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Wow Newoldsoul.... That was a really vivid and significant experience with full interaction with souls in the non-physical.  Congrats.!

Sounds like a good plan.  Just like I'm sticking to what I find works best for me and it's not direct phasing at this point.  Each time I get close or get that light buzzing feeling, even if I don't get out, it's practice and helps me recognize the different shifts and body feelings etc.  I believe something within us actually begins to change over time.  Seems you are getting progressively closer and recognized "there were several periods of losing awakeness/getting closer to an OBE."  Awesome!

Another parallel with meditation actually (concentration meditation, anyway), is that nothing much happens until things start REALLY happening.

Exactly.... and it will.  You will be amazed.  I always thought of myself as watching (yet again) from the sidelines while only other people had success but I stayed, and remain, absolutely determined and also inspired by all I read.  Then it began.  I did some of Buhlman's techniques at first (which got me a few brief outs to the RTZ), then I read Robertson's ebook which got me moving into the astral zone via the tunnel.   

Thanks EpicAstral for the input.  I agree with what you are saying.  In reading "Frank's Post" as I am (and getting so much from it) I learned yesterday from a question he answered (in the last of his newsletters), that this person wasn't likely really in Focus 10 and I got to thinking that this is probably true for me sometimes.  I'm in body-asleep mode but not quite deep enough so last night and this morning I went back to a quick successive relaxation and got 'really' body-asleep... better than I have for a while. (I originally used the Munroe tape for this successive relaxation, but found afterwards that I could bring it on very quickly.)  I confirmed from this that once truly in Focus 10 it IS a bit easier to get the mind calmed down, do some noticing, AND make that 'shift that you can feel' which Frank also clearly states.  

Anyways, as you said you do have to head in the direction of sleep which I was finding very hard to accomplish because I truly want to also stay aware.  Finally I went into a light bubble of a sleep and was dreaming about my dad (who has past over) and my mom (who is still here on the physical).  They were both here at my place and we were talking.  My dad was having a hard time hearing what mom and I had been saying to each other (he wore hearing aids during his life) and he really wanted to know because he only caught a word or two and it interested him.  My mom started talking to him, but with her arm over her mouth and seemed to be speaking gibberish on purpose...so now I couldn't even make out what she was saying.  So I turned to my dad and asked him if he heard.  He said something to softly or muffled that I couldn't make out although I was able to hear the both of them earlier.  He seemed somehow pacified or resigned.  (Not making out what people are saying in my dreams has always been to me a sign that my 'perception sense' (Leland) is not developed enough to communicate on that plane, or that I am not fully aware enough.)  

Anyway, the good news is at that point I then began to OBE - feeling that strong drawing feeling as I proceeded to sail through my typical exit which is a tunnel.  Yea.... I was happy.  I sailed on my back enjoying the wind and the speed and also noticing very acutely the tunnel walls, ceiling etc. some of which was metallic, some seemed wooden, and some under construction (sort of).  This went on until I came to a light bulb glowing warmly and strongly from the ceiling in a junction area.  I paused and looked at it, seeing it perfectly, and thinking along the lines of 'go to the light'.  Or something.  I knew it was symbolic.  

I was not as controlled in this exit as I was last time because I kept saying over and over 'take me to the best experience for my highest good' ....'whatever experience I need for my highest good', etc.

This was not passive mode, which right now I think I need to stick with and although I sailed on beautifully from the light along another very clear tunnel, the experience ended and I felt that oh so disappointing feeling of drawing out and back to C1.  

Anyways, I'm happy to be getting positive results if I keep at it, but there very much is a surrender aspect that for me seems very important to maintain.  I was thinking later that the better phrase, if I was going to use that one, would have been 'an experience for THE highest good', because it may have been that I needed to go to my dad and it wasn't about me.  I have always felt he may have become stuck due to his fear.  I would like to do rescue work and believe I have worked with the newly dead between lives.  Anyhoo!... I was psyched when I got up.

As happened last time, I had the AP/exit late in the morning after trying unsuccessfully at 3:30 - 4:00 until dawn.  I did however get to the point of the gentle buzzing vibrational state at one point, but with no exit.

