i see a lot of threads on this site written by people who seem to want to rush and focus on what i like to call 'the current fashionable magick aspects'. everywhere i look at the moment both on this site and others is the subject of astral projection :-)
i often wonder why when people are so new to craft ( eg a few weeks or few short months (6 months and the like) ) that we dont see more threads and questions asked upon the subject of the 'basics' (meditation.vizualization,circle casting,altar set up,moon phases etc ) there is a saying 'fail to plan is to plan to fail' astral projection is possible but why rush? study basic techniques first after all if the craft is for you , then you have years to study and perfect techniques :-)
I can only speak for myself, but when i first started i was very excited and wanted to practice everything under the sun. Got way too far ahead of myself and had to back track and start at the basics.
lol When you're faced with a typical, SoM beginner, they have one thing in mind, that usually is a high set goal. This goal is all they want out of it all. High set goals we see a lot here are usually things that the members know little to nothing about.
Why set a goal for something you don't know about?
Well that's simple, take in the concept of "magic", regarding what you see in movies. It is this mysterious force people use to get everything their hearts desire. With things like astral projection, the less you know about it, the more glamorous it seems.
What beginners should grasp from the very beginning is not that you need to know how to cast a circle in order to astral project, or learn the moon phases, or know particularly how to meditate for that matter, but that magic and practices such as projection are not all the smoke and mirrors Hollywood makes it out to be.
And for the love of god and everything holy, nothing of the sort can be achieved without working for it at least a little. All too many newbs expect things to be handed over on a silver platter.
well i agree with your comments, but just to say i was not saying that in order ot astral project you need to cast a circle! was mearly saying that newbies should concentrate on learning the basics and the history of the craft rather than worry about the 'latest fashion'. thanks for the comments though, many blessings to you macus
I personally don't see astral projection as a part of magick. It's natural for our spirits, every person does it at some point when they sleep (out of body experience) at all ages. In harnessing the ability to astral project correctly, they experience for themselves energy, spirits, can interact with their spirit guide, and learn. By experiencing the astral or ethereal plane, they can begin to truly understand how it all works.
I don't discourage people from attempting to astral project. In order to do so, they must master meditation and trance, which takes quite a lot of practice and dedication. And we all know meditation and trance is the cornerstone of magick.
In projecting they aren't truly gaining anything physically. Wanting to astral project is usually tied to a desire to learn and see through the actual spirit world instead of wanting to bend the physical world around them like they're a wizard from a fiction movie. I find it more refreshing when someone asks about astral projection than desiring to cast a love spell, money spell, or be like Harry Potter. I think that those who do astral project have a firmer reality of what magick truly is, and what their limits are.
When is a good time to astral project? People who aren't even interested in magick (that I knew personally) used to practice it. My mother saw it as the ultimate way to let go of the mental hold on the physical, and look more into the spiritual side of life in general. It was sort of a small step to enlightenment in her eyes. To be able to let go of one's body while conscious is an excellent way to realize your mundane world is not the center of the universe or all that is. Some people have doubts that there is anything beyond the physical world we live in, and I have never met a person who astral projected fully who still had that doubt.
I began meditating when I was very young and I can tell you, I didn't truly know meditation until I learned to project at the age of fourteen. My mother actually taught me how to astral project, how to let go and enter a trance. Believe it or not, she made me listen to Pink Floyd's Breathe, and breathe to the beat, feel the music, and feel myself become the music, float away with it. It worked. I read Robert Bruce as a way to pick up any additional "tips" that could help more. And in practicing, when I entered my first trance, I met my animal spirit, and was able to see him clear as day. It was extremely encouraging, and I continued to practice until I made it. My animal spirit guided me. Learning to astral project was an experience that sticks out in my mind far stronger than any spell or ritual.
My personal experience influences my views I'm sure, but it is another perspect to take into consideration.
I am technically a beginner myself even though it may not show it on my profile but I think its good to know your basics. Because if you don't you may wind up messing something simple up just because you didnt learn them.
