As I patiently waited for my 10:15 P.M. bus home, I thought to myself again, “Was it a psychic experience?” How many coincidences can pile up before you believe that something extraordinary is happening to you? If someone off the street, or even a respected scientist, were to tell me of a series of psychic experiences like that, I would have laughed in his face. But since they were happening to me, I couldn't laugh. “All right,” I admitted to myself, “things like that don't just happen by coincidence. That's an excuse I've been using too long.”
I had asked for out-of-body experiences, not psychic experiences. Somehow I had gotten them both. Somehow I was becoming psychic, whether I wanted it or not. I absolutely loved the psychic things that were starting to happen, but I started to worry about my sanity. What's next—delusions of grandeur? Psychotic behavior? Paranoia? Just how important are my thoughts anyway? Can this power be abused?
“Should I tell anyone what is happening to me?” I asked myself. “If the experiences had not been mine, I would never have believed them in a million years. So how could I expect anyone to believe they happened to me? No way!” I vowed not to tell anyone.
As a skeptic, I didn't want to believe in psychic experiences. I thought it was all a load of rubbish. But in the years ahead, as I kept practicing OBEs, I also kept having psychic experiences. Most days I would have three to five experiences I would classify as “psychic.” They happened so often that I couldn't deny they were real.
I doubt that the psychic experiences were directly related to the out-of-body experiences. Rather, I think they were more related to the practice, during which I would induce altered states of consciousness. I discovered that when I became too wrapped up in daily life, I would have fewer psychic experiences. And if I took the time to meditate and explore altered states of consciousness, I would have more psychic experiences.
I was disappointed that many OBE books never mentioned the connection between OBE practice and psychic experiences. People brave enough to try to induce OBEs should be aware of the connection: when you try for OBEs, you may get more than you expect! Some of these psychic experiences can be alarming, unnerving, and sometimes even scary. I'll talk more about psychic experiences in chapter 25.
EXERCISE 7
hypnogogic play
Sleep is a very complex thing. Each sleep cycle has several stages, including the dream stage, or rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. Most of my out-of-body experiences occur during the hypnogogic and hypnopompic states. The hypnogogic state occurs at the beginning of the sleep cycle when we're just starting to fall asleep. During this state, the conscious mind is normally “letting go” and the subconscious mind is taking over. The hypnopompic state is similar, but it occurs when we are waking up naturally (i.e., not awakened by an alarm clock).
It's very easy to recognize these states of consciousness: in both states, it is normal and natural to see mixed-up visual images and to hear voices. Usually the voices and images don't make any sense.
For this exercise, I want you to experiment with these states of consciousness. Learn to recognize these hypnogogic images and watch them or listen to them with interest instead of falling deeper into sleep. Just “play” with these natural altered states to get a feel for this type of experimentation with the “borderland” of consciousness. This kind of play is fun, and can induce OBEs. Since we typically have five or more sleep cycles per night, we have at least ten opportunities to have OBEs every night! That's seventy opportunities for an OBE every week, in addition to your normal practice sessions!
As an experiment, try to stay awake or prolong consciousness while you're falling asleep. Try to “walk” the thin line between being conscious and unconscious. Try to get closer and closer to sleep while holding onto a thread of consciousness. Learn to hang onto that borderland state for long periods: this is a useful skill in learning OBEs.
Late one night I was using a computerized “TALK” program, talking to other programmers. I asked one guy what he was doing up so late. He said he has always had problems sleeping for as long as he could remember. He had a bad case of insomnia and hadn't slept for days. I told him I could cure his insomnia, and he said he didn't believe me, but he'd be forever grateful if I could. Well, I started telling him about my astral escapades, and I ended up giving him about five OBE-techniques to try. Several weeks went by. The next time I ran into him (on the same TALK program) he said, “It worked! You cured my insomnia! With your techniques, I fell right asleep! I haven't had any problem sleeping since!”
The point is, it's easy to fall asleep during OBE practice. The best way to keep from falling asleep is to rouse yourself as soon as you recognize the first signs of sleep. In this way, you can learn to hold onto consciousness without drifting off to sleep.
Another technique is to lie down and try to fall asleep with your arm held up in the air, bent at the elbow. When you start to fall asleep, your muscles will relax and your arm will drop, waking you up. This way, you can learn to get very close to sleep without being overcome by it. Later, you can stop holding up your arm during practice and get even closer to sleep while remaining conscious.
These exercises have another benefit. By doing them, you are learning to unite the conscious with the subconscious. You are learning to keep yourself conscious during the times when your subconscious is usually in control. And when that happens, your conscious can talk directly to your subconscious without interference. Then magical things will start to happen. Your subconscious will cooperate with your conscious. Your left brain will cooperate with your right brain. Your creative mind will cooperate with your analytical mind. All areas of your life will improve.