Phasing is not coming easily for me, but this method does work, so I will continue to combine it in what ever way will get results.

For me I don't expect the "I don't care, i am not even trying.'' mode will work.  My intent is what keeps me focused, and anything less just takes me to the dream state, which I agree with Xanth is also projection and is valuable.  BUT I want conscious exploration.... like you said... BAD. 

Congrats.  Yes this was a full OBE, and you are right to say that "the moment you show any kind of fear/nervousness you lose control, but if u don't get nervous and simply bear in mind that you're the one in control, nothing bad will happen."

That's right on.

You can learn to do this while projecting and be in a non-fearful, totally neutral state.  Controlling this however is harder to do though once you are in your astral body (compared to being in the physical) because there "thought equals direct action"... in other words what you think instantly becomes your experience.  The trick is to be determined to be neutral in both emotion and thought.  You get better at this as you get some practice. 

I do understand what you are asking stuartduke, but from my understanding, although it's all APing, it can be difficult to move from a lucid dream to an astral plane experience for instance. It takes a good deal of skill but it is doable.  Kurt Leland does use it extensively, ...that is... moving from dream lucidity to full dream awareness/control.  He doesn't have any interest in getting to the RTZ, but instead moves (focuses) his consciousness into a non physical reality.  He is really good at becoming lucid within a dream in the first place, and then is able to take it further to say meeting up with guides, and moving to the Astral proper, or higher, to explore the mental plane etc.  HE feels it's in fact easier to have an adventure in consciousness this way rather than trying to project from the physically-awake state using some technique.  Others disagree saying that it can be harder to remember an experience when it's done this way because of the 'lucid' dream-like state compared to experiencing via full consciousness that never went to 'sleep'. Kurt writes out his experiences and interprets the metaphors that the lucid experience employed, and I'd say he's second to none regarding honing this skill. 

You can check out his logs on his site.  kurtleland.com

You will have to get REALLY good at phasing to be able to do it in 30 minutes... me thinks, because 30 minutes might not be enough time to even get to alpha and from my perspective you have to be at least that relaxed.  Even Frank took 2 hours or so at the beginning. However, having said that, I also hope to speed things up for myself and I'm starting to recognize at least when I may as well not even try.  Maybe 30 minutes would be what it would take for me to know that, and it's time well spent for sure since it's good meditation practice. 

One thing I can say is that once in an alpha state bordering on theta you really don't mind the time... which is one clue that it's going well.  If you're laying in bed, say at 3 am anyway, and if you can get to body asleep, mind awake, then you quite honestly are in a state that you don't feel much like moving anyway.  You are really comfortable (on a good day) and your mind is easily distracted from thinking too much so you can more easily focus it.

(Brain waves explained - http://www.transparentcorp.com/products/np/brainwaves.php)

"At some point there seemed to be a shift in consciousness and I recall wondering whether this was the theta state FireFly9 wrote about in her log. I have no idea!"

It really doesn't matter what we call this shift, but it's a very important shift to make.  IMO it's what gets you there. 

Cheers. 

Further to the above, and since I posted on Rainbow_Lights log that it seemed to be getting easier, I have now dropped back into a dry spell.  Trying too hard no doubt, but not completely.  I've been considering my last success and thinking now that it was due to how the prerequisites were all in place rather than any technique I did.  In short, that I went out 'passively' (thanks rainbow_light for that term) which is how it has always worked in the past.  Yes, I did do phasing and other types of techniques, but as posted above it all came quite easy that morning because I was in the right and perfect state from the get go quickly after beginning the practice.

Lately, since Oct 31, I've tried many times.  Either I've not been tired enough, left it too late after already having had sufficient sleep, or my mind was way too Beta, or I had some physical discomfort (ie had an achy arm for a few days) etc.  I think now, that on Oct 31st I floated out passively.... ie my method of staying still long enough that my body figured I was asleep, AND I was tired enough and in that zone..... which for me is described as being in alpha without much effort so that visualization and that feeling of lightness comes almost on their own.  I think also that all that the techniques, visualizations, phasing practice etc did was to keep my mind awake.  If so then it's all good and served the same end.

