Carlos Castaneda and the Yaqui Men of Power
ANSELMO VALENCIA, YAQUI
Anselmo Valencia Tori (April 21, 1921 – May 2, 1998[1]) was the former chairman of the Pascua Yaqui Association, former vice-chairman of the Pascua Yaqui Tribal Council and Elder of the tribe. Raised in southern Arizona and Rio Yaqui, Mexico, Anselmo adopted his second surname as a young man. ”Tori” is the family’s clan name.
By all accounts, and there were many, the road from genocide to independence was a long, arduous and seemingly impossible journey for the Yoeme people.
But the proud and defiant Yoeme, commonly known as Yaqui, overcame insurmountable obstacles from the nightmarish years in their native Sonora, Mexico, to their exodus to Tucson and nearby communities, to the day on Sept. 18, 1978, when the U.S. government recognized the Pascua Yaqui of Arizona as a federally recognized tribe.
In celebration the Pascua Yaqui Nation will sponsor History Nights, three lecture presentations on Yoeme culture and history in Tucson, Sept. 17, Sept. 18 and Sept. 21, all open to the public.
Federal recognition came after years of efforts led by Anselmo Valencia Tori, the tribe’s elder and former chairman, who died in 1998. The official recognition gave the Pascua Yaqui similar status to other Native American tribes.
https://tucson.com/news/local/article_9852e170-d1fb-5d08-b220-55476cc2b8ae.html
But the proud and defiant Yoeme, commonly known as Yaqui, overcame insurmountable obstacles from the nightmarish years in their native Sonora, Mexico, to their exodus to Tucson and nearby communities, to the day on Sept. 18, 1978, when the U.S. government recognized the Pascua Yaqui of Arizona as a federally recognized tribe.
In celebration the Pascua Yaqui Nation will sponsor History Nights, three lecture presentations on Yoeme culture and history in Tucson, Sept. 17, Sept. 18 and Sept. 21, all open to the public.
Federal recognition came after years of efforts led by Anselmo Valencia Tori, the tribe’s elder and former chairman, who died in 1998. The official recognition gave the Pascua Yaqui similar status to other Native American tribes.
https://tucson.com/news/local/article_9852e170-d1fb-5d08-b220-55476cc2b8ae.html
The Pascua Yaqui Tribe descends from Uto-Aztecan people who once occupied Mexico and the Southwest United States. Today the tribe has eight communities in Southern Arizona spanning scenic desert lands. Visitors are invited to experience Pascua Yaqui culture at two museums and multiple annual ceremonies that showcase the tribe’s cherished deer dances and distinctive arts and crafts passed down through generations.
https://www.visitarizona.com/places/american-indian/pascua-yaqui-tribe?page=2&sa=u
https://www.visitarizona.com/places/american-indian/pascua-yaqui-tribe?page=2&sa=u
The Pascua Yaqui Tribe of Arizona borders the Tohono O’odham Nation San Xavier District to the north, and is just 10 miles west of the Tucson International Airport. The Pascua Yaqui Tribe of Arizona traces its history to the Rio Yaqui that flows through Sonora, Mexico. This large river allowed Yaqui ancestors to irrigate fields of corn, beans and squash and hunt deer that lived in the wetlands. The Yaqui traded extensively with other tribes and ranged far into the American Southwest.
In the 1960s the Tribe petitioned to become a federally recognized nation, and through the efforts of members including Anselmo Valencia Tori, the Pascua Yaqui Tribe was officially recognized as a sovereign nation by the U.S. Government in 1978. Today, the Pascua Yaqui Nation is 1,194 acres with a Tribal membership of more than 3,000 people.
The Spanish first encountered the Yaqui in 1533, and according to Spanish accounts were met by fierce warriors whose leader drew a line on the ground, threatening anyone who crossed over it into Yaqui land. The account called the Yaqui “the fiercest fighters in the New World.” Yaqui called themselves Yoeme. The Spanish misinterpreted the Yoeme word for speech, “hiaki,” as their name, and that was further transformed into “Yaqui.”
