In Brief

• The Facts:

  Astral projection is an esoteric term that describes when the soul exits the physical body and enters the astral body. Many people have reported experiencing this type of thing, or something similar.

• Reflect On:

  Is there more to our reality that what we know? Are there non physical aspects of our reality that we have the ability to tap into?

Imagine this: You’ve gotten into bed and shut your eyes for a moment, and then all of a sudden, when you open them again, you’re hovering over your body. You’re conscious, but it’s not the you you typically identify as, the one with a face and clothing and jewelry, but the real you, your soul.

You’re looking down at your body and you realize you can move, almost as if you’re flying. You say goodbye to your body and begin to travel around your room, down your stairs, out your door, and then… you wake up. This is a form of astral projection, commonly referred to as an “out of body experience.”

Some people have reported astral projecting during a dream-like state, while others have experienced this same thing when they had a near-death experience. Some find the experience terrifying, and others find it humbling and exciting, knowing they can travel throughout the physical plane using only their astral bodies. If you’ve ever wanted to try astral projecting or wish to learn more about it, this article is for you!

What Is Astral Projection? 

When astral projecting, you are consciously aware of it. Many people will look at their physical bodies and recognize themselves while they’re in a sleep-like state.

It is said that astral projection is an out-of-body experience that can be achieved either through dreaming, deep meditation, or even when you’re awake. As far as I know, most people who astral project will simply explore the physical plane as they know it. However, it is said that the Akashic Records can be accessed from here and one can travel through timelines and even communicate with other beings (sometimes even other projectors).

It’s important to note that most people don’t experience the same third dimensional physical constraints when astral projecting. For example, most souls are able to travel while projecting out-of-body by way of flying or floating.

Astral projecting is very different from dreaming or even lucid dreaming. When you’re dreaming, you’re unconscious. When you’re experiencing a lucid dream, you are usually conscious of the fact that you’re dreaming, and thus you can manipulate scenarios and control your dreams. However, when you’re astral projecting, your soul literally exits the body, but you are consciously controlling it.

Techniques for Having an Out-of-Body Experience

Though many people don’t consciously plan to astral project, it is said that you can use certain techniques to help yourself astral project or have an out-of-body experience (OBE). If you’re interested in trying to astral project, give the following techniques a shot:

The Rope Technique

This is actually the only technique I’ve tried, and I sort of had success! Though I didn’t have a full-blown OBE, I definitely felt it coming on and left my body for a few moments, until I got too scared and decided to stop.

Basically, all you do is envision an invisible rope hanging from the top of your ceiling, directly over your body. You then imagine that you’re reaching out your “astral body hands” and slowly pull yourself up the imaginary rope. You may feel dizzy, which is completely normal. Keep concentrating on climbing the rope, hand over hand and very slowly, and don’t stop until you’ve freed your astral body.

Watch Yourself Falling Asleep

This method requires you to be very diligent as you begin to fall asleep. Tell yourself that you’re going to watch yourself fall asleep and actually stay conscious during the entire process, including when you enter into the dream state. Recognize every sensation you experience as your physical body falls asleep, as this will help you remain conscious.

As you fall deeper into a dream-like state, you may experience some buzzing and heaviness. Use this to help yourself stay conscious and visualize yourself floating above your body. Continue to visualize this until you hopefully reach the point of OBE.

Wake Back to Bed Method

Though not very enjoyable for those of us who enjoy sleeping, the “wake back” method is very popular to induce astral projection as well as lucid dreaming. Set your alarm for a few hours before you usually wake up, but don’t get up when it goes off, simply shut it off and lay back down once your mind is awake. Ideally, you want to keep your alarm close by so you barely need to move your body to shut it off. This way, your body will be close to falling back asleep but your mind will be awake.

Now, start to envision yourself astral projecting in the same way, while also allowing your body to go to sleep. Try to remain conscious but allow your body to get heavier and deeper into a sleep-state. Continuously focus on floating above your body until you’re astral projecting.

My Experience With Astral Projection

To be honest, I wasn’t really sure if I believed in astral projection until I actually experienced it myself. I had had tons of lucid dreams before, but still the thought of projecting my soul out of my body and consciously hovering over it didn’t seem realistic to me.

That is, until it happened one night last summer. I was sleeping with a friend and, despite having slept there multiple times before, I was having a lot of trouble falling asleep. My mind was racing for a period of time but it randomly shut off, and then I kept hearing this buzzing sound that didn’t really sound like any vibration or frequency I’d heard from his house before. I remember closing my eyes and immediately when I opened them, I was shocked. I was still staring at the ceiling, but instead of being 10 feet away, I was only a few inches in proximity. I immediately recognized that I couldn’t be lying down anymore and remember thinking to myself, “When did I stand up?”

To my dismay, when I looked down, I saw us sleeping. I then looked out the window and had somewhat of an internal battle on whether or not I should leave the bedroom. Though I wasn’t using any words or thinking, I intuitively knew that I was struggling to decide whether I should explore the night sky or stay in the comfort of the bedroom near my physical body. I remained looking out the window for a long time until I finally woke up, shocked that I had actually astral projected.

Though many of you reading this may feel as though I was simply having another dream, I know I wasn’t. I was confident that my soul had left my body, especially because everything in the bedroom was so clear, and I had a strong sense of Self throughout the entire dream. I’ve also had numerous “extremely realistic” dreams, so realistic that when I wake up, I’m shocked it was a dream, but this was very different. It was as if I had finally broken free from my shell, and though it was invigorating, empowering, and somewhat comforting, it was also slightly terrifying.

It’s experiences like these that make us seriously question our individuality, our uniqueness, and our personalities that form our identities on this planet. We are not our physical bodies; I am not Kalee, and that can be a scary reality to face (especially when you’re literally staring yourself in the face, soul to physical body). However, although astral projection can shatter your identity, you don’t have to abandon it.

Yes, underneath it all, you are not your physical body, nor are you your experiences and accomplishments. However, that doesn’t mean you have to give it all up! We are on this planet to experience and to feel. Though we are not our emotions at our cores, that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t have them. If it’s on this planet, its existence serves a purpose.

This is the heart of detachment  — knowing your “attachments” (or what many consider attachments, like emotions and people) don’t define you, because eventually, after “death,” you will no longer have them.