Astral Dynamics 
  The Complete Book of Out-of-Body Experience. 
  Revised eBook Edition 
  By Robert Bruce 

  Copyright @ 2012 
  Robert Bruce 
  All rights are reserved, including the right to reproduce or display or distribute, in part or in whole, in any form whatsoever, without direct permission in writing from the publisher and signed by the author, except for brief passages in connection with a review. 

  Cover design by Magic Light Press Company 
  Cover art by Edita Smirnovova 
  eBook Design, Layout, and production, by Magic Light Press Company, www.MagicLightPress.com 

  Hampton Roads Publishing Company, Inc. 
  PO Box 8107 
  Charlottesville,  VA 22906 

  434-296-2772 fax: 434-296-5096 
  e-mail: hrpc@hrpub.com www.hrpub.com 

  If you are unable to order this book from your local bookseller, you may order directly from the publisher. Call 434-296-2772. 

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data 

  ISBN 978-1-57174-616-0

  10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

 
 EBOOK TERMS OF USE

  	By voluntarily downloading and/or opening and reading this eBook, Astral Dynamics: The Complete Book of Out-of-Body Experience (revised eBook edition 2012) you agree to the following: This book was written by Robert Bruce. The first edition was copyrighted in 1999, and the revised 10th Anniversary edition in 2009, in the name of Robert Bruce, by Hampton Roads Publishing Company, VA, USA, with all rights reserved. This eBook edition may be printed for personal use only. It is permissible to use short passages only in connection with a review. It is illegal under international copyright law to print or to copy any part of this eBook for distribution, to distribute, or to create derivative works, or to display or to share this eBook on the Internet in whole or in part, in any form whatsoever. It is illegal to copy this eBook file and give it to, or make it available to, other people electronically. It is also illegal to contribute to any of those activities. By voluntarily opening and/or reading this eBook you acknowledge and affirm this agreement in whole.

 DISCLAIMER

  	While energy work and spiritual development and achieving altered states of consciousness, out-of-body experiences, and lucid dreaming, are the main focus of this book, there are no guarantees that you will experience or achieve anything whatsoever from following any of the instructions, procedures, and advice given within this book. Personal experiences vary too greatly. You, the reader, are solely responsible for any physical, mental, emotional, psychological, or spiritual problems and maladies, whether real or perceived or imaginary, that might arise, or that you might perceive to arise, from following any of the ideas, procedures, and advice offered within the pages of this book, whether directly stated, perceived, implied, or assumed.

 	  

 ALSO BY ROBERT BRUCE

  
 	Astral Dynamics (1999 and 2009 editions – Hampton Roads, VA)

 	The Practical Psychic Self-Defense Handbook (2002 and 2011 editions – Hampton Roads, VA)

 	Energy Work (2007 and 2011 editions – Hampton Roads, VA)

 	Mastering Astral Projection: 90 day guide (Llewellyn, MN) - Coauthored with Brian Mercer

 	Mastering Astral Projection: CD audio companion (Llewellyn, MN) - Coauthored with Brian Mercer

 EDITOR'S PREFACE TO THE TENTH ANNIVERSARY EDITION

  	Editing and publishing books is a strange trade. You find a manuscript and say, "The world needs this." You put the effort into getting it edited, designed, proofread, printed, distributed, publicized—and often enough the book makes no stir in the world at all. Often you don't even recoup your costs, and often enough the author considers the fault for the book's nonperformance to rest with the publisher. . . . You wonder, sometimes, what's the use?

 	But then there are those miraculous others, the books that do just what you had hoped, the books that meet response and change people's lives for the better, the books that live. I will never forget the query letter I once received saying that the author had decided that he wanted Hampton Roads to be his publisher after buying a secondhand copy of Astral Dynamics in Kathmandu, and carrying it with him all around Asia.

 	A good while after we published  Astral Dynamics, I finally got to meet Robert Bruce, years after we had become virtual friends. He is as simple, forthright, knowledgeable, humorous, and intelligent in person as on the page, a true delight. I am very pleased to see that his influence around the world continues to grow.

 	Everything I said in my original preface remains true. Astral Dynamics is a personal narrative, a "how-to," a troubleshooting guide, and a theoretical perspective—and it is a treasure regardless of whether you are a skeptic, a veteran astral projector, a newbie, or an armchair traveler. It provides the intelligent and motivated reader with everything needed to put theory into practice. What more can you ask?

 	I said ten years ago that Astral Dynamics would become a classic. I consider that prediction already validated.

 	Frank DeMarco

 	Chairman, Hampton Roads Publishing Company, Inc.

 	www.hologrambooks.com

 AUTHOR'S PREFACE TO THE TENTH ANNIVERSARY EDITION

  	The creation of this tenth anniversary edition of Astral Dynamics has been a true labor of love. In the years since 1999, my continuing exploration of life and out-of-body experience (OBE) has significantly improved my understanding of the greater reality.

 	The idea for the tenth anniversary edition came from my editor, Frank DeMarco, between shrimp and salad, as we dined at a quaint little restaurant in Virginia Beach in early 2009. The idea stuck and soon became official.

 	This new edition bears little resemblance to the original. It is more concise, making room for much new content. The energy work and training sections have been completely replaced. New ideas, methods, and OBE experiences are included. The illustrations and artwork have been redone.

 	Of particular importance, new ideas and ways of working with your higher self are included. These utilize the manifestation process for the development and practice of OBE. Your higher self holds all the keys relating to OBE and psychic abilities. It is wise to work with this dynamic force, rather than against it. Aligning with your higher self solves many OBE-related problems and greatly improves results. This also eases many of the natural fears associated with OBE.

 	

 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  	My heartfelt appreciation and thanks go out to the following people, for contributing in many ways to the realization and production of this book.

 	Frank DeMarco. The management and staff of Hampton Roads Publishing Company. Caroline Needham, Robert DeFord, Donni Hakanson, Cynthia Mitchell. Wynne, Ben, Matt, Jesse, James, Kathlene, and Patricia Bruce. Ginny and David Eldridge. Keith Alderslade, Maureen Caudill, Bob and Marina Felix, Gerik, Emil, and old Blue Boy.

 	I also thank and acknowledge Professor Carl Lindgren for his foreword, and Leslie "Genn" John for her illustrations, in the original 1999 edition of Astral Dynamics.

 	Many thanks to Jevgenij Smirnov, Chairman of Magic Light Press Company, for encouraging me to release this eBook edition, and his tireless work and generosity producing Astral Dynamics (revised edition) in beautiful eBook form.

 	My thanks also go to Edita Smirnovova, professional artist from Magic Light Press Company, for the wonderful new cover art and section heading artwork.

 INTRODUCTION TO ASTRAL DYNAMICS

  	Subtle dimensions exist all around us that very few people ever notice or step into, if they even believe they exist. By reading this book, you take a big step towards the greater reality. The new techniques, ideas, and procedures offered in this new edition are effective and easy to apply. They provide a powerful set of tools and ideas that make sense of out-of-body experience (OBE). This makes OBE more accessible and achievable than ever before.

 	The guidance offered herein draws largely upon my personal experience. Since the age of four, I have had countless OBEs, and I delight in a fresh hands-on approach. This has yielded me a profound understanding of the theory and practice of OBE. I have long realized that we know very little about OBE and other dimensions. Part of this lack comes from our natural, linear, 3-D approach to everything, and the effect this has upon our beliefs. This approach works in the physical universe, but falls down badly once you step into 4-D and beyond.

 	More important than improved techniques are the new ideas presented in this new edition of Astral Dynamics. The mind-split effect, for example, is truly groundbreaking. This makes sense of often-perplexing OBE phenomena. It also reveals why OBE appears to be so difficult to induce, when in fact it is achievable by everyone.

 	In a nutshell, during an OBE the mind splits into copies that operate simultaneously—the physical body/mind, the projected body/mind, and the dream body/mind. This complexity causes many problems during reintegration, when the physical body/mind awakens and three separate memory streams for the same time period must form a single memory. Habitual beliefs and memory processes, and your higher self, have a lot to do with the resulting memory, or the lack of one. Understanding this concept, and how to work with it and around it, is crucial for successful OBE.

 	Without the memory of OBE, it never happened.

 	It is a simple matter for anyone to induce OBE or to dream lucidly, but only a delicate set of conditions make it possible to remember. There is a magic window of opportunity that allows for successful OBE recall. This appears briefly while you are awakening, while your consciousness flickers between sleeping and waking. The key to OBE involves understanding and utilizing this flickering state.

 	The importance of OBE and lucid dreaming becomes clear when you consider how these states bring you closer to your higher spiritual aspects. It is known, for example, that vision problems during OBE can usually be remedied by commanding, "Give me light" or, "Give me clarity!" If you think about how the OBE command process works, it becomes clear that your own higher self is taking direct action. Here, the underlying principles of affirmations and the manifestation process are revealed. While out of body, you are much closer to your higher self than you are to your physical body/mind. Affirmations and commands have a more direct impact in subtle realms. These require more time and effort to work in the physical universe, but the principles are the same.

 	Conscious-exit OBE is not as difficult as is commonly believed. Everyone projects out of body during sleep. Remembering these experiences is another matter, due to the mind-split effect. But anyone is capable of inducing and remembering out-of-body experiences, if they will just take the time to learn how it works and to practice a few basic skills. After this, it is just a matter of practice. This is a bit like learning to ride a bicycle, but instead of gravity, you must balance on the razor edge between sleeping and waking.

 	  

 Chapter1: DIMENSIONAL THEORY

  	The Holy Grail for astral projection is a reliable key to planned and repeatable out-of-body experiences. I have spent much of my life on this quest, studying the dynamics and processes involved with OBE, from both inside and outside my body. This elusive key lies less in projection technique and abilities than in understanding how the human mind processes and stores different types of memories. This understanding involves finding better ways to download the astral-projected double's delicate shadow memories into recallable levels of memory. To do this effectively, you must first know what is happening during the exit and reintegration phases of OBE.
 	After an OBE, the only enduring part is the memory of what happened. If that memory is lost, there is nothing to indicate an OBE occurred. Without the memory, it never happened—even if it did. Therein lies both the problem and the solution.

 	Before we delve further into OBE memory issues, we need a better frame of reference. So let us examine everything that is involved in out-of-body experience.

 	Memory, Mind, Brain, and Consciousness

  	What is your mind and where is your memory? You cannot take your finger and point to where these are. Our best scientists cannot tell us, but we know they exist. Memories do not exist in the physical brain. Any part of the brain can be removed without removing any memories. Half the brain can be removed without losing any memories in an operation called a hemispherectomy. People who have this operation before they have completed puberty will recover with only a slight limp. There is no impairment of short-term or long-term memory. So where are the memories stored?

 	Mind and memory are not solely physical, but appear to exist as energy fields around the physical body. The physical brain is, in this sense, a transceiver, an interface between the mind and the physical body, between mind and matter. If this transceiver becomes damaged (brain damage), the mind cannot function and express itself well.

 	There is a lot more to the mind than its physical existence. We spend one third of our lives asleep and dreaming. Dreaming, lucid dreaming, and out-of-body experience are aspects of mind and consciousness that become active during sleep. It is often said that life itself is a dream, an illusion. And when we die, it can be said that we move into states of existence that parallel dreaming, OBE, and lucid dreaming.
 	Taking all these things into account, my question is, "Who is the dreamer?" If you think and meditate on this, you will realize that there is a lot more to your self and your existence than meets the eye..

 	OBE and Lucid Dreams as Internal or External Phenomena

  	There is ongoing debate on whether OBEs and lucid dreaming are internal or external phenomena of the human mind. This of course raises the questions: what is your mind, and where is your mind located?

 	Again, it is impossible to point to where your mind and your memories are situated. Your mind and your memories certainly do not exist only within the substance of your physical brain. As said previously, the brain appears to act as a transceiver for the mind.

 	My observations indicate that the mind and its memories are spread not only throughout the physical body, but far beyond its boundaries. There is a lot of evidence to support this statement. For example, consider the works of Rupert Sheldrake on morphic fields. Studies like these are compelling and difficult to deny. You can deny these ideas if they do not fit your particular beliefs, but they will not entirely go away.

 	It is equally impossible to point to where your mind is not. This incredibly important fact demonstrates the probability that your mind is a field of consciousness with unknown and potentially infinite boundaries. How far your mind extends as a field of subtle energy is scientifically unknown, albeit a constant source of conjecture. I think it is likely that on some levels your mind extends to the farthest reaches of the universe, into all subtle dimensions, and of course into the physical dimension. Again, there is a lot of evidence to support this, including studies on telepathy, precognition, remote viewing, the sense of being watched, etc.

 	It is my considered opinion that when you have an OBE, a dream, or a lucid dream, you are not actually moving outside the boundaries of your own mind, because your mind has no boundaries or limits (apart from your own beliefs).

 	A better way of looking at this is to consider that when you have a dream, an OBE, or a lucid dream, you are shifting the location of your discrete point of conscious awareness. This point moves within the field of your own mind, which is intimately connected with the entire universe on all dimensional levels. Call this universal mind, the collective consciousness, Source, God—whatever your beliefs suggest—we are all looking at the same good light. In this sense, every living thing, be it human, animal, or vegetable, is a point of mind, a point of consciousness, existing within a universal field of all-encompassing Source consciousness.

 	Your mind can probably best be described as a discrete unit of subtle consciousness energy, enmeshed within a universal field of subtle consciousness energy. This is like an iceberg floating in an ocean—it appears to be separate from the ocean that formed it, until it melts. But it was and always will be a part of the ocean. It may travel here and there, but it is always a part of its source, its maker, the ocean.

 	I have to say that there is no clearly determined inside or outside of your mind and your consciousness. There is no beginning and there is no end to your mind and your memories and your consciousness—or to your life, for that matter.

 	Nonphysical Dimensions

  	Nonphysical dimensions are levels of existence at a higher frequency than the known physical universe. It could also be said that these levels exist at an angle of perception that we cannot normally perceive, an angle beyond 3-D. Just as different types of energies—light, gravity, X-ray, heat, microwave, etc.—can occupy the same space at the same time, so these different dimensional levels coexist, undetectable by the five senses.

 	Nonphysical dimensions must be experienced firsthand to be understood. The astral planes are complex nonphysical dimensional levels, as compared with the relatively predictable and solid physical dimension, and currently, we probably understand only 2 percent of their complexities. The nonphysical laws governing the astral dimension are fluid and variable, and projectors' minds greatly affect their subjective perceptions of the astral dimension. This leaves precious few constant factors to work with.

 	When dealing with the astral dimension, you cannot simply point and say, "There is the astral dimension!" Although the astral dimension permeates the physical universe, it is for the greater part non-spatial. Doorways to the astral exist everywhere and nowhere, both inside and outside of the human mind.

 	That said, please bear with me as I dissect and expound upon the nature of OBE and nonphysical dimensions. This will provide us with a more workable understanding.

 	Dimensional Theory

  	Where possible, I use Western descriptive terms and relate from my own experience and reasoning. Traditional Eastern dimensional theory is steeped in cultural and religious concepts, which can be confusing to Westerners.

 	The Real-Time Zone

  	I call the nonphysical dimensional level closest to the physical universe the real-time zone. (The real-time zone could also aptly be called the etheric dimension, but this is not descriptive.) This is the dimensional level most projectors find themselves in when they first project. The real-time zone can be thought of as anintermediary area that divides the physical universe from the astral dimension proper. It shares some properties of the physical universe (a direct and objective real-time reflection of reality) and some properties of the astral dimension (a fluid nonphysical environment).

 	The real-time zone is best considered a separate dimensional level. This avoids the confusion that stems from trying to relate a single set of projection-related factors and issues to multiple dimensional levels.

 	Reality fluctuations cause most of the confusion in the real-time zone. These are so consistent that they are a rare constant factor of real-time OBE. I find the real-time zone fairly stable and predictable in itself. Most fluctuations result from interactions between the sensitive real-time environment and the generally unstable perceptions of the real-time projected double.

 	Because the real-time zone is so close to the physical dimension, it can be said to be at the lowest part of the astral dimension. The lower planes are traditionally believed to be negative and unsavory environments. However, the real-time zone is not a low astral plane per se, but a dimensional reflection of the physical universe. Consider it a neutral area—a buffer zone dividing the physical universe from the astral planes.

 	The average projector usually finds the real-time zone dimly lit and gloomy. This stems from most people projecting late at night. At night, the world is naturally dark and gloomy. If you project during the daytime, the real-time zone is as bright and clear as day.
 	The real-time zone overlays and permeates the physical universe and contains a perfect reflection of reality within it. Everything happens in real time—as reality actually happens. Projectors traveling within the real-time zone perceive themselves to be following the actual spatial contours of the real world. They exist within a direct nonphysical reflection of reality—as reality happens.

 	I have spent considerable time exploring the real-time zone. The experience is much like being a ghost in the real world. The normal laws of physics do not apply, although there are habits to deal with like gravity. Projectors can travel at will anywhere in the physical universe, at any speed. They can fly and pass through solid matter, although they may perceive some texture and resistance while doing this.

 	Real-time projectors, although they usually perceive themselves to have bodies, exist as points of consciousness. These points of consciousness connect to their physical bodies via invisible energy linkages, or cords. Their physical location is usually consistent with where they perceive themselves to be in the real world. Their movements can be tracked and ascertained if viewed with astral sight—a type of mind's eye vision, or clairvoyance. Real-time projectors can watch and accurately report real-life events. The accuracy of such reports depends upon reality fluctuations and recall after reentry and reintegration—that is, after they return to their bodies.
 	Astral sight enables observers to see into the real-time zone around them. The quality of this type of sight varies. Sometimes only cloudy shapes or indistinct images will be seen. A stronger level of real-time sight can, at the other extreme, be mistaken for normal—it can be that clear—when projectors see real-life objects and events around them vividly through closed eyelids.

 	A simple way of proving that real-time projection is an objective rather than a purely subjective experience is with a deck of cards. Shuffle the deck and, without looking, lay one card face up on top of a wardrobe—preferably at least twenty feet away from where your physical body will be. Alternatively, tape it to a windowpane facing outward. Do not try to guess the card as you do this. Guesswork causes subconscious interference and OBE reality fluctuations. If you try to guess the card, you may see the card you have guessed instead of the actual card.

 	At the start of the projection, move to where the card is and look at it. Glance at it only briefly and remember it. Verbalize this, "the queen of hearts!" while you are returning to and re-entering your physical body. Shout this passionately as you dive into your body. This will maximize your ability to remember not only the OBE, but also the face of the card you saw during the test. When you are back, keep verbalizing the card, "the queen of hearts!" and write it down immediately. Then go and check the target for accuracy.
 	This is not a perfect science, but most real-time projectors can achieve at least 70 percent accuracy with this. Keep this test OBE very short, or you risk losing the memory. A short OBE is the key to remembering OBE.

 	During the prelude to the OBE exit, the abilities of the projected double often manifest. When this happens, people will see and hear into the real-time zone around them. (This can also happen during meditation, when the "mind awake + body asleep" state is achieved.) Most people develop some level of astral sight and hearing just before or during the exit out of body. This results in the common experience of projectors seeing details of the room around them through closed eyelids and hearing unexplainable noises.

 	An example of a real-time astral sight experience: 

 	During my nephew Matt's two-week visit in 1991, I coached him on OBE. While meditating one evening after Matt had gone to bed, I saw his projected double float through the wall of my room. He waved cheerfully and I waved back, moving slowly so as not to break my tranced state. Matt floated about, having some difficulty moving, but enjoying himself. Then he disappeared and from his nearby bedroom I heard a gasp as he briefly awoke in his physical body, before falling back to sleep.

 	The next morning Matt was excited about his first OBE. He had followed my instructions and used an OBE exit method. He felt whole-body vibrations, and then left his body and moved through the wall and saw me and waved. He remembered seeing me wave back. He then lost track of the experience—which ties in with what I saw. The shortness of his OBE is a key factor here. If he had stayed out longer he would likely have lost the memory of this experience.

 	The Astral Planes

  	The astral is the closest subtle dimension to the physical universe. The astral flows on from the real-time zone, but is best thought of as separate. It is traditionally divided into seven major levels—the astral planes—each containing many internal realms. The astral spans the universe, but for all intents and purposes is non-spatial.

 	The astral dimension does not overlay the physical universe like the real-time zone does, but occupies the same space. The astral is dimensionally further removed and does not bear a direct geographical relationship with the physical universe.

 	The astral dimension permeates the universe like a huge mind net, catching and holding reflections of energy, consciousness, and physical matter. The structures of the astral planes are affected by the thoughts, dreams, and perceptions of all living beings, animals included. Inanimate matter also reflects itself into the astral.

 	It can be said that the contents of the physical universe reflect into the astral dimension, and that the astral dimension reflects into the physical universe. The flow of creative energy from the astral can be thought of as a part of the creation and manifestation process, where thoughts and intentions become things.

 Chapter 2: THE PROJECTABLE DOUBLE

  	Many different types of OBE are possible, and each of these involves different versions of the projectable double. To obtain a better understanding, let's look at the main aspects of the projectable double, starting with the human energy body.

 	The Human Energy Body

  	The basic human energy body is the subtle body most closely related to and enmeshed within the physical body. This aspect cannot separate from its physical body during life. The energy body has three main aspects: bioenergetic, pure-energetic, and expanded-energetic. These are closely interrelated.

 	The bioenergetic aspect of the human energy body is the active living template for body intelligence and all biological life processes. This aspect is firmly enmeshed within the physical body.

 	The pure-energetic aspect has at least seven primary energy centers (major chakras), hundreds of secondary energy centers (minor chakras), and thousands of tiny energy exchange pores. Throughout this runs a complex network of internal and external energy pathways, connecting circuitry, meridians, and energy structures.

 	The expanded-energetic aspect is generated when the physical body falls asleep, or enters the "mind awake + body asleep" state. When this happens, the pure-energetic aspect expands outwards, becoming the expanded energy body.

 	Holding the mind awake while the physical body sleeps creates a wide range of energy changes. These can cause peculiar sensations, such as feelings of expansion or shrinking. The degree of energy-body expansion depends upon the level of sleep—or the altered state of consciousness—attained.

 	The energy body in its expanded state is a true subtle body in its own right. The main difference between it and the real-time and astral projectable subtle bodies is that the expanded energy body cannot fully separate from its physical body. (The possible exception here is NDE—near death experience.) However, the expanded energy body can gain some degree of movement within its physical body during deep altered states of consciousness.
 	The continuing presence of all three aspects of the energy body appears essential for the continuance of life. The subtle body closest to the energy body is the real-time body. The expanded energy body generates the real-time projectable double when it is active. The generation and extrusion of an exterior subtle body—a projected double—during the OBE process involves a multi-stage process.

 	Altered States and Inner-Body Projection

  	If the physical body falls asleep while its mind is even partially awake, it enters an altered state of consciousness—also called a trance state. A telltale sinking heaviness and cozy warmth can be briefly felt at this time, before sleep occludes normal awake consciousness. When the first level of the trance state is attained—light trance—the energy body begins to expand. The first stage of the expanded energy body forms a separate but still internal subtle body. The deeper the level of trance, the more strongly this will manifest, as a separate internal subtle body.

 	As the expanded energy body is generated, the center of consciousness automatically transfers—internally projects or reflects—itself into the expanded energy body. This is the first stage of the multilevel projection process. The center of consciousness has now shifted one level up from its physical body, and is one level down from the real-time projectable double. Falling asleep and entering an altered state of consciousness, or trance state, have the same general effect. Each causes an inner-body transfer or reflection of the center of consciousness into the expanded energy body.

 	If this process occurs while falling sleep, a sleeping copy of consciousness and memory are reflected into the expanded energy body. A short time after this event, as the sleeping body falls more deeply asleep, the real-time body will be internally generated in a similar fashion. This, in preparation for its extrusion (or projection) outside the bounds of the physical body.

 	The sleep projection process will continue, with the mind remaining undisturbed and sleeping throughout. The reason this process occurs so gently is that the projecting center of consciousness is asleep . When it is asleep, it does not cause any physical tension or mental conflicts, whereas an awake mind causes plenty. These conflicts are a big part of why OBE is so difficult to achieve—more on this later.
 	If the expanded energy-body-generation process occurs while the mind is held awake, a full awake trance state is achieved: the "mind awake + body asleep" state. Here, a full copy of the awake mind is reflected into the expanding energy body. The trance state allows awake thinking consciousness to continue within the confines of the expanded energy body, while the physical body/mind (containing the original copies of mind and memory) sleep. This is the first stage of the conscious OBE exit process.
 	A real-time projectable double is generated either spontaneously or by using an OBE projection technique. The projectable double is still enmeshed within the physical and expanded energy bodies, like a double exposure on film. The OBE projection reflex now occurs naturally, or is triggered with an OBE exit technique, while the mind is fully aware. An energy copy of the awake mind now projects outside the bounds of the physical body, along with the projected real-time double. Here we have the basic outline of the underlying processes that allow OBE to occur.

 	The internal energy-body processes that extrude the projectable double produce a deep, upward-moving trickle of energy within the torso. The conditions that allow for a conscious OBE exit are now complete. Full awake consciousness can now project outside the physical body. This is the second level of the conscious OBE exit process.

 	The biggest difference between natural sleep projection and conscious exit OBE is the presence of awake consciousness. This causes many conflicts and throws a big wrench into the workings of a natural process. This explains the greatly increased difficulty of an awake OBE. This also relates to why heavy energy movement sensations are involved during an awake OBE, including racing heart chakra, pressures, vibrations, falling sensation, etc.

 	Etheric Body Projection?

  	Some people believe that the etheric body (to use the traditional term) is capable of projecting. I think that what has in the past been called etheric projection is better described as real-time projection. The term etheric projection has sometimes been used to describe weak OBEs. This problem, however, is caused by the mind-split effect. If the physical body/mind remains too awake after the OBE exit, available energy and consciousness are divided between the physical body/mind and its projected double. This can cause varying degrees of weakness and even paralysis in one or both aspects during OBE. More on this later.

 	Three Basic Aspects of the Projectable Double 

  	The Real-Time Subtle Body

  	The real-time subtle body is the first level of projectable double. If observed with real-time astral sight—or by a clairvoyant—it is seen to have a silver, ghostly, see-through appearance, often just a vague ghostly shape, but sometimes with facial features. If a real-time projector observes another real-time projector, while both are out of body, they will look reasonably normal to each other.

 	Projectors always look slimmer, fitter, and sometimes younger than in real life. The projected double is shaped by its sense of body image. The age of the projectable double's appearance usually sets at about age thirty-five with older people. People who wear glasses will usually be seen wearing glasses during OBE, or if observed with astral sight.
 	The real-time double's natural level of operations is within the real-time zone close to the physical universe. It can function in real time only so long as there is enough energy flowing to it from its physical/energy body. This flow of energy maintains the real-time double's integrity and mental coherence, but because of this, the strength and capabilities of the real-time double vary.

 	A projector's real-time body parts will only become visible when deliberately observed. The hands are the easiest body parts to see. They vary in appearance from normal to distorted. When looked at, the real-time double's hands will start melting rapidly, like white ice under a blowtorch, reducing to wrist stumps in seconds. This effect appears to be caused by the act of self-observation causing a conflict that interferes with the projected double. The melting hands phenomenon is one of the few constant factors of real-time OBE. This can help ascertain the projector's level, whether in real time, astral plane, or lucid dream states.

 	  

 	Figure 1. Melting hands during an OBE

 	Shape Shifting: Projectors can deliberately alter their astral appearance by imagining themselves as having another form. Natural out-of-body creative ability does the rest. Appearance is altered for as long as awareness of the new form is held in mind.

 	Real-Time Visitors: when real-time projectors visit awake people, projectors are often seen with normal vision as silver-white orbs. These orbs usually move very fast. Occasionally, with very powerful real-time projectors, their heads will be seen full sized, silver-white in color. This can be quite startling, to say the least.

 	Astral Reflection

  	The astral body is an independent subtle body in its projected state. A weaker version exists, however, as an astral reflection or echo of self-awareness on the astral level. This astral echo exists whether a person is awake or asleep. It is a mindless astral reflection shaped by awareness, thoughts, and fantasies, with no more functional consciousness than a reflection in a mirror.

 	Astral Body

  	The next subtle body above the real-time body is the astral body. The astral planes are its natural level of existence. Here, the center of consciousness shifts from the real-time zone to the astral level. The astral body is more stable than the real-time body and hence more durable and easier to maintain during a conscious astral OBE.

 	The astral double feels lighter and more energized than its real-time counterpart. It is dimensionally more removed from its physical body, and experiences fewer energy and mental conflicts. The astral body has a stronger awareness of having a body, but, again, this will only be seen if deliberately observed. The melting hands phenomenon can still happen, but this is not as pronounced as in real-time OBE.

 	Once the astral body is projected, the real-time body weakens. It soon starts falling asleep in the real-time zone. Typically, it will either be reeled in, to hover near its physical body, mimicking its sleeping position, or will wander like a sleepwalker in the real-time zone.

 	Most projectors encountered during a real-time OBE seem to be asleep or partly asleep and unaware. They still have a partially functioning real-time body, but they are not in it strongly enough to function coherently. They can be briefly awakened by other real-time projectors, but will usually be in a confused state. They have the annoying tendency to fall asleep midsentence.
 	When any level of projected double is energized strongly, awake consciousness becomes centered most strongly there. This disempowers all other aspects, including the physical body/mind if that happens to be still awake at the time. The physical body/mind has limited resources of energy and consciousness, which only stretch so far.
 	Children, Animals, and OBE

  	Children Project

  	Children frequently have OBEs and seem to have more energy for this than adults. I often see and hear children gallivanting about the real-time zone. I have not seen babies younger than walking age though, unless being carried by their mothers. Solo OBEs appear to start when children become more independent.

 	I develop astral sight and hearing during meditation and pre-sleep. At these times, I have often seem and heard my children while they are out of body. There is nothing vague or imaginary about these observations. When they were young, I would usually meditate in the evenings after their bedtime. They would often project and come out to me, cutting and diving about the room, calling for me to watch their antics. They did not realize their enhanced state of being, but were hugely excited by their new abilities. Like most adults, children generally remember little of their OBEs. But they take in stride their newfound abilities like flight and passing through walls.

 	I could not perceive them with physical senses at such times, even if they all scrambled onto my lap. But I could see their faces and hear their voices clearly with my astral senses. I could also feel energy tingles that indicate the proximity of nonphysical beings—that "someone just walked over my grave" feeling. With real-time sight, children look ghostly, as if made of smoke. Faces are denser, with a silver sheen, making them clearly recognizable.

 	Animals Project

  	I think projection is a natural ability common to all living things. Animals project regularly, especially domestic pets. I have frequently observed my pets and other animals roaming the real-time zone. With real-time sight I have also observed my own pets exit their bodies—a truly fascinating sight. Pets often accompany their human friends in the astral. Families often project together, including their pets.

 	On many occasions, I have seen and interacted with deceased pets in the real-time zone—apparently visiting. I have also seen them in the astral planes and spirit worlds. These experiences suggest that animals not only project, but survive death. This last may or may not apply to all domesticated and wild animals. Close long-term association with humans appears to cause spiritual evolution in animals.

 	Do You Need a License for OBE?

  	I have heard many people—including spiritual teachers—criticize others for having OBEs, even spontaneous OBEs. They say that projectors must be of a certain age, maturity, and level of spiritual development. Some say that projectors must pass initiation, or get spiritual approval (a license?) before they are allowed to go OBE. However, if any of this were true, then why do children and animals project so freely and naturally? How can it be said that it is not okay for some people to project, when it is natural for children and animals to do this? This does not make sense. Everything points to OBE being a natural process shared and experienced by all living things. I have never seen an insect project, but this is probable.

 	Near Death Experience (NDE)

  	A lot of vital energy is projected at death and in response to temporary physical body death. A near-death experience, or NDE, happens when people are ejected from their physical bodies by physical death. NDE is similar both to the death process and to OBE. Of course, the resulting out-of-body experience is only temporary with NDE and OBE.

 	Severe trauma from car accidents, difficult childbirth, etc., can cause experiences similar to NDE, but I think these are different. These are vivid OBEs and not NDEs per se, because no temporary physical death is involved.

 	Persons experiencing a NDE usually find themselves existing strongly in the real-time zone. As they are so close to the physical dimension, they can be aware of events happening locally in the real world. Because of the nature of NDEs, these events are often focused around their traumatized physical bodies. Many NDE cases involve people accurately reporting real-life events and conversations that occurred while they were clinically dead.

 	NDE surpasses any other type of OBE in clarity and memorability, because this involves the expulsion of a very powerful subtle body. This may be something like the real-time double, but this is unconfirmed. During NDE, all available energy and consciousness are forced into the projected double. This accounts for the vividness of NDE. The traumatic nature of death, or near death, makes such experiences highly memorable events. (The emotional content of any type of OBE affects its recallability.)

 	OBE is similar to NDE, but without the dying part. Having some personal OBE experience eases the trauma of death. I have had many spirits comment that their transition was similar to OBEs they had during life.

 	My mother has visited me several times since she passed over. She told me that on the day she died, she was resting peacefully and having a vision of her sister, Mary, in England. She said that she moved out of her body as she had done many times during OBE. Mom and her sister Mary then went exploring and had a wonderful time. It was a long time (several weeks Earth time) before they realized they had died. When they realized this, they cheered loudly and happily. Both of them died at the same time, albeit on different sides of the world. Their deaths were natural and unrelated—apart from their love for each other.

 Chapter 3: THE INCREDIBLE MIND-SPLIT EFFECT

  	What departs from the physical body during an OBE? What is left behind? What protects the integrity of mind and memory during an OBE? Many people are fearful of attempting an OBE because these questions have never been satisfactorily answered. Half-baked theories, assumptions, and myths abound.

 	Two early OBE researchers and authors, Sylvan Muldoon and Hereward Carrington, attempted to deal with the subject of duality—the awareness of being in two bodies at the same time during an OBE—in their book, The Projection of the Astral Body. Muldoon thought that the physical brain received two sets of perceptions at the same time. He considered that one set came from the physical body and one from its projected double via its silver cord. The sense organs of the physical body, Muldoon suggested, continued functioning even though the physical body was obviously left empty after the exit out of body during an OBE.

 	Like all early OBE researchers, Muldoon and Carrington did not consider the possibility that consciousness could continue to function in both bodies at the same time. They assumed the physical body must be left empty, a mindless shell, during an OBE. This is natural. There is a strong visceral perception of separating from the physical body during a conscious OBE exit. The empty-body assumption was widely accepted, and many people still accept it. This belief came from a fundamental error in observation.

 	It is still widely believed that the physical body is left empty—unguarded and exposed—during an OBE. Many people even believe their spirit or soul leaves the physical body during an OBE—some even call this soul travel. These beliefs raised worrying concerns about the safety of the physical body/mind—worries that the empty body could be stolen or possessed during OBE.

 	Over the years, the empty-body assumption has generated many beliefs and rituals: of magical wards, guardian beings, and rituals to ensure safety during OBEs. One New Age author told me that all projectors must wash in consecrated saltwater, bind themselves in iron chains, and carry out elaborate rituals and prayers to protect their supposedly empty physical body and mind during OBE.

 	The experience of separating from the physical body and projecting out of body is extremely visceral and convincing. The experience of existing independently from the physical body is also distinct. However, these experiences do not allow projectors to perceive the underlying mind-split effect at work, because a successfully remembered OBE allows only one side of the experience to be remembered—from the projected double. If a projection is unsuccessful, the memories come solely from the physical body/mind.

 	It is necessary to have memories from both sides of an OBE before the mind-split can be perceived. It is rare to have a full mind-split effect and remember both sides of the experience. However, evidence of the mind-split effect at work can be found in many OBE case histories, if you know what to look for.

 	The safety of the physical body and of its original copy of consciousness and memory are never jeopardized during OBEs. The physical body/mind is never left empty while it still lives. All types of OBEs involve copies of consciousness.

 	The Reflecting Nature of Mind

  	Consciousness naturally reflects a copy of itself outside the bounds of the physical body, either while it sleeps or during any kind of OBE. This reflection is like a subtle energy echo, containing a complete copy of consciousness, mind, and memory, reflected into a subtle body (a discrete energy vehicle) capable of supporting its existence outside the bounds of the physical body/mind. This process never ever leaves the physical body/mind empty and unguarded.

 	This reflection of consciousness usually happens unnoticed. The mind-split effect is not apparent even during conscious OBE exits, where projectors are aware of their OBE from exit to reentry. The symptoms of the mind-split effect are often quite evident if you know what to look for, but are seldom recognized for what they are. This is because of the way the mind-split happens, and because the physical body/mind habitually records only a single memory stream for any given time period.

 	Most people have enough trouble grasping the concept of a single astral double being projected outside the physical body, let alone grasping that there can be multiple copies of a single mind existing simultaneously. But, this is essentially what happens during OBEs.

 	The mind-split effect makes sense of some of the often-confusing and conflicting data available on OBEs. It simplifies OBEs and provides insight into some of the mind-boggling complexities of existence.

 	Once the basic concept is grasped, the next step is to consider the multiple sets of memories involved during sleep and OBE. How would the physical body/mind/brain process these? What memory storage issues and problems would arise? If there are issues with OBE memory download and storage, how can these be overcome to improve OBE recall?
 	When I first tried to answer these questions, I got blinding headaches. But once I forged the principles of the mind-split effect, everything started falling into place.

 	I discovered the mind-split effect by accident during a powerful OBE—described later. My subsequent experiments with the mind-split effect verified my original hypothesis. Once this is understood, many of the confounding issues relating to the mind-split effect can be worked with, or worked around, which improves every aspect of a conscious OBE by improving the likelihood of remembering it.

 	A conscious OBE is not difficult to induce. The reason this is considered so difficult is that successful projectors rarely perceive the mind-split effect at work.

 	The lucky few who have the knack of remembering their OBEs do not actually know how they are doing this. They cannot explain how this is done. Therefore, studying their experiences and copying their techniques does not help.

 	The mind-split effect is the biggest cause of OBE failure. It leaves no memory of what went wrong when OBE exits fail. Time and again it turns successful OBE exits into seemingly failed OBE attempts, and this thwarts the natural learning process, as it does not allow projectors to learn from failures and improve results with practice. Because of this, people focus most of their efforts on projection methods, searching for just the right technique to launch them out of body. Projection technique is important, but it is not the most important aspect of achieving successful OBE exits.
 	Portrait of the Mind-Split Effect

  	A full copy of mind and memory and spirit remains within the physical body/mind at all times. This original master copy never leaves the physical body while it lives (with the possible exception of an NDE).

 	When the physical body/mind falls asleep, or enters the "mind awake + body asleep" state, consciousness reflects into the internal expanded subtle-energy body. The expanded energy body then contains a full copy of mind and memory.
 	The sleeping physical body/mind also contains an aspect called the dream mind. At some stage after the onset of sleep, or the "mind awake + body asleep" state, the dream mind will begin dreaming.

 	The expanded energy body generates the real-time projectable double. This naturally occurs during sleep, but can also occur during the "mind awake + body asleep" state. As the real-time subtle body is internally generated, a full copy of mind and memory is reflected into it. As long as the real-time projectable double remains within the physical body/mind, its thoughts are synchronized with those of the awake expanded energy body. No noticeable mind-split effect has occurred at this stage, although the conditions that allow the OBE mind-split now exist. All systems are go at this stage and a projection out of body can now happen. As the real-time subtle body projects—at the precise moment of separation—the first true mind-split event occurs.
 	After the OBE exit, the real-time projected double exists as a discrete entity. It thinks, acts, and records its experience memories independently. During an OBE, three discrete copies of awake consciousness can simultaneously exist: the physical body/mind, the dream mind, and the projected real-time double. Each of these functions independently, usually unaware of any other aspect of its self.

 	After the real-time double has projected free, the physical body/mind with its expanded energy body is counted as a single aspect. If an OBE exit has been attempted, this aspect will usually consider that it has failed, although it may have experienced OBE exit symptoms. It will feel tired and lethargic, often experiencing partial or full paralysis. It will normally fall asleep fairly quickly.

 	After this process has taken place, we now have three copies of a single consciousness. All three can operate independently at the same time: 

  	The physical body/mind (master copy)

 	The dream mind (internal mind-split aspect)

 	Real-time projected double (first external mind-split) 

   	All three copies are interconnected, and all three are capable of functioning and thinking independently. Further copies of consciousness may reflect into higher subtle bodies and dimensions, beyond the three independent copies outlined here.
 	During a conscious OBE exit, the real-time body is viscerally aware it is separating from its physical body. After separation, the real-time double operates almost completely independently. These three aspects of the mind-split effect will occasionally experience perceptual crossovers and energy/mind conflicts. Crossovers cause experiences of duality, of existing in more than one place at the same time. The real-time double will, for example, often feel its physical body and hear what it is hearing. This perceptual interchange (one of the most frequently noted symptom of the mind-split effect) is affected by distance. It is strongest within twenty feet (six meters) and progressively lessens with distance.

 	Natural Purpose of the Mind-Split Effect

  	The natural purpose of the multiple mind-split effect is to allow the essential animating spirit to strip away coarser layers of matter and consciousness that hold it within the physical body. This process progressively exposes the central animating core of incarnating spiritual consciousness. This enables it to temporarily exist in higher dimensions, to reflect a part of itself there during sleep or an OBE. A solid base inside the physical body/mind remains intact throughout this process. This safely holds the original master copy of earthly consciousness and memory.
 	I think this process allows consciousness regular direct exposure to Source on higher dimensional levels. Consciousness shifts up and down through the dimensional scale whenever its physical body/mind sleeps. More on this later.

 	  

 	Figure 2. Mind-split effect, showing subtle bodies

 	You can find clues of the mind-split effect at work by examining OBE case histories—if you know what to look for. The most common clue is symptoms of duality. For example: "I was flying through the clouds when I suddenly became aware of feeling my physical body back on my bed, and of hearing the clock ticking in the room and traffic noises drifting in through the open window." Duality symptoms are caused by perceptual crossovers through the energy cords that connect the physical body/mind with its projected double.

 	Shadow Memory

  	Shadow memories are subtle memories gained while outside the normal awake body/mind, through OBE, lucid dreams, and dreams. When unrecalled, shadow memories download into inaccessible levels of memory. Awake consciousness usually overrides shadow memories, making them difficult to remember.

 	As discussed earlier, I think the higher self filters shadow memories out to protect us, just as it filters out psychic abilities, to keep us grounded in physical reality. A combined approach to shadow-memory recall is best, using affirmations and techniques. The affirmations petition the higher self to allow shadow-memory recall. The techniques used for shadow-memory recall to capture OBE memories demonstrate the desire to have these experiences to the higher self.

 	The conscious mind needs associations if it is to link to and capture fragments of shadow memories. Associations trigger the upsurge of shadow memories into consciousness. Having powerful memories also helps. The first few minutes after waking are when most people recall shadow memories—usually dreams, occasionally OBEs. This is the ideal time to practice shadow-memory recall, using leading trigger phrases to cause associations and trigger recall. More on this later.

 	Double Trouble—Experience

  	I have studied and experimented with the mind-split effect for many years. I have always been curious as to how and why my physical body reacted with my projected double. I had often experienced confusing mixtures of perceptions and memories—at times with two or more sets of events seeming to occur simultaneously during OBEs. Like many projectors, I had also often been aware of events and noises in the real world around my physical body, while simultaneously experiencing remote locations.

 	Following is an account of my first full mind-split experience, from many years ago. This is a grammatical nightmare, so please bear with me.

 	Physical Body's Side

  	Meditating in my chair by the fire, I returned to a less-abstract level of consciousness as rain drummed on the roof. The wind was shaking the windows and doors. I glanced at the clock. It was two-thirty in the morning. This was normal, as I usually meditate for half of the night. I felt wonderful, well-rested and full of energy. As distant sounds of thunder rolled softly over the house I thought, "I don't think I've ever projected during a thunderstorm. . . . I wonder what it's like?" 
 	Closing my eyes, I fell into myself and deepened my level of consciousness. When I was ready, I shifted my point of consciousness out in front of my body. I felt myself as standing a few feet away and focused on holding this new awareness spatial location. Vibrations spread through my body. Energy trickled up through my stomach and chest. I felt a strong falling sensation. I began to project. Then, just as everything was going fine, everything stopped. Puzzled, I sat there wondering what had happened—why had I failed? This happened frequently, but I never understood. Why would a perfectly good OBE exit fail when everything was going so well? I was, however, about to find out.
 	Projected Double's Side

  	(Simultaneously with the physical body's failed OBE)

  	Buzzing free of my physical body after an easy OBE exit, I came to rest floating several feet across the room. At this distance, my real-time double reflected the throbbing of my heart chakra.

 	I passed through the wall and moved into the blustery rain-drenched night. What a gloriously wet feeling! I could feel and smell and taste the rain passing through me as I floated across my front garden. Raindrops bounced off the sheet of water covering the lawn. The invigorating sounds and smells and tastes of wetness and plants and soil and grass were everywhere. Astral senses are many times keener than physical-body senses.

 	The rain-swept night filed me with a wonderfully happy energy. It felt great to be alive and out of my body on such a glorious night. Swooping over the roof with a quick loop, I hovered, looking around, the rain-filled wind buffeting me even more strongly up here.

 	[The wind and rain did not actually move my projected double, but I was keenly aware of the sensation of these passing through me.]

 	Sitting on the chimney, I watched the rain dancing in the streets below, swirling down gutters and drains. Above me, the low clouds rumbled softly and occasionally cracked and flashed with lightning, filling me with tingling energy. Just then I felt something tugging at my innards. I knew that this was coming from my physical body in the room below.

 	I reached out and sensed my physical body. I suddenly felt the chair beneath me and I could hear the drumming rain from inside the house. For a moment I felt like I was back in my body. I heard the clock ticking and my old Labrador, Blue-Boy, snoring and dream yipping nearby. I swooped down through the garden and looped back up to graze the low clouds. The perceptions coming from my physical body eased with distance. When I got back on the roof, the tugging began again.
 	I had often wondered about the reaction between my projected and physical bodies. Many times, I had felt myself being in more than one place at the same time, often flickering back and forth between my two bodies. But how could that be? It did not make sense. If I was up here, then how could I be down there at the same time? Surely, once I left my physical body it was empty, a hollow shell—or was it?

 	My physical body was less than twenty feet below me. I was intrigued and decided to investigate. Slipping through the roof, I saw the insides of timbers and plasterboard illuminated in passing. I felt resistance and texture and could smell and taste them.

 	Projected + Physical Bodies

  	My physical body was in the armchair, right where I'd left it. At the same time, though, I also became aware of myself sitting in the chair watching me, my projected double, coming through the ceiling. I was seeing myself floating through the ceiling, as well as seeing myself sitting in the armchair—both at the same time!

 	It was me sitting in the chair, watching my projected double. But, it was also me watching my physical body sitting in the chair.

 	I was aware not only of both sets of vision, but both sets of thoughts—from both sides at once. I was aware of being aware of both sets of thoughts, and of being aware that I was aware of being aware of both sets of thoughts. This swiftly compounded and got worse. This was not only mind-blowing, it was also starting to make me feel sick—both of me.

 	[Until my physical aspect saw its projected double entering the room, it was unaware its earlier projection attempt had been successful. Luckily, at this time my physical aspect was experimenting with real-time sight, observing and studying the room through closed eyelids. Without this, I might never have discovered the mind-split effect.]

 	My physical aspect was surprised when it saw me—its own projected double entering the room. As soon as we connected visually, a telepathic link formed and memories flooded both ways. Both aspects, physical and projected, then knew exactly what had happened to each other from the moment of separation, when the mind-split occurred, until now. This provided me/us with a unique experience. I had two different sets of memories for a single time period, coexisting within my/our minds at the same time.

 	Physical Body

  	My physical aspect was aware of inducing projection and feeling strong OBE exit symptoms. But these had stopped suddenly, leaving my physical aspect wondering what went wrong.

 	It (my physical aspect) decided to do more energy work and some astral sight experiments. My physical aspect was oblivious that it had successfully projected. My physical aspect felt heavy and sluggish after the apparently failed OBE attempt. But this is similar to a deep altered state of trance, so it suspected nothing.

 	I (my physical aspect) had clear astral sight at the time and saw the room around me clearly through closed eyelids. This was quite normal for what I was doing at the time. I did not suspect that anything extraordinary was happening.

 	I decided to play around with astral sight instead of falling back into a deeper level of meditation. I studied the room around me, slowly shifting my point of view and looking behind me without physically moving. (I was moving my expanded energy body—my perceived self at the time—around inside my own skin.) There was no sensation of movement, although it took considerable effort to do this. My point of view moved as if my head were turning. (The expanded energy body—if awake—can gain some freedom of movement inside its physical body.) After several minutes of this, I felt an uncomfortable tension in my body. This had happened a number of times during this session. But at the time I thought that this was caused by my efforts to rotate inside my physical body.

 	I tried to extend a part of myself through the wall behind me, to project my point of view through. This did not work, although I could see the wall behind me clearly. I then felt a tangible presence in the room with me. I rotated my gaze to the front, just in time to see a spirit coming down through the ceiling. I was surprised, but realization flooded into me the moment my gaze connected with that of my projected double. This caused a telepathic connection, visual plus mental, and another set of memories suddenly appeared in my mind. This memory felt like it had always been there, as if I had suddenly just remembered.

 	As we connected, the uneasy tension worsened. I started to feel chilled and nauseated. These symptoms were caused by what I now call astral feedback.

 	Physical + Astral Bodies

  	As my physical aspect and its projected double connected, we both became aware of both of our memories from the moment of our initial separation. Once the telepathic connection and astral feedback started, I began to feel weak and nauseated in both my bodies. My physical heart thudded erratically, and this reflected into my projected double. I was experiencing two completely different sets of vision, thoughts, and feelings simultaneously. These reflected back and forth and compounded.

 	[Astral feedback will compound any emotion or energy that is strong enough to cause a perceptual crossover into physical and projected aspects during OBE. This can also occur with fear or sexual energy. This experience was, apart from the discomfort, fascinating. It also made a lot of sense. This first full mind-split experience provided answers to a lot of questions concerning OBE phenomena. Just because my projected double was out of body, why would my physical mind have to stop thinking and being? Why would it be left empty? I now had firsthand evidence that the mind splits into two or more independent aspects during OBEs.]

 	My projected double moved with difficulty, observing its physical body in the chair. The physical aspect of me watched and did the same. This took a lot of effort from both of me/us. The nausea and pressure steadily increased. My level of trance began eroding at the start of the telepathic connection and my physical body became paralyzed.

 	I remained calm, but my mind(s) felt like they were being stretched beyond their design limits. I started to worry that I might pass out or even die if this continued.

 	As my projected double was the only aspect capable of moving, and as this aspect was fully aware of the danger we were both in, he/I broke away and moved out of the house. The feedback eased the moment my projected aspect left the room. We lost contact then. The nausea eased and I soon felt reasonably normal again.

 	Projected Double—Same Time Period

  	I felt weak and movement was difficult, like wading through thick mud. I struggled to move while trying to observe what was happening. I had little energy and felt nauseated. I moved away from my physical body with difficulty. I felt a great weight pulling at me from behind as I turned and forced myself through the wall. The pressure eased after I left the house.
 	I flew away and enjoyed the thunderstorm once more, strength flowing back into me. I followed the wet road close to the surface, watching the heavy raindrops dancing off the road. I mulled over the implications of what had just happened. My physical aspect would probably like me back shortly. I knew I would if I were him, which I am. On that slightly confusing note, I flew back to the house and my waiting physical body.

 	Physical Body

  	Once the projected double departed, the nausea eased quickly but I still felt shaky and drained and my physical heart thudded erratically. I was still heavy and partly paralyzed. I figured my projected double would return soon. I knew I would if I were him, which I was. I relaxed, trusting myself, and cleared my mind to make the coming reentry easier.
 	Astral + Physical

  	My projected double returned a few minutes after leaving, slipping quietly through the wall. My physical aspect became aware of its projected double's return by the feeling of tension and presence. A few seconds later, my physical aspect felt an upward tingling energy rush through the legs and torso, as its projected double reintegrated. The gap in my memories, from the time my two aspects had last parted company, vanished. I now recalled both sides of the entire experience from start to finish.

 	Separation Point

  	The first mind-split experience given above, and the many experiments I have done since, show that when the projected double leaves its physical body, it contains a copy of all memories up to the moment the mind-split occurs. From then on, the projected double records its own experience memories separately.

 	The physical body continues recording its own set of memories after separation—memories of a continuing existence within the physical body/mind after an apparently failed OBE exit. The physical body has no further contact with its projected double after separation, apart from occasional perceptual crossovers.

 	When the mind-split occurs, the connection between the physical body/mind/ brain and its projected double ends like a switch had been thrown. Many projectors hear a definite "click" at the moment of separation. This may be a symptom of the mind-split event occurring. I often hear this, but not always.

 	Both physical and projected aspects continue to record their memories separately, in two unbroken streams. If the download of the projected double's shadow memories into an accessible level of memory is unsuccessful, the physical body/mind has no way of knowing that a projection ever occurred. Only the memories of the physical body/mind aspect will then be recalled, of a failed OBE exit attempt. This is what normally happens, where exit symptoms are experienced but with no apparent OBE.

 	  

 	Figure 3. Dual memory streams of mind-split effect, from separation to reintegration, showing failed memory download 

 	Upon reintegration, the strongest set of memories for any single time period—usually the physical body/mind's thoughts and dreams—becomes the memory stream recalled. This is because physical body/mind memories are habitually recorded by the mind/brain as they occur. This makes shadow-memory recall naturally difficult.
 	If the projected double does not succeed in impressing its memories upon the physical body/mind during reintegration, its memories are lost. They may download into unconscious and unrecallable memory. Keep in mind that your higher self filters out most dreams and OBEs by default, to keep you grounded in physical reality, making this even trickier. Shadow-memory loss is, however, less likely to happen if physical and projected aspects work together, before, during, and after an OBE. This is why I advise people to keep OBEs very short, as this enhances success. If shadow memories are not recalled, OBE never happened.

 	Astral Feedback

  	As the above mind-split experience shows, astral feedback can occur if the physical body/mind directly connects with its own real-time projected double during an OBE. Astral feedback is a powerful telepathic and energy phenomenon. This only occurs when both physical and projected aspects are aware and focused on each other at the same time. Astral feedback can be avoided by not looking too closely at your physical or projected aspects during OBE. It can be broken by the projected double moving away, or by reentry into the physical body/mind. A positive aspect of astral feedback is the memory download that occurs into the physical body/mind.
 	The Mind-Split and OBE Success

  	Over the years, I have examined many almost OBE experiences by people who appear to be doing everything right. But, they keep failing to achieve the OBE exit. Everything goes fine up to the moment of separation. They feel falling or floating sensations, rapid heart chakra sensation, vibrations, torso energy surge, and start to separate. Then it just stops and all OBE exit sensations cease, leaving them feeling heavy and tired.

 	Most people are so tired after seemingly failed projection attempts they just go to sleep. They believe they have failed again. Does this sound familiar? But in most cases, the projection has been successful. During an induced OBE, the mind split disguises OBE success as failure. This is because projectors are still aware in their physical body/minds during the OBE. The physical body/mind memories of the mind-split occlude the OBE experience completely.

 	Falling soundly asleep after a failed OBE exit ensures that OBE memories are lost. A light sleep will not cause too many problems, as long as the OBE is very short and the projected double makes a powerful reentry. Reentry must be strong enough to mildly shock the physical body/mind awake. Sound sleep denies reentry and locks the projected double out. The projected double should always reenter before its physical body/mind falls soundly asleep. Again, aim for very short OBEs to maximize recall and success. Thirty seconds out of body, and then dive back in, passionately shouting your success.

 	Deep sleep renders the physical body/mind incapable of responding to the tingling energy sensations caused by its returning projected double. The physical body/mind must be falling asleep or in the "mind awake + body asleep" state for an OBE to occur. The reverse applies and reintegration requires the physical body/mind to be capable of awakening, or in the process of awakening.

 	The energy sensations caused by the returning projected double are distinct and noticeable—if you know what they are and are awake enough to feel them. A lightly sleeping physical body/mind flickering between sleep/awake is the best condition for reentry and OBE recall.
 	Ignorance of the subtle processes involved with OBE is what makes OBE so difficult. Working with or around the mind-split is key to successful OBEs. In most cases, it is not projection technique or lack of ability causing failure, but the mind-split effect itself. This thwarts the natural learning process.

 	A successful OBE does not reveal the mind-split, because only a single and apparently unbroken memory stream is remembered. One side of the mind-split, physical or astral, is usually dominant. The mind-split always occurs, but generally goes unnoticed because of this. The end result of either an OBE exit failure or a successful OBE exit is a single memory, apparently unbroken—one single memory stream for a single time period.

 	Mixed Projection and Dream Memories

  	The basic layout of the mind-split involves three aspects (or copies) of your mind functioning simultaneously and independently: dream, physical, and astral. Understanding this sheds new light on many perplexing OBE and dream-related issues. Logically, if multiple memory sets are available for a single time period, the strongest set (or the strongest parts) will form the dominant memory that is recalled. The final memory can be from any of these three sources, or it may be a composite memory made up of strong fragments.
  	Dream body/mind—First memory stream

 	Physical body/mind—Second memory stream

 	Projected body/mind—Third memory stream

   	The above shows three separate memory streams being simultaneously recorded for a single time period during an OBE. These are recorded by three identical copies of the same mind, existing independently on three different levels.
 	The expanded energy body (contained within the physical body/mind) has less trouble storing memories than its dream and astral counterparts. This is a big part of OBE recall failures—which equals failed OBE exits. During altered states of consciousness (trance states), the center of thinking consciousness shifts into the expanded energy body/mind, while the physical body falls asleep. However, if the thinking mind stays awake in this state ("mind awake + body asleep" state) it records a strong and often dominant memory set. Because of its close relationship with the physical body/mind, its memories are more likely to be remembered than those of its counterparts.

 	Higher-Level Mind-Splits

  	Higher subtle bodies above the real-time astral level may involve similar mind-splits to what happens with the dream, physical, and astral aspects. However, the farther away you get from the physical universe, the more abstract and complicated things get. There is enough to consider here regarding the basics of the mind-split. This is where all shadow memories must ultimately download, into the physical body/mind. So having a workable understanding of this is more important than speculating on what might happen at higher levels.

 Chapter 4: ASTRAL SIGHT

  	There is nothing simple about OBE and many subtle variations are possible. This chapter outlines a variation that falls somewhere between projection and nonphysical sight (clairvoyance). Astral sight is related to other forms of spiritual, nonphysical sight, like clairvoyance, aura sight, and remote viewing. The principles are the same. They all involve mind's-eye vision and the brow chakra (third eye). The brow chakra works through all subtle bodies, including projected doubles via connecting cords.

 	In-body real-time astral sight is a subtle-body ability that allows projectors to see through closed eyelids and bedcovers. This phenomenon is common during the prelude to OBE, and during waking-paralysis episodes. This can also occur during the prelude to sleep and during altered-state meditation sessions. The "mind awake + body asleep" state causes the internal generation of the expanded energy body and projectable astral double. This subtle body is firmly enmeshed within the physical body, but it can also develop real-time and astral-sight abilities while an OBE is in progress. This can also occur during waking-paralysis episodes, which involves an OBE in progress.

 	The quality of these abilities varies. Many people, while experiencing in-body real-time astral sight, do not realize that their physical eyes are closed at the time, or that they are seeing through bedcovers or behind themselves.

