Astral Projection

Exploring Theravāda's connections to other paths - what can we learn from other traditions, religions and philosophies?
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BlueLotus
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Astral Projection

Post by BlueLotus »

Has anyone here had an out of body experience, with or without conscious effort? I'm just looking to hear what the experience is like. I know there's a lot of resources out there but, I want to hear from someone here as well...
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Pondera
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Re: Astral Projection

Post by Pondera »

There’s IMO a tendency, when people talk about OBE’s, to imagine that the astral body will leave the material body with a very lucid view of the material body. The reality is not as stark.

Anyone can have an OBE granted that they stop trying to actually leave their body. The OBE actually happens in the mind. The person may be sitting cross legged anticipating “space” - and their space chakra opens. If this happens a natural effect is that the astral body will float into space.

With eyes closed, the practitioner views “something” leaving the body through the top of the head. He sees his physical body becoming more and more distant. However this is viewed in the mind’s eye. You haven’t actually left your body.

For some people, the claim is that it is far more lucid. Like a near death experience. Personally I haven’t had one of these outrageously vivid OBE - but most every time I dwell on space I leave through the top of my head. From there I leave the atmosphere, the solar system, the galaxy, and then I arrive in a certain green-blue heaven.

It’s always the same journey for me. If I go beyond the green-blue heaven I come up against a wall of conscious beings (millions of them) attempting to exit the universe. So, for what it’s worth that is what I can tell you about OBE’s.

Your “space chakra” is above your “crown chakra”. It opens when one dwells on the outward manifestation of space. And then the OBE happens entirely in the mind’s eye. But don’t get me wrong - by the time you’ve “left” your body you will certainly have forgotten that you used to have one. Ie. the experience is genuine.

Good luck.
Like the three marks of conditioned existence, this world in itself is filthy, hostile, and crowded
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TamHanhHi
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Re: Astral Projection

Post by TamHanhHi »

I've heard a number of teachers also caution about entering those experiences prematurely. Just like in the physical realm, there are dangers out there. I'd proceed carefully.
"Just as a large banyan tree, on level ground where four roads meet, is a haven for the birds all around, even so a lay person of conviction is a haven for many people: monks, nuns, male lay followers, & female lay followers."AN 5.38
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Cynerenika
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Re: Astral Projection

Post by Cynerenika »

I have heard pleanty about it, but if I were you, I'd be careful!
sandrinegislason
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Re: Astral Projection

Post by sandrinegislason »

Cynerenika wrote: Tue Jul 06, 2021 11:02 am I have heard pleanty about it, but if I were you, I'd be careful! bubble shooter
Why is that?
form
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Re: Astral Projection

Post by form »

This is same as mind made body?
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confusedlayman
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Re: Astral Projection

Post by confusedlayman »

First of all mind made body is near impossible for layman.. even there is no account of citta householder doing these stuffs
I may be slow learner but im at least learning...
form
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Re: Astral Projection

Post by form »

confusedlayman wrote: Tue Jul 06, 2021 4:47 pm First of all mind made body is near impossible for layman.. even there is no account of citta householder doing these stuffs
What is astral projection then?
Inedible
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Re: Astral Projection

Post by Inedible »

This is something I'm happy to see discussed here. I have tried many techniques but I have never had a deliberate experience. Just times when I seemed to pop out of body by mistake. It felt like I was still in my body, except that in the times I floated up by the ceiling that was a bit weird. From what I have read, the out of body experiences were a side effect of lucid dreaming. I was good at it when I was growing up and lost the ability. That is also something I have tried to get back. As to astral projection, it seems like you have to spend most of your time and effort getting to the right state of mind and body. After that, it doesn't really seem to matter what technique you use. Variations on a theme. They all end up telling you to just do it, just separate. I don't tend to get any of the signs that it is time to try like vibrations or noises.
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Pondera
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Re: Astral Projection

Post by Pondera »

Inedible wrote: Wed Jul 07, 2021 5:30 am This is something I'm happy to see discussed here. I have tried many techniques but I have never had a deliberate experience. Just times when I seemed to pop out of body by mistake. It felt like I was still in my body, except that in the times I floated up by the ceiling that was a bit weird. From what I have read, the out of body experiences were a side effect of lucid dreaming. I was good at it when I was growing up and lost the ability. That is also something I have tried to get back. As to astral projection, it seems like you have to spend most of your time and effort getting to the right state of mind and body. After that, it doesn't really seem to matter what technique you use. Variations on a theme. They all end up telling you to just do it, just separate. I don't tend to get any of the signs that it is time to try like vibrations or noises.
You describe it exactly. One remains in their body and mind, however the visual of the mind ascends above the body. This is how it is supposed to happen.
Like the three marks of conditioned existence, this world in itself is filthy, hostile, and crowded
Inedible
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Re: Astral Projection

Post by Inedible »

This thread has a lot of potential. I need to start thinking about astral projection in a new way.
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confusedlayman
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Re: Astral Projection

Post by confusedlayman »

Inedible wrote: Wed Jul 07, 2021 7:14 am This thread has a lot of potential. I need to start thinking about astral projection in a new way.
Excellent, Mahanama, excellent! It is fitting for clansmen like you to approach the Tathagata and ask, 'For those of us living by means of various dwelling places [for the mind], by means of which dwelling place should we live?'

I think u can think of above rather than astral stuffs
I may be slow learner but im at least learning...
Inedible
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Re: Astral Projection

Post by Inedible »

This really is an unusual place for a thread about astral projection. I'd like to see it develop because so far all the stuff I've read has been sounding the same.
un8-
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Re: Astral Projection

Post by un8- »

Inedible wrote: Wed Jul 07, 2021 7:50 am This really is an unusual place for a thread about astral projection. I'd like to see it develop because so far all the stuff I've read has been sounding the same.
There is a community of astral projectors who meet eachother in the astral and then report what happened in the astral to try to see if it is actually objective and not just a hallucination, they're on reddit /r/astreality

There's also /r/gatewaytapes and /r/fived which are based on the father of astral projection Robert Monroe and the youtuber Astral Club who has studied under robert monroe.

A lot of what they say aligns with Buddhism without them being aware of it, like how they see hungry ghosts and stuff, how when they do bad stuff or have bad thoughts they're unable to reach higher planes, etc.. For example the Astral Club guy was stuck in the hungry ghost planes because he did bad speech against a deva, he has no idea about karma, so he doesn't know why he was stuck in the hungry ghost plane, I believe he talks about it here



Also I noticed a lot of similarities between astral projection techniques and Buddhist meditation, the main theme in astral projection is to keep the mind awake while the body sleeps, and that seems to be the same in deep jhanas, the body stops breathing but the mind is awake.
There is only one battle that could be won, and that is the battle against the 3 poisons. Any other battle is a guaranteed loss because you're going to die either way.
un8-
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Re: Astral Projection

Post by un8- »

Also forgot to add, this stuff runs very deep. Robert Monroe was hired by the CIA to teach astral projection and remote viewing.

Here's a video of one of those agents in the CIA program called Project Stargate talking about bases on mars and ancient humans



In this video he says the ancient humans were huge and extemely tall, and this aligns with Buddhist commentaries.

There's also another video which I can't find at the moment that shows all the secret bases on Earth as well, very detailed with maps and everything. These bases were all discovered by CIA remote viewers trained by Robert Monroe
There is only one battle that could be won, and that is the battle against the 3 poisons. Any other battle is a guaranteed loss because you're going to die either way.
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