Astral projection, or astral travel, is an out of body experience where the astral body (the energy force of our physical body), separates from the physical body, while always being connected back to the physical body by an invisible cord. The idea of astral projection can be traced back to the Egyptian dynasty. The New Testament refers to this particularly in the Book of Revelation. The practice of astral projection gained popularity early in the 20th century during the spiritualism craze founded by Helena Blavatsky, and again became popular during the New Age movement of the 1960’s.

Astral projections mainly occur when you are partaking in spiritual exercises, prior to or during sleep, or within a meditation. The astral body, which is tethered to the physical body by a cord, separates from the physical body allowing it to travel freely to a place, or another dimension as it chooses. The astral body takes flight as it passes through any solid objects to arrive at its destination. You might be familiar with the term “remote viewing”, where people went into a trance state and astral projected their self into enemy territory to obtain important information for military use. Known as “psychic espionage” this practice was and is still being used in the armed forces to this day.

The art of astral projection takes practice in order to separate the astral body from the physical body. It is best accomplished by quieting the mind of chatter and slowing down the body to a meditative state. Then, project yourself towards the area or place you desire to move towards. The body is merely a shell that houses our spirit or life force. When we move ourselves out of the body, we allow our spirit to move about freely on a different plane. The universe is at our fingertips, and when astral projection is mastered, we gain the ability to expand our consciousness beyond our human capabilities.

It is important that you sense the area you are projecting yourself to by using as many senses as you can to maintain yourself within that area. Try to place a candle across the room from where you will be meditating. As you meditate, begin to see your astral body moving towards the candle. As you come closer to the flame, make sure your senses feel the heat, smell the scent of the candle and view the flicker of the flame.

Then return to your human body with grace and ease. If you return at a fast rate, you might get a slight headache or feel a little uncomfortable, even though both of those feelings will pass quickly. A sudden sound or quick adjustment can cause this to occur. Have you ever woken up with your arm asleep or hurting a little? We tend to leave our body and astral plane when we are sleeping. Sometimes we leave for longer stretches of time, leaving our body in one position that can become a little uncomfortable. So next time you have a dream about a house you have never been to or seen and you know the layout and the furniture in each room, ask yourself, “Did I really dream it or did I astral project myself to that location?”

Astral projection brings about many amazing experiences and adventures. Take your time, keep your mind open to these experience and you will reap the benefits of mental strength and spiritual calm.

by Nancy Lynn For Body Mind Spirit Guide