oh, so close...but no OBE cigar!

[Harry Shirton]

Greeting and welcome Harry
It appears that you Are making progress so that first OBE is likely 'just around the corner'. Desire and intention are as important as method and technique so stay with it and hopefully an OBE will occur very soon.

Good luck
Grey

GT...thanks for encouragement...this site is nice if only for the fact I know I'm not going on my Journey alone! I'd like to pick your etheric brain, though. About 10 years ago, I came across Robert's ROPE doc and practiced techniques. Never got to OBE, but came damn close. Life happened, I left ROPE doc in cardborad box (never got rid of it though!), and just recently I'm getting back into it.
Ten years ago, I remember getting to the point in my trance of getting the vibrations...I remember feeling/hearing this state...now I can get to a mid-level trance, but can't get low enogh to hit this mid-deep level! I try feather dropping, elevator lowering, walking down steps, falling/floating...I can feel a trance...a noticeable low-level whispering/humming...but can't get to that next point of actual buzzing/vibrations!
Any thoughts/observations/advice?
Regards,
Harry
"I think the monkeys at the zoo should have to wear sunglasses so they can't hypnotize you."

[embrace]

one question: when you begin to try the rope technique, have you reached a sleep paralysis? That's the thing many beginners misunderstand and ignore. If you are able to move your body when you try, that is NOT the state you can possibly have an OOBE in.

Here's how it works:

1. Reach sleep paralysis
2. Wait for vibrations / unusual noises
3. WAIT until vibrations get stronger, don't rush things
4. Use just about ANY method (the rope really works nicely, I use it a lot).

If the state you are in is right (sleep paralysis + strong vibration), you will EASILY achieve OOBE.

[Harry Shirton]

Embrace..."sleep paralysis"? I do my trancing during the day...I go through breathing focus/relaxation, chakra energizing, then meditation/breathing to bring on a trance state. I feel a disconnection from my physical, I feel a mild humming vibration, then I go through energy loosening, and can feel myself close to an exit, but not able to actually exit. I couldn't say I am paralyzed at any point, and definitely not sleepy...my attempts are during the day...once in mid-morning, and another in the middle of the afternoon.

[embrace]

Embrace..."sleep paralysis"?

How can you tell if you're close to exit? If you haven't achieved a conscious sleep paralysis (look up the term), you cannot possibly have an OOBE. Feeling relaxed is not enough. You need to achieve a state when your physical body falls asleep and your mind remains awake. The vibrations and noises everybody is talking about are the usual sensations that we usually experience in sleep paralysis. We're usually not aware of those sensations, because by the time we reach sleep paralysis, our mind is long asleep.

It really is that simple: if you can't move your body even though you try, you are close to having an OOBE.

[Harry Shirton]

Embrace...checked into sleep paralysis...from what I can infer, I need to go deeper in my trance meditations? I feel somewhat beyond just relaxed...I get relaxed when I start out...usually start with some NEW energy raising, then go through the ROPE steps. I open my chakras and raise the energy in them, just as Robert outlines in ROPE, then I go through the induced lowering of self to bring on the trance. I get to a point where I feel disconnected from my physical body, I feel a low-level humming vibration throughout my body (not intense enough to be a buzzing vibration, but the sensation is definitely there). When I get to this state, I go through energy-loosening excercises, "lower" myself a bit longer to maintain the trance state, then reach for The Rope. Several times now I can feel a lifting sensation, like I'm separating out from my body, but can't quite make a total exit. Are you suggesting, with reference to "sleep paralysis", to go even deeper in my trancing to get a total paralysis-vibration?
Harry
"One thing vampire children have to be taught early on is, don't run with a wooden stake."

[CFTraveler]

I don't like the term 'sleep paralysis' for the paralysis you get close to an OBE- because it has negative connotations i.e. the medical term for when you wake up paralyzed with hallucinations/hypnopomps- so I usually differentiate onset paralysis (or trance paralysis) from it.
Sleep paralysis (the negative event) happens at a different time in the cycle than onset/trance paralysis, and has a completely different level of lucidity, making it not as good for OBE exit.

[Harry Shirton]

CF...that's why I was questioning it when Embrace brought it up...I try my ROPE's during day, and I DO get into trance state. I'll keep focussing on deepening my trance states from this point on...patience and obstinance shall overcome!

[embrace]

From wikipedia:

Many perceptions associated with sleep paralysis (visceral buzzing, loud sounds, excited mental state,^[22] presences, and the paralysis itself) also constitute a common phase in the early progression of episodes referred to as out of body experiences

I never before heard the term trance paralysis. I agree that many people are afraid of sleep paralysis, but in my very humble opinion, there is no way of achieving OOBE without it - at least, not for me Perhaps others have had different experiences, but given what I've experienced I can only achieve OOBE when my entire body is paralyzed (sometimes I'm able to open my eyes, but no more than that).

CFTraveler, when you have OOBE, can you move your body simultaneously? I can't imagine this happening to me.

[CFTraveler]

CF...that's why I was questioning it when Embrace brought it up...I try my ROPE's during day, and I DO get into trance state. I'll keep focussing on deepening my trance states from this point on...patience and obstinance shall overcome!

Also try energy body loosening before you get to the exit- it makes it easier and deeper.

[CFTraveler]

From wikipedia:



I never before heard the term trance paralysis. I agree that many people are afraid of sleep paralysis, but in my very humble opinion, there is no way of achieving OOBE without it - at least, not for me Perhaps others have had different experiences, but given what I've experienced I can only achieve OOBE when my entire body is paralyzed (sometimes I'm able to open my eyes, but no more than that).

CFTraveler, when you have OOBE, can you move your body simultaneously? I can't imagine this happening to me.

You can have an OBE without being paralyzed, but it's not easy- it requires a lot of experience and awareness. Luckily it's not necessary if you have 'traditional' exit symptoms when very deeply tranced- it becomes tricky when you start having things like double input (aka bilocation) and symptoms very early in the trance, before paralysis.
I projected the traditional way (after paralysis set in) for many years, and it was only a few years ago, after I stopped having vibrations or voices in the 'right' time- I found that I was 'ready' while still being able to move, which made an exit technique difficult- I had to focus on the technique very intensely while keeping my body completely still- very difficult but doable.