 	Remote-Eye Projection

  	Remote-eye projection is an unusual type of OBE that allows the mind-split effect to be perceived. A remote point of consciousness shifts out of body while the physical body/mind remains partly conscious, without an actual OBE exit appearing to take place. This can happen spontaneously to awake but extremely tired persons, but it can also occur during deep "mind awake + body asleep" states of meditation. Accidental remote-eye projectors are always extremely tired and hanging on the edge of sleep, forcing themselves to stay awake.

 	The overtired persons suddenly see visions of remote scenes, as if with their physical eyes. This is often a real-time scene close to the projector's location. Remote-eye projectors will often have 360-degree vision at the remote location. They are also usually unaware of having a body at the remote eye's location. They also usually have only limited influence over the movements of their remote-eye aspects, if any.
 	Remote-eye projection occurs while the physical body/mind is awake and functional, if only barely. The physical body is still capable of sluggish movement, even of standing and walking, but this takes effort and speech is slurred. They are capable of giving running commentaries of what is happening.

 	Remote-eye projections are less commonly associated with OBEs. They are caused by the projection of low-powered versions of the real-time double, with a barely noticeable mind-split occurring. A weak version of the real-time double is projected, or more aptly, ejected, from an overtired physical body/mind that, quite literally, cannot hold itself together any longer. The remote eye (projected double) will respond sluggishly to the will of the remote-eye projector, if effort is applied. If left alone, the remote-eye aspect will continue moving under its own volition. This last factor indicates that the remote-eye aspect has an independent copy of mind.

 	The mind-split effect is evident here. People experiencing this will often perceive themselves as existing in two locations simultaneously. Neither aspect seems to be aware of the other's thoughts, and no astral feedback is apparent. This experience is classed as an OBE, even through projectors are still aware of their physical aspects. Following is a typical remote-eye projection experience: 

 	It is late and I am extremely tired. I have skipped two nights' sleep. My eyes sting and feel like lead. I have to force them to stay open. The room is dim with only a little moonlight coming through a window. I can just make out the shapes of furniture around me. My body is heavy and I can hardly feel my legs. I feel bone-deep tickling sensations when I move any part of my body. My eyes droop closed briefly, and I suddenly become aware of seeing a remote location, like I was actually there. My remote-eye aspect is floating down the road near my house.
 	I can see in all directions at once. I am still aware of listening to my friend talking, and of mumbling short replies. I can still talk and move my physical body, after a fashion. If I pull myself together, taking a deep breath and forcing my attention back to the room and the conversation, my remote-eye view and that of the room around me flicker back and forth. Each time this happens, I get a sinking, dizzy feeling in my stomach and chest, like the sensation you get when your airplane hits an air pocket. This is similar to how it feels during an OBE exit.

 	I can hold this remote-eye view if I relax and focus on it with my eyes closed, but I also see the same view, superimposed over the darkness, if my eyes drift open. My remote-eye view is exactly what I would see if I were actually projecting in real time. I am not really there, but I am seeing from there. If I drift a little too deeply towards sleep, I feel myself switch more firmly to the remote location, inside my real-time body. When this happens, my mind comes with me and I am more fully there. I shift back to my physical body again each time my friend touches my arm to get my attention.

 	While focused on my remote-eye aspect, at times it feels like I am connected to something like a remote TV camera, and my physical eyes are receiving the view from there. Control of my remote-eye aspect is difficult, but I do have some influence. The closer to sleep I get, the stronger this influence becomes.

 	This type of experience usually happens spontaneously, but I have had some success re-creating it deliberately. If I am not with another person to help me stay awake, I will usually shift into the remote-eye projection fairly quickly. Then it turns into a real-time OBE, but with no noticeable OBE exit symptoms. It is delicately balanced and a difficult state to hold for any length of time, even with help.

 	In my remote-eye projections, I have never experienced full waking paralysis, only physical heaviness and sluggishness. I have always been able to think, talk, and move my physical body, albeit very sluggishly.

 	The weakness of both aspects is caused by the energy and consciousness of a single person being split two ways, between the physical body/mind and its projected double. This is the underlying cause of waking paralysis. But, in this case, the weak remote-eye projection does not consume enough energy and consciousness resources to cause paralysis. And, the physical body/mind is not consuming enough to paralyze its projected double.

 	If the physical body drifts into sleep for only a brief second or two while in this extremely tired state, a projection exit occurs. The mind-split is quite evident here, with consciousness residing in both the physical body/mind and its projected double at the same time. Each acts independently, with the physical body/mind receiving the remote-eye visual connection like a receiver. The center of consciousness flickering back and forth between these two aspects shows a direct connection.

 	This type of experience supports the idea that the physical body/mind's original copy of consciousness never leaves the physical body while the body lives. This is strongly connected with the projected aspect, but never actually leaves the physical body/mind during OBEs.
 	Remote-eye projection supports the idea that an OBE can occur during meditation and anything involving deep relaxation. The physical body's mind may be conscious, but if the physical body is asleep then OBE can occur at any time. This often happens unnoticed during meditation.

 	  

 	Figure 4. Tired eyes lifting action, showing effect on brow center 

 	Another contributing factor to remote-eye projection is the mental effort required to force overtired eyes to stay open. This action focuses body awareness in the eyes and brow area, with a repeated body awareness lifting action. The brow center (third eye) is situated in this same area. These body awareness actions stimulate the brow center quite strongly. An active brow center increases visual energy reception and contributes to remote-eye visual phenomena.

 Chapter 5: WAKING PARALYSIS

  	Another OBE phenomenon that needs exploring is waking paralysis, where persons awaken to find they are completely paralyzed. Waking paralysis is a complication of consciousness with many facets. Also called sleep paralysis, it is a common sleep-related phenomenon: you wake up paralyzed, or suddenly become paralyzed while relaxing or trying to sleep. Most people experience this at some time in their lives. This can be terrifying, as the cause is always unknown. Waking paralysis is a symptom known to be associated with out-of-body experience. Natural projectors will more often than not experience bouts of waking paralysis throughout their lives. I was plagued by it during my childhood, teens, and twenties. It lessened in frequency after I began inducing OBE in my early twenties. I still get it occasionally. Waking paralysis is a complex issue and bears some discussion.

 	Sleep Dissociation: The general scientific explanation is that the brain dissociates itself from its physical body during sleep, to stop its physical body from mimicking its dream actions and injuring itself. Waking paralysis is said to occur when the mind accidentally wakes up inside its dissociated sleeping body. This explanation does have some merit, but does not hold all the answers.

 	Entering a "mind awake + body asleep" state (the trance state) comes with some symptoms of dissociation. The deeper the trance state attained, the more difficult movement becomes. This type of dissociation comes on slowly over many minutes. Waking paralysis on the other hand can occur in a split second and often happens while persons are still awake. Full waking paralysis is total, and movement is not possible, not even swallowing or blinking.

 	Spontaneous OBE: The most logical explanation is that waking paralysis is caused by spontaneous OBE. Paralysis episodes are often not accompanied by any noticeable OBE exit sensations. For no apparent reason, still-awake people suddenly become paralyzed while relaxing or trying to fall asleep. Paralysis can last for several minutes. It is at the very least disturbing and at the very worst, terrifying.

 	Many people (myself included) can detect the onset of waking paralysis, if they are alert enough at the time. There is a slight sinking sensation a moment before the onset of paralysis. While this sinking feeling is a projection-related symptom, this is usually the only OBE exit symptom involved.

 	So, why are there no clear OBE exit sensations experienced during waking paralysis episodes? The logical answer is that spontaneous natural projection has already occurred, and that OBE exit symptoms were missed due to the speed of the OBE exit. This relates to the falling sensation many people get while trying to fall asleep. They feel sudden falling sensations and catch the bed in reflex. This is a mini OBE. If persons are slow reacting, slow to catch the sides of the bed, waking paralysis will occur.

 	Some people claim to succeed at converting waking paralysis into OBE, by using OBE exit techniques. However, this usually does not work in practice. And most people are too afraid to do this. They just want it to stop. Those who do try for a conversion usually fail. They usually lie there paralyzed until the experience ends, or until they fall asleep.

 	If waking paralysis is caused by an OBE in progress, then it would logically not be possible to have another OBE at the same time. This may account for the high failure rate of conversion attempts.

 	If an episode of waking paralysis has no OBE exit symptoms, but is later converted into an OBE, I suggest that the projected double has returned and then immediately projected out of body again. But this time a normal OBE results. Memories of the first exit (the cause of the waking paralysis episode) are not downloaded into the physical body/mind/brain. There is no trace of what caused the waking paralysis.
 	Spontaneous OBE and waking paralysis seem to be two different sides of the same coin. Sometimes spontaneous OBE happens and is remembered. At other times, waking paralysis happens and is remembered. The differences in these experiences appear to be caused by the mind-split effect. Only one side of a spontaneous experience is usually remembered. OBE memories are usually lost here because of the excitement or fear experienced by the physical body/mind. This cements the physical body/mind's side of the experience into memory.

 	During OBE, there is only so much consciousness and energy available. When the projected double is active, this drains the physical body/mind—and the reverse applies. This is the most likely cause of most paralysis episodes.

 	Fear and dread often accompany waking paralysis, sometimes with a tangible feeling of presence coming from a particular direction. Fear is triggered by waking paralysis and compounded between the physical body/mind and its projected double. This feedback can be particularly strong during real-time OBE.

 	Related Factors

  	The physical body/mind does not have enough vitality to animate its physical body while an OBE is in progress. To achieve this, some level of reintegration must logically occur. The exception to this is remote-eye type projection, where energy appears to be shared, or to shift back and forth between the physical and projected aspects, partially disabling both.

 	Early conscious OBE exits usually come with strong OBE exit sensations, including heavy vibrations, rapid heart chakra, falling, and other energy body sensations. These always lessen in severity during subsequent projections. OBE exit attempts involve a lot of primary chakra activity and energy movement. This causes energy-body development and progressively lessens OBE exit sensations.

 	The following two scenarios explain some other types of waking paralysis, in particular those where fear and a tangible sense of presence are involved. Both of the following scenarios involve emotional feedback between the physical body/mind and its projected double.

 	Paralysis and the Physical Body/Mind: The mind awakens inside its paralyzed physical body. It may or may not have felt any OBE exit sensations. It has awakened for good reason: Something has just scared the daylights out of its projected double! But, the physical body/mind has no way of knowing this, or even that an OBE is in progress. It just wakes up paralyzed and scared, sensing a tangible presence somewhere nearby in the room. It cannot move to see what it is sensing. The physical body/mind cannot even blink or swallow. Its level of fear steadily increases. It fights to break free. This fear moves through the connecting energy cords and into its projected double.
 	The projected double feels a surge of fear. This fear has no apparent cause or source, but it is sensed as coming from a particular direction (from its physical body, although the projected double does not know this). The projected double feels a heavy pressure dragging on it. (This pressure is coming from its physical counterpart, which is struggling with paralysis.) This struggle has the effect of disempowering and dragging the projected double back toward its physical body. The projected double does not know what is causing this dragging force. It is frightened and fights against this with everything it has.
 	Fear escalates quickly on both sides (emotional feedback), as both aspects feed and compound the problem. Both sides of the mind-split—the physical body/mind and its projected double—are terrified. Each senses a tangible dread presence coming from a particular direction—coming from each other—but neither side knows this. The tug of war continues until either the physical body/mind succeeds in dragging back its terrified projected double (which is usually the case), or until the physical side passes out and falls back to sleep.

 	Paralysis and the Projected Double: The following scenario again relates to emotional feedback, but in this case a conflict between the dream mind and its projected double.

 	The projected double is floating about in real time minding its own business, when it suddenly has a fright. It sees some bushes moving in the shadows. Imagination plays tricks on it and it sees a monstrous shape reaching out. It freezes, not knowing quite what the shape is or what to do. It turns to flee, but suddenly senses a tangible fearsome presence right behind it (from the direction of its physical body and dream mind). An irresistible force starts dragging it backward. It tries to get away, but suddenly feels weak as if its very life force were being drained. It now feels trapped and has extreme difficulty moving.

 	The dream mind, at the start of this, feels the initial surge of fear from its projected double, but does not know what is happening. The fluid dream state changes at this point and takes on sinister aspects. The dream mind does not awaken inside its physical body/mind. It now experiences a dream-state version of waking paralysis. Fear steadily increases as it fights to break free.
 	The projected double feels trapped, snared by some powerful unseen foe. Now so weak it can barely move, it feels like it is wading through fast-setting concrete. No matter how hard it tries, it cannot break the grip of its unseen foe. Fear increases and the projected double fights in vain, growing steadily weaker. The sense of dread increases to mindless terror. It cannot move at all now.

 	The dreadful presence behind it gets closer, dragging it heartlessly backwards to its evil clutches. The unseen monster raises its dreadful ax, when suddenly the physical body/mind wakes up covered in sweat, heart pounding, gasping for breath, shaking with fear.

 	As you can see, a lot of problems can arise during a mind-split event. When you are dealing with three aspects of one mind, all intimately connected, anything can happen. Fear-inducing mind-split events usually only produce a single memory. This makes it difficult to piece together what has happened after the event. Bad dreams can cause bad OBEs, and both of these aspects can affect the experiences of the physical body/mind.

 	OBE Weakness

  	Low-powered OBEs, where, after the OBE exit, the projected double finds itself so weak it can barely move or is paralyzed, are caused by the physical body/mind remaining awake. Consider the mind-split effect. It takes a certain amount of energy to keep consciousness functional in the awake state. When the physical mind remains awake after the OBE exit—after the mind-split event—the available energies are divided between the physical body/mind and its projected double. The level of awakeness and functionality of the physical body/mind directly affects the energy and capabilities of its projected double. OBE weakness and paralysis involve an out-of-body version of waking paralysis.

 	Paralysis Memories

  	The dominant memories retained after any waking-paralysis episode come from the strongest and most memorable side of the experience. This is often the side most traumatized. This is usually the physical body/mind, as that side of the mind-split has a more direct impact on the physical mind/brain. The complex nature of shadow-memory downloading sometimes causes multiple memory streams to be mixed. Memories of a bad dream, plus a terrifying projection experience, plus waking paralysis, can result.

 	Breaking Out of Waking Paralysis

  	Learning to induce an OBE will lessen the frequency of waking-paralysis episodes. Even if projectors do not succeed at inducing an OBE, projection attempts cause energy-body development, which will help. If fear of an OBE is a problem, daytime projection attempts can help. Daytime OBEs are much less fear inducing. Energy work and meditation and developing other core skills will also help resolve the underlying causes of waking paralysis.

 	Some people advocate giving in to waking paralysis or attempting to convert this into an OBE. If paralysis were frequent, this would be worth trying.

 	The simplest approach, and the one most people prefer, is to clear the mind (refuse to fear) and concentrate on moving a single big toe. For some reason, a big toe is the easiest body part to reanimate during a waking-paralysis episode. Once a big toe moves, even slightly, waking paralysis will end. This method will usually break paralysis in a few seconds.

 	Waking paralysis, like spontaneous OBE, is more likely to occur in certain resting and sleeping positions. Lying on the back tends to promote both projection and waking paralysis for most people. It is worthwhile checking to see if your resting position is a factor, and to avoid positions that promote waking paralysis.

 	When waking paralysis strikes a deeply relaxed but still-awake person, or one trying to fall asleep, it usually comes with a noticeable heavy sinking sensation, giving a moment of warning. That is the best time to stop it from happening. Roll out of bed as quickly as possible. This stops waking paralysis before it can take hold. I recommend getting up then and taking a short walk, or raiding the refrigerator, as eating helps. Do not return to bed for at least fifteen minutes, or waking paralysis may happen again. A change of sleep position is also advised.
 	Keeping a clear mind and refusing to be afraid during a paralysis episode will lessen emotional feedback. If the physical body/mind and its projected double work together and stay calm, the severity and duration of paralysis problems will lessen.

 	Overtiredness and sleep deficit are contributing factors. These should be addressed where frequent paralysis and OBE episodes are problematic.

 	Food can play a part with these problems. An empty stomach tends to increase energy-body activity, which increases the likelihood of waking paralysis and spontaneous OBE. A heavy meal can make projection more difficult, as it slows energy-body activity and promotes deeper sleep. This also lessens the chances of waking paralysis and spontaneous OBE.

 	Unwanted Spontaneous OBEs

  	Frequent bouts of waking paralysis and spontaneous OBE are a problem for some people. Most people with this condition cannot stop it and do not like the experience. Often, they also dislike the idea of deliberately inducing OBE. They just want to sleep in peace.

 	This problem, if you are prone to it, will typically occur a couple of times a year. It will happen in clusters of a few days at a time, often around the full moon. In rarer cases, this problem can be pronounced and cause debilitating health and psychological problems. Some people with this condition will avoid sleep. This is not advisable, as this will cause sleep deficit and worsen the problem. Lack of sleep can also cause loss of appetite, which aggravates the underlying causes of this condition.
 	The first thing to do here is to address the sleep deficit. I advise people with this condition to seek medical advice to help with sleep. Sleep apnea can also play a part in this problem, where persons stop breathing during sleep. This causes frequent arousals, which will make waking paralysis and spontaneous OBE exits more likely. Sleep disorders like this are treatable. Please discuss this with your doctor and get a referral to a sleep clinic if you suspect you have sleep apnea. As normal sleep patterns return, appetite will improve, and the problems will ease.

 	The fear aspects of frequent waking paralysis and OBEs can be eased by sleeping in well-lit rooms. For chronic problems, I have advised people to sleep only during daylight hours, until underlying causative factors have been addressed. If the presence of light inhibits sleep, wearing a sleep mask (a rolled-up black tee shirt over the eyes) will help. If spontaneous OBEs are unavoidable, daylight OBEs are less intimidating.

 Chapter 6: OBE AND PERCEPTION

  	To understand OBEs, it helps to realize that your brain can only receive bioelectrical signals. It does not receive any direct sensory input. Your sense organs break down what they receive into complex bioelectrical impulses. Your brain exists in total darkness and silence, inside a heavy bone box (your skull), isolated from the physical world. It has no nerves and cannot feel anything directly. It floats in a dark void, receiving sensory input from the real world from remotely generated bioelectrical signals. This description is also how your physical brain/mind receives—and remembers—sensory input gained during an OBE.
 	Every OBE and dream ends up as a memory. There is no memory of OBE (not counting remote-eye experiences) unless the projected double downloads its shadow memories into its physical body/mind/brain during reintegration. Once this happens, the physical body/mind/brain remembers the sensory perceptions it received during an OBE, as if it had experienced them directly.

 	The only real difference between how the brain perceives the physical universe and how it perceives the OBE is the way in which the sensory input for each type of experience is gathered. The physical body/mind/brain cannot differentiate between physical and nonphysical input sources. Everything received is interpreted as firsthand sensory input.

 	The projected double uses the same basic five senses as the physical body, albeit at enhanced levels. It can see and hear and smell and taste and touch. But lacking actual physical organs, these perceptions are achieved through direct mind sensing. For example, the projected double receives light energy directly without needing physical eyes, but it must have sight experience to translate this perception in a visual way. Whether the projected double is seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, or tasting, it perceives and interprets the energies associated with these perceptions directly, bypassing the actual physical sense organs.

 	Blindness and OBE Perception

  	Evidence of how the projected double receives sensory input is found in the dream and projection capabilities of blind people. A comparison between people who have been blind since birth, and those who lost sight during life, reveals important clues.

 	Blind people who have experienced sight before they became blind generally have fully sighted dreams and OBEs. If the physical condition of the eyes were reflected into the sight capabilities of the projected double, physical blindness would also blind the projected double during OBE, which is not the case.

 	However, if the physical eyes had nothing to do with OBE and dream perception, then people who have been blind since birth (never experiencing sight) should also be sighted during OBEs and dreams, which is also not the case.

 	Therefore, OBE visual perception must be dependent upon the learned sensory capabilities of the physical body's mind/brain. This does not depend upon the current functionality of the physical eyes. These principles apply to all senses.

 	Physical blindness does not prohibit the ability to have dreams and OBEs, but it does affect sensory perception. Perceptions of spatial awareness, touch, hearing and other nonvisual senses are highly developed in blind people. These senses are also greatly enhanced during OBE, allowing blind-since-birth projectors to perceive the out-of-body environment very clearly. This level of nonvisual sensory ability is in many ways superior to normal sight during the OBE, as the case history coming up suggests.

 	In the past, the biggest problem facing blind projectors has been the heavy reliance upon visualization for energy work and OBE projection techniques. Visualization techniques require learned sight experience. The techniques given in this book are not based on visualization, but on body awareness tactile imaging. These methods are suitable for sighted and non-sighted projectors alike.

 	A blind projector gave me the following explanation regarding his dream and OBE perceptions. Being blind since birth and also a successful OBE projector and lucid dreamer is an unusual combination. In the out-of-body environment, perception is everything.

 	My question to C.B. was, "Could you please explain your nonsighted condition and how you perceive things during your OBEs and lucid dreams?" 

 	C.B.: "I've been blind since birth. My optic nerves didn't develop while I was in the womb, but I still have vivid OBEs and dreams. Its hard to explain how I sense things and get around while I'm out of my body. I experience no real difference between my OBE and dream perceptions. When I have a dream or OBE, I am very aware of what is around me, but everything is always three-dimensional. I can't perceive anything two-dimensional, such as what's on the surface of a picture, but I can perceive the canvas and frame very clearly. The area around me is vivid in my mind in all directions, and is very detailed. This awareness is much stronger than my normal awake perceptions are in my own home. When I project, it's like I can feel everything around me, as if I am continually touching everything with my fingers, with my mind, with my senses—reaching out and touching everything around me all at once. My senses extend a long way, much farther than usual, and I can feel into the distance around me in probably much the same way as sighted people do with their eyes. I get around just fine when I'm out of my body, with no hesitation or doubt about my surroundings. I never worry about bumping into things and can sense exactly what is ahead of me and around me at all times. If I meet people during an OBE or lucid dream, I can instantly tell what they look like and what they are wearing, just as if I were running my hands all over them. This isn't really sight, as I have no idea what sight or color or light are, but my dream and OBE perceptions are about as close to sight as it gets for me."

 	The projected double perceives the OBE environment directly. This bypasses any need for subtle copies of physical sense organs. The projected double can be thought of as a direct mind-sense energy perceiver. The learned sensory capabilities of the physical brain are the only limiting factor when it comes to sensory input gained during OBEs and dreams. If persons have visual sensory experience, say if they had sight for a part of their lives, then they will perceive the OBE environment visually—because of their sight experience. If, however, persons have no sight experience at all, say if they have been blind since birth, then their OBE perceptions will be nonvisual. Logically, this factor applies to all of the five senses of the physical body.

 	OBE Perception

  	Objective OBE experiences include perceptions of reality that do not appear affected by the mind and imagination of projectors. During a real-time OBE, for example, an objective perception is best described as something known to be consistent with what projectors know to be true of the physical universe. These perceptions are best described as apparently objective, although they were gained remotely from the physical body and its sense organs.

 	Although the real-time zone appears to be actual reality, and projectors existing in real time feel they are invisible beings in the real world, I do not think that they are actually in the physical universe per se. They are also not in the astral planes, which bear little to no resemblance to the physical world. Real-time projectors are slightly out of phase with both, at a slightly different frequency or vibration from the physical universe or the astral planes. Real-time projectors exit in a direct reflection of the physical universe, as it happens in real time. Real-time projectors experience the physical universe through direct mind perceptions.

 	Real-time perceptions can sometimes be inconsistent with the actual physical universe. For example, if projectors find misplaced, missing, or new objects and people in their home, that they know are not there in reality, then these are subjective perceptions. More accurately, these are reality fluctuations.

 	The definition of subjective perception does not strictly include sightings of other projectors or spirits as being unreal, even if these are seen only during real-time OBE. The difference between objective and subjective perceptions here is blurred. Astral-plane experiences, while technically being entirely subjective, are also not included here. These usually bear little to no relationship with the physical universe.

 Chapter 7: YOUR HIGHER SELF AND YOU

  	This new edition of Astral Dynamics makes extensive use of affirmations and commands. These are the most powerful tools available for developing OBE ability and for working out of body.

 	In order to use these tools, it is necessary to understand how they work. To do this, you need to know what your higher self is and how it relates to you. You may have heard of these things, but if you do not know how they work, you will have little faith in them and be unlikely to make use of them. So please bear with me as I explain the how and why of these amazing concepts and tools.

 	Your higher self is your divine aspect. This been called many things over the ages and they all fit: the inner daemon, the monad, the guardian angel, etc. Its actions are often attributed to the divine, or to the actions of spirit beings. It is the great observer within you. Call this aspect whatever you like, it is Source, and Source does not care what name you use.

 	It can help to conceptualize this if you consider your higher self to be directly connected with Source through a gradient of consciousness—from you to Source. Think of a simple gradient here: there is your awake conscious mind at the base level, and then there is your unconscious mind, and then there is your higher self, and then there is Source.
 	The Source is the universe. You are an integral part of the universe. There is no actual separation between you and the rest of the universe—only perceived and believed separateness. This is what Eckhart Tolle means when he says, "You are the NOW." He is saying, "You are Source." The following exercise demonstrates the nondual nature of Source.

 	Take your index finger and point to Source.

 	Next, point to where Source is not.

 	You'll find that you cannot point to anything for either of these. This is because Source is obviously everywhere and everything. This includes you. You are Source.

 	You and Source are indivisible.

 	This analogy will help: Consider the fingertip of your right index finger. Imagine that this is you and the rest of your body is the universe and everyone else. You cannot separate your fingertip from your body. You cannot honestly state that "this fingertip is a separate and discrete being." This is a part of you and hence an integral part of the whole of your body.
 	Your fingertip does not realize it is a part of your body, but it still is a part of the whole. In this sense, you are Source and your fingertip is you. Imagine that this fingertip is conscious and believes it is separate from you. You smile and look at it from a higher perspective. You know the truth, because you are aware of your wholeness and oneness. You know that your fingertip is definitely a part of the whole that is you.

 	This is the truth of nondual existence. You perceive and believe yourself as being separate from everything and everyone else, because this is convenient. But on a deeper level you are a part of everything and everything is a part of you. This is logical and obvious if you look at the evidence. If you will be still and think on this for a moment, you will feel the truth of this in your heart. It may not be comfortable or convenient, but it is the truth.

 	Now, an interesting thing happens here, when the nondual is realized. Right now your mind and ego are busy finding a separate place for you in this nondual analogy. We humans have the habit of separating ourselves from Source. This is natural and helps us stay grounded here in physical reality. We like our gods to be just above the clouds, so we can do what we like down here on Earth. We crave individuality and the sense of sovereignty and control this offers. It also gives us a sense of long-term individual spiritual survival and progression. This separateness is robustly supported by ego. Our inner need for separateness and uniqueness flows from the ego. Ego is terrified of the nondual, because realizing the nondual dissolves ego.

 	The more you embrace your nondual nature, the more connected you become to everything. And the more you realize this, the more the Source realizes you. This belief causes your higher spiritual aspects to draw closer to you and to work more strongly in your life.
 	Where Is Your Higher Self?

  	Your higher self exists within you and all around you. It is everywhere and it never leaves you. Look in a mirror and you see Source. Look at anything and you see Source. It is the great observer within; the silence between your thoughts. Source is a force of nature—because it is nature. It is within every atom of your body and every thought and feeling and idea. This is why loving your self and your body is so important. Source responds to and is attracted by love. Source is love. If you do not love your self, if you do not love your body, or parts of your body, you push Source away because you are not loving those parts of Source. And if Source diminishes in your body, inner conflict and states of disease are created.
 	The truth of the closeness of your higher self is most observable during OBE. Your higher self is more receptive and proactive on the astral level. You can demonstrate this by making commands and affirmations. Get out of your body, or become lucid, and make a simple command: "Give me light!" or, "Take me to my friend!" or, "Give me clarity!"
 	Commanding light or clarity during OBE is well known to work. It works by evoking the force of your higher self to change the situation. So, what else can we do with this force?

 	If you command to be taken somewhere, you will feel an invisible hand take hold of you and begin moving you to where you have directed. Stay focused on your goal and you will be taken all the way there. Get distracted and pay attention to something else, say a tree, and the force will drop you there. Restate your command and it will take hold of you and start moving you again. This can happen many times on a single journey. Your higher self is infinitely patient and nothing is too much trouble.

 	You do not need to implore or beg for anything. Keep commands and affirmations simple and clear and be specific. However, it helps improve the connection if you acknowledge your higher self with expressions of gratitude, love, and respect. Think and meditate on these things and build a rapport and closer working relationship with your higher self.
 	The above also applies to the manifestation process. Keep focused on your goals in every way and you will manifest them faster than if you are distracted. The manifestation process is much slower in the physical world, but the principles are the same.
 	How Affirmations and Commands Work

  	Affirmations work best when they are simply and clearly phrased with unambiguous words—present tense, active. Use them as if what you are affirming is what already exists. The higher self exists only in the present, in the NOW, and does not understand references to the past or future.

 	Affirmations are best spoken aloud. Spoken words are many times more powerful than thought words. The spoken word activates the throat chakra. This projects what is spoken onto the astral level. Your higher self is more receptive and proactive on the astral level.

 	Commands are directives. For best results, use short, clear statements. Do not preface with pleading, flowery words. This will clutter and confuse your directives. Keep them clear and precise, e.g., "Give me light!" or "Take me to the akashic records!" or "Take me home!"

 	Developing and Inducing OBEs and Lucid Dreaming

  	Everyone is born with full spiritual abilities, including OBE and lucid dreaming. However, the higher self filters most of these things out by default. It even filters out most of our dreams. This filtering action helps keep us grounded here in physical reality.

 	The trickle of energy felt just prior to the OBE exit is caused by the generation and extrusion of your projected double. However, there can also be a higher-self component to this trickle of energy. If you feel this trickle of energy and continually fail the OBE exit, observe this feeling more closely. You will find it contains a subtle shift, like a brief falling sensation that makes everything stop. It's almost like an invisible hand rises up inside of you with a big STOP sign. If you feel this shift happening, then you need to work on affirmations to stop the default stop sign appearing.

 	So, obviously a part of developing these abilities is to convince your higher self that it's okay with you to have these abilities. It's okay for you to have OBEs and lucid dreams and to remember everything. Once your higher self understands this, these things will start to manifest in your life.

 	All methods and techniques aside, affirmations are your most powerful tool for developing OBE and lucid dreaming. Affirmations should reflect your desire to joyfully leave your body and return safely with full memory. They can also be used to remove fear and to counter specific problems and difficulties you might be having, e.g., to remember more dreams, to achieve altered states, to activate chakras, to remove fears, to stay focused, etc.

 	Affirmations must be said in present-tense active format, as if you already had what you wish to manifest. So use affirmations like, "I travel the astral planes and return safely with full memory," and, "I happily leave my body and return safely and remember everything," and, "I remember my dreams," and, "I leave my body with courage and joy," and, "I love to astral project," and, "I love to travel out of my body."

 	Development affirmations should be spoken aloud where possible. The more time put into repeating these each day, the faster the results. You need to be alone for this or people will think you are nuts. I recommend using shower time, walking time, and driving time. Turn off the radio and verbally repeat your affirmations while driving. A lot of people spend hours per day on the road. This is invaluable for affirmation work.

 	Using Affirmations to Induce OBEs

  	Verbally repeat your affirmations at the start of each training and OBE exit work session, and before sleep each night. They can be spoken quietly in the bathroom. If you are not alone, also say your affirmations silently as a prelude to sleep. Saying these while you are falling asleep will carry them into the sleep state, where they will have more powerful effects.
 	Using Affirmations and Commands Out of Body 

  	Anything done on the astral and mental levels is more powerful than when done from the physical. While out of body, repeat your affirmations aloud. Results will automatically flow into your physical body and life.

 	It is necessary to speak commands aloud, whether in the physical or during an OBE. Nothing happens unless you speak and ask clearly. It is like the higher self has a noninterference policy. It will not act unless it is invited to act. And the strength of its actions is directly related to your level of faith and belief in yourself and in your higher self.

 	Commands are used for transporting yourself to specific places in the astral and for solving problems. For example, if you want to visit someone, make the command, "Take me to my friend," or, "Take me to the beach," or, "Take me to the akashic records," or, "Take me to a master." When you speak a command, say it clearly, forcefully, and with intention. Be specific.

 	Once you have commanded a destination and have started moving, keep your mind focused on your goal. If you get distracted, your progress will stop. Restate your command and your journey will begin again. Repeat as necessary. When you arrive at your destination, say "Thank you" to your higher self, to express gratitude and respect. Your higher self is not a cold, mindless robot. It responds to love, appreciation, gratitude, and respect. It will work more closely with you if you express these things. However, save your appreciation for the right time. Do not clutter commands and affirmations, as these need to be simple and clear.

 	You can also use commands to summon people to you during OBEs. If the person you wish to meet is out of body and available, they will be brought to you by your higher self. The variables here are intention and permission. If you do not know a person, or they do not want to see you, then they may not appear. Intention and permission are important issues and play a big part in this level of work.

 	You can also use higher-self commands and affirmations for healing—for yourself and for others. For example, summon a person during an OBE and then give them healing by affirming and commanding healing. Be specific when doing this type of work; if you are healing an injured knee, focus your words and intentions on the knee itself, e.g., "This knee is perfect!" or, "Heal John's knee!" or, "This knee joint is perfect in every way!"

 	Higher-Self Transport Experience

  	One of my first higher-self transport experiences occurred not long after publishing the original Astral Dynamics. Here's what happened: I had been giving distance healing to a dear friend, Taryn. She was in the hospital after a nervous breakdown.

 	I projected and moved away from my body. I noticed a picture of Taryn on my desk. I had been sending her distance healing and thought a silent prayer. I felt something then, a stirring, a presence. The idea to visit Taryn came to me, but I did not know where the hospital was located. On a whim, I verbally commanded, "Take me to Taryn!" and the most amazing thing happened. A force like a giant hand enfolded me and began moving me. I was surprised but did not feel threatened. This force reminded me of how the astral wind feels.

 	The force moved me out of my house and across the park, picking up speed as we went. I noticed a big tree in the park had been cut down. The force immediately put me down next to the stump. Curious, I thought. I restated the command "Take me to Taryn!" and the force took hold of me again and off we went. This happened several times, and every time I paid attention to something, I was dropped there. I sensed amusement coming from the force that was moving me. I soon got the idea. Reaching out to this force as we moved, I connected more strongly. I sensed infinite patience and love. I also sensed it had a great interest in me. This felt like I was a small child being carried by a grandparent: wise and loving and patient. I returned the sentiment. I eventually arrived at Taryn's hospital, arriving near her table where she was having tea. I gave her healing and helped her as best I could. I then shifted back to my body and recorded everything in my journal.
 	I have been pondering this phenomenon ever since, and this has led me to explore the field of manifestation for OBE, for spiritual development and self-healing, as well as manifesting other things in life. Working with your higher self, using intention and energy, affirmations and commands, love and gratitude, makes an amazing difference to all aspects of OBE.

 	Command something, and it will happen. Affirm something, and it will appear.

 	  

 	The projected astral double is generated by the energy body and is composed of and maintained by energy. The ability to stimulate your energy body and manipulate your energy centers is, therefore, an invaluable part of OBE training.

 	I have explored and experimented with the primary energy centers for decades. I took a fresh, hands-on approach and explored these by doing rather than by reading. This resulted in not only this body awareness system of energy work, but also many new insights into primary energy centers and related structures of the human energy body.

 	The energy work system given here (originally called NEW Energy Ways) has evolved considerably since the first edition of Astral Dynamics in 1999. This evolution is reflected in this tenth anniversary edition. Energy work has many uses, including self-healing, and spiritual and psychic development. For more detailed information, please see my book, Energy Work, Hampton Roads Publishing, 2007, and www.astraldymamics.com.

 Chapter 8: YOU AND YOUR ENERGY BODY

  	The practice of OBE is largely dependent upon energy-body activity. Body-awareness-based energy-work methods allow for the specific activation of energy centers. Exercising these causes subtle energy to flow more strongly, making OBE exits more powerful and achievable.

 	The energy work taught here is a tactile imaging system that does not require visualization. Tactile imaging involves focusing your kinesthetic senses—your body awareness—on a specific point in the physical body, and then moving the focal point. This stimulates that area of the energy body very effectively—any area of the body, internal or external.

 	The human energy body contains seven primary energy centers (also called chakras or psychic centers), hundreds of secondary energy centers, three storage centers (also called Dan Tians), and thousands of energy-exchange pores. All of these are interconnected through myriad subtle-energy pathways, with a central channel running up through the middle. The human energy body is as complex as the human nervous system, with which it is intimately related.

 	Vital energies are absorbed into the physical and energy bodies through breathing and the digestion of food and drink, and through environmental and social interactions. Subtle energies circulate through networks of subtle-energy pathways and meridians. Energy centers absorb and transform the qualities of subtle energies. These can be likened to subtle transformers, changing the quality and frequency of subtle energies to suit a variety of needs, physical and subtle.

 	The following illustration shows the basic structures of the human energy body, including primary centers, storage centers, and energy-exchange pore areas.

 	  

 	Figure 5. Basic overview of the human energy body

 	Primary Energy Centers

  	The seven primary energy centers are at the base, navel, solar plexus, heart, throat, brow, and crown. These are the major subtle organs of the energy body, involved with every aspect of human existence and always active on some level. These centers are responsible for all emotional, psychic, and spiritual senses, and are heavily involved with OBE and the generation of the projected double.

 	  

 	Figure 6. Side view of the human energy body showing seven primary centers

 	Secondary Energy Centers

  	Secondary energy centers are similar to primary energy centers, but are smaller, with simpler functions. These vary in size and placement throughout the substance of the physical body. These energy centers and their meridian connections are well documented in ancient and contemporary bodywork systems, such as acupuncture.

 	  

 	Figure 7. Cross-section of a finger secondary energy center 

 	Figure 7 shows a typical skeletal-type secondary energy center of a finger joint. These types of energy centers each have four poles and a central connecting core. Each pole is a small vortex-like energy structure that flowers on the surface of the skin above the joint. These poles are connected through internal conduits. When energy flows strongly through skeletal channels, it can over-stimulate physical nerves and cause bone-deep tingling and surging energy movement sensations. These are particularly noticeable in the arms and legs. Skeletal-type secondary centers exist in every bone and joint of the human body.
 	Secondary centers also exist throughout the body, in flesh and organs and ganglia, all connected by networks of subtle-energy filaments.

 	Tertiary Energy-Exchange Pores

  	Energy-exchange pores are tiny energy centers with simple functions, like the millions of sweat pores covering the surface of the skin. The main function of these is to exchange subtle energy with the environment and, socially, with other people. The surface of the skin is covered with these, but they are concentrated in several areas: soles of the feet, palms of the hands, nose and nasal passages, eyes and ears, lungs, mouth, lips and tongue, and genitals.

 	Energy Storage Centers

  	The human energy body has three major energy storage centers, where different qualities of energies accumulate. These are different from the primary energy centers that share the same general areas, although they are all energetically connected.

 	Sub-Navel Center: This sits midway between the belly button and the pubic line, two inches inside the average body. Its function is to store raw physical vitality. When stimulated, this center produces a fluttering, bubbling energy movement sensation, often an inch or two to the side of the central point or pubic line.

 	Sub-Heart Center: This sits in the middle of the chest between the nipples, two inches inside the average body. Its function is to store raw emotional energy.

 	Sub-Brow Center: This sits between the eyebrows in the center of the brow, just inside the skull. Its function is to store raw mental and psychic energies.

 	Of the three energy storage centers, the only one deliberately filled with energy work is the sub-navel storage center. When this is full, it overflows naturally conditioned energy into the sub-heart and sub-brow storage centers.

 	Group experiments have taught me that deliberately filling the two higher storage centers in the heart and brow is unwise. This can unbalance the energy body and cause predictable problems, including emotional, mental, and psychic instabilities.

 	Visualization and Imagination

  	None of the techniques in this book rely on visualization. They utilize a nonvisual system called tactile imaging. This is easy to learn and to use, and more effective than visualization methods. Most people have problems visualizing and many believe they cannot visualize. But visualization is a natural ability that everyone can do perfectly right now. Visualization is not a visual skill. You do not have to see anything visual in your mind when you visualize. If you do see something, then this is a mind's-eye vision experience.

 	Visualization is imagination—pure fantasy. Every child can do this perfectly. A visualization exercise or led meditation is exactly the same as any other fantasy, where memory is used to build a fictional scenario in the mind's eye. It may be full of sights, sounds, smells, tastes, textures, and feelings, but nothing is actually seen visually. The perceptions gained from imagination are, though, just as detailed as are visual perceptions.
 	Memory plays an important part in imagination and visualization. Have you ever replayed past actions in your mind, in your mind's eye, to help you find a lost item? Replaying or re-creating events—whether real or fictitious—involves the constructive use of imagination. This is perfect visualization, and everyone has the natural ability to do this perfectly right now.

 	The very word visual-ization is part of the problem, especially when used to describe inner practices like meditation and energy work. This problem is exacerbated by the visual terms commonly used to describe nonvisual experiences—which includes all nonvisual psychic perceptions. This is compounded by people who psychically perceive things (not actually seeing anything visually) who habitually use visual terms like "I saw," "I see," "I am seeing." This is misleading for students. Terms that are more accurate, like "I sense," "I perceive," are less confusing.

 	Some people will actually see things visually in their mind's eyes during visualization exercises. This often happens where deep physical/mental relaxation is involved. This can produce the "mind awake + body asleep" state (also called the trance state). This can activate visual clairvoyant abilities. The dream mind can also become active and produce visual mind's-eye imagery. But it should never be assumed that mind's-eye visual ability is the norm for everyone.

 	Body Awareness Tactile Imaging

  	The key to effective energy work is developing tactile awareness of your physical body. This stimulates the flow of vital energy and encourages spiritual development.

 	Your natural center of awareness rests in your eyes, as sight is the strongest sense. You observe the physical world through this window. But your center of conscious awareness is not restricted to your eyes. Your mind does not reside inside your head, but includes your entire physical body.

 	Your focus of attention, when focused upon a specific part of your body, energetically stimulates that part. When you move this focal point of attention throughout your body, you stimulate its underlying energy-body structures. Body-awareness movement causes direct energy-body stimulation. This is tactile imaging. In a similar way, energy can be moved through your body and specific parts and energy centers can be targeted and stimulated.
 	How Tactile Imaging Affects the Physical and Energy Bodies

  	The focus of body awareness attention in any part of the physical body—say in the hand—causes the nerves in the skin and flesh in that area to charge up and prepare for physical movement. If movement does not occur—if the focal point of body awareness is shifted as tactile imaging actions are performed—these nerves discharge. So when body awareness is brushed back and forth through the hand, the nerves there are continually charging and discharging. This increases bioelectrical activity there and causes some unusual physical sensations.

 	The bioelectrical activity caused by tactile-imaging actions in nerves of the physical body causes a corresponding bioenergy disturbance in the substance of the energy body. This is like a subtle-energy ripple wave effect. The intensity and motion of this subtle-energy wave vary according to the location and intensity of the body awareness action being performed. Some areas of the energy body, such as hands and feet, are more sensitive than others. This relates partly to the density of nerves in the physical body, and partly to subtle-energy body structures sharing the same locations.

 	Tactile imaging actions can be performed on the surface of the physical body, or deep inside the physical body, or even outside the physical body, such as when performing OBE exit techniques.

 	Tactile imaging causes some unusual physical sensations. While the type and intensity vary from person to person, the most common include feelings of tightness, heaviness, fuzziness, thickness, tingling, buzzing, fluttering, fizzing, mild cramping, and warm or cool sensations. Again, these sensations are caused by increased energy movement stimulating nerves in the physical body.

 	Strong energy-movement-related physical sensations are common for beginners, especially during the first few weeks of energy work. These sensations will always abate with practice, as the energy body and the nerves of the physical body adapt to higher levels of energy movement and bioelectrical activity.

 	Little or no sensation during early energy work can indicate three things: an already well-developed energy body, a sluggish energy body with energy blockages, or ineffective tactile-imaging actions. Out of the many thousands of people I have taught this energy work to, I have come across only a small handful of people who felt no sensations. However, in all cases where energy work is persevered with, the energy body eventually responds and produces normal energy movement sensations.

 	The First Practice

  	The following simple exercises will show you how to focus body awareness in different parts of your body. This is essential body-awareness training for tactile imaging.

 	To prepare yourself, sit in a chair with your shoes off and do not cross your legs. Eliminate distractions like music, tight clothing, etc. Close your eyes, take a few deep breaths to settle yourself, and begin. Lightly rub or scratch the specified areas of your body as necessary. This helps target specific areas, so that your focal point of body awareness can be focused more accurately. The scratching and rubbing are discontinued later.

 	When you focus on any area of your body, it helps if you imagine that you are trying to feel slight changes in air temperature and air movement there.

 	Rub or lightly scratch your left kneecap, causing a mild tingling to help target this. Feel for this tingling area with your body awareness, with your body's sense of touch. With your body awareness alone, feel for more of your knee and become more aware of it as a joint. Feel around it, on the sides and back of your knee, and then move your point of body awareness around it several times, as if bandaging your knee. Your center of body awareness is now focused in your left knee.

 	Shift your point of body awareness slowly down your left leg to your big toe. Scratch or wiggle the toe a bit to help target it, so you can focus your body awareness there. Feel its outline and shape with your awareness. Move your focal point of body awareness back and forth through the big toe and continue this for one minute.
 	Shift your point of body awareness to your right knee, lightly rubbing or scratching it first to highlight it, and repeat the above knee exercise. Then slowly move your point of body awareness down your leg and repeat the big-toe exercise on your right foot.

 	Repeat the above exercise with your left elbow joint and left thumb, and then your right elbow joint and right thumb.

 	Move your point of body awareness to several other parts of your body, anywhere you like, focusing on one part at a time. Feel your point of awareness moving through your body as you do this. Remember with each area to try and detect slight changes in air movement and air temperature there.

 	Focus your attention in your left foot, as we did before, until you can feel it well. Next, move your focal point of body awareness slowly up through your leg to your left knee. Feel the leg as you move your point of awareness through it. Next, move your point of awareness back down to your left foot, again feeling your leg as you move your point of awareness through it. Repeat this action, moving your point of awareness up to your knee, then back down to your foot, up to the knee, and back to the foot. Continue doing this, moving your point of awareness up and down, up and down, through your left leg from foot to knee. Feel your leg as you move your body awareness up and down, up and down. Continue for a few minutes.

 	Repeat this exercise on your right leg, then your left arm, then your right arm.

 	You have just moved your center of body awareness all around your body, targeting and focusing your body awareness in many parts. You have also been stimulating your energy body, as your focal point of body awareness moved through your energy body. You may have felt some peculiar sensations. This is normal and will be discussed in more detail later.

 	Energy Work Demonstration

  	Now that you are familiar with the fundamental concepts and methods, more hands-on practice will give you a better feel for tactile imaging and energy work. It will also show you how to demonstrate tactile imaging to other people. One thing I have learned from teaching energy work is that the easiest way to learn it is—to do energy work!
 	Like the previous exercises, the key to effective energy work is to move your sense of touch and feel through your body. It helps if you feel that you are trying to sense tiny changes in air temperature and air movement in the skin over the area you are focusing upon. Do not cross your legs or arms while learning, as this increases difficulty. Cross-legged positions can only be used after these methods are mastered.

 	The strength and types of sensations caused by these exercises will vary from person to person. One side of your body will be more sensitive to energy movement than the other. Which side this is varies from person to person, depending upon their energetic makeup.

 	Again, eliminate distractions, wear loose clothing, sit in a chair in a quiet place, and kick your shoes off . Place a cushion under your feet and do not cross your legs. Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths to settle yourself, and then begin. Deep relaxation is not required.

 	Combing Hair Exercise

  	Your imaginary body awareness hands are your focal points for performing energy work. Your awareness hands are extensions of your focal points of body awareness. Imagine that your awareness arms and hands will stretch to any length at any angle. Do not restrict your awareness hands to what your physical arms and hands can do. In this way, you can reach any part of your body. Performing a body awareness action is like mentally rehearsing a physical action with imagination and body awareness feeling.

 	After you are settled with eyes closed, slowly raise your real physical hand and pretend to comb your hair with your fingers, brushing your fingers through your hair all over your head. Focus your body awareness attention on what the movement of your hand feels like and on the touch of your fingertips moving over your head. Remember what these actions feel like, so you can recreate them with body awareness alone. Take your time doing this.

 	Next, with arms resting in your lap or by your sides, slowly repeat the above actions but without physically moving. Imagine and feel yourself lifting your hand to your head. Focus on being aware of this action, of imagining and feeling it happening, as if it really were. Focus on your imaginary fingers touching your head. Slowly comb your body-awareness fingers through your hair, imagining and feeling this happening on your scalp. Now, focus your body awareness solely in the action you are performing on your head—forgetting about your imaginary arms and focusing solely on the actions of your body awareness hands. Continue this action for a minute or two.
 	Finish this exercise using both your imaginary hands. Feel them slowly rising and then massaging your scalp, face, neck, and shoulders. Imagine and feel this happening in real time. Focus your attention on where your body-awareness hands are touching your skin, and on feeling this contact in your body. Take your time over this.

 	Brushing Hands

  	With eyes open or shut, rest your left hand on your desk or lap, palm up, fingers together. With the fingertips of your right hand, stroke the whole surface of your left hand from wrist to fingertips repeatedly, taking about one second per stroke. Focus on what this feels like to your left hand. Memorize the feel of this touch. Continue stroking for twenty seconds or so, until you can reproduce the feel and movement of this touch in your left hand from memory alone, with your body awareness alone.

 	Stop physically stroking your hand and immediately continue moving the memory of the feel of the stroking action through your left hand, back and forth from fingertips to wrist. Continue this for a minute or more, until you have a good feeling for this action. Try it with eyes open and watching the action, and then with eyes shut. Some people find this easier to do if they follow the action with their eyes.

 	You will begin to feel some peculiar sensations: a vague fuzziness, tightness, heaviness, pressure, tingling, or buzzing. The most common first sensation is a vague fuzzy tightness or heaviness, like the residual feeling left behind after you have clapped your hands a few times. This can also be described as a magnetic feeling. Any sensation, no matter how light or vague, indicates that energy-body stimulation is occurring. These sensations will be strong in some people, faint in others. These will become more noticeable and consistent with a little practice. These sensations may continue for some time after you have stopped working on your hands. This is normal. Repeat the above exercise with your right hand.

 	  

 	Figure 8. Hand brushing hand with fingertips

 	Repeat the above exercise with both hands simultaneously. Split-body-awareness actions are easy to do. Don't think about how to do it, just do this. First clap and rub your hands together and wiggle your fingers and make fists, until you cause a slight lasting physical sensation in them both. Lay your hands palm up on your desk or lap. With eyes open or shut, focus on the sensation you caused in your hands. Next, move the feel of this sensation back and forth from fingertips to wrists, through both hands simultaneously. Continue this for two minutes or more, until you have a good feeling for this action. You cannot overdo these exercises.

 	Brushing Feet Exercise

  	Your feet are major energy-body structures. They control energy exchanged with the planet that moves through your body. The flow of energy into your body can be greatly enhanced by body-awareness work on your feet.

 	  

 	Figure 9. Brushing feet

 	For this exercise, first rub your bare feet on the floor and/or wiggle your toes to create a residual sensation in your feet. Close your eyes and feel for your feet with your sense of body awareness, like we did earlier. Focus on your feet and feel with them as if you were trying to feel minute changes in air movement and air temperature there. When you are aware of where your feet are and how they feel, continue with the next step.

 	Perform the following exercise with eyes open or closed.

 	Start by brushing the underside of your left foot with your body awareness, moving the feel of the remembered sensation you caused in them back and forth. Brush back and forth from toes to heel, as if you were brushing the underside with a large paintbrush from underneath. When you can feel this action moving, let the feeling spread out so that you are sponging this feeling through the whole of your foot, from toes to heel. Take one or two seconds for each direction. Continue this for a few minutes or longer.
 	Repeat the above exercise with your right foot.

 	Repeat the above exercise with both feet simultaneously. Brush the underside of both feet, back and forth from toes to heels. When you can feel this action moving well, let the feeling spread out so that you are sponging this feel through the whole of both feet, from toes to heels simultaneously. Continue this for several minutes or longer. You cannot overdo hand and foot exercises.

 	Foot exercises can cause very strong sensations in some people. If this gets too strong for comfort, stop and move on to the next exercise. Apply this advice to all exercises, any time sensations get too strong for comfort, regardless of instructions given.

 	Creating Energy Balls

  	Rub your hands together and wiggle your fingers and make fists, to cause a slight lasting sensation in them. Next, hold your hands out in front of your chest, cupping hands with fingertips almost touching, fingers slightly spread. Feel for the slight sensation you caused in your hands with your body-awareness senses. Increase the intensity of this feel by feeling for minute changes of air movement and air temperature with your hands.

 	Figure 10. Bouncing energy ball between hands 

 	Close your eyes and imagine and feel an electric-blue tennis-ball-sized energy ball forming between your hands. Imagine and feel this energy ball spinning between your hands. You may not actually see this, but you can imagine and feel this. Continue this for a minute or two.

 	Move your hands twelve inches or so apart. Imagine and feel the energy ball staying put and hovering in space between your hands. Next, imagine and feel the energy ball moving so it bounces from hand to hand. Feel the ball touching each hand as strongly as you can. Imagine and feel and sense this happening. Play with the ball until you get a feel for this action, speeding it up and slowing it down. Continue for two minutes or longer.
 	Hug Circuit

  	With eyes open or shut, hold your hands out in front of you with fingers linked, as if you were hugging a tree. Focus on your hands and feel them with your body-awareness senses. Imagine an electric-blue energy ball forming over your hands where your fingers link, slightly larger than we did before. Imagine and feel the energy ball moving up through your right wrist and arm to your shoulder, then on through your chest and heart and out of your left shoulder, and then down your left arm and back to your hands. Repeat this and keep the energy ball moving and circling around through your arms and chest. Each circuit should take about two to four seconds. Experiment with the speed of this action and use what works best for you. Continue for two minutes or so.

 	Figure 11. Hug circuit

 	

 	Brow Center Brushing and Wrapping

  	Rub or lightly scratch the middle of your forehead to help target your brow center. Close your eyes and focus on the residual sensation you caused there with your body awareness senses. Then brush the whole of your brow from temple to temple for one minute, as if you were painting that area with a wide brush. Feel this brushing action moving across your brow.

 	Extend the brushing action and move it all the way around your head at brow level, around and around. Direction is unimportant. Brush around your head as if you were wrapping a bandage around your head. Continue for two minutes or more.

 	Brow Center Bounce

  	Rub or scratch the middle of your forehead again to help with targeting. Imagine and feel an electric-blue energy ball forming there, about the size of a golf ball. Imagine and feel this energy ball moving into and through your head, to a few inches out of the back of your head at the same level. Then bring it back through your head to a few inches in front of your brow. Start bouncing the energy ball back and forth through your head, feeling it passing through your brain. Continue for two minutes or more.
 	Temple Bounce

  	Rub or lightly scratch your left and right temples. Focus your body awareness in your right temple and imagine a small golf-ball-sized electric-blue energy ball forming there. Move the ball through your head and brain and out of your left temple, a few inches outside. Then move it back through your head and brain to a few inches out past your right temple. Feel the energy ball passing through the substance of your brain. Bounce the energy ball back and forth through your brain, about half to one second each way. Continue for two minutes or more.

 	As you have discovered, tactile imaging is an easy and effective way to stimulate your energy body. The type and intensity of sensations caused by these exercises will vary from person to person. Most people will feel at least some noticeable sensations from these exercises. Some people will feel a lot more. If you do not feel much, go back to the start and repeat the earlier exercises.

 	The exercises you have just done can activate one or more of the higher chakras, including the heart, brow, throat, or crown centers in some people. Do not be surprised if you feel tingling and/or pulsing in these areas, and tingling up your back. These are normal for this type of energy-body stimulation.
 
 Chapter 9: RUNNING ENERGY

  	As said, the best way to learn energy work is to do energy work. Following are a variety of techniques for stimulating different parts of the energy body, for storing energy, and for running energy circuits. Perform the exercises in order.

 	If you feel nothing after doing one of these exercises for several minutes, move on to the next. While energy-movement sensations are usually apparent, some people may feel little in the early stages. A complete lack of sensation is rare. No sensations at all after several energy-work sessions usually indicates that the energy body is blocked or inactive in the areas being worked upon. If this is the case, continue with these exercises as best you can. The regular practices of energy work will help restore stubborn inactive areas and remove blockages.

 	A hot shower or bath sensitizes the physical body to energy-movement sensations and promotes stronger general energy flow. Taking a cool shower and scrubbing your body with a soft brush will help even more. Try this, if you have trouble feeling energy movement.

 	Energy Momentum

  	Repetitive body awareness soon gains momentum. It will often continue on its own even after you stop consciously performing the action. This natural phenomenon makes energy work easier to do. However, it can cause your focal point of body awareness to become locked into an area, or into a particular action. This can be helpful if you want an action to continue during sleep, but it can be annoying if you want to work on other areas. If this happens, try switching to brushing your hands and feet until the problem eases, or take a short break.
 	Tactile Imaging Techniques

  	The tactile imaging techniques coming up are used in a variety of ways for stimulating your energy body and energy centers. While doing all these exercises, remember the Golden Rule of Energy Work: If energy sensations become overly uncomfortable or painful in any way, cease all energy work immediately. Rest and ground yourself unti l all worrying sensations are gone. Then return to energy work and continue a little more gently. This rule avoids any potential problems.

 	Energy Balls

  	Energy balls are used extensively in the work ahead. Just imagine a ball of energy forming and moving, as we did earlier. Energy balls can be moved through the body, around the body, and even outside the body. They can be expanded and contracted, or exploded and shrunk. This can be done to provide stronger stimulation in particular areas, or to shake up and wear away energy blockages.

 	Energy balls can also be combined with a sponging action. This is a whole-of-limb action, mainly used for raising energy, but also used for energy bounce actions, which will be introduced shortly. To perform an energy-ball sponging action, imagine and feel that you are pulling a large wet sponge ball through a limb, feeling this moving through its whole substance, muscles and bones.

 	  

 	Figure 12. Sponging energy ball through arm

 	Brushing and Stirring Actions
 	Brushing and stirring action (for example, the exercise we did earlier where you brushed your hands and feet) is mainly used for direct stimulation of primary energy centers, large secondary centers, and for deeper stimulation of energy-exchange areas, say on palms of hands and soles of feet.

 	  

 	Figure 13. Brushing action

 	  

 	Figure 14. Stirring action

 	Wrapping Action

  	The wrapping action is used for stimulating larger areas. This is like wrapping a bandage around a body part, for example, wrapping a finger, a forearm, a leg, or the head. This can be used both on the surface and inside the body.

 	  

 	Figure 15. Wrapping action

 	Tearing Action

  	The tearing action is mainly used for stimulating primary energy centers, although it can be used anywhere. Imagine and feel that you are tearing apart a doughnut or bread roll about the size of your fist with your fingers in a two-handed action. Repeat this action over and over.

 	  

 	Figure 16. Tearing action

 	Energy Center Breathing

  	This action is mainly used on primary energy centers. Start by focusing your awareness in your base center, in the perineum (the flat area between anus and genitals). Start breathing IN and feel yourself breathing into your base center, then feel yourself breathing OUT through your base center. Continue for several breaths or more, then repeat this on your navel center, solar plexus, heart, throat, brow, and crown centers.

