This has probably been discussed several times

[journyman161]

I think it would have to be someone you trust very much - you could have problems relaxing enough otherwise - & if you had them 'timed' to come 'wake' you you run the risk of laying there 'expecting' the entrance.

You could set an alarm clock or simply tell yourself how long you want to try it for.

[shaitanx]

Not sure what you mean.. I run the risk of lying there "expecting" the entrance.

Which entrance is that? Do you mean I'm waiting for my friend ot come and wake me?

Wouldnt it be the same with the alarm clock?

[journyman161]

Yes I meant the entrance of your friend. And I don't know why but I have the feeling that having another person around with a connection to you would be more of a distraction than an alarm.

But I think best of all would be simply 'setting' yourself to return in a given time - less possible trauma than a sudden blaring of an alarm or contact from another person.

Just an opinion/feeling - you really should speak to someone with more experience in these things than me.

[CFTraveler]

Hi Shaitanx. I'll try my best to answer some of your questions.

However, I dont totally understand Astral Projection, nor am I totally convinced. I'm 14 years old. My father told me about it when I was about 10, but he just briefly talked about it, and how he's done it. Sure, I believed him, I was ten, he was my dad, why would he lie? Then, last night, my friend was talking to me about it. He's 17 and he claims to have done it several times. He tells me all about it, gives me several links, and I myself found some interesting eBooks on it. EVERYTHING I have read, just seems like a normal dream to me..

If you read Robert's Treatise on astral projection: http://www.astraldynamics.com/tutorials/?BoardID=65
he goes on to explain how your dreaming mind and your consciousness help to shape your experience. The energy is there (objectively) for you to perceive, but your subconscious have a hand in interpreting it. But sometimes you'll get validation. You just have to work on attaining and sustaining lucidity.

So, maybe I dont understand, maybe I'm wrong, maybe I'm right?

Maybe you're both.

Could Astral Projection just be dreaming? I dont see how its scientifically possible for your soul to leave your body. And this silver chord business seems strange. Seems like something from The Matrix or the Sci-Fi channel.

Once again, in astral projection, you project your consciousness, not your soul. Your point of view is what 'moves' or changes focus. But your spirit/soul is still part of your body. That doesn't change. The treatise goes into more detail. And the silver cord is something that not everyone sees, so I do believe it may be the way the subconscious reassures itself that you're not dying. In other words, it may be an artifact. But then again, different people have different theories of perception, and I respect those who have seen it and believe in it's objectivity.

Please convince me otherwise,
nick =]

Why do you need convincing? It's an experience that only you can prove to yourself.

I will tryy, I just want somebody to guide me through it, someone with firsthand experience, such as my father.

Here a few basics for you to tailor to your needs:
1)Learn to maintain lucidity in dreams. This is for memory enhancement. That way you'll learn to remember your projections. You can use affirmations,& reality checks. If you are already a lucid dreamer you have the advantage.
2) Learn to meditate, to relax your body and achieve trance. There are many methods to use, work with whatever you like.
3)Do energy work. Here's a link for NEW. : http://www.astraldynamics.com/tutorials/?BoardID=6
this will help you with control, lucidity and length of projection. It's also good for your health. It can be used for meditation purposes.
4) Once you can reach trance and are feeling projection symptoms. These boards are full of exit strategies.

I have a projection journal in the OBE section- in it you can see what different things I've done in a case-by case basis, for the past year and a half (more or less).
Good luck.

[shaitanx]

If Astral Projection has so many benefits, what are the cons?

What are the negatives of OBE's?

If it's so great, why isnt it taught in school?

[CFTraveler]

If Astral Projection has so many benefits, what are the cons?

What are the negatives of OBE's?

If it's so great, why isnt it taught in school?

What is the point of your questions?
That's like asking me- You like to draw? What is the point of drawing? Why isn't everyone an artist? If you can watch tv, why do we have to read?
Are you asking questions because you're curious, and/or interested?
Or is there another motive?

