Introduction to Astral Projetion and Astral Travel
You too can discover and travel through whole new worlds with astral projection. It is seen as a way to channel an out-of-body experience, leaving the physical world and entering a completely new one will get you to the afterlife, without having to die first. Once you decide to leave behind your consciousness and accept a whole new method of subconscious thinking into your life, you might even discover a whole new outlook on the real world.
Discovering the astral world can be done in many different ways today. In the old days, many would resort to heavy meditation, hallucinogenic drugs and other difficult methods to obtain spiritual enlightenment through astral travel. Present-day methods have evolved with modern medical science and technology to give hopeful dreamers accessible ways into the astral bodies, allowing many more to project into new worlds.
A Brief History of Astral Travel
Traveling into the unknown has been a part of many cultures across the world for centuries. Not all cultures associated astral travel with positive imagery, however, as some religions and beliefs often treat it as a form of witchcraft and taboo. Luckily, many others embrace astral travel as a form of mediation and spiritual enlightenment.
- Astral projection has many interpretations and associations in the religious world. In Islamic culture, Muhammad's transportation from Jerusalem up to the Seven Heavens is considered by scholars to be a literary example of astral travel.
- In contrast to this belief, the Book of Ecclesiastes in the Christian Bible cites the “silver cord” as a means of attaching the physical body to the soul.
- Mythology from many other cultures also have firm beliefs of the spiritual realm. Japanese mythology speaks of the ikiryō, which is a manifestation of the soul. This manifestation lives separately from a physical body.
- The Japanese also believe that this manifestation can leave the body through astral travel in order to harm or place a curse on another person, much like the Middle-Eastern belief of the Evil Eye.
- Common Western beliefs see the astral body as the link between the soul and the physical body. The astral plane is where the soul will travel in death, or in a near-death experience, to travel up to heaven. The astral plane also exists into the underworld, where a traveling soul may meet demons and other evil spirits.
- In ancient Egypt, the Ka is the concept of vitality which sets the living apart from the dead. When a person dies, the Ka leaves the body, similar to the concept of a soul or spirit in other cultural beliefs and religions today.
Traveling the Astral Plane: You Can Do It, Too
Getting in touch with the spiritual world is often seen only in the realm of divine figures, or monks who have achieved new levels of consciousness and concentration. Today, even the everyman can achieve oneness with the afterlife, and travel to many other places across the astral plane while doing so.
A common myth behind astral travel is that it requires religious associations, magical methods, and certain paraphernalia to perform properly. This is certainly far from the truth; no elaborate rituals are required for a person to properly surf across the astral galaxy.
Another common method and myth behind astral projections is that drugs are required. While many kinds of drugs, whether they be organic, synthetic, or outright dangerous in nature can induce hallucinations in a person, they are certainly not a requirement. In fact, it may be better to steer clear of certain drugs in order to get in touch with the astral plane without hurting yourself.
Here is an easy way you can surf the astral plane, while achieving a natural high in the process:
- Sleep Paralysis – Astral projections can be achieved through the use of lucid dreaming. Sleep paralysis is a common way to achieve this state of astral projection; luckily, it can be done in a safe and controlled manner, provided the dreamer is disciplined enough to do the following:
- When you are about to go to sleep, lay flat on your back. It is essential to resist the urge to shift your sleeping position, or to roll over at any part of this process. If you feel the desire to change your sleeping position, it is because your physical body is testing you to see if you are still awake.
- The trick behind this technique is to fool your body into thinking that you are asleep. Once your body thinks you are fast asleep, it will begin to paralyze you. Do not panic; this is a completely normal and regulated body function.
- You will remain fully conscious throughout this state of paralysis. While you are paralyzed, you will experience astral projections in the form of auditory and visual hallucinations, otherwise known as a lucid dream.
If you have reservations about performing a feat such as this, then do not consider yourself any less of an astral traveler. Achieving oneness with the subconscious and the astral plane are not something many can achieve overnight, so try and consult an expert if you have any doubts or difficulties.
Surfing the astral plane can be something great to do in your spare time, especially if you lead a particularly stressful or depressing life. Astral travel may even offer you a new way of looking at your life, giving you a more positive outlook and better spiritual health.
Source: The Free Online Encyclopedia