any Muslim members

[Muslimfromcalifornia]

any muslim members of astralpulse here?

[personalreality]

that's a very descriptive nickname.

do you find that you often define yourself by your religious affiliation?

i'm not muslim though.  i don't know what the rate of muslim members is, it doesn't come up often.  it seems that many members are of "alternative" faiths.  you know, things like paganism, undefined spirituality, agnostic, atheist, etc.

there are some christian members and i would assume that there are at least some muslim members.

[Stillwater]

There are indeed... I want to say they probably number between 10 and 50- at least the ones I have seen openly discuss their faith. Islam by many accounts is probably the largest religious group now, so it is very hard for there not to be.

[Volgerle]

Islam by many accounts is probably the largest religious group now, so it is very hard for there not to be.

What do you base this on? If you see Christianity as split up by many groups, sects, fractions and movements, so as not to count them as one anymore, then we should do the same with Islam.
Islam is not the same Islam everywhere, there are lots of (sometimes even fiercely opposed) fractions, sects and groups too. It's just that we in the West do not recognise this anymore.
(Btw, this might also apply to Hinduism, which is actually historically coming from a lot of originally different religions with not so much in common as it seems at a first glance, they are just subsumed under one name, at least that is what I heard recently, but I might be wrong here.).

[personalreality]

Hinduism is a word that describes union with the divine.  In India you see distinctions based on the gods and goddesses that people choose to worship.  However, if you speak to Hindus they will tell you that to a Hindu, everyone is Hindu.  You can call yourself a Christian, Muslim, Wiccan, Jew, Zoroastrian, Sikh, Buddhist, Taoist, whatever, doesn't matter, you're a Hindu. 

[AmbientSound]

That is an interesting way of interpreting spirituality, to call everyone a member of one's religion even if they do not identify themselves as such. I am sure there is a reason for it that I don't fully understand, but I would never think to do that.

[Stillwater]

What do you base this on? If you see Christianity as split up by many groups, sects, fractions and movements, so as not to count them as one anymore, then we should do the same with Islam.

Yes, this is the exact fact I was alluding to when I used the "by many accounts" modifier. The group that made this estimation was counting Christianity as being separate sects, the largest of which being Catholicism, and Islam as being one group. I do realize there are incredible differences between Islamic sects. But it is also interesting to note that the reckoning of these differences is interpretted differently by outsiders and many Muslims.

For instance, I asked an Iraqi I know if the mosque he attended was largely Sunni or Shiite, and his response was that the difference between these two major groups is vastly overplayed, and most Iraqis consider them the same for all intents and purposes. I don't know how credible this account was, since I perceive great violence to still occur as a result as of the separation of these groups, but it is something to think about.

And I definitely agree that this idea goes for Hinduism pretty much above any of the others that are lumped together... the many faiths and belief systems grouped together as "Hinduism" are vastly different... I would say the western equivalent of using the heading of Hinduism for all of these would be calling Judaism,Christianity, Islam, and the Gnostic faith by the single name "Abrahamism".

I mean, some forms of Hinduism believe directly in polythestic gods that can be invoked into idols, others are more "monotheistic", expressing the unity of the apparent many in Brahman Atman, and still others feel that idea of the gods and their stories are metaphors for the true reality, not meant to be taken literally in any way. There are some sects that are focused on ritual devotion to deities, and others, like the Upanishadic traditions, which are more concerned with the relationship of the individual to the cosmic essence, and are more mendicant or meditative in nature. I mean, you have Hare Krishna types over here, samanas and yogis there, and some people in a village with a Ganesha idol over in that corner. They don't see things the same way at all.

There are very few things that you could say about Hinduism that would be true of all these people at once.

[personalreality]

Above all else they recognize all of reality as Brahman.  Call it what you will, worship whatever incarnation you please, but the bottom line is that we are all Brahman.  Brahman is Atman and Atman is Brahman.

It's not that they are disregarding the religion of others, they're just saying that all is one.  We may have many names for god, but to a hindu, god is god.

[Pauli2]

I guess there could be Muslim members, but couldn't astral travels be against their religion, as it could count as doing magic, which I think is forbidden in Islam? So perhaps Muslim members are a little hesitant to reveal their religion?

[Xanth]

Hi there Muslimfromcalifornia,

Welcome to the Astral Pulse forums.
You'll find people here from many different faiths and all walks of life... I believe it's one of our strengths.

With that said...
Did you have a specific question you wanted to ask a Muslim about?
Something pertaining to Astral Projection maybe?

[Muslimfromcalifornia]

well im interested in the different opinions in Islam on astral projection as well as insight from some Muslim members regarding it from an Islamic perspective.

[Xanth]

well im interested in the different opinions in Islam on astral projection as well as insight from some Muslim members regarding it from an Islamic perspective.

While you're waiting for your specific replies, you should use the search function and check out how other people reconcile their Astral beliefs with their chosen religion.
I know for a fact we have a wide variety of faiths here on the Astral Pulse. 

[Volgerle]

I guess there could be Muslim members, but couldn't astral travels be against their religion, as it could count as doing magic, which I think is forbidden in Islam? So perhaps Muslim members are a little hesitant to reveal their religion?

Doesn't the same apply to mainstream dogmatic Christianity and Judaism, too?

[AmbientSound]

All people do magic whether they realize it or not, whether they intend it or not. It is a natural by-product of being. The forbidding of astral projection is not enforceable, even if one were under lock-down religious fanatics with all the guns and scientific equipment in the world. Besides, how are they going to tell you that it is wrong to do something that happens naturally every time you go to sleep?

[AlanRK]

well im interested in the different opinions in Islam on astral projection as well as insight from some Muslim members regarding it from an Islamic perspective.

Don't bother, there is very little to be found. As with in the Bible, there are probably some minor hints to the astral in the Quran, but these hints tend to be fleeting. The most I've gathered about the astral from the perspective of the Quran is that it describes the astral as a parallel world inhabited by Djinn (spirits) who live alongside us but are invisible to us, yet we are not invisible to them. This seems a clear reference to the astral, but only a low physical level.

If you really want more detail from an Islamic perspective see what you can find in Sufism. The mystical sect would no doubt know more of it.