I would still to some degree say I am phasing since I go oob in a fully conscious state to a place other than the RTZ, BUT I do not yet step into a scene - perhaps however I'm getting close (on a good day).  Where I end up is so far not under my control.. which I'm perfectly fine with me since at this stage I am only gaining experience.  

The trick is now to figure out what it takes for me to be in that perfect zone - or to get there easier.  I am very caffeine sensitive, so even eating dark chocolate as I did an evening or two ago kept me awake most of the night.  I have to be careful how much B complex I take, and gave up taking a really good whole food supplement powder because it had green tea in it.  I value my obe successes over the supplement.  I'm a light sleeper so one bit of advise that is often given to others, which is to get up for a while and then go back to bed, is out of the question because I would never be able to get back into the mood for sleeping if I did.  I also cannot sleep during the day.... sleep simply won't come. I really do have to be tired enough, as Frank also confirms, if I'm going to get back to 'near sleep' which is theta.  (Brain waves explained - http://www.transparentcorp.com/products/np/brainwaves.php)

I'm going to attempt to set some kind of alarm, perhaps on my iPad, one where I don't need to move in order to turn it off.  I likely should be attempting things earlier than even 4 am (although the recent success was started as late as 7:30.... but as I said... that was a good day).  

Had an interesting dream last night, this has. I was in my bedroom and the landlord came around and started renovating, changing my bedroom door as I was in bed, the drawers looked totally different. Then everything turned black as I was laying in the bed (in the dream), my body  started vibrating violently, and loud vibrations in my ears. At this point I figured out what was going on, so I decided to roll out of my body, room was now pitch black from the one in my dream before, and I flew out of the window but into a place where everything had vivid colours and was super blurred almost like it was one of those  photograph that were photo-shopped to look like a painting.


Even though it was just a dream, the projection, vibrations, noise felt like what it normally feels like. I happy cause it shows my body still remembers what to do. I just have to translate it into real life. I think me coming back on here is helping my subconscious.

Yes, it seems to me your dry spell could be coming to an end with your renewed focus.  This was in fact a lucid dream type OBE with a full vibrational state included.  Take one step at at time in your learning process and be patient with yourself.  Your only limitations are self-created (ie in reference to any anxiety about purity which couldn't be a reason other than what comes from your own thoughts about it, since no other female here who is APing is likely thus) but you do need to maintain your intent and desire in order to experience.   

Best of luck 

Seems like you rose in consciousness to a state of 'Light' and were bathed in it.  Just a cool shift in focus like an OBE and you experienced a brief part of an alternate reality just like 'false awakenings' are. 

Your thoughts?

OK, just read The Astral Blueprint and Frank Kepple's explanation of phasing in the FAQ, and now I'm thinking I might just ditch the visualizing and make the passive looking-into the blackness in front of the eyes my primary technique for at least a few weeks. The reasons for this being: (1) I already have experience with a kind of tuning of my mind/phasing from my meditation practice; (2) passive techniques seem to be more appropriate for me; (3) over the years I've noticed faint images arising out of the TV static-like blackness behind my eyes on the rare occasions when I've paid attention to it, so I know I can reach that point easily; (4) I've already tried visualizing in various ways a number of times, but to no avail; (5) and it allows me to focus on maintaining just a thread of awareness, as I've actually been having trouble with not being able to fall back asleep easily, and I suspect I'm being held back by over-awakeness.

Rainbow_Light.  I share all of these points in common with you in one way or another except in #1 as I don't meditate much, and in #3 rather than faint images...over the years I've experienced some awesome and crystal clear images come spontaneously out of the darkness, but mostly they appear less so and are more or less a vague scenic visualizations which, on a good day, take on a short-lived life of their own.

