Out-of-Body FAQ
What are the prerequisites for inducing an
OBE?
Many of the inducing methods use as a starting point techniques
designed to improve the novice's powers of relaxation, imagery,
and concentration. The ideal state appears to be one of physical
relaxation, or even catalepsy, combined with mental alertness.
One of the easiest ways to relax is to use progressive muscular
relaxation. In outline this technique consists of starting with
the muscles of the feet and ankles and alternately tensing and relaxing
them, then going on up the muscles of the calves and thighs, the
torso, arms, neck and face, until all the muscles have been contracted
and relaxed. Done carefully this procedure leads to fairly deep
relaxation within a few minutes, and with practice it becomes easier.
Relaxation usually leads to state of paralysis or catalepsy. When
you go to sleep, your brain deactivates the mechanism by which you
are able to use your limbs, so that you become incapable of physical
activity corresponding to your dream images when you dream. Quite
a few people have found themselves in this paralysis state as soon
as they have gotten up after sleeping.
The first type of paralysis, known as 'type A,' is a condition
encountered when approaching a deeper layer of consciousness from
a light trance state. The second, type B paralysis, is the reverse
of type A, in that it happens during the return home to physical
reality.
The first type A 'paralysis' goes something like this:
"Mmmmmm.... I know I am awake; I can think ..... Mmmmmmm but
my body is asleep ..." (Robert Monroe labelled it Focus 10
consciousness)
"Wait a minute here, there is something going on here, I just
can't seem to...."
"Yes, I can't seem to move my limbs; they seemed to be laden
with lead, why can't I move at all? Hey, what's happening here!
(Panic!)"
A typical type B 'paralysis' goes something like this:
"Mmmmm... I am feeling groggy, absolutely. What was that just
now, oh, it must be some dream..."
"Mmmm...... hang on a minute, was that a noise I heard? It
must have come from the door... I need to check it out, could be
a burglar..... but I am so tired... and sleepy..."
"I need to wake up, it could be important.... Hey, I can't
seem to wake up, why are my legs not waking up, why can't my hands
respond?" "PANIC!!! I need to wake up!!! I don't want
to die... I need to exert more will on this... Hey, body, wake up,
eyes open, ... WAKE UP!"
"Gosh, NOW, I can move my limbs, I am awake now, body covered
with perspiration, sitting at the edge of the bed, wondering why
just now I simply couldn't wake up..."
"Phew -- Thank goodness, it is finally over. Am I glad to
be back to the familiar physical environment."
However, type A paralysis is the type that should not be resisted;
if the person can allow himself to 'go with the flow,' then some
kind of altered state of consciousness is bound to happen, which
is what the person is hoping to achieve anyway.
Many astral travelers have stressed the importance of clear imagery
or visualization for inducing OBEs and of course imagery training
forms an important part of magical development. Progressive methods
of imagery training are often described in magical and occult books,
and helpful guidance can be found in Conway's occult primer [Con72],
and in Brennan's 'Astral doorways' [Bre71]. Most involve starting
with regular practice at visualizing simple geometrical shapes and
then progressing to harder tasks such as imagining complex three-dimensional
forms, whole rooms and open scenery.
Practice 1: Read the description slowly and then try to imagine
each stage as you go along:
Imagine an orange. It is resting on a blue plate and you want to
eat it. You dig your nail into the peel and tear some of it away.
You keep pulling on the peel until all of it, and most of the pith,
is lying in a heap on the plate. Now separate the orange into segments,
lay them on the plate as well, and then eat one. If this task doesn't
make your mouth water, and if you cannot feel the juice which squirts
from the orange, and smell its tang then you do not have vivid or
trained imagery. Try it again, the colors should be bright and vivid
and the shapes and forms clear and stable. With practice at this
and similar tasks your imagery will improve until you may wonder
how it could ever have been so poor.
Practice 2: This is a rather harder one:
Visualize a disc, half white and half black. Next imagine it spinning
about its center, speeding up and then slowing down, and stopping.
Next imagine the same disc in red, but as it spins it changes through
orange, yellow, green, blue and violet. Finally you may care to
try two discs side by side spinning in opposite directions and changing
color in opposition too. Other useful skills are concentration and
control. Not only do you need to be able to produce vivid imagery,
but also to abolish all imagery from your mind, to hold images as
long as you want and to change them as you want, both quickly and
slowly.
Practice 3: Brennan suggests trying to count, and only to count.
The instant another thought comes to mind you must stop and go back
to the beginning. If you get to about four or five you are doing
well, but you are almost certain to be stopped by such thoughts
as 'this is easy, I've got to three already,' or 'I wonder how long
I have to go on.' All these skills, relaxation, imagery and concentration,
are suggested again and again as necessary for inducing an OBE at
will. Other aids include posture. If you lie down you might fall
asleep, although Muldoon [MC29] advocates this position. On the
other hand discomfort will undoubtedly interfere with the attempt.
Therefore an alert, but comfortable posture is best. Some have suggested
that it is best not to eat for some hours before and to avoid any
stress, irritation or negative emotions.
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Copyright Jouni A. Smed
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