Integrity, honesty and commitment, as I stated in the preface, are the key elements to practicing Astral Projection. To become adept at creating the experience you will have to commit to practicing the techniques on a regular basis, recording and contemplating your experience and developing a kind of internal communication with yourself that will allow you to recognize when there are areas in which you need to work more and where the areas are that you have been successful.
Despite an Out-of-Body experience being an intensely personal experience, you cannot forget that when you are traveling, you are witnessing and effecting other astral beings. For this reason, there are some ethical rules to practicing Astral Projection that must be obeyed to keep you and other travelers safe from harm.
Deliberate Astral Projection is about gaining wisdom
It should never be used to gain power or to take revenge on someone. Unfortunately, there have been people who have tried to use the insight they have gained during out-of-body experience to manipulate and gain an advantage in the waking world. This type of behavior creates a negative vibration within the person and in the surrounding ether. This can lead to serious disturbances in the waking world which can include negative coincidences and mental illness.
Never attempt to touch or effect a silver cord
In almost all of the historic and religious literature that mentions Astral Projection, each Astral Body is connected to its physical body by a fine silver cord. To interfere with a cord could cause it too break, permanently severing the connection between the two and preventing the Astral Body from returning. This would leave the physical body devastated and “soulless.” Just as you would like to be able to come and go between the realms as you please, so do others wish to travel in safety. Even if you encounter an astral being that instructs you to interfere with a silver cord, do not do it. There are positive and negative forces in the ether just as there are in the real world.
Commit to redefining your inner thoughts to avoid negativity
This is perhaps the hardest ethical consideration for most people to implement. When we want to learn to do something we like immediate gratification. Consider your emotional and mental state, are you frequently under stress? Do you have “negative tapes” that play constantly and undermine your best efforts? Before you begin to travel you need to engage in undoing that negativity in thought and its effects on your body. You must regain control over yourself and your mind. Negativity unchecked can lead to bad experiences as it will attract other negative energies. Use the exercise in this module to help undo this state and prepare yourself. This is such a common problem for people that I have only included that exercise in this first module and not any that begin to train you in the techniques for Astral Projection. You must be of clear heart and quiet mind before beginning your training to avoid unnecessary pain, negativity and disappointment.
Check your motivations and be sure you are committed to the practice
Before going onto the next module, sit and think through how committed you are to learning these techniques. Astral Projection is not something one should dabble in, either you are committed to learning and practicing the techniques or you are not. It is perfectly alright to decide that you want to go no further. That is better than only going so far. For even in learning or reading just a little further into the course you increase your potential of accidentally having an Out-of-Body experience. Read the case study in this module, the boy had no intention of having an OBE, it happened by accident and his first reaction was to be terrified. Imagine how much easier it will be to trigger that kind of accident if you already have half the process tucked away in your subconscious? Without being properly and fully prepared, Astral Projection can be a frightening experience that could have damaging consequences in your waking life.
Build up your ability through slow and steady practice
Learning any technique takes practice and growth in skill takes time. The steadier you are in your efforts, the better and more complete an experience you will have, don’t rush the process. Practice each technique until you feel comfortable with it before moving to the next. The more you rush, the more you will miss.
Beware Pride, Indulgence and False Prophets
The three greatest pitfalls that can undo all your efforts to gain wisdom and understanding from your experiences is to succumb to pride, indulgence or fall prey to false prophets. Pride can prevent you from seeing where you need growth, acknowledging when you need help, or being open to learning from the experience. Indulgence occurs when the act of feeling good takes on more importance than the reason you are seeking to travel on the Astral Plane. After you have progressed through this course you will see that in almost every case study, people report an intense feeling of well-being and love while traveling within the ether. This feeling can become as addictive as any other substance and what happens when we become addicted? We lose our perspective, our sense of responsibility and our ability to be effective. Be mindful that your motivation for traveling is always about a desire to gain a deeper understanding and not because you crave the immediate gratification of the side effect feelings you experience while on the astral plane.
In the same vein, be very wary of anyone purporting to be your “spiritual guide” or who sets themselves up as a Prophet to your role as a follower. There is no human person who can know what your spirit needs better than you, it is always a projection of assumptions from their life onto another’s. There are people who can help and teach (much like as I am doing with this series) but no one has the power to be a “guide” or to prophetically interpret your experiences or dictate the ones you have in your travels. Remember, a part of doing this is to gain the wisdom and understanding to better act in your own life. No one can do that for you and anyone who tells you that they can or have your answers already is full of – Pride.
Avoid obsession, remember your priorities
No matter how wondrous and illuminating your experiences are, your priority is the care and health of your physical life in the waking world. Unlike our Astral bodies and experiences, our living ones are only available to us for a brief time. Take care of your life, your responsibilities and be fully present in all your relationships. Avoid developing an addictive obsession to the practice of Astral Projection by balancing the experiences within the schedule needed to remain rested and connected to your waking life.
Seek calmness, control and contentment through meditation
Meditation is the single greatest tool you have to not only increase your skills at Astral Projection but to increase your ability to absorb, integrate and understand your experiences. There are a million ways to meditate and one of them will suit your personality and needs. Search “meditation” on the Internet and read up on different techniques, try the ones that are appealing. You can also choose to use the relaxation exercise included in this module as your form of meditation. Meditation does not have to be complicated, you really do not need lessons or a retreat to learn how to do it, and – you can meditate anywhere once you become skilled. Meditation has numerous health benefits as well – lessening stress and anxiety and helping the body to heal itself from numerous illnesses.