 	  

 	Figure 17. Spinal bounce action

 	Body-Awareness Bounce Actions

  	The energy bounce, also introduced earlier, can be used for stimulating any part of your body. To bounce energy, move your body awareness back and forth through a body part, say the spine, as if you were bouncing a ball of energy there. The speed of a bounce action is set by your ability to stay in touch with the feeling the action produces in your physical body. If the bounce is too slow, stimulation is lessened and can be difficult to follow. If it is too fast, you will lose body awareness contact and it becomes ineffective. When doing a bounce action, speed up the action until you start to lose touch, then slow it down a bit until you achieve a comfortable bounce speed with full-body-awareness contact and feel.

 	Hand and Foot Work

  	The hands and feet are crucial areas to stimulate for energy work. This cannot be emphasized enough. Consider the importance of hands and feet in acupuncture and reflexology, and how working on these areas profoundly affects the functioning and health of the entire physical body. This also applies to the health and activity of the energy body.

 	Apart from breathing, the hands and feet are the main portals of subtle energy into your body. Imagine these as being like the vital roots and leaves of a tree. Energy cannot be raised or projected effectively until the hands and feet have been sensitized and conditioned to higher flows of subtle energy.
 	If you have not done energy work before, you may find that most of the finer structures of your energy body are dormant. This includes the hands and feet and primary energy centers. They are dormant because they have never been used at levels exceeding the demands of normal physical life. Energy work will change this. You will find the process of waking up the structures of your energy body a fascinating journey.

 	Again, most people will find that one side of the body will be more sensitive than the other. Spend more time on inactive areas and less on more sensitive areas, to help balance energy-body development.

 	The following processes involve some fine energy work on the hands and feet. This helps to clear and activate those areas. This may seem laborious, but it is well worth the effort.
 	Key Points: Focus your body awareness keenly in the area you are working upon. Again, feel with your body, as if you are trying to detect tiny changes in air temperature and air movement, in the area you are working on. Pay more attention to areas where energy work causes the least physical sensations.

 	Finger Energy Balls

  	Sitting comfortably, lay your left hand on your lap, cushion, or desk, palm down with fingers slightly spread. Look at your hand. Brush the whole of your hand from fingertips to wrist, as we did in the demonstration exercise, for a minute or so. Follow this action up and down with your eyes.

 	Next, focus solely on your left thumb. Wiggle this and give it a rub to help you target it with body awareness. Imagine and feel a small electric-blue ball of energy hovering over the tip of your thumb. Its diameter should be slightly larger than your thumb. Feel and imagine this ball of energy moving down from the tip of your thumb, through the thumb bone to past the big joint where it joins your wrist. Move this back and forth through your thumb repeatedly with a bounce action. Take about half a second or less in each direction, but vary the speed to suit yourself. It is important to maintain body awareness contact with your thumb, and to feel this movement in your thumb. Continue this for thirty seconds or more.

 	  

 	Figure 18. Thumb energy-ball exercise

 	Repeat the above exercise on each of the fingers of your left hand.

 	Repeat the above exercise on the thumb and fingers of your right hand.

 	Turn your hands over so they are face up, one hand at a time, and repeat the above exercise on the fingers and thumbs of both hands, one digit at a time.

 	Palm Work

  	Lay your left hand on your lap, desk, or a cushion, palm up. Flex your fingers a few times, make a fist, and rub the underside of the fingers and palm to highlight it with body awareness. Use a small brisk body-awareness stirring action, about an inch across, to stir the middle of your palm. Continue for thirty seconds or so and then move this rotary action all over the palm and underside of the fingers of your hand. Work your way over the entire surface area. Continue this for several minutes, until you have covered the entire underside of your hand from fingertips to wrist many times. Stir in whichever direction feels best.

 	Figure 19. Rotary-stirring palm action

 	

 	Repeat the above exercise with your right hand.

 	Arm Wrapping

  	Lean to your left a little and let your left arm hang comfortably by your side. Use a wide body-awareness wrapping action, as if wrapping your arm with a four-inch bandage. Work your way up your arm to your shoulder and then back down to your fingertips. Pay extra attention to your wrist, elbow, and shoulder joints. Continue this for two minutes or longer.
 	Perform the above exercise on your right arm.

 	Arm Energy Balls

  	Flex your left hand and arm, wiggling fingers and making a fist a few times to help focus body awareness there. Let your arm hang comfortably by your side again. Imagine and feel an energy ball forming over your fingertips. Move the energy ball from fingertips to shoulder and then back to fingertips, bouncing up and down repeatedly. Take about half a second to one second each way. Feel this action moving through the whole of your hand and arm as the energy ball moves through your flesh and bone. Continue for two minutes or longer. Vary the bounce speed, slowing down and speeding up to find what has the most effect on you.

 	Perform the above exercise on your right arm.

 	Perform the above exercise on both arms simultaneously.

 	Foot Work

  	To prepare, remove shoes and sit in a chair with your heels resting comfortably on a cushion, legs slightly apart and out in front. Do not cross your legs and do not have your feet flat on the floor, as this will make these exercises more difficult. If you have difficulty feeling your feet with body awareness, soak and scrub them in warm water and/or take a shower beforehand. Look at your feet and follow the body-awareness actions with your eyes, as this will help you target individual toes better.
 	Note: A very small percentage of people have feet that are so sensitive that energy work on the feet is too uncomfortable. If this is the case, just do the best you can and avoid strong foot work. Simply focusing on your feet as if you are trying to detect small changes in air temperature and air movement should provide ample stimulation.

 	Toe Work

  	The smaller toes are more difficult to focus on, but this is still doable. Scratch, rub, and wiggle your toes as needed to help target them. When you work on the smallest toe, move the energy ball back and forth down the side of your foot from small toe to side of heel. This action can produce strong sensations.

 	To begin, first use a brushing action across all toes of your left foot, from side to side. Feel this deep inside all your toes. Continue for a minute or longer.

 	Focus body awareness in your left big toe. Wiggle, rub, or scratch it to help target this. Feel and imagine an energy ball forming over the tip of your big toe. Move this energy ball down through your big toe to the ball of your foot. Feel this as keenly as you can with body awareness. Move the energy ball back and forth repeatedly, bouncing it from the tip of your big toe to the ball of your foot. Continue for two minutes, or until you feel your big toe respond with noticeable energy sensations. Once a toe responds, move on to the next.
 	Repeat the above exercise on each toe of your left foot.

 	Perform the above exercises on each of the toes of your right foot.

 	Sole Work

  	This exercise is similar to the rotary stirring action we did earlier on the undersides of your hands. Wiggle your toes and rub them on the floor as necessary, to help focus body awareness in the ball of your left foot. Focus on this area and use a rotary stirring action there, about one inch across. Continue stirring and move this rotary action slowly over the whole underside of your foot, including the underside of toes and heels. Continue for two minutes or more. Perform above exercise on your right foot.

 	  

 	Figure 20. Rotary-stirring sole action

 	Heel and Ankle Work

  	Focus body awareness in your left heel. Feel and imagine an energy ball forming there about the size of your heel. Using a bounce action, move the energy ball up your leg to just above your ankle, then back to your heel, repeatedly. Then use a stirring action on your heel. Finish with a rapidly expanding and contracting energy ball in your heel.

 	Move an energy ball side to side through your ankle repeatedly. Then move the ball back and forth through your ankle repeatedly. Then use an expanding and contracting energy ball in your ankle joint. Finish with a wrapping action around your ankle, as if applying a bandage.

 	Repeat the above actions on your right foot.

 	With your feet side by side and several inches apart, bounce an energy ball from ankle to ankle, through the joints to the outer sides of your ankles. Continue for a minute or more.

 	More Hand and Foot Work

  	The hand and foot exercises should be repeated periodically to keep hands and feet conditioned. Apart from this fine work, the hands and the feet are normally only stimulated with larger dual-body awareness actions. For example, the feet are stimulated with two energy balls, one for each foot. These are moved simultaneously back and forth through both feet. The hands are stimulated in the same way. These actions must be felt through the whole of the area you are working upon, deep inside your flesh and bones, as if sponging the energy balls through your body.
 	Spend more time working on inactive areas to clear blockages.

 	Any area that stands out as feeling different usually indicates a blockage there.

 	Every toe and finger joint can be worked upon with brushing and stirring and wrapping actions, top and bottom and sides. The legs and arms can also be worked upon in the same way. This process takes longer to do, but the extra attention will help clear and condition these important energy-body conduits.

 	Leg and Knee Work

  	Flex and tense your left foot and leg, wiggling toes and foot, to help focus body awareness there. Hold your leg reasonably straight. Imagine and feel an energy ball forming over your foot large enough to fit over your thigh. Using a bounce action, move the energy ball from your foot up to your hip joint and then back to your foot, repeatedly. Take about a half-second to one second each way. Feel this action moving through the whole of your leg as the energy ball moves through your flesh and bones. Continue for a few minutes or longer. Vary the speed, slowing down and speeding up to find what produces the strongest sensations in your leg.

 	Repeat the above exercise on your right leg.

 	Perform the above exercise on both legs simultaneously.

 	Focus body awareness in your left knee. Use the stirring action on the kneecap. Form an energy ball and work this through the knee joint, back and forth, then side to side. Then use an expanding and contracting energy ball in the knee. Finish by using a wrapping action around your left knee.
 	Hold your knees several inches or so apart and bounce an energy ball from knee to knee, as we did earlier with the ankles.

 	Repeat the above exercises on your right knee.

 	Leg Energy Raising

  	For primary center work, you will need to be able to sweep energy up through your legs. This is a sponging energy-ball leg action, but without the downward stroke. Form energy balls in your feet and move these up through your legs to your hips, while imagining and feeling that you are sweeping, sponging, and pulling something like water up your legs. Then flick your awareness back to your feet and repeat the upward energy sweep, over and over.

 	You can use breathing to aid this action, raising energy with the IN breath.

 	Whole-Body Bounce

  	The whole-body bounce stimulates the entire energy body. Imagine and feel a large electric-blue energy ball forming below your feet, large enough to pass over your whole body. Move the ball up your legs and torso to just above your head, then back down to just below your feet. Adjust the speed of this until you have a comfortable bounce action. Continue this for two minutes or longer.

 	An alternative to an energy ball is to imagine a large flat disk or sieve for whole-body bounce actions. Do what works best for you.

 	Pre-Stimulation

  	The pre-stimulation exercise prepares your energy body for an energy-work session. The idea is to give a quick boost to energy-body activity and sensitivity. This should be done prior to any energy-work session. To pre-stimulate, spend several seconds stimulating your feet as a pair, then your legs, then your hands, and then your arms. Then use a whole-body bounce action for a half a minute or so.
 	Energy Circuits

  	An energy circuit is a body awareness action that moves in a continuous loop, utilizing the energy momentum factor. Breathing can be used to enhance this type of action. Energy circuits have two main purposes: to cause widespread stimulation and to accumulate and store energy.

 	With energy-raising exercises, it can help if you imagine and feel that you are sweeping water up through your body. For example, with leg exercises, imagine and feel yourself holding a large sponge ball, sponging water upwards through the whole of your legs. Imagine the water keeps trying to run back down your leg, so body awareness and imagination efforts are needed to force the water to rise. This helps give body-awareness actions something to grip, increasing the effectiveness of energy raising.

 	Full-Body Circuit

  	The following exercise moves energy around your body and into your sub-navel storage center. This action—combined with the intention to move and store energy—causes widespread energy-body stimulation and a flow of energy. This can be done in any position—sitting, standing, or lying down. It is best done with arms by your sides and legs reasonably straight.

 	Pre-stimulate hands and arms, feet and legs, and use a whole-body bounce for half a minute or so. Focus body awareness in your feet, and as you breathe IN move your body awareness up through your legs and through your back and neck to the top of your head. Hold your awareness there as you finish the IN breath. As you start to breathe OUT, move your body awareness down through your face and neck, down over your chest, and then feel it flowing into your sub-navel storage center as you complete the OUT breath. Switch your focus back to your feet and repeat. Continue for several minutes, or for as long as necessary.

 	On the IN breath, as you raise energy past where your hands and arms are resting, try to include these loosely in the upwards energy-raising action. The target area for energy storage is your sub-navel area.

 	The full-body circuit action does not have to be precise. Feel your energy widening out as it moves up over your back, loosely including your arms, to the top of your head. As you move body awareness down your front, just generally feel it moving through your face, mouth, and neck, then spreading out as it moves over and through your chest and stomach. Then push this into your lower stomach area while you finish the OUT breath. Then switch back to your feet and repeat as you start the next IN breath. This circuit can be continued for as long as desired. It also helps occupy and calm the mind.

 	  

 	Figure 21. Full-body circuit

 	Awareness Belly Breathing

  	The stomach area contains the largest energy center in your body, the navel center. The stomach and the breathing process can be used to help quiet and relax your mind. The body-awareness belly-breathing method given here is the simplest way I have found to achieve this.

 	Awareness belly breathing can be done anytime, anywhere. Waiting and travel time are excellent opportunities for practicing mental relaxation and energy work. Belly breathing promotes deep physical as well as mental relaxation. A relaxed state provides a clearer inner focus. It also increases energy-body sensitivity and its responses to stimulation actions.

 	Belly breathing also stimulates the navel center in a robust natural way. This helps empower and balance your whole energy body. It is also an excellent stand-alone meditation method.

 	Method: Awareness belly breathing involves focusing your body awareness on the physical action of breathing, on the rise and fall of your stomach. Loosen your belt, sit quietly, close your eyes, and focus your attention on your stomach. Take your time and become more aware of and focused on this area. Let your stomach sag and relax. Breathe a little more deeply from your stomach, feeling it rising and falling as you breathe. Observe this action and use this focus of attention to relax your mind. Hold your mind relaxed and clear of thought words. If thought words begin, simply release them and bring your attention back to your breathing and stomach movement. No matter how many times distracting thoughts creep in, just push them away and refocus on your stomach. This is the easiest method I have found for relaxing the mind.
 	Two ways to ease the pressure of persistent thoughts are (1) Write them down. This will lessen pressure from your subconscious to deal with pressing issues. (2) Making firm mental commands such as, "I choose not to think about that. I choose to relax my mind!" will also help.

 	Energy-Movement Sensations

  	Energy movement causes some unusual sensations, which vary in intensity from person to person. The most common include tingling, buzzing, fluttering, throbbing, body hair prickling, mild cramping or tightness, heaviness, fuzziness, bone-deep tickling and surging, and warm or cool sensations.

 	A number of things contribute to energy-movement sensations: physical-body nerve sensitivity, physical-body damage and disease, and energy-body resistance. Typically, resistance to energy flow is caused by sluggish or stuck energy, and by energy blockages.
 	Strong energy-movement sensations always lessen as your energy body adjusts to increased energy flow, as blockages are cleared, and as your energy body develops. It is a natural mistake to think that you might be doing something wrong, when once-strong energy sensations lessen with continued practice. The opposite applies here.

 	Most people will experience noticeable sensations, even with early demonstration exercises. A small minority of people will feel overly strong sensations, to the point where it may be too uncomfortable to continue. Hypersensitivity to energy movement usually occurs in the feet and hands. These typically comprise intense bone-deep buzzing, tingling, or surging sensations, similar to how your leg feels when it goes to sleep and you try to move it too soon. If this is the case, spend less time on feet or hand exercises, until such time as discomfort lessens.
 	Insomnia Caution: Falling asleep is not a problem during energy-work sessions, because it promotes mental alertness. In fact, doing too much energy work directly before sleep can make it difficult to fall asleep. This affects some people more than others. Keep this in mind, if you find it difficult to fall asleep after energy-work sessions. Reduce time spent on energy work prior to sleep accordingly. The best remedy I have found for this is a late-night snack. This problem will normally lessen with time and practice.
 	Rapid Progress: You will progress more rapidly with body-awareness energy work than you will with any other energy-work system. Body-awareness actions have a more direct impact upon the energy body. This also results in more rapid energy-body development.
 	The Golden Rule: If energy sensations become too strong or worrying, stop all energy work and take a break until everything feels normal again. Then, return to energy work a little more gently.
 	Practice Session

  	Relax and use awareness belly breathing for a few minutes. Pre-stimulate your hands and feet, legs and arms. Then do a whole-body bounce. Perform the full-body circuit for a few minutes. Then return to awareness belly breathing and spend fifteen minutes relaxing and quieting your mind. The energy work you have done so far has mainly involved secondary and tertiary structures. It is important to be comfortable with this level of energy work before approaching the primary energy centers, coming up next.
 
 Chapter 10: PRIMARY ENERGY-CENTER WORK

  	Primary energy centers (chakras) are the major subtle organs of the energy body. They connect into the spine, major organs, glands, and ganglia of the human body. Primary centers are always active on some level, even when they seem dormant, as they are intimately related to the act of living. Noticeable activity does not usually occur unless they are energetically stimulated in some way, which triggers higher activity and functions. (This can happen spontaneously.)
 	Increased activity in primary centers produces a variety of physical sensations and spiritual phenomena. Following is a practical description of primary energy centers and their related structures and some of the sensations these can produce when they are active.

 	The Base-Center Structure

  	The base-center vortex flowers in the perineum, which is the flat area between the anus and genitals. This is part of a large energy structure occupying the whole pelvic area. It comprises five powerful energy centers in the perineum, genitals, coccyx, and both hip joints. The perineum vortex joins this structure to the lower end of the central channel. A large amount of energy flows up through the legs and feeds into either side of the base structure. Stimulating any part of this structure will contribute to the activity of the base center and the energy body as a whole. Each of these centers can produce strong sensations when directly stimulated.
 	The following illustration shows a cross section of the base structure. Extending down through the middle is the central channel, centered over the perineum.

 	  

 	Figure 22. Cross section of base-center structure 

 	  

 	Figure 23. Frontal view of base-center structure 

 	The base center is the most important center to stimulate for energy-body development, and for OBE work. The higher primary centers, especially the brow and crown centers, should not be overworked until the base primary center is sufficiently developed, as this can cause imbalance. However, an apparently inactive base center will not stop higher primary centers from functioning. All primary centers can function independently. For example, while your base primary center may appear unresponsive, your solar plexus primary center may be naturally active. The sensitivity and potential activity or inactivity of individual primary centers vary greatly from person to person.
 	The best approach to primary-center development is to nurture the energy body as a whole structure. This promotes healthy balance and spiritual development. To accomplish this, inactive primary centers require more attention than others.

 	Base Structure—Perineum

  	The perineum may seem a difficult area to focus on with body awareness, but in practice this is quite easy to do. When active, the perineum will throb and tingle noticeably. Sensations of tightness, cramping, and heat are also common, particularly during and after early stimulation sessions. A residual feeling of mild bruising, like from riding a bike too long, is common.
 	Base Structure—Genitals

  	This vortex center covers the genital area, male or female. Direct body awareness actions on this center will cause erotic stimulation. This can cause problems during energy work, for obvious reasons. It is best to avoid this center entirely. Do not worry if you occasionally feel mild erotic sensations there, even when it has not been directly stimulated. Because of the base center's proximity to the genital area, body-awareness actions sometimes intrude and cause erotic stimulation. Move on to another exercise and this usually will not cause any problems. If body awareness becomes locked into this area and causes problems, heavy exercise or a cold shower should deactivate this.
 	Base Structure—Sacrum/Coccyx

  	The sacrum area, particularly the coccyx (tailbone), is a sensitive part of the base structure. This area should be stimulated with care during primary center work. Throbbing, buzzing and tingling, and sensations of heat are common. In some people this areas is hypersensitive, especially if kundalini energy is active. In that case, uncomfortable feelings of pressure and heat can occur, along with electrical spikes of energy shooting up through the spine. If strong or painful sensations occur, reduce or avoid stimulating this area.
 	Base Structure—Hip Joints

  	Masses of powerful energy conduits from the legs pass through the thighs and hip joints into the base structure. A large amount of energy flows through the legs, and these structures are robust. When stimulated, the hip joint centers will produce bone-deep throbbing, tingling, and buzzing sensations.

 	Navel Primary Center

  	The middle of the navel center is located in the belly button. This center is dinner plate size, depending on belly size. Stimulation actions are therefore larger. When active, this area produces a warm throbbing, tingling, and buzzing in the stomach area. A fluttering, bubbling, wind-like feeling of movement inside the stomach can also be produced.
 	Solar Plexus Primary Center

  	The middle of the solar plexus center is in the diaphragm just below your rib-cage in the sternum, in the large solar plexus ganglia. When this center is active, localized throbbing, fluttering, buzzing, and tingling will occur. Stimulation can also cause feelings of pressure and shortness of breath. Breathe slowly and deeply from your belly and this will pass. If this becomes a problem, reduce the amount of time spent stimulating this area.
 	Placement Disagreements: According to some traditional sources, the solar plexus area does not contain a major chakra, but the genital area does. According to most Western authorities, however, the genital area does not contain a major chakra, but the solar plexus area does. It's possible that Western occult and spiritual writers of the nineteenth century dropped the genital chakra because of the modesty of the times, but needed to make up the seven and so adopted the solar plexus as a logical replacement.

 	Regardless of the above, there are large, sensitive energy structures at both sites. They both feel and behave like other primary centers when active. I have also made my own clairvoyant observations of the solar plexus center, and it exists. Therefore, I consider both of these areas to be primary energy centers.
 	Heart Primary-Center Structure

  	The heart primary center is part of a large energy structure in the upper chest. The heart center itself is found in the middle of the chest, in the physical heart. The largest energy vortex flowers in the chest over the front of the heart, with a smaller one to the rear. A pair of robust energy conduits extend out either side under the collarbones and into the shoulders and arms. The arms and hands have a strong effect on heart-center activity. The hand and arm stimulation exercises given earlier will, for example, often cause noticeable increases in heart-center activity. When active, the heart center typically produces a light fluttering to throbbing and tingling in the chest over the heart.
 	Heavy heart-center sensations commonly occur as precursor to the OBE exit. The physical heart can feel like it is racing, sometimes at impossible speed. This can be frightening and may easily ruin otherwise successful OBE exits. But strong heart center activity does NOT involve the actual physical heart. Your heart will not be physically racing, but rather your heart center will be working overtime to provide the energy required to generate and exteriorize your projectable double. A racing heart center will not hurt you in any way. But it can take a little faith and courage to get past this sensation. A racing physical heart has never been detected in any OBE research study.

 	  

 	Figure 24. Heart-center structure

 	Throat Primary Center

  	The throat primary center sits at the base of the throat where it joins your chest, just above the bony V indent there. When active, this center will throb, tingle, and flutter gently. Because of the sensitive area, body-awareness actions and throat-center activity can sometimes cause mild choking sensations, shortness of breath, and gagging. Body-awareness actions alone can cause these sensations, because of the sensitive area. Occasionally, uncomfortable sensations can be felt during stimulation sessions and OBE exit attempts. These sensations will gradually ease off with time and practice. Reduce time spent on this area, and even avoid it if this is an ongoing problem, until the throat center develops and sensations lessen.

 	Brow Primary Center

  	The brow primary center sits in the middle of the forehead with its central point between the eyebrow ridges. When active, the frontal energy vortex can expand to the size of a tennis ball, extending into the forehead and the bridge of the nose and into the eyes. This position indicates its relationship with the eyes and the nasal passages. The brow center is involved with extracting subtle energy from the air we breathe. It is also involved with paranormal abilities and mind's-eye vision, hence its traditional name, the third eye. Energy centers related to this structure exist in the temples and face. The brow center is also associated with the crown center. When active, the brow center can produce tingling and fluttering or throbbing sensations, between the eyes or in the middle of the brow area. Feelings of pressure in the brow are common while this center is developing out of dormancy.
 	Crown Primary-Center Structure

  	The central point of the crown primary center is in the middle of the top of the head. However, the full crown center occupies the whole top of the head above the hairline. The size of the crown center is obvious when fully activated. Stimulation exercises are therefore larger. The crown center can be likened to the central brain of the energy body. This bears the same relationship to the energy body as does the physical brain to its central nervous system and body. When stimulated to activity, this center produces tingling and/or pulsing sensations in the middle of the top of the head. Feelings of pressure in the whole top of the head are also common when this center is developing out of dormancy.

 	Stimulating the Primary Centers

  	The best way to learn primary-center energy work is to do it. Following are the basic stimulation methods, most of them described earlier. After this, a variety of other stimulation methods are introduced, some for stimulating individual primary centers, and some for stimulating the whole energy body.

 	Preparing for a Primary-Center Session

  	To prepare for primary-center energy work, choose a time and place where you will not be disturbed. Put aside at least thirty minutes. Sit comfortably, wearing loose clothing; kick your shoes off and place your feet on a cushion. Carry out a physical relaxation exercise (see the next section, Core Skills), then pre-stimulate your hands, arms, feet, and legs, and do a whole-body bounce. Finish by doing awareness belly breathing for a few minutes until your mind is relaxed.

 	Continue stimulation action for thirty seconds or so, or until you feel noticeable sensations in the energy center you are working upon, and then move on to the next center. Spend more time using actions that produce greater stimulation. Spend more time on energy centers that produce little or no sensations. Experiment with the speed and intensity of energy-ball actions, to find what works best. The goal is to stimulate each energy center to a light level of activity. Once you feel any noticeable sensations in a primary center, including tightness, heaviness, pulsing, throbbing, or tingling, consider that center to be active and move on to the next exercise.
 	Note: The colors of the energy balls used below correspond with the color of the energy produced by each center.

 	Raising Energy to Primary Centers

  	When you are ready to begin, start by forming energy balls in your feet. Use these to sweep energy up your legs several times to your base center, to your perineum. Imagine and feel as if you are sweeping, sponging, pulling water up your legs and pushing it into your base primary center, aiming for the perineum. Flick your awareness back to your feet and repeat the upward energy sweep each time.
 	Repeat the energy-sweep process several times for each primary center before you use stimulation actions. For example, if you are working on your solar plexus center, make several energy sweeps up your legs, continuing this action over your base and navel centers, and then push the energy into your solar plexus center. Repeat the energy-raising process any time you feel it will help.
 	Use silent affirmations for each energy center as you activate it. Focus your body awareness in the chakra and then make the affirmation, e.g., "my base center activates" and "my base center is active." Focusing body awareness on the area and then affirming helps target the affirmation more specifically.

 	The following stimulation techniques are a basic guide only. Use the methods that work best for you.

 	Base Center Stimulation

  	Sweep energy several times up legs to base center. Focus body awareness in your perineum. Affirm silently, "My base center activates. My base center is active." Create a red tennis-ball-sized energy ball there and repeatedly move this in and out of the perineum, several inches inside the body and then a few inches outside, in and out. Next, use the stirring action on the same area, first clockwise and then counterclockwise, and then use the tearing action there. Then use a red expanding and contracting energy ball in your perineum. Finish by breathing a red energy cloud in and out of your base center for several breaths.

 	Navel Center Stimulation

  	Sweep energy several times up legs, through base to navel center. Focus body awareness in your navel center, in your stomach area. Silently affirm, "My navel center activates. My navel center is active." This center is dinner-plate size, so actions are larger. Create a large orange energy ball and move this back and forth through your stomach. Take it several inches or more outside your body, front and rear. Feel this passing back and forth through your body. Next, use the stirring action, clockwise and then counterclockwise, and then the tearing action on your navel. Then use a wide wrapping action around your stomach, as if winding a scarf around your waist. Then use a large orange expanding and contracting energy ball in your navel. Finish by breathing an orange energy cloud in and out of your navel center for several breaths.
 	Solar Plexus Center Stimulation

  	Sweep energy several times up legs, through base, navel, to solar plexus center. Focus body awareness in your solar plexus center. Silently affirm, "My solar plexus center activates. My solar plexus center is active." Create a yellow tennis-ball-sized energy ball and move this back and forth through your body, taking it several inches outside front and back. Feel this passing back and forth through your body. Next, use a stirring action, clockwise and counterclockwise, and then a tearing action. Then use a wrapping action around your lower chest. Then use a yellow expanding and contracting energy ball in your solar plexus. Finish by breathing a yellow energy cloud in and out of your solar plexus center for several breaths.
 	Heart Center Stimulation

  	Sweep energy several times up legs, through base, navel, solar plexus, to heart center. Focus body awareness in your heart center. Silently affirm, "My heart center activates. My heart center is active." Create a green tennis-ball-sized energy ball and move this back and forth through your heart and chest, taking it several inches outside, front and back. Feel this passing through your body. Next, use a stirring action, clockwise and counterclockwise, and then a tearing action. Then use a wrapping action around your upper chest. Then use a green expanding and contracting energy ball in your heart. Finish by breathing a green energy cloud in and out of your heart center for several breaths.

 	Throat Center Stimulation

  	Sweep energy several times up legs, through base, navel, solar plexus, heart, to throat center. Focus body awareness in your throat center. Silently affirm, "My throat center activates. My throat center is active." Create a blue tennis-ball-sized energy ball and move this back and forth through your throat, taking it several inches or more outside, front and back. Feel this passing through your body. Next, use a stirring action, clockwise and counterclockwise, and then a tearing action. Then use a wrapping action, as if winding a scarf around your neck. Then use a blue expanding and contracting energy ball in your throat. Finish by breathing a blue energy cloud in and out of your throat center for several breaths.
 	Brow Center Stimulation

  	Sweep energy several times up legs, through base, navel, solar plexus, heart, throat, to brow center. Focus body awareness in your brow center. Silently affirm, "My brow center activates. My brow center is active." Create a purple golf-ball-sized energy ball and move this back and forth through your head at the brow level. Feel this moving through your brain and several inches outside the front and back of your head. Next, create another purple energy ball and move this from temple to temple, feeling it moving through your brain. Bounce the ball side to side through your brain, feeling it moving several inches outside each side. Next, use a wide brushing action from side to side across your whole forehead, and then brush it up and down over your brow from just above your hairline to your lips. Then, use a stirring action on the brow area, clockwise and then counterclockwise, and then a tearing action. Next, use a wrapping action, as if winding a bandage around your head. Then use a purple expanding and contracting energy ball in your brow. Finish by breathing a purple energy cloud in and out of your brow center for several breaths.
 	Crown Center Stimulation

  	Sweep energy several times up legs, through base, navel, solar plexus, heart, throat, brow, to crown center. Focus body awareness on your crown center. Silently affirm, "My crown center activates. My crown center is active." The crown center occupies the whole top of your head above the hairline, but it flowers at a point in the middle of your head. Create a violet tennis-ball-sized energy ball there, and move this down through your brain to your neck, then to several inches above your head. Feel this moving inside your head. Next, use a large stirring action as if painting the whole top of your head above the hairline with a four-inch paintbrush, clockwise then counterclockwise. Then use a large tearing action, as if you were pulling your scalp apart with your hands, repeatedly. Next, use a large violet expanding and contracting energy ball in the top half of your head. Then feel and imagine that you are repeatedly bouncing a large, heavy violet energy ball off the top of your head. Finish by breathing a violet energy cloud into and out of your crown center for several breaths.

 	Closing Primary Centers

  	Primary energy centers do not need to be closed after stimulation. They will normally deactivate naturally when you break relaxation at the close of a session. Primary centers are not little mechanical doors that can be opened and closed. Nor can they be closed or deactivated by reversing the actions that were used to activate them. Further stimulation will always result. The best ways to lessen primary-center activity, if noticeable activity continues after a session, are relaxation, engaging in physical activity, and eating. Get up, raid the refrigerator, go for a walk, take a cool shower, or take a nap, and everything will go back to normal.
 	Advice on reducing energy-body activity and overactive centers is coming up shortly.

 Chapter 11: ENERGY-WORK ISSUES

  	This section deals with common issues and problems that can arise through the practice of energy work. While primary centers may become active and produce noticeable throbbing and tingling sensations during practice sessions, there may not be any noticeable psychic or spiritual phenomena.

 	Balancing and Energy-Body Development

  	A consideration for energy work is how much work should be done on each primary energy center. Extra work on higher centers can help excite them into higher levels of activity. But it is unwise to focus too much on higher centers. Most problems that could arise can be avoided by exercising the whole energy body in a balanced way, and by working more on the base, navel, and solar plexus centers.

 	The base center is the first structure to target for development. Extra stimulation in this area will help activate and balance the whole energy body. When this center begins to activate, noticeable tingling and/or throbbing and pressure sensations will be felt in the perineum area. Once this is achieved, extra stimulation should be applied to the navel center during practice sessions. When both the base and navel centers are lightly active, the solar plexus should be the next target, and then the heart, the throat, the brow, and the crown. In this way, primary centers will develop more evenly and the likelihood of imbalance will be minimized.

 	Energy Sensations and Development

  	Most people undertaking energy work will experience only mild sensations to begin with. Light sensations—slight pulsing and tingling—are excellent for general energy work and development and for OBE exit work. This is all that is needed. Everyone is different and some people have more sensitive energy bodies than others. The following sections focus on the most common issues and how to restore and maintain a healthy balance.
 	Energy work can cause a variety of weird sensations. The most common primary center sensations include throbbing, pulsing, tingling, and fluttering. Other feelings include localized warm and cool sensations, mild cramping, tightness, heaviness, and pressure. Active primary energy centers and related structures affect nerves and surrounding muscles, often causing localized muscular twitching and spasms. Strong throbbing energy-center activity can be felt by touching the area with your fingertips, showing that these are physical sensations, and obviously therefore involving physical nerves and muscles.

 	Strong sensations and pressures and pains are usually caused by energy centers and structures awakening from dormancy. This is generally only a temporary condition, like using muscles that have not been used for some time. If uncomfortable or painful symptoms appear, the golden rule should be applied—stop and take a break until everything is back to normal, and then return to energy work a little more gently. Strong sensations will always lessen with practice. How long this takes varies, but most will lessen significantly within a few days.

 	If pain persists in any area when you do energy work, avoid direct stimulation there. If pain persists outside energy-work sessions and becomes a problem, consult a medical doctor to check if a physical problem is involved. Sometimes body-awareness energy work will bring physical ailments out into the open.

 	Awareness Hands Problems

  	A common problem for energy work is where one body awareness hand is weaker, slower, or less controllable. This mainly affects dual actions like energy raising or bouncing energy through body legs, arms, hands, or feet. When bouncing energy through the legs, for example, often your point of awareness in one leg will move well, but your other will move slower. This disrupts smooth energy bouncing in the legs, because one energy ball is out of sync.

 	Opposing Bounce Actions: Increased force of will can help overcome this problem, as can further practice. The best interim solution is to use opposing bounce actions. Start the action with one point of awareness in your left hip, and the other in your right foot. Move these in opposing directions, so one moves from hip to foot while the other moves from foot to hip. This is easy to do and effective. Often, spending a couple of minutes doing this will overcome an awareness hands problem. When you return to synchronized bounce actions, you'll often find they begin working together in harmony. Apply the opposing bounce action method to any body part that has this problem.
 	Reduced Sensations

  	When energy work is first undertaken, it is common to experience strong sensations for the first few weeks, and then for these to lessen. When this happens, many people think they are doing something wrong, or that it's not working anymore. But this is perfectly normal. Do not judge energy-body activity and development by the strength of sensations. Strong sensations will always lessen as the energy body, and the physical body and its nerves, adapt and evolve. With time and practice, your energy-work actions will become more powerful. This will cause a further increase in sensations produced.
 	Energy-Work Tiredness

  	When people first begin energy work, they will often require more sleep than usual. The average person absorbs only a fraction of the energy that is available to them each day, and this steadily lessens with age. Let us say you normally absorb 100 units of subtle energy (raw vitality) per day, but when you start doing energy work you begin using 200 units per day. The deficit of 100 units is taken from your energy body's storage areas. Physical tiredness can result. This happens because your energy body is using more energy than it is absorbing.
 	This is much like what happens if you live a sedentary life and suddenly begin working out in the gym for an hour or two each day. You would understandably have sore muscles and be more hungry and tired and need more sleep for several weeks, until your physical body adapted to your new regime.

 	With a little time and regular energy work, your energy body will adapt and evolve to overcome energy deficits by absorbing and storing more energy. As this happens, you will begin to feel more energized and more in tune with life.

 	Brow- and Crown-Center Pressures and Pains

  	Early brow- and crown-center activity can produce uncomfortable symptoms at times, while these centers are coming out of dormancy. Not everyone will experience this, and the intensity and duration of pressures and pains will vary from person to person. This problem is always intermittent and temporary. While you should not expect this, it is best to be aware of the possibilities and what can be done to help.

 	Strong primary-center pressure sensations can be likened to growing pains. They can be intense at times, but they are no cause for alarm. A typical early brow-center sensation is a point of intense pressure, as if someone were pressing a thumb hard into the middle of your forehead. A tight band of pressure around the whole circumference of your head at brow level is also common, as is pressure over the entire head.
 	Brow- and crown-center pressures and pains will not damage you, but may at times cause painful tension headaches. If this happens, treat these as you would normally treat a headache, and consult a medical doctor if pain persists.

 	Cobweb Sensations

  	Stimulating the energy body, especially the higher centers, can cause supporting energy structures to activate in noticeable ways. The facial area is very sensitive and some unusual sensations can result. While these are rarely intense enough to be actually painful, they can be uncomfortable and distracting. This sensation is commonly called cobwebs .
 	Cobweb-like tickling, tingling, and stinging sensations will often be felt in the facial area. These may start at any time, even during light relaxation and meditation, which causes increased energy flow. This can also happen while you are trying to fall asleep. This can feel like mosquitoes are crawling over your face, with some of them biting and stinging. There may be only one or two tickling or stinging areas, or many. The majority of people will get at least some minor cobweb sensations during energy-work sessions, particularly when combined with physical and mental relaxation exercises.

 	It is likely that energy flowing over and through supporting structures in the facial area overstimulates the nerves there, causing the cobweb sensations. The best way to handle cobwebs is to ignore them. Try to resist the urge to scratch, as this will break your concentration and disturb your relaxed state. Scratching also disrupts sensitive subtle-energy structures that spread out over the facial area. This tends to lessen brow- and crown-center activity. Check your room for insects before each session, though, if this is an ongoing problem. A similar sensation to cobwebs can appear directly over the site of any chakra. This is a tickling, tingling sensation. This indicates that center is active at a more refined level than that which produces throbbing and pulsing type sensations. This is a good sign.
 	Reducing Energy-Center Activity

  	As said, it is unnecessary to close or deactivate primary centers after stimulation. Reversing the actions used to stimulate them will cause further activity. Primary centers begin deactivating naturally when you break your relaxed state. Sensations will usually cease within a few minutes.
 	If, however, noticeable primary-center activity continues after energy-work sessions, there will always be good reasons for this. Energy blockages clear and energy continues flowing to heal and restore depleted areas. In this case, primary centers will continue working to produce the necessary energies. This can happen spontaneously at any time, as a byproduct of progressive energy and altered-state work, and through OBE exit attempts.
 	In cases where uncomfortable sensations continue, following are some ways to lessen activity:

 	Avoid focusing body awareness on your energy body.

 	Use affirmations ("My brow center is quiet and relaxed").

 	Eat something substantial.

 	Perform physical exercise—walking, jogging, etc.

 	Lie on the ground and feel and imagine energy draining away.

 	Take a nap, or go to bed for the night.

 	Take a cool or cold shower.

 	Avoid energy work until sensations cease.

 	Heavy physical exercise to the point of exhaustion will ground you and drain your energy body completely. This completely deactivates your energy body and stops all energy sensations, including heavier types of kundalini-related activity.

 	Body-Rush Sensations

  	It is not uncommon to experience occasional tingling, surging, adrenaline-like rushes of energy up through the body, especially through the back area, while doing energy work. Uplifting music and prose can cause similar sensations. The spontaneous release of energy blockages can also trigger surges of energy. These can be quite strong, even breathtaking at times, but they are normal for energy and spiritual development work.
 	Spontaneous OBE Exits

  	Another cause of energy surges is a spontaneous OBE exit, which usually happens unnoticed during meditation and deep relaxation sessions, due to the mind-split effect. This is extremely common and you are likely to experience this many times during OBE exit training. Deep relaxation and meditation involve altered states of consciousness. The "mind asleep + body awake" state allows astral projection to occur naturally.
 	To recap, at the start of an OBE the mind splits into two or more distinct parts. The original copy of mind and memory stays within the physical body. During OBE, both aspects of mind, physical and astral, simultaneously exist and function independently. After the astral double reintegrates with its physical body/mind, the strongest memory set is recalled. The physical body/mind has the strongest habitual memory recall. So when OBE occurs during meditation, the dominant memory afterwards comes from the physical body/mind.
 	This can happen in a couple of ways, depending on the type of OBE exit involved. In the most common scenario, at some point during meditation or altered-state work a strong tingling energy surge is felt moving up through the body, particularly up through the back. Meditators pause, thinking something important is happening. But this just stops and they go on with their meditations. Then, some time later, another noticeable tingling surge is felt. Again they pause, but again nothing apparent happens. The first tingling surge indicated an OBE exit. The second indicated reintegration. The OBE memory here is lost, because the awake meditation experience from the physical body/mind formed the dominant memory.
 	A second scenario is where persons "click out," as it is often called. Here, persons have likely made brow- or crown-center OBE exits that were so smooth that no OBE exit sensations at all were experienced. They click out, and then click back in some time later. Here, no memory is evident at all. The physical body simply falls asleep while OBE is in progress. During reintegration, no conscious memory is downloaded, so no OBE experience is realized. Most people this happens to believe they have just fallen asleep. Yes, they did, but OBE was also likely a part of the equation.
 	Rousing Dormant Primary Centers

  	While you will usually feel activity in one or more primary centers right away, others may lie dormant even after intensive regular stimulation. The secondary and tertiary structures of the energy body affect primary-center activity. It is rare to not have any primary-center response at all. Often it is a matter of spending more time working on dormant primary centers. Most important to activate and bring online is the base primary center. When this is active, more energy will flow to higher centers, which will cause them to begin developing.
 	Your physical health and fitness also affect the responsiveness of your energy body. A sedentary lifestyle causes the accumulation of heavy stuck energy, not to mention toxins and other unhealthy stuff . Poor physical condition will not preclude effective energy work and achieving OBE exit, but it can make it more difficult to rouse the energy body into activity. If none of your primary centers responds at all after a few weeks of regular energy practice, a healthier diet and better exercise for a few weeks will make all the difference.

 	Overactive Energy Centers

  	Your energy body is intimately connected with your physical body and mind. What affects one will affect the other. It is okay to spend extra time working on dormant primary centers. But it is unwise to get into the habit of working only on higher centers. For example, if you regularly spend a half-hour stimulating your brow center and only five minutes on the others, this can cause psychic and mental imbalances and headaches. In the same way, focusing too much on the heart center can cause emotional problems, including increased emotional sensitivity, mood swings, anxiety, or depression. These problems are usually only temporary, as long as common sense and The Golden Rule of Energy Work are applied—take a break until you feel completely normal again, and then return to energy work a little more carefully.
 	Kundalini-Related Issues

  	Kundalini is the Eastern term for an evolutionary energy that is built into everyone. This is a natural evolutionary mechanism, inherent to all of humanity. When this activates, persons begin evolving to higher levels of consciousness—they are said to have awakened kundalini. Kundalini activity is a natural phenomenon that goes hand in hand with energy work and spiritual development. While awakening kundalini is not the specific purpose of this book, energy work can trigger this type of activity in some people. This is nothing to be afraid of, and it is impossible to completely avoid when you are doing regular energy work.
 	The most common thing you will hear about kundalini is that in some people it can cause intense sexual arousal. While this can occur, I have found this to be a rare condition and nothing about which to be overly concerned. Most common problems involving energy work and sexual arousal are only mild and temporary—nothing a cold shower will not fix. That is, of course, if common sense and The Golden Rule of Energy Work are followed.
 	Apart from the primary-center strobing issues discussed below, kundalini issues are beyond the scope of this book. For more information, please see my book, Energy Work, Hampton Roads Publishing, 2007, and see www.astraldynamics.com.

 	Primary-Center Strobing

  	Two major functions of primary energy centers are to transform and to accumulate energy. When a primary center accumulates enough energy, it reaches a critical point and releases that energy in an instantaneous energy burst. This burst is called the strobe effect.

 	All primary energy centers have the ability to strobe. They can strobe independently or in groups. A primary-center strobe involves a kundalini level of energy activity, but this may not involve any other aspect of kundalini. When the base center strobes, a spike of energy (a kundalini spike) will shoot up the spine. The base, brow, and heart primary centers produce the most noticeable sensations when they strobe independently. When a primary energy center strobes, this indicates that a significant change has occurred in its structure. This may involve that center awakening out of dormancy or mean that it has shifted to functioning at a higher frequency of activity.
 	The intense burst of energy from a strobing primary center can flash-activate heavy-duty energy circuitry that did not exist a moment before. High-level energy activity will then occur within and around that primary energy center. This can also activate other primary energy centers and can also cause spontaneous psychic and spiritual abilities and phenomena to manifest. However, often nothing apparent may happen beyond the strobe event itself.
 	Brow-Center Strobe

  	An occasional result of primary-center and OBE exit work involves a flash of brilliant light in the mind's eye, seen with eyes open or shut. This is like a powerful camera flash going off at close range. It is accompanied by a mild feeling of concussion over the whole facial area, as if one has been struck hard with a pillow. This shows the involvement of facial energy structures relating to brow and crown centers. It also demonstrates that a single primary center can strobe independently.
 	A brow-center strobe indicates that the brow center is more highly evolved than average. The brow-center strobe is much like a capacitor releasing energy. This will not cause any harm and is an excellent sign, if one is interested in higher spiritual and psychic development. The strobe effect is kundalini-related in the traditional sense. This is known to occur when kundalini rises to the brow center.
 	Brow-center strobes can happen to anyone, even to people who have never done any kind of development or OBE work. It can happen to some people while they are meditating or trying to sleep, or they may awaken to a brow-center strobe. This can happen anytime, particularly where energy and OBE work are being practiced.

 	The strobe effect can be frightening if you do not know what is happening. Having no other explanation, some people suspect they are experiencing a malevolent attack by an unseen entity. But this is not the case. This is a natural energy phenomenon and an excellent sign of spiritual development. This also indicates the presence of strong visual mind's-eye and creative abilities, although these may be unrealized at the time.
 	A brow-center strobe can involve a brilliant flash of white or silver light, or, more rarely, a brilliant flash of purple or violet light. Other colors may be possible.

 	Purple Brow-Center Strobe

  	Another version of the brow-center strobe involves a brilliant flash of purple light from the mind's eye. This happened to my son Jesse when he was fourteen years old. He was in the shower and I was working at my computer, when he yelled loudly. I was about to investigate when he ran into my office dripping wet. He excitedly yelled, "Dad, Dad. The world's gone purple, man! Everything's purple!" 

 	Once he calmed down, he said that while showering he felt a thud in his forehead and his vision flooded with purple light. For several seconds he saw only purple. Then it faded and his vision returned, but a thick purple mist remained clinging to everything. I looked at his aura and all I could see was a huge blob of brilliant purple, which is unusual.

 	A few hours later, the effect of the purple strobe became apparent. Again, Jesse yelled out to me, "Dad, come quick and see!" I went into the living room and found him excitedly drawing, copying a complex magazine picture. But the copy he was drawing was perfect. He had just suddenly started drawing at a skill level way beyond his normal ability, which had previously been mediocre.

 	The long-term result of this event was that Jesse became an artist the moment his brow center strobed purple. This released dormant creative and psychic abilities. He now passionately pursues a career in art and animation. His psychic sensitivity also increased dramatically that day and continues to grow.

 	The Vision Screen

  	The vision screen is another possible side effect of primary-center and OBE work, particularly where the brow and crown centers are more developed than usual. This is an advanced-energy phenomenon. It relates to kundalini, clairvoyance, OBE, and remote viewing. This can occur independent of any other phenomenon. The first indication of the vision screen appearing will be increased brow-center activity, with an accelerating throbbing sensation. The vision screen then appears amidst a spectacular mind's-eye light show.
 	If this ever happens, do not panic. Relax, stay focused, and just let it happen. Keep raising energy to feed your brow center. Once the vision screen forms, it looks like an oval mirror of dense smoke hanging before you, about 18 inches by 12 inches, at arm's length. This can also manifest as something like a computer monitor. Focus on its cloudy surface and a stream of brilliant visions will soon appear.
 	You can control the subject matter with intent, using silent affirmations and commands. Think on something and it will appear. You can look into the past, present, or future by changing your intent. Do not speak aloud, or you will break your relaxed state. It takes a lot of energy to maintain a vision screen. The focus of your eyes as well as the focus of your mind will affect this.
 	Once the vision screen forms, it can be used as a portal for OBE. Focus on a place that you know well and it will appear on the vision screen. Feel and intend yourself moving into this vision. You will usually achieve a smooth OBE with no exit sensations and will just find yourself at the target in your projected double. You can explore the target and then return to the vision screen through an act of will and intention. If the vision screen is still active, you can repeat the process and travel elsewhere. Once mastered, the vision screen is like a magic carpet. It is the ultimate OBE tool. However, manifesting the vision screen for any useful length of time takes a strong flow of energy.
 	Balancing and Grounding

  	Energy work and OBE exit-related practices have the effect of waking up many aspects of the energy body and spiritual consciousness. Sometimes imbalances and overactivity can occur in energy centers, which can cause a variety of problems. Some people can become psychically and/or psychologically unbalanced. Symptoms can include anxiety, depression, mood swings, lethargy, hyperactivity, and feelings of being scattered and disconnected. The following grounding practices are helpful for restoring balance to the energy body.
 	The Golden Rule: This is the first thing to do. Cease all energy work and spiritual practices, including meditation and OBE exit work. Focus exclusively on physical life. This is a time to catch up on real life, to visit friends, to engage in social activities, to walk, play golf, and go fishing. In particular, try to do heavy grounding things like mowing lawns and gardening. Smell the grass and get your hands dirty and earthy.

 	Energy Dump: Lie on the ground and perform an energy dump. Imagine thick cords extending from all your primary centers deep into the Earth. Take your time so you can imagine and feel this well. Imagine and feel yourself connecting with the heavy molten core. Feel the gravity pulling and making you feel heavier. Imagine and feel your excess higher energies being pulled from you and absorbed by the Earth. Say the words, mentally or verbally, "I give my energy to the Earth" or "I release my energy to the planet." Take your time over this and let your excess energy drain away.
 	Shower Energy Dump: Take a shower and imagine and feel your excess energy flowing out of your body and being washed away by the water. Feel the water running down over your skin with your body awareness senses. Imagine and feel this is draining your body of excess energy.
 	Eating and Sleeping: When all else fails, eat. Preparing and cooking food is very grounding. Take some time out to eat good meals and to catch up on your sleep. Heavy protein is particularly good for shutting down the energy body. A sleep deficit will tend to stimulate the higher centers. Eating well and catching up on sleep will help restore balance.

 	  

 Chapter 12: DEEP PHYSICAL RELAXATION

  	Deep physical relaxation is an essential OBE exit skill that needs to be thoroughly learned and practiced. I cannot stress this strongly enough. Of the thousands of projection-related problems I have consulted on, this causes the majority of problems.

 	The "mind awake + body asleep" state (the trance state) can be achieved without a deep-enough level of physical relaxation to allow conscious OBE exits to occur. Your physical body can contain tension and muscular knots, even while fast asleep or in altered states. An altered state where areas of the body are physically tense does not allow the full generation of the real-time projectable double. This can result in the partial generation of the projected double, and a lot of frustration.

 	The real-time projectable double can be said to be generated from the substance of the physical body, from the flesh. The entire physical body must be in a deeply relaxed state for the whole real-time body to be generated.

 	Deep physical relaxation is a necessary foundation. Without this, conscious-exit OBE is not easily achievable. More time and eff ort should therefore be spent learning deep physical relaxation than any other skill.

 	Posture and Comfort

  	Sleep deficit is a widespread problem in the modern world. This can cause problems and interfere with your ability to stay awake during deep relaxation sessions. Relaxation exercises are best done when you are well rested and mentally alert. Do not practice these exercises immediately after heavy meals, as this will promote sleep rather than relaxation. Taking a shower beforehand will help refresh you. Performing relaxation exercises in a sitting position will also help overcome the tendency to fall asleep. A sitting position is recommended for all energy work and core-skill exercises.
 	Wear loose, comfortable clothing and have bare feet or loose socks. Start by sitting in a chair with good back and arm support. You can use an armchair, but if you find yourself falling asleep—clicking out—then switch to a dining chair with no head support.

 	If you do not use head support, more attention should be paid to balancing your head. It is possible to use a bed, but falling asleep is then a big problem. If you must use a bed, lie on your back and hold your forearms vertical above the bed, with elbows resting on the surface of the bed. Alternatively, prop yourself up on several pillows, as if you were about to eat dinner in bed. Do what is necessary to prevent yourself from falling asleep during the exercises.

 	Good posture helps with deep physical relaxation. Do not allow yourself to slump. If you start with good posture, your body will stay balanced and comfortable. If your posture is not good, when your muscles deeply relax, your body will sag. This can cause discomfort in the spine and joints, as well as circulation problems. Use cushions for support, to make sure your body does not sag. Sitting meditation and lotus positions are also good for this work.

 	The head must be balanced and not be allowed to sag. Close your eyes and let your head and neck relax. Move your head back and forth slowly and you will find there is a natural balance point. This is the perfect position for your head. A balanced head position helps keep you awake and focused. If you drowse, your head will fall and bring you back to consciousness. Once you have some practice at balancing your body and working on deep physical relaxation, you can use anything, even a hard-backed wooden dining chair or stool. If you have good balance and posture, you can relax to a deep level in any situation.

 	Deep-Relaxation-Caused Aches and Pains: If you are not used to deep relaxation and altered-state work, you will find your body will ache after a session. This is a temporary problem only. It happens because your physical body is falling asleep while you are erect, and your flesh hangs differently from your skeleton. Your body is not used to this, and so tendons and muscles stretch a little more than usual. This will pass after a few days or so, if you keep up your practice.
 	Slight Discomfort

  	Learning to induce OBE exits involves mastering the ability to stay awake during the "mind awake + body asleep" state. The secret to accomplishing this is to use a level of slight discomfort during your practice sessions and OBE exit attempts. Many people get into the required state, and even produce OBE exit-related symptoms, but will get no further than that. They do everything right, get all the right sensations, but have trouble remembering their experiences. Most people are entrained so that when their physical bodies fall asleep, their minds quickly follow. This is particularly strong in your own bed, where you habitually fall quickly asleep.
 	A slight level of discomfort will help keep you awake and focused. Some experimentation is needed to find what works best for you. Slight discomfort keeps the mind/body connection alive and helps with the OBE memory download processes. Just as you will recall a lot more dreams when, during sleep, you have a toothache or other pain which causes frequent arousals, the same principle—slight discomfort—applies to all types of OBE, deep-relaxation, and altered-state work.

 	Traditionally, most people practice OBE from a bed or recliner. Apart from the danger of falling asleep, too much comfort lessens the link between the physical body/mind and its subtle counterparts. The all-important body/mind connection must be maintained for successful altered-state and OBE recall. For these reasons, it is important to avoid total comfort when practicing deep relaxation and working in altered states.

 	It is recommended that altered-state and OBE-exit work be done in hard-backed office or kitchen chairs with no neck support, rather than from beds or recliners. This allows enough slight discomfort to hold the mind/body connection alive. Using a level of slight discomfort helps entrain the body/mind/brain to better recall altered-state and OBE-experience memories. If you learn to stay conscious during sixty-minute altered-state sessions, your chances of recalling OBEs will be increased.

 	Aside from using a hard-backed chair, there are other ways to introduce slight discomfort. For example, place a small board under your feet instead of a cushion. Similarly, anyone can experience the "mind awake + body asleep" state for a few moments during presleep, by holding their hands and forearms vertical, elbows resting on the bed. This is also why open-eyed meditation techniques, and using cross-legged meditation positions, are so successful. If you must use a bed, a piece of board under the heels or elbows, etc. can create enough slight discomfort, while still allowing deep physical/mental relaxation. Experiment to discover what works best for you.
 	Tensing and Relaxing Muscle Groups

  	A good way to achieve deep physical relaxation is to progressively tense and relax opposing large groups of muscles. This helps remove knots of tension that would interfere with the OBE exit. If you already know a physical relaxation method, you can adapt it to suit. Take it easy with these exercises when you first start using them. It is easy to strain little-used muscles and tendons if you are not used to this type of work, especially neck muscles.
 	Pay particular attention to the relaxation part of these exercises. Allow your muscles to totally relax after tensing. The goal is to produce a whole-body feeling of cozy warm heaviness. Practicing this thoroughly will save time and effort later. With regular practice, you will find yourself achieving deeper levels of physical relaxation more quickly and easily. Your body will become entrained to this.
 	Full-Body Stretch: Before starting the following exercises, take a long, deep, yawning breath while stretching your arms and legs and arching your back and neck. Then relax and feel the tension draining from your body.

 	Affirmation: Verbally repeat an affirmation expressing the deeply relaxed state of body you wish to achieve. This should be present tense, active, as if it were already so. "My body is calm and deeply relaxed." Repeat this a few times.

 	Seven Breaths: Sit comfortably and close your eyes and relax, letting yourself settle. When you are ready, take seven long, slow, deep breaths. Focus on filling your lungs comfortably full and then emptying them completely. Feel the tension draining away with each breath. Take your time over this part and let yourself settle.

 	Feet and Calves: Stretch back all toes and tense both feet and calves at the same time for five seconds, then relax. Curl toes downward and repeat, tensing both feet and calves, then relax. Pause and feel the tension draining away.
 	Thighs: Tense both thighs, hold for five seconds, then relax. Press down with both heels and tense them again, then relax. Pause and feel the tension draining away.

 	Hips and Buttocks: Push buttocks back into the chair and tense them, hold for a few seconds, then relax. Rock hips forward slowly and tense for a few seconds, then relax. Pause and feel the tension draining away.

 	Whole of Legs: Tense all the muscles in the whole of both your hips, legs, and feet. Hold for a few seconds, then relax. Pause and feel the tension draining away.

 	Stomach and Lower Back: Push out your stomach and tense all stomach and lower back muscles. Hold for a few seconds and then relax. Suck in stomach and tense lower back muscles. Hold for a few seconds, relax. Pause and feel the tension draining away.

 	Chest and Upper Back: Arch shoulders forward while exhaling and caving in your chest. Tense all upper back and shoulder muscles, tense for a few seconds, then relax. Push shoulders back and take a deep breath while pushing out your chest. Tense all upper back and chest muscles. Hold for a few seconds, and then relax. Pause and feel the tension draining away.

 	Arms and Shoulders: Tense your shoulders, arms, and hands, making tight fists. Tense and hold for a few seconds, then relax. Curl your forearms and fists in towards shoulders, wrists curling in. Tense and hold for a few seconds, then relax. Pause and feel the tension draining away.
 	Face and Head: With eyes closed, roll head back, open mouth wide, and screw up your face, tensing all the muscles in your head and face. Hold for a few seconds, then relax. Smile widely while screwing up your whole face and eyelids, tensing all facial, scalp, and jaw muscles. Hold for a few seconds, and then relax. Frown deeply while screwing up your face and tensing all scalp, jaw, and facial muscles. Hold for a few seconds, then relax. Pause and feel the tension draining away.
 	Jaw: With your head in its balanced resting position, push lower jaw straight out. Tense jaw and hold for a few seconds, then relax. Pause and feel the tension draining away.