CHAPTER 8
overcoming fear
Clearly, as long as I continued to try OBEs, strange and frightening things would happen to me. After some serious consideration, I decided that I had been playing with fire. This OBE business was just too scary and dangerous. What was it doing to my body? What was it doing to my mind? Was I becoming prone to outside forces, such as spirits? I had begun to worry about my sanity and started to wonder if I were some kind of freak. I decided to quit trying to have OBEs and try to go back to a normal life.
The next two weeks I didn't attempt any altered states of consciousness. I tried my best to go back to my normal life. But although I wasn't trying, weird things still happened to me. I started reading people's minds. I started to “know” what song would be on the radio next. As I was trying to fall asleep at night, I would still feel the same weird sensations: swaying, pokes, and prods, the whole gamut. It was even more alarming because I wasn't trying to make them happen.
I came to some important conclusions. First, there was no turning back—I couldn't just turn it off. Second, the best way I could deal with these weird experiences was to explore them and try to understand them. I needed to learn how to control them and how to control my fear of them.
I began by confronting my fears. As long as I feared these experiences, they had control over me. If I could eliminate the fear, the experiences would no longer have that power over me. I could be in control of myself and the experiences.
The first step was to organize my thoughts. I listed all the reasons why I wanted to have more out-of-body experiences and why I should not be afraid of them. The list looked like this:
1. I wanted to have more OBEs. After the first two experiences I couldn't turn away and forget it. I tried that and it didn't work. Besides, my curiosity still motivated me to go on.
2. I reasoned that some day, when I die, I will be forced out of my body, and I'll have to deal with the issue then. It seems better to learn the rules before I die, so I can handle it better when my time is up. If I explore the out-of-body state while still alive, perhaps my transition to the waiting world will be smoother. When I die, I will be cast into a strange new world, just as an infant is cast into our world. Imagine how wonderful it would be if a fetus could attend some kind of school while it was still in the womb! Imagine a ba
by that can talk on the day it is born!
3. When people die, they are all cast out of their bodies. It is our inevitable, inescapable fate. As billions of people have died since the beginning of time, this new world must be quite safe for human “existence” and not as frightening as I thought.
4. I had been out of my body twice and nothing terrible had happened to me: I hadn't felt any pain, I hadn't been attacked, and there weren't any demons waiting to possess my body. During the first experience, I was gently floating in the air. I felt completely safe at the time. My fear of the unknown is what stopped both OBEs.
5. I had recently read several OBE books, some of which had hundreds of OBE narratives. In almost all cases, people described the OBE as beautiful, painless, and even ecstatic. Many people who experienced “near-death experiences” (NDEs) didn't want to get back in their bodies. They were perfectly happy and content to stay out forever!
6. Despite my distrust of the Catholic religion, I still held some beliefs, such as a belief in God. I figured that if I were a good person, God wouldn't let anything bad happen to me while I was out of my body. “After all,” I thought, “I'm dealing with God's kingdom.”
7. The OBE books I read claimed the body is equipped with safeguards to pull me back into my body if things get too rough. The books said that many simple things would automatically bring me back to my body, such as poor blood circulation, fear, and thoughts of the physical body.
8. I believed (and still believe) in “guardian angels” who help me in times of trouble or need.
9. I also read that if I got into serious trouble, I would faint and my subconscious would take over, bringing me back to safety.
I read over my list and confronted my fears directly. I became determined to learn to face and control my out-of-body experiences and their side effects, even if it meant death. That night I wrote a note in my journal, explaining what I was doing and how I felt about death. I made my apologies in case I died during practice.
Once I faced and conquered my fears, I started attempting OBEs again. This time I took a more serious approach. I developed a simple training schedule: every Saturday and Sunday morning I would lie around in bed for several hours, trying to leave my body. I was no longer just dabbling with altered states of consciousness; I was on a mission. I was an explorer, determined to discover my own truths.
With practice, I got better at reproducing the conditions necessary to induce the vibrations. I learned to remain calm during my attempts, and I discovered that staying calm is very important.
All this OBE practice had other positive side effects. By trying to leave my body, I actually learned how to better control it. I learned to use my mind to control the persistent itches that always spoiled my attempts. This led me to discover how to block out pain with my mind. Eventually I learned how to use my mind to control sneezes, hiccups, and other bodily functions. The practice also taught me how to hold on to consciousness while driving, regardless of how sleepy I am, and how to fully relax under tense conditions, such as at the dentist's office.
I also learned that fear wears off over time. After you confront the unknown a hundred times, it's no longer as frightening. Conquering my fears was a big step in my spiritual development, and it made me a much happier person in daily life. It gave a whole new meaning to the famous quote from The Bible: “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.” (Psalms 23:4)
EXERCISE 8
resolving fears
However frightening OBE practice might be, the actual OBEs themselves aren't frightening. They are usually very peaceful and happy—not frightening at all. OBEs are only frightening to people who don't understand what's going on. Mostly it is fear of the unknown. Being put into unfamiliar surroundings with new laws can be terrifying to anyone. But you don't have to be afraid of OBEs if you understand the rules.
