Out-Of-Body Experience And Astral Projection

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I’ve been dropping hints about astral projection here and here. It’s time to share my understanding of this unusual phenomena.

Is it astral projection or out-of-body experience?

First, the issue of name. Often, the New Age people use the word “astral projection” while the more science-oriented people call it “out-of-body experience”. And when the phenomena is involuntarily induced with severe physical trauma, it’s called “near-death experience”.

They are basically the same experience. However, I recently read a book called “Soul Traveler: A Guide to Out-of-Body Experiences and the Wonders Beyond”, which shed some light to this confusion.

The author of this book, a NASA engineer with a doctorate degree, says his “soul travels” (the name he chooses to use) started with his astral body separating from his physical body. At some point, however, he realized he wasn’t using his astral body any longer — he realized he was just a “pinpoint of consciousness”. Further, he maintains that the astral body is only useful in the astral plane and, to fly higher than the astral plane into the causal, mental, and etheric plane, he needs to be this pinpoint of consciousness.

• Astral projection – The astral body is “projected”, voluntarily or involuntarily, from the physical body. Technically, it’s scope is limited to the astral plane.
• Out-of-body experience – A catchall term that includes astral projection.
• Near-death experience – Specific cases of out-of-body experience caused by physical trauma.

I am going to use the term “out-of-body experience (OBE)” from here on because it is more neutral and it covers wider range of experiences.

Is this for real?

Before some of you start thinking this article is too “occult”, let me assure you that many people who have had out-of-body experiences are ordinary people, with or without specific faith. The author of the aforementioned book, Albert Taylor, is one of them.

Another thing to consider is, those who had OBE come back with the knowledge they could not have known in the usual way. This seems to provide validity to their claim of having OBE. For example, Albert Taylor says he could visit his friend’s residence, where he had never visited, and provide details of the room later.

Another example is the one in Wikipedia’s “Out-of Body Experience“, in which the person has OBE “during brain surgery and described a surgical instrument she had not seen previously, as well as conversation that occurred while she was under anesthesia”.

The purpose of out-of-body experience

Some people practice the voluntary induction of out-of-body experience to have firsthand spiritual experience. Reading about spirituality is one thing — experiencing yourself as pure spirit (soul) is quite another.

When you are out of the body, you definitely know you are not just your body. This liberates you from the restrictive ideas and patterns of our daily life.

OBE also helps you to overcome the fear of death. If you are keeping consciousness while you are out of your body, what is so scary about losing the body upon death? Plus, you may even get a glimpse of the “other side” while you are having OBE.

My purpose of OBE

My purpose, however, is a little different. As Akashic Record Reader, I already know we are spiritual beings having human experiences, not the other way around. There is something that connects us all and this is why I get to read the Akashic Records of my clients who may be thousands of miles away and whom I have never met.

I also know our souls have been reincarnating many times. The past life memories are still kept in our soul and sometimes affect us in unexpected ways. This is another thing I have known and verified many times through my Akashic Record Reading practice.

Then why am I interested in OBE?

I used to think OBE as a kind of spiritual gymnastics. It’s certainly interesting and impressive, but why invest the time and effort to achieve it? I’m not interested in show biz.

I now think it a little differently. Here are my two objectives of OBE:

1. OBE serves as a practice of conscious dying
That is, dying while fully aware of the transition from this world to the other side. There are many ways to exit this world. Most of the time, we exit by the old-fashioned death, by losing consciousness (temporarily). But I think it is possible to make the transition while I am aware.

In voluntary OBE, you practice putting your physical body to sleep while you stay conscious. Once the body is asleep, you can get out and have all kinds of fun.

And conscious transition to the other side is basically about moving further in OBE and not returning to the physical body. So OBE is the first step of conscious dying. Practice this, get familiar with the in-out transition, explore the nearby astrals, so that eventually I’ll be ready to move on further.

(Not surprisingly, initial OBEs come with fear of the unknown. Consider this as warning if you, too, want to practice.)

2. OBE may help explore the details of soul’s mystery
There are many unanswered questions about the soul. For example,

“Can we live without a soul?”
My guess is no because we ARE the soul. However, if the “pinpoint of consciousness” is the soul itself, the body seems to be able to at least sleep and survive until we return to it. So then, how much life function does the body have without the soul?  Is this about the body energy and the soul energy? Or is it not the soul that leaves the body?

“Do animals and plants have souls, too?”
This is related to the first question. If animals don’t have souls, when did we as humans start to have souls? Where is the line? If animals do have souls, do we reincarnate as animals and plants? I haven’t seen that in the Akashic Records so far.

(By the way, here is the article, an interview, in which personal development blogger Hunter Nuttall grilled me with so many great questions about the Akashic Records and the soul. This is one of the questions I could not answer back then — and therefore has been sitting on the back-burner since, for two years.)

“What are the true nature of spirit guides?”
I have working knowledge about spirit guides. I can even communicate with them. But who are they, really? When I get out of my body, is there a significant difference between me and them? Do I get to know them better in that form?

“What is the nature of dreams?”
There are many types of dreams. Some dreams are just our mind reviewing our awake life and seeking solutions. But there are some dreams that are so real. Often, flying dreams are one of them.

I have the feeling we are getting outside of the body while we are sleeping, but we just don’t remember it or we think it was a dream.

So I am checking to practice OBE. (Just started reading “Mastering Astral Projection: 90-day Guide to Out-of-Body Experience“)
I hope to have fun with this!

Have you had OBE? Do you have any questions? Let me know in the comment. Thank you.