The first great OBE book

[catmeow]

Okay, so I noticed that this book is back in print in the UK.  "The Projection of the Astral Body" by Sylvan Muldoon. This was perhaps the first seminal book written on AP (aside from Oliver Fox's book). If you have the spare cash I would recommend a read. It is completely UNLIKE contemporary AP books. Completely sincere and genuine, the author describes in microscopic detail his exit from the body and experiences in the RTZ.  This book will give you a completely new perspective on the OOB experience. It is unlike other AP books.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Projection-Astral-Body-Sylvan-Muldoon/dp/190662111X/

[Xanth]

Published back in 1929 and still so full of great information.
It's hard to imagine that we really haven't come all that far in our knowledge the non-physical. 

Thanks for the update on this, I'll definitely take a peek at it when I find some free reading time.

[Volgerle]

Classic !!!   

[Ryuk]

*removed link to Sylvan Muldoon book*

look what I found

edited link out, contained copyrighted information ~Xanth

[personalreality]

really?  i thought that book was the biggest piece of spiritualism/theosophist garbage i've ever read.  i mean, i know what it is and i understand the significance of that book (being the first of it's kind, the first book for the public on the topic of AP), but muldoon didn't do a good job of taking AP out of the occult and into the mainstream.  it's full of arbitrarily ambiguous jargon.  plus, he perpetuated the silver cord mess.  i don't know, i just didn't find it to be a particularly useful book.  i rarely find myself outright bored and tired of any book, especially not AP books.  but this book just made me not want anything to do with the whole topic.  i was relatively turned off to AP/OBE for a short time after reading it.  it was that offensive to my interest.

but to each his own i suppose.  i guess that if it were really a bad book it wouldn't still be around.....

[ange.connell]

Er Ive just ordered this book this afternoon after reading many reviews about it. When Ive read it I'll post my thoughts on it. Am looking forward to reading it though

[Volgerle]

We should not forget that TPOTAB has some degree of 'specialisation' due to the authors limited 'range'. Muldoon mainly or only was capable of projecting to the RTZ. Some of his technical descriptions are a bit 'dry', so it can get boring, yes.

I remember that Muldoon tells (even a little bit sulkily to me) in the book that spiritualists told him that he might not be able to access astral / mental or higher dimensions due to his lack of soul development. So I assume he was a skilled projector using OBE more as a kind of sports than for spiritual advancement.

Therefore it is better to view TPOTAB - next to a product of its time - as rather complementary to other (and more modern/recent) OBE-books. Still, it is of value.

It is also interesting from a historic point of view that he describes events that would nowadays be categorised as the OBE-part of a near death experience (NDE) - which he calls sth like exteriorisation of the AB / phantom by violent acts or accidents.

However, most of his projections were controlled and with intention.Hence I would say he gives an interesting view of a very skilled RTZ-projector (possibly also remote viewer), which is worth the read.

I would also not recommend it as the first or (even less!) only book that a projector-to-be should read.
(Btw, neither would I recommend Monroe, that would be even worse for a newbie to read. I'd go for Buhlmann, Stack, Petterson or Bruce then).

[ange.connell]

Its not the first book Ive chosen to read I'll be more like the 3rd or 4th and Ive already ordered a book by Bruce, as per your suggestion. I know Ive a long way to go and much to learn but hopefully with help and advice I'll get there. But thanks for your time its appreciated x

[catmeow]

really?  i thought that book was the biggest piece of spiritualism/theosophist garbage i've ever read.  i mean, i know what it is and i understand the significance of that book (being the first of it's kind, the first book for the public on the topic of AP), but muldoon didn't do a good job of taking AP out of the occult and into the mainstream.

PR, I'm surprised by your negative comments. You must appreciate I'm sure, that in 1929, there was no mainstream, only Theosophy and Occultism.  So I'm baffled by the idea of criticising an author for not moving into a "mainstream" which did not exist at the time.

The only other alternatives to Theosopy/Occultism at the time were various branches of Eastern Mysticism, from which Theosophy was plaguerised.  You could equally criticise Oliver Fox for his book Astral Projection which was heavily influenced by Theosophy, much more so than TPOTAB. But a very good book it still is.

