Biography: Carlos César Salvador Aranha Castaneda was an American author with a Ph.D. in anthropology. Starting with "The Teachings of Don Juan" in 1968, Castaneda wrote a series of books that describe his training in shamanism, particularly with a group whose lineage descended from the Toltecs. The books, narrated in the first person, relate his experiences under the tutelage of a Yaqui "Man of Knowledge" named don Juan Matus.