 	Neck 1: Without tensing, arch your neck forward slowly and press your chin down onto your chest. Hold it there for several seconds, breathing normally. Then slowly relax it back to its normal resting position. (If you have neck tension problems, hold chin on chest for longer.) Pause and feel the tension draining away.
 	Neck 2: Without tensing, slowly let your head roll back and push your chin straight up. Keep pushing your chin up, but do not tense any neck muscles. Hold for several seconds or more, breathing normally. Then slowly relax back to your balanced resting position. (If you have neck tension, hold for longer.) Pause and feel the tension draining away.
 	Neck 3: With your head in its normal resting position, slowly grit your teeth and tense all your neck muscles, feeling the tension spreading through your neck and up into your skull. Hold for several seconds, and then relax. Pause and feel the tension draining away.

 	Full-Body Stretch: Perform a full-body stretch. Gently stretch and tense as much of your body as you can. Tense and hold for a few seconds, then deeply relax your whole body. Pause and feel the tension leaving your body, like fluid draining away. Take your time over this.

 	Moving slowly, check your posture and readjust your resting position at this point, as needed, but while holding on to your relaxed state.

 	Affirmation: Verbally state "My body is calm and deeply relaxed" a few times.

 	Seven Breaths: Take another seven long, slow, deep breaths. Feel the tension leaving your body with every OUT breath. Feel your body sinking into your chair or bed, getting heavier, warmer, and more relaxed with every OUT breath. Relax and take your time.

 	Awareness Hands Massage

  	The head, neck, and shoulder areas are the most difficult of all body parts to relax deeply. Use your body awareness hands to massage the tension from these areas. Just move your awareness into this area and imagine and feel you are massaging yourself.
 	Take your time over this. Feel your awareness hands massaging deep inside your neck and shoulders and up into your skull. Feel your awareness hands penetrating deep within the muscles and tendons and spine in your neck and shoulders. Feel all the tension leaving your body as it grows heavier and more deeply relaxed.

 	After you've been through the whole relaxation process, relax and focus on your breathing, feeling yourself breathing, while you move your awareness hands throughout your body, searching for knots of tension. Take note of any tight areas for future sessions.

 	Repeat all or parts of this physical relaxation process as needed during the coming exercises. Physical tension is one of the biggest problems during OBE exit sessions. So please keep working on this. Again, this is key to a successful OBE.

 Chapter 13: TAMING THE MIND

  	Your surface mind is always active while you are awake. It can be likened to a huge message and reminder pad. Its function is to keep you aware of everything that is going on around you. It chatters constantly, reminding, stating, and restating the obvious, commenting on everything, keeping you informed. "Is that a car in my driveway? Milk, I've got to get milk! My car's overdue for a service! Why did she say that last night—what did she mean by that look?" Et cetera.

 	This is called internal dialogue, or monkey mind. We don't really notice these thoughts and images. They constantly flutter through our minds, and sometimes serve a useful purpose in our daily lives. But these are a nuisance and a barrier when you are trying to relax your mind. This is why some people can focus better while listening to music. Music occupies the surface mind and slows internal dialogue. Most teenagers can study better with loud music than they can in silence, because music occupies the surface mind.
 	To deeply relax the mind and attain altered states, it is necessary to silence internal chatter. Thought words are the biggest problem. They block altered states and OBE exits. Feelings and mental images are lesser problems. Surface thoughts create inner tensions, which interfere with achieving the "mind awake + body asleep" state necessary for the OBE exit.
 	If you hold your mind in a relaxed and clear state, with no thought words, you will begin slipping into an altered state of consciousness within a few minutes. Holding your mind relaxed and clear is not an easy thing for most people to do. This is a learned skill and you need to become entrained to this state of being. It gets easier with regular practice. The following methods and exercises will help.
 	Thought-Control and Relaxation Exercises

  	When your mind is held quiet and free of thought words, you will begin slipping into an altered state of consciousness. You will begin to approach the "mind awake + body asleep" state. Quieting your mind and stopping thought words are learned abilities. The breathing process can be used to relax your mind. The following recaps awareness belly breathing with some additions.

 	Belly Breathing: To begin, sit and relax. Loosen your belt and consciously relax your stomach, letting it sag. Sit quietly and close your eyes, focusing your attention on your stomach muscles. Feel this area expanding and contracting as you breathe. Relax, take your time, and become more aware of this area as you breathe. Breathe a little more deeply than usual from deep in your stomach, feeling it rising and falling as you breathe in and out.
 	Observe this action and use this focus of attention to relax your mind. Hold your mind clear of thought words. If thought words begin, release them and bring your attention back to your breathing and stomach movement. Push thoughts away and refocus on your stomach. Continue for as long as you like.

 	Nose-Tip Breathing: Nose-tip breathing is another way to achieve deep mental and physical relaxation. This is a good alternative if you get bored with belly breathing and need something different to hold your attention. Switch between these two methods as often as you like. Nose-tip breathing also gently stimulates the brow primary center.

 	Relax and close your eyes. Focus on the tip of your nose. Give this a little rub with fingers if you need help targeting. Focus your point of awareness in the tip of your nose. Feel the air passing by this area as you breathe in and out. This is a subtle but noticeable physical sensation. If any thought words begin in your mind, release them and return your focus to nose-tip breathing. When you get used to this, push your point of body awareness an inch out in front of your nose. This will cause further gentle energy stimulation, and can also cause OBE exit if done in a deeply relaxed state. Continue for as long as you like.
 	Breath Counting: Counting your breaths is good way to relax and clear your mind, particularly if you are a beginner at meditation, deep relaxation, and altered-state work. Sit and close your eyes and relax. Start by counting ten long, slow, deep breaths. When you count, drag out the thought word over the whole of each OUT breath. For example, as you breathe out, mentally say: "Onneeeee"  (one) for the entire OUT breath. Hold your mind clear during the next IN breath and count (mentally) "Twwooooo" (two) for the whole of the next OUT breath. Continue to the count of ten. Repeat. Also try a ten-minute breath counting session where you count every breath correctly, e.g., ten, eleven, twelve, etc.
 	Mind Relaxation Tips: While you hold your mind relaxed and clear, surface thoughts will try to appear in your mind. When this happens, quickly and firmly release them. Push them away and go back to your practice. Try to stop them before they complete their messages. With practice, you will be able to detect thought pressure and stop thoughts before they can form into actual words in your mind.

 	Affirmations: To silence persistent thoughts and ideas, make silent commands like, "I choose not to think about that. I choose to relax my mind." And then refocus your attention on the exercise you were doing.

 	When you get to the stage where you can sense the pressure of thoughts as they are about to start and you can stop them, you are really getting somewhere. Thought-control and concentration exercises should be done daily. Take advantage of travel and waiting time for short mind-relaxation practices. It all adds up. Keep at this and you will soon be able to hold your mind relaxed for extended periods of time.
 	When you succeed at relaxing your mind and stopping thought words, you will experience a profound silence inside your mind. This may feel a little strange at first. You will miss all the familiar activity and it will feel unnaturally quiet. You will soon get used to this though, and you will begin to think more profoundly and with greater focus. Soon you will wonder how you ever survived without this.
 	Concentration and Focus

  	Mental effort can generate physical tension, if you allow it to happen. The physical body is strongly connected with its mental processes. Learning how to concentrate and relax at the same time is much like separating body awareness actions from physical actions. Both are necessary for energy and OBE exit work.
 	The following exercises help to improve concentration and mental focus. They can be done any time and place. Take advantage of travel and waiting time, and other free moments. Just take a deep breath, relax a little and begin, standing or sitting.
 	Single Object Focus: Pick out an object—tree, chair, picture, cloud, cat (anything)—and stare gently but fixedly at it. Do not focus on any part, but let your eyes gently gaze upon the whole. Use breath awareness (belly breathing) to hold your mind clear of thought words. Keep your eyes and forehead relaxed. Continue for a few minutes at a time.

 	Spot Focus: Pick a small speck or mark on a wall and focus on this. Hold your mind clear of thought words with belly breathing. (If you stare hard, an optical effect can cause your vision to darken. Blink this away without breaking your focus.) Keep your eyes and forehead relaxed. Continue for a few minutes at a time.

 	Afterimage Retention: Relax and use belly breathing to calm your mind. Stare fixedly at a gentle light source: the moon, a candle, an open window, etc. Gaze gently but fixedly at the light source for thirty seconds or so without shifting your gaze. Do not focus directly on the object or light, just gaze at it. Then, close your eyes and quickly cover them with the palms of your hands. Hold the glowing afterimage that appears in your mind's eye. Try to make this last longer every time you do this. If you use an open window, try to retain the afterimage of the whole scenario seen through the window, and not just the light. Manipulating the focus of your eyes behind your closed eyelids will affect the afterimage. Play with this focus until you find what helps retain the afterimage longer.
 	Note: Do not look at the sun or any light source bright enough to damage eyes. Some of these exercises, if overdone, can cause eye strain or tension headaches. If this happens, treat these as you would do normally, and see your doctor if pain persists.

 	Repeating Thoughts

  	Repeating thought problems occasionally arise during mind relaxation exercises. A line from a song, an advertising ditty, a snatch of verse or dialogue, worries and upsets, anything, will repeat itself in your mind over and over. This frustrating problem makes serious mental work, or even sleep, difficult. If anything like this causes a problem, here are some solutions.
 	Replace the thought pattern with an affirmation. "My mind is relaxed and quiet." Repeat this verbally a few times, and then over and over in your mind. Continue until you feel the pressure of the original thought pattern weakening. Then change the affirmation to "My mind is calm and happy." Say the new affirmation aloud a few times, and then over and over in your mind. Repeat this for as long as necessary. Create more relaxing affirmations, keeping them present tense, active, and descriptive of a calm, happy mind.
 	If all else fails, use headphones and music to occupy your mind and drown out the problem. Sleep with headphones on if needed. This is usually only a temporary problem.

 Chapter 14: ACHIEVING AN ALTERED STATE

  	A trance state is a natural altered state of consciousness. It is a truly blissful, comfortable, stress-free, and refreshing state of being. You enter this natural state of being whenever your physical body is falling asleep. Everyone experiences this, if only for moments, just before falling asleep. The brain waves experienced during altered states can be measured. They are found to relate to the different levels of natural sleep. Achieving altered states while remaining awake—in the "mind awake + body asleep" state—enhances the quality of thought, providing great clarity and depth of mind. Many things become possible during altered states, because the mind and its perceptions are expanded.

 	While falling asleep, you will find, if you observe closely, that at some stage you begin losing yourself among rambling half-thoughts and impressions. Your body starts to feel heavy and warm and your thoughts become disjointed and meaningless. This happens on the borderline of sleep, just before you lose coherence altogether and fall into the seeming oblivion of sleep. This wave of warm and cozy heaviness is the sign that you have entered a trance state.
 	Once the physical body falls asleep, the center of waking consciousness transfers into the expanded energy body, as discussed earlier. This can be thought of as an inner-body projection. The heavy wave of entering the trance state indicates that the center of awake consciousness has shifted from its physical body/mind into the first of its sleep-generated subtle bodies, its expanded energy body.
 	Try this: While you are falling asleep, hold your forearms balanced vertically with your elbows resting on the bed. This will keep you awake a little longer than usual. Now, observe what happens while you are falling asleep. Relax and use belly breathing to hold your mind relaxed and clear of thought words. Doing this, you will experience the trance state for considerably longer than usual. You need to experience this to know what it feels like, so you will recognize it when it happens during practice sessions.
 	As a part of OBE training, it is necessary to learn how to put your body to sleep while remaining mentally awake—to enter an altered state. This is a little tricky at first, but is quite easy to accomplish if you follow the procedures given here.
 	Distracting Sounds: If you react to distracting sounds during trance work, you may develop habitual responses, becoming more easily distracted and irritated. This can affect your ability to enter and to hold a trance state. Some people use music, or insist on quiet conditions for altered-state work. But complete silence is difficult to find in the modern world, and these things can make your trance state dependent upon those conditions. Any dependency on conditions for altered-state work is not recommended, as it makes the habitual foundations of altered-state work fickle and sensitive, rather than strong and resilient.
 	It is nice to meditate in silence, but if this is not possible and distractions arise, I recommend that you try to accept distracting sounds. There are times where music is necessary and can be helpful in masking background sounds, but try not to become dependent on music.
 	Let distracting sounds wash over you. Use them to test your relaxation skills and spiritual resilience. Do not tense or react or mentally complain about them. Accept and endure sounds kindly and without irritation. Look upon unavoidable distractions as opportunities, as sound waves wash gently over you. The problems that distractions can cause during altered-state work and meditation will progressively ease with time and patience. Experienced meditators can achieve profound altered states anywhere, even in very noisy environments. This is something to aim for in your practice.
 	Different Levels of the Trance State

  	The trance state can be divided into three basic levels. These are gradients of the altered state of consciousness, with each adding to the next. The following descriptions of symptoms will help to tell approximately where you are by noting sensations.
 	Light-Trance State: This is the first level of trance, similar to the daydream state. While relaxing, your physical body starts feeling warm, cozy, and lethargic.
 	You feel a mild need to sleep. Your eyelids feel heavy and your eyes begin to glaze and droop. A mild wave of heaviness and warmth flows over you. Your mind takes on a fuzzy quality and begins drifting. You have some slight difficulty focusing thoughts, especially if you are tired.
 	Patterns of light and color (hypnagogic imagery) are sometimes seen during a light-trance state. Mind's-eye visions may also appear if you have natural clairvoyant ability. Cobweb-like tickling may be felt in the face and neck areas.

 	With this come a whole-body feeling of warm comfortable fuzziness and a slight dissociation from the physical body and surrounding environment. Time slows down a little and sounds appear to be louder and from farther away than they really are. Greater internal mental clarity can be attained, as long as tiredness is controlled and the mind held awake. This is the trance state most often achieved during early meditations. If this level of trance is accompanied by deep physical relaxation, the OBE exit becomes possible.
 	This level of trance, while easily held, is also delicate and easily broken. If you need to move, say to scratch an itch or adjust your position, do so slowly and deliberately and you will maintain this state. If you hold this state for twenty minutes or so, your mind will be refreshed and you will find it easier to continue on to deeper levels.

 	Medium-Trance State: This is a deeper gradient of the light-trance state where some sensations become more pronounced. Entry into medium trance is marked by a noticeable wave of heaviness and a slight falling sensation. This comes on quickly, like a warm, heavy wave flowing over and through you. This saps your strength and your physical body falls away into sleep. (This is why they call it falling asleep.) This falling sensation may indicate an OBE exit has occurred. Regardless, continue with your altered-state session.
 	You become noticeably dissociated from your physical body and its environment. Willpower is needed to stop your mind from following its body into sleep. Your sense of time passing changes, becoming faster or slower. If you are tired, the sense of time passing increases and an hour can seem like only a few minutes. This is because you may be falling asleep (clicking out) here and there, and/or losing touch with some of your experience memory for this time period. You may also be having OBEs, but not downloading the memories of these.
 	Your sense of background atmosphere changes and the room around you will feel larger and emptier. Background sounds take on a muffled, faraway quality. This is as if a cardboard box were lowered over your head.
 	You will feel a mild, bone-deep tickling sensation in your arms and legs, if you move them to ease your position or to scratch. Some physical movement is still possible but takes more willpower. Sharp sounds cause uncomfortable sensations in the stomach and solar plexus area. This can feel almost like a physical blow. Sound sensitivity will lessen as trance experience is gained, as you learn to let sounds pass over you. Your thoughts are slow but clear.
 	Holding your mind clear and focused is the trick to staying awake and mentally functional. When you first start experiencing trance states, you need to concentrate, holding your mind awake without allowing yourself to tense up physically. A sitting position with no head support is recommended, as balancing your head will help keep you conscious.
 	Hypnagogic imagery and occasional visions will sometimes be seen behind closed eyelids, in the mind's eye. REM (rapid eye movement) activity happens sporadically. When REM occurs, fragments of dream imagery will occasionally intrude into the mind's eye. REM indicates that your dream mind is now also active. Ignore REM as best you can if it starts. It normally comes and goes in bouts of a few minutes each, sometimes longer. REM feels like the eyes are fluttering and buzzing beneath their eyelids. This can be distracting. If it becomes a problem, gently rub the fingers and thumbs of each hand together and take a couple of slightly deeper breaths, stretching and moving your body slightly and resettling. This very slow and minor physical activity is usually enough to stop REM and slow dream-mind activity, while allowing trance to continue.
 	You will be spending most of your time somewhere between the light- and medium-trance states. As you gain experience, your natural level of trance will deepen and stabilize.

 	Deeper-Trance States: Deeper trance starts with all the symptoms of a medium-trance state, becoming more pronounced as you shift into a deeper level. There are many odd sensations associated with deeper-trance states, including all those listed above. These are more pronounced and there can be a noticeable loss of body heat and a slowing of the heart rate. There can also be loss of movement ability that may be related to waking paralysis. The symptoms of the deep-trance state can be worrying if you do not know what is happening, but a deep-trance state is not dangerous and cannot hurt you any more than deep sleep. It is also difficult to get into a true deep-trance state, and most people will not experience this accidentally. Deep trance will not happen spontaneously or accidentally.
 	If you are ever concerned that you are going too deep into the trance state, feel yourself moving upward, take some deeper breaths, and slowly move your head, mouth, fingers, and toes. This will progressively restore movement and reduce your level of trance. If you find you cannot move at all, you are most likely experiencing waking paralysis. This means you have already projected, but missed the experience due to the mind-split effect. In this case, after waiting a few minutes, concentrate on moving a single big toe to end the OBE. Alternatively, simply allow yourself to fall asleep. You will wake up shortly after this, well-rested and none the worse for wear.
 	Trance Induction Methods

  	I remember learning how to induce the trance state many years ago. I was introduced to this by spiritualists in what were called development circles. The only instruction I received was, "Robert, just relax and sit quietly and enter the silence." I would sit alone and in groups for hours at a time, keeping still and waiting for something magical to happen. This was a bit like trying to hatch an egg. It was just supposed to happen on its own. It was very frustrating. On the bright side, I have learned a lot over the years and now know easier ways of achieving this all-important state of being.
 	The trick is to relax and hold your mind free of thought words. Thought words are the biggest problem. Inducing the "mind awake + body asleep" level of trance state suitable for OBE exits requires three things: deep physical relaxation, a clear surface mind, and a trance-induction technique.
 	Deep Physical Relaxation: Do the physical relaxation exercise we did earlier, until you are as relaxed as possible.

 	Clear Surface Mind: Allow your thoughts to wind down and settle while doing the relaxation exercise. Then clear your mind by focusing on belly breathing. Release any thoughts and focus on your breathing. (You will find this easier if you deal with any pressing thoughts your mind may throw up at this time. Take note of any pressing thoughts. If they persist, stop and write them down on paper, then go back to the work.)
 	Trance-Induction Technique: A mental body-awareness falling technique speeds up the time it takes to enter the trance state. Focusing on this also helps to occupy your mind, helping to hold your mind relaxed, clear of thought words, and awake.

 	With the methods given below, use your imagination and body awareness to construct the falling scenarios and feel as if you were actually there. Imagine this or call on a memory of yourself doing something similar. Use this memory to re-create the feeling of yourself performing that same action with your imagination. Feel the falling action with your body awareness.

 	Once you attain a level of the trance state, heralded by a wave of bodily heaviness and warmth, relax and breathe slowly and naturally. Keep your mind clear of thought words. Hold on to and settle into the trance state. Use belly breathing or nose-tip breathing to help keep you awake and focused. Once you are settled, continue with the mental falling exercise to deepen your altered state.

 	I have given several trance-induction methods here. Try them all and find what works best for you. Using the same scenario frequently helps program your subconscious mind, making it easier and faster to induce the trance state.

 	You do not need to overdo the imagined details of scenarios used with the mental falling methods described in the next few pages. The rock wall in the elevator shaft, for example, only needs to be a vague blur moving upward. It is the downward movement felt in your body awareness that causes you to enter the trance state. Deep physical relaxation and a mental falling technique trick your subconscious mind into beginning the falling-asleep process while you are still awake.
 	The Elevator Scenario

  	Imagine that you are in a mining elevator with open sides. Feel the elevator cage start moving down with you in it. Imagine you can see the rocky sides of the elevator shaft passing upward as you move downward. Feel yourself moving down with body awareness. Imagine that the rock face has irregular rock and brick features. See this moving upward as the elevator carries you down, down, down. Call on a memory of when you were in an elevator. Go and ride one and memorize the sensations. Remember the slight feeling of vertigo it causes in your stomach as the elevator starts moving down. Re-create this feeling in your body awareness. Keep imagining and feeling this, while keeping your physical body relaxed and your mind free of thought words. Feel your body letting go and sinking deeper and deeper into the trance state as you ride the elevator down, down, down.
 	The Ladder Scenario

  	Imagine that you are on a ladder. Re-create the body-awareness feelings of remembered arm and leg movements. Begin climbing down. Move your awareness feet and hands as if you were actually climbing down a ladder. Alternatively, imagine you are holding on to the ladder's sides and are climbing down only with your feet. The sides of the ladder glide easily through your hands. Feel your body moving down the ladder. Imagine a rock face or brick wall in front of you, close to the ladder. Imagine this moving up past you as you climb farther and farther down the ladder. Feel yourself climbing downward and falling deeper into trance as you move down, down, down.

 	The Steps Scenario

  	Imagine you are standing at the head of a long flight of steps with a stone wall on either side. These steps are large, imposing, and steep. Lift one imaginary foot at a time—feeling this with your body awareness—and take the first step down. Feel your body move down as you move down. Repeat this and take the next step down, then the next and the next. While you are moving down the stairs, imagine you can see the textured stone walls on either side moving up past you, as you move down the flight of steps. Continue this, feeling yourself moving downward and falling deeper into the trance state as you move down, down, down.
 	Climbing Down a Rope Scenario

  	Imagine you are hanging by your hands from a strong knotted rope and have your legs wrapped securely around it. Your arms are strong and there is no chance of falling. Move one imaginary hand down, then the next, climbing down the rope hand over hand, with the rope sliding easily between your legs. See the rope moving up past your face as you climb down. Continue this, feeling yourself climbing down, falling deeper into the trance state as you move down, down, down.
 	The Feather Scenario

  	Imagine you are a feather. You are gently floating down from a great height in the clouds. Feel yourself gently falling—re-creating a falling sensation in your body awareness. See clouds moving up past you as you fall gently through them. Continue this, feeling yourself floating gently downward and falling deeper into the trance state as you float down, down, down.
 	The Smoke Rings Scenario

  	This method can be done from any position, even while standing. Imagine that your feet are in the center of a dense smoke ring, as thick as your arm. Imagine and feel this smoke ring rising up over your body and disappearing overhead. Imagine more smoke rings following the first one. The smoke rings are very dense and touch your body. Imagine that you can feel them moving up over your skin as they rise. Feel this happening with your body awareness. Imagine you can see the smoke rings as they move up past your eyes. The smoke rings repeat about two seconds or so apart. Feel the rising smoke rings with your body awareness, puffing regularly up over your body from feet to head. Feel an internal falling sensation as they rise. Feel yourself falling deeper into the trance state with every smoke ring.
 	The Anything Scenario

  	Imagine any scenario that you are familiar with that involves moving or falling downwards. This can be anything: a water slide, a fireman's pole, a parachute jump, mountain climbing, scuba diving, high diving—anything that would induce a natural falling or downward movement in your body awareness can be used for this purpose.
 	Using Music to Induce Trance

  	Altered State with Music: This is a quick way to experience an altered state. Select a piece of band music with multiple instruments—nothing too heavy. Play this on repeat. Sit and take a deep breath and settle yourself. Focus your hearing on one instrument only. Follow this with your mind and only listen to the one instrument. After a minute or so, you will start feeling heavy as you fall into an altered state. This works because your surface mind is kept occupied filtering out the other sound, as you focus only on one instrument.
 	I have tried this with adults and children and all have found it very easy to do successfully. This is a great way to introduce children to altered states.

 	This method is not very practical for working in the deeper levels of trance needed for the OBE exit, due to the distractions and emotional responses caused by the sound. However, its simplicity and accessibility make it worth doing at times.

 	Trance Affirmations

  	Use an affirmation to help you achieve altered states. Repeat this verbally beforehand or silently a few times as you begin the process of inducing a trance state. When used repeatedly, your mind will become programmed to enter the trance state when an affirmation is used. Repeat: "My mind is awake as my body sleeps." You could also mentally repeat, "Down, down, down . . . deep, deeper, deepest," a few times. This is something I do at times to enter and to help deepen my level of trance. Repeat this silently as you feel the downward action of your trance induction scenario with your body awareness.

 	You can make up your own affirmation for this purpose. Keep it simple, active, present tense, and downward meaning. Affirmations should express what you want to achieve as if it were already so. In the case of altered states, they should state that you are already deeply relaxed and in a trance state. The longer you use an affirmation the more effective it becomes, as you become subconsciously programmed to respond. Silently repeat your affirmations any time during trance when you want to go deeper. "I fall deeper and deeper into trance." The thought words involved are not a problem so long as they are not overdone.
 	Common Trance Problems

  	The following trance-related problems affect some people more than others. These should not be expected, but kept in mind and addressed if they become problems.
 	Falling Asleep during Trance

  	Falling asleep—clicking out—is a common problem. This is usually caused by a sleep deficit. Although you may feel fine, you are probably not getting enough sleep. If you have a sleep deficit, you will usually not have any problems with deep relaxation and entering the trance state, because you are overtired. This will help with that, but you will have trouble staying awake in the trance state. You will lack mental energy and you will tend to fall sleep for most of your trance session. Time will appear to go very fast during your trance meditation session, because you have been asleep for most of this time.
 	Many people, when they meditate, find their meditations naturally end after a set period of time. They remember starting and feeling blissful for a while, before coming back to Earth an hour or so later, feeling nicely refreshed. After entering the trance state, they simply have a pleasant nap. Increasing your level of slight discomfort will help. Another solution is to get more sleep. Also, try changing the time of your session to when you will be less tired, say to early morning when you are fresh.

 	Altered-state work and OBE exit attempts are generally more successful when done early in the morning, because you have more mental energy then. At the end of the day you have less mental energy available.

 	Pretrance Nap: It the modern world, its often difficult to find the energy for altered state and OBE work. Taking a nap at the start of your practice session can help. This is convenient and saves time. Use a chair, start your session, and perform your energy work and other exercises. Then use a trance-induction method. As you do this, allow yourself to fall asleep. You are sitting and so you will not nap for very long. Then, as you begin to wake, hold on to your trance state and continue from there. Move in slow motion if you have to resettle your body, or to scratch.
 	If you are too tired for anything, take a pretrance nap in a chair at the beginning of your session, before doing anything. Hold on to your altered state as you wake up and continue from there. This will give you the mental energy you need to complete your practice session.
 	Slight discomfort will also help. Vary your level of slight discomfort so you do not nap for too long. If you sleep for too long in a recliner or armchair, try a harder chair and no head support. Let your head sag onto your chest and then nap. You may sleep for ten minutes or so before awakening again. Then, hold on to your trance state, adjust your body in slow motion, and continue with your trance session.
 	Inability to Enter the Trance State

  	An inability to enter the trance state is usually caused by an insufficient level of deep physical relaxation or an overactive surface mind that will not be quiet. Whatever your trance problems, identify your weak areas and work on solutions. Return to the relevant sections of this book and repeat the necessary exercises until these problems are eased.
 	Practice, practice, practice, is my best advice. If you have worked through all the exercises in this section, but find you still cannot get into the trance state, do not give up. Go back to the beginning and repeat the earlier exercises a little more thoroughly. Be patient with yourself and do not rush. Some people find altered-state work easy, while others find it difficult. Everyone can do this if they learn the skills required and practice regularly.

 	Falling into Trance Too Easily

  	Falling into a trance too easily is an occasional side effect of development work, or of a sleep deficit. If persons spend a lot of time in trance states, they can slip into them very easily. People with this tendency can find themselves accidentally sliding into trance many times each day. If not checked, this can cause dissociation from reality resulting in social and psychological problems. This is not a healthy thing to do. Some people think this condition demonstrates their spiritual advancement, or that they are special in some way. What this does demonstrate is a lack of self-control.
 	A sleep deficit will compound this problem. If you are prone to falling accidentally into trance states, be aware of this and watch out for it, especially at times when this is likely to occur, e.g., while driving, watching TV, waiting, etc. Be ready to work against this the moment you feel it coming on. Get up and move around, drink a glass of water, etc. If this problem persists, take a break from altered-state work and meditation. Take some time out to catch up on your sleep and focus on physical life and activity for a while. Return to altered-state work only when this condition eases and you have more self-control.

 	  

 Chapter 15: PREPARATIONS FOR PROJECTION

  	Triggering the OBE projection reflex is not as difficult as is commonly believed. It is a matter of deeply relaxing the physical body, clearing the mind of thought words, entering a trance state ("mind awake + body asleep" state), and then triggering the projection reflex with an OBE exit technique. Most people can get to this point, to where the OBE exit is triggered. What happens from that moment depends upon self-control, attitude, and intelligent planning.
 	The Trance State and Deep Physical Relaxation

  	The majority of people who fail the OBE exit either have problems with achieving and/or holding a stable trance state, or they have not achieved the level of deep physical relaxation required to allow a conscious OBE exit.
 	It is possible to enter the trance state without having a deep enough level of physical relaxation to allow an awake real-time OBE exit, just as its possible to sleep with pain and muscular tension, even with broken bones. But while it is possible to sleep like this, any physical tension will cause problems during the OBE exit. Many people seem to hurry through the deep physical relaxation exercises. This is often because they can achieve a trance state fairly easily. They are also understandably keen to have OBEs. But a simple lack of deep physical relaxation ruins this possibility. Again, lack of deep physical relaxation is the biggest obstacle to achieving conscious OBE exit.
 	There is a reason why deep physical relaxation is so necessary. The real-time projected double is generated in the flesh of the physical body. Higher types of OBE, including brow- and crown-chakra exits, involve more of the mind and so do not have such strict requirements for deep relaxation. And all awake-induced OBE exits involve the real-time projected double, at least at the start. With further development and OBE-exit experience, the energy body evolves and this strict need for deep relaxation eases.
 	Time and again I tell people, "The secret to projection is deep, deep physical relaxation!" A light-to-medium level of trance combined with deep physical relaxation is the best combination for a successful OBE exit.

 	A lighter level of trance than most people usually seem to attain during projection attempts allows better focus and clarity. This makes the exit easier and provides better control during and after the OBE exit. Many people go too deep into the trance state, often because of a sleep deficit. A medium level of trance with a deep level of physical relaxation is best.

 	The Projection Reflex

  	When the balance of physical body/mind and its expanded energy body/mind reaches a critical point, an energetic event occurs that I call the projection reflex. This reflex triggers the generation and external projection of the astral double.
 	The first requirement is for consciousness to reflect itself into the expanded energy body, as happens when the physical body first falls asleep or enters a trance state. The normal event of falling sleep takes awake consciousness out of this scenario. With the awake mind out of the way, the natural generation and projection of the real-time double occurs gently and swiftly, unnoticed at the start of sleep. The projection reflex here is naturally triggered by sleep and causes no OBE-exit sensations that might awaken sleepers.
 	But if the awake mind holds itself awake long enough, in a deeply relaxed and tranced state, the projection reflex will naturally occur at some point. You can also trigger this reflex with an OBE-exit technique. Once triggered, the projection reflex makes the rest of the exit out of body automatic, and this can be difficult to stop.
 	Separation Pressure

  	To encourage the natural projection mechanism to activate, to consciously project out of body, it is necessary to shift and hold a point of body awareness outside the bounds of the physical body. This must be done strongly enough and for long enough to trigger the projection reflex. All projection techniques shift body awareness outside the physical body in some way or other. Whether you are reaching out for the vibrations, or imagining yourself as being elsewhere, a shift of body awareness is involved. The stronger this action, the more separation pressure will be exerted, and the more quickly and easily the projection reflex will be triggered.
 	Body-awareness tactile imaging can mimic any physical body action, both inside and outside the bounds of the physical body. The simpler the action, the easier it is to focus on and the stronger will be its effects. Hand and arm body-awareness actions are the easiest, hence the strongest.
 	Most meditation and trance-induction techniques also exert some separation pressure upon the projectable double. Whatever the technique, they are all designed to induce some kind of inner body awareness movement away from the physical body, e.g., an imagined falling scenario. These actions are, however, usually the reverse of what are used for OBE exit techniques.

 	The Vibrations

  	The famous vibrations are the most widely known OBE-related sensation associated with out-of-body experience, but they are not the actual cause of OBE. Vibrations are a symptom of energy-body activity associated with the internal generation and projection of the astral body from the substance of the physical body. When the body/mind and energy body are in the right state, the human energy body internally generates its projectable astral body, in preparation for its actual projection out of body. This process causes major energy-body activity. If the person is asleep, this activity is so mild it goes unnoticed. If the person's mind is awake, however, a different scenario arises.
 	The presence of awake consciousness throws a curveball into the workings of a natural subtle process. When the mind is awake, many internal conflicts arise and energy sensations can hence be major. Whole-body vibrations that feel like real physical vibrations flood the physical body. Vibrational intensity varies from mild buzzing electrical-type feelings, to major-earthquake-level vibrations.
 	However, even though vibrations can be strongly felt in the physical body, no detectable physical vibrations are ever present. This is because they are not happening to your body in a physical sense. Vibrations and all other OBE-exit sensations are only felt from within the projectable double as it is being generated and projected. All OBE-exit-related sensations are therefore subtle-energy-body sensations. And the study of OBE-exit-related sensations tells us a lot about what is happening during OBE-related events.
 	Often, OBE-exit-related sensations begin well before the actual OBE-exit. Vibrations often occur only in parts of the physical body. Logically, this indicates that only those parts of the projectable double are being generated in the flesh of the physical body. For example, if only the legs are vibrating, then only the legs of the projectable double are being generated at that time. Projectors often feel their arms or legs floating loose and moving freely outside the bounds of their physical bodies. When this happens, only those body parts have reached the deeply relaxed and energetically excited state required for an OBE exit to occur. The body parts that are not vibrating and not floating loose are not ready for projection. This is most likely due to hidden physical tension in those areas.
 	Many people find themselves stuck to a part of their physical body during the OBE exit. This could be the head, stomach, a hand, or a foot. If they try to force separation there, they often experience pain and discomfort in the stuck area. More on this and other OBE-exit-related issues later.
 	Health, Fitness, and OBE

  	Physical fitness and good health are not necessary for achieving OBE. But they help. A reasonable level of health makes it easier to attain and hold deep physical relaxation and altered states. A healthy physical body will have fewer problems like coughing, cramps, aches and pains, and poor circulation. Problems like sleep apnea are also worsened by poor health. Some health conditions, however, can make projection easier. Anything that causes slight discomfort, or that causes light sleep and frequent waking, can improve the body/mind connection and improve OBE recall.

 	The resting position used for the exercises in this book, and OBE-exit work, may need adjusting to compensate for health conditions. For example, if coughing is a problem, try a more upright projection position. If poor circulation is a problem, chairs and beds used will need better padding and support. If you have problems achieving enough comfort for deep physical relaxation, consider asking a suitable physical therapist for advice.
 	If you suspect your health is holding you back from achieving an OBE exit, a good alternative is to focus on lucid dreaming and wake-induced lucid dreaming.

 	Considerations for OBE-Exit Work

  	The resting position of the physical body during projection attempts will affect what happens during an OBE exit. Using your own bed in your natural sleeping position is not the ideal scenario. We are all conditioned to habitually fall asleep when we get into our own beds. It is best to use another room, or to change the position of the bed. Even changing sides or reversing your position in bed can help.

 	Sitting: A sitting or reclining position is best for an OBE. The OBE exit itself is easier, and the slight discomfort sitting causes helps keep the body/mind connection alive, making shadow-memory recall easier. If you have fallen asleep in a chair, you will notice that you do not sleep as deeply or as soundly as you would normally. It is also easier to wake up from a sitting position, just as it is easier to stay awake while holding the trance state in the sitting position.
 	You can adapt a sitting or reclining position to your situation and needs. Keep in mind that you are preparing for a projection, not settling down for sleep. While comfort is important, the ability to deeply relax the physical body while holding the mind awake is more important. Again, a very slight level of discomfort can help.

 	Poolside Recliner: If you must use your bedroom, a poolside recliner can be adapted with padding for OBE-exit work. This can be folded out of the way when not being used.
 	Armchair: A recliner or armchair with good back and neck support can work for projection. A pillow under your feet helps. If you use a plain armchair, a phone book under the front of the chair will recline it slightly. Using pillows and cushions creatively will increase the comfort of your arms, legs, and neck.
 	Beds: If using a bed, position yourself as if you were about to eat breakfast in bed. You don't want to be too upright, and neither do you want to be too flat. About a forty-five degree angle is best. Bedcovers should be light and comfortable. Use several pillows or a bean bag to prop yourself up in bed. It is important that your body be both comfortable and well-supported for deep relaxation. Bad posture leads to cramps and circulation problems.
 	Clothing and Covers: Wear loose, comfortable clothing. If the room is cold, it is better to use a heater than heavy covers. If insects are a potential problem, spray the room first or use mosquito netting.

 	Overcoming Distractions: Turn off your telephone. Use an answering machine. Put a Do Not Disturb sign on your door, if needed. Common background noises can be overcome with white noise. Turn on a radio or TV and tune to an off station. The hiss of white noise will mask background noise. It is best not to play music during OBE-exit attempts. Music causes emotional responses and tensions, which can ruin OBE attempts. You need something bland and nondistracting. Rain or surf sounds can work well for this. By far, the best support for OBE exit work is provided by altered-state-inducing sound frequencies with binaural beats. (See resource section.) Comfortable headphones will block out distracting noises, especially if used with altered-state-inducing sounds. The larger types of headphones are better than ear buds for this purpose.
 	Lighting: Lack of suitable lighting can contribute to OBE-exit failure. Fear of the dark is natural and many people find themselves getting worried when OBE-exit symptoms and phenomena begin in darkness. Even a mild subconscious fear of the dark, added to the natural trepidation caused by the experientially unknown out-of-body environment, can be anxiety inducing. This can be eliminated by using soft background lighting. Another way is to project during daylight hours.
 	Eyes Closed: The physical body's eyes must be closed at all times during OBE-exit work, before, during, and after the OBE exit. You do not need to open your astral eyes after the OBE exit. You will automatically gain real-time astral sight before, during, or after your OBE exit. You do not need to do anything to see after the OBE exit.

 	Vision Problems: If you cannot see after the OBE exit, make a clear command, "Give me light, NOW!" or, "Give me sight, NOW!" Or, if your vision is faulty after the OBE exit, make the command, "Give me clarity, NOW!" These commands trigger responses in your higher self. Making commands is a reliable way of fixing such problems. Repeat commands as often as necessary.
 	Meditate Anywhere

  	Practicing trance exercises in distracting situations—say with a TV playing in the background—will help entrain you to ignore distracting noises, making altered-state meditation possible anywhere. This allows you to take advantage of waiting and travel time for extra practice, and for you to enjoy meditation out-doors. To do this in public, say while traveling on a bus or airplane, get a pair of dark glasses and a magazine. Wear the glasses so people cannot see that your eyes are closed. Hold the magazine open so people think you are reading. Cut a pair of eyes from a magazine picture and fit them inside the lenses of the dark glasses. Cut a pinhole in the pupil of each eye picture, so you can see through them if needed. This cuts down light and makes it easier to meditate and attracts less social critique.
 	OBE, Sleep, or Lucid Dream

  	The resting position of the physical body affects the type of experience that will occur. This does not affect everyone in the same way or to the same degree. Some experimentation is required. Many people have difficulty projecting while lying curled up on their sides. Myself, I must be either lying on my back or sitting in an armchair for OBE. For OBE, I prefer a laid-back position of about forty-five degrees. If I curl up on my side, I either fall asleep or have a lucid dream. This factor should be kept in mind during early OBE-exit attempts. Try varying your position if you have repeated failed OBE-exit attempts or if falling asleep is a problem. Even a slight adjustment of position can help.
 
 Chapter 16: OBE EXERCISES AND TECHNIQUES

  	Achieving conscious-exit projection can be likened to learning how to walk. A baby has to learn to cope with gravity, body weight, and balance, and must coordinate many undeveloped muscles, nerves, and skills, all at the same time. The first few times babies try to stand, they totter and fall because their brain does not know how to coordinate these things.
 	Similarly, during early OBE-exit attempts, projectors must hold a deeply relaxed physical and mental state while trying to exteriorize a point of body awareness, while also trying to deal with a host of unusual sensations. During this, it is easy to lose control and fall asleep, or fall into the fully awake state. Applying the skills needed for an awake OBE exit takes time and practice. Some perseverance is required to master this.

 	Projectable-Body Loosening

  	To loosen the projectable double involves temporarily shifting and moving body awareness outside the bounds of the physical body. The following exercises help to loosen up the projectable double and prepare it for OBE exits. The exercises also get projectors used to exterior body-awareness actions during deeply relaxed altered states. These exercises can be practiced in a lightly relaxed state. They are capable of triggering OBE exits, so be prepared. If this happens, or even a close or partial OBE exit, repeat the exercise that caused this from a deeply relaxed state. If you do something that works, stick to it and build on what works for you. Commit yourself to going through with an OBE exit if it occurs. No half measures are advised, as this can cause many problems.
 	Perception Bouncing

  	Put yourself into a relaxed body/mind state. Perceive the room around you with your mind and imagination and build a picture of it in your mind's eye. Using your memory, take note of how everything would look from your position if your eyes were open: where doors, windows, ceilings, walls, and furniture are situated. The bounce loosening actions below can be varied during a single session.
 	Stage One: Start a whole-body bounce action from head to feet, arms resting comfortably at your sides. Feel the bounce action moving up and down through your whole body. Continue until you are settled into a comfortable bounce rhythm. Next, extend your focal point of awareness—the part you are bouncing through your body—out past your head and feet until you are bouncing from the surface above your head (ceiling or wall) to the surface below your feet (wall or floor). Continue the bounce action, keeping it in line with your torso, up and down through your body. Once you get the bounce action going comfortably, allow your physical body to fade into the background, and focus more on the exterior bounce action.

 	Stage Two: Bounce your point of awareness away from your body in line with your brow center. Bounce to the surface before or above you (ceiling or wall) then back through your brow to the surface behind or beneath you (wall or floor). Repeatedly bounce off the surface facing you, and then back through your brow to the surface behind you. Once you get this bounce action going, allow the feel of your physical body to slide into the background, and focus more on the exterior bounce action.
 	With the above two stages, as your awareness bounces off a surface—a wall, ceiling, or floor—use your imagination to sense what each surface would look and feel like close up. See this as if your face were there, right up close to the surface. Try to momentarily feel your new spatial position as if you were actually there. Be aware of the spatial change and of the new position; of where your physical body, walls, doors, windows, and furniture are for those brief moments when your awareness bounces off surfaces. Create a snapshot of this new position in your mind's eye each time you bounce your point of awareness off a surface. Feel yourself being there, out of your physical body for just a brief moment each time.
 	If you have trouble imagining this clearly, try sticking small targets to the ceiling and walls and memorize what it is like to be up close to them. Re-create the image of these with your imagination in your mind's eye during the exercise. Put your face close to the targets and perceive what the room feels like from there—where furnishings, doors, windows, etc., are situated all around you. Memorize what it feels like to do this. During the exercise, re-create this perspective in your mind's eye at the end of each bounce.
 	Again, once you settle into the whole-body bounce action, pay more attention to bouncing your point of awareness off the surfaces than you do to feeling the bounce action passing through your physical body. Allow the sense of your physical body to fade into the background.

 	As said, this type of bounce action can trigger the projection reflex, so be prepared. Repeat this exercise for as long as you wish. If an OBE exit begins, be prepared to leave your body. It is not advisable to abort OBE exits, as this can cause problems in achieving OBE exits later. So, decide beforehand to go through with any OBE exit caused by any of these exercises.

 	  

 	Figure 25. Horizontal and vertical bounce actions 

 	Expanded Breathing

  	This exercise stretches the natural boundaries of your body/mind perception. Put yourself in a relaxed body/mind state. Perceive the room around you and take note of its spatial layout. Focus your awareness on your breathing action and breathe slowly and naturally IN and OUT. Feel your stomach and chest moving as you breathe with your body awareness.
 	As you breathe IN, feel your body expanding outward as your lungs fill, as if your physical body were rapidly expanding outward like a balloon. Feel the room shrinking in on you as your perception of self expands. At the end of the IN breath, try to feel your awareness filling the whole room to capacity for a moment.
 	As you breathe OUT, feel your perception of self collapsing inward like a balloon. Feel the room around you getting bigger as you get smaller. At the end of the OUT breath, briefly feel the spatial coordinates of the entire room as being far away from you, as if you are now a tiny point of consciousness in an oversized room. Repeat this exercise for as long as you wish.

 	Spin Loosening

  	Any body-awareness action that holds a point of body awareness outside the habitual physical body/mind space is difficult to hold if this point is kept stationary. But give movement to a point of body awareness and this becomes easier. Movement tricks the mind into momentarily accepting body-awareness actions at locations outside the natural physical body/mind perimeter.
 	Step One: Put yourself in a relaxed body/mind state. Start by bouncing a point of awareness at brow-center level, back and forth to the surface (wall or ceiling) directly in front of your face. Imagine and feel this bounce action is connected to the inner center of your head. Keep the bounce action moving, like you are bouncing a little rubber ball back and forth, from your forehead to the hard surface. Continue until you settle into the action.

 	Step Two: Begin shifting the bounce action clockwise a few feet at a time, around the room, briefly touching the surface (wall, floor, or ceiling) in passing as you shift a bit to your right with each bounce. Circle the room with this action. Vary the speed to what feels natural, but it should be a fairly rapid action. As your point of awareness circles the room, feel it bouncing off the interior surfaces of the room; bouncing from the surfaces back to the center of your head. Stay aware of your changing perspective in the room as your point of awareness bounces out around you. Try to feel your spatial coordinates changing around you, as your point of awareness bounces off the surfaces as it circles the room. Try to feel yourself being there, where the ball touches surfaces. Continue for a minute or two.
 	Step Three: Stop bouncing and start spinning your point of awareness, as if you were whirling a ball on a cord around your head. The cord is connected to the inner center of your head at brow level. Imagine this is spinning in a circle around you, out near the surfaces of the room around you. Make it fit the room around you at that level, to what feels most natural. Continue for a minute or two.
 	Step Four: Feel yourself spinning inside your body. Feel your perspective of the room changing around you as you spin. Settle into a steady body-awareness spin, as if you were on a spinning merry-go-round. Vary the speed to what feels natural. Continue this for a minute or two.
 	Step Five: Extend your perspective and feel yourself spinning outside of your body. Imagine your perspective is brushing the surfaces around you (walls, ceiling, or floor) as you spin. Continue for a few minutes or longer.

 	If you continue these spinning actions, your mind will at some point be tricked into believing that you are outside your body. When this happens, you will feel a momentary falling sensation, a brief sensation of vertigo. This can happen many times during this exercise. This technique can also trigger the projection reflex, so be prepared.
 	Loosening with Imagination

  	Put yourself in a relaxed body/mind state. When you are settled, imagine yourself slowly getting out of your body and walking/floating to the door of the room. Be aware of your perspective changing, and of where your physical body actually is as you move away from it. Move through the door, as if you were really projecting, and imagine and perceive yourself as moving through your home. Imagine this with as much detail as you can. Look into the main living areas, and then leave the house and walk farther afield. Keep moving. Go as far as your memory will take you with reasonable accuracy. Imagine your front door; the step, path or stairs; the road outside; the trees and/or buildings; everything. This imaginative view does not have to be perfect. Just do your best. Stop and briefly examine some points of interest along the way, and then move on.
 	As you move away, try to feel and perceive yourself as actually being away from your physical body. Stay aware of the direction back to your physical body, in relation to your perceived remote location. This is a little tricky, so keep moving your imaginary projected double to ease the mental pressure.
 	There will be moments when you will suddenly experience the feeling of actually being where you are perceiving your imaginary projected double to be. This will cause brief falling sensations, often accompanied by trickles of energy up through your stomach and chest. This is a good sign and shows that you are successfully exteriorizing your body awareness and are exerting pressure on your projectable double. The trickle of energy indicates that the projectable double is being generated.
 	Once you can imagine and perceive yourself as being out of body, you can also imagine yourself flying or instantly projecting to other remote locations. Imagine yourself floating up into the air and flying around. Imagine what this would feel like and what the world would look like from this perspective. Imagine yourself instantly projecting to another place. Feel this new location, anywhere, appearing around you.

 	To finish this exercise, see yourself moving back into your room and watching your physical body as it awaits your return. Imagine yourself floating up to and then reentering your physical body.

 	As you do this exercise, work on perceiving yourself as being away from your physical body as clearly as you can. Imagine you are seeing the world through the eyes of your projected astral double.

 	This exercise can also trigger the projection reflex, so be prepared. If this happens during this particular exercise, you may feel projection sensations only remotely, as if from a distance. You may also feel nothing and just suddenly find yourself in your projected double at the remote location.
 	Rope Projection Technique

  	Now is the time to use your body-awareness hands to climb out of your body with the rope technique. A key ingredient to the rope technique is an imaginary rope hanging from your ceiling. The hand-over-hand body-awareness climbing action will trick your mind into accepting a point of body awareness outside of your physical body. The climbing action provides a natural upward and outward movement away from the physical body. This stimulates the projection reflex.
 	Imagine a thick, strong rope is hanging down in front of you, just above your chest, within easy reach of your hands. This is regardless of whether you are sitting or lying in bed. The rope is always within easy reach of your hands. Vary the position and angle of this rope to suit yourself, to whatever feels most natural.
 	Reach out with your awareness hands and grasp the rope. Imagine and feel yourself climbing hand-over-hand up the rope. Reach out and pull the rope to your chest with each climbing hand action. Feel yourself, in your projectable double, moving up the rope as you climb. Be aware of your physical body remaining behind as you climb out of it. Be aware of your perspective of the room changing as you move up the rope. Focus on the climbing action. Do not let your physical body respond or tense. Breathe naturally and do not hold your breath or allow it to become ragged. Hold your mind relaxed and free of thought words. Focus solely on climbing up the rope.

 	  

 	Figure 26. Rope technique

 	Develop a powerful, natural, two-handed climbing action, just as you would if you were actually climbing a rope. Vary the speed of your climbing action to what feels most natural, but do not climb too slowly. Experiment and find what works best for you.

 	Try to feel yourself moving upward as you climb the rope. Climb up and out of your physical body. Perceive your physical body as being left behind, and perceive your view of the room changing as you climb higher.

 	If you have any problems climbing, reason out a solution. Just do your best and keep your hands moving and climbing or scrambling up the rope in any way you can. Common rope problems, solutions, and alternatives are discussed soon.

 	It can help to pin or tape a length of ribbon or string to the ceiling, hanging within easy arm's reach. Imagine that this is actually a thick rope. Touch this occasionally until you get used to its position and feel in your perception.

 	Rope Technique Symptoms

  	The first sign that the rope technique is working is a localized energy-movement, dizzy-pressure sensation, a mild trickling vertigo feeling in the pit of the stomach and in the chest. This means the rope technique is exerting good pressure on your projectable double. Keep climbing and you will trigger the projection reflex—as long as you are physically relaxed enough to allow the generation of the projectable double.

 	As an experiment, try this short exercise now. Just close your eyes and take a couple of deep breaths to settle yourself, nothing more. Feel yourself reaching out and climbing strongly hand-over-hand up an imaginary rope for twenty seconds or so. Use your memory and imagination to re-create the feeling of what it would be like to actually do this.

 	You should feel something happening fairly quickly: a localized dizzy pressure-movement feeling in your stomach and chest. This is similar to the feeling you get when you are in an elevator that suddenly starts moving downward. These sensations indicate that your projectable double is under pressure from the rope-climbing action. When your body and mind are in a deeply relaxed state, this will be stronger and more effective.
 	My First Rope-Projection Experience

  	I lay down on my bed in the early evening, just after sundown, thinking about the new rope technique I had been developing. I had been asked to develop an OBE-exit technique that people who had been blind from birth could use. I was using the sense of touch as the foundation for the new technique. Touch and tactile perceptions are, I reasoned, highly developed in blind people. I had discovered a new way of using this sense—body-awareness tactile imaging I'd called it—to exert pressure on the projectable double to trigger the OBE-exit reflex. It was just a working idea at this time. The next step was road-testing the technique to see if it worked.

 	I did not do any relaxation, trance, or energy work. I just wanted to see if the new rope technique would exert any noticeable pressure.

 	I lay there for several minutes, mulling all this over in my mind while I relaxed and settled myself, getting ready for a nap. Then I thought "what the heck" and decided to try the new technique. I formed a strong intention to project and give the new technique my best shot.
 	I imagined a strong rope hanging from the ceiling. I reached out with my body-awareness hands and began climbing hand-over-hand. I immediately felt a sensation of vertigo in my stomach and chest. I also felt a bone-deep, tickling, dizzy-type sensation in my arms and legs. I shook the excitement from my mind and focused on the rope-climbing action. As I climbed, I felt a pressure building inside. My body grew suddenly heavy as I slid into a full trance state. This was happening much faster than usual. I felt the upper part of my body starting to lift free, trying to go up the rope. I had never experienced anything quite like this.

 	I kept climbing and my heart center began racing and vibrations coursed through my body. I kept climbing and, suddenly, the projection reflex kicked in and my real-time astral body buzzed free. I came to rest floating at the foot of my bed. This had happened so fast I barely had time to note the changes as I projected. I returned to my body soon after the exit and excitedly recorded the experience in my journal. This was the fastest OBE exit I had ever experienced.

 	I tried the rope technique several times that evening and it worked every time. Climbing a rope or ladder as an OBE-exit technique is nothing new. But the application of body-awareness tactile imaging is something new. Understanding how this worked was especially important to me at the time. This revealed many things concerning the nature of the subtle-energy processes involved in the OBE exit.
 	Projection Sequence

  	It is best to have more than one sequence for inducing an OBE exit. Alternate and adapt the steps you use for your OBE-exit attempts according to how you are feeling at the time. Be flexible and do what works. Take advantage of situations and work around problems.

 	The time spent on each part of your projection sequence should vary according to your experience and needs. Do not spend too long on each part if falling asleep is a problem. At least five minutes, however, should be spent on the deep physical relaxation part. The time and energy you invest in your practice sessions all contribute to making OBEs more achievable in the long term.

 	Relax, close your eyes, and use belly breathing to settle yourself. Use a minute or so of belly or nose-tip breathing between each stage. Do the full deep physical relaxation exercise. Pre-stimulate hands and feet. Bounce your arms and legs, and then use a whole-body bounce for a few minutes. Use the full-body circuit for a few minutes. Next, belly breathe and recheck your relaxed state. Relax and clear your surface mind and induce an altered state with a falling scenario. When you are well settled, raise energy up your legs and stimulate each primary energy center in turn, using your favorite methods. Perform a projectable-double-loosening exercise with an exterior bounce technique. Relax and belly breathe and center yourself. Recheck your relaxation and altered state. Relax, relax, relax. Take your time. Finally, use OBE-exit techniques.

 	Stay focused and calm, allowing no thought words in your mind. Vary your OBE-exit technique every minute or so. Recheck your relaxation and altered state occasionally. Relax and stay focused, be patient with yourself, take your time, and enjoy the work.

 	If you start to feel OBE-exit sensations like vibrations at any point during the above, switch immediately to an OBE-exit technique and take it from there.

 	Remember to keep the OBE short. Ten seconds out of body and then make a deliberate, passionate reentry. Write down key words immediately.

 	Instant Projection

  	Instant projection is best used when you awaken and find you are already in a deeply relaxed altered state, or whenever vibrations and other OBE-exit sensations are present. First, do nothing but center yourself and consolidate your deeply relaxed altered state. This requires nothing more than staying conscious and doing nothing. Belly breathe and clear your mind of thought words. Relax and stay calm and focused. If you need to move to resettle your physical body, move in slow motion. Form a firm intention to project, and start using an OBE-exit technique. Vary the exit technique every minute or so.
 	Whenever you feel vibrations, immediately use an OBE-exit technique and try for the exit. Whenever vibrations occur, your projectable double is being generated and it is ready to go. All you need do is form the intention to project, and then use an OBE-exit technique. Alternatively, do nothing but relax and observe what's happening and let an OBE occur naturally.

 	Motivation

  	An important ingredient for OBE is motivation. Without enthusiasm, you will not have enough mental energy to succeed. Be thorough, but keep OBE-exit preparation time reasonably short so it is not too exhausting. One thing new projectors have in abundance is enthusiasm. I have heard many OBE success stories over the years. In most cases, people have been practicing OBE-exit techniques when they suddenly have a surge of enthusiasm and decide to just do it—a do-or-die effort. They have put everything into it and in most cases succeeded. Sometimes this can happen on your first attempt, so be prepared. Resolution and enthusiasm make a big difference. They focus all your mental energy into a single purpose—to project out of body.
 	Rope and OBE-Exit Tips

  	The feelings of localized dizziness, pressure, and energy movement caused by OBE-exit techniques should be noted. Adjust your rope-climbing action accordingly, to produce the maximum effect.

 	Balance: Maintain a calm balance during OBE attempts. Focus on climbing rope to the exclusion of everything else. Put everything you have into the climbing action and tune out everything else. Do not allow thought words in your mind. Do not analyze or think about what you are doing. You have trained for this. Watch your breathing and do not hold it or allow it to become shallow or ragged. If your natural breathing pattern alters, you will create physical tension. If this happens, stop what you are doing and belly breathe and relax until you are settled again. Take your time. Breathe naturally at all times. Do nothing but stay calm and climb the rope until you get out.
 	Vibrations: When vibrations start, they may be localized in one part of your body, such as your legs. If you focus your awareness on them, you will find you can intensify and spread them. The vibrations will respond to and follow your body-awareness hands. Stay relaxed and focused on your OBE-exit technique. The vibrations will spread naturally as you continue. They can be especially strong during early attempts, so be prepared.
 	Racing-Heart Sensation: Be ready for a racing-heartbeat heart chakra sensation. This can be incredibly strong during early OBEs. They scare many projectors into aborting the exit out of body. Totally ignore this sensation. It will not hurt you. The heart chakra races to provide energy for the OBE exit. It is not your actual physical heart racing. Also ignore sensations like head and brow pressure, no matter how strong or uncomfortable. The sooner you get out of your body, the sooner these sensations will end.
 	Astral Noises: Ignore any noises or voices you hear before or during a projection attempt—no matter how loud or how real they appear to be. These are auditory hallucinations. They are not real, but they are a test. If you feel anything touching or tugging at you, or even hands grabbing at you, ignore them. These are tactile hallucinations. None of these things can hurt you, but they can distract you. If you react, they can break your nerve and lessen your chances for OBE success. You will never find anything relating to these things once you get out of body. It will be quiet and you will be alone when you get out of your body. (More on this later.) 
 	Short OBE: Again, keep all early OBEs very short. Ten seconds out and then dive back into your body, passionately shouting your success. Please trust me here, no matter how tempted you are to go off and explore. Your chances of recalling a short projection are greater than recalling a longer one. A ten-second remembered OBE is life-changing. An all-night OBE, forgotten, is worthless.

