left.
24. Carrying Energy from the Right Shoulder to the Left Knee
The clasped hands are held at waist level on the right. They change positions slightly by the supporting right hand, which is on the bottom, becoming slightly more vertical with a twist of the wrist, which is held by the pressure of the left hand. The hands are quickly raised to a point by the top of the head, on the right side (fig. 451).
Leading with the elbow, they are brought down to shoulder level with great force. From there, they slash down in a diagonal cut to a place about a foot away from the left side of the kneecap. The strike is aided by a quick downward turn of the wrists (fig. 452).
The hands pivot to change places, and the whole sequence is done again, starting from the left.
25. Slashing Energy by the Knees
The hands are clasped on the right side by the waist (fig. 453).
They are brought in a powerful downward strike to the level of the knees, as the trunk stoops forward slightly. Then they cut an arc in front of the knees from right to left, to a point four or five inches away from the left side of the kneecap (fig. 454).
Then the clasped hands are brought back forcefully to a point a few inches to the right of the right knee. The performance of both cutting strikes is aided by a very powerful jolt of the wrists.
The same movement is performed starting by the waist on the left. In order to perform this magical pass correctly, practitioners need to engage, rather than the muscles of the arms and the legs, the deep muscles of the abdomen.
26. The Digging Bar of Energy
The clasped hands are held in front of the stomach, with the left hand on top as the leading hand. They are shifted then to a vertical position in front of the stomach on the line that separates the two bodies. In a quick movement, they are brought to a point above the head, as if still following the same line. From there, they are made to strike down in a straight line to the place where the magical pass began (fig. 455).
The hands change positions, to have the right hand in the lead, and the movement is repeated. Don Juan called this movement stirring energy with a digging bar.
27. The Big Slash
The clasped hands start on the right, by the waist. They are quickly raised above the head, over the right shoulder (fig. 456).
The wrists jolt back to gain strength, and a powerful diagonal strike is delivered that slashes Figure 455 energy in front of the body, as if cutting through a sheet. The strike ends at a point four or five inches to the left of the left knee (fig. 457).
The same movement is repeated starting from the left.
28. The Sledgehammer
With the left hand in the lead, the hands are clasped together in front of the stomach on the vertical line that divides the left and the right bodies. The palms are held vertical for an instant before the hands are brought to the right of the body and above the head to hang for another instant by the neck, as if holding a heavy sledgehammer. They move over the head in a deliberate and powerful swing (fig. 458)
and are brought to bear on the spot from which they began to move, exactly as if the hands themselves were a heavy sledgehammer (fig. 459).
The hands change positions, and the same movements are started on the left.
29. Cutting a Circle of Energy
The hands are clasped by the right shoulder to begin this magical pass (fig. 460).
Then they are pushed forward as far as the right arm can go without fully extending the elbow. From there, the clasped hands cut a circle the width of the body from right to left, as if they were indeed holding a cutting instrument. In order to perform this movement, the left, leading hand, which is on top, must reverse positions when it reaches the turn of the circle on the left; with the hands still clasped, they flip at the turn of the circle so that the right hand takes the lead by being on top (fig. 461)
and finishes drawing the circle.
The same sequence of movements is performed, starting on the left, with the right hand in the lead.
30. The Back-and-Forth Slash
The hands are clasped on the right, with the left hand in the lead. A powerful blow pushes the hands forward, about two feet away from the chest. Then, they slash, as if they were holding a sword, as far to the left as the arms allow them without completely extending the elbows (fig. 462).
There, the hands change positions. The right hand becomes the leading hand on top and a counter-slash is performed, which takes the clasped hands all the way to a point on the right side, a few inches to the right of where this magical pass started (fig. 463).
The same sequence of movements is repeated, starting on the left, with the right hand in the lead.