The Out of Body Experience and Lucid Dreaming (Part III)

In Part I of this series I defined out of body experiences and discussed how they can help you in your personal development. In Part II I detailed techniques I have used to get out of my body and to induce lucid dreaming. This last article in this series will show some of the things I have experienced in my efforts, and what may happen to you. Not all of these things happen all the time, and not all people experience the same thing.

Sounds, Images, and Sensations

As your body becomes more relaxed, your mind will also enter into an altered state of consciousness - the hypnagogic state that lies between full waking consciousness and sleep. It is in this state that you may see many strange images or hear strange sounds. Your visual field will begin to change colors, most commonly to purple. You may see faces, scenes, or a lightening of the visual field. Most of these are of no meaning - random firing of the optic nerve or visual representations of the contents of your unconscious. They primarily serve as markers of the shift in your state of consciousness.

As you continue you may hear clicking sounds in your head, accompanied by a sensation as if a rubber band has snapped. I have no idea what these mean, but they seem to be related to the loosening between your body and consciousness.

At some point you will experience a physical catalepsy. Your body will be completely rigid and you won’t be able to easily move it. When this occurs as you are trying to send your body to sleep, it is a sign that the identification between your body and consciousness is weakening and an act of will or the simple act of sitting up can be enough to get out of your body. If it happens after an OOBE the simplest thing to do is just go to sleep. When you awaken, things will be back to normal. If you don’t wish to go to sleep, put every effort into just moving one finger. Eventually you will. Then move your hand, then arm. By this point you will be back in full control.

Occasionally you will wake up from a normal sleep and find yourself cataleptic. Relax. Most of the hard work has been done for you and you can usually get out of your body at this point.

When detailing the Monroe method of projection I talked about the vibrations you are trying to induce. These can be frightening at first as they are similar to an electric shock, but without the pain. They may be localized to your head, or may cover your whole body. Generally they are accompanied by catalepsy. In either case, do as I suggested in the Monroe method and try to induce a smooth, even vibration, then sit up or will yourself out of your body.

At some point you may feel there is something behind you and just above your head that is trying to attack you. This can be extremely frightening. My wife calls it the chompers. As with waking from a nightmare, the best approach to this is often to change position and go to sleep.

You may also become aware that, even though you are completely relaxed and your eyes are closed, you can see the room around you, even if it is night and all the lights are out. Usually things are illuminated by a non-localized green or blue glow. You may, or may not be able to get out of your body at this time.

Experiences Out of the Body

You’ve gotten out of your body. Now what? That is completely up to you. In the books people talk about flying. I have never been able to do so from a conscious projection, but I have been able to lope along with hundred yard strides. I’ve been able to fly in lucid dreams, though, so I think some activities depend on the beliefs you take into the state.

From a conscious projection you will normally find yourself in an environment that is a mixture of physical reality and things that don’t physically exist. For example, one time when I got out I saw myself as having long, flowing hair even though I was in the military at the time and had a military haircut.

A lucid dream can be completely unreal physically or a mixture of the physical reality and non-physical reality. Once I attain lucidity in a dream and decided to visit my parents. I found my self in their house. It was nighttime and the lights were out, even though everyone was awake. They were having a storm. There was a guitar speaker and amplifier in the living room on which a friend of mine was working. When I talked to my mother the next day she told me they had lost their electricity due to a thunderstorm the previous evening. Later that day my friend talked about working on his head (psychologically speaking). He was a guitarist, and often referred to his amp as the head. The amp in the dream was a symbolic rendition of what he was going through.

Conclusion

I’ve given some examples of the things - sights, sounds, bodily sensations - you may experience during an OOBE or lucid dream. I’ve shown how you may experience a mixture of physical surroundings and symbolic representations. What exactly happens differs from individual to individual. The important thing is to work on experiencing out of body travel or a lucid dreams. They are exciting adventures that open a whole new sphere of experience to you, and show as nothing else can that you are not your body, but are much, much more. After you have one OOBE, you will never look at yourself the same again.

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