 	Torso Energy Surge: In many cases, just as the projection reflex is about to kick in, you will feel a sudden energy surge up through your stomach and chest. This marks the moment of separation between the physical body/mind and its projecting astral double. The projection reflex has been triggered and you are on the verge of an OBE exit. Stay calm and do not react to this sensation in any way. Stay calm and keep going.
 	Mind-Split Flickering: If the above happens and everything just stops, or if you experience vibrations and everything stops, leaving you groggy and tired, maybe with difficulty moving (waking paralysis), you have most likely already projected. You have missed the exit due to the mind-split effect. If this happens, stay calm and keep your mind relaxed. Wait for your projected double to reenter. Allow yourself to flicker on the edge of sleep. Do some energy work to keep yourself occupied. But do not allow yourself to be too mentally awake. You must allow yourself to flicker on the edge of sleep, to allow your projected double to reenter and download its memories.
 	Reintegration: The wisdom of keeping early projections short will pay off here—if your projected double remembers this advice. Be patient. Full memories of the OBE will flood your mind during reintegration if everything goes according to plan. You will probably forget what you did while you waited for your double to reenter, due to the mind-split effect. The moment you reintegrate and remember your OBE, verbalize the key words as you dive for a pen and jot them down.

 	Tube Exits: Sometimes you may find yourself buzzing out of body, or flying up a tube-type structure, with only very mild OBE-exit sensations, or no sensations.

 	Visualizing: Some people have problems with the rope technique because they cannot stop visualizing the rope in their mind's eye. It is okay to visualize the rope so long as you also feel yourself climbing it with body awareness.

 	Creating Solutions: Some people say they find themselves bumping up against the ceiling and feel they cannot go further. Some feel a pile of rope building up under them. The solution here is to use imagination to create solutions. Imagine that a small hole beneath you is swallowing up the used rope. Or, imagine you are climbing through the ceiling and up into the sky, etc.
 	Helping Other Projectors Out

  	It is impractical for a real-time astral projector to attempt to assist another person out of body. I have tried this many times and it does not appear to be feasible. The person you are trying to help out will sense-interpret this as an unpleasant energy/psychic attack.
 	It is possible to awaken sleeping real-time projectors while they are out of body. When natural sleep projection occurs, the real-time body drifts out of its physical body and hovers just above it, often mimicking its sleeping position. Real-time projectors in this state are asleep, just as their physical bodies and minds are asleep. A conscious real-time projector can awaken sleeping projectors. However, all the factors that make OBE difficult to remember are still present, so recalling this is difficult. I have done this many times with sleeping real-time projectors and, while I have managed to awaken and travel for a time with some, none have remembered this afterwards.
 	Calling and Meeting Other Projectors

  	Many people have asked me how to meet up with other projectors, and even with deceased friends and loved ones. One way of doing this is to mentally call out to the person just before the OBE exit. When you are in the trance state and close to the exit, hold the image of the person you want to meet in mind and mentally call his or her name several times. If the target person is available, he or she will usually hear and appear to you just before your OBE exit, or will be waiting nearby when you get out of body. He or she will often reply to your call and you may hear this with astral hearing. If you have real-time astral sight at this time, you may also see him or her appear in your room. If all this fails, after your exit out of body, move away from your physical body and then call out to your friend again.

 	Another way to meet people is to tune in to and project to them using the instant travel method. To do this, first exit your body. Then, imagine your friend strongly and make a command "Take me to (name of friend)." This will usually cause you to shift to your target destination. When you meet people out of body, they usually do not realize that they are out of body. Convincing them of this can be quite interesting.
 	Please note that permission issues and the higher self are involved here. Only people who would normally like to visit with you will respond to astral commands. Those who would not like to do this will usually not respond.
 
 Chapter 17:  MORE OBE TECHNIQUES AND VARIATIONS

  	It is a good idea to use a variety of OBE-exit techniques during a single session. This prevents boredom and improves results. Varying exit methods helps trick the subconscious mind and/or higher self into allowing a conscious OBE-exit to occur.
 	If your sessions are lengthy and tiring, the relaxation, trance, and energy work exercises can be done separately. If you become tired during an OBE exit session, take a short break, or have a nap in your chair. Stay as relaxed as possible during the break. When you return to your work, quickly repeat the steps you did earlier, until you are in a deeply relaxed body/mind state. Then make your OBE-exit attempt.
 	Rope Technique Variations

  	Water Ski Rope: Imagine you are holding the handle of a ski rope attached to a powerful speedboat in front of you. Feel yourself hanging on tightly to the handle of the ski rope, as if you were floating on your back, ready for a deep-water start. Imagine the engine roaring, the excitement building, then suddenly the boat takes off and drags you out of your body in a flurry of astral spray.

 	Rope Cargo Net: Imagine that you have a large rope cargo net hanging down in front of you. Imagine this netting hanging within easy reach. Reach out and climb the net hand-over-hand. Scramble up it any way you can, using hands and arms and legs and feet, climbing up and out of your body.
 	Ladder: Imagine a strong ladder extending down from the ceiling. The lowest rung is within easy reach of your hands. Climb the ladder hand-over-hand, feeling yourself moving up the ladder toward the ceiling. Feel your spatial coordinates in the room changing as you climb. Feel yourself moving higher and higher up the endless ladder. If you imagine yourself reaching the ceiling, climb through it and beyond.
 	Point Shift: This is the most direct projection technique of all. This is the technique I first learned and used for most of my early OBEs.

 	When you are ready to project, become aware of your physical body and where it exists in the room around you. Run your memory and perception over where the doors, walls, windows, and furnishings are in your room. Build a spatial map of this in your imagination, in your mind's eye, including where you are and what it feels like to be there.

 	When you are ready, imagine and feel yourself standing up or stepping out of bed, then moving to stand two paces away from your physical body. Hold your whole-body awareness firmly centered in your imagined exterior body in its new location. Do not try to see or feel your double as being above or in front of you; feel yourself as being above or in front of your physical body, from your projected double's perspective. Perceive the changed spatial coordinates of the room around you from your new perspective. Feel and be aware of where your physical body is resting. Imagine and feel your projected double as already having separated from your physical body. Focus on holding your awareness in your imagined projected double as strongly as you can in its new location.
 	Holding a different perspective from where you actually are is tricky and difficult. Your mind will continually try to shift back to the perspective of your physical body. Fight this off and keep forcing your perspective back to your imagined astral double. Be prepared for a mental tug of war.

 	Steam Rising: When you are ready, become aware of your whole body and of where it is in relation to the room around you, as in the above point-shift technique. Imagine yourself becoming lighter and lighter, as if your body were turning into steam. Steam expands and rises. Feel yourself becoming lighter and gently rising up and out of your physical body, floating at arm's length or so. Feel your perception of the room changing as you rise higher. Stay aware of where your physical body is beneath you as you float free. Feel your whole body awareness centered firmly in your steam body.
 	Rolling Out: The rolling-out-of-body method makes use of a natural whole-body awareness movement—rolling over in bed. This method is especially useful if a spontaneous projection has already started, or if you find yourself partially stuck to your body during an exit attempt.

 	Feel yourself rolling to the side, as if you were rolling over in bed. Repeat this action as many times as necessary. Roll to the left, then roll to the right. Get a whole-of-body-awareness feeling into the body roll as if you were really doing it. Do not allow your physical body to tense or respond to this action. If you are using a chair, feel this action as if you were turning and rolling out of your chair.
 	The Rocket: When you are ready, imagine you are lying flat on the tip of a very large rocket. The bulk of the rocket is hidden away beneath you. Your bed or chair is attached to the tip of this rocket. Imagine the ceiling and walls slowly falling away, revealing the stars above. Feel the rocket rumble beneath you as its engines fire and it slowly lifts off, taking you with it. Stay aware of your physical body remaining where it is beneath you as you rise.
 	Driving: If you have ever been on a long drive, or spent a long time on a computer driving game, you may notice later that a shadowy replay of this is impressed into your mind's eye. When you close your eyes and relax or try to sleep, the view you had of the scenery unwinding toward you continues to play out in your mind's eye for some time. This can be used to trigger the projection reflex.

 	Relax and let this scenario play in your mind's eye. Let your sense of body awareness move along the road toward the horizon. Use the scenery to hold your mind clear of thoughts, aided by breath awareness. See the road and trees and buildings and cars moving toward and past you, and feel yourself moving forward as the scene unwinds. Imagine and feel your physical body being left behind as you drive to the horizon.
 	Two-Person Remote-Eye Method: It is possible for a type of projection to occur while you are still partially awake. To re-create a remote-eye projection requires preparation and the help of another person, your controller. You must allow yourself to become extremely overtired by developing a sleep deficit, or skipping a night or two of sleep. What is needed here is the kind of tiredness where you could fall asleep while standing.
 	When you are tired enough, sit in a comfortable position. You must not be disturbed by anything other than your controller. For that reason, this experiment is best done at night with the telephone off the hook. The controller must talk with you and hold you just awake, but not overstimulate you.

 	The controller must monitor you for REM (rapid eye movement) activity behind closed eyes. REM state is an important sign, as it indicates that your dream mind is active. The REM state causes a noticeable flickering motion behind the eyelids. You must be gently kept awake and reasonably coherent throughout the experiment. The controller should gently wake you if you start falling asleep, by talking to you and rubbing your arm.

 	Stimulating your brow center before and during the remote-eye session will help. Allow your eyes to regularly close, to help you find the edge of the sleep state, so you start flickering on the edge.

 	You may see things behind your closed eyelids: patterns of light, colors, images, scenarios. These are a mixture of hypnagogic images, dream fragments, and clairvoyant visions. Describe everything you see so your controller knows what is happening.

 	Continue this and at some point a real-time part of you will project out of body. You will be able to give a running commentary of what is happening. The mind-split will occur at the moment of separation, and your mental coherence will weaken. Your controller must keep you just awake and coherent enough to talk, but not so awake that your delicate relaxed state is altered.

 	Your perspective will flicker back and forth between your projected and physical bodies, and even your dream mind may become involved. The altered state caused by deep overtiredness can enable you to maintain a fairly stable visual connection with your projected double.

 	Once you manage to connect with your projected double, you will become aware of seeing through your double's eyes at remote locations.

 	An ideal time for this is when you are in bed late at night with your partner after a long day and you are both still awake.

 	Alarm Clocks

  	Some people find it easier to project if they set their alarm clocks an hour or two before normal waking time, and then attempt an OBE. At that time, the physical body/mind is already deeply relaxed, making projection easier. If you have to get up for work at a set time, use two alarm clocks.

 	Another use for alarm clocks is to use the snooze button for short projections. This can help dream and OBE recall. Every time you wake up is another opportunity to remember dreams and OBEs. Set your snooze button to gently wake you at two- or five-minute intervals. When the alarm goes off , hold on to your deeply relaxed altered state and, moving slowly, hit the snooze button. Then relax for a moment and go straight to your projection technique.
 	The next time the alarm sounds, moving slowly, hit the snooze button and use dream/OBE recall methods for a minute or so. (You may not have any indication that an OBE might have taken place. But remember the mind-split effect and do this anyway.) Then relax and try to project again. Every time you do this gives you another chance to remember your dreams and OBEs. As soon as you remember something, verbalize and then write down key words.
 	Sitting OBE

  	An excellent OBE method is to attempt OBE while sitting in an office or dining chair, with no head support. Repeat the affirmation "I leave my body and safely return and remember everything" several times. Then go through the deep-physical-relaxation, altered-state-inducing, and energy-work exercises, and then allow yourself to fall asleep. All physical movements must be in slow motion. You will only sleep for a short time, as your head will droop forwards and jerk you awake after a minute.
 	Repeat this process a few times and hold on to your deeply relaxed state. Use dream-recall methods each time you wake, searching your mind to capture fragments of dream and OBE memories. Silently repeat the affirmation before each OBE-exit attempt, or before allowing yourself to fall back to sleep.
 	This method appears to be frustrating and tiring, but it will give you dozens of chances to succeed at an OBE exit—and more important, to remember them. Every time you drop off to sleep, you will be making a natural OBE exit. You won't realize this most of the time because of mind-split effects.
 	Again, this gives you many opportunities to recall short OBEs. The first sign of success here may be a fragment of OBE memory. You may remember just a couple of seconds of being somewhere else, say in another room or outside your building. But every OBE memory is pure GOLD. They change your beliefs through personal experience. This sends a strong message to your subconscious mind and higher self that it's okay for you to OBE, and, remember, you want these memories.
 	When you get more practiced and want to have slightly longer OBEs, allow your head to droop onto your chest. This is not the most comfortable position, but it will give you a minute or so longer of OBE time. Pressure in your neck will bring you back at regular intervals. Move very slowly and ease the stiffness in your neck each time before repeating this exercise.
 	The aspect of you that regularly experiences OBEs is like another part of you, a separate part of you. This part projects out of your body all the time, every time you sleep. Accept that this is happening—consider the mind-split effect—and you will see that the above method is invaluable. It greatly increases your chances of going along with your projected aspect and downloading OBE memories into real personal experience.
 	This method can also be used to take advantage of nap time. Just sit in a chair and relax, clearing your mind of thought words, and letting yourself fall asleep. Push your hips forward a bit and let your head droop onto your chest and let yourself nap. You may sleep for several minutes before you wake. Ease your neck, moving very slowly, and then repeat the nap. As your mind becomes refreshed from napping, you will be able to put more energy and attention into OBE exit and recall. You can do a similar thing in bed, by holding your arms vertical, elbows resting on the bed. Each time you fall asleep, your arms will drop and jerk you awake. Using a chair gives better results, though, as the temptation to just fall sleep in bed is sometimes overwhelming.
 
 Chapter 18: PROJECTION EXIT PROBLEMS

  	The problems besetting new projectors are many. Out of the thousands of OBE exit problems I have consulted on over the years, several main problem areas stand out. The following sections offer advice on these.
 	Awareness-Hand-Control Problems

  	Some people have difficulty using awareness-hands-climbing actions. One awareness hand may seem weaker and less controllable than the other and will continually slip away from the rope or ladder, making it difficult. This problem may also affect energy-work actions. Persevering with energy work will progressively help overcome this type of problem. The more often awareness hands are used, the more controllable they become. Some projection methods require minimal or no awareness-hands actions, like the point shift, steam rising, and rolling out methods. Find what works best for you and stick to what works. Use more complex methods as your skills develop.
 	Torso Energy Surge

  	The torso energy surge happens to most people when the OBE reflex is triggered. This is not an unpleasant sensation. Just as the projection reflex begins to kick in, a sudden falling sensation combined with an energy-body rush surges up through the stomach and chest area. It is like the powerful surge of emotional energy you'd get if you suddenly won a million dollars. But it can be a distracting surprise.
 	The moment the projection reflex is triggered, some primary energy centers surge, temporarily creating a network of new energy connections. This creates the conditions needed for an OBE. Energy flares throughout this new network as the projectable double is internally generated, just before the OBE exit. In new projectors, this can be strong enough to shock them out of an awake OBE exit.
 	The torso surge is not to be confused with the racing-heart sensation or the vibrations that are often experienced during an OBE exit. The torso surge is a strong visceral sensation and can be difficult for some people to get around. It is felt within the physical body as if it were a physical sensation. It causes an immediate tension reflex within the physical body. This breaches relaxation discipline and causes projection failure.
 	Be ready for this sensation as you approach the OBE exit. Stay calm and try not to react or flinch when it happens. This surge is always stronger during early OBE exits and grows progressively lighter with practice. If this surge is too strong to ignore, spend more time running energy during regular training sessions, to develop your energy body more.
 	Exposing yourself to similar sensations, such as high-speed elevators, carnival rides, and roller coasters, can help you to get used to sudden falling and vertigo sensations. For the more adventurous, skydiving or bungee jumping may help. The effects of the torso energy surge will lessen with practice, as the body/mind becomes used to these sensations.
 	It is possible that serious problems with the torso energy surge stem from the higher self blocking OBE exits. Positive affirmations reflecting your desire to project will help overcome this. For example, "I love to project out of my body," "I project safely and happily out of my body and return with full memories," "I happily leave my body and joyfully return." These will help enormously.
 	Cobwebs—Energy Movement Sensations

  	Cobwebs are a well-known sensation associated with altered states. This sensation of localized tickling, itching, or stinging is usually felt on the facial area. Intensity varies from a slight tickling or itching to a more intense stinging. The most common places to get cobwebs are around the eyes, mouth and nose, cheek-bones, and the neck. You can expect to get cobweb sensations during deep relaxation, altered state, and OBE-exit sessions.
 	Strong cobweb sensations will normally lessen with time and practice, as the energy circuitry develops to handle the greater flow of energy, particularly in the facial area. But this never completely goes away. I have been doing altered-state, energy, and OBE work for over thirty years and I still get cobweb tickling and stinging at times. Cobweb activity is associated with activity in the brow and crown centers. The face contains complex energy structures that support these centers. Cobwebs are best ignored, but if they become unbearable, you can scratch them. If you do, move very slowly and deliberately, so that you do not break your relaxed body/mind state.
 	It is best not to scratch cobweb sensations, though, if you can ignore them. Scratching them interferes with the flow of energy over the face into the brow and crown centers. Look upon cobwebs as a test of willpower. Stinging cobweb sensations usually fade after a few minutes if they are ignored. If mosquitoes are possibly present, it is wise to spray your room before sessions to eliminate that possibility.
 	I have encountered only a few people with truly bad cobweb problems. In rare cases, these sensations can cover large parts of the body. This feels like a horde of insects are crawling over the body. OBE exits become impossible under these circumstances. However, in all cases, these intense sensations have lessened with regular energy and altered-state practice.
 	Small areas of tickling sensations can also be felt at times in the middle of the brow, the crown, the throat, and the heart centers. These sensations are associated with higher-level functioning of those centers. In the brow and crown centers, for example, this is associated with various mind's-eye vision and psychic abilities.
 	If you experience noticeable brow and crown activity during training exercises, your OBE exits likely will involve few OBE exit-related symptoms. You may just slip out of your body with only a slight falling sensation, or make a tube-type exit. More on this later.

 	Head Pressures

  	Mild to intense pressure sensations are sometimes felt in the head area as a result of primary center activity and energy movement during an altered state or OBE-exit attempts. These are caused by the brow and crown centers functioning in new ways and growing out of dormancy. Ignore pressure as best you can. They are a good sign that you are developing well.
 	Brow Pressures: Localized brow center pressure feels like a thumb is being firmly pressed into the middle of the forehead. This can be in just a small area or in the whole middle of the forehead. This can vary from mild to intense and can last for several minutes or longer. More rarely, a small area of intense pressure can be felt in the middle of the top of the head.
 	Head Pressures: There are several variations of head pressure. One variation feels like a leather belt tied around the head is being slowly tightened. Another feels like the whole top of the head, including the whole forehead, is being crushed. Brow- and crown-center pressure sensations are related and will sometimes occur together. More rarely, the facial area will also be involved, feeling like the entire skull is under pressure.
 	Energy-center pressure can be uncomfortable, even painful. It can spark strong headaches or migraines. Pressure pains are usually experienced only by beginners. They will be more frequent if the brow and crown centers are being worked on more than the rest of the energy body, which is not recommended.
 	If pain becomes a problem, the best solution is to follow The Golden Rule and take a break to let everything settle. The pains may take several days or more to disappear. Be gentle with yourself until they are completely gone. You can also work around problem areas during energy work by avoiding any head area stimulation. Crown- and brow-center pressure pains will always progressively lessen with time and practice. Again, be gentle with yourself and give yourself time to heal and grow.
 	Breathing Problems

  	Pressure is sometimes felt in the chest and throat areas. This can feel like you are choking or not getting enough air. Chest and throat pressures are usually caused by primary centers growing out of dormancy. These will ease with time and practice. But the lack-of-oxygen feeling can also be caused by sleep apnea, a common breathing disorder causing people to stop breathing many times during sleep. They gasp for air when oxygen levels drop, causing partial or full awakening. This problem is not specifically caused by altered-state or OBE-exit work, but is a preexisting medical condition that has just not been noticed.
 	During altered-state and OBE work, the physical body is put to sleep while the mind stays awake (the "mind awake + body asleep" state). Any sleep breathing problems become apparent during this work, because the mind is awake and notices problems.

 	One solution to this problem is to adjust your position so that your head is tilted farther back, holding your airways more open. Even a slight change in position can make a difference.

 	Please consult a medical doctor if you continue to experience breathing problems during altered-state and OBE work. This is a medical condition and it can be dangerous if left unattended. Smoking, alcohol, and being overweight worsen these symptoms. Improving the health of the physical body usually resolves this condition.
 	Stuck to Body during Exit

  	Some projectors find themselves glued to parts of their bodies during otherwise successful OBE exits. This is usually felt at the stomach, head, legs, or hands. This appears to be caused by incomplete projectable-double generation. People experiencing this problem always reenter their bodies fairly quickly. Short OBEs are easier to remember. So this condition can be beneficial by forcing early reentry and ensuring OBE is remembered. There are several possible reasons for this condition.
 	Heavy protein meals eaten shortly before OBE attempts are responsible for many partial-separation problems. Having large amounts of undigested, heavy food in the stomach causes energy centers there to become unresponsive. This problem can be avoided by eating lighter and earlier before OBE-exit attempts.
 	Varying levels of cramping and pain, from mild to severe in the stomach or chest, can occur during OBE exits. The action of pulling yourself out of body can sometimes cause internal cramping and tugging sensations, as if the stomach, heart, or lungs were twisting and cramping. This can be uncomfortable, even painful, if you continue trying to force the OBE exit at this time. This problem is likely caused by inactivity in a part of the energy body interfering with projectable-double generation.
 	There are a few other potential causes for this condition. One is that an OBE exit has already occurred, but was missed due to the mind-split effect. Logically, continued OBE-exit attempts after separation has already occurred will not work. The expanded energy body cannot leave the physical body. The solution here is to stop and check for OBE-related symptoms. If you've felt vibrations or the torso energy surge, or if partial or full paralysis is present, or if some degree of real-time astral sight or hearing is present, you have likely already projected. You should then relax and await the return of your projected double. I suggest taking advantage of the situation to experiment with astral sight. This is also an excellent time for silent affirmation work. Ideally, hold yourself flickering on the edge of sleep as best you can, to help facilitate reintegration and OBE memory recall.
 	When you project out and find you are stuck to your body, trying to force complete separation can cause varying levels of discomfort. If this happens, I suggest you take advantage of the situation. Take a quick look around you, and then make a deliberate reentry, passionately shouting your keywords of success. This will ensure recall of the experience. Immediately verbalize and then write down key words. Never trust OBE memories. They have the annoying habit, like dream memories, of disappearing at any moment.
 	Jewelry and Watches

  	Metal, jewels, and other solid objects can interfere with the generation of the projectable double, as I learned many years ago through experience. I have had many reports of these things causing discomfort during OBE exits.

 	One man reported severe pain in his tongue during several OBE exit attempts. He was experienced and had never had problems before. The pain always started as pressure in his tongue that spread painfully through his jaw and neck, forcing him to stop. I questioned him and found he had a new gold stud in his tongue. He removed the gold stud and successfully projected that same night with no pain. Some extra energy work on his tongue with the stud in, and affirmations, solved the problem.
 	An experienced female projector had for months been experiencing pain and pressure in her chest during OBE exits. My questions revealed that her pet rat had taken to sleeping on her chest. I advised her to stop this and she had no further problems.

 	Another experienced projector had pressure and pain in her mouth and jaw that had been stopping her from projecting for several weeks. My questions revealed she had had dental work done two months earlier. This was the most likely cause. Some extra energy work and affirmations on her teeth, and the problem disappeared in a few days.
 	The projected double can pass through solid walls and metal. The presence of solid objects on or in the physical body during OBE exits, however, can interfere with the generation of the projectable double. This problem affects some projectors more than others. But everything points to gold, jewelry, and other items on the physical body causing problems. If you feel localized pressure and pain during projection, check if the affected area has any item present on or in your body that could be causing problems.
 	Wedding rings and anything on or in the body that has been there for a long time do not appear to cause problems. I think the energy body adapts if things are present on the body for a long time.

 	Extra energy work on problem areas, like dental work and medically implanted devices, helps overcome this problem. Brush and bounce energy through areas like this and thoroughly move your body awareness around and through them. Affirmations for extra relaxation in affected areas also helps, e.g., "My tongue is deeply relaxed," and, "My teeth are relaxed and happy." 
 	Magnetic North

  	The direction the physical body faces during OBE-exit attempts affects some people more than others. This is more important if you are projecting from a bed, and less important if you are using a sitting or reclined position. New projectors should experiment with the direction they face and see whether or not it makes any difference for them.

 	Electromagnetic Fields

  	Electromagnetic fields (EMFs) can affect sleep quality, dreaming ability, and OBE ability. EMFs can come from a variety of sources, within or without your home. Check for the presence of TV and computer equipment in your room or in adjoining rooms. Also check for the presence of power transformers, and where power lines enter your building. Meters are available for measuring EMF, and measuring the fields in your home would be wise for health reasons alone. I have had many cases where simply turning off TV and computer equipment in an adjoining room has made a big difference.
 	Lunar Cycles

  	The lunar cycle does have an effect on OBE success. The strongest time for OBE exits is always the week surrounding the full moon, with the full moon itself being the best time. Check the lunar cycle against the occurrence of your vivid dreams, lucid dreams, and spontaneous OBEs. This will indicate the best time of the month for planning OBE-exit attempts. The lunar factor may contribute to many common OBE-related problems, including the inability to project on moonless nights. It is a good idea to keep a journal and to mark the moon phase on each entry. This will show how much the moon cycle is affecting you and how to work around it.
 	Saliva Problems

  	Excess saliva can cause problems during OBE-exit attempts. Frequent swallowing can break the delicately balanced body/mind state required, particularly when you are close to the exit. A lack of saliva causing dry throat and mouth is a lesser problem. Both conditions can be distracting and interfere with delicate OBE-exit work.

 	If your mouth and throat tend to become dry during development exercises or projection attempts, make sure you have enough to drink so you are not dehydrated. Keep a water bottle next to you during your sessions. If you move in slow motion, you can take sips of water without breaking your relaxed state. You will not be able to do this when you are close to an OBE exit, but you will during the time leading up to this.

 	Mouth breathing can cause dryness. The solution there is to breathe more through the nose. Make sure the nasal passages are clear beforehand. A slight change of position may help if your mouth tends to fall open naturally.
 	Snoring can cause dry mouth and sore throat problems. When the physical body is asleep in an altered state it will often snore. You may not be aware of this happening, especially if you are drifting in and out of sleep. The solution is to do your altered-state and OBE-exit work when you are less tired, and to reduce any sleep deficit so falling asleep is less likely. It also helps to change your position to one that does not promote snoring.
 	If excessive saliva tends to build up, try not to think about it. Thinking about it causes you to become more aware of your mouth. This causes increased saliva flow. Avoid sweet drinks, tea, or coffee, and anything that leaves a flavor residue in your mouth. Brushing your teeth, using a saltwater mouthwash, and then rinsing with fresh water helps rid the mouth of unwanted tastes. Avoid flavored mouthwash.
 	Prop yourself up slightly higher, if lying on your back. Keep your mind off of your mouth and swallow normally in a relaxed and dreamy way. Minor adjustments such as swallowing or moving the body to ease it can be made without breaking relaxation, as long as this is done slowly and deliberately.

 	Take advantage of the slight discomfort caused by dryness or saliva buildup. This will keep your body/mind connection alive and help you to recall an OBE. If it occurs close to the OBE exit, ignore the slight discomfort and proceed with the exit. You have more chance of recalling an OBE if you keep it very short, especially if your body/mind connection is alive at the time. This slight discomfort will stop your physical body/mind from drifting off to sound sleep immediately after your OBE exit. Finish the exit, take a quick look around, and then dive back into your body, passionately shouting your key words of success. Then verbalize and write down key words immediately.
 	Sexual Arousal

  	This is a less-common problem during OBE-exit work, particularly close to the point of exit. This relates to energy-body activity in the genital primary center. This can be distracting, for obvious reasons. If this is a regular problem, spend more time doing energy and altered-state work separate from projection attempts. Relieving sexual pressure before OBE exit attempts will also help alleviate this problem.
 	In rare cases, the OBE exit can cause strong sexual arousal and even orgasm to occur when the torso energy surge appears during the OBE exit. This rare problem can only be overcome with time and practice, through development, by doing energy and altered-state work separate from OBE-exit attempts. I suggest lucid dreaming and wake-induced lucid dreaming as alternatives, as these do not involve strong surges of energy and will not cause problems.
 	Sex before a projection attempt has more positive than negative aspects. The release of sexual tension promotes balance and deeper relaxation in some people. However, sex can also energize some people and they will have trouble falling asleep for some time afterwards. Take advantage of this situation. This extra energy and mental alertness will help overcome tiredness, making OBE exits more doable before sleep.
 	Astral Vision Problems

  	Defective astral vision can cause problems during or after OBE exits. New projectors will often experience astral vision problems during their first few exits. The most common are blurred vision, tunnel vision, partial blindness, and full blindness. The cause of OBE vision problems appears to be a lack of energy flowing into the projected double. Behind this, I suspect the next main culprit is a too-awake physical body/mind. Following are a few ideas for fixing astral-vision-related problems after OBE exit:
 	
 	Command light and clarity, speaking aloud from your astral body.

 	Create and imagine light all around you.

 	Use the instant travel method to shift to a brighter destination.

 	Move to a well-lit room in your home.

 	Leave a lamp or nightlight on while you are projecting.

 	Project during daylight hours.

 	Issuing commands during OBE is extremely effective. Your higher self, which is a big part of you, is far more receptive and proactive during OBE than in normal awake life. So when you issue a command during OBE, your higher self aspect responds powerfully and fixes the problem.

 Chapter 19: OVERCOMING THE MIND-SPLIT

  	The mind-split effect is the largest contributing factor to OBE memory failure. This is complicated by many subtle factors, some of which can be overcome with a little understanding and preparation, plus a few tricks.
 	Shadow memories can download into the physical body/mind but not be incorporated into conscious recallable memory. They exist for a short time after reintegration, in energy form, waiting to be triggered through mental association into living memories. Shadow memories are delicate and easily lost. If they are not shifted into recallable levels of memory they will soon cease to exist. It is as if the experiences that caused them never happened.
 	To reiterate: When the mind-split occurs, a full copy of consciousness and memory stays resident inside the physical body/mind at all times. This master copy is capable of independent consciousness under some circumstances. But the master copy usually falls asleep soon after the mind-split. The copy of consciousness that projects is independent. Once the mind-split occurs, it records its experience memories separately. These memories are stored in energy form within the projected double—like the RAM in a computer. During conscious OBE, even though the real-time double has successfully projected and is awake and aware, the physical body is left lying there, conscious, but usually unaware of its successful projection. The projector just lies there, disappointed and heavy with trance, often partially paralyzed and pondering a seemingly failed OBE exit. The projector may continue with projection attempts before falling asleep.
 	The short time spent pondering a failed projection attempt is enough to form a solid memory in the physical mind/brain for that time period. This becomes the strongest resident memory for that time period. During reintegration, shadow memories for that same time period will have a hard time overwriting them. The resident memories may be short, dull, and boring, but these will easily replace hours of exciting OBE memories. The physical body/mind's memories have a stronger and more immediate habitual impact upon the physical mind/brain. Its memories are automatically recorded as they happen.
 	When the dream mind becomes active, it tends to weaken the integrity and coherence of the projected double. The energy body then has to energetically support another functioning copy of consciousness. This causes a general weakening of all copies of consciousness. This can have a pronounced effect upon the shadow memories of the poor old projected double, the memories of which always seem last on the list during reintegration. Dream memories can also be strong and will often overwrite or mix with OBE memories. Because of this, shadow memories for most people are usually only remembered as unrelated dream fragments.
 	Conscious OBE recall requires the physical body/mind to be in a fairly light level of sleep, or in the trance equivalent. Successful reintegration requires the physical body/mind to partially awaken. If this does not occur, the projected double is locked out until its physical body/mind awakens, which may take all night.

 	During the several hours that a projected double can be locked out during a normal night's sleep, it too will eventually fall asleep as its higher spiritual aspects become active. These operate at much higher levels of consciousness and may be only vaguely aware they even have a physical body.
 	As said in the beginning of this book, I believe the key to recallable OBE exists in understanding the relationship between OBE and physical body/mind memory storage at the base level of consciousness—at the normal awake level of consciousness. My research points to a key factor for successful shadow-memory downloads being an element of the trance state, something that happens naturally in those hazy few moments between sleeping and waking. This element is a simple flickering of consciousness, when projectors' almost-awake consciousness flickers between sleeping and waking, before waking up completely.

 	This flickering moment allows shadow memories to successfully download into recallable levels of memory. While consciousness is flickering, the physical body's mind/brain memory storage vaults are wide open. This provides a brief window of opportunity where the physical body's mind/brain is receptive to shadow memories. Miss this window and shadow memories have a hard time downloading into recallable memory. The projector then has to rely on associations to trigger shadow memories. And the clock is ticking here, as shadow memories begin weakening rapidly just seconds after reintegration. They seem to disappear completely within hours.
 	Some people have a natural ability to recall dream and OBE memories. These lucky few, however, cannot tell us how they do this, any more than savants can tell us how they do superhuman feats of mental math. Copying such natural talent does not, of course, work.
 	A stable trance state helps, but is not the whole key to OBE-memory recall. The nature of memory storage in the human mind/brain is to record only one memory stream for a single time period. An awake mind with no thought words during a stable trance state will still overwrite shadow memories. Tantalizing clues to solving the OBE-memory-download riddle appear when it is considered that reentry into the physical body can be impossible once the physical body/mind falls soundly asleep.
 	One key to using this briefly open memory-download window lies in knowing when a projector's awakening consciousness is likely to flicker. Deliberate reentry should be timed to coincide with this. Shadow memory loss can be lessened by causing consciousness in the physical body/mind to flicker at regular intervals during OBE. This provides brief windows of opportunity.
 	It is difficult for the average person to re-create this flickering state without losing control and falling asleep. This is why slight discomfort, and projecting from a sitting position with no head support, are so successful. These provide many windows of opportunity for shadow-memory download and recall.
 	Synchronized timing can help to overcome this difficulty. The projected double and its physical body/mind counterpart should work together. Attempts can be made to coordinate reentry and reintegration at times when this magic window is suspected of being open, with the mind being made to flicker at prearranged intervals.
 	Working around the Mind-Split Effect

  	There are a number of ways to work around the mind-split and minimize OBE shadow-memory loss. Exercising dream recall is an important step. Dream and OBE memories are very similar in the way they behave. Dream recall practice helps entrain the physical body/mind to recall more shadow memories. OBE memory recall is automatically improved by this process. The more often shadow memories are recalled, the easier recalling them becomes.
 	Shadow-Memory Trigger Phrases

  	Dream recall takes only a couple of minutes of time, but should be done immediately upon waking for best results. Each time you wake, spend your first couple of minutes pulling back the previous night's shadow memories. Start pulling back dream memories the moment you wake. Sit up with your feet on the floor, or sit in the bathroom, and reach out for shadow memories and pull them back. Set your mind in search mode, as you would to remember some small fact you have temporarily forgotten. Keep searching and trying to pull them back, even if your mind feels blank. The memories are there, they just have to be triggered and dug out. You may feel like this is hopeless at the time, but it is always possible to pull back something, if you work at it. Mental association is the way to recall them. Use the trigger phrases below for this.

 	I felt these vibrations and then . . . ?

 	I buzzed out of my body and then . . . ?

 	I floated across the room and then . . . ?

 	I passed through the wall and then . . . ?

 	I looked at my hands and they . . . ?

 	I was just about to . . . ?

 	I was inside . . . ?

 	I was talking to . . . ?

 	There were lots of . . . ?

 	I was flying over . . . ?

 	I was in space and there were stars and . . .?

 	I was with . . . ?

 	I saw a . . . ?

 	You can create more phrases for yourself. These should relate to things you would likely do while dreaming or projecting. When you wake up, or when you return to consciousness after an OBE-exit attempt, use these trigger phrases to pull back the memories. You may think you failed, but there is a good chance you succeeded and just lost the memory due to the mind-split effect.
 	Think over your trigger phrases. Reach out and feel for shadow-memory fragments as you go through them. Imagine yourself doing what they suggest. Adopt the attitude of having forgotten something you know well, and that you are searching your memory. Confidently expect it to pop into your mind at any moment, as you would with a small fact you have temporarily forgotten.
 	Try to imagine what it would be like to come out of your body while still awake. Imagine this scenario . . . the vibrations, the rapid heartbeat, the falling sensation, then floating out of your body. Put some mental effort into this and re-create it, as if it had really happened. Chances are that it did happen. Say the trigger phrases out loud and silently. Put some effort into this.

 	Once you recover a fragment of shadow memory—anything—you have the key to finding more. This fragment may be of a projection, a lucid dream, or a dream. All are connected and therefore valuable. Concentrate on this fragment using trigger phrases that relate. With effort, your mind will locate more shadow memories associated with this. Soon, more complete memories will appear. They might be garbled and disjointed, but they are real memories. You can analyze them later. Jot down some key words when they first surface. Practice regularly, and your shadow-memory recall will become progressively stronger.
 	After the initial recall attempt, for the rest of the day keep a small part of your mind searching in the background. Real-life events, radio and TV, words and thoughts provide a lot of mental associations that can cause shadow memories to surface. When one is triggered, write it down immediately. Then ponder this and try to expand on it, to recover related memories. Keep a notebook and pen with you at all times. If you do not write them down immediately, shadow memories usually vanish fairly quickly. Never trust them.
 	Persevere, be patient, and work at this over the long term. Devote the first few minutes after you wake up to this. Training your mind to recall shadow memories can be done. How long this takes varies, but it is achievable with daily practice.

 	Challenge yourself and set a goal. Every time you awaken, promise yourself that  you will recover one fragment of a subtle memory. You have all day, but keep this challenge in mind as you go about your day. Reward yourself when you succeed.
 	Key-Word Recording

  	It is important to record key words and phrases of shadow memories immediately. Recalled shadow memories can feel vivid and you may think, "Wow, I'll never forget this!" but most likely you will, a moment later. Shadow memories are transient by nature and easily lost. Never trust them.

 	Imagine a small cloud of sparkling energy floats near your head. This contains your recent shadow memories. With recall practices, you pull the cloud closer. When it moves over your head, vivid memories flood your mind. Then a moment later, the cloud drifts away from your head and the memories vanish. Keep working at this and the cloud will connect and disconnect many times. This process can be frustrating, but it illustrates the fickle nature of shadow memories.
 	The first thing to do when shadow memories appear is to vocalize a few key words. Do this with a sense of urgency. This will hold them long enough for you to write them down. Jot down a few words and then phrases. Once this is done you can relax and flesh them out. This will trigger more associated shadow memories.
 	The more you work at shadow-memory recall the better you will get at this. Your mind will learn and become trained in the recall process. Recording dream memories is just as important as recording OBE and lucid-dream memories. All shadow memories are related. Improve dream recall and OBE recall is automatically improved.
 	Apart from "just for interest's sake," dream and OBE recall have spiritual and practical value. You will dream innovative solutions to real-life issues and problems. You will receive warnings, life guidance, and inspiration. More on this later.

 	Strong OBE Reentry

  	OBE recall is greatly improved if the projected double has strong memories, particularly at the moment of reentry. Use a trigger phrase that represents something from your projection experience. Hold this trigger phrase firmly in mind and shout it passionately during reentry into your physical body.
 	For example, during a short projection you pushed your hand into a wall, then looked at your hands and watched them melt. You then dived back into your physical body. This can be represented by the words "hands, wall" or "melting hands." Hold the trigger phrase strongly in mind by literally shouting this passionately and savagely during reentry. This will greatly facilitate your recall of that experience. Remember, your shadow memories need to be strong enough to overwrite other memories for the same time period.
 	Many years ago, while I was learning how to OBE, I had an experience that relates to the above advice.

 	For months I had been making OBE-exit attempts almost nightly, succeeding rarely. Then one night I made an easy OBE exit and floated in real time thinking about the problem. OBE was so easy. I had relaxed deeply; induced an altered state; used the point shift method and triggered vibrations, rapid heart rate, and falling sensation; and smoothly exited my body. So why, I asked myself, was OBE so difficult? Then the idea came to me that it was the OBE memory that was difficult and not the OBE exit per se. (This idea was a download from my higher self—a tip.) The strength of my mind at the time of reentry could play a part in this, I thought. I then dived back into my body savagely shouting my success with a trigger phrase, "My hands melted!" My awake center of consciousness immediately shifted into my physical body/mind, where I suddenly became aware of the full OBE memory.

 	Time and again I have done the above with the same results. When I deliberately reenter my physical body/mind passionately shouting a trigger phrase, OBE recall is a certainty. Please keep this in mind as you explore the practice of OBE for yourself.

 	Position and Comfort

  	Again, the position and comfort of the physical body during a projection directly affect the ease of staying conscious. Sitting in an armchair or sitting propped up in a bed, you will find, does not encourage deep sleep. This is what you want to aim for. Being slightly uncomfortable helps to hold your mind alert during OBE-exit attempts. This also helps lengthen the in-between sleeping and waking state, creating a flickering semi-waking state for slightly longer than usual. This is invaluable for a successful OBE.
 	If you examine a lot of OBE case histories, you'll find that many spontaneous OBEs involve a slight discomfort factor or a slight disturbance. The slight discomfort could be a toothache, a head cold, anything. The slight disturbance could be a passing truck honking its horn, a dog barking, anything. But in all cases, something has awakened the projector's physical body/mind in just the right way to allow OBE-memory download with full recall. This involves the magical flickering of consciousness during the wake-up process that is so integral to successful OBE recall.
 	Holding a Flickering State of Consciousness
 	It is important to develop the ability to hold an altered state and to be able to continue functioning. This must be done without falling asleep too often or too deeply during OBE-exit attempts. But your consciousness must be allowed to flicker on the edge of sleep. The OBE exit is only part of the goal. Reentry and effective OBE recall are more important.
 	The longer you can hold your physical body/mind awake and flickering after a potentially successful OBE exit (which may seem like a failure at the time) the more chances you have of capturing the memories. Your projected double will be weakened by you remaining awake in your physical body/mind. The degree of weakness will depend upon how awake you are at the time. But the longer you hang on the edge of sleep, between waking and sleeping, the more chance you will have of accepting a reentry from your projected double.
 	If you try to force reentry from your physical body/mind aspect, by physically moving, you will likely not capture the OBE memories. This is because, if your projected double does not have strength of mind at the exact moment you force reentry, its memories will not be recallable.
 	If you tend to fall asleep soon after projection attempts (which can be lengthy and exhausting affairs during training) you will usually fall into sound sleep fairly quickly. Your chances of remembering a projection then are greatly lessened. If you can hold yourself semi-awake, flickering for just a few minutes longer, your chances of OBE recall are improved.
 	Typically, a failed OBE-exit attempt involves experiencing some OBE exit-related symptoms: rapid heart rate, vibrations, falling sensation, astral sight and hearing, etc. When this happens, you are usually left groggy and exhausted. Sleep calls strongly. You roll over and fall asleep in moments, quickly moving into sound sleep.

 	However, while the above scenario seems clear—OBE failure—there is more involved. In most cases where you experience any of these things your OBE exit has succeeded. Your physical body/mind lost contact with its projected double during the OBE exit, at the moment the mind-split occurred. This is the moment when OBE-exit symptoms end suddenly. You are left groggy and tired, because your consciousness energy is then supporting both your physical body/mind and your projected double—and possibly your dream mind, too. You roll over in bed and fall asleep. That is, you feel yourself rolling over in bed. But at this time you are actually existing in your expanded energy body, what was described by Robert Monroe as The Second Body. It is difficult to tell the difference. So you roll over in your second body and fall soundly asleep.
 	For all the above reasons, the longer you can hold a flickering state of consciousness the more chance you will have of downloading OBE memories. The key thing to look for here are OBE-exit sensations. When they happen, go the distance and spend at least a few minutes longer forcing yourself to remain partially awake, flickering on the edge of sleep. Give your projected double a little time to return, by holding the magic window open—holding yourself open to reintegration and recall.
 	Astral-Sight Exercise

  	Experimenting with astral sight is interesting. This helps keep you aware in your physical body/mind for a longer period of time after the OBE exit—or the possible OBE exit. Some degree of astral sight (seeing through closed eyelids) usually manifests before or during a successful OBE exit. Astral hearing is also possible at such times.
 	Astral-sight quality varies from clear-as-day to shadowy. With practice, your astral-sight point of view can be moved beyond the normal capabilities of your motionless physical body. It is possible to observe the entire room around you without physically moving. When you find yourself in this situation, experiment with your new abilities to observe the room around you and beyond. This will keep you occupied and aware enough, flickering on the edge of sleep, to help reintegration when it happens.
 	The use of astral sight improves with practice. Even if you can't see much of the room around you at first, you will usually see something of interest. This can vary from hypnagogic imagery to complex metaphorical astral visions. You may see nothing but faint sprinkles of light, the wall behind you, a hand, etc. Whatever you see, observe it and play with the focus of your eyes behind your closed eyelids, trying to bring whatever you see into sharper focus, and to shift your point of view. To shift your point of view, do not try to move your head or your physical eyes. Just move your point of view.
 	If your astral sight is dim or unfocused, make silent mental commands: "Give me sight, NOW!" or, "Give me clarity, NOW!" 
 	Never open your physical body's eyes or move your eyelids to check if your eyes are open or closed. Relax and forget about your eyelids. If you can move your point of view to perspectives that would be impossible for your physical body, then you are experiencing astral sight. Also, if your physical eyes are open you will be forced to blink every few seconds. If you do not feel the urge to blink, then you are experiencing astral sight.

 	Short OBE with Conscious Reentry

  	Successful reintegration with OBE-memory recall works better if reentry by the projected double is deliberate. This must be done while the physical body/mind is still flickering between waking and sleeping, or in very light sleep. Deeper levels of sleep do not allow deliberate reentry by the projected double, unless there is a slight disturbance to cause partial arousal; a truck passing, honking, etc.
 	Again, to experience conscious OBE exits, the physical body/mind must be in the process of falling asleep, or in an altered state similar to falling asleep. To reintegrate, the physical body/mind must be in the process of awakening. The optimal state to be in for this to happen is to be flickering between waking and sleeping.
 	During OBE itself, most projectors become so engrossed with their new state of being that they forget all about their waiting physical bodies. They never think about reentering until they are reeled back in, when they wake up naturally, which is often several hours later. They assume that they will never forget the powerful experiences they are having. "This is so amazing; I will never forget this." Assuming that an OBE will be remembered—forgetting the mind-split and the fickle nature of shadow memory—is a sure-fire way of losing OBE memories.
 	I'll repeat it yet again: When you get out of body, keep it very short. Discipline yourself to reenter your physical body. Ten seconds out and then dive back in, passionately shouting your OBE-memory trigger phrase. Knowing roughly how long you are able to hold yourself flickering semi-awake will help—take note of this. Both you and your projected double can work together to enhance OBE recall.
 	A ten-second conscious-exit OBE is an important accomplishment. This provides life-changing personal experience. The length of subsequent projections can be gradually increased. But your first successful conscious OBE exit and reentry is the most important one you will ever have. This is the one that shifts OBE from the realm of the possible to the realm of hard personal experience. This gives you something real to build upon. And the realization of the reality of OBE will significantly affect your personal belief system.
 	I have practiced, explored, and taught OBE for many years. A consistent factor in most OBE success stories I hear is that they have been kept very short. They made deliberate reentries into their physical bodies shortly after their exits. I cannot emphasize enough the importance and effectiveness of this factor. You must return and reenter your physical body before it falls soundly asleep.
 	Another indicator here of the value of short OBEs is the high success rate I get at my workshops, talking people through OBE exits while they sit in chairs. This mainly involves very short OBEs, but they are real and they are repeatable.
 	Discipline yourself to return to your body soon after you achieve the conscious OBE exit. Get out of your body, move twenty feet (six meters) away, take a quick look at your hands and watch them melt, then dive back into your physical body, shouting a trigger phrase. Do nothing else. Then, immediately verbalize this phrase and write down key words.
 	A successfully remembered ten-second projection is worth all the tens of thousands of all-nighters you have forgotten. Do not attempt to do anything else the first few times out of body. Get out of your body, dive back in, verbalize, write down key words, remember—remember.
 	Give yourself something to build upon. Then think about moving further afield.

 	Running Commentary and Affirmations

  	If your projected double keeps a running commentary going during OBE, the ability to remember the experience is improved. This relates to deliberate, passionate reentry, in that when your conscious attention is focused on what is happening during OBE, the memory is stronger. Your projected double should speak during OBE, noting and describing everything as it happens or is observed. This commentary generally strengthens OBE memories and makes them easier to recall after reintegration. This also helps keep your projected double focused and lessens reality fluctuations.
 	Your physical aspect can yank you back into your body at any moment. A passing truck and it's all over. If you do not have conscious awareness of what you are doing—helped by a running commentary—you will likely lose the OBE memory.
 	It also helps if your projected double makes regular affirmations during OBE. Regularly affirm—and command—that you will remember everything by saying, "I will remember this! I remember everything." Affirmations enlist the aid of your higher self to help you recall OBEs after reintegration. Your higher self holds a master key in this respect.
 	Planned OBE Objectives

  	Plan your OBEs and intend to stick to the plan. Have a few basic objectives you intend to accomplish. Make goals simple and achievable in a short time, so deliberate reentry can be made to improve recall. This gives your projected double something to focus on during OBE—a plan—and gives your physical body/mind aspect some idea of what your projected double is doing. This will help recapture OBE memories with more specific trigger phrases after reintegration.
 	For example, after the exit, plan to move through a door or wall into an adjoining room and look at something, then to watch as you put your hand into something solid, then to look at your hands, then to move back and dive into your physical body, passionately shouting key words.
 	OBE objectives can become more complex as experience is gained. Baby steps are advised. Increase time out of body slowly, ten seconds at a time. If you have OBE memories for a few exits, and then this stops, reduce your time out—go back to basics—until your OBE recall improves.

 	Working with the Mind-Split Effect

  	There are a few ways to use the mind-split for OBE recall, using OBE reentry sensations to tell you when to begin using OBE recall methods and trigger phrases.

 	OBE Reentry Sensations

  	People will often feel sudden falling sensations while they are trying to fall asleep, perhaps several times. It often causes them to gasp and catch the sides of their bed, as if to stop themselves from falling. This happens to most people at some time, particularly when they are overtired. These sensations are caused by brief OBE exits and reentries.
 	If you are prone to these brief falling sensations while trying to sleep, you might like to experiment by holding yourself awake longer than usual, hovering and flickering between the waking and sleeping states. Hold your forearms vertical, elbows resting on the bed. Your hands will fall whenever you start falling asleep and jerk you awake each time. This extends the time spent falling asleep,  flickering between the awake and asleep states. This also increases your chances of capturing the memories of brief OBEs.
 	When the projected double returns and reenters, it causes a mild but noticeable tingling energy surge up through the physical body, felt mostly in the stomach and chest, and often a brief falling sensation. If your physical body/mind is partially awake, this energy rush will usually jolt you back to awareness.

 	If you have felt exit sensations or have felt groggy and tired after making an OBE-exit attempt, there is a good chance you have projected. If a few minutes later you feel something similar—a mild tingling body-rush sensation—it is almost certain that your projected double has just reintegrated. This is prime time for shadow-memory recall methods. Reach out with a strong feeling of having just forgotten something, and use recall trigger phrases. Sit up and put your feet on the ground and put some effort into this. The memories are there just beneath the surface.
 	Reentering Your Body

  	Many people worry about getting lost, or of not being able to get back into their physical bodies after a projection. As far as I know the energy cords that connect the physical body/mind with its projected double cannot be severed, and you cannot become lost. The projected double can usually return to its physical body at any time during an OBE, by imagining and feeling for its body and the room around it, or by making commands.

 	Only one circumstance can temporarily block reentry. If the physical body has entered sound sleep, the projected double can find itself temporarily locked out. Remember, the physical body/mind must be in the process of falling asleep, or in a comparable altered state, to induce the OBE exit. The reverse applies and the physical body/mind must be capable of being aroused to allow reintegration.
 	Being locked out of body can cause anxiety, as projectors may start to believe that they have died. I have experienced this myself and have advised many people to whom this has happened. It can be a rather frightening experience if you do not know what is happening.

 	A man contacted me after a disturbing OBE experience. He had achieved many OBEs in his time, but his latest had terrified him. He said he had not slept in several weeks because of this experience. His OBE had begun as normal with a real-time exit. He moved through his apartment and into another room. He looked out of the window and saw in the street several floors below a black hearse arriving at his building. He then tried to return to his physical body, feeling a bit worried. But he did not succeed and ended up lying on top of his body. He could not get back in no matter what he did. He started to panic. His physical body felt cold and damp and very dead. He moved back to the other room and looked out of the window. He saw two men in dark clothes carrying an empty coffin into the building. This sent him into a total panic. He went back to his body and begged and pounded on his apparently lifeless body to no avail. Suddenly, the telephone rang. Instantly he was back in his body. After this he was too afraid to sleep. (Apparently, someone in his building had died that night and the appearance of the hearse was real.) He had put two and two together and come up with five.
 	The above is fairly typical of what can happen if you do not understand the workings of OBE. We do not fully understand everything about OBE, but one thing is certain: In order for reentry to occur, the physical body/mind must be in the process of waking up, or reintegration cannot occur.
 	The physical body will feel cold, clammy, and lifeless to the touch of its projected double. This does not indicate anything sinister. It is just how the physical body feels to its projected double.

 	In all cases where this type of experience is remembered, some real-life event or noise, e.g., an alarm clock or telephone ringing, has caused the physical body to awaken soon after the projected double has become worried. This wakes the deeply sleeping physical body, causing reentry to occur. The power of the fearful memories involved ensures their recall. This is the only reason this type of experience is remembered. If not for a real-life disturbance causing reentry, the projected double would soon shift into higher levels of the astral. Later, when the physical body awakens naturally, no memory of the disturbing events remains.
 	Shadow memories from cases like this always contain strong emotional content (often fear) that floods the physical mind as it flickers into wakefulness. This forces the immediate recall of an unsettling OBE experience, but of the type most projectors would rather forget—which is ironic. This type of experience can leave projectors unsettled, often with a continuing fear of OBE. If this happens, affirmations should be used to alleviate fear. For instance, "I project safely and happily and return with full memory."
 	The best advice I can give to projectors who find themselves temporarily locked out of body is to trust that this is a harmless experience. Go on and explore and enjoy the time you have out of your body. You may not remember later, but do not let that stop you. Enjoy it while you can. The most important thing is not to panic.
 	Death is a fairly extreme event, to say the least. Even if you had died peacefully in your sleep, you surely would have been at least momentarily awakened by this momentous event. So if you have not felt anything untoward, please put this out of your mind.

 	If you had passed away during an OBE, there would have been nothing you could have done to change this. However, staying calm when locked out of your physical body will help you a great deal. If you look around yourself and see nothing out of the ordinary, no tunnel of light, etc. your physical body is just deeply asleep at this time. It will wake up shortly and call you back, none the worse for wear.

 	Prolonged Flickering State Reentry

  	The flickering of consciousness between the awake and asleep states is the perfect time for OBE reentry. The flickering state can be induced during awakening by using recorded sounds that gently pull you awake at regular intervals.

 	Find or record a CD that has regular sound beacons at just the right volume to wake you very gently. All you need are some faint sounds that play every half a minute or so. Some cell phones have alarm sounds that are perfect for this, starting with a faint clicking, gradually increasing in volume every twenty seconds or so. Use your imagination and record something that works for you. The idea is to be ever-so-gently awakened, with lengthy pauses between sound beacons that give you time to think and work on shadow-memory recall.
 	Ideally, the projected double should make a deliberate reentry when it is alerted by the disturbance of the sound beacons. This will maximize the chances of recalling OBE memories for that experience.
 
 Chapter 20: LUCID DREAMING AND OBES

  	The training exercises given in this book, especially the energy work, will tend to heighten your dream, lucid-dream, and spontaneous-OBE activity. Lucid dreaming should be a part of every projector's agenda. This is fascinating, provides real experience, and keeps interest high.
 	A lucid dream is a genuine type of OBE, although this is a different type and level of experience. Lucid dreams can also often be converted into OBEs. Everyone dreams when asleep and most people remember at least some dreams. For most people, dreams are their only connection with the greater reality and their spiritual roots. Dreaming is considered common, but there is more to dreaming than meets the eye.

 	As the physical body/mind fall asleep, a copy of consciousness reflects into the expanded energy body, and from there into the projectable double, and then out of body. While this is happening, the dream mind also becomes active. Dreaming is a natural process in which the mind processes real-life events and solves problems and conflicts. It plays out dream scenarios and situations in the safety of the dream environment. This processing helps the mind find peace and balance.
 	A lucid dream has a different look and feel to it from OBE. In a lucid dream, conscious awareness appears at some point. You suddenly become aware—you wake up inside the dream environment. You can then take control over the dream scenario.

 	Lucid dreams differ from OBEs in that they feel more realistic. A powerful lucid dream can be indistinguishable from reality, even if entered from the full waking state. A lucid dreamer is much more aware than a real-time astral projector of having a physical body. Lucid dreamers also often experience physical sensations like gravity, texture, temperature, taste, pleasure, and pain. The more powerful the lucid dream, the more real these sensations become.
 	Lucid dreaming, real-time OBE, and astral projections share a lot of common ground. The dreamer's center of consciousness often flicks back and forth between these states during a single experience. Often, more than one type of experience is perceived or remembered as happening simultaneously. This is caused by different aspects of the mind-split intruding on each other during the eventual shadow-memory download at the end of the experience. This causes a confusing set of mixed memories, being part dream, part lucid dream, part real-time OBE, and part astral projection.
 	What Is Lucid Dreaming?

  	I have pondered the difference between OBEs and lucid dreaming for many years and have only recently, at the time of writing this anniversary edition in 2009, come up with a workable explanation. I think lucid dreams are actually projections of the thinking mind, the mental body—a projection of the mind into the mental dimension. This is the only thing that makes sense.

 	The mental body is a more refined subtle body than the real-time astral body. The real-time projected double relates more to the substance of the physical body and can be said to be a projection of the physical body and brain. Look at some of the odd things that can occur during the OBE exit, like having partial vibrations, getting stuck at one part of the body, jewelry causing problems, etc. Real-time OBE clearly involves a projection that is generated from the substance of the physical body—from the flesh and not just the mind.
 	Higher levels of astral projection are more refined, contain more of the mind, and are less dependent on the deep physical relaxation and condition of the physical body. These involve higher primary energy centers, particularly the brow and crown chakras. These are known to produce different types of OBE exits, including tube and tunnel type exits, with less heavy OBE-exit sensations such as rapid heart rate, vibrations, etc.

 	Normal dreaming involves the mind. Lucid dreaming involves projections into a mental level. The mental level, while being technically higher than the astral level on the traditional scale, occupies the same space. The mental dimension is best described as being at a different frequency from the astral dimension. (All subtle dimensions overlap and occupy the same space.) 
 	The astral body is well known for its volatility and sensuality, particularly the real-time astral double. It is often troubled by the base drives of its more animalistic nature. In this sense, the behavior of the astral projected double is quite different from that of normal awake consciousness. During OBE, it is like half the mind and processing ability and memory have been left behind—and also a lot of moral boundaries. If the astral double is, as I suspect, a projection of the substance of the physical body, this would explain a lot of anomalies inherent to real-time OBE that do not apply to higher astral bodies and levels.
 	The astral and mental dimensions appear to overlap fairly closely in some areas. I say this because some types of astral projections and lucid dreams appear to involve both astral and mental aspects. In this type of experience, projected consciousness exhibits more-normal behavior, morals, memory, and processing abilities. A combination of both astral and mental subtle bodies therefore seems possible. This would explain the clarity and functionality of mind during the higher and more spiritual types of OBEs and lucid dreams. So instead of having a definite subtle body for each dimension or level, there would appear to be a broad spectrum of potential subtle bodies.
 	False Awakening

  	False awakening involves a real-time OBE in which a person gets out of his or her body to visit the bathroom, or to have a drink or snack. But the physical body is left behind and these actions are performed by the real-time astral body.