[Palehorse Redivivus]

If it's so great, why isnt it taught in school?

What is the point of your questions?

I agree with CFT's assessment but this question did stick out. The public school system we know and love was designed over a century ago with the industrial revolution in mind -- i.e. designed to produce good factory workers, citizens and consumers who know how to do what they're told and not question authority. With any "thinking outside the box" so actively discouraged, traveling outside one's body can't be expected to fare much better, right? APing is more contrary to the way society today runs than conducive to it, so as such you probably won't ever see tax dollars being spent to teach the average person how to do it.

I don't necessarily have a problem with that, though, for the same reason I'd really prefer the government stay out of private spirituality in pretty much every other way. As subjective as the astral plane is, it kind of unnerves me to think what a government sponsored AP curriculum would be like, or what results it would produce. There are also ethical questions involved in forcing people to take classes to learn a practice that many people are religiously opposed to (though I suppose an elective in the higher grades or college would solve that problem). In this age of the internet, books and seminars, people already have plenty of ways to learn about AP should they so choose; we should stick with those IMO.

[Plumes.Gris]

I wouldn't take my word for it, but I suppose the negative aspects to OBE's is that along with the training to attain it, you become more aware of things you weren't before...like negs or negative entities...in which case, you also risk of becoming a target (or so I think).

You know it's funny that you mention OBE's being taught in school because I've been given a James Redfield book for x-mas...which in all of them, he goes on to explain how spirituality is a matter of evolution which everyone will eventually attain. I'm not explaining it properly of course, but it's a simple statement on his books. I'm not very keen on spreading the word on new age books, but ironically enough, his books came to me through various coincidences which is another subject of his books. (btw, if you get interested enough...don't think watching the movie "The Celestine Prophecy" is a good short cut...it was very disapointing)
Anyway, all this to say that perhaps the day will come that OBE's are welcomed into schools...but mostly, I agree with Palehorse Redivivus

shaitanx, I was smiling when I read what happened when you tried to OBE. It's almost exactly what happened to me the first time. I was in bed, pumped up from being around a bunch of spiritually energetic people that day. I thought, "I could go out of my body if I wanted to". My vibrations were like a jack hammer was stuck to my back, and I had roaring like a freight train in my ears. Lifted out, freaked, and slammed back into my body. Yes, it was real.

If you keep at it, and actually do manage to stay out of your body for awhile, you'll know it's different from a dream. The descriptions of experiences can sound like dreams, but when it happens, HELLO! You'll definitely know. I've never had any dream that felt that way.

Downsides? Yes, you can freak yourself out. Learn all you can about it, learn some protection, and BELIEVE you will be fine. You will. Fear is a mighty emotion, and it can be magnified in the astral. So, learn not to fear. Educate yourself on what to expect. Read Robert's tutorials, there's a lot of info there.

About trying to verify if your experience is real...that gets complicated. If you can manage to stay in the Real Time Zone, it's possible. That takes a lot of control and a lot of practice. Most people end up in the astral due to lack of control, which can be a weird and goofy copy of the real world. It's what Robert calls the "Alice in Wonderland effect". So, in your room, a door may appear where there was none. Furniture that is not normally there can appear. Trying to read something is difficult. Anything you can imagine, you can create with your thoughts in the astral. So, if you are afraid, you can create fearful things. Are they real? Well, are your thoughts real? They are as real as your thoughts. I don't personally think that you risk becoming a target to negative entities by OBE'ing. I haven't had any problems since I got over the fear factor. But, I did create some fearful things in the beginning. When I learned to laugh at them, they go away. Everybody's experiences and even beliefs are different. So, you just have to figure out your own.

[shaitanx]

LOL!

I tried it again last night, and it failed. I didnt feel any vibrations or anything. Well, I might have, but just a little. I couldnt't tell if they were or just, I imagined them. I tried pulling myself up but nothing happened.