'Passive experience' feels like a perfect way to describe what I am doing right now.  (See FireFly's Log).  One thing I have done in the early stages is NOT try to ignore the body...at least for the 1st part of the AP exercise.  Because I can now easily get to the body-numb state, I often just feel how numb I am.  I feel it as one unit of numbness... sometimes a body part feels larger, but mostly I just have no feeling below the neck and I go with it.  From there I can start to feel a rising of a limb or slight inner movement. By this time I'm getting more alpha and primed so I then move to the phasing exercise as it becomes easier the more alpha/theta you become.

However, I don't try any longer to get out to RTZ but instead focus on moving in consciousness to the astral proper, so getting out has changed.  Now it just passively allow myself to move out which I have described in my log.  That takes my getting in the way of things out of the equation... especially while I'm learning, and since when I have gotten out in the RTZ I just flit about and can't seem to take it to the next level (not yet anyway).  Lately the floating out happens on it's own once I get to the proper state of body asleep, mind awake.... which for me does take something like 2 hours.  BUT I'm finding it's getting easier.  

I really think you should read 'Frank's posts'.  You will get so much insight from it, and because it will take you a LONG time to read, it will be something to keep you on course and thinking correctly at every stage.  There's nothing that Frank doesn't cover.  I'm a little more than half way through and it keeps getting better.

You certainly are committed (me too!  and you are doing really well.  Seems we have to cover a lot of trial and error to come to the understanding of, or get a fix on, our OWN process which is highly unique.  

Thanks for the link to Frank's explanation of phasing.  I've read lots of this in his 'posts' but this link is a nice condensed version of it all.

Had a major success on Oct 31st. -  First time truly interacting on another plane, reality or RTZ.

After coming awake from a dream in the early morning I got into position to do my AP practice.  It was about 7:30.  I thought about my previous dream for a bit, and then got to the body-numb state by lying quietly (again this is not paralysis, just numb - I don't find true paralysis is necessary....and can't get there anyhow). The body cooperated nicely for me this time and produced no itching, heat, etc.  Over a couple of hours I tried all manner of techniques from the alpha state with one thing leading easily to another.  Amongst other things I visualized and saw landscapes which I then tried to get down into them by being still.  I focused on noticing behind my eyes. I listened to a song playing in my head and that helped take me deeper.  I was aware that I was doing too much describing of things in my head (Frank's posts warns about letting yourself do that.)  I needed to get quiet.  All in all though I was in perfect form for an AP so maintained a rhythmic, sleep-like breathing, remaining perfectly still, and I persisted.

Over time I got to theta (you actually feel this shift when it happens) and found myself lucidly (sort of) in a scene in front of my computer in another room.  I wondered, ok, now what, how do I get from here to an OBE?  No sooner had this thought occurred to me when I felt a spontaneous movement.  As had happened once before earlier that week my office chair rolled back into the middle of the room - the motion of which took me to a deepened state.  I went into mild vibration which felt like a buzzing all over, under my skin.  This in itself was progress because I've never really been conscious of a full vibrational state before, or if so it's been ever so subtly.  This OBE was a short-lived tunnel movement, and then I was then back to alpha.  

I kept up the focus and visualized (from the alpha state) sailing over landscapes with the desire for summerland (higher astral) in mind.  The scenes were not sharp and vivid like I have experienced in the past but they were pleasant.  From flying above I saw lots of rocks, cliffs, water, one green meadow.  I focused in and made the decision to get closer to one of them and to see things in more detail hoping to move into the scene.

At some point I went again into a full feeling of OOB movement and vibrational buzzing.  Yes, I thought....this is it!!!

I began to sail through a mechanical like tunnel going forward (feet first) at a good speed but very not really fast.  I was not directing things in the least and remained perfectly neutral simply enjoying the sensation and wondering where I would end up. I then came to a junction area in this tunnel, and now stopped I found myself sitting on what can only be described as a metallic-like buoy.  It was some kind of contraption - function unknown.

OK...I thought I should perhaps make a desire known in order to get someplace else so I simply said I would like to horse back ride on this plane, thinking I could do it pro and really feel the joy of riding like I couldn't on the physical.  So I began to move again, this time on an upward slope through another tunnel still sitting on this contraption.  Perhaps I was on my way to horses?  

