I\’m ending this three-parter with my opinion on what Astral Projections are.
Astral Projections and Lucid Dreams are VERY similar, actually they\’re the same experience with one difference: You. Sometimes it\’s VERY HARD to determine which experience you are in because of it. The difference is not the environment you\’re in because the area of consciousness where the two (including normal dreams) take place is the same. So, if the area of consciousness that these experiences happen in is the same, then what exactly IS that difference I mentioned? I mentioned in the What are Lucid Dreams article that LD\’s are when you recognize that you\’re in the non-physical (dream). That knowledge is really the ONLY requisite. You probably won\’t have any notion that you actually have a physical body somewhere else that is fast asleep. Well, an Astral experience is when you recognize that you\’re in the non-physical AND you retain all your waking faculties/awareness (or as close to it as possible).
Now, for me… this area you now find yourself in is, in essence, the same place where you dream. This opens up a world of endless possibilities for you. You\’re limited, LITERALLY, only by your imagination. If you want to fight demons or dragons? Go right ahead! If you want to talk to elven folk or perhaps visit some faeries? You can do so! You can also sift through every memory your physical senses have ever recorded… this is where it starts getting really interesting. So yeah, whatever you want to do/experience, you\’re able to do/experience. This area, I call Focus 2 oC as per Frank Kepple\’s model of reality. It\’s your own personal area of consciousness… sometimes referred to as your \”imagination\” or \”subconscious\”.
You can, however, use this area as a jumping board to Focus 3 oC (again F. Kepples Model), which is what I refer to as \”Collective Consciousness\” area. Focus 3 oC is where you\’ll meet other \”people\” who are either projecting, or even people who have already physically died and have no physical body anymore. You may also call upon actual guides to come assist you.
To get to Focus 3 oC from your current Focus 2 oC area you need to clear your mind and stop your thoughts/emotions from fueling the Focus 2 scenario around you. Doing this will cause the Focus 2 environment to fade away and you\’ll start to see the Collective Focus 3 oC environment come into view. From there, do what you want. However, just remember that to remain in Focus 3 oC you need to always keep that tight grip on your thoughts and emotions, or you\’ll start to get Focus 2/3 overlays happening. Basically, this means that dream imagery will start to creep into your Focus 3 experience… and if you don\’t stop it, you\’ll be pulled back into Focus 2 oC until you can calm your mind down again.
Dream, Lucid and Astral Awareness… these three states of awareness are very important to understand if you care enough to define your experiences. There are more than just these three levels though. Between each state of awareness is a wide range. Think of it as a spectrum with \”Dream Awareness\” on one end, \”Astral Awareness\” at the other end, and \”Lucid Awareness\” in the middle… your consciousness can be along that spectrum anywhere at any time and you can potentially go through the entire range within a single non-physical experience.
So happy traveling! Enjoy every second of it!