 	The real-time double is always projected during sleep. This is called sleep projection. Most sleep projectors float above their physical bodies, mimicking their sleeping physical bodies. Various things can cause sleep projectors to awaken and get up to do normal physical activities. When this happens, the experience is so real that sleep projectors do not realize that they are actually having OBEs at the time. They return to bed unaware that they have actually been out of body.
 	Bed-wetting: Relating to false awakening, heavy dreaming is the major cause of bed-wetting in children. Here's what happens: children get out of bed and go to the washroom, not realizing they are actually experiencing an OBE at the time—this is called false awakening. They then wet the bed, while believing they are safely in the washroom. Teaching children to do reality checks during washroom visits helps stop this from happening by alerting children when they have false awakenings.
 	Reality Checking

  	To become lucid in dreams, you need to program your mind with triggers to make you realize you are dreaming. Once this is realized you can take control. The best way to accomplish this is by forming the habit of making frequent reality checks. It takes time and perseverance to make reality checking a habitual action, and it will not work until it becomes habitual. But once it does, lucid dreams can be experienced regularly.
 	When reality checking becomes habitual you will start doing it in your dreams. When you do this, you will realize you are dreaming. The key to effective reality checking is to have a simple trigger. This must be a real-life event that happens many times each day. The idea is to program yourself to habitually respond to this event by doing a reality check every time it happens.
 	Pick some of the following for your reality checks:

 	Hands: Every time you notice or wash your hands, or hands are mentioned

 	Drink: Every time you have a drink, or drink is mentioned

 	Bathroom: Every time you go to the bathroom, or it is mentioned

 	Time: Every time you check the time, or time is mentioned

 	Food: Every time you eat something, or food is mentioned 

 	When you do a reality check, stop what you are doing for a moment and check the reality of your situation. This is quick to do, but must be done many times each day to become habitual. When you do a reality check, look around and ask yourself the following:
 	
 	Is this situation normal? Look around.

 	Do my surroundings look normal? Look around.

 	Does my body look normal? Look at your body.

 	Can I float, levitate, or fly? Try to do this.

 	Can I pass my hand through solid matter? Try to do this.

 	Whichever trigger you choose, it is a good idea to include drinking and washroom visits as reality-check situations. These both involve urges in the physical body and these will be felt within dream and OBE states. These urges often arise during sleep and lead to false awakenings, where you might get up to get a drink or visit the bathroom, not knowing you are actually dreaming or out of body. You may go through the motions while your physical body is still asleep in bed.
 	Every time you go to the washroom, flip the light switch on and off to check if it is working normally. If you are projecting in real time (a false awakening), the light switch may click but the light will not work. Try passing your hand through a wall. Check your hands to see if they look normal—they may melt or look different. If you find yourself outside, drinking or ducking behind a tree or a bush, check the reality of the situation before continuing.

 	Once a reality check shows that you are projecting or dreaming, you can take control and continue the experience from there.

 	Converting Lucid Dreaming to OBE

  	It is sometimes possible to convert lucid dreams into real-time OBEs. There are a couple of ways of doing this that work reasonably well.
 	Making an affirmation or a command will often shift you back into or close to your physical body. "Take me back to my body!" or, "I am back in my physical body," or, "Return me to my physical body!" 
 	Making yourself fall within the dream state can help. Allow yourself to fall backwards without trying to catch yourself. As you do this, you will feel a slight falling sensation and you will be shifted back into or close to your physical body.

 	Use combinations of the above for best results. You will normally shift back close to your physical body in real time. Sometimes you may find yourself back inside your projected double, which will usually be floating just above your physical body or somewhere nearby. In that circumstance, you can just step out of your body and continue real-time OBE from there.
 	Using Hunger and Thirst for Lucidity

  	It is possible to use hunger and thirst to cause lucidity in dreams and OBEs. These urges are refl ected into and felt within these subtle bodies. Start doing reality checks whenever you have drink or food. Deny yourself fluids and/or food for a few hours before sleep. Place a large glass of water and a snack on the far side of your room. Place a large piece of paper there with the following words:
 	"You are out of body! Do a reality check!"

 	Put the sign up each time before retiring. Do not just leave it up, or you will not pay attention to it during an OBE. This action also involves acting on the intention to have an OBE, which will help. After you go to bed, get up and go to the food and drink a couple of times and imagine yourself doing this during sleep.
 	When you are asleep, you will be a little thirsty or hungry. You will also be aware that there are food and drink nearby. When you fall asleep and sleep project, your projected double will attempt to drink and eat what you have put out. Your projected double has far less self-control than you normally have. The sign will alert you that you may be out of body. Doing a reality check then, as the sign instructs, will alert you to your out-of-body state. And you can take it from there.
 	If you try to consume food and drink during a dream, you will be eating and drinking dream copies of the originals. These will look and feel and taste roughly the same, but they will not slake thirst nor satisfy hunger. This discrepancy can be used as a trigger.
 	If you try to consume these during an OBE real-time false awakening, your hands will pass through the items. The sign will alert you to the fact that you are having a real-time OBE.
 	When you do a reality check, your OBE state should become clear. When this happens, return to and passionately reenter your physical body, and write down key words of what happened. Then return to sleep and try to repeat the OBE or false awakening. Keep the OBE very short or you will risk losing the memory.
 	If you cannot get back into your physical body, don't panic. Reentry is difficult once your physical body/mind enters sound sleep. Be patient and enjoy your OBE. Your physical body will call you back soon. It is likely to awaken frequently because it is thirsty and hungry.
 	Sometimes a projector's creative ability will automatically mask aspects of the out-of-body environment. Unaware real-time projectors may inadvertently create copies of food and drink. As with dreaming, these will not satisfy hunger or thirst in the physical body. You may find yourself drinking from a never-ending glass of water. This discrepancy can be used to trigger realization that an OBE is in progress.
 	All OBEs should be kept short, no matter how they are achieved. This will maximize your chances of recalling your experiences. Remember, without the memory it never happened.
 	Affirmations for Lucid Dreaming

  	As discussed earlier, affirmations are repeated phases used to communicate with your higher self to make changes and get results. Affirmations must be present tense and active, as if what you are affirming already exists. A good time to say affirmations is as you are falling asleep. Say, "I do reality checks," or, "I look at my hands and check my reality!" Do several before sleep and this will help carry them over into the sleep state.
 	The time and effort it takes for affirmations to work depends on your level of inner resistance to them and what you are trying to manifest. Repeat your affirmations many times a day and you will get better results. Make good use of driving time and waiting time. Once the message is clearly received by your higher self, the universe will conspire and results will start appearing in real life. In this sense, you will begin to remember more of your dreams and OBEs.
 	Remembering Lucid Dreams

  	After a successful reality check during a dream or OBE, you will suddenly realize you are lucid dreaming or having an OBE. Stay calm! Strong emotions like excitement can ruin experiences by waking you up in your physical body. Once you become aware, you can take control of the situation and continue from there. Once lucid, it is important to begin affirming to yourself that you are going to remember everything. This improves your chances of remembering the experience afterwards. Tell yourself repeatedly, "I remember everything!" 
 	Another way of improving lucidity and strengthening experience memories is to give a running commentary. Speak aloud and describe everything that happens, and what you see and do during the experience. Intermittently affirm, "I remember this. I remember everything."
 	OBE-Exit Symptoms within Dreams

  	Dreamers often experience OBE-exit symptoms from within the dream state. These can be powerful enough to trigger the lucid-dream state, making you suddenly aware you are dreaming. When this happens during a dream, you may not realize what is actually happening. You may be walking in a dream (not knowing you are dreaming) when you suddenly perceive yourself to be having a powerful spontaneous OBE exit and feel all the exit sensations. You may feel yourself levitating. You may even be dreaming that you are in your bed and in the process of having a conscious-exit OBE. The dream mind is capable of re-creating every part of the OBE exit.
 	If you become aware of projection-related symptoms during a dream, stay calm and do not fight them. You will experience something very much like a conscious-exit projection, from within your dream body. Projection sensations felt within a dream, while they can be strong, are always less alarming than they might be in the physical body. Most people will feel only vibrations, partial paralysis, and a floating sensation. They may perceive themselves as levitating. They may not, however, realize they are dreaming at this time.
 	When you feel spontaneous OBE-exit symptoms, do a quick reality check as best you can. As you will be in the grip of powerful sensations, this will need to be very basic. Ask yourself, "Am I levitating?" and, "Am I in my home?" and, "Am I in my bed?" and, "Is this situation normal?" If you are not at home and in bed when the OBE-exit symptoms begin, it's a fairly safe bet that you are in your dream body. This is experiencing a reflection of what is happening to your physical body/mind, which is in the middle of an OBE exit.
 	Once you have some idea of what is happening, you can take it from there. The above information will help lessen some of the confusion that can occur when these things happen while you are dreaming.
 	Position Effects on Lucid Dreaming and OBE

  	The resting position of the physical body has an effect on whether an OBE or lucid dream is achieved. I find it difficult to make a conscious OBE exit while lying on my side. I must be sitting, reclining, or lying flat on my back. If I lie on my left side, I tend to project into a lucid dream. Lying on my right side usually results in no lucid dream or OBE exit. While the resting positions given above will not affect everyone in the same way, this issue should be kept in mind. Some experimentation will be required to ascertain how different resting positions will affect your OBE-exit attempts.
 	WILD—Wake-Induced Lucid Dreaming

  	Projecting directly into a lucid dream is one of the most powerful experiences imaginable. This occurs from the awake state and there is no break in consciousness. Lucid dream projection is more commonly called WILD (wake-induced lucid dreaming) . Although this involves a lucid dream, it can also aptly be called a conscious-exit mental projection. This has many similarities with a conscious-exit OBE.
 	The main difference that sets this type of experience apart is that WILDs are more realistic and true to life than are OBEs. Sensations like gravity, the feel of your physical body, your ability to taste and smell and feel pleasure and pain, and the limitations of solid matter are indistinguishable from real life. If you eat a candy bar, the experience is identical to the real-life experience of doing the same. If you trip and skin your knees, this will hurt and your knees will bleed just like in real life. Look away and the injury will heal instantly, but it still happens.
 	Lucid-dream projection is a great alternative to, and variation of, OBE. If you fail an OBE-exit attempt, this can be a good time to try for a WILD. You will be deeply relaxed and ready to go. Keep in mind here that your resting position will probably affect your ability to induce a WILD. Experiment with different positions until you get results. Start with the resting position you normally use to go to sleep.
 	Best Time for a WILD: The best time to have a WILD is after you have had a few hours sleep. When you wake up, make yourself comfortable, get a drink, and allow yourself to wake up. Then after ten minutes or so, go back to bed and begin inducing a WILD.

 	Target Scenario: A target is needed to induce a WILD. I recommend a shopping mall storefront scene that you know well. This works best because the marketplace archetype is strong in the collective unconscious. I also use the name of the store and repeat this silently during a WILD projection.

 	Wild Projection Method: Settle down and let yourself drift towards sleep. Observe yourself while you imagine your target. Hold the target in mind with as much detail as you can imagine, and allow yourself to drift towards sleep. Silently say the store's name occasionally as you do this. Drift towards sleep, keeping the imagined storefront in mind, silently repeating its name.
 	If all goes well, you will project directly there. There will be a slight falling sensation, that's all. Then you will be standing there. There is no break in con-sciousness. The transition is sudden and breathtaking. You will feel like you have suddenly slipped through a magic curtain and into the dream environment while fully awake. You are dreaming, but you know you are dreaming. If you had not induced this deliberately, and there was a break in consciousness, you would not be able to tell this experience from real life. Once you appear at your target, you can take it from there.
 	Suggested WILD Activities: Walk through the mall and explore. Walking will feel real and everything will be just like real life. Look for an elevator. Get a snack and a drink on the way. Ask someone for directions to the elevator. There will usually be plenty of shoppers around—dream characters. Just ask and they'll tell you where it is. Go to the elevator. Get into it and press the button for the highest floor. Hold the intention in your mind that you wish to see your future. The elevator will take you to where you will see something from your future. If this does not work, try the other floors and reaffirm your intention.
 	If you cannot find the elevator or want an alternative, look for a door. Open the door and walk through it. You may find corridors and more doors. Keep walking and opening doors. Your intention will affect what you find behind doors. Before opening each door, imagine and expect to find what you want on the other side. Hold this intention in mind as you open each door. If you do not find what you are looking for, look for a door leading out of the mall completely and go exploring.
 	Once you know where elevators and doors are located, you can return and find these during future visits. Each visit to the same mall scenario will present the same scene. Anything you have changed or damaged, say a broken window, will be replaced upon your return. You can use the scenario you first succeed in reaching with a WILD as a staging area for further explorations.

 	Dream Characters and Spiritual Beings: Most of the people you will see during a WILD will be dream characters. These are generally one dimensional and focused solely on what they are doing at the time. Conversations are usually point-less. However, occasionally you will encounter more advanced spiritual beings. In my experience, these will sometimes be sitting off to the side minding their own business. Look for the most unlikely character you can find. The stray cat in the distance, or the mouse in the pet store window, or the old man sitting in a wheel-chair. This type of encounter is only a possibility, but it's worth checking. It pays to be polite to all dream characters, as you never really know just who they might actually be.
 	A return to your physical body will happen occasionally. WILD memories seem stronger than OBE and dream memories. You will at times be aware of both your physical body and your WILD experience. Sometimes you will shift back to your physical body for no apparent reason. You may go back and forth many times. Try to jot down a few key words, and then go for another WILD. Just snuggle down in bed and repeat the WILD induction method. It is possible to have multiple WILDs in a short period of time. Having WILDs is refreshing, as your body is sleeping naturally.

 	It is wise to keep up a running commentary during a WILD, and to regularly affirm, "I remember everything." To return to your physical body, make the command, "Take me back to my body!"

 	Lucid Dream Projection—Experience

  	The true difference between lucid dreams and OBEs only becomes apparent if both are experienced close enough together to allows comparison. Studying case histories does not provide enough detail for this. The following account of my first deliberate WILD shows the effects of the resting position, and some differences between these types of experiences.

 	I awoke at about 2 A.M. lying on my back with whole-body vibrations. My arms and legs were floating. But I did not want to project. I was tired and had a busy day ahead. I just wanted to sleep. I'd been having an interesting dream and wanted to continue. I felt heavy and sluggish but managed to roll onto my left side. The OBE-exit sensations stopped after I moved. I relaxed and imagined the dream I had just left and the name I had given it: "Advantage." This was a storefront scene in a local shopping mall.

 	After a few seconds, I popped directly into the dream I'd left earlier. The transition was breathtaking. There was a full continuance of waking consciousness. I appeared in the busy department store I'd been dreaming of earlier.
 	In front of me, a dark-haired woman was setting up a dining room display. There were people everywhere, shopping, serving, packing shelves, etc. Everything looked and felt so real it was mind-blowing. I jumped up and down few times to feel the weight of my body, then pinched myself. "Ouch!" This hurt just as it would in real life and my body weight felt normal. I was fully dressed and could even feel the texture of my socks when I wiggled my toes.
 	I glanced at my hands. They looked normal and did not melt. I tried creating an apple in my hand, but nothing happened. The dreamscape I was in did not waver. Curious, I thought. In a normal lucid dream, the environment can be altered and anything created by imagining it. I bit my finger ("Ouch!") and it hurt. It also tasted and smelled like my real finger.

 	I walked over to the woman and asked her what she was doing. She told me they were getting ready for the big sale. I picked up a large vase of flowers. It felt like real china and the flowers smelled like real flowers. I pulled a rose petal off and ate it. It tasted dry, scented, and faintly bitter, just like a real rose petal. I tipped the vase and splashed some of the water into my hand. It felt cold and wet, just like real water.
 	I decided to test the limits of this scenario, hoping that I was truly inside a lucid dream. I yanked the linen tablecloth from under the table setting on display. It almost worked, but a vase and a couple of plates smashed noisily to the floor. A few people looked, but no one seemed to care, not even the shop assistant whose display I had just ruined. She went on unpacking and arranging things as if nothing had happened, shaking out another linen tablecloth and resetting the table.
 	More confident now, I walked down an aisle and pushed over several large pieces of pottery from the top shelf. I looked to see if anyone noticed. These made loud smashing sounds and shards flew in all directions. A few people looked, but no one seemed to care. Reassured, I walked over to the checkouts and jumped up onto one of the counters. A few people looked, but no one said anything.
 	I slipped back into my body and rolled onto my back thinking, "Wow! That was incredible!" I fought to control my excitement and relaxed, trying to get back into the dream. I held the storefront and its name in mind and tried to sink back into it. The vibrations started up then and I felt myself starting to project. This time the projection reflex was too strong and it buzzed me out of body. I came to rest at the foot of my bed. The house was dim and quiet as I floated around my bedroom deciding what to do.
 	Not wanting to continue the OBE, I dove back into my body and opened my eyes. I lay there for a moment, then closed my eyes and tried to get back into the dream. The vibrations started up again and another wave of falling floating heaviness came over me as I started projecting again. I fought it off and rolled over onto my right side. The projection symptoms stopped, but I could not get back into my dream. After several minutes, I rolled over onto my left side. This position felt better. Using the image and name of the dreamscape again, with a brief falling sensation I soon found myself back there.
 	I reappeared at the front of the store. The same shop assistant was busy setting up her display. The vase I had broken earlier was whole and back on the table. I walked through the store, looking for signs of wreckage from my earlier visit. Everything was whole and back on the shelves. It was like nothing had ever happened. This was incredible! No matter what I did, the scenario restored itself.

 	I slipped back into my body again and rolled over on my back. I relaxed and tried getting back into the dream. (I think my excitement had interrupted the experience.) The vibrations started again, so I rolled over to my left side again. I was getting the hang of this now and realized that projecting into the dream was easier from my left side. Relaxing and holding the store's image and name in mind, I slipped back into the store. I was back at the same place, with the same woman working on her display. She looked up and smiled as I waved. I decided to explore farther afield before anything else happened, and walked out past the service desk into the mall.
 	I explored the mall. There were a lot of people shopping and talking. All the children I saw were a little unreal. They were quiet and well behaved, like polite little robots. There was music in the background. A couple of people were using cellphones, but no one seemed to be chatting or interacting. People answered when questioned, but replies were short and generally unhelpful. I tried but could not start a conversation. Everyone seemed engrossed in what they were doing.
 	The people lacked personality, like background characters in a movie. On the surface this dreamscape was incredibly real, but something was missing. This looked like real life, but it was very superficial and felt plastic.

 	I decided to look for a way out of the mall to explore further, when I suddenly felt weak and heavy. The strength flowed out of me and I moved in slow motion. My legs floated from under me and I fell slowly to the floor, weak and paralyzed. People stepped over and around me, but no one paid attention. I felt like a child's balloon bobbing on the floor.

 	I slipped back into my physical body again, coming wide awake. I rolled over to my back and lay there pondering. The vibrations did not start this time, probably because I was now wide awake. It was obvious that my resting position had affected the different types of experiences. I was too excited and awake to do any further exploration, so gave up and went to get a drink and record these experiences in my journal.

 	The type of paralysis that occurred at the end of the above experience occurs when the physical body/mind is awake. Tension and alertness in the physical body/mind will disempower and often paralyze its subtle aspects.
 	I recommend that you experiment with WILD projection as well as OBE. As I said earlier, I think lucid dreaming is actually a type of mental projection. This makes sense and explains why the experience has such a different look and feel from an OBE. WILD experiences are very nonthreatening and you will find exactly what you imagine as a target when you arrive. The transition is breathtaking—a brief falling sensation and you are there.
 	Virtual Reality Projection

  	Virtual reality projection is an OBE technique that tricks the subconscious mind into creating custom-made astral realms. This is achieved during a real-time OBE by passing into a picture or painting. This is easy to do once you project. It is also a good way of getting into astral realms, if you are having trouble getting beyond the real-time zone. I discovered this method by accident, while road-testing the rope projection technique.
 	The projected double has strong creative abilities. It can be difficult, though, to consciously create anything solid and durable during real-time OBE. If a sword is deliberately created by a real-time projector, for example, the sword will slowly appear as imagined. It starts to form as a mist, growing more solid until it looks real. But then it will quickly fade once the projector ceases holding its image in mind. To create anything durable in real time, the subconscious mind/higher self must be engaged in the process.
 	A projector is a point of consciousness with no actual size or shape. The body of the projected double is created by the projector's own sense of body awareness. This body becomes apparent only when observed. When unobserved, it reverts to a minute point of consciousness. Because this point of consciousness is so small, anything it approaches and observes closely will magnify as distance decreases.
 	Consider what happens when a real-time projector passes through a solid wall. The interior is seen in great detail. This view is like what you would expect to see under a microscope, seeing on the molecular level. If the projected double remained the size of its physical body, it would not see such magnifi ed details illuminated.
 	Passing into a two-dimensional picture or mirror, as a point of consciousness, gives the illusion of passing into something vastly larger. Keep your mind clear and gaze ahead unfocused as the picture is approached. You will then move into the target rather than passing through it. This tricks the subconscious mind into creating a virtual astral realm and shifting the projector there. Following is my first experience with this phenomenon.
 	First Virtual Reality Projection—Experience

  	It was an early winter's evening and I was meditating in an old armchair in my bedroom. Using my new rope technique, I projected out of my body. It was fairly dark in the room, with only a crack of light from the streetlight coming through a chink in the curtains. I floated to the back wall and was about to pass through, when something strangely familiar appeared before me. Before I could properly see what it was, I suddenly found myself in a strange new world.

 	"Where am I?" I thought, surprised. I seemed to have shifted into an astral realm for no apparent reason. This was unusual and I wanted to know why. I was in a dim and misty world with a damp, gloomy atmosphere, but I did not feel threatened. A rail fence of massive, rough-hewn timbers fronting a dilapidated building stood before me. From my right came the silvery reflections of a nearby body of water.
 	Muffled noises and movement came from near the old building. I did not feel threatened so I climbed the fence and investigated. I waded through a low mist that clung to the ground. This world felt more solid than other astral realms.
 	A huge roughly dressed man with a black dog came shambling out of the shadows. He looked about eight feet tall. They moved away to the right, stopping near a low fence. I called out, but they did not seem to hear me. They climbed the fence and walked off towards the water in the distance, soon fading into the mist.

 	I checked out the old building. It was a barn with large open doors on one side and a lean-to at the rear. I looked inside but saw nothing but mist and shadows. Circling the barn, I found nothing at the rear. There was nothing here worth seeing or doing, so I went to follow the man and his dog. None of this made any sense to me. It all seemed vaguely familiar, but I could not think why.
 	Realization dawned and I suddenly knew where I was. I was inside a painting that hung on my bedroom wall. It depicts an old barn with a rough-hewn timber fence in autumn colors. There is a small lake in the background and a man and a black dog. It is twilight and misty with shadows. This painting hangs in the spot where I had tried to pass through the wall. Excited and not wanting to lose track of what had just happened, I focused on my body and was soon back in my chair. I turned on the lamp and recorded key words of the experience in my journal.
 	I turned off the lamp and let my eyes adjust. The painting was only faintly illuminated. I got a pencil flashlight and propped it under the painting so a thin beam of light lit the picture. This set the picture in a pool of light while leaving the room fairly dark. I left my body again and moved to look at the painting. It struck me how much like a window it looked. I floated slowly toward it to see what would happen. The closer I got, the larger the painting grew—or I was shrinking. I moved back and forth a few times, studying this effect. I had the impression I was looking into the painting when I got closer to it, rather than just looking at it.

 	I moved up to the painting and suddenly I was back in the same misty world. This time I was on the other side of the barn near the water. Everything was brighter this time, probably because of the flashlight. I turned around, half expecting to see the flashlight from my room, but saw nothing but vague images of hills in the misty distance. I felt for my body again and reentered. Getting up, I recorded everything in my journal.

 	To Create a Virtual Reality Realm

  	I have repeated this virtual reality experience many times. It is an interesting and potentially useful phenomenon. To create a virtual realm, get a picture of a pleasant scene that you like. Hang this on the wall or ceiling, or in another room close by. Get a small spot lamp or flashlight and set this to illuminate the poster. You can customize a virtual realm by sticking small pictures of objects or people to its surface. These should be roughly in scale with the picture. Pictures of persons living or deceased can be added to your custom realm. This may be an effective way to communicate with deceased persons.
 	It is possible to move into mirrors and scenes shown on TV screens, and computer and game monitors. The clarity and lighting of the scene you move into will affect the clarity and lighting of the virtual realm created. If you move into a mirror, you will find yourself in a reversed real-time copy of your location. Mirrors have depth and so a virtual realm created by a picture reflected into a mirror will have more depth and clarity.

 	To Enter a Virtual Astral Realm

  	To enter a virtual realm, project out of body into real time and then move to your picture. Keep your mind clear and do not think about what you are doing—no thought words. Gaze steadily ahead and feel yourself moving towards the picture. Keep moving and let the picture fill your view. It will grow in size. Keep moving and you will pass into the picture. If you want to return to your physical body, feel for it and imagine you are back in your room, and you will shift back there. Alternatively, make a command to cause the shift.
 	 
 Chapter 21: THE ASTRAL FORM IN MOTION

  	Once you get out of body, you may encounter difficulties performing even simple actions. Getting from A to B in the out-of-body environment, especially in the real-time zone, is not as easy as you might think. This chapter provides advice on how to solve the most common problems.
 	A Mind of Its Own

  	If your projected double is weak or tends to move in directions you do not want to go, it is possible that your physical body/mind is still awake. It may even be seeing through your eyes and affecting your movements through a remote-eye type connection. This problem is caused by the mind-split effect, and by being too close to your physical body. Move well away from your physical body and you'll find these problems ease with distance. This effect is strongest within twenty feet (six meters).
 	Astral Momentum

  	Most new projectors experience movement problems during early OBEs. These are more noticeable in the real-time zone. Simply moving across a room in the right direction can be difficult. This lack of control is normal. It happens because new projectors are unfamiliar with the real-time projected double and its environment. This is like suddenly finding yourself in zero gravity and not knowing how to move around. Some experimentation and practice would be necessary.
 	A type of momentum problem, like being in zero gravity, causes some early movement issues. This causes projectors to continue moving after they decide to stop. They may float on through walls, ceilings, doors, etc. Only practice teaches how to move around with any degree of accuracy and grace.
 	Learning to move in real time can be a comical process. In my early childhood experiences, I would float and slide and blunder through walls and doors and the roof, just trying to get outside. Then when I finally got out, I would skim along the road trying to get up enough speed so I could take off like an airplane. I would get airborne for a bit by flapping my arms or using a swimming action (this really helps), but could never quite clear the surrounding trees and rooftops.
 	Falling was interesting as it happens in slow motion. I would feel a slow, heavy impact when I hit the ground. I felt vague concussion feelings of remembered pain. But falling never really hurt or sent me back to my body. I would skim down the road taking a series of giant leaps, getting airborne for a while and flapping my arms, trying to will myself higher and faster. I wanted to fly like Superman, but could never quite break free of the strange gravity habit that kept slowly pulling me back to Earth. I would often float unintentionally into neighbors' homes, blundering about like a drunk in zero gravity. I seemed to be continually apologizing to people as I floated in and out of their homes.

 	Learning to Walk

  	In real-time OBE, you are a point of consciousness. You do not really have a body. You have no legs and feet with which to stand or walk. To move, do not think about how you are going to do it—just do it. Will yourself into motion with your sense of whole-body awareness. This provides forward motion. Imagine that every direction you want to move in is downhill and you are wearing roller blades. You will float in the direction you imagine and feel yourself moving in. With a little practice, you will find yourself floating gracefully over the surface.
 	Changing direction and stopping also cause problems. Feel yourself changing direction and you will slowly start to turn. Feel yourself stopping and you will slow and eventually stop. This may be several feet past where you planned to stop, sometimes through a wall. This is a bit like balancing a marble on a tray and trying to make the marble move in a particular direction, and then make it turn, and then make it stop in a particular place. OBE movement is not difficult. It just takes a little practice. A good sense of humor also helps.
 	Once you master simple movement, get out in the open and practice skimming along the surface at a higher speed. Imagine you are riding an automobile or motorbike. Do not try to visualize, just feel it moving forward. Adopt a natural driving position and feel yourself moving as if you were actually driving. Feel yourself accelerating and braking just as you would in a real car, using imaginary pedals if you like. Feel yourself using the pedals and expect the result you would normally get and it will happen.

 	Learning to Fly

  	Most people have flying problems during OBE. It is easier to blast yourself into space than it is to hover or fly like a bird. There is no actual gravity, but there is the gravity habit to account for. Flying is basically the same as floating along the ground, no matter at what height. It is accomplished in the same way, with body awareness movement, by feeling yourself moving and flying.
 	Once airborne, you notice something like gravity trying to drag you back to earth. This is the habit of being continually aware of your body's weight your whole life. The awareness of gravity is a strong and ingrained instinct. This is guaranteed to affect your projected double, especially while learning to fly.
 	If you're like me, in the beginning you'll find yourself making a series of giant leaps and short arcing flights. You'll find your height limited by the average height of the buildings and trees around you. You will repeatedly sink back to Earth when your motion-causing awareness action finishes and the gravity habit takes over. And when you get airborne, at times you'll find yourself wondering what happened to gravity. Thinking about gravity and height will contribute to the gravity habit pulling you back down. So try not to think about how you are doing it—just do it and you will be fine.
 	The excitement of flying can also cause your downfall. Excitement can stimulate your physical body/mind and cause tension and partial awakening there. This will disempower your projected double and can cause you to fall. Adopt a dispassionate observer attitude and this will not happen.
 	Get out onto a straight road and skim along it, moving as fast as you can. Feel yourself flapping your arms and feel yourself springing into the air like a water bird taking off . Angle your vision upward and feel yourself moving higher. Do not look down. Keep flapping your arms and feel them propelling you faster and higher, adding more lift and speed to your flight. Once you get the hang of flying, flapping your arms and using swimming actions still come in handy. These actions provide extra body awareness lift and speed.
 	Another flying method is to clear your mind and just feel yourself floating up. Feel yourself rising and feel and expect the ground to fall away beneath you. Practice hovering by feeling yourself suspended in midair, feeling and expecting the ground to stay where it is as you hover.
 	Flying is caused by intention. In the early stages, novices will have to work at overcoming the gravity habit. A shift in belief is needed to give yourself permission to fly. Affirmations and commands also help: "I fly like a bird!" or "Let me fly!" or "Give me flight!" or "Up, up, and away!" 
 	OBE flying has no limits, unlike real life. You can fly in the air, in outer space, or underwater. There is no resistance or inertia or turbulence. Visibility and what you can accept are the only limiting factors. With practice you will soon get the hang of flying. It is an exhilarating sensation: leaping tall buildings, sitting on a cloud, flying with birds, exploring ocean depths, playing with dolphins, exploring outer space. Out of body, the sky is no longer the limit. It is just the beginning.
 	Passing through Solid Matter

  	It can be difficult to pass through solid objects like walls, doors, and windows. Belief plays a part in this. If you believe you can move through a solid wall or door and are willing to just do it, you will be able to do this easily. If you do not believe you can do this, you will have problems. Body-awareness effort and a few tricks will help overcome these difficulties. Following are some ideas that help.
 	Try to avoid passing through mirrors and highly reflective surfaces during real-time OBE. Passing into a reflection can shift you out of real time and into a virtual realm. Stick to walls, ceilings, and doors to stay in real-time.

 	Moving through obstacles backwards can help. Position yourself in front of the door or wall, turn and push yourself through backward. Do not think about how you are doing this—just do it.

 	Clear your mind and get up as much speed as you can and ram the obstacle headfirst. Force your way through without thinking about how you are doing it. This may also shift you into the astral planes.
 	Find a crack, keyhole, or window and look through this. Imagine and feel that you already are on the other side. You will usually find yourself suddenly there on the other side.

 	Push one hand and arm into the wall, and then the other. This will feel a little tingly. Will yourself to start moving forward. Push your head into the wall. Keep your mind clear and do not think about how you are doing this. Keep moving and climb, claw, and wriggle your way through. You cannot get stuck inside solid matter. This cannot hurt you.
 	If you know what is on the other side, imagine yourself already being there and you will usually find yourself suddenly there on the other side—instant projection.

 	Speed, Distance, and Limitations

  	While there are no speed limits during OBE, the maximum speed possible appears to be set by beliefs and visual limitations, and by what seems natural. There is a relationship between what seems reasonable and the maximum speed possible. This is most likely set according to the distance seen ahead to be traversed and what seems natural. Therefore, OBE speed is relative to the distance seen ahead.
 	Walking Speed: Inside buildings and enclosed areas, walking speed appears natural and this will be as fast as you can move.

 	Road Speed: Anything from walking speed to roughly 200 miles per hour (320 kph) seems natural on a roadway. Possible speed is affected by how clearly distance ahead is seen. You can travel faster on an open freeway in daytime than through suburbs at night. Traveling speed at night in real time is also limited by available light.
 	Flying: Anything from hovering to supersonic speed seems natural, depending on height and distance seen ahead. The higher you get and the farther ahead you can see, the faster you can go.
 	Underwater: Underwater visibility is usually limited and the speed is affected accordingly.

 	Outer Space: Faster-than-light speed is natural because distances seen ahead are much greater.

 	Top Speed: There is no limit. Depending on distance seen ahead, OBE speed is infinite.

 	Instant Travel

  	If you can visualize a destination, you can usually project there instantly. This works reasonably well, but can tend to throw you out of real time. Accuracy seems to depend on whether you have actually been to your target destination or not, and how well you can picture this. If you have not actually been to a destination, instant projection will often take you into an astral copy of that location, and sometimes to places unrelated.
 	For example, a group of serious projectors told me they held group OBE meetings on the top of Uluru (Ayers Rock) in Australia. I know this area, so asked them to give me some details to verify. They described several features that were grossly inaccurate, like carved stone steps, etc. These projectors had most likely been traveling to an astral copy of this place that contained some imaginary extras.
 	There are exceptions with instant travel to distant locations that have not been visited in real life. Some accurate data will usually be observed, but some inconsis-tencies and reality fluctuations are also usually involved.
 	It is possible to instantly project to the location of a person you know well with some degree of real-time accuracy. The clearer the target area is of other people, the clearer it will be of mental static and reality fluctuations.
 	Long-Distance Travel

  	Flying is the best way to travel for short-to-medium distance, say up to a few hundred miles. This may not sound like much when you take into account the potential infinite speed of OBE. But even this distance can be a challenge, if you want to stay in real time with minimal reality fluctuations. It is easy to slip into an astral realm. And reality fluctuations are always close.
 	It is not practical to follow Earth's surface for long-distance, real-time travel. A country the other side of the world may be twelve thousand miles away. You would need to travel at sixty times the speed of sound to reach there in under fifteen minutes. This speed is not natural within Earth's atmosphere. Excessive speed causes a shift away from objective real time. And once you shift out of real time, it is difficult to get back without first returning to your physical body.
 	Ten minutes is about the maximum practical real-time duration for an OBE, if you want to make a deliberate reentry into your physical body. Most projectors will slip into the astral planes long before this. The physical body/mind must be capable of being aroused in order for reentry to occur. Any long-distance, real-time travel is limited by how long the physical body/mind remains accessible for reentry.
 	Traveling long distances in real time is like flying a helicopter by the seat of your pants with only the stars and landmarks as guides. You would need to study geography, road maps, and aerial photographs of the destination.

 	Long-distance projection is easier, when target details are known, by going into orbit and reentering the atmosphere directly above the target. Then geological features and landmarks can be used to navigate to the destination. This is like taking a giant leap a few hundred miles straight up, then flying back down to the target. The trick is not to go too high and leave the solar system, as this is easy to do.
 	Getting into orbit is easy. Just feel yourself going straight up very fast. But stopping when you get high enough is tricky. You can control the speed of ascent by keeping an eye on the surface as you rise. It can be easier to project toward the moon or sun first. This provides a large visual target that can be projected to in moments. Once there, it is a simple matter to head back to Earth, reentering above the target. This can be accomplished quickly and is also a lot of fun.
 	Outer Space and Distance Limitations

  	Over the years, I have heard many people say that they visit other planets during OBE. This is possible, but difficult in practice. While the sun, Earth, and the moon are relatively easy to find, other planets are not. The solar system is an enormous area and its planets are tiny dots moving in space. They can be difficult to identify with the naked eye unless you know what to look for.
 	The instant travel method to a place you have not actually visited is impractical, if the real-time objective aspect of OBE is to be maintained. Some astral realms have the look and feel of other planets. Over the years, some fairly solid astral realms of other planets have been created by the imagination and dreams of the world. These realms are likely responsible for many interstellar projection experiences.

 	There are no limitations to distance or speed, apart from those already mentioned. It is possible to travel to other planets, or to the most distant galaxy. Infinite speed in outer space feels natural. There is hardly any sensation of forward movement, apart from the stars flashing past. Enormous distances can be traversed in the blink of an eye. If you see something ahead and wish to go there, all you have to do is to feel yourself moving toward it and you will.
 	I sometimes go into deep space where galaxies are smudges in the distance, just to think and meditate. I have traveled as far and as fast as I can, just to see how far I can go. I have tried to find the end of the universe. I have had galaxies flashing past me like streetlights blurring in the side window of a speeding car at night. As far and as fast as I have gone, with ever-increasing speed, I have never found anywhere totally devoid of galaxies and stars. From an astral real-time perspective at least, the physical universe appears to be infinite in size—never ending. That is, unless I have been traveling in circles.
 	It is always possible to return to your physical body in an instant, no matter the distance you have traveled. Reach out and feel for your physical body and imagine your room and you will be back there in a moment. This will shift you into or close to your physical body, depending on how accessible this is at the time. If it can be roused, you can reenter. Alternatively, make a command to cause the shift back to your body.
 	Privacy, Ethics, and OBE

  	An old but unfounded belief is that out-of-body activities are policed. Some believe that if projectors misbehave they will be stopped from having further OBEs—banned by a higher authority. Some believe an astral police force watches over and punishes unethical and immoral OBE behavior. In my experience, this is a myth. The astral dimension is a wild state. There are some natural barriers associated with OBE, but no ethical or moral limitations. Natural consequences are the only behavioral modifiers.
 	Everyone projects during sleep. Can you imagine the logistics of monitoring several billion projectors on planet Earth alone every night? I have encountered nothing resembling astral overseers policing the out-of-body environment. While there are no laws governing OBE, there are some natural repercussions to consider. If base emotional urges and drives are not controlled, the quality of OBEs will deteriorate. Like attracts like in the out-of-body environment. The attraction of like-minded projectors and energies is a natural consequence. Projectors with poor moral boundaries will find that higher and more spiritual levels will become progressively difficult to reach. Many spiritual tests are encountered through the practice of OBE and lucid dreaming.
 	I think the idea of OBEs being policed stems from early books on OBE, written around the turn of the twentieth century. I am sure their authors would have realized the truth, but they seem to have considered it their moral duty to give a "stop it or you'll all go blind!" blanket caution. Considering that early books on OBE are still used as reference material today, this warning continues to affect the beliefs of some projectors.
 	For all that, it is okay to play and to experiment and to have some fun during OBE. A good sense of humor and of the ridiculous is invaluable. But it is wise to treat other projectors and dream characters with respect. You never really know just who they might actually be.

 	  

 Chapter 22: THE ASTRAL PLANES

  	The astral planes are creations of universal consciousness. They have definite structure and form and are one of the great wonders of the universe. The structure of the astral planes can be observed and even used for navigational purposes, if they are approached from the correct angle of perception—the angle at which the astral planes are perceived during OBE. Your perceptions of the astral planes will vary, with tube- and plane-type angles of perception being the most common. Your angle of perception is set by the development and activity of your energy body at the time, and by your beliefs.
 	Another way the astral planes can be perceived is through the focus levels developed by Robert Monroe. These focus levels are the layers, or frequencies, of which the astral planes are composed.

 	Traditional Eastern esoteric theory tells us that the astral planes contain seven major levels (seven astral planes), with each astral plane containing many layers. These internal layers are called subplanes, internal realms, and kingdoms. There are many different descriptions for this structure, including the multidimensional theory of quantum physics. These views often appear to conflict, sometimes because of cultural, religious, and even scientific beliefs. I have found it impossible to verify any one version as being more accurate than another—they all have their merits. So I will base my descriptions of the astral planes on my own personal experience.
 	Exploring and mapping the astral planes is like trying to explore and map the planets and moons of our galaxy on foot. Anything beyond the basic structure of the astral planes is a moot point in a practical mapping sense. I have explored only a minute fraction of them, but will do my best to describe what I have perceived, starting with the traditional astral plane-type structure.
 	When experienced firsthand, the astral planes can be likened to the pages of a gigantic book, with color-tinted gaps between pages. These planes appear to be many miles apart during an astral projection. The areas between them are like buffer zones separating the major astral planes. These buffer areas vary in color, but have a similar look and feel—a colored mist. A relationship appears to exist between the colors of these areas and the colors generated by the primary energy centers (major chakras) of the human energy body.
 	The surface of each giant page is an infinite two-dimensional structure covered with grid lines. This makes for a uniform checkered appearance. Each surface square contains a multicolored geometric design, repeated endlessly in all other squares. The surface of each astral plane has its own unique pattern and appears two-dimensional when approached. Three-dimensional environments are experienced when this is penetrated.
 	All astral planes appear to be interconnected. These connections exist in the colors and patterns of the surface skins. For example, if projectors pass through a violet structure on any astral plane, they will be transported to the highest astral plane. The rear cover shows what I believe is the fifth astral plane. The middle of the centerpiece is a violet jewel structure.
 	The development and activity of projectors' energy bodies affect which astral planes and areas can be reached. Some experimentation is required to use astral plane surface skin patterns for navigation. The surface of an astral plane is a wonder to behold. These are beyond compare in their beauty, grandeur, and awe-inspiring mystery. They are geometric and logical, and possibly even mathematical in nature. The structure of the astral planes is much like a computer database.

 	The following illustration is based on my experience during astral plane projections. This shows what the surface of an astral plane actually looks like when approached during an astral plane projection. Look at the rear cover illustration. Close your eyes and imagine yourself there, hovering miles above this spectacular scene, before diving down.

 	  

 	Figure 27. Astral plane surface skin

 	  

 	Figure 28. Seven primary astral planes

 	Astral Subplanes

  	Each of the seven main astral planes has complex internal structures. A spectrum of interconnected subplanes and internal realms exists within each. The following diagrams depict these structures.

 	The astral planes are beyond 3-D, containing more angles of direction than the physical universe. These are not obvious to the naked-astral-eye, 3-D view of human projectors. It is impossible to accurately describe any four- or five-dimensional structure, as we have no frame of reference within which to draw comparisons. Emotional, spiritual, and psychic directions also exist. Projectors will tend to shift into areas with which they are naturally in tune. In practice, travelers roaming the astral planes will find themselves experiencing a variety of interesting environments. The underlying energies and intentions of astral travelers safeguard them from accidentally entering areas they are not in tune with.

 	  

 	Figure 29. Exploded astral plane view

 	The real-time zone can be looked upon as a neutral buffer zone, with the seven main astral planes above it. This does not mean up or down in a physical 3-D sense, but in a vibrational sense. Astral travelers need not pass through negative or lower astral subplanes in order to travel to higher astral levels. Negative areas can be said to be energetically sideways to the astral plane's structure. Projectors' natural energetic attunement attracts them to the areas they are most in tune with and repels them from areas they are not in tune with.
 	Astral Realms and Kingdoms

  	The astral planes can be likened to vast oceans of creative thought that have been expanding and evolving since the dawn of time. Through these oceans, the physical universe is conceived and created. As above, so below. And what is above flows down to become what is below. Internal energetic filtering, repulsion, and attraction cause these oceans of creative thought to settle into layers and pockets. Some of these separate into cohesive areas. These are traditionally called astral realms and kingdoms. They can be described as pools of like-minded thought, given structure in the fluid astral dimension.
 	Astral realms and kingdoms are as big as they need to be. Some are infinite, while others are like small towns. An astral realm is an environment. This can be a planet or a world or a town with a consistent theme and atmosphere. An astral realm can contain astral kingdoms; little pockets of reality. The example I gave earlier, where I entered a painting, can be described as an astral kingdom—a little pocket of reality created through the artist imagining and painting it, and my interaction with the painting.
 	Astral realms vary greatly in size and scope. Some are populated with beings of varying levels of consciousness. Some appear to be modern structures, while others are ancient. But these are not like populated areas in the physical universe. It is difficult to make sense of many of these places. My best advice is, if you do not understand the nature of places you find yourself visiting, observe and go with the flow.
 	For most novice astral travelers, a jaunt into the astral planes can be likened to a mystery flight, where you take off and land in a strange city. A city is a city, though, and although the language and customs may be different, all cities have similarities. In time, as experience is gained, it becomes possible to travel to more specific destinations and to visit or explore astral planes, realms, and kingdoms in more structured ways.

 	  

 	Figure 30. Exploded view of internal astral subplanes 

 	Real-Life Lower Astral Regions

  	Some parts of the astral planes can be mistaken for real life, or for the real-time zone. The first four astral planes contain many sleep projectors in varying states of consciousness. The closer you get to the real-time zone, the more sleep projecting people are found. Some are obviously asleep, standing with eyes closed and heads down. Others wander around in a confused state. Many seem excited to be shopping and walking in groups. But if you try to communicate, everyone seems confused and unaware that they are projecting. They behave much like dream characters in this sense.
 	The real-time zone itself is quiet and unpopulated in comparison. I think most sleep projectors' energies are more in tune with the first few astral planes. Most projectors spend only a minute or two in real time before shifting into parts of the astral planes.

 	The lower astral planes contain mixtures of landscapes and structures in a constant state of flux. While these bear similarities to the physical world, closer examination reveals their fluid and confusing nature. Just wandering across what appears to be your hometown can take you through many different cities and countries. Expect a confusing mishmash of cities, landscapes, peoples, and times.
 	You will often find yourself floating through wide corridors like a giant mall, full of turns and intersections. Here and there, you will find farms and open parks and beaches, and daylight and night scenes. Anything and everything can be found there. I have never made much sense out of these areas and only pass through occasionally.

 	Void Areas

  	Dimensional gaps called void are found around the astral planes. Void areas contain nothing and are not threatening. Entering void is to enter a state of quiet blackness. Imagine being in a float tank and turning out the light. You float safely in comfortable darkness.

 	I have heard many myths and reasons for the occurrence of void, but by its nature it is difficult to make observations. There is nothing to see or to experience. It is possible that void areas lie outside the astral dimension. I do not have a better explanation. They exist and projectors will occasionally find themselves floating in void. Do not be scared if this happens to you. There is quite literally nothing to be scared of. This is something that happens occasionally. You project out of body, or try to shift somewhere, and you suddenly find yourself in void. This is not something to be overly concerned about, as it does not happen very often. Some projectors never experience void.
 	Some void-like experiences may involve astral-vision problems. It is always worth trying to use commands to try to restore sight or to shift. "Give me light, NOW!" or, "Give me sight, NOW!" or, "Take me back to my body." If nothing works, relax and enjoy it. Nothing will disturb you while you are in void. Your physical body will call you back to it soon enough.

 	Astral Entrance Structures

  	The grid lines, geometry, colors, and patterns of an astral-plane surface skin represent its internal areas visually. Projectors can perceive two different structures when they approach the astral planes: 
 	Astral Plane-Type Structure—a flat, two-dimensional plane of infinite proportions, covered in grid lines with a neat checkered appearance. These grid lines outline squares on the plane's surface. Each square contains a multicolored geometric pattern, repeated endlessly in every square.
 	Astral Tube-Type Structure—more complex tunnel or tubelike structures, containing internal grid lines and geometric patterns, often brightly colored, sometimes black and white. The grid lines and patterns are internal, so are not seen in their entirety as with the astral plane-type surface skin entrance structures. Projectors often hear a rushing sound and sometimes musical tones as they move through astral tubes. Exit points into astral realms are marked by changes in patterns, tones, and melodies.
 	Projectors can use either of these structures to enter and navigate the astral planes' internal areas. Which type of structure is perceived appears to be set by the projector's energetic angle of perception. The similarities between astral tube-type and plane-type entrance structures indicate they share a relationship. Experiencing either plane or tube structure has the same result. These structures are consistent and they do not change after multiple experiences. Astral tube-type structures can be likened to rolled-up astral plane-type entrance structures. These are the same structures perceived differently, from different angles of perception.
 	These differences are caused by different patterns and levels of primary energy center development and activity within projectors. Which type of astral entrance structure will be perceived can be gauged with some accuracy by the type of sensations persons experience in their primary energy centers during altered-state and energy work. The type of projection exit also indicates the type of experience that is likely to be experienced.
 	Projectors with noticeable brow- and/or crown-center activity often feel themselves projecting out through their head or brow areas. This often results in tube-type astral experiences. Projectors with strong heart- and/or throat-center activity usually project through the chest or front of their physical bodies. This will often lead to astral plane-type experiences.
 	Vortex Entrance Structures: There are crossovers in the above types of experiences. Some projectors will experience both types-astral plane- and tube-type structures. This can also involve the appearance of vortex structures in real time, often in projectors' homes near their physical bodies. These can be seen at the start or may appear at any time during an OBE. Imagine a pool of swirling blue water a few feet across appearing on a wall in your room. If you find one of these, do not be afraid. This is an astral tube entrance structure. Dive into this and you will have the ride of your life.
 	Astral Starfield Entrance Structures: A common astral plane entrance structure is a starfield. This looks and feels like outer space, where you will perceive yourself to be floating in space surrounded by stars. However, these are not stars but astral entrance structures. If you approach one, it will grow in size and complexity, often looking like a bright crystal structure. Move closer, and people will sometimes be seen moving about inside, behind what looks like a huge glass window. Move up to and pass through this window and you will find yourself inside the astral realm or kingdom it represents.
 	Astral Plane-Type Entrance Structures

  	To enter an astral plane-type entrance structure, dive down to its surface and chose a square. As you get closer, aim for the part of its pattern you wish to enter. The middle of the centerpiece will take you to the highest level within that astral plane. Other parts will take you to different astral planes and realms. The square and its pattern will grow steadily larger as you approach, until it is football-field size. The transition through the surface is breathtaking, but comes with no sensation. It's like diving into water without the splash. Once through the surface pattern, two things will happen. You will find yourself either inside an astral realm or in a misty-colored buffer zone. If you find yourself in colored mist, keep moving and you will exit into an astral realm in a few moments.
 	It is not feasible to turn around to go back and try again. Time is stretched but always limited in the astral. You never know when your physical body will call you back, so make the best of what you have. Whatever part of the surface skin pattern you penetrate, keep going and explore whatever realm you find yourself in when you get there.

 	Astral Plane-Type Navigation

  	It is possible to navigate astral plane-type surface entrance structures. There is a direct relationship between the parts of this design and possible destinations. The point of entry defines where you will shift to—which plane, realm, or kingdom. If you remember the point of entry, you can return to the same place in future projections. With a little experimentation, you can develop an astral map for that astral plane.
 	The corners of each square contain small but distinct structures, looking like little dots and splashes of color from a distance. Each of these is an entry point into a specific internal realm or kingdom.
 	The fifth astral plane surface pattern centerpiece (see back cover) is set on a blue background. This denotes the basic level of that astral plane, and the primary energy center with which it is associated. The throat center is indicated by the color blue, so this plane is most likely the fifth astral plane. (There are no signposts or other ways to determine the level.) If the violet jewel in the centerpiece is penetrated, it will take you to the highest level within that plane, or to the seventh astral plane.
 	I think the gold flower and its center jewel are what are referred to by the famous Buddhist mantra: "Om Mani Padmi Hum" which translates to "The jewel in the heart of the lotus."
 	As with all astral entrance structures, different projectors can expect variations due to differences in the development and activity in their energy bodies, and in their angles of perception. But astral planes and their entrance structures are fairly consistent.

 	Astral Tube-Type Entrance Structures

  	Many projectors leave their bodies through their head areas and find themselves rushing through astral tube-type structures. Or, they find the entrance to the astral tube waiting nearby after their exit out of body, leaving them the option of entering the tunnel or not. This is useful if projectors want to experience real time before entering the astral planes.

 	Do not be afraid of entering and exploring astral tubes, which appear as vortexes, pools of swirling color. These are astral tube entrances. These will not harm you in any way. Many people have said that these are too much like the tunnels of light associated with NDE (near-death experience). However, these are not dangerous and there is no way you can get lost or harm yourself doing this.
 	Dive into an astral tube structure and you will feel acceleration and great speed. Grid lines and colors and patterns and tones will change as you move. Exits appear at regular intervals, marked by changes in the colors, tones, and patterns around you. You can also get psychic impressions and intuitive feelings of where best to exit. Use your intuition, or just enjoy the ride and wait until you naturally exit. At the end of the tube experience, you'll suddenly find yourself inside an astral realm.

 	More astral tube-type entrance structures may appear after the initial tube experience. If you want to end an astral experience, you can always shift back to your body. As projection time is always limited, I suggest you explore whatever is at hand and go with the flow of the experience.

 	Tunnels of Light

  	Some projectors report moving rapidly through tunnels of light as they exit their bodies, and then arriving in the astral planes. The tunnel-of-light scenario is similar to the astral tube-type entrance structure discussed earlier. At times a brief tunnel-of-light effect can be caused by the blurring of stars as projectors travel at extreme velocity, until reality shifts and they enter the astral planes. By this, I do not mean that the astral planes have spatial locations in the physical universe. However, a sudden burst of great speed can shift projectors out of real time and into the astral planes.
 	Finding the Astral Planes

  	Some projectors, though able to experience the real-time zone, seem unable to shift into the astral planes. They may occasionally slip into astral realms spontaneously, but they are unable to perceive astral entrance structures. On the other hand, some projectors seem unable to experience the real-time zone. They slip directly into astral realms as they exit their bodies, often bypassing any recognizable type of astral surface or entrance structure.
 	I spent many early years of conscious-exit projection stuck in real time. I could not purposefully enter the astral planes, although this sometimes happened spontaneously. I eventually learned how to make the shift from real time to the astral planes. The following method is a reliable way to enter the astral planes. You may or may not perceive entrance structures, but this will get you into the astral planes.
 	Whatever your position, aim midway between the horizon and straight up and fly up at the greatest speed possible. As you do this, imagine and feel the star-filled universe spread out before you. Even if it's daylight or cloudy, image this in your mind's eye as you reach out and feel for the stars beyond the atmosphere. Fill your mind with the feeling of the enormous distance before you, and shoot for the stars. The incredible acceleration this causes will make your vision blur momentarily, and you could experience a brief tunnel-of-light effect.
 	Alternatively, you could hold an image of the back cover art of this book in your mind's eye as you shoot for the stars. This may help get you to an astral plane surface entrance structure.
 	The first sign that you have succeeded is the dimensional shift, which feels like a brief falling sensation accompanied by a moment of blurring. You will then either find yourself in a color-tinted area close to an astral plane-type entrance structure—or you may find yourself inside an astral realm. You could also find yourself inside an astral tube-type structure. Regardless of exactly what happens, this method should get you into the astral planes.

 	Alternatively, you may find yourself in outer space, or in an area that appears to be outer space. If you are in real-time outer space, explore what is available. However, with this method it is more likely that you are in an astral realm that just looks like outer space. If this happens, move towards the brightest light you can see. As you get closer, you will see this grow into something like a window. Pass into this light structure and you will find yourself inside an astral plane.
 	Nothing you might do can possibly hurt you, and you cannot get lost in space or in the astral planes. You can shift back to your physical body at any time, or it will pull you back naturally.

 	Looking Back Down: If you leave the Earth's atmosphere more slowly, if you look back down you will often see some of the lower astral plane surface skins below you, and not the Earth. This means you have already shifted out of real time and are in the astral planes. Lower astral plane surface skins are plain and dull compared with the higher ones. Imagine a beige desert landscape intersected by gridlines with a few grey rocks scattered here and there.
 	Astral Starfield Experience: The astral starfield can be thought of as a type of astral plane entrance. The example below illustrates the look and feel of this type of structure.

 	I project out of my body and shoot for the stars. Soon I am floating in space surrounded by distant stars and galaxies. It is peaceful here as I look around in wonder. I keep moving and in the distance I see a tiny colorful something approaching that grows steadily larger. It gets closer and I see it is a little toy train. This grows larger as it approaches, soon becoming a full-sized train. I recognize this as Thomas the Tank Engine, a popular children's TV character. I stare in amazement, wondering where I am and what is happening. Thomas the Train jaunts by making cheerful and loud "toot, toot" and clackety train noises. Railway tracks appear just in front of the train and disappear behind it as it moves through space. It slowly fades into the distance. If I had a head to scratch, I would.
 	I continue on my way and aim for the brightest star ahead. This gets larger and brighter as I approach. Then I see that it is not a star, but a window. I get closer and can see people walking about inside. I move up to what looks like a huge window or force field and pass through it. Now I am standing in what looks like a carnival area. A bumper-car ride is nearby, with many children playing and laughing. I leave this area and walk through an endless mall scenario, scratching my astral head. After exploring this for a while, I do not seem to be getting anywhere interesting so I shift back to my body.
 	Astral Plane Colors and Chakras

  	The colorful geometric patterns on the surfaces of each astral-plane entrance structure are all different. These patterns appear to be some kind of color-coded dimensional metaphor, abstractly representing the internal components of each astral plane. And so, the different color tinting found in the open-space areas near and between astral planes seems to correspond with the spiritual colors produced by the chakras of the human energy body.

 	Using what is known of chakra colors and the properties of chakras can provide projectors insight and some indication of the nature of astral planes they are traveling. For example, blue would relate to the throat chakra and the fifth astral plane, and purple would relate to the brow center and the sixth astral plane.

 	The astral planes also contain colors beyond the normal color spectrum. These can only be perceived while in the astral planes. They are impossible to describe, there being nothing in the physical dimension with which to compare.

 	  

 	Figure 31. Astral Plane Experience—Skull Rock 

 	Astral Plane Experience—Skull Rock

  	The following illustrates an astral plane-type entrance experience: 

 	I was intending to nap but could not sleep. I fell into trance and developed astral sight. Whole body vibrations started and I used the rope method to project out of body. I staggered away from my physical body, feeling weak. I was too close to my still-awake physical body/mind. I floated with some difficulty through the wall to get away. As I passed through, I felt a tingling, rippling sensation and sound, and the inside was brightly lit. My nephew, Matt, was working in a nearby room. I was planning to give him goose bumps by passing near his physical body.