However, I ended up at the top of a stairway in a residential home.  [I get right away that I am for the first time ever in a fully conscious state on the astral proper (or as I considered later, aware in the RTZ someplace)].

The contraption deflated like it was made of plastic.  I got off.  I knew I was in the upstairs portion of a home.  I looked out the window at one end of the hallway and saw a winter scene at night.  I then began to walk along the hall looking into the rooms as I went along.  Someone may have been in one of the beds, but I couldn't say for sure.   I looked into another room and then another.  At the end of the hall I went into a room and saw someone there.  I ducked back not wanting to scare her in case she could see me, but I was too late for that.  She knew me right away although I didn't know her.  (A common thing according to Frank).   She seemed happy to see me like I was a familiar friend from that time zone and she gathered me into the room.  I said hello my name is Glen, what's yours.  She didn't understand why I was introducing myself.  I said no, you don't understand, I'm doing this from a different dimension (the only way I could think of to quickly describe it).  I told her this knowing she understood this kind of thing and there was no need to explain it.  She then said she was Marie.  I could see her face clearly.  I asked her where this place was and she gave me the street address.  I said no, what city is it?  She said Kingston, Ontario.

I sat in front of her holding her knees.  I said I was so excited since this is the 1st time I have really done it... arrived and interacted on a different plane, or place.  I wish now I had talked less or asked more questions or let her talk to me.  

Then the experience ended and I was back in C1, likely due to the excitement, but it didn't degrade to a dream state at least and I was able to remember it.  I was now 11 am.

I second that.... Awesome.  Is your friend Matthew C. still alive in the physical?  If so then you would have put his face on one of the locals perhaps. 

I hope the 'next Thursday' proves to be productive so you can make your meeting with the female helper.

Cheers.

Thanks EV.  I appreciate the response, and I will do more of what you suggest to see if I can improve the hits.  When I went out through my feet last and sailed through the tunnel to what seemed like a railway station I forgot to mention that I did go about touching and feeling things to try to prolong the experience by bringing in my focus and attention better.  Next time I will engage the noticing as much as I can.  In this case I was already in the scene because I had reached the astral, but was doing that 'fish out of water' thing as Frank called it.

I really don't have much luck with the rundown process but focused attention IS a difficulty for me. Something I continue to work on.  

I have a question though about the 'pull'.  Often when I have been in my body numb state for a while and wavering on exiting, or sometimes even when I have been out and am attempting to get out again, I feel a strong pressure between the solar and heart chakras.  I have tried to utilize this pressure to get out but so far no luck.  Doesn't seem to matter if I just let it alone or if I try to exit there.  It does focus me back on the body, but it must be happening for some reason.  Any thoughts?

October:  After responding to Rainbow_Light's log post the other day expressing my long dry spell I actually did have another great experience using my 'laying still' technique.  After some time in the body numb stage I again floated out through my feet.  This time I did not rotate to move head first but sailed along feet first through what felt like a long winding wind tunnel.  I remembered to stay emotionally neutral, and to not hurry the process this time.... which is what I have been wanting a chance to practice.  I just went along with it and it persisted for quite a while... (This is progress... yea!)  Then the best part is I became aware of passing a scene.  It became almost like a railway tunnel, and then a station.  I vaguely saw people mulling about on one side.  When I stopped I was then at that station... although not very lucidly, but I then attempted to interact with one of the people there.  I saw a young man in a brown jersey who was sitting on the ground with his back to me.  I asked his name.  In hindsight I think he couldn't hear me because I have not developed any kind of communication sense in the astral body yet.  But this was a major step forward.

During the summer months I started reading 'Frank's Post' which I find very inspiring, and I also read Xanth's document on Phasing.  So now I combine the phasing practice with my 'body asleep' process which in essence is 'phasing' since the goal is to move into the astral without losing consciousness.  I find I have to struggle to maintain a mental focus (my primary stumbling block), but I feel there comes a certain point when you get closer to the theta state where raising your focus to the blackness behind the eyes does indeed do the trick.  All the info I've read lately from the Frank's post, as well as Ginny's soul retrieval logs, etc have given me a lot of very useful information.  While doing the phasing practice and on a good day I usually don't need to wait long before I see very scenic landscapes or images.  The trick now is to move into one of them.