In the late 1800s and early 1900s, development and encroachment by the Mexican government and American investors forced the Yaquis to fight for their homeland. Many Yaqui were killed, taken as prisoners and forced into slavery on plantations or escaped into the surrounding mountains and into Arizona. Many Yaqui settled in Old Pascua Village in Tucson, and it is this group that became the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, one of five Yaqui groups that settled in Arizona.
Pascua is Spanish for Easter and is thought to also be the day the village was settled.
A Christian cross appears on the Pascua Yaqui tribal flag as does the sun representing Achai Taa'ah, Father Sun, an important part of traditional Yaqui beliefs. Achai Taa'ah is also represented by a deer, and Deer Dancers are an important part of Yaqui ceremonies today.
https://destinationnativeamerica.com/tribes/pascua-yaqui-tribe
In the 1960s the Tribe petitioned to become a federally recognized nation, and through the efforts of members including Anselmo Valencia Tori, the Pascua Yaqui Tribe was officially recognized as a sovereign nation by the U.S. Government in 1978. Today, the Pascua Yaqui Nation is 1,194 acres with a Tribal membership of more than 3,000 people.
The Spanish first encountered the Yaqui in 1533, and according to Spanish accounts were met by fierce warriors whose leader drew a line on the ground, threatening anyone who crossed over it into Yaqui land. The account called the Yaqui “the fiercest fighters in the New World.” Yaqui called themselves Yoeme. The Spanish misinterpreted the Yoeme word for speech, “hiaki,” as their name, and that was further transformed into “Yaqui.”
In the late 1800s and early 1900s, development and encroachment by the Mexican government and American investors forced the Yaquis to fight for their homeland. Many Yaqui were killed, taken as prisoners and forced into slavery on plantations or escaped into the surrounding mountains and into Arizona. Many Yaqui settled in Old Pascua Village in Tucson, and it is this group that became the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, one of five Yaqui groups that settled in Arizona.
Pascua is Spanish for Easter and is thought to also be the day the village was settled.
A Christian cross appears on the Pascua Yaqui tribal flag as does the sun representing Achai Taa'ah, Father Sun, an important part of traditional Yaqui beliefs. Achai Taa'ah is also represented by a deer, and Deer Dancers are an important part of Yaqui ceremonies today.
https://destinationnativeamerica.com/tribes/pascua-yaqui-tribe
The Anselmo Valencia Tori Amphitheater, also known as AVA Amphitheater or simply AVA, is a busy outdoor entertainment venue in Tucson, Arizona. Named after Anselmo Valencia Tori, a former chairman of the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, it is situated in the southwest corner of Tucson within the tribe’s Casino Del Sol Resort, the Tribe’s second gaming property. The amphitheater, the first such concert facility in Tucson, was conceived, designed, and built by the Tribe. It opened on October 14, 2001.
AVA has since hosted many events, including concerts, festivals, and other live performances. Upcoming shows include Billy Idol, Walker Hayes, T.I. with Chingy, and rock ‘n roll legend and Arizona’s own favorite adopted son Alice Cooper. With its picturesque desert backdrop and a seating capacity of around 5,000, it’s a favorite spot for both performers and audiences alike.
https://www.rhinostaging.com/rhino-tucsons-home-away-from-home-anselmo-valencia-tori-amphitheater/
AVA has since hosted many events, including concerts, festivals, and other live performances. Upcoming shows include Billy Idol, Walker Hayes, T.I. with Chingy, and rock ‘n roll legend and Arizona’s own favorite adopted son Alice Cooper. With its picturesque desert backdrop and a seating capacity of around 5,000, it’s a favorite spot for both performers and audiences alike.
https://www.rhinostaging.com/rhino-tucsons-home-away-from-home-anselmo-valencia-tori-amphitheater/
HEATHER VALENCIA
The true story of Heather Valencia's journey to Yaqui, and her experiences with Anselmo Valencia, the spiritual leader of the Yaqui people and Heather's future husband.
