I have a few questions. How does Astral Projection work? How would I go about learning how to Astral Project? Is there any books out there that can explain to me more about Astral Projection?
Astral Projection is an out-of-body experience which can be achieved consciously or through lucid dreaming. The belief is that within the physical body lies an astral body, through astral projection the astral body leaves the physical body and goes into what is referred to as the astral realm or commonly the realm of thought. There are many, many methods on how to achieve astral travel; it takes practice, time, and trial-and-error to find a method that best suits you or works for you.
Useful Links:
Lucid Dreaming is different from Astral Projection but I thought I'd add this link -http://www.world-of-lucid-dreaming.com/
http://www.crystalinks.com/astral.html
Books:
Astral Projection: Astral Projection Mastery by L.J. Jordan
There is also Etheric projection, which is more shamanic and dangerous in it's nature. That is the same concept, but less of a projection and more of an actual leaving of the body.
This is a Copy and Paste of my OWN article i wrote years back, posted it up originally on IMVU somewhere i believe. ill get round to posting the full thing here at some point. Anyways, use this to help people when they have asked me about Astral Travel. Note its from my own experiences and understanding. What i consider energy, soul, spirit world etc may differ per individual depending on belief and personal ideals. I have Astral Projected myself on a number of levels and have managed to help a few achieve it as well.
First and foremost before anything GROUND YOURSELF! Dont let yourself float off... although mind you, your body naturally doesnt like you doing this anyway, hence why when people try they meet 'barriers'. You can overcome this, as long as you keep a connection to your body and train it accordingly to accept this.
What & How It Works?
1. A means in which to converse/contact our Spirit Guide/Higher self
2. Experiencing the spirit realm for what it is. I’m not entirely sure 'what' it is to be honest. I just know that it feels a lot like a realm of energy in which souls/spirits can freely travel. There is no proof where the astral realm is, but i think it is the link between all existences, and thus cannot be reached on a physical level.
3. A means of connecting with someone far away from you, perhaps in another country and even someone on a different plane of existence or even a soul that has passed on. It seems all souls can be located on the astral, regardless of whether you share the same existence or not. But that is just from my experience, i am uncertain as to the facts on this.
4. Also a means of connecting with your Astral Self. The best way i can explain that is its the link between your physical body and the astral plane. Your astral self appears to (according to my experience, don’t quote me, im still researching this idea) reside within the astral realm but is also linked to your body at the same time and is ever present. Something i have noticed from astral travel is that the astral form can change, it does not have a set appearance. Mine changes in appearance from the different physical forms I have taken on my Journey. I believe it is influenced by my mood but at this point I am uncertain.
Learning to Astral Project
Preparation
In order to achieve astral Projection i needed strict discipline, rhythmatic breathing, focus and selflessness. The first thing i recommend to anyone attempting astral projection on any level, is practice at meditation. You do not need to do it every day, but at least 4 times a week i found rather helpful. You do not need to sit in the Lotus position to meditate (i myself find it painful to be honest). Any position is fine but generally the more relaxed the body, the better it will work, and you must sit in a position you can keep still for at least an hour without interruption. I found when i first started out with meditation, i got fidgety and couldn’t stay still long enough to concentrate on the task at hand. I found a solution though, i propped myself up flat against a wall, sitting cross legged, palms facing upward with the backs of my arms resting on my legs. I was able to breath in correctly and sit for a long period of time until my body got used to it, then i took the wall out of the equation.
Meditate to expand your mind, discipline your body and strengthen your spirit. The aim of it i find is to let your mind go, without falling asleep. Firstly find a place in which you will not be disturbed for 40mins - 1 hour, and somewhere peaceful away from noise. I myself find sitting amongst nature very relaxing and rejuvenating, so this is always where i meditate. Only work with a place that works with you. Take in your surroundings breathing gently in and out, and then close your eyes continuing this trend for several minutes. Meditation should flow naturally and not feel as if its forced. Take in all that you can smell and hear around you and allow your remaining senses to open up. I find the best way to describe the experience is that you blend within everything around you, becoming a part of it, psychically, mentally, but not physically. Maintain this pattern for as long as you can but do not push it hard at first. If you can only do it for 10mins at first before your selflessness breaks that is ok, work it up slowly. Remember meditation is about the mind and spirit. However do not strain yourself. The key is to find the right balance, for you need not concentrate but you mustn't fully relax either. This will strengthen most of your discipline.
Practice of Astral Projection
Once you become fluent in the meditation practice, you are ready to begin attempts at astral projection. You need a position in which your body can become limp. If there is any tension/strain in your muscles, you will make it harder on yourself and less likely to achieve your goal, as I have learned from experience. Experiment with what position works for you, I find laying flat on my back with my arms by my sides comfortable with no strain. Close your eyes and begin as you did with your meditation practices. Practice first on your soul and spirit, detaching these from your body allowing them to be the focus and not what is physical. Its difficult to achieve on its own as i found if I got an itch my concentration would break in an instant, but over time my spirit got used to the idea and 'forgot' about the physical troubles of the body long enough for me to eventually succeed. I will stress that all this just takes time and practice... and a lot of determination, you must never give up and eventually you will find a way to do it too.
In a state of selflessness, you can then explore with your senses around you as you did in meditation, open all your senses to everything that is around you. To astral project, you need to find a place within you, within your body that will allow your subconscious mind and soul out. I found achieving this difficult but it helped using my mind's eye to create a vision of chains around me in my mind and watching them break around me. This barrier is different for everyone, I don’t believe I was really surrounded by chains, all that i saw was symbolic, its a little hard to explain. You need to search within yourself and find the barrier, and allow it to fall away from your soul. This will then give yourself the freedom to leave at your own will. Once this is accomplished, you need then to work on separating your subconscious and spirit from your physical form. When I first experienced this it felt as if my spirit was 'lifting' out of my body... my body itself felt limp but i felt like i was elsewhere. The first time this happened I panicked and slammed back into my body. This appears to be where most people stop and figure its impossible, but its not, this feeling is indeed normal and yes a little alien.
With all that, good luck and message me if you want to know anything else
~Kal
