Wind of the Soul

The primary focus of this post is to help anyone who’s interested in, but somewhat fearful about, the process of having a deliberate out of body experience. While this article is intended to help soothe fears about astral projection, I don’t recommend that anyone, who has a major phobia surrounding the out of body state, pursue it until they can work through or release the majority of those fears.

It’s extremely difficult to experience astral projection if your primary emotion surrounding the subject is fear. Not to mention that when fear dominates your feelings (after projecting) you may have some rough experiences while on the astral plane. When I first started having spontaneous OBEs, I had my fair share of worrisome thoughts and trepidation that accompanied the process.

It was through further exploration, that I discovered most of these feelings stemmed from a misunderstanding or from preconceived ideas I had developed about the astral realm. Once I began reading about astral projection I started buying into many of the myths that seem to run rampant pertaining to out of body experiences.

Let’s go through a list of four of the biggest common concerns for somewhat experienced travelers and the uninitiated alike:

One of the first concerns many people have pertains to the concept of protecting one’s self from entities that inhabit the astral realm. Many seem to feel it’s important or necessary to go through a ritual of protection prior to projecting. If you’ve read my blog post: The Dark Side?, then you know I don’t personally believe there is a concentrated force of darkness or evil that is “out there” waiting to attack, in the earth environment or on the astral plane.

The beings you encounter and the interactions you have with them, in the nonphysical, are totally dependent upon your intentions and your interpretations. The key is to keep your focus upon that which you choose to experience. Just as you wouldn’t seek out an encounter with something you deem negative in your physical environment, you wouldn’t want to go looking for that on the astral plane either.

There is no place in which your intentions work faster than in a nonphysical realm such as the astral environment. In the astral there is no concept of time or anything resembling it that can slow the manifestation of your inner feelings. They have the ability to instantly manifest, similar to the dreamscape. This is why it’s extremely important to be vigilant in directing your thoughts and emotions while traversing the nonphysical landscape. On the other hand, if rituals help soothe your mind then feel free to perform them before you travel the astral, however I don’t believe they are truly necessary.

A second concern centers on the idea of possession and the physical body’s vulnerability while being away from it. I feel this is truly a non-issue. Our physical bodies are nothing more than a focal point for consciousness. I don’t believe our energy is even contained fully by the physical body. I feel that we merely “shadow” the body, or better said- we concentrate upon the body, but we definitely do not inhabit it in a manner equivalent to being locked up inside of it. Energy flows through the physical vehicle, but is not contained by it.

I believe consciousness can only stem from your energetic perspective, not from the physical body itself. So, I would say that there is no need to worry about your physical self being unwillingly overtaken by some other form of energy.

Even if we did house ourselves in the physical vehicle, I don’t believe out of body experiences literally take us out of our body. I believe they are a journey deeper into consciousness. Either way your body is not at risk for being possessed. Possession is most definitely another fear, which stems from the human perspective. It’s not a belief or concept that our higher self even considers.

Another area that seems to elicit fear is whether or not we can become lost from our physical body. I have had dozens of OBEs and have yet to experience any issue in becoming disoriented or unaware of how to remerge with my physical self. Our consciousness has, in a sense, already affixed a homing device to our body. No matter how far into the astral plane you travel (remember distance is an illusion since you are actually traveling deeper within your consciousness)- you only have to think about your body to make a speedy return to it.

Many people, when having an OBE, will see a silver cord trailing from their energetic body back to their physical one. They believe that if this cord were to become severed, they would pass away from physical existence. Personally I have never experienced the silver cord phenomenon. I tend to believe it’s a safety mechanism that we create out of worry over becoming lost or detached from our physical selves. Remember, on the astral plane your thoughts manifest instantly, whether they are conscious or residing just below the surface of your consciousness. The silver cord is only another one of those thoughts.

A fourth concern and question that some people ask is, “Will this experience change my beliefs about religion and/or god?” My answer to that is: quite possibly. I find that most people who have an OBE are never exactly the same again. Of course, I mean that in a good way. Usually they have discovered a broader way of looking at life and its meaning, rather than through simply relying on their physical experiences alone.

You absolutely will emerge a different person after the experience(s); however it doesn’t mean you will want to shun your religion. If anything you will discover the interconnectivity of all things and just how amazing the life experience is. You will come to better understand why we are here and how you can utilize the same tools that benefit you in the astral, here in the physical dimensions, to speed up whatever you are hoping to accomplish in your life.

I have heard others state that once the door to the astral has been opened it never truly closes. I agree with that statement, but it shouldn’t be taken as something treacherous or foreboding. I was on a path of questioning the meaning of my life many years before having OBEs, but nothing propelled me faster and farther down that path, or gave me more answers, than discovering the nonphysical realms of consciousness and my access to them.

I’d like to close this article with, what I feel, are some of the many benefits of exploring the astral plane:

To discover what lies beyond the physical environment

To explore subtler realms of consciousness

To better prepare one’s self for the inevitable death experience and to realize that death is actually quite an amazing journey further into pure consciousness

To see first hand proof of how our thoughts, motivated by our feelings, actually manifest and aid in the creation of our reality, both in the astral and on the earth plane of focus

To gain a broader perspective that aids in self empowerment

To attain a clearer connection to your spiritual self

To see firsthand how the physical Universe stems from within subtler planes of thought- as within, so without

To experience a shift in perspective and to gain a broader understanding that aids in living a more joyful physical life

To better understand the interconnectivity of all things and how nothing exists separate from anything else

To explore environments and activities that currently exist outside the realm of possibility on the earth plane, due to self imposed limitations set forth by the majority of humankind

To find the means for connecting with the consciousness of individuals that have passed on from physical existence

To open the door that can literally change your life and the way you view your reality

While there are many more experiences during astral projections, that have the potential to cause a fearful response, I wanted to cover some of the more obvious ones. If anyone has any questions or other fears they would like to see addressed in this article, or a future one, then please contact me.

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Related Posts

Podcast #2: Astral Projection
Techniques For Achieving an OBE
My Astral Experience With A Tribal Shaman
Q & A: Out of Body Noises & Sensations
Q & A: Out of Body Experiences & Dream Symbols
Experiences Out of the Body – Part 1
Experiences Out of the Body – Part 2
Altered States of Consciousness & Aspects of Awareness

This entry was posted on Sunday, July 1st, 2007 at 7:10 pm and is filed under Altered States of Consciousness, Out of Body Experiences, Releasing Fear, Spiritual Empowerment. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.