Todays Guest Post is by Georgiy Onyschuk at http://www.mindvalley.com/
Keep it simple
For many people, the idea of full astral travel – with your astral body escaping your material one and flying to unknown and familiar places – is not what they are looking for. The reasons for this are many; perhaps the idea of projecting yourself so far from your physical body is unnerving, or scary. This is understandable in principle, but thankfully, it isn’t possible to become disconnected from your material form. Nonetheless, many people are uncomfortable with the idea of it, and as such, hold themselves back from experiencing full astral travel, as worry and discomfort are two of the things which can really prohibit a full projection. Other reasons for people wanting something simpler from their astral body may be to do with the idea that, for many, the thought of full astral travel is a little far-fetched, a bit unbelievable. You’d be surprised at the amount of people out there whose imaginations can stretch as far as out of body experiences and remote vision, but face a brick wall when it comes to anything more extravagant. This too, is understandable. It cannot be expected of everybody to accept the wonders of the astral world without hard evidence, and the only way really to appreciate what is possible and what can be achieved through full astral travel is to do it… a cycle is created of disbelief preventing evidence materializing to the unbeliever. However, if you are looking to achieve a simple out-of-body experience, there are many ways you can do it so that it remains comfortable, easy and rewarding without pushing yourself too far.
Deep relaxation technique
The most important ingredient for any method of astral projection for beginners is finding a way of entering a state of deep relaxation. As with many things, the best methods for this need to be experimented with, and subjected to a process of trial and error. However, most people can quickly find a method of deep relaxation that suits them. For me, I like to practice a simple meditation technique known as ‘tracking’ or ‘following’ the breath through the body. Once you are settled in a comfortable place – either a favourite chair or sofa, or preferably, on your bed – give your body the reward of a deep, full breath. Once your lungs are full (but not uncomfortably so), hold the breath for two or three seconds. Slowly and steadily release it, feeling the pleasure of breathing move through all of your body. On your next breath, as you hold it again for two or three seconds, notice the oxygen spreading outwards from your lungs, and moving into your shoulders, arms and thighs. Release slowly, and concentrate on the feeling of relaxation that breathing awards you. Continue doing this for a minute or two until you can feel the breath all the way through your body. If you are not already lying down, now is a good time to relax, and let your body become loose and utterly relaxed.
Visualise your freedom
In order to have an out-of-body experience, you need to allow yourself to come to the realisation that there is another, more subtle body trapped inside your physical one. In the height of your relaxation, try to concentrate on that body, and allow it to rise, bubble-like, up out of your material form. Will your inner self to lift up and out, and feel yourself gradually growing lighter and lighter. Many people find some simple visualizations help at this point – the most common being some kind of ropes or threads pulling your astral body upwards. Continue concentrating on these visualizations, and focus on the sensation of weightlessness that your relaxation has allowed you to feel. As you continue to breathe lying down, each outward breath should boost the sensation that you are rising out of your body. As soon as you are comfortable enough, exhale fully, as much as you can, and pull your astral or etheric self right out of your material body until you are floating free from your heavy, physical self which will remain safely lying on the bed. Don’t panic, and enjoy the wonderful feelings of this simple out-of-body experience. Any time you want to return and start again, just remember that you are still lying down on the bed, and coax your astral form to rejoin and awake.
This article has been contributed by the Mindvalley team.
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