May of this year:

I'm still working on getting out (which HAS happened, but certainly not in any consistent way due to my efforts. - yet). After lying still for a while I will experince a 'body numbing' and from there I frequently come so very close to floating out.  I have had several brief outs but lately these have quickly turned into a normal dream state.

Somehow I've gotten stuck and it seems to me that my body won't be tricked by my 'being still' anymore.  Like it caught on, or it upped the antie on testing me to see if I'm truly asleep and whether or not it can make me move.  I can get past the itchy phase and the sweating stage (two things the body uses on me to see if I'm really asleep), but lately I haven't been able to get past the 'urge to roll over' stage which comes after all the other tests, and after I've been at this for a good long time already.  I'll say ...after giving it my best ... "ok - you win".... and I roll over.  Sigh.

I do know that I have to be somewhat tired in order to get to the theta state.... otherwise I'm wasting my time.  I have theta music that I listen to with a background binary beat that helps, but again, I have to be tired, and the music can't be too long because I need silence for the actual projection to happen.  My favorite music comes from http://www.royaltyfreemeditationmusic.com/Royalty_... (you can click on the links to listen to the free samples).

This lying still technique does work though, and I first read about it on-line in an e-book by a Robert Peterson http://www.robertpeterson.org/obebook.html.  His travels (described in this book) were entirely astral with alot of frustrating struggle and limitation regarding being able to move into a free state, but I took note of his method of 'tricking' the body into thinking you are asleep.  It's Munroe's 'mind awake-body asleep' concept really if you can stay conscious.

During one of these brief outs I managed to rotate my body into a standing position, and instead of floating to dream zone (as I see it) turned it into a RTZ obe and went through the door to the outside.  I usually try to get outside because following Buhlman's advise I attempt to get well away from my body.  Usually I just flit about trying to think what I should TRY to do, so have resolved to start focusing on getting into a quiet state once out and see what happens.  Ideally I'd like to take any RTZ obe and move to the 'astral proper'.

I decided to start a log here, so initially am copying and pasting from a former post I did on another forum since it explains my method.  All comments welcome.

I do a version of the body asleep/mind awake technique (an adaption of the Munroe technique - greatly simplified).  My success is still in the infantile stages, but it is a process that works for me, at least for now.

Since we all go to the body freeze state (paralysis) when we are asleep each night and then move on from there in consciousness to the astral plane during dream time, the trick of this technique is to fool the body into thinking you are asleep in order to experience it lucidly.... (as I see it, and have read elsewhere).  If I stay perfectly still for a long time, long enough to get to the body numb stage, (along with sleep-like breathing and getting to the theta state).....AND if I'm tired enough, I have been able to float out.  So far this is not under my control, ie I don't roll out etc. What I'm assuming is happening is that the consciousness is actually on its way to the dream zone as in normal sleep. (Dream zone is a term used by author Kurt Leland who has mapped the inner planes extensively through years of lucid experience.)

Arriving on the astral plane in a lucid state (using this method) is my goal, but so far I haven't gotten past the float (transit) stage.  I would agree that any fear prevents the process, but I also think that it's important not to let the body know you are awake by directing the experience in any way (for this particular method) - but I'm still playing with this.  I'll report on how I do.

Other than using this process I have gotten out of the body on several occasions (more or less spontaneously) to fly around what 'looks' like the physical plane, in my astral body.  This success has been limited by my inexperience but I am quite happy to have these practice sessions. So far during OBEs I haven't been able to have interactions with other beings, am off my myself, and NOT very lucid.  I certainly don't scoff at anything I can accomplish however, as each time I get out I get to practice trying to stay calm, and remembering to get lucid.  {I also work to become lucid 'during' dreams - which is how Leland does it, and this is WAY cool when it happens, but very rare for me so far.}

