We conclude the devilish and mysterious story surrounding the disappearance of a group of women involved in a small cult run by new age author Carlos Castaneda. 

Not many are aware that one of the most successful New Age authors, Carlos Castaneda, lead a cult. The women that made up the inner circle of his cult were called “the witches” and five of them disappeared after Castaneda’s death in 1998. In an all too familiar trope, Castaneda’s mythology was built on lies, narcissism, hypocrisy, and abuse, yet the witches remain missing. Did they commit mass suicide, or are they still in control of the cult’s workshops (Tensegrity) and publishing empire?

With Special Guest Mariah Klapatch! 

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8088.Carlos_Castaneda

https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B000APXVFG

https://www.altaonline.com/dispatches/a60923618/carlos-castaneda-cult-geoffrey-gray/

https://deleuze.cla.purdue.edu/people/carlos-castaneda/

https://www.castaneda.com/

https://www.amazon.com/Sorcerers-Apprentice-Life-Carlos-Castaneda/dp/1583942068/ref=asc_df_1583942068?mcid=0d8519cc17a73ea982de07dd78440a03&hvocijid=5328905483217033375-1583942068-&hvexpln=73&tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=721245378154&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=5328905483217033375&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9031201&hvtargid=pla-2281435177378&psc=1

Not many are aware that one of the most successful “new age” authors, Carlos Castaneda, lead a cult. The women that made up the inner circle of his cult were called “the witches” and five of them disappeared soon after Castaneda’s death in 1998. In an all too familiar trope, Castaneda’s mythology was built on lies, narcissism, hypocrisy, and abuse, yet the witches remain missing. Did they commit mass suicide, or are they in control of the cult’s workshops (Tensegrity) and publishing empire. 

Theme Music by Matt Glass: https://www.glassbrain.com/

Instagram: @astudyofstrange

Support the Show! astudyofstrange.substack.com/

Website: www.astudyofstrange.com

Hosted by Michael May

Email stories, comments, or ideas to [email protected]!

©2025 Convergent Content, LLC

LINKS

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8088.Carlos_Castaneda

https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B000APXVFG

https://www.altaonline.com/dispatches/a60923618/carlos-castaneda-cult-geoffrey-gray/

https://deleuze.cla.purdue.edu/people/carlos-castaneda/

https://www.castaneda.com/

https://www.amazon.com/Sorcerers-Apprentice-Life-Carlos-Castaneda/dp/1583942068/ref=asc_df_1583942068?mcid=0d8519cc17a73ea982de07dd78440a03&hvocijid=5328905483217033375-1583942068-&hvexpln=73&tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=721245378154&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=5328905483217033375&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9031201&hvtargid=pla-2281435177378&psc=1

What makes an object haunted? These four paintings have strange and mysterious backgrounds, along with claims of supernatural phenomena. #1 The Hands Resist Him, #2 The Anguished Man, #3 Woman of the Rain, #4 The Crying Boy

In 1908, something tore through the skies over Siberia and exploded with the force of a thousand Hiroshima bombs. Trees were flattened across 800 square miles, yet no impact crater was ever found. What caused the Tunguska Event? A meteor? A comet? Something stranger?

Jonathan Todd Schwartz was a successful business manager for A-list celebrities and seemingly had it all. However, his life took a dark turn when he stole nearly $5 million from Alanis Morrissette and other clients. Driven by addiction, Schwartz's story is now one of rehabilitation and redemption.

Follow Jonathan https://www.instagram.com/therealjonathanschwartz/

Altus Rehab 

Theme Music by Matt Glass https://www.glassbrain.com/

Instagram: @astudyofstrange

Support the Show! astudyofstrange.substack.com/

Website: www.astudyofstrange.com

Hosted by Michael May

Email stories, comments, or ideas to [email protected]!

©2025 Convergent Content, LLC

LINKS

https://www.phantomsandmonsters.com/p/chicago-phantom-sightings-2011-2017.html

https://ufoclearinghouse.wordpress.com/the-latest-ufo-sightings/

From underwater anomalies to the notorious Hum heard around the world, these eight strange sounds are difficult to explain. 

LINKS

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtEfHnbMWIg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3k1Qwx9Y0Q

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EuRBM0i8mbI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PG3JDTWW2fU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=up4BhgfjA2A

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPae-2nnsoY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmaxQgAaKns

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7Xn6gQmmcY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JArPkrS4LYQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yfa8NscHFnE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4sDyTaVwWY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8zhCjBYY_M

On Easter Sunday, 1937, Veronica Gedeon, her mother, and a boarder were found killed in their New York City apartment. Veronica was a beautiful model, and the press provoked public reaction by publishing her portfolio of sensual photographs. The case had a lasting impact by influencing laws for the criminally insane.

Theme Music by Matt Glass https://www.glassbrain.com/

Instagram: @astudyofstrange

A dairy farmer is found dead in a small Vermont town, but was it murder...or an elaborate suicide plot to frame his enemies? The mystery surrounding Orville Gibson's death was a world-wide sensation news story at the time, and remains unsolved to this day, with two prevailing theories. Was he lynched by vengeful neighbors, or did he stage his own death to take down the town that scorned him?

Theme Music by Matt Glass https://www.glassbrain.com/

Instagram: @astudyofstrange

LINKS

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DPfA8cqkvo

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/new-twist-in-vermont-farmers-mysterious-1957-death/

https://www.truecrimene.com/episodes/episode-62-the-suspicious-death-of-orville-gibson

https://newengland.com/yankee/magazine/the-haunting-case-of-orville-gibson/

https://transom.org/2014/murder-memory-in-a-new-england-village-the-story-of-orville-gibson/

https://vtdigger.org/2014/11/16/former-judge-explores-newburys-mystery-orville-gibson/