Rule #1 : Your beliefs create your experience.
Rule #2: Attitude makes all the difference. If you go into the experience with negative thoughts, your OBE is likely to be unpleasant. If you go into the experience with positive thoughts, your OBE is likely to be wonderful.
Rule #3: Your body cannot be possessed by a spirit while you are away. I'll say more about that in chapter 26.
Rule #4: There is no such thing as a “demon.” I'll say more about that, also in chapter 26.
Rule #5: You cannot get lost or lose your body.
Rule #6: The only thing you have to fear is itself.
The exercise for this chapter is as follows: Write down a list of each desire, belief, fear, and expectation you can think of. Of course, if you have a problem with writing, just running through it in your head will help.
First, write down your desires. Do you want to leave your body? Do you want to see higher truths? What do you want from this and other experiences?
Second, write down your beliefs about the out-of-body experience. Do you believe it is wrong? Do you believe it is a trick of the devil? Do you believe it is merely a dream? Do you believe there are demons or spirits out there to harm you? Do you believe hell and heaven are somewhere out there? Do you believe that demons or spirits can take over your body while you are out? Do you believe that the OBE is a sin in the eyes of God?
Third, write down your fears. Are you afraid of getting lost while out of your body? Are you afraid of spirits? Are you afraid of possession? Are you afraid of flying? Are you afraid of heights?
Fourth, write down your expectations. Do you expect to meet angels or spirits? Do you expect to meet other astral travelers? Do you expect to be weightless? Do you expect to be wearing clothes?
Fifth, go through your lists and mark each item you don't “like.” For instance, if you believe demons can take over your body while you are out and that troubles you, mark that item. When you are done marking your “negative” items, go through each of them and confront them in your own mind. Don't attempt to have an OBE until your negative items are conquered or at least under control. Once you have conquered your negative feelings toward the OBE, your worries are over. If you still believe in demons, you might just meet one. If you don't believe in demons, none can bother you. But until you resolve these fears, your experiences may be influenced by them.
Examining and conquering beliefs isn't easy. I don't know of anyone who is completely free of negative beliefs. But working on them is a step in the right direction. And just knowing that you're working on them is usually enough to keep your OBEs wonderful and positive.
CHAPTER 9
scared to death
After I conquered my fears about the OBE, I made good progress. My third and fourth OBE were self-induced, not sporadic. They were also short and uneventful.
Up until then, I thought there were only two ways to leave your body: through lucid dreams like my first two experiences, or through practice like my third and fourth. It wasn't long before I discovered there were other ways.
01/01/80 - OBE #5
…I was dreaming that I was camping along a riverside with a group of people. We thought we were safe, but suddenly two vampires—one male, one female—attacked our camp, and the dream turned into a nightmare.
I fought the female vampire for a long time and I finally killed her. I was exhausted.
Much to my horror, the other vampire came running and attacked me. We fought long and hard, but I was weak from my fight with the female vampire. He finally overpowered me and started sucking the blood out of me. I became weaker and realized I couldn't fight anymore. I was dying in my dream! I actually believed I was dying.
Then I woke up startled, and opened my eyes. I immediately saw a hand grasping for my throat! I was fully conscious, inside my body, and it seemed as if someone was trying to kill me!
I reenacted the dream-battle in my head for a few seconds, thought I was dying again, and I was ejected out of my body like bread out of a toaster!
I sat up and turned to look who was attacking my poor body. The hand
that was reaching for my throat was my own! It was loosely draped over the pillow! I sighed a breath of relief. I wasn't in danger after all. I had literally been scared to death!
Although out of my body, I was glued to it. But this time, instead of trying to free myself, I tried to control my astral self with my mind. I thought hard, “I want to go to [my brother's house]” but nothing happened. Instead, I heard my physical voice (kind of muffled) saying it in the background! I looked at my astral hands. They were gently waving back and forth I was drawn closer to the physical body and I dropped inside and immediately opened my eyes (no blackout). I saw my hand draped over the pillow, as if it was reaching for my throat, exactly as I saw it during the OBE.
We've all heard the term “scared to death,” right? Well, this OBE sheds new light on the term. Perhaps it shows there is no such thing as being “scared to death” because the worst that can happen is that you're scared out of your body. Perhaps it means we can only die when we are ready to die. I like to think that our deaths are planned by our higher selves, and there are no accidents.
In later OBEs, I discovered yet another way to leave my body. This one took me by surprise too:
05/23/80 Fri - OBE #16
I went to my math class. When class started at 12:15 P.M., something strange happened to me. I was sitting, and suddenly I became completely disoriented and couldn't feel my body. It seemed as if I fell out of my body and drifted to my left (west)! Then I came back and was disoriented and very dizzy. My dizziness wore off in seconds.
Since that OBE, I've had similar experiences in which I fell out of my body. Once I tripped and fell out while I was walking down the street! When I came back to my body, it was fine and hadn't missed a step.
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