In Queen of Dreams author Heather Valencia describes her passionate love affair with Anselmo, her discovery of the rich Yaqui spiritual tradition under Amselmo's guidance, her otherworldly spiritual explorations, and her mystical activities with the powerful circle of Dreaming Women.
https://www.amazon.com/Queen-Dreams-Heather-Valencia/dp/0671797239
In Queen of Dreams author Heather Valencia describes her passionate love affair with Anselmo, her discovery of the rich Yaqui spiritual tradition under Amselmo's guidance, her otherworldly spiritual explorations, and her mystical activities with the powerful circle of Dreaming Women.
https://www.amazon.com/Queen-Dreams-Heather-Valencia/dp/0671797239
Queen of Dreams: The Story of a Yaqui Dreaming Woman by Heather Valencia and Rolly Kent is a 1991 book detailing Valencia's spiritual journey into the Yaqui tradition, her relationship with spiritual leader Anselmo Valencia, and her experiences with the "Dreaming Women," a mystical circle within the culture. It's a memoir about love, spirituality, and discovering a rich, otherworldly tradition through her marriage and spiritual exploration.
Heather Valencia was born of Cherokee descent, on March 20, 1945, in Hannibal, Missouri. She graduated from high school in 1963 with honors, as best artist and won a scholarship to the Bauhaus School of Design at the University of Kansas at Lawrence.
She earned a B.A. in Design, graduated 1967 outstanding designer. 1968, one year Masters program with top design awards in textile design.
Influenced by pre-Columbian Native American Art, the fabric designs of ancient Peru, the art of the Toltecs and Mayans.
Special interests in the works of American artist Thomas Hart Benton of the Land Grant Painters. DeKooning and Pollock, Deqan Narcho, (only native American Abstract Expressionist), the New York School, E.J. Gold and the School of Reductionism.
All these works have in common a view of another world, and pathways to the mysteries.
The Peruvians tied prayer knots in their weavings that were a morse code to their prayer forms. The North American artists clearly had views to higher worlds.
Two contemporary artists most affected and influenced Valencia. Dean Narcho, Tohono Oodam artist, member of the New York School, with whom she worked as a muralist in Tucson during her many years on the neighboring Yaqui reservation.
The other was E.J. Gold, whose works she encountered first hand in the John Cage show, monumentals on black in bold rich colors. She moved to Grass Valley in 1994 to study with the Reductionists.
https://www.gvgg.com/artists/valencia/
She earned a B.A. in Design, graduated 1967 outstanding designer. 1968, one year Masters program with top design awards in textile design.
Influenced by pre-Columbian Native American Art, the fabric designs of ancient Peru, the art of the Toltecs and Mayans.
Special interests in the works of American artist Thomas Hart Benton of the Land Grant Painters. DeKooning and Pollock, Deqan Narcho, (only native American Abstract Expressionist), the New York School, E.J. Gold and the School of Reductionism.
All these works have in common a view of another world, and pathways to the mysteries.
The Peruvians tied prayer knots in their weavings that were a morse code to their prayer forms. The North American artists clearly had views to higher worlds.
Two contemporary artists most affected and influenced Valencia. Dean Narcho, Tohono Oodam artist, member of the New York School, with whom she worked as a muralist in Tucson during her many years on the neighboring Yaqui reservation.
The other was E.J. Gold, whose works she encountered first hand in the John Cage show, monumentals on black in bold rich colors. She moved to Grass Valley in 1994 to study with the Reductionists.
https://www.gvgg.com/artists/valencia/
Heather Valencia
BiographyFrom: WAKING DREAMS
July 16 – August 31, 1996
In the ancient myths of her people, the goddess dreamed the world and it was. For many years a leader of the Yaqui dreaming circles, into the depths where myth is a reality and the life we lead is the dream from which we waken.
https://arcturus.ca/artist_gallery/valencia/
BiographyFrom: WAKING DREAMS
July 16 – August 31, 1996
In the ancient myths of her people, the goddess dreamed the world and it was. For many years a leader of the Yaqui dreaming circles, into the depths where myth is a reality and the life we lead is the dream from which we waken.
https://arcturus.ca/artist_gallery/valencia/
BRONZE YAQUI DEER DANCER
Bronze Deer Dance Statue in the home of Warren Red Wing Ramey, former Principal Chief of the Southern Cherokee.
Red Wing told me that the bronze was a gift from Carlos Castenada. He spoke of his relationship with other Indigenous Elders and then stated. "We were all Don Juan."
Conversations with Indigenous Elders