Back in February of this year I had my first OBE using this method.  I remained perfectly still and maintained the body numb stage for at least 2 hours (this is not sleep paralysis by the way) and I eventually started to leave through my feet.  I don't go into the vibrational state, but this may be because of the stage of learning I am at.  I have felt the beginnings of, or a soft form of, the vibrational state and have also heard the rushing wind-like sound, but not very loudly if at all.   Anyway, I floated out like a log on my back.  Once out, instead of travelling feet first to wherever it was I was headed, I was rotated 180 degrees and began to move foward head first (still on my back).  I had no control over this rotation and was surprised when it happened. I moved along in a sort of tunnel. When the speed increased I could feel the wind going past me. As usual with my OBEs I became very excited and in this case really wanting this experience to get past the motion stage and into the astral plane and to have a lucid experience there (no matter what form it might take - for now), but I cut it short by trying to direct it.  In this case both excitement and wanting to travel faster sent me immediately back to my body.  Drats....as I see it the body caught on that I wasn't asleep before I got past this transitional state and into dream zone.

I'm past having any fear of this, and also beyond wanting to just experience the etheric body (the light body that can't get further away from the physical than 10 feet or so).  It's the astral body that I want to be in and to eventually become proficient in utilizing the astral body 'senses' (read Kurt Leland) to gain full access to the astral plane.  'Full' access (as opposed to limited access) takes training and spiritual mastery of the astral body - which is essentially mastery of the emotions.  Following that comes master of the thoughts.

The various bodies and planes are discussed extensively by Leland, and also by Seth to some extent, and by Annie Besant (who coined the body level terms) in early Theosophical writings.  Each plane requires a body equivalent.... that is, you use your astral body to travel the astral plane, the mental body to travel the mental plane, the causal body for the causal plane etc. and each body has its own unique set of sensing tools (activated chakras perhaps) that allow you to 'experience' and interact on that plane.

The etheric body is the lowest body and is essentially a double of the physical (as is well explained by William Buhlman).  The etheric has its value on the physical plane, and although you can move your consciousness fully into the etheric body you can't go anywhere in it.   The astral body allows travel and you also use this body during most dreams.  During an OBE that's the one you need to master first if you want experience beyond the Real Time Zone (RTZ) and into the 'astral proper' as Frank calls it.

Cool stuff me thinks.  

Hello Rainbow Light.  Responding to your first post and your book list (most of which I have also read).  I too have read Leland's website, and 3 of his books.  I would highly recommend the one that IS still in print, The Multidimensional Human.  His 1st book (which I also would like to find) was primarily about his own beginnings and involved his early astral experiences initiated from the dream state.  His method primarily starts from dream lucidity - which he has mastered as you would know from reading the logs on his site. He has moved beyond the astral now to journeys within the higher planes.  He doesn't really teach any methods or techniques.  You will get an appreciation of this from 'The Multidimensional Human' book, and that his focus is to help his readers understand the various planes and how to develop the sensing tools needed to perceive and interact there. Of all the OBE books I've read his was my favourite.  I also really like his 'crash course on dream analysis' which is on his site. kurtleland.com  I think he is writing a new book, so it would be good to have read TMH first.

I relate to the difficulties you are having as I find myself in a long dry spell right now.  I know I have to be tired enough to get into the theta state, and if I can't then I may as well give up because my mind simply stays too active to allow the release.  I've been working with the phasing technique lately, but for a while I was having good luck with waking up at 4 am or so and doing the (Peterson?) technique of lying perfectly still (sometimes for 2 hours) until the body thinks you are asleep.  (Mind awake, body asleep does result from this). At that point I would experience an exit from my feet and a rapid movement through a type of wind tunnel headed I would think to 'dream zone' but consciously so.  Excitement always nixed the process, so I'm disappointed that I haven't been able to repeat the success lately in order to practice.  I NEVER get a vibrational state, or true sleep paralysis, although I used to get SP when I was much younger.  I have often gotten out (briefly) to the RTZ but have not been focused enough and simply flit about here and there.  Again... I want more successes so I can practice controlling my emotion and thoughts while out.  I can however get to the 'body asleep/mind awake' very easily just by lying still, but I am not exiting from