Journal Entry, January 2005: Astral Travel

I felt compelled to share this experience. It is a really clearly documented experience of astral travel -- one of my first experiences and definitely quite impactful. Edited slightly for clarity. Enjoy!

Sunday, January 2, 2005

I astral traveled last night.

It was about 2 am, I had just finished writing in my journal, and I fell asleep. I wasn’t necessarily even trying to meditate or leave my body. I started dreaming. At some point, I took control of myself in my own dream. The weird thing is, whenever I have done this from a dreaming state, it’s almost a scary experience leaving my body. In my dream, I was thinking to myself, “Ha ha, look at me, I can go wherever I want!” while I was moving about. The surest thing I remember is zipping towards my window, and falling through the face of a screaming (didn't hear sound, though) woman. I fell. And I was out.

I was looking at myself sleeping. I was looking at my nose and left side of my face from below; then the other side. Then I zoomed upward and turned over, looking at myself. I dipped forward and back, forward and back. While all of this was happening, I was having thoughts -- I didn’t know this was possible. I felt like my spirit was in the form of my body. I felt my hands. I had them clenched in fists. I clenched and unclenched them, each time, feeling the energy of them. It felt like my hands were electrical static.

I also felt pulls. I felt like my hair, or the top part of my head, was being pulled. It actually felt like my head was being stretched. Since all I know is experience in my earthly body, I kept expecting to feel pain. But all I felt was this electrical sensation.

I could see. It was as if I had my eyes. Everything was gray and fuzzy-like, as I remember from before. (note - I had astral traveled previously)

And there was no heat – as before. It felt cold, but it wasn’t cold. You don’t really hear anything, either.

I felt electrical surges in my legs. At one point, I willed myself to spin in the air, and I did. All I felt was my astral body surge with energy, up and down, and the slight view of surroundings twisting around. But, again, since in the earthly body you feel wind across your face to know you’re spinning, I wasn’t completely certain if I had done it or not. There’s no wind. Just a feeling of being connected to everything.

And all the while I was having thoughts. I was a little afraid. I kept wondering that maybe I wasn’t in control of my hands – and at the sensation of my head being pulled I wondered if the devil was doing this; If he was keeping my hands hostage and from moving, and if he was pulling me.

Well, I didn’t want to do this anymore if such was the case. So I thought to myself, "I want to go back to my body." I did. I woke up.

It was 2:40. It had felt like an eternity – at most I had probably been sleeping for a half hour. 

Then I lay in bed. And I asked the universe, as always, to watch over me, and help me see the light. I swear, I thought I saw an orb float across the ceiling. I saw circles of light – faint colored light – over me. I knew they were there. It was hard to fall asleep though. I didn’t know whether to close my eyes or keep them open – I didn’t know what I was going to see.

I keep wondering, why did it seem so cold, so dark? Besides the obvious fact that it was night, why was I not seeing beautiful light in my astral body? Why did it seem so scary – and why did I have dark thoughts beforehand and during while I did it? (note - now I realize I was exploring the lower astral planes)

Maybe it takes a traumatic experience to jolt your astral body from your body. Or at least while dreaming. The first time I astral traveled – it was freshman year high school – I just laid in my bed, willed my spirit to go to the mountains and elsewhere, and I lifted from my body. That was from a meditative state. The last couple times, it has happened from a dreaming state. So, this last experience has proved to me that both ways are possible. 

I’m just not quite used to it yet. I expect to be transported to a surreal world of color and light and beauty. Then I am reminded of the quote from Peter Kingsley’s book, “In the Dark Places of Wisdom":

 To ascend to the heights of Heaven, you must first descend to the depths of Hell.

Maybe this is all the world is – it’s not just light, or dark. It just is. 

It really is quite a unique feeling. All electrical, all a buzzing-like feeling. I wonder if I was really being pulled toward something. 

I’d like to astral travel in the daytime. I’m sure I’d see things differently.

The moment I was free, I was just floating. 

It truly was an out-of-this-world experience.

Why Body Awareness is Crucial in Expanded Consciousness

I love to dance. I love to meditate. I do both. 

Increasingly, there is much emphasis placed on increasing self-awareness, our relation to others and the world. Yes, we are all connected beyond physical terms, and how beautiful to discover and nurture this ethereal awareness! But the more spiritual I become, the more custodial I am of my body. If we wanted to delve directly into the esoteric realms of the topic, I could introduce discourse on the serpent in the Bible and the Feminine principle. But that's not where I want to go with this.

Recently in my meditations, I have seen in my mind's eye swirling energies above the planet. I see this as the collective consciousness of a given corresponding geographic locale in the physical plane. I see that there are new energies being introduced to the planet and the simultaneous need to purge old energies to make way for the new. It's as if these collective energies are cuing up to manifest themselves. However, from what I see, there is serious need to cleanse our thoughts and consciousness for the purest of these to enter our reality. 

But how do we know for sure what are the highest vibrations? How do we choose? Or do we even get to choose at all?

I like to utilize the imagery of light refracting through a prism. 

So much of our consciousness is fractionated. Whether by our egos, our belief systems, or the external realm of media and news information, quite literally our attention, like a beam of light, becomes refracted through the fog. 

When we try to redirect our divided attention back to ourselves -- whatever the question or insight we're seeking -- it's no wonder we can be confused. By going within ourselves, back to our central Self, we can surpass this. We become our own gurus. 

So, what are some ways to get to know ourselves? 

Meditation. Breathing practices. Centering exercises. Energy work. And, yes -- Mindful Movement and Body Awareness.

We've heard it again and again, but it's true -- we are a society bombarded by distractions and sensory overload. We almost have to numb ourselves in order to cope. Before we know it, we're caught in an endless cycle of overstimulation and withdrawal, until we don't even know what our vital life force is anymore. 

By tapping into the wisdom of the body, we can bypass the mind chatter and unending engrossments. We return to our center, the core of our being and awareness, before any refraction occurs. In this state, there is calm, clarity, and peace. There is a sense of resolve and contentment. And it is easy. You don't need to think yourself here -- because you simply are. 

The beauty of Mindful Movement and Body Awareness is that with focused practice, one can arrive immediately in a state of present moment awareness. Try it -- whether through yoga, tai chi,  qigong, or any type of dance. Feel your energy in different areas of the body. Follow the breath. Feel the sensations and simply note what is there -- be it warmth, pain, tension, or flow. See how your awareness is not always in the brain and mental activities, but very much with us in our bodies. 

I urge you to cultivate true body awareness. This cannot happen by adding substances to our systems or by numbing ourselves. Even drugs only give a temporary high which fades. 

And so, I dance... I meditate... I let one flow into the other, all the while my consciousness riding the waves of movement... one not better than the other, but each a means for awareness. So please, I implore you, explore.