Muldoon was an RTZ projector and he reported things as he experienced them. In particular he describes the silver cord in detail. Why criticise him for that?  This is precisely why I recommended the book, because it talks about things which today have become unfashionable, but never the less absolutely warrant study and investigation. What if the silver cord is real?

Anyone wishing to study AP should also study the roots of the subject and TPOTAB is firmly part of those roots.

[catmeow]

I would also not recommend it as the first or (even less!) only book that a projector-to-be should read.

Agree totally. Can not be read in isolation. Add Monroe, Bruce, Moen, Buhlman, Peterson and Oliver Fox to a newbies reading.

[personalreality]

PR, I'm surprised by your negative comments. You must appreciate I'm sure, that in 1929, there was no mainstream, only Theosophy and Occultism.  So I'm baffled by the idea of criticising an author for not moving into a "mainstream" which did not exist at the time.

The only other alternatives to Theosopy/Occultism at the time were various branches of Eastern Mysticism, from which Theosophy was plaguerised.  You could equally criticise Oliver Fox for his book Astral Projection which was heavily influenced by Theosophy, much more so than TPOTAB. But a very good book it still is.

Muldoon was an RTZ projector and he reported things as he experienced them. In particular he describes the silver cord in detail. Why criticise him for that?  This is precisely why I recommended the book, because it talks about things which today have become unfashionable, but never the less absolutely warrant study and investigation. What if the silver cord is real?

Anyone wishing to study AP should also study the roots of the subject and TPOTAB is firmly part of those roots.

I didn't say it was inappropriate for 1929. 

I still don't find it to be a book that should be read for any other reason than nostalgia's sake. 

I'm all for mysticism, don't get me wrong, but unless you're familiar with the gamut of mystical jargon so far as to understand the common themes across traditions, this book will do more damage than good. 

I think its important to consider the time we're in and the cultural perception we are habituated too.  It's like saying that by modern IQ standards, someone like Abraham Lincoln would be mentally retarded.  Even the most brilliant explorers can be seen as painfully out of touch when thrown into someone else's world.  Muldoon is absolutely a brilliant explorer of reality, but a brilliant man 100 years ago makes little sense to the novice today.

So, bringing it back around, this is a good book to read to add some knowledge of the 20th century OBE/AP literature to your mental collection.  But it's hardly practical and I wouldn't ever tell a novice to read it. 

All that said, I wouldn't be able to say anything if I hadn't read it, so by all means, read the book.  At least if it's of no use to you, you can tell others about your take.  Plus the cover is really pretty.

[catmeow]

It's not a book for the beginner.  I actually never said it was but since newbies look here perhaps I should have made this more clear.  This thread is directed towards people who are reasonably well read in OBE and AP, but are sufficiently youthful to have never heard of this book.

Modern books on AP are completely different to more traditional books. The ideas of subtle bodies, silver cords, exteriorisation etc are out of fashion.  However, it really is worth a look at early books, to see what the perceived wisdom was 80 or so years ago.  Compare it with what we are saying today.

It is interesting how ideas have changed. In truth we don't know what is going on with AP.  So it's worth looking at all the information out there. 

I sense resistance to this book, because it talks about "exteriorisation" rather than "changing focus level". However that is how the early pioneers described AP.  Truth is truth, I don't see why it should change over the years.  Go figure...

[personalreality]

I agree with you cat.  I too am quite disenchanted with "focus levels" (was never a super big fan).  But exteriorization doesn't really sound much better to me either.  I never thought I had a terribly complicated perspective on these issues, but neither of the previous theoretical approaches match up with my theory, which may be cause for my bias against this book. 

Honestly though, Muldoon's book (viewed as a solitary work) isn't bad.  It is a bit dense, as it is written in language that just isn't common today, but as I said, Muldoon is obviously brilliant and made a great step in AP literature of the time.  But taken in context (relative to all AP literature), it's one of the last books I would recommend to anyone as a practical guide.  But we already kind of agreed on that point.