 	I had little control and felt a magnetic pull from my physical aspect. I was still too close and this weakened me. I decided to get away before I became paralyzed. I staggered into the spare room and fell through the window into the front yard. I floated away over the front lawn, over the road and into the park. I hugged a tree and soon felt stronger. I flew towards the beach, feeling better now that I was airborne and away from the house. It was a glorious sunny day with blue sky and a few clouds.
 	Looking up, I reached out and felt for the star-filled universe above. Forgetting the beach, I willed myself to shift and increased speed dramatically. Everything blurred as I shot out into space through a brief tunnel of blurred light. I shifted and found myself somewhere in the astral. I flew on through a blue-tinted sky.
 	A vast astral-plane surface structure appeared in the distance below. Its spectacular blue surface covered with crisp black grid lines and colorful patterns was breathtaking to behold. I hovered a while taking it all in. Every square of its grid-lined structure had a spectacular multicolored geometric pattern. This was the doorway to an astral plane, the gateway to other worlds. It spread out to the horizon in all directions.
 	It is difficult to describe such an enormous spectacle. There is nothing in the physical world that compares. Imagine skydiving from a great height over checkered fields bordered by ocean on a brilliant summer's day. I was excited and awestruck as I swan-dived down to the surface. A tingling rush of energy flooded me as I joyfully yelled, "Geronimooooo!"—my voice booming loud and clear.
 	The square I picked grew steadily larger as I got closer. There was no splash or impact, but the transition was dramatic as I plunged through. I suddenly found myself in blue mist, like deep-blue water. Visibility was good and I could see for hundreds of feet. For a moment I thought I was in another buffer zone. Then I noticed bubbles and bits of weed around me. I was under water. I forged ahead towards a lighter area that I guessed would be the surface.
 	Movement below caught my eye and I went back to investigate. A school of gigantic fish appeared. These were round, flat, and brightly colored, much like tropical discus fish. They were larger than whales. Swimming among these fancy behemoths were many sharks. But they were minnows compared to these enormous fish. I flew through the giant school and one of the great fish looked at me. It watched with calm curiosity, its eye the size of an automobile. I sensed intelligence and amusement.
 	Moving upward again, I surfaced among lively ocean waves and soared into a glorious indigo sky. Two suns shone down upon me, one large and orange and one small and yellow. Several miles to my right was a shoreline with a bay lined with yellow sands. White strips of surf rolled endlessly toward the beach. Jutting out from the shore on the left point of the bay was a massive shape. A skull-shaped rock with cavernous eyes peered at me, looking to be several hundred feet high.

 	Spinning around and taking it all in, I saw several large sailing ships a few miles away. They were tall wooden vessels, bull nosed and low in the stern, with V-angled masts like bat wings. People crawled like ants over decks and rigging. I dived and landed near the ship's wheel on the foredeck of the lead ship. I had served for several years on merchant ships as a lad, so knew something of ships.
 	The stern half of the ship was so low it seemed underwater most of the time. It was loaded with cargo washed by the waves. There were bales of broad-leafed seaweed and sacks of shellfish. Everything was held down with heavy netting to keep it from washing away.

 	Members of the crew were dark-haired and heavily built, dressed in rough shirts with knee-length pants, beaded headbands, and rope belts. A woman sat near the ship's wheel, watching me. She turned her head when I looked back. I sensed annoyance.

 	She wore a knee-length shift tied at the waist with a braided rope belt. Her dark-brown hair hung to her waist. A small bone-handled knife protruded from her belt. She touched this briefly as I approached, then folded her arms and glared at me.

 	Sporting a winning smile, I respectfully asked her what this world was called. She turned away. I moved to catch her eye, but she hopped off the bale and disappeared down a hatch. Most unfriendly, I thought.

 	I approached a few of the deckhands. They either turned away or stared at the deck. This was most peculiar, I thought. The people in astral realms will usually at least talk to you, if only to ask to be left alone. They could all see me and I was reasonably solid here. Feeling unwelcome, I soon left the ship.

 	Heading for the island, I flew along the shoreline and landed on the skull-shaped rock. The weathered stone felt ancient. It reminded me of times I had played in Stonehenge as a child. There were some furry little seagulls darting about. Very cute—like flying hamsters. Everything was peaceful here, apart from the unfriendly sea folk.

 	I felt that old familiar weakness and magnetic tugging as my physical body started waking. With a brief falling sensation I was back into my body catching the sides of the bed. Sitting up I reached for my journal, feeling rested after my unexpected astral jaunt.

 	Shifting among Astral Realms

  	It is not necessary to perceive astral-plane entrance structures to enter astral planes and realms. You will often project directly into astral realms and bypass entrance structures. Once you get out of body, though, there are many ways to shift into the astral.
 	Instant Travel Shift: Get out of body and then imagine a place you would like to be. For example, if you want to travel to the Skull Rock astral realm, as given above, imagine this and intend to shift there. Repeat the command, "Take me to Skull Rock."

 	Energy Shift: Raise your energy level by drawing more energy from your physical body/mind. Feel yourself drawing energy into your projected body from all directions. Feel yourself growing lighter and brighter and humming with energy. Repeat the command, "Take me to the astral planes." 
 	Flight Shift: Fly as fast as you can, aiming midway between the horizon and straight up, while reaching out and feeling for the star-filled galaxy above. Imagine and feel yourself shooting into the stars at hyperspeed.
 	Virtual Reality Shift: Walk into a mirror, picture, TV, book cover, or computer screen. Hold your mind clear and approach slowly. When you arrive, you can shift to other astral realms more easily. Add commands for shifting to specific locations, e.g., "Take me to the fifth astral plane."
 	 Melting Hands Shift: Look at your hands and watch them melt, then look away. Repeat this a few times. Your subconscious mind will have trouble accepting this. This will cause a dimensional shift, transporting you into astral realms. Add commands for more specific destinations, e.g., "Take me to the moon!" 
 	Spin Shift: Spin around as fast as you can. Clear your mind and allow yourself to become disoriented. This will cause a dimensional shift into the astral. Repeat as needed. Add commands while spinning to shift to specific destinations, e.g., "Take me to an astral hospital."
 	Falling Shift: Feel yourself falling backwards without trying to catch yourself. This will cause a dimensional shift into the astral. Repeat this as needed. Add commands to shift to specific destinations, e.g., "Take me to the akashic records." 
 	Hand Glance Stabilization

  	The phenomena associated with your projected double's hands can be useful during OBE. The effect caused by glancing at your hands varies, according to how long you look at them and how often. You can use this to stabilize a wavering projection, to lessen reality fluctuations, and to empower memory recall. To stabilize a projection, briefly glance at your hands, looking away before they start melting. Experiment with the length of intervals between hand glances, doing this every ten to thirty seconds, etc.
 	Glancing at your hands sends a small shock wave back to the physical body/mind. This provokes a surge of energy and causes partial arousal of the physical body/mind, providing the projected double with more energy. This also delays the physical body's entry into deeper levels of sleep that might interfere with reintegration and recall. This helps to extend your workable time out of body and lessens reality fluctuations.
 	Astral Rest and Recovery Areas

  	Some spirits shift into astral rest and recovery areas as a part of their afterlife experience. They rest and sleep and dream in these areas, processing and recovering from painful and upsetting life conditions. If you enter astral recovery areas, you will usually perceive a hospital or rest-home-like environment. You will see spirits resting and being cared for by nurses and doctors and loved ones. This does not mean that there are actually hospitals in the astral planes. It is likely that these areas are created by need. Projectors' angles of perception interpret the energies of astral rest and recovery areas, translating these into metaphorical form and structure, e.g., into hospital buildings with doctors and staff .
 	Raised levels of consciousness and intentions can allow projectors to shift into higher dimensional levels. However, experiences of this nature must still be downloaded and interpreted by the physical body/mind/brain. Everything perceived out-of-body must be downloaded and understood at the base level of normal awake consciousness.

 	I have visited astral rest and recovery realms many times. The hospital-like scenario and atmosphere is consistent, but the appearance of individual rooms varies.

 	These reflect the personality and life conditions of each patient. The spirits I have encountered in these places often appear to be visiting. None seem to be aware of the length of time that has passed since they left the physical world, or of many details concerning their afterlife since they arrived. I think what happens in higher spiritual realms does not translate into normal language and the base level of consciousness of normal mortal life understandability. I often hear projectors make comments like "It's bright and very nice. I love being there. It's so wonderful. I don't understand why I can't describe this." This is understandable if the dimensional level they are trying to describe does not translate into normal thoughts, images, and words.
 	When people die, they are often active in real time for a few weeks, before they fall asleep and dream their lives. This involves a big sleep, and people will sleep for as long as they need to sleep. While they sleep they dream their lives and process everything. This continues until they regain balance and peace. This takes as long as it needs to take, from a few years to hundreds of years. Time is irrelevant in this process. The places and trappings that appear around them while they sleep are formed by their beliefs.
 	Following are some of my experiences in astral rest and recovery areas to help illustrate what these places are like. The first involves a rest area, the second a hospital-like recovery area.
 	A Seaside Cottage Visit

  	I project out of body and appear before a neat little cottage on a tidy street in a seaside town. It is bright daylight, feeling around noon here. The door is open and I move inside. There, my mother is waiting for me. We hug and say our hellos, and move into the living room, a lovely room with nice furniture, cream carpets, and tastefully deco-rated. My mother's friend Selena joins us, followed by my old Labrador, Blue Boy. I sit on the floor and play with Blue Boy. He is young and playful—so different from the old dog he was at the end of his life. We sit and talk and what seem like hours go by. My mother, Selena, and I used to meet one evening a week for meditation and spiritual sharing and talking, for many years. They passed on years ago, so it was lovely to catch up and enjoy each other's company again. This cottage was Selena's home in the astral. It was much like her home in real life.

 	There is a knock at the door as a visitor arrives, and my old friend Bob comes in. I had lost touch with old Bob years ago. He was in his 80s then, but I did not know he had passed over. It was lovely seeing him again. He invited me to take a walk with him and we set off to explore. He took me down to the shore as we chatted and caught up on life and afterlife. Bob was ebullient and fascinated by this place. He had a cottage on the other side of town, he told me. Bob said he was amazed by this place, especially the fishing. He said he often fished on the shore and caught many fish. But, some of them were freshwater fish, he told me with amazement. Bob said he also often walked the hills behind town and fished the lakes and streams there. He said he caught many good fish there, but not just freshwater fish, but ocean fish as well, he said in wonderment.

 	My body called me back at this point. I fondly recorded everything in my journal. It warmed my heart to see them all again. My mother, Selena, and Bob did not seem to be aware that they were in spirit. We all just enjoyed the moment.

 	A lot of visiting seems to go on between spirits. I imagine that, in this state, if you think of someone you will shift and appear at that person's location and visit. Astral projection is much like this.
 	Peter's Tale

  	To provide context, first I give some history, and then the astral experience that occurred many years later.

 	Peter's Physical Life Condition History

  	Peter and I were best friends in high school. I had not seen him for many years when I bumped into him by accident in a tavern one night. We sat and sipped our beers and caught up on life. Peter was married with four children and had a good job. He was also an alcoholic. He'd been living at the tavern for the past week, as his wife had thrown him out—again. Peter was a quiet, gentle drunk. He loved his wife and children, but he could not stop drinking.
 	We headed off to his room at closing. I explained a little about the mystical side of my life and offered to give him healing. With an amused smile, he accepted. Peter's aura was almost nonexistent. He had never recovered from the death of his mother when he was a small boy. This was why he drank. He blamed himself. We sat facing each other. I closed my eyes and gave healing. The energy that appeared made me gasp and the room swam. I sat back as the room filled with a soft white cloud. Standing beside us now were Peter's mother and father.
 	Peter's mother took his hands and they gazed into each others' eyes, oblivious to anything else. His father stood with a hand on his shoulder. Peter looked at me with astonishment, then back at his mother and father. He fell into his mother's arms and wept. She looked up at me with a sweet, sad smile. I was deeply moved. I did not understand what was happening, but accepted it and just observed. I had never experienced a manifestation as powerful as this.
 	The clouds faded and the room returned to normal. Peter, now sober, was both moved and galvanized. He showered and dressed while I made coffee. He came out cleanshaven, looking years younger. We drank our coffee and he hurried home to his wife and children.

 	He phoned me a few days later to thank me and let me know he was okay. I could hear his wife and children laughing in the background. Peter had not told anyone about what had happened that night. He said he did not know where to start. We made arrangements to meet for dinner the next week. But two days later, Peter awoke in the early hours of the morning with a terrible headache. A blood vessel had burst in his brain. He died in his wife's arms.

 	Peter's Astral Hospital Experience

  	Ten years later: I projected out of my body and shot for the stars, shifting into the astral planes. I thought of my friend Peter and intended to find him. My vision blurred as I shifted to an astral realm that looked like a hospital, the wide corridors well-lit with polished floors. Hospital smells filled the atmosphere. Ahead was a reception desk with a young nurse in a crisp blue-and-white uniform. I moved up to the station and said hello.
 	"Can I help you, sir?" she asked me politely.

 	"Yes, I'm here to see Peter," I said, smiling.

 	"Are you a relative?" she asked, checking the register.

 	"No, I'm a friend," I said.

 	"Peter is still resting," she said hesitantly.

 	"Please, is it possible for me to see him? I've come a very long way. I promise I won't disturb him or be a bother," I said.
 	"All right. Just so long as you don't stay too long," she sighed. "The doctor is due soon and Peter's parents are visiting."

 	"Thank you," I said as I started up the corridor.

 	"He's in room thirty-one," she called out after me, pointing.

 	"Thanks very much," I said as I moved where she directed.

 	I went through a door at the end of the corridor. I felt a shift and then saw a door ahead marked thirty-one. I walked through into a walled garden with a few trees and shrubs. Birds fluttered and fluted overhead. A neat stone path led to a small unit almost hidden behind creepers and overgrown shrubs.

 	I knocked and went inside. The room smelled of stale beer and had a depressing, dingy atmosphere. There was a refrigerator full of beer with the door hanging open, an old TV, and an armchair. Empty beer cans and rubbish littered the floor. There was a single bed to one side and at the far back was an oversized bathtub. Muffled singing came from that direction. I moved closer and found Peter curled up on a small couch that was floating in the giant bathtub. The tub was full of beer.

 	Peter was sleeping with one hand trailing in the frothy liquid. I reached over, rubbed his shoulder, and spoke to him. He half sat up and looked at me with blurry eyes. He mumbled my name and shook his head, confused. He scooped beer into his mouth and sank back onto the couch, drifting fitfully back to sleep. I stood and prayed over him.

 	The door opened and in came a doctor in a white coat, followed by Peter's parents. I felt guilty for intruding and moved out of the way. Peter's father patted me on the shoulder in passing. They waded into the tub and spoke to Peter, gently shaking him as I had. He sat up for a moment and looked around, then tried to curl up again. His mother slipped onto the couch and caught his head in her lap, stroking his hair as he slept.
 	Deeply moved, I left quietly and went back the way I came. Then I felt a magnetic pull and fell back into my physical body. I got out of my chair and recorded this precious experience in my journal.

 Chapter 23: CONNECTING THE CORDS

  	The physical body/mind is connected to its projected double by energy cords extending from each of the primary energy centers. The silver cord is the most well-known and visible cord during OBE. It is like an umbilical cord, an unbreakable energy filament that connects the physical body/mind with its projected double. The projected double is supplied with energy by its physical/energy body, which supports its integrity on whatever level it is operating. Energies and emotions flow through subtle-energy cords that connect each of the chakras of the human energy body with its projected double during OBE.
 	The amount and quality of this flow of energy affect the projected double's capabilities. A good flow of energy strengthens its ability for coherent thought and movement and enables stronger memory recall. Low energy causes consciousness and memory to become weak and muddled, and control over the projected double becomes difficult.

 	Consciousness needs a lot of vital energy to function well. The presence of awake consciousness creates a strong energy demand that weakens all other aspects. Energy-body development and activation help this to some extent, but all projectors have only a finite amount of energy with which to operate. The energy production capability of one person will only spread so far.
 	Cord Connection Points

  	The silver cord is most often seen during astral projection and is less noticeable during real-time OBE. There are several energy cords of different colors, one extending from each of the major chakras of the human energy body, but the silver cord, which extends from the navel, is the most visible. It is usually only seen accidentally, or when deliberately looked for during an OBE. Projectors also do not usually notice their own bodies, unless body parts are accidentally or deliberately observed. This factor relates to whether connecting cords are seen or not seen during an OBE.

 	  

 	Figure 32. Silver cord, showing attachment points 

 	Some people claim that the silver cord does not exist, or that it is not attached to the navel area of projected doubles. There are several reasons for these conflicting opinions. The first is how belief can affect the fluid out-of-body environment and the appearance of the projected double and its connecting cords. Belief affects what is perceived during OBE. Self-image shapes the projected double. The silver cord will be seen where it is expected to be seen—or not seen if disbelieved.
 	I first saw my silver cord attached to my navel during childhood astral-plane projections. I had no beliefs that could affect this observation at the time. I have had many similar reports over the years from children and adults with no preconceived ideas on this matter. The silver cord is named for its overall silvery, sparkling appearance. It usually appears to be about an inch thick. The outer covering of the silver cord glows with a sparkling-silver hue. Inside, clouds of fast-moving motes flow rapidly in all directions. This looks a bit like the moving static seen on a TV tuned off -station.
 	The silver cord appears as being fairly straight, and in real-time OBE will be seen on the side of the projected double that is facing its physical body. This can cause the silver cord to be seen extending from a variety of locations on projected doubles, even the head area. In astral realms, it will usually be seen extending out from the navel. Cords can be seen extending from different locations, depending on chakra activity and the astral level being experienced at the time.
 	The level of energy-body activity at the time will affect cord appearance and location. There are many types of OBE possible, including projections involving the heart chakra, the throat chakra, and the brow and crown chakras. Combinations involving more than one chakra can occur. The most active chakra will have the strongest and most visible energy cord connecting it to its projected double. This accounts for some variations in observations of cord appearance and cord attachment points. A purple cord can sometimes be seen as extending from the brow, or a violet cord from the crown, of projected doubles where these centers are more active than usual.
 	Can Connecting Cords Be Broken?

  	It is my opinion that connecting cords are for all intents and purposes unbreakable, and the projected double is invulnerable. The safety of projectors during any type of OBE is never compromised. Some people worry about what might happen if their silver cord were damaged or cut during an OBE. These fears are based entirely on the old empty-body assumption.
 	The mind-split-effect theory, as discussed earlier, refutes the empty-body assumption (where it was once believed that the physical body was left an empty shell during an OBE). Understanding the mind-split effect removes the possibility of the projected double ever becoming damaged or lost. An energy copy is generated and projected during OBE. The original copy of mind and memory and spirit never leaves the physical body/mind while it lives.
 	The projected double and its connecting energy cords are generated and broadcast by the chakras of the human energy body. This can be likened to the laser beams used to create and project holographic images. If one of the laser beams is blocked, the image may distort or disappear, but the laser projector remains undamaged. In a similar way, the human energy body/mind generates and broadcasts its projected double.
 	Therefore, if, under circumstances of which I am not aware, my projected double's connecting cords were cut, or my projected double destroyed somehow, nothing would be lost. This would be like resetting a computer that has crashed—everything comes back to normal after it has rebooted. I would also not know about it, because the original copy of me is always safely tucked away inside my physical body while I am alive.

 	Is It Dangerous to Interrupt an OBE?

  	Some people believe that if astral projection is interrupted, projectors can be damaged or even killed. This is a myth that, again, relates to the empty-body assumption. Interrupting OBE of any type is no more dangerous than interrupting sleep. The original copy of mind and memory and spirit is always safely tucked away inside the physical body/mind while it lives.

 	Silver Cord Sighting

  	This case history shows a rare sighting of a real-time sleep projector and silver cord by an awake person. The silver cord is seen extending from the projected double's side and not the navel area. This observation is likely affected by the positions of the physical body and its projected double at the time.

 	"My wife and I watched TV in bed until we were falling asleep. I relaxed and used the rope projection method. I passed out during this and do not remember succeeding. My wife awoke later and saw what she described as a big teddy bear floating a few feet above my sleeping body, connected to my side by a glowing silver ribbon. She thought she was dreaming and rubbed and closed her eyes a few times, but the image remained. She waved her hand through the teddy bear and silver ribbon several times but could not feel anything. Perplexed, she thought she must be dreaming and fell back to sleep." 

 	This case history shows the sighting of an OBE in progress. The extruded real-time double mimics its sleeping physical body, and is also asleep and dreaming. This man's wife was half asleep at the time and had some level of astral sight, which enabled her to make this observation. Also possible, his wife had a false awakening, where she woke up in her real-time body and believed she was awake in her physical body.
 	Everyone projects out of body during sleep, but most remain asleep in both their physical and projected aspects. The projected double usually mimics its physical body, often floating within arm's reach. I have observed this many times during real-time OBE. If awakened by another projector, sleep projectors awaken but are usually in a confused state. They appear to be functioning on multiple levels and keep falling back to sleep.
 	 
 Chapter 24: THE AKASHIC RECORDS

  	The akashic records are found at an astral location. They can also be said to be a frequency that permeates all dimensions—an interdimensional broadcast. They contain records of all past events and future probabilities. The akashic records can be experienced within the astral planes or tuned in to with clairvoyance and psychic abilities.
 	The akashic records contain probability energies—possibility records of the future. Probability energies are generated by the past and by present choices and actions. When the akashic records are accessed, past and future events can be viewed, and even experienced firsthand. The akashic records can be compared with astral hospital structures, mentioned earlier. Both are dimensional structures with no actual form to them. What can be experienced is affected by projectors' angles of perception and beliefs. For all this, a fairly well-known structure has been created in the astral through use and belief over the years.
 	The traditional akashic records scenario is an imposing white stone building with wide steps leading through stone pillars to the entrance. Inside is a main foyer with several hallways leading to different parts of the library. Sometimes a librarian will meet and assist visitors—more usually not. Projectors must use their intuition to go to areas of interest. Rooms contain books and scrolls, and sometimes computer terminals.

 	Projecting to the Akashic Records

  	Following are some ways to shift to the akashic records library structure:

 	  

 	Figure 33. Traditional akashic records library scenario 

 	Real-Time Method: After the exit out of body, first move at least twenty feet away from your physical body. Then imagine the akashic records library scenario and hold the intention of visiting there in mind. Imagine the library scenario appearing around you. Repeat the command, "Take me to the akashic records!" 
 	Astral Travel Method: After the exit out of body, shift into the astral planes using your favorite method. Then imagine the akashic records library scenario and project there, using the instant travel method to shift. Repeat the command, "Take me to the akashic records!"
 	Virtual Projection Method: Get a picture of an imposing library building and hang this on a wall in your room where it will catch some light. Write the words "akashic records" on the building in the picture. After you leave your body, move toward and through the picture. Hold your mind clear, with only the intention to visit the akashic records in mind. This will usually shift you into the akashic records.
 	If the reality this shifts you to is too plastic, try one of the above methods as well.

 	Viewing and Entering Records

  	Once you arrive at the akashic records, enter the building expecting to find what you are looking for. Intention is important. Try to be as specific as possible. Climb the steps and enter the building, holding your intention in mind. Choose a room and move to a bookshelf or a desk. Select a book, scroll, or a computer monitor—whatever feels best to you. Make a command, "Show me the future!" Then look with intention, expecting to see what you are wishing for to appear. Try to be as specific as possible.
 	It does not matter which book, scroll, or computer monitor you use. Your intentions will produce what you seek through whatever you use. You may see pictures and text or moving pictures. You may shift into these and experience records firsthand. Keep your intention in mind and go with the flow. To return to the library from within a record, imagine the library scenario and intend to shift there, or make a command. Wish for this to happen and it will. Sometimes the return to the library is automatic once a record has been experienced.

 	Future events seen in akashic records are probabilities. They are not unchangeable destiny. Clues to possible changes that could be made are metaphorically shown within the records. When you use the akashic records, be prepared to be shifted somewhere else entirely, as sometimes happens to me. Again, keep your intention in mind and go with the flow. Keep smiling and pretend you know what you are doing.

 	Tuning In to Areas of Interest

  	If you tune in to the akashic records without an intention, you will usually find yourself viewing one of the following topics.

 	Disasters: Wars, earthquakes, airline crashes, floods, fires, train wrecks, mass murders, death, and destruction. Disasters have a lot of energy surrounding them, particularly those involving great loss of life. Because of this energy, these records are the strongest and easiest to see. It is common to see a stream of disasters, if no particular intention is used when viewing akashic records.

 	Personal: The events surrounding and affecting your own life and the lives of those connected with you also have a high energy. Because of this, you will often see something relating to your life.
 	Mixtures of disasters and personal events are also possible. If you look into the general future, into the area of probabilities, you will often experience a confusing maelstrom of metaphorical imagery mixed in with real-life objects and events. This can be confusing. Keep in mind that no deliberate communication is intended for you when you access the akashic records. Some analysis and interpretation are usually necessary. More on that later.
 	Translation, Associations, and Archetypes

  	The further we move away from the normal awake state—the base level of consciousness—the more abstract and complex perceptions and communications become. At higher levels, a great deal of information is packed into the simplest thought or communication. Compressed metaphorical imagery is the norm and the higher the dimensional level being experienced, the tighter the compression. The contents of a book can be reduced to a smile and a gesture.
 	Part of the reason for this apparent compression is because so much detail is lost in translation from high-level consciousness to base-level format. And everything must be in base-level format if it is to be downloaded as a recognizable memory during reintegration at the end of an OBE.

 	When the base level of consciousness receives input from a higher dimensional experience, it interprets this in the only way it can, at the base level. Complex information is interpreted, simplified, and compressed. The end result may only be remembered as a series of brief one-act plays, where every item, costume, word, action, and gesture contains deep meaning.
 	This translation problem particularly applies to the akashic records. The natural level of consciousness within the astral planes and akashic records is considerably higher, and hence not completely understandable at the base level of consciousness. The human mind uses its learned mental associations to interpret information from higher levels. Therefore, higher-level experience memories are interpreted into symbols and metaphors, into pictures and images that resemble what was perceived. Unfortunately, the end product, the memory, may not make a lot of sense at the base level of consciousness.

 	In this sense, ancient written languages like Egyptian hieroglyphics may involve higher levels of communication than appear at surface value. We perceive and experience the contents of the akashic records according to our angle of perception and learned mental associations. When records are viewed, they appear as mind's-eye vision experiences. Subconscious learned mental associations are also embellished with archetypal symbolism, which is embedded within the collective consciousness.

 	Akashic Records Experience

  	The following experience will help provide the look and feel of some aspects of the akashic records. When viewing and interpreting past and future events, some general knowledge of history, archetypes, symbolism, current affairs, and world leaders helps.

 	After hours of extensive altered-state energy work, I projected and passed through a kaleidoscopic tunnel of light as I shot for the stars. I held a strong intention to visit the akashic records and see the future. As I shifted into the astral planes, I felt a soundless flash of light and pressure in my mind's eye. My brow center had previously strobed several times during my energy-work session, so this was not unexpected.
 	I shifted and found myself under a flickering indigo sky, knee-deep in swirling mist. It billowed around me, forming strange misty sculptures. I focused on future disasters and the mist boiled up and engulfed me. I began seeing on several levels. I was bombarded with glimpses of wars, earthquakes, volcanoes, plagues, floods, plane crashes, and explosions. Visions of suffering filled my mind. It was like trying to watch several TV channels at once.

 	I cleared my mind and the visual onslaught lessened. I refocused my original intention. The clouds boiled up around me again, symbols and pictures forming everywhere. I recognized the grim reaper symbol and focused on this. It grew larger and came to life. I floated towards it, holding my intention. The clouds darkened and the atmosphere turned sinister.

 	The grim reaper threw back his head, laughing and shaking his scythe. In one hand he now held a bunch of cords attached to several mean-looking dogs. They were huge beasts with oversized jaws and burning eyes. They strained and bayed and dragged the laughing grim reaper towards me. I held my intention and felt a falling shift sensation. The grim reaper released the dogs and they leapt at me, as I shifted into a spectacular vision.
 	I floated above a city under a clear-blue sky in brilliant sunlight. The hot air was filled with pungent aromas. Two hundred feet below, a dark-haired mustached man in uniform stood on a raised dais under two giant crossed scimitar swords. I flew down to get a better look, hovering about fifty feet above and in front of the scene. He gave a charismatic speech in a language I did not recognize. I had never seen such a large crowd. There seemed to be millions of people. They were dressed in robes and turbans. The crowd cheered wildly whenever the speaker made a point.
 	As I watched, one of the crossed scimitars morphed into a double-handed broadsword with a golden crucifix on the blade. The scene continued for a minute and then faded. I returned to my physical body and recorded the experience in my journal.

 	The man giving the speech, I now know, was Saddam Hussein. The scene was in Baghdad at an Iraqi war monument. I saw this several months before the Gulf War began in 1990. I did not learn who this person was until I saw my vision televised during the Gulf War. (The morphing sword—changing from a scimitar to a crusader's sword—represented the coming military conflict.) 
 	Note: The Hands of Victory monument in Baghdad was commissioned by Saddam Hussein to commemorate the 1980-88 Iran/Iraq war. It comprises two pairs of giant crossed swords, towering 140 feet high. Source: Wikipedia.
 	 
 Chapter 25: THE ASTRAL WIND

  	This chapter offers a glimpse into some of the mysteries of the astral dimension and how the greater reality affects life down here in the physical universe. To preface, it is my considered opinion that the astral wind is a natural phenomenon with a natural cause and effect. We may not currently understand this, but this is too consistent to be anything else but a natural phenomenon.

 	The Astral Wind Phenomenon

  	If you project regularly into the real-time zone, from time to time you will come across a mystifying phenomenon I call the astral wind . This is most dramatic when experienced during a real-time OBE. Most frequent projectors will recognize the following scenario:

 	You are traveling in the real-time zone when suddenly you are gripped by an irresistible force. You feel yourself being dragged away, usually backward. It feels like you are being blown away by a strong, silent wind. The astral wind feels similar to the magnetic pull experienced when your physical body starts awakening. There is no feeling of dread or weakness, just an irresistible force.

 	You may fight the astral wind for a moment, but it quickly grows stronger and drags you up into the sky and the great beyond. You watch as your house and town dwindle beneath you, as you are dragged up through the clouds. There is a brief loss of consciousness at this point. The next moment you are floating back down again. You may see exactly what you saw on the way up there. Or, you may see the rooftops of another town growing larger as you fall.
 	You will arrive on the ground, often still in the real-time zone. This may be a mundane setting somewhere in the past or the future. The astral wind releases you there and you are free to wander. You may see people you know, or total strangers, or both. Sometimes these other people will also be in real-time projector form. They may or may not be aware of your presence, but often you can interact with them. They are always just as confused as you are as to what is happening.

 	You may witness a real-life scene from your past or future. You may arrive somewhere in the distant past or future. You may see people and places from hundreds or even thousands of years ago, and wander unrecognized streets and places. No reason for any of this is ever apparent at the time.

 	The astral wind phenomenon has been noted by authors on OBE for many years, but it has never been clearly explained. In the classic book The Projection of the Astral Body, authors Muldoon and Carrington call this phenomenon "Super-Conscious Projection" and describe it as being caused by a higher intelligence, forcibly taking projectors to higher dimensional levels for obscure reasons. Muldoon mentions one such astral wind experience of his where he landed in a house and saw strangers he claims to have met in the flesh several months later.
 	The most popular theory is that the astral wind is a high-level demonstration by spirit, giving projectors some cryptic proof, the purpose and meaning of which is never clear. These experiences usually make no sense. But, why would an intelligent spirit do something so bizarre and meaningless? Why confuse projectors and seekers like this? Higher beings could easily give projectors clear messages and more understandable experiences. They could, for example, create a black-board with a written message, or show recognizable pictures and symbols. And they would surely choose a message of some importance, or at least something recognizable.

 	The vast majority of people do not have conscious OBEs. And most frequent projectors—a very small minority group indeed—spend only a very short time in the real-time zone. The mind-split effect, base-level understandability issues, and shadow-memory download problems cause most OBE experiences to be forgotten.
 	The evidence suggests that people are not expected to be conscious in the real-time zone when the astral wind arrives. Their projected doubles are meant to be floating asleep in real time, as per normal sleep projection—making them available to be collected by the astral wind. The frequency of the astral wind is unclear. If this phenomenon occurs once per day, roughly half of the world's population would be asleep—and sleep projecting.
 	The astral wind cannot be explained away as deliberate high-level spiritual communication, or as spontaneous high-level projection. Calling it a Super Consciousness Event, however, does fit. However, there must be natural cause and effect—a natural purpose behind the astral wind phenomenon. The tantalizing fragments of past and future life events often experienced at the end of astral wind experiences suggest that the akashic records may be involved. If so, how do the akashic records fit into this phenomenon?
 	The Cosmic Event of 13.5 Sidereal Time

  	A regular cosmic event occurs at approximately 13.5 sidereal time each day that may be related to the astral wind phenomenon. This event is reported as causing a 380-percent-positive statistical increase in controlled psychic ability tests done with remote viewers and psychics within one hour of this time each day.

 	This effect is discussed in the article "Geomagnetic fluctuations and free-response anomalous cognition: A new understanding" published on March 1, 1997, in The Journal of Parapsychology, by James Spottiswoode.

 	A sidereal day is based on one perfect rotation of the earth, which is almost four minutes shorter than the normal civil clock. The timing of this cosmic event changes every day, steadily moving through the normal civil clock during the calendar year. The results of these studies are not conclusive, but there is enough data to show that some kind of cosmic event happens at regular intervals. I say cosmic because this effect occurs regularly at 13.5 sidereal time (astronomical time).
 	It is possible that this regular cosmic event is linked to the astral wind phenomenon. The dramatic increase in psychic abilities—an average 380-percent increase in positive hits—demonstrates that something big is happening at this time that affects psychic abilities in people who are awake. The astral wind appears to take sleep projectors into a high level of consciousness—a high level of subtle dimensions. This would likely involve brow chakras activating at higher than normal levels. So it is possible that the astral wind actually causes higher brow-chakra activity, to facilitate this shift into a higher dimension. This would explain why those people who are not asleep when the astral wind is active would experience increased psychic abilities at that time—the astral wind activates everyone's brow chakras.
 	It is possible that this sidereal cosmic event occurs more than once per day, but there is not enough data at present to support this. However, given that most of the studies this sidereal event is based upon were conducted during business hours in the Northern Hemisphere, there is room for speculation.

 	The Astral Wind Connection

  	The akashic records do not exist in any particular place or time. This appears to be a frequency that can also be perceived as a structure at times. This frequency is everywhere and everywhen. It is an aspect of dimensional reality that contains reflections of past events and future probabilities. This could be described as a universal holographic database. The frequency of this database can be accessed through various subjective structures during OBE, or directly through psychic abilities. The astral wind is, I believe, the active part of a universal phenomenon. The following analogy will help put this into perspective.
 	Imagine that at a high dimensional level the universe has a great center. This center acts something like a living computer processor. At regular intervals it breathes IN and the astral wind blows and draws into itself all available units of consciousness—the sleeping astral bodies of all living things. The experience information contained within all of these units of consciousness is absorbed and processed. Each unit is balanced against all other units. The great center then breathes out and the astral wind returns everything back to whence it came.
 	At the end of this great cosmic sidereal breath, if persons are conscious, fragments of past and future experiences can sometimes be glimpsed. These glimpses may at times relate to past events and even past lives, and to probable future events which are consequences of past and present events and choices.
 	The Source: The universe is consciousness and consciousness is Source. Everything within the universe is a part of Source. The parts cannot be divided from the whole. Just as you cannot be divided from the cells of your own body, the parts of the universe cannot be divided from Source. In this sense, the natural phenomenon that is the astral wind can be related to the nondual nature of Source. So in observing the astral wind we glimpse the mysterious inner workings of the body of the universe, the heartbeat of the universal consciousness, which is Source.
 	Consciousness Seeds: The astral wind phenomenon occurs when Source reaches out and breathes IN a subtle reflection of the life essences of all units of consciousness in the universe. Each projected double, sleeping or conscious, contains within it a complete energy record of all past and present thoughts and actions. It also contains within it a set of conditional and influential energies that are regularly collected, examined, modified, and updated by Source during the astral wind phenomenon. Let's call these energies consciousness seeds.

 	Consciousness seeds affect the lives of everyone and everything. They are responsible for how we feel and how we interact with everyone and everything else. They affect how we feel and how we act, and even how we love. They are also responsible for gut feelings, for good and bad luck, and for how everyone else responds towards us.
 	At the end of astral wind episodes, Source breathes OUT the modified essences of all projected doubles. These essences contain updated influential consciousness seeds-life-adjusting droplets of consciousness. As each projected double reintegrates with its physical body, these seeds become part of the physical energy body/mind. Some seeds begin influencing immediately, while others lie dormant and ready to surface when triggered by choices and real-life events. When a dormant seed is triggered, its energies become influential. This affects how that person interacts with everything and everyone in life.
 	Déjà vu: I think déjà vu is related to the astral wind. The tail end of the astral wind phenomenon often involves precognitive experiences of the near future. When a powerful seed is triggered it causes déjà vu—a strong feeling of having seen or done something before. Déjà vu may be caused by the activation of consciousness seeds by real-life events and choices. Déjà vu feels like a vivid memory has suddenly surfaced—but a memory of something only now being experienced. Many déjà vu experiencers remember not only what is happening at the time, but also what is going to happen next. This type of experience is remarkable and can affect people's lives, because it makes them wonder.
 	Life's Little Choices: Life is full of little choices. Everyone makes a stream of seemingly insignificant little choices every day of their lives: what we eat and drink, what bus or train we catch, what we read, etc. The little choices we make—and those made for us by other people—can profoundly affect our lives and the lives of others. We have freedom of choice, yes. Lives are not mapped out like scripts to be followed blindly. We have the power to change the future by choosing.
 	When we follow our feelings it is often just that—we do something just because we feel like doing it. I think the randomness of this is the element most affected by influential seed energies. These shape our lives and the lives of others, working through us and through all those around us, and through coincidences.

 	The Natural Purpose of OBE: During normal sleep, the projected double is expelled naturally through sleep projection. The projectable double contains a complete reflection of consciousness with all memories, conscious and subconscious. It holds a perfect copy of its physical self in subtle-energy form. It waits outside of its physical body for the next astral wind to arrive, to fulfill its natural purpose.
 	When the astral wind arrives, the projected double is irresistibly drawn upward and into The Great Center. The coarser layers of consciousness fall away until only its pure essence remains. This is drawn into The Great Center for processing and adjusting according to past actions and choices, and according to what is needed for individual spiritual growth. A timeless moment later, it is breathed OUT to return and reintegrate with its physical body/mind.

 	This process happens naturally during sleep. The assimilation of adjusted influential consciousness seeds is not usually remembered by the conscious mind—unless it happens to be awake at the time. Real-time projectors can experience the entire astral wind phenomenon and may also experience metaphorical imagery associated with updated consciousness seeds. If persons wake up during this process, precognitive dreams can also be remembered.

 	Tying this all together, everything points to conscious OBE being a loophole in a natural phenomenon. However, I also think that OBE is an important aspect of spiritual evolution. As persons evolve spiritually, OBE becomes steadily more frequent and meaningful.

 	  

 	Figure 34. Astral wind illustration 

 	Astral Wind Experience

  	The following astral wind experience occurred during a powerful real-time OBE with an added mind-split effect twist. I was awake in both my physical body/mind and my real-time projected double. This gave me a unique perspective of the astral wind phenomenon. With hindsight, the results of the precognitive aspects of this experience—and the seeded influences involved—become apparent. Keep in mind here that if I had not been projecting at this time, I would likely have had no recollection of this experience. Food for thought.

 	It was a hot summer's night and I was meditating and energy working. My body tingled and I felt whole-body vibrations. I decided to project and buzzed free of my body. I moved to the back of the living area. A force like a powerful wind gripped me and pulled me backward. My physical aspect watched on with interest. We decided to go with it and see what happened—not that we could do anything about it anyway.
 	My projected double was dragged backwards through the wall and up into the sky at a forty-five-degree angle. I could not turn and face the way I was moving. I had experienced this before but did not understand. I was not scared, as this had never hurt me before. I watched my house grow smaller as I was dragged up into the moonlit night sky and into the unknown.

 	I momentarily blacked out as I passed through the upper clouds. I became aware again as I was falling back to Earth a short time later. I was facing down this time. The astral wind dumped me in the middle of the road in front of my house—a neat, tree-lined cul-de-sac in the suburbs. In front of me stood a refrigerator. There was a red brick wall about twenty feet high just behind it. (In real life there was no wall or refrigerator.) The refrigerator door hung open with its light on. Intuitively, I knew that it was broken. It was full of old toys and junk.

 	The next moment, my wife appeared beside me. She looked at the refrigerator then glared at me. She coldly said, "Goodbye," then turned and marched away. She walked away from our house, towards her parents' house. As she rounded the corner, she paused and looked back at me. Her face softened and with a sad little smile and a small wave, she turned and walked out of sight.

 	I stood there, stunned, looking at the desolate scene around me. I could read the metaphor of what I had just experienced. My wife and I were destined to separate at some time in the not-so-distant future. This staggered me, as we were happily married and busy raising our children and building a future together.

 	The experience ended and I shifted back into my physical body. I got up and recorded this in my journal. I guessed about thirty minutes had passed since I had left my body.

 	Any OBE, dream, vision, or psychic impression can be affected by astral wind episodes. Experiences often involve something like a series of one-act plays, containing elements of real life, symbols, and metaphors.
 	It is possible to gain insight into current life situations and future events by analyzing experiences. Possible choices and probable outcomes are often apparent. However, content is often too abstractly simple for easy interpretation. It is usually only in hindsight that the true meaning of content becomes clear. An interpretation protocol can help to extract something of value from such experiences. In time, a personal interpretation lexicon can be developed.
 	The following interpretation method will help decipher any type of abstract metaphorical visual experience, whether experienced in or out of the body: 
 	Experience Interpretation Method 

  	Keep a journal and record significant OBE, dream, and psychic-vision experiences. It is usually only in hindsight that experiences become meaningful. Having a record of these allows comparisons with other experiences and real-life events. This works better over the long term, as time and experience and hindsight are needed.
 	Everyone's mind works differently when it comes to OBEs, dreams, and psychic-vision experiences. We all have our personal set of mental filters and associations, conscious and subconscious. These include learned mental associations and the archetypes of the collective consciousness.
 	Long-term recording and analysis allow the identification of personal symbolism and imagery. In time, repeated patterns become known and this knowledge can be applied to interpreting experiences. Valuable personal insight can then be gleaned from seemingly meaningless experiences. Another bonus of building an interpretation protocol is that life will begin working through this, giving you personal life guidance.

 	For all items and elements of an experience, ask these questions: What is this? What does it do? How is it connected with me and my life? What is its simplest and most basic meaning? Ask these and then apply common sense, logic, intuition, and any hindsight you might have. This will provide insight and reveal hidden meanings. Wishful thinking and jumping to conclusions will ruin the value of an interpretation, as will ignoring the obvious.
 	Vision, Dream, and an OBE Journal

  	The detailed journal layout below can be modified to suit. In time, a more practiced eye will allow the bulk of interpretation to be done mentally. It will grow progressively simpler as experience is gained.

 	Header: At the top of each journal entry show the page number, time, date, and moon phase. Add a title to encapsulate the experience, e.g., "Disneyland" or "Refrigerator." These headers make it easier to review and search for experiences later.
 	Key Words: List these below the header, keeping the chronological sequence. Separate vision segments with a dash—like this—if multiple segments are involved.
 	Full Experience: Write this using the key words as a guide—again using dashes to divide segments.

 	Setting: Describe this and list changes if there are multiple segments.

 	Players: List people in order of importance. Note their connections to you. If there are many people in an experience, list those not taking active parts as "Extras."
 	Sequence of Events: Briefly list the main sequence of events.

 	Symbols and Abstracts: Things that seem odd or out of place can be symbolic, abstractly representing something. These can be anything: objects, animals, persons, clothing, etc. For example: a police officer may symbolize legal matters; a firefighter may symbolise damage or danger.
 	Life-Path Indicators: Any form of transport will usually indicate your life path. A particular type of vehicle, say an ambulance, furniture truck, hearse, bicycle, can add meaning and indicate future changes and events. This includes experiences where you are walking along a path or road. Interpret these in the most basic way possible until you gain hindsight experience.
 	Symbolic Actions: Any action that stands out or is unusual will have symbolic meaning. Even insignificant actions can be important, e.g., if someone passes an item, or points, or reveals something, or waves, or smiles, or frowns, or laughs, or turns away.

 	Symbolic Modifiers: These add meaning to symbols and actions. If, for example, someone passes a damaged or dirty object to you, the condition of that object is a modifier, altering its meaning. For example, if you see a police officer with a dirty face carrying a fireman's axe, then a legal matter involving a fire could be a possible. When traveling in a vehicle, the type and condition of that vehicle are modifiers. If you are traveling on foot, the condition of the road and surrounding scenery are modifiers, as is the condition of your shoes and clothing.
 	Signposts and Date Indicators: These indicators will always be present, although they may be obscure—like the refrigerator symbol given earlier. Signposts are date stamps for future times and events. For example, you may see a big car battery sitting in the middle of your living room during an experience. This would indicate that when a car battery becomes significant, the events depicted will be active, or are about to become active.
 	Connections: Note anything connecting you with people, objects, and events.

 	Comments: List your interpretation of the vision here. Apply current knowledge, feelings, intuition, and logic. Watch out for wishful thinking and do not jump to conclusions.

 	Hindsight: Leave this blank until parts of the experience appear in real life.

 	When this happens, recheck the experience for patterns and symbols that might apply to other experiences.

 	Indexing: Start building an index of recurring themes, symbols, patterns, and their apparent meanings. Cross-reference to link recurring symbols and metaphors.

 	Example Interpretation—The Refrigerator

  	Header: 
 	"Busted Refrigerator" (date) (Full Moon) (page number) 
 	Key Words: 
 	OBE, astral wind—on road, broken refrigerator, brick wall—wife angry, goodbye.
 	Full Experience:
 	(Already given above.)
 	Setting:

 	#1. OBE started inside house.

 	#2. On the road outside house.

 	Players:

 	My wife; myself.

 	Sequence of Events:

 	I projected; I was blown away by astral wind; I landed on the street outside home; I saw broken refrigerator and wall; wife appeared, looked at refrigerator, said goodbye and left; she stopped and waved before continuing towards her parents' home.

 	Symbols/Abstracts:

 	Road outside my home (why was I there, out on the street?); large brick wall (a barrier or ending—or a date stamp?); refrigerator (odd symbol, maybe a date stamp?) junk and toys in fridge (another symbol or modifier).

 	Life Path Indicators:

 	I was on foot, on road outside my home, I was out on the street?

 	Symbolic Actions:

 	Wife said goodbye; she walked away from me; she stopped and waved; she went towards parents' home.

 	Symbolic Modifiers

 	Refrigerator light was on (showing its light worked?); refrigerator appeared broken and was full of old toys and junk; brick wall was huge and looked impassable; wife appeared angry and coldly said goodbye; she walked away from me and away from our home (indicating she'd precipitate split); she waved sadly back at me (indicating belated remorse?); she went towards her parents' home (indicating reconnection with her estranged parents?).

 	Signposts and Date Indicators:

 	Refrigerator? Brick wall? Wife reconnecting with parents?

 	Connections:

 	I was there; my wife was there (connected by marriage); I was on the road outside my home (linking these events with my family life).

 	Comments:

 	I guessed this vision foretold my marriage would end in the near future; most likely date-stamped by a broken refrigerator and brick wall; possibly by her reconnecting with parents?

 	* * *
 	Hindsight:

 	All the events depicted in this experience came true. A year after I had this experience, my next-door neighbor built an eight-foot brick wall around his house. A neighbor across the street did the same. few months after this, we moved to another town three hundred miles away. Our refrigerator broke during the move. We borrowed one from my wife's parents (they had reconciled). This refrigerator was also broken, but its light did work. This sat on our porch for two years waiting to be collected. Every time I looked at it, as my children slowly filled it with toys and junk, I remembered the astral wind experience. I had a feeling that when it was collected, this could signify the end of my marriage.
 	For all this foreknowledge, I could not see it happening. Our marriage had its usual ups and downs, but seemed stable. Then my wife's father came and collected the broken refrigerator. A feeling of déjà vu came over me then. Again I wondered if this meant the end of my marriage. Seven days after the refrigerator was collected, my marriage ended suddenly and for no reason I could have foreseen. I ended up out on the street, literally, as the vision depicted. The road I stood on outside my home was indeed a symbol with hidden meaning.

 	Looking back in hindsight, the meaning of every item and action is clear. The brick wall I saw was impassable. If there had been a way to change these events, a way around or over the wall would have been seen. Two neighbors building high brick walls around their homes just before we left town—that part was more than just symbolic?

 	Of note, the old toys and junk in the refrigerator were involved in the outcome—but I will keep that part to myself.

 	While knowledge of this future event did not change the outcome, it did make it easier to accept. I was psychologically prepared and this helped me through a difficult time of change. Looking back many years later, I can see how life has guided me. I would not change anything in my past. I look back on a sea of silver linings arising from apparent misfortunes. For example, I certainly would have not have written this book if these events had not happened, when and as they did.

 	Altering Prophetic Experiences

  	Misunderstanding the nature of metaphorical imagery in prophetic experiences, plus wishful thinking and jumping to conclusions, can cause a lot of problems.

 	If, for example, you see a friend injured in a dream, it's easy to slip into denial and use creative ability to subconsciously or intentionally change the experience while it is happening. Important modifying elements revealing choices and ways to change outcomes can then be lost. The unaltered experience is needed for meaningful analysis. The passive observer mindset helps to accept what is. Observe experiences unemotionally and record them as clearly as possible.
 	Every part of an experience is meaningful, down to what shoes you might be wearing. Your emotional state during an experience is another important factor to be noted. This must be taken into consideration during analysis. Logic, intuition, common sense, and clear thinking are needed to interpret precognitive experiences. This is particularly so when dealing with high-energy and high-interest subjects. Treat with caution experiences involving relationships, money, death, and injury.

 	  

 Chapter 26: OBE AND REALITY FLUCTUATIONS

  	There are no simple explanations for OBE reality fluctuations. In most cases, reality starts to fluctuate within a couple of minutes of the OBE exit. These are more noticeable with real-time OBEs, especially in well-known areas. Reality fluctuations have several contributing sources.
 	The Subconscious Mind: If not controlled, the subconscious mind can generate a stream of guesswork thoughts. Some of this is in response to associations triggered by thoughts and events. Guesswork, also called analytical overlay, plagues psychics and remote viewers. Subconsciously guessing interferes with objective perception. For example, if an object's shape, or a shadow, is vaguely seen during OBE, the subconscious mind will often try to instantly guess what it is. This can stimulate the subconscious mind, with its creative ability, into altering the object or creating a new form to fit the guess. If projectors are subconsciously fearful of the out-of-body environment, vague shadows can change into fearful images. The subconscious mind holds the bulk of creative power during an OBE. It can create complex objects and scenarios instantly.
 	The Dream Mind: When active, the dream mind can create reality fluctuations around the projected double. What is being dreamed can bleed through into the OBE environment. The effects of dream-mind interference are strongest when projectors are close to their physical bodies. This lessens progressively with distance.
 	Ideal Reentry Time: The start of reality fluctuations during real-time OBE is a good time to end the experience and to attempt deliberate reentry. Reality fluctuations indicate that the sleep state of the physical body/mind is deepening. It is most productive to reenter while the physical body/mind can still be awakened. The ability to awaken is necessary for reintegration to occur.
 	Dream OBE Exit: The desire to induce OBE will often carry over into the dream state. The dream mind will often believe it is still engaged in an OBE-exit attempt, especially if it fell asleep during one. When the dream body/mind feels projection symptoms coming from its physical body/mind (vibrations, rapid heartbeat, falling, etc.), it will usually believe it is having an OBE exit. It will then experience a realistic dream version of an OBE exit.

 	The dream version of a real-time OBE will seem real to the dream mind. The real-time aspect of this will be based on the projector's memories of the actual surrounding area. This can overlay the true real-time OBE (which is in progress) with a dream version of the same thing. The false dream projector will have a different viewpoint from the true real-time projector. This can overlay the true real-time environment with a twisted, reversed, double vision, or fluctuating scenario. This will not make any sense at all to the true projector.
 	Other Dreaming Minds: Other dreamers can also contribute to reality fluctuations. This can cause confusing scenarios and events to appear around real-time projectors. This can be called background dream static. Heavily populated areas have more background dream static than unpopulated areas.

 	The Brow Center: The brow chakra (third eye) of a projector is capable of receiving mind's-eye visions during an OBE. Primary energy centers are more active during an OBE than the normal awake state, due to increased energy-body activity. It can generate unexplainable imagery, which can manifest around projectors. Projectors will experience mind's-eye visions firsthand, from inside the visions. This can also shift projectors into astral realms.

 	Once reality fluctuations start during a real-time OBE, it can be difficult to make sense of what is happening. Moving away from your physical body can help, as can glancing at your hands occasionally. As said, the beginning of reality fluctuations is an excellent time to reenter the physical body. Passionately shouting key words during reentry will help to download OBE memory for conscious recall.
 	A mixed bag of perceptions and reality fluctuations is to be expected during real-time OBEs. While annoying, reality fluctuations are not bad or sinister. A good sense of humor and of the ridiculous helps. Work around them as best you can, and then reenter your body.

 	Avoiding Reality Fluctuations

  	
 	Focus on what you are doing and don't let your mind wander.

 	Keep moving at all times and do not stay in one area for too long.

 	Move away from your physical body after the OBE exit and keep at least a twenty-foot (six-meter) distance.

 	Keep up a running commentary, describing what you are seeing and doing.

 	Do not focus on anything overlong. Observe objects briefly and move along, or look at something else. Keep moving.

 	Glance at your hands frequently—not long enough for them to melt.

 	End the OBE when reality fluctuations become pronounced.

 	Confusing Astral Effects

  	You do not have a body during an OBE. You are a point of consciousness with no size or shape. The laws of the physical universe do not apply to you.

 	The physical body and its projected double can be likened to an electrical capacitor and its stored energy. If you could separate this physical device from its stored energy, releasing but containing this energy in a cohesive unit, what size would this energy unit be? What would it weigh? What would it look like? There are no answers to these questions, as energy has zero size and mass, and no form. But this energy unit would still exist.
 	For all that, projectors can perceive their bodies, but only when parts of them are deliberately observed. The body parts that appear are created by the subconscious mind. This does not seem capable of accepting the nonexistence of its body, so it temporarily creates body parts whenever these are looked for.

 	Melting Body Parts

  	If you look closely at parts of your projected body during an OBE, especially your hands, you will find they start melting. They melt away in a few seconds. If you look away and then look back at your hands, the melting process will repeat. Keep doing this and you will usually shift into an astral realm. Hands can look pale and unearthly, and sometimes totally unlike your real hands. You can glance at any body part and it will look fairly stable, but studying it closely will cause it to melt or distort.
 	Any other real physical object observed closely during an OBE will not usually melt. Things will change and often morph into other things, but they will not melt. This points to the act of self-observation being the cause of the melting-body-parts phenomenon. I think self-observation during an OBE causes a conflict within the subconscious mind. This creates the appearance of body parts as an automatic response to self-observation. However, these body parts cannot be maintained. The subconscious mind cannot accept its body not existing, or existing in two places simultaneously. Internal conflicts cause the body parts to melt and/or distort.
 	A brief glance at your hands during an OBE causes a small shock wave between the projected double and its physical body/mind. This helps stabilize the projection by partially arousing the physical body/mind and slowing its natural progression into deeper levels of sleep. The melting-body-parts phenomenon is more noticeable in real time than in astral realms, although it can still happen. The melting-hands phenomenon in real time is one of the precious few constant factors of OBEs.
 	Vision Reversal Issues

  	Vision reversal is an occasional real-time OBE issue that can cause some confusion. This happens because the physical body has a natural frontal vision perspective of 220 degrees. The projected double is a point of consciousness with the potential to have 360-degree vision, seeing in all directions simultaneously. The projected double does not contain functioning sense organs. It does not have a body, so there are no subtle energy copies of flesh, bones, and organs. It is not bound by the vision limitations of the physical eyes. It can see in all directions simultaneously, if it can get past its habitual frontal vision perspective.
 	A 360-degree viewpoint (spherical vision) is not readily acceptable by projectors' minds. This can interfere with the projector's ingrained sense of left and right, and up and down, which can further compound the spherical vision problem. Spherical vision can cause some peculiar OBE effects and reality fluctuations. Real-time projectors often find their world suddenly becomes reversed for no apparent reason. Everything looks the same, but everything is suddenly back to front or out of place.

 	During an OBE, projectors' visual senses can easily become disoriented. They can momentarily experience sudden unnatural changes of perspective, and these changes can reverse left and right perspectives. This can happen if they suddenly reverse direction. Their viewpoint suddenly changes from front to rear without them actually turning, as they would have to in their physical bodies. This action reverses their natural viewpoint and tricks the subconscious mind into instantly remaking the environment to suit.
 	The following illustration shows the reversal of viewpoint without turning, and the strange effects this can have. The natural senses of front and back, up and down, left and right are deeply ingrained. These can affect the direct mind senses of the projected double and the OBE environment itself. Note in the illustration that the natural sense of direction does not change when the projector's point of view turns inside out, without the projector actually turning.
 	The real-time projector @ is in the center of the diagram facing toward (A) with the door clearly perceived to be on his right-hand side. He has normal frontal vision with a natural left-and-right perspective, as in real life. The projector knows, as does his subconscious mind, that if he turns around and faces (B) the door and TV will be on his left-hand side, and the chair on his right-hand side.
 	Now, if the projector is facing (A) and he suddenly turns inside out without turning, and without noticing this lack of turning, his viewpoint reverses. Viewpoint (A) suddenly become viewpoint (B) but without him turning as he would in real life. His sense of left and right is suddenly reversed.

 	When his viewpoint suddenly changes from (A) to (B) without turning and experiencing a rotation of viewpoint that his mind can accept, the door stays in view and causes a problem, as do the chair and TV when they suddenly appear in view. He was aware of the door on his right-hand side with viewpoint (A) but he does not lose sight of the door when he suddenly turns inside out and changes his viewpoint to (B).

 	  

 	Figure 35. Vision-reversal phenomenon

 	His subconscious mind cannot accept this sudden reversal of viewpoint. The conscious mind also has problems accepting this magical reversal of view. The door seen on the right-hand side while facing (A) at the start of the inside-out reversal would have to vanish and reappear again on the right-hand side after turning and facing (B). But this would place the door on the other side of the room, which is clearly impossible. The TV and chair would also have to reverse positions to keep his natural left and right perspective in order, which is also clearly impossible for the subconscious mind.
 	The subconscious mind takes the easy way out and uses its creative ability to change the view to suit. Now, what the subconscious mind can accept and what the conscious mind can accept are two different things. This seemingly impossible change in viewpoint has caused the subconscious mind to creatively correct the view by reversing it, or by reversing and changing parts of it, to fit what it feels is most natural and acceptable.
 	The subconscious mind makes instantaneous alterations as its viewpoint changes. It either makes the real door vanish and reappear on the other side of the room, then switches the TV and chair to fit this new perspective, or more likely simply creates another door, another TV, and another chair for both sides of the room.
 	The cause for real-time OBE vision reversal can be simulated. Stand in front of a mirror. Close your eyes and relax for a few seconds. Now, open your eyes (in real life) and quickly try to pick left and right behind you in the mirror. This causes a moment of confusion in your innate sense of left and right, because you have to calculate left and right. This slight confusion is all it takes to trigger the subconscious mind into creating changes during OBE.
 	During real-time OBE, the subconscious mind will not accept a deliberate change of left and right perspective. Anything it has created will stay in existence for the duration of the OBE. So, there is no way to reset this once it happens. If you get reversed during OBE, work around it and continue as best you can. If you have plans to do something in real time, you still can. You just have to adjust for the changes.

 Chapter 27: HIGHER DIMENSIONAL LEVELS

  	Higher dimensional levels are similar in structure to the astral dimension, but exist at higher frequencies. All dimensions occupy the same space and overlay the physical universe. We all spontaneously shift into higher dimensional levels during sleep. However, doing this intentionally in the awake state requires some level of spiritual evolution, as well as energy-body development. One's level of consciousness can be raised over time through meditation, energy work, and spiritual life practices.

 	Many varieties of OBE are possible. Real-time and astral OBEs can be said to involve the projection of an energy copy of the physical body and mind. The development of projectors' energy bodies and their levels of consciousness affect what type of experiences they can have.
 	A basic real-time OBE can be said to be a projection of an energy copy of the flesh of the physical body and its brain. This accounts for the lack of mental processing abilities and poor memory that are commonly experienced during real-time OBE. Many people comment that it is as if they have left half of their minds behind in their physical bodies.
 	There are more refined levels of astral projection, depending on the configuration of projectors' energy bodies and their current spiritual development. There is a gradient of potential projected doubles. Projection into the higher astral planes involves the projection of more of the mind and consciousness of projectors, and less of an energy projection of the flesh of the physical body.
 	There are no actual techniques for projecting into dimensions higher than the astral planes. If projectors have the necessary levels of energy-body and consciousness development, this will occur naturally during OBEs. Commands given after the exit out of body can be used, however, to project into higher levels, e.g., "Take me to the higher astral planes!" 
 	A projection into the mental planes involves the projection of an energy copy of a projector's mind. You already do this in a sense when you dream or have lucid dreams. This is why dreams are so different from real-time and astral projections. Dreams involve the mind operating in dimensions of mind—in a mental dimension.
 	Probably the most achievable way to gain some experience with higher dimensions is through the practice of lucid dreaming, and particularly wake-induced lucid dreaming (WILD). Lucid dreaming is a step up from normal dreaming. And wake-induced lucid dreaming is a giant leap upwards. The secret to using these to experience higher levels is to make commands, e.g., "Take me to the highest level!" or, "Take me to a master!" or, "Take me to a teacher!"
 	High Level Experiences

  	The Eastern names describing higher dimensions are meaningless to the average westerner. Dimensions also do not have signposts in them saying "Welcome to the Astral Planes!" or "Mental Planes—Watch Your Mind!" or "Buddhic Planes—Love One Another!" It can be difficult to know exactly what level is being experienced at the time. So, in the following I have used descriptive names to describe some of the higher dimensional levels I have experienced.

 	Rainbow Level

  	I project into a distant multicolored pattern sparkling in the distance through the purple-edged vista suffusing my mind's eye. I shift with a heavy falling sensation.

 	I fly over a rainbow bridge and float along an iridescent river until I land on shores of pulsating light. Mind-blowing colors abound. Thoughts appear and disappear as kaleidoscopic crystalline patterns of light and sound. Sparkling imagery explodes like fireworks in my mind's eye. A walk through sculpted fields under skies raining ideas yields tantalizing glimpses of higher consciousness. A stroll through a crystal forest feeds my imagination. Looking to the sky, I fall upward into a maelstrom of violet light.
 	Music fills the air and resonates my being. Delicate notes are plucked on my heartstrings. My spirit soars. Angelic voices sing in the distance. I have no idea where I am or what is happening. It is incredibly beautiful here. It is so alive and vibrant and I am invigorated, overwhelmed with the urge to create. A poem springs to life in my mind. With a final mind-numbing purple explosion, I fall back into my body in amazement. My mind aches and races with inspirational energy.

 	Beneath all this colorful imagery, there is an enormous feeling of power. There is a great deal of activity here. I have glimpsed angels and other wonderful beings. Some appear as beautiful animated forms. It is likely that my mind's eye is interpreting their energies, giving them form and shape. This level seems vastly more complex and abstract than the astral planes.
 	Mystical Level

  	I have entered this level on only a few rare occasions, always from within a deep meditative state. I do not know how to initiate this intentionally. This is almost indescribable.

 	This is a beautiful, warm, abstract level, filled with infinite peace and love. Soul-deep patience and understanding permeate the atmosphere. This is totally different from any other level. It has the visual appearance of a beautifully textured fluffy-white cloud. There are no sights or sounds here—only the all-pervading white-fluffy cloud, and an almost inaudible soft humming. Here, you quickly relinquish conscious thoughts of individuality and begin melting into nondual oneness. An irresistible urge draws you deeper into the bliss of silence and infinite love. Being here is like returning to the womb. You are immersed in something like warm and cuddly cotton-wool. Just before you lose track of this experience, you will realize your higher self, but you will not be able to put this into words afterwards. Time has no meaning here. If you enter this world, you will never want to leave. But your body will call you back when it awakes.
 	Spirit Level

  	I have been to this level on only a few rare, special occasions. I always see the same basic features, but the events and beings are different.

 	The background is intense silver-white, yet gentle on the eyes. The ground is creamy-colored, smooth, and feels cool and solid underfoot, like polished marble.

 	In front of me is a large natural amphitheater about the size of a football field, sunk into creamy rock and sided by gentle slopes. The rear of the amphitheater rises some twenty feet higher. The light source comes from behind. I usually arrive there about twenty paces from the edge of the amphitheater. There are usually dozens of people in the amphitheater. They appear to be just as they were in physical life, but at their most magnificent. They glow ecstatically with inner light, ablaze with happiness and joy. The atmosphere here is electric and deeply spiritual.

 	Communication here is a kind of telepathic, metaphorical imaging, full of empathy and intuition. It sounds complicated but it feels very natural. Normal speech is superfluous. The few words said here are translations. Time stands utterly still here. This place feels more real than the physical dimension.

 	I have entered this dimension on only a few very special occasions, each time from within the deepest of meditations. Each time I have had intense crown- and brow-chakra activity. My energy has soared and a bright silver-white structure has appeared in the distance in my mind's eye. I move towards this and begin to shift as it pulls me.

 	Brief sensations of falling and infinite speed through an exploding tunnel of silver-white light and I shift. I stagger slightly, catching my balance, as if I had tripped. My eyes fill with awe as I see, standing right in front of me, my firstborn son, Jeremy. He was almost eight years old when he died. He waits politely and then throws himself into my arms like a cannonball when I see him. He bubbles with excitement: "You did it, Daddy, you did it! I told them you'd come! I told them you could do it!" 
 	He looks just as he did when I last saw him, so full of life. He hasn't aged a day. Jeremy beams with happiness and chatters nonstop, his brown eyes shining up into mine. I cuddle him up and weep with joy. I feel the sting of tears and a huge sob starting way down deep inside of me.
 	Stifling this with an act of will, knowing my time here is short, I take Jeremy under my arm and walk down into the amphitheater. An excited crowd of people is waiting for us. There are friends and family I have known and loved, and many I do not recognize. There is a lot of joyful hugging and kissing.

 	One other person I dearly want to see is a sweetheart of mine, Sharon. She is as usual jumping higher and cheering louder than anyone. She steps out of the crowd and hugs me, her long honey-blonde hair a bright halo for her impish face. As our eyes meet, a mind's-eye vision explodes in my mind, superimposed over my sight. In this, she wears a spectacular tasseled cowgirl suit with fancy white hat and oversized silver guns. She fires them into the air, soundless bright flashes while she dances an Irish jig. A lot passes between us in those few moments. An Irish lass from Dublin, her nickname in real life had been Cowboy.
 	I glance at the back of the amphitheater. At the top of the ridge are several angels. They are beautiful beings, friendly, aloof, serious. Some of them have wings and some do not. They have shoulder-length, curly golden hair and alabaster skin. They wear full-length flowing white robes. Some blow on long golden horns.

 	I step clear of the crowd and look in awe at the angels and at the brilliant light behind them. The scene starts fading. I spin around, taking everything in and locking it into my mind. "I will remember this! I will remember this!" I yell passionately.

 	The air shimmers and a rainbow explodes in my mind's eye. With a brief falling sensation, I fall back into my physical body. I gasp and catch the arms of my chair. I weep. I did not want to come back.

 	The Summerland

  	There is one more level I have seen but not entered, called The Summerland. This is an early spiritualist term for the spirit world. What I have seen of this level has always been through a rectangular door above me. Imagine a normal-sized door fixed to the ceiling with its door hanging half-open and you have the general idea. I cannot really explain this phenomenon. Sometimes it is better that way. It has happened on several occasions during my life.

 	While deep in meditation, a powerful atmosphere of love and tranquility permeates my room. Kaleidoscopic colors explode slowly in my mind's eye. I sense light and movement on my eyelids. Awed and a little stunned, I open my physical eyes. Above me is a rectangular doorway at ceiling height. Golden light floods into my room as its door falls slowly open.

 	Unmoving, I peer up through the doorway. Aptly named The Summerland, it looks, smells, and sounds and feels like the most wonderful summer's day imaginable. I can sense a spectacular wonderland on the other side of this heavenly doorway.

 	The scene through the doorway is bursting with life. There are trees and flowers and birds fluting. I see warm blue skies dotted with fluffy white clouds. Flowers bloom through the edges of the door, framing it with beauty as they fall gracefully into the room. The smell of their perfume is intoxicating. I feel the warmth of a summer day caressing my skin as the golden light bathes my upturned face and hands. Tangible feelings of love and peace and bright-eyed happiness radiate through the doorway. Layer upon layer of intoxicating beauty fill my senses. I hear a waterfall splashing nearby and the sweet sounds of children playing and wind gusting through leafy boughs. I ache to rise from the ordinariness of my mortal life and be in this wondrous place.
 	This place feels so familiar, like somewhere I once knew but have forgotten. Like distant childhood memories spent traipsing on my old adventurers' trails. And of long summer days playing with my sisters and friends in the enchanted forests and fields of our childhood.

 Chapter 28: ASTRAL BEINGS AND WILDLIFE

  	The astral dimension contains a wide variety of nonphysical life forms. It can be likened to the natural world and its oceans, which are teeming with life ranging from bacteria to humans, from plankton to whales. Some wild creatures are harmless, some are harmful only when interfered with, and some are always dangerous. There are also many travelers, some local and some from far-off lands. Some are friendly and will speak your language, and some will not understand you or will not be interested.
 	The less-intelligent types of astral wildlife are animalistic and predatory, much like the animals of the physical dimension. These are not sinister and are never a problem during OBEs, although some types found in the real-time zone can have disturbing appearances. Astral wildlife form with the appearance of snakes and large insects are common. While best avoided, these are not a danger to projectors and are no more evil than are their physical-world look-alikes.
 	Some native inhabitants of astral realms are amazed when they meet astral travelers, while some have little patience with projectors. Some will converse with astral travelers, especially if projectors are courteous. Like attracts like in the astral. If you are friendly and polite, you are more likely to encounter friendly astral beings. The best approach to astral exploration is to be polite and to mind your own business, unless invited to do otherwise.
 	The first three astral planes are where most people project. These realms are heavily populated with sleep projectors. These are like a mish-mash of shopping malls, roads and buildings, and parks and open spaces, teeming with millions of people. You will only occasionally encounter other aware projectors. Many seem to be sleepwalking or just going along with the flow. They are often quite surprised when it is pointed out to them that they are projecting and can fly, etc. While these realms have their interesting parts, there is really not much but sightseeing for spiritual seekers to do.
 	If you find yourself in heavily populated areas like this, try to shift somewhere more meaningful and interesting. You can use various methods to shift, like spinning around or falling backwards or looking at your hands. These methods will shift you randomly. Holding a clear intention will help to shift you more specifically. To do this, form the intention that you wish to shift to a realm where you can get some help and advice, and make a command aloud. Firmly say something like, "Take me to my highest potential!" or, "Take me to a wise person!" or, "Take me to the akashic records!" or, "Take me to a master!" Have a think about what you want to do when you get to the astral planes before you project, so you have some kind of plan.
 	Your higher spiritual self compared with your normal self is like a deity. It is always with you because it is a part of you. This aspect of you is far more receptive and proactive in the astral than it is in physical life. This is how affirmations and commands work. Nothing is too much trouble for your higher self, because this is you at a higher spiritual level. And your higher self is always very interested in helping you to learn and to achieve your goals. Your higher self loves you more than you could possibly imagine. You are your higher self and your higher self is love.
 	Exalted spiritual beings are only rarely sighted by accident in the astral planes, but it can happen. Angels and masters usually only show themselves when they have good reason for doing so. This may not be apparent to projectors at the time, but there is always a profound reason. You will, though, occasionally come across more advanced spiritual souls and these will converse freely and offer advice.

 	When you travel out of body, you are always being monitored by higher spiritual forces, especially your higher spiritual self, which is always with you whether you are in or out of your body. You are not being judged, but you are being observed. Your intentions and conduct are therefore important. I advise spiritual seekers to always hold higher spiritual intentions. Then the higher astral planes and realms can be accessed and experienced with some degree of purpose and surety.
 	To the uninitiated playful projector, the astral planes are exciting places to visit and explore and play and have adventures. They are pure "wow-ness." But wow-ness has a purpose. It attracts you to spiritual thought through phenomena.
 	It makes you think and ponder the greater reality. To more spiritually minded projectors, the astral planes are filled with realms of learning and spiritual growth opportunities.

 	Think on this. If you were a high spiritual being, what would you do to aid astral projectors who charge through the astral looking for fun and excitement? And what about all those projectors who lack the most basic control of their primal urges? The best that one could do would be to wait for projectors to gain some experience and understanding of how things work in greater reality. Only then would they be worth approaching and guiding.
 	You will occasionally encounter intelligent astral beings, and some can be extremely insightful and helpful. They may not have all the answers you seek, but they will usually offer some good advice or give directions. Some intelligent astral beings often seem a bit out of place. They may be just sitting or standing about looking very unimportant. They may appear as a small child or an animal.
 	Alternatively, advanced spirit beings can appear as something more easily recognizable, say as a wise man or woman. When you encounter such a being, there is always a purpose at work. Think of this as an arranged meeting, triggered by your intentions and spiritual life path. This could be the demonstration of higher spiritual wisdom you have been waiting for. You may not understand this when it happens. Sometimes this is best. Keep smiling, like you know what you are doing. This is sage advice.
 	Astral Ceremonies and Initiations

  	On rare occasions, you might project out of body and find yourself involved in some kind of spiritual operation, a ceremony or an initiation. I don't fully understand these, but they seem to be triggered when projectors' energies and consciousness reach new levels. When breakthroughs and milestones occur in your energy and consciousness, these can be marked with ceremony in the astral. These can be thought of as archetype programs that are activated in the collective consciousness. I have experienced several astral ceremonies and initiations. The following two examples are the short versions of the actual experiences.
 	The Blue Ray: My first astral ceremony happened during my first deliberate OBE. Through a maelstrom of heavy exit sensations, I projected out of body into real time and then shifted into the astral spontaneously. I found myself lying upon a stone altar surrounded by dozens of people. It was night and people were wearing long robes and carrying flaming torches. Shields carrying illuminated symbols floated around me. A master with the appearance of a large African man in tribal dress approached and held his hands over me. He recited words in a language I did not understand and then began manipulating my astral body. Rainbow rays of light exploded from his hands and penetrated my body. I was paralyzed by the energy flowing through me. After working for some time, he attached an intense blue ray of light to me. I did not know what to do so I just relaxed and accepted everything. Again, this is sage advice for projectors when you encounter the unknown and unexpected.
 	The Initiation: My full astral initiation was mind blowing-the most dramatic astral experience of my life. This occurred in my mid thirties, around the time where I did a great deal of meditation, intensive kundalini energy work, and OBE exploration. After a lengthy energy-work session one evening, I projected out of body into real time. My energy body was so active that chakra sensations were reflecting into my astral body. When I was still, my heart area throbbed like a little lawnmower engine ticking over. When I moved, this throbbing speeded up. The faster I moved, the faster it pounded in my heart area. I experimented, and the speed and intensity of the throbbing were directly related to the speed of movement of my astral body.
 	I moved into my living room and a rumble of thunder and a flash of light caught my attention. A thick grey cloud about the size of a Volkswagen beetle formed. This flashed with internal lightning as if it were burning inside, and the room filled with an atmosphere of intense power. The floor was covered with clinging mist. A deep and eloquent voice spoke from above, thundering into the room. This sounded just how one might imagine the voice of God would sound.
 	The voice began a lengthy litany in English, speaking of things I did not understand. It blessed me and accepted me into a spiritual order called The Continuance. At one point, it called out for the person who had sponsored my initiation. A male voice spoke from behind me. He stepped forward, wearing a full suit of medieval armor. He raised his hand, saying "I do." This continued and several more knights, men and women, stepped forward. I looked down at myself, feeling a bit undressed. I found I was also wearing a full suit of armor.
 	The initiation ceremony continued and, at its peak, I was presented with a sword. This was given to me with a lengthy litany of its virtues. I accepted this experience and went with the flow. The sword, Lauraelle, now sparkled in my hand. The ritual continued with more lengthy blessings and pledges. When it was over, everyone waved to me and vanished. A short time later, I returned to my body, stunned by the enormity of what had just happened. I did not understand the how and the why of it all then. Today, many years later, I only half understand what happened and why. This was an astral initiation and, given what I have done in my life, this now fits and seems reasonable. I have at times been involved with spirit masters and there is an organization at work that I sometimes interact with. Again, I do not fully understand these things. I wish I did. But I accept them and go with the flow and feel the rightness of these things.
 	Keep this in mind when you begin consciously projecting out of your body. I do not suggest that astral ceremonies and initiations are common events, but they do happen. Conscious astral projection can be thought of as a big step forward in a spiritual sense. Well, it can be if you see through the superficial and intend this step. We know so little about the big picture and the goings-on in subtle dimensions—probably 2 percent. So it is wise to be prepared for anything when you shift out of your body and step into the greater reality.

 	The Priest and the Curse—Experience

  	Another example of contact with higher spiritual beings follows. It has been more than ten years since I wrote the first edition of Astral Dynamics. I have learned so much since then, and hindsight allows me to offer a little more understanding here.

 	At the time I wrote of this experience, I had been experiencing a lot of negative interference from a prolonged psychic attack. It is not appropriate to give details of this here, as these matters are better dealt with in my book, Practical Psychic Self-Defense. However, over the years I have learned a great deal from these types of negative experiences. I would not have chosen to learn this way, but such life experiences have added significantly to my knowledge over the years.

 	In the following experience, note that I had a strong intention and voiced my request for help once I left my body. The spoken word is powerful in the physical world—and far more powerful in the astral. Your higher self is more receptive and proactive on the astral level. But your higher self, and higher spiritual forces, will not interfere with your experience unless you ask for this. Everything points to permission being needed before help and advice can be given by higher sources. Please keep this in mind when you travel out of your body. You only have to ask.

 	I projected from my body and voiced a strong request for help. I left my home and projected into the sky, aiming for the brightest star in the Southern Cross. My vision blurred with a brief tunnel-of-light effect as I shifted into the astral.

 	I found myself in a candlelit room with rough stone walls and floor. Twenty feet in front of me sat a small, thin priest who looked to be in his eighties. He wore a full-length white cotton robe with a plain rope belt tied at the waist. A round white cap covered the back of his head.
 	The priest's eyes sparkled with wisdom and kindness. Across his lap lay a white sash with gold tassels and edging, with a gold crucifix emblazoned on it. Around his neck hung a small crucifix on a simple chain. A circle of candles surrounded him. I stepped up to the circle and introduced myself, feeling a tangible sense of love and power emanating from this priest. He looked up at me, his eyes twinkling with amusement as he nodded a pleasant greeting. He beckoned me to come closer. I moved into the circle and sat facing him.

 	I told him my story and of the trouble I was having. He listened quietly, eyes half closed, occasionally asking questions. After I was done talking, the priest sat for a while with his eyes closed then began speaking quietly, offering advice and generally clearing the air about the situation. I learned a great deal. His knowledge and wisdom in these matters astounded me. Never before had I met anyone with whom I could talk on this level.

 	At one point, he beckoned me and I felt myself gripped in a powerful force. I was gently rolled onto my side. The priest moved his hands over my body and finally laid them on my right hip. I felt my hip joint move uncomfortably.

 	As the priest worked on me, a murky-dark shape with dull red and orange lumps appeared on my hip. He pulled this away and showed me angry red and black cords extending into my hip and groin. When he moved his hands under it, I felt nerves tugging.

 	"What is it?" I asked.

 	"A curse, most likely from a witch," he said, "and a powerful one at that. You have had this attachment for a very long time. It has been altered by the attacks you have been experiencing. You will remember how you got it one day," he said, looking into my eyes. "And then you must come back and see me."

 	With that, the priest laid the white sash over my hip, closed his eyes and prayed. White light poured from his hands and bored into the attachment in my hip. It visibly changed, filling with sparkling motes of white light. Then it dissolved back inside my body.

 	"Robert," the priest smiled, "I cannot remove this thing, but I have lessened its intensity. Only you can remove it. But first you must remember where it came from and why you have it." 
 	The scene faded and I fell back into my body. My right hip was numb and buzzing. I recorded the experience in my journal and limped off to bed.

 	I awoke the next morning greatly refreshed. My hip felt better with no cramps or pain and I felt a whole lot better in general. Life improved considerably from that point onwards.

 	Hindsight: The decade or so since I wrote the above has given me a great deal of insight. I finally realized where I got the attachment, and why I had it. For all its negative aspects, this thing was a great teacher. It pushed me to my limits and forced me to learn and to evolve. I cannot reveal the details here, but suffice it to say that I have been doing what I do for a very long time.
 	I removed this attachment with the most powerful tool of all—manifestation. The manifestation process—using affirmations—works directly through the higher self, which is a gradient of Source. Once my request was clearly received and I stopped resisting and got myself out of the way, the universe conspired to help. This included inspirational downloads and information brought to me in a variety of ways. Considerable growth and realization were required on my part of the equation. More on this in the final chapter.
 	 
 Chapter 29: FEAR-BASED ISSUES AND SOLUTIONS

  	The fear of death, of heavy OBE-exit sensations, of unexplainable astral noises and voices, and of exposure to the out-of-body environment are significant barriers to OBEs. Fear is a natural shield that protects unready projectors from exposure to the out-of-body environment until they are better able to cope. An important aspect of learning OBE involves overcoming fears one step at a time.
 	Separation and Death: Fear related to the projection exit is a natural gut reaction caused by unusual and often extreme sensations and events. It causes projectors to abort OBE exits time and time again, usually on the brink of success.
 	Separating from the physical body is much like dying, without the "dead" part. The instinctive fear of death can be triggered by the visceral sensations often involved with separating from the physical body during real-time OBE exits. This varies from person to person, but this type of fear is usually a significant factor during early real-time OBE exits. The knowledge that this is OBE projection and not death helps, but only personal experience from repeated OBE exits will ease this fear.
 	Intense OBE-Exit Sensations

  	The feelings that can be generated by heavy exit sensations can cause panic. Bad OBE-exit experiences can psychologically condition projectors against future OBEs. This greatly increases the difficulty of future attempts. The physical body/mind remembers unpleasant experiences, creating conditioned responses to avoid recurrence.
 	I recently consulted with an attendee of my online OBE course. Even though she thought she was prepared, when she had a full real-time OBE separation, she panicked. She had heavy heart-center racing and a strong, continual falling sensation. She felt her heart was going to explode and that the life was being sucked out of her body. She thought that she was dying, so fought to stop the OBE, which made things worse. After this, she felt ill, weak, and disoriented, and called the ambulance. The doctors checked her over and sent her home with sedatives.
 	The main problem here was the visceral intensity of separation, and the fear of death. Words can explain what this can feel like, but experiencing it firsthand is a different matter. A little faith and courage can be required.
 	The level of OBE-exit sensations projectors face varies widely. About 10 percent of projectors can expect moderate OBE-exit sensations, and probably 5 percent can expect heavy sensations. You may, though, just slip out of body with hardly any sensations at all. Some experience only a mild falling sensation, some light vibrations and a rapid but gentle throbbing in the heart center. This is what most people can expect. However, it is wise to be prepared for heavy OBE-exit sensations, just in case they happen. These will never cause any actual damage, but they can create a psychological flinch, causing projectors to tense and break the relaxed state needed for the OBE exit.
 	The presence of the awake mind during OBE separation causes some major conflicts between the physical body/mind and its projecting double. This is especially true for novice projectors, whose energy bodies have not had time to develop conscious-exit OBE ability. Projectors are usually unprepared for heavy OBE exit sensations. They are usually blown away by a massive sensory overload. Many people honestly and sincerely believe they are dying, which panics them into aborting the OBE exit. Exit sensations are always heavier during the first few conscious exits. They always ease off during repeated exits, as projection abilities develop.
 	I advise against attempting partial OBE exits, "just to see what it feels like," before committing to a full OBE exit. A partial exit attempt will always generate heavier and longer duration OBE-exit sensations. The fastest way to end OBE-exit sensations is to complete the exit out of body. The instant full separation occurs, all exit sensations stop completely.
 	When you are ready to try for a full OBE exit, just do it, and be ready to put everything you have into this. Commit yourself, psych yourself up, and be ready to go through with the exit, come what may. This attitude will give you a higher chance of success. Please trust me on this. Go through with this and it will not harm you in any way.
 	Be prepared for anything during your first OBE exit. This may not happen to you, but it is best to be psychologically prepared. Heavy exit sensations can seem to last for many minutes, but most likely last only a few seconds due to time distortion. Again, this will always be milder and end sooner if you stay calm and keep going. Stay calm, be determined, and never give up. Again, all OBE-exit sensations end completely the moment separation occurs.
 	Projections involving the brow and crown chakras involve minimal sensations, sometimes none. If you experience brow- and crown-chakra tingling or pulsing during energy and altered-state work, this indicates you will most likely exit from those areas.
 	To illustrate heavy exit sensations, here is an early conscious OBE exit of mine. This illustrates the strongest exit sensations that any projector could expect. I have been projecting since the age of four, but my childhood OBEs were spontaneous and had minimal sensations. I taught myself conscious-exit OBE in my early twenties. There is a big difference between spontaneous OBE and induced OBE, with the latter usually involving more intense sensations.

 	I had tried many times to project before this, but so far with only one successful exit—the astral ceremony with the blue ray given earlier. I was still a novice here.
 	I held my mind clear and strained to hold my point of awareness outside my body with the point shift method. A bone-deep tickling spread through my body, and my stomach and chest churned. My heart chakra began fluttering. These sensations increased and surged through my body in waves. Whole-body vibrations and pressure started. My head felt like it was being crushed. I felt like I was spinning and falling. These were majorly strong sensations. In the back of my mind, I began to wonder if I might be dying. But I was also thrilled by the likelihood of OBE success. I gritted my mental teeth, determined to go through with this come what may.
 	Strange noises faded in and out around me, like the sounds of furniture being dragged and thrown about on wooden floors. I heard the muttering of voices and laughter. I ignored all this, hoping they were just astral noises like I had read. Incredible colors and patterns of light and images appeared in my mind's eye. The bone-deep buzzing and falling, spinning, and head pressure increased.
 	My chest ached and my heart felt like it was jumping out of my chest. My body felt incredibly heavy and tight with pressure. The vibrations, pressure, racing heart, spinning, and falling sensations increased until I thought I would either scream or pass out. Loud noises thundered and crashed in around me, now sounding like heavy chains being dragged over corrugated iron sheeting. I ignored everything and stayed focused on holding my point of awareness outside my body.
 	I fought to stay in control. Details of the room around me appeared, as if my eyes had opened. My body surged with massive, droning vibrations and surging energy. My heart center raced and my head felt as if it were going to be crushed. Again, I wondered if I were dying.
 	Suddenly, I started separating from my physical body. I rose upward, buzzing out of my body through a storm of major sensations. I finally buzzed free and all the sensations stopped.
 	I saw my room clearly even though it was dark with only a little moonlight through the blinds. It was very quiet. There were no noises or voices, nor any sign of what caused them. I felt wonderful and full of energy, exhilarated by success. A little nervously, I floated around the room getting my sea legs.

 	I wondered what might be lurking in the shadows in the dark night outside—probably nothing. While this was similar to the many spontaneous OBEs I had experienced as a child, it was also quite different. It felt more powerful and real. I willed myself into motion and floated through the wall and into the night.
 	Outside, the moonlight cast eerie shadows of windswept trees onto the pavement. I floated out to the road and skimmed along it. I could feel and smell and taste the dew-laden night. The world around me felt very solid and real. Picking up speed, I swooped into the air, flapping my arms and skimming through the treetops, circling my home. All the OBE skills I'd learned as a child came back to me. I spun around a few times and then floated gently back to the ground.

 	Flushed with success, but still a little anxious, I floated back to my waiting body. I had no idea why I felt so anxious, especially after all the time I'd spent fearlessly out of body as a child. Maybe it was just because it was dark and creepy out here at night.

 	As I got closer, I felt a magnetic pull from my physical body. I reentered and I felt a tingling whole-body rush. I felt myself surging up through my stomach and chest—and then my perspective changed and I felt this from my physical body's perspective, as if something were entering me. My eyes opened and I came wide awake.
 	I vowed to stay out longer next time and do some exploring. Later, over cheese-and-pickle sandwiches with milk, I began filling out the second entry in my new OBE journal.
 	Excitement and Anxiety

  	Excitement and anxiety, combined with the flush of imminent success, can generate adrenaline-type body rushes that can ruin OBE exits. This is similar to the torso energy rush, but with a different cause—anxiety and excitement. This breaks the delicately balanced relaxed state required to complete the OBE exit.
 	Many projectors experience this problem. They work hard and do everything right and, then, just as the projection reflex starts, it happens again. Suddenly, they realize what is about to happen and get overexcited. Thoughts of all the exciting things they can do flood their minds. Then, as quickly as it began, it stops right there.
 	Many people think that once they trigger the projection reflex and start to exit, they have succeeded. This is not the case, so be warned. You need to continue holding your mind clear and relaxed during the whole OBE exit. Any surge of excitement or strong emotion can abort an OBE during, or even after, the exit.
 	Another aspect to consider here concerns the mind-split effect. If the physical body/mind is overly excited by exit sensations, that will form a strong memory. This can make it difficult for the projected double to download its shadow memories during reintegration. OBE exit sensations, astral sight, etc. are exciting things.
 	The solution is to stay calm, focused, and relaxed. Just be the observer—stay in observer mind. You can celebrate your success after you have returned to your physical body and written down key words. Remember, use the power of your state of mind during reentry to overwrite any physical body/mind memories. Shout your key words passionately and joyfully during reentry!
 	The Unknown and the Darkness

  	Fear of the unknown out-of-body environment is another natural barrier. It is quite natural to feel some trepidation. New projectors may have read many stories about what an OBE is like, but doing it is another thing entirely.
 	Children are naturally afraid of the dark. Their parents tell them there's nothing to fear. They open wardrobes and look under beds to prove this. After all that, children often still demand a night light. This comes from a natural fear of darkness and the unknown. This is much like what happens in the back of projectors' minds when they first get out of body. The unknown aspects of the once-familiar environment can be a little creepy. Some courage and faith are required for OBEs, especially at night. Daytime OBEs are far less fear-inducing, as is projecting in well-lit areas.
 	Like attracts like in the astral. If fear is allowed to take root, the sensitive out-of-body environment can become uncomfortable. Projectors' own subconscious minds can create fearful atmospheres, especially taking into account mind-split effects and astral feedback. Some trepidation may always be felt during OBEs. This is natural and can be controlled. Nothing can hurt you during an OBE, and you can return to your body in a heartbeat.
 	Mind-Split Generated Fear

  	The mind-split effect can generate fear. In the real-time zone especially, fear can compound along with tangible feelings of presence and dread. The mind-split effect bounces emotions between the physical body/mind and its projected double, compounding them. When this happens, an atmosphere of fear will be felt as coming from a particular direction, from your physical body. The stronger the emotion, the stronger the feedback will be. Fear is a strong emotion.
 	This effect is stronger at close range in real time, and lessens with distance. So if you start to feel fear during real-time OBE for no apparent reason, keep moving and put some distance between you and your physical body. If this fails, I suggest you make an immediate reentry before it intensifies. Just imagine yourself being back in your physical body and you will shift there.
 	The Dweller on the Threshold

  	The infamous dweller on the threshold type of experience, plus astral noises and voices, are probably the most well-known manifestations faced by some new projectors. The dweller phenomenon is another natural barrier that some projectors may encounter. This must be faced with courage and faith before new projectors affected by this phenomenon can operate freely out of body. The dweller experience is not universal. I estimate less than 5 percent of projectors will experience a version of this phenomenon at some time. Astral noises and voices, however, will intermittently bother most projectors.
 	Do not expect the dweller phenomenon to happen when you first get out of your body. It usually comes much later. Worrying about this could easily cause your own subconscious mind to manifest something similar.
 	There are variations of dweller phenomena, but it is usually something along the following lines: Immediately after exit, you find a shadowy, menacing, dark humanoid shape with red eyes. It stands and gestures threateningly. It may or may not step towards you. It may be silent or it may breathe heavily. It may snarl, growl, giggle, or laugh. It may even speak and order you back into your body. It may threaten you with doom and gloom if you continue your OBE. But, the classic dweller never, ever does more than this. In effect it says, "BOO! And if you do not fear me, watch out or I'll say BOO! again." 
 	It is my considered opinion that the dweller is an illusion generated by the collective consciousness. This can be thought of as a type of automated program that runs when triggered by projectors' energies and consciousness. Look upon this as a test of faith and courage, an initiation of sorts. The dweller should be confronted and ordered away. Then turn your back and go on with your OBE. It will not be there when you return and you are unlikely to see it again. This is what I did when it happened to me many years ago, and it never came back.
 	Logic suggests that if the dweller were indeed a genuine threat, say some kind of dangerous astral being, it would not just stand and threaten and say "BOO!" It would do something and make use of the element of surprise and the fearful state of the projector. Dwellers would not just stand there, pose, and act scary. In my experience it would also not just attack persons while they are out of body. It would be active in and around people's lives, while they are awake and while they are sleeping and dreaming.
 	My mother had a dweller-type experience, many years ago when I was in my teens. This involved monkey-like beings hissing and clutching at her and saying "Boo!" She actively ignored these and kept repeating the Twenty-third Psalm, as she had been advised by her church group. They were not there when she returned to her body. She saw them once more on her next OBE, where they just sat back looking confused. She never saw them again after this.
 	All dweller-type manifestations are illusions generated by the collective consciousness. These are a test of courage and faith. They can also be said to be programs that, once activated, force the creation of very strong OBE memories that will always download into conscious memory. This provides an unforgettable OBE experience.
 	Always keep in mind that your physical body is never left empty and vulnerable during any type of OBE. The physical body always holds the original copy of mind and memory and spirit. And you can always return to your physical body. OBE is no riskier than sleeping and dreaming.
 Chapter 30: ASTRAL NOISE AND THINGS THAT GO BUMP IN THE NIGHT

  	A variety of visual, audio, and tactile manifestations can manifest before and during OBE. These things are classed as hallucinations, and that is fairly accurate as they have no actual substance. These things can also plague adults and children during the prelude to normal sleep.
 	I think that the major source of such things, particularly concerning OBEs, is the collective consciousness. While these things appear to be negative and scary, they also form strong memories. The strong emotional content—fear—makes them easily recallable. It is this recallability that causes me to think there is more to this than meets the eye. Most people who experience astral noises, voices, and tactile hallucinations would probably not remember anything without the fear.
 	I think it is likely that archetype programs within the collective consciousness contribute to these phenomena. These programs cause sensitive persons to have strange and often disturbing experiences from early childhood. This includes during the prelude to sleep, dreams, OBEs, or partial OBE experiences. Today, such things are classed as hallucinations at best, or at worst as symptoms of mental illness.
 	Astral noises may be heard during the exit, with scary voices and things going bump in the night, like chains dragging, sinister giggling and muttering, evil laughter, and nasty growling and snarling. These intimidating sounds are an audio hallucination. They have no substance and are no threat. They are, however, a big distraction and must be ignored during OBE exits. Astral noises always cease the moment the exit is completed. New projectors are more likely to hear astral noises and voices. I rarely get them now, but I used to be plagued by them. Be ready to deal with these when they happen.
 	Types of noises vary enormously. They can be very loud and incredibly real. You may hear church bells, sirens, heavy chains dragging. You may also hear someone smashing into your house with jackhammers, many people talking noisily, racing engines, chain saws, knocking and banging on your bedroom door, even the sounds of children playing and laughing or crying for help. You may hear a train passing by—three feet from your head. You may hear your name being called loudly by a voice you know well. This voice will report an emergency, demanding you get up immediately.
 	These noises are so real and loud you may decide (if not prepared) to abort your OBE to go and find out what the heck is happening. "What timing," you'll think, "just when I am right on the verge of my very first OBE." But after you fight to abort your OBE, your home is always silent. I have been fooled by this many, many times.
 	However, there is more to the above circumstances. If you were not disturbed by astral phenomena, you would likely have been left with no OBE memory. Without the memorable phenomena you would have continued with your OBE while your physical body/mind fell into deep sleep. You would have awakened hours later with no OBE memory.
 	Consider my advice on an OBE reentry and recall carefully and the wisdom of keeping OBEs very short. To recap: after an OBE exit, the mind splits its resources between the physical body/mind and its projected double. Falling asleep—or being in the "mind awake + body asleep" state—is necessary for an OBE to occur. The reverse also applies and the awakening of the physical body/mind is necessary for an OBE reentry and reintegration to occur.
 	While the physical body/mind enters sound levels of sleep, the projected double is held out of body until the physical body/mind awakens again. This is part of a natural process that does not usually allow memory of an OBE.
 	The above reasoning is also supported by the fact that when projectors keep OBEs very short, less than 30 seconds, and make deliberate and passionate reentries, their chances of downloading and recalling OBE dramatically increase.
 	Astral Voices

  	Astral voices have the same source as other astral noises, as discussed above. But they deserve a special mention due to the particularly strong effect they can have on projectors. 
 	A loud and aggressive voice—clearly heard—may order you (often by name) to stop what you are doing and return to your body, or to face a terrible doom. The dialogue and timing of this voice(s) will vary, but the theme is always the same: to intimidate you into aborting your OBE. You may also hear a voice talking to another voice about you, loudly criticizing you for your stupidity in trying to leave the body. They agree and strongly state that this is a very dangerous thing to do: "Look at him! Doesn't he know anything? What the hell is he up to now? Look at what he's doing. Oh no! He's playing with his chakras again. How stupid can he be! Doesn't he know what will happen next? He's so dead!" Et cetera, ad nauseam.
 	This onslaught of negative input causes projectors to seriously doubt themselves. They worry that they might indeed be doing something foolish or dangerous. So they abort the OBE exit and lie there in a quiet room wondering what happened.
 	Such voices are hallucinations and are generated by the collective consciousness. They are also a test of faith and courage. These voices never harm projectors and should therefore be ignored, like all other OBE-exit distractions. Realize that you are being duped. Once the OBE exit has been made, these voices stop immediately and no cause for them will ever be found.
 	However, once again, it is highly likely that without the appearance of these scary voices, no OBE-exit or OBE-prelude memories would be remembered at all. So in this sense, these apparently negative scary voices are actually helping. They are helping to create strong and unforgettable memories and forcing you back into your body early, often halfway through the OBE exit. Again, without this early reentry with powerful memories, it is doubtful anything at all would be remembered. Food for thought.
 	Dealing with Astral Noises and Voices

  	All astral noises and distractions should be ignored during the OBE exit and its prelude. No matter what you see, hear, or feel, ignore it all and continue with your OBE exit. Even if you hear someone enter your room, calling for you, and they try to shake you awake, or tickle you—anything—you must ignore this. It is a hallucination. The chance of a real emergency happening at the exact moment when you are on the threshold of an OBE exit is astronomically small.
 	If you continue with your OBE, in a few moments you can go and check to see if there is a real emergency in your home, as your projected double. If anything is really happening, you can return to your body in a heartbeat and deal with this.
 	I have projected countless times while ignoring astral noises and voices. Everything is always dead quiet when I get out of my body. There is never anything there that could have caused the earlier kerfuffle. I have also been caught by astral noises many times over the years—they can be that convincing. So do not feel too badly if you occasionally get caught out.
 	Again, remember that the purpose of these hallucinations may be to enforce the download of very strong OBE memories. They are also tests of faith and courage. This forces you to gain personal experience with OBEs and related phenomena. This also forces you to think about spiritual matters, from the perspective of personal experience.
 	Remember, keep your OBEs short, under 30 seconds, and then reenter your body passionately, savagely shouting your key words. Then write them down immediately. This works. You can increase your time out of body as you learn to hold your physical body/mind flickering on the edge of consciousness. This flickering holds open the magic window that allows deliberate reentry and reintegration.
 	Clutching Hands and Other Annoyances

  	The tactile hallucinations that can occur during OBE exits deserve special mention here. These can also occur during the prelude to sleep, or during sleep. These are more rare than audio and visual hallucinations, but they are not uncommon. Again, anything like this must be ignored during OBE exits. Once you get out of body, you will never find anything that might have caused these sensations.
 	Here's what happens: Before or during the OBE exit, you feel hands clutching at your body. Most commonly, hands are felt tugging on the feet and legs. You may or may not also hear astral noises and voices around this time. But, just like the audio hallucinations, these clutching hands never cause any harm, and if you continue with your OBE exit, you will never find anything that might have caused these sensations. These are an illusion and should be totally ignored.
 	Another version of this: Before or during an OBE exit, you may feel, see, or hear a small animal, often a dog or a cat, jump onto your bed and start washing your face, or start scratching and snarling, or annoying and distracting you in some way. This is a variation of the hallucination where someone comes into your room, calling you and trying to shake you awake. Again, all these things are illusions. Ignore them and continue with your OBE exit. Nothing will ever be found once you get out of body.
 	The Acid Test for OBE Hallucinations

  	The acid test for all OBE-related hallucinations is that, if these things were real and you were actually being yelled at or touched, you would be immediately shocked out of your altered state and brought fully awake. So, anything that tries to distract you during an OBE exit, no matter what, is proven an illusion by the fact that you are still in the middle of an OBE exit. This logic is irrefutable. Think just how delicate and difficult a state of being is needed to induce conscious OBE exits. If the slightest thing goes wrong, either you get nowhere near the exit, or you fail the exit. So remember, no matter what happens, keep going with your OBE exit.
 	Also keep in mind that if you hang there in the middle of an OBE exit, exit sensations will tend to be heavier and more uncomfortable. Once you get out of body, you can always reenter and quickly end the OBE.

 	OBE Hitchhiker Syndrome

  	The OBE hitchhiker syndrome is a rare type of OBE problem. This affects less than 1 percent of projectors at some time, but is worth mentioning, just in case.
 	There are many variations, but it will be something along these lines: After the exit, you become aware that someone is holding on to you from behind. You may see a pair of arms encircling you. This being may be silent or may speak and answer. You may feel you are being carried by it, or you may feel you are carrying it. If it answers, it will usually give cryptic or nonsensical replies. You will sometimes be able to turn and see it. When looked at, it may abuse you or it may not. It may do and say nothing. It may appear to be asleep.
 	While this phenomenon could be a hallucination relating to the dweller phenomenon, it could also involve something else. An easy way to tell if this is a good spirit is to politely ask it to leave; or to leave and return in one month. A good spirit will understand and leave immediately. A mischievous spirit will refuse or will make up excuses, e.g., I know what's best for you; we have urgent work at hand, etc. Again, good spirits will always honor your wishes and leave.
 	The best action to take is to remove the hitchhiker from your space and then return to your physical body. There are a few ways to accomplish this.
 	Order it to leave your space: "I command you to leave my space and never return." Be forceful.

 	Make strong verbal commands to your higher self, such as, "Remove this spirit from my space," or, "Cleanse my body of spirits," or affirm, "My body is free of spirits."

 	Another approach is to land somewhere next to a wall or a tree. Reach up with your hands to your head and push down on the entity, forcing it down through you and into the earth. As you do this, move your feet as if you are climbing it and pushing it into the earth. You will feel it dislodging as you climb higher. It will feel like you are climbing through and pushing thick gooey mud out of your body. When you have it down to your hips, reach up for the wall or tree and climb up it or through it with your hands as your feet push the rest of it into the earth. Climb and fly away as soon as you feel free.

 	Repeat all the above methods as necessary. Do not succumb to fear. Try the nice ways first, and then be as forceful as you need to be. Some courage and faith may be needed. Look upon this as a test. You do not have to allow a situation like this to continue.

 	Once you feel you are free of the hitchhiker, fly away and return to your body. Immediately get up and take a shower. Imagine you are washing yourself clean with brilliant light inside and out as the water flows over you. This water/light shower is an effective way of removing negative energy traces from the physical body.
 	Reducing Fear with Light

  	One of the causes of out-of-body fear is projecting late at night before sleep. OBEs can be a little creepy at night, simply because it is dark. You will usually find it bright enough to see during an OBE. If not, there are ways to brighten things up: will the area you are in to brighten; make commands; project in well-lit areas; use a lamp in your room; move to well-lit areas after the exit. Many projectors are surrounded by astral light, and this light follows them around. This is possible, so work on developing your own light source. Expect light, imagine light, command light. Do not accept darkness and gloom—work on this until you have a nice comfortable light around you.
 	The simplest way to remove all light-related fear is to project during daylight hours. Instead of taking an afternoon nap, have an afternoon OBE. You'll get the same amount of rest, because your body/mind will sleep. There is nothing creepy about projecting in daylight. The real world is awake and there is more to do and see.
 	Alternatively, shift into the astral planes shortly after the exit. The astral planes are generally well-lit. You will often find yourself in full sunlight once you arrive.
 	Religion and OBEs

  	Some people worry they may be violating religious laws if they project out of body or have lucid dreams. They worry there might be something in a holy book that forbids this, or that they might be doing something detrimental to their souls. As far as I know, there are no direct warnings given in any holy books stating that OBE and lucid dreaming are prohibited. Holy books are generally full of spiritual and paranormal experiences, including OBEs, lucid dreams, visions, and encounters with spiritual beings and forces.
 	Lucid dreaming is generally more acceptable to religious persons, because everyone dreams. The difference between OBEs and lucid dreaming is unclear to most people. So when dealing with religious criticism, it is best to refer to everything as dreams or lucid dreams. The terms "out of body" and "astral projection" carry baggage and are best avoided to reduce criticism. The topic of dreaming provides common ground. Most people remember some dreams, so dreaming is a safe subject.
 	Expanding your spiritual horizons through personal experience with lucid dreaming and OBE is informative, liberating, and life-changing. Everyone dreams and projects out of body during sleep, but most do not remember.

 	There is nothing occult (occult = hidden knowledge) about OBEs and lucid dreaming. But there is little common knowledge about them, which is part of the problem. OBE and lucid dreaming seem esoteric and occult to the uninformed, but they are natural functions of all living things. All conscious projectors and lucid dreamers do is to make these largely unconscious functions more conscious and memorable.
 Chapter 31: WORKING WITH YOUR HIGHER SELF

  	When you are manifesting with affirmations and intentions, be it OBE ability, self-healing, changes in circumstances, or material things, you need to be vigilant. Once your request and intention are received and understood by your higher self, help will appear in a number of ways. Whatever direct help is appropriate and possible will appear. However, the higher self works mainly through life itself. This is understandable because in a nondual sense, you are a part of everything and everyone. You are a part of life and are asking life to help.
 	The higher self causes the universe to conspire around you to bring about the help and advice needed. Help and information arrive in many ways and forms. They arrive through your dreams and visions, through coincidence and synchronicity, through other people, through TV and movies, through books and magazines, and even the Internet. This can be like a treasure hunt, searching for and acting on clues provided by life.
 	A recent example will help illustrate this. A friend of mine had insomnia due to overwork. She tried all kinds of pills, but they either made her feel ill or groggy the next day. I coached her on the manifestation process. She worked on verbal affirmations for sleep, and on being vigilant. A week later, she dreamed of a sleeping elephant. A few days later, she visited a friend and saw a magazine open on the table with a picture of a sleeping elephant. This held a short article on the herbal root, ashwaghandha, discussing its virtues and how in scientific tests it solved insomnia for 80 percent of women by reducing anxiety. The next day, while shopping for essential oils, she saw powdered ashwaghandha root for sale. Recognizing the connection, she bought some. This worked well and she is now sleeping soundly.
 	Being vigilant means you have to open up to life and work with life—to get into and to go with the flow. This requires a little faith and requires you to take a step into the greater reality. When you do this, be on the alert for coincidences and synchronicities. These will guide you to information you need to know. A coincidence may not appear to be related to what you are manifesting, but because it is a coincidence, you need to pay attention. Do not worry about taking a wrong turn. The act of opening up to coincidences and following your heart and taking action opens you up to life's guidance. You cannot be guided unless you are moving and taking action.
 	Life will lead you to the information you need. This may involve seemingly illogical steps. For example, the sleeping elephant in the dream leads you to pay attention to the circled article in a magazine, which leads you to buying a new product. Your health problem is solved.
 	Over the years, I have learned to work with the manifestation process. It requires you to clearly state what you want, then to be vigilant for signs and guidance, and then to take action. Finally, you need to express gratitude. Gratitude is an important part of the manifestation process. Gratitude acknowledges the Source of the help you have been given. This acknowledgment and gratitude make the act of manifestation complete.
 	Affirmation + Vigilance + Action + Gratitude = Success.
 	A personal example to close with. Two years ago, due to overwork, I came down with type 2 diabetes quite badly. Then I got a cold and ruptured a disk in my lower back through coughing, and developed pneumonia. I thought I was dying. I immediately started using affirmations for self-healing. I stayed up half the night verbally affirming my health. The next morning I awoke with a fragment, just a few cryptic words— "Take action or take your meds." The next day, a friend e-mailed me a link to a video, Take Action. The words "take action" got my attention. I watched it and was introduced to the work of raw food guru, Gabriel Cousens, author of the book, There Is a Cure for Diabetes. I got the book and immediately started a 100-percent-raw organic diet. I was off all medication in two days. Now, eighteen months later, I live on 50-percent raw organic food, am more conscious of my health, and still require no medication. I feel younger every day.
 	Using verbal affirmations and the manifestation process is a serious help for developing OBE and lucid-dreaming abilities. So take a few steps into the greater reality and join me in the astral. You can always step back.
 
 A FEW LAST WORDS

  	OBEs and lucid dreaming are fascinating endeavors, but they are much more than just interesting phenomena. They are spiritually significant states of being. Among other things, they provide glimpses of our higher spiritual purposes, pique interest, and draw our attention to spiritual matters. They encourage us to question the nature of reality. They make us think and ask questions. They cause us to look within and to gaze beyond the physical universe. Increased attention to these things causes us to become more spiritually aware. We begin to realize that we are more than our physical bodies. We are also Source energy and immortal spirit. Our boundaries are stretched beyond the mundane as our beliefs change and our curiosity grows.
 	Over time, our desire to know more manifests additional spiritual experiences in our lives. We are guided inexorably towards becoming more spiritually conscious beings. This is the path of the masters. We all walk this path. It is as long or as short as it needs to be.
 	Think about the implications of the mind-split, and how we draw closer to our divine aspects during OBE. Which is more real, the physical body or the subtle perfection of its projected double? Each can stand independently and say, "I think, therefore I am!"
 	The workings of the astral wind and the akashic records suggest that all living things are interconnected. We all share the same spiritual roots and travel towards the same light. This may be tinted by our beliefs and biases, but it is the same good light.
 	And what of death? That last great journey out of body at life's end. The only difference is the lack of a physical body in which to return. We will then stand free of our physical bodies, with more freedom and potential than ever imagined. If you have firsthand experience with OBEs and lucid dreaming, you will not be doing anything new. The fear and sting of death are greatly eased. The fact that life continues becomes something known, rather than just a possibility, or just wishful thinking. There is no better way to do this than through the practice of OBE.
 	There are profound similarities between OBEs, lucid dreaming, and the afterlife. Life here in the physical universe appears to be an illusion, albeit a very persistent one. In similar ways, the OBE and lucid dreaming also appear to be illusions. We may not fully understand these things, but there appear to be no actual differences. Life continues on after death in much the same way as it did during life. Death is a natural extension of life, not the end. 
 	If you experience wake-induced lucid dreaming, which I suggest is a projection of the mental body, you will understand just how powerful OBEs can be. They can be totally indistinguishable from physical reality. 
 	I speak here from observations made during visits to afterlife areas. There are many variations on how the afterlife transpires for individuals. What happens depends upon how much life pain, emotional baggage, and beliefs concerning death are carried into the afterlife. These are the things that generate the afterlife environment.
 	Most deceased spirits spend a couple of weeks in the real-time zone, where they are like ghosts in the physical world. Then they get tired, fall asleep, and dream. These dreams are so potent that most spirits do not realize they have died. Life goes on for them pretty much as it did in real life. They can still go for a walk on the beach, hug loved ones, get a cup of coffee, see a movie, or read a book. There is nothing ghastly about the afterlife. It is just a different state of being.
 	In these exquisitely powerful dreams, spirits process their lives, often reliving parts repeatedly until these are processed. When progress is made, spirits move on to new levels of existence. There can be many stages to this processing—as many as are needed. Time is meaningless there. It takes as long as needed, be it weeks or centuries. Once the bulk of life issues are resolved, spirits move into what could be called heavenly realms. There, they enjoy life and wait for loved ones to join them. The settings of these realms vary, as they are shaped by beliefs and expectations.
 	An interesting thing about afterlife realms is the anomalies. This is similar to how anomalies appear during all OBEs and lucid dreams. Your hands melt and objects change when you look at them, furniture and fixtures go missing or are out of place, reading and writing are difficult, words change and disappear, the pen you are using might run out of ink, etc. Think about the implications. These anomalies draw your attention to the fact that you are not in a physical reality. Beyond OBE and dreaming, this also helps deceased spirits know they are in illusory states, and to let go and move on.
 	That said, I would like to thank you for sharing this time with me. Astral Dynamics has been an incredible journey. I hope you have gained something worthwhile. There is much to learn concerning OBE and it can seem a bit daunting. But it is actually very easy to achieve. You leave your body every night. You just do not remember this.
 	The best parting advice I have to help you achieve personal experience with OBE and lucid dreaming is to keep practicing and affirming. Use verbal affirmations every day. Speak and act like you already astral project easily, and it will be so.
 	Experiential knowing replaces fear and uncertainty with boundless curiosity and joy.

 BIBLIOGRAPHY

  	

 	Bardon, Franz. 1999. Initiation into Hermetics. Germany: Dieter Rüggeberg.

 	Bruce, Robert. 1999. Astral Dynamics: A NEW Approach to Out-of-Body Experience. VA: Hampton Roads.

 	Bruce, Robert. 2007. Energy Work: The Secret of Healing and Spiritual Development. VA: Hampton Roads.

 	Bruce, Robert, and Brian Mercer. 2006. Mastering Astral Projection: 90 Day Guide to Out-of-Body Experience. MN: Llewellyn.

 	Byrne, Rhonda. 2006. The Secret. NY: Atria Books.

 	Crookall, Robert. 1972. Case-Book of Astral Projection. NJ: University Books.

 	Crookall, Robert. 1974. Astral Projection: A Record of Out of the Body Experiences. London: Carol Publishing Group.

 	DeMarco, Frank. 2001. Muddy Tracks: Exploring an Unsuspected Reality. VA: Hampton Roads.

 	Fox, Oliver (Hugh Callaway). 1962. Astral Projection. NJ: Citadel Press.

 	Hicks, Esther. 2004. Ask and It Is Given: Learning to Manifest Your Desires.

 	CA: Hay House

 	Johari, Harish. 1987. Chakras: Energy Centers of Transformation. VT: Destiny Books.

 	LaBerge, Stephen. 1985. Lucid Dreaming. NY: Tarcher.

 	Magnus, John. 2005. Astral Projection and the Nature of Reality: Exploring the Out of Body State. VA: Hampton Roads.

 	McTaggart, Lynne. 2003. The Field. London: HarperCollins.

 	Monroe, Robert A. 1985. Far Journeys. NY: Doubleday.

 	Monroe, Robert A. 1992. Journeys Out of the Body. NY: Doubleday.

 	Monroe, Robert A. 1994. Ultimate Journey. NY: Doubleday.

 	Motoyama, Hiroshi. 1981. Theories of the Chakra: Bridge to Higher Consciousness. IL: Theosophical Publishing House.

 	Muldoon, Sylvan. 1936. The Case for Astral Projection. IL: The Aries Press.

 	Muldoon, Sylvan J., and Hereward Carrington. 1968. The Projection of the

 	Astral Body. London: Rider.

 	Peterson, Robert. 1997. Out-of-Body Experiences: How to Have Them and
 	What to Expect. VA: Hampton Roads.

 	Powell, Arthur Edward. 1927. The Astral Body. IL: Theosophical Publishing
 	House.

 	Rampa, T. Lobsang. 1999. You Forever. NY: Samuel Weiser.

 	Spottiswoode, James P. 1997. Geomagnetic Fluctuations and Free-Response Anomalous Cognition: A New Understanding. The Journal of Parapsychology.

 	Tart, Charles T. 1990. Altered States of Consciousness. NY: Harper.

 	Tolle, Eckhart. 1999. The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment.
 	CA: New World Library.

 	Tolle, Eckhart. 2005. A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life's Purpose. NY: Dutton.

 	Turner, John L. 2009. Medicine, Miracles, and Manifestations: A Doctor's Journey through the Worlds of Divine Intervention, Near Death Experience, and Universal Energy. NJ: New Page Books.

 	Waggoner, Robert. 2009. Lucid Dreaming: Gateway to the Inner Self. MA.

 	Moment Point Press.

 	Yang, Jwing-Ming. 1997. The Root of Chinese Qigong: Secrets for Health, Longevity and Enlightenment. NH: YMAA Publication Center.

 	YRAM (Marcel Louis Forhan). 1969. Practical Astral Projection. NY: Samuel Weiser.

 
 ONLINE RESOURCES

  	

 	Robert Bruce offers the world’s leading Internet resource for Out-of-Body Experience (Astral Projection) and Energy Work and other spiritual and metaphysical related matters. Content includes many articles, tutorials, audio and video files, friendly forums, and a blog and podcast.

 	Author’s Main Website: Great articles – Streamed Video Training Programs - Cool Products.

 	www.AstralDynamics.com

 	Author’s Free Online Community: Website and Blog - Lots of Free Articles - Video and Audio - Friendly Forums.

 	www.AstralDynamics.org

 	www.Blog.astraldynamics.com

 	YouTube: Go here for dozens of free videos featuring Robert Bruce

 	www.youtube.com/user/realastralbob

 	The Hall of Learning: Take a user-friendly online Workshop with Robert Bruce on OBE and Energy Work! Video –based so there are no set class times. Live interaction with Robert Bruce and other participants for advice and sharing and problem solving.

 	www.GlideWing.com/RobertBruce.html

 ABOUT THE AUTHOR

    

 	Robert Bruce is the author of six groundbreaking books exploring such mysteries as the human energy body, the out-of-body experience, kundalini, mind's-eye vision, spiritual and psychic development, metaphysics, psychic security, spirits of nature, and manifestation. He is a true spiritual pioneer, dedicated to exploring the dynamics of all things spiritual and paranormal, and testing the boundaries of the greater reality.
 	Robert began experiencing OBE at the age of four and raised his kundalini in his early thirties. He describes his life before kundalini as a series of educational awakening events, leading to his spiritual rebirth in the Australian wilderness. His experiential approach to life has resulted in profound contact with his higher self that continues to grow.

 	Robert resides in Australia. He lectures internationally and conducts interactive online workshops, teaching energy work, astral projection, and spiritual and psychic development. You can find him on the World Wide Web at www.astraldynamics.com where you will find a wealth of information free for downloading.
 	When not writing or lecturing, Robert is often found diving enchanted coral reefs, seeking new guests for his saltwater aquarium, or exploring wild and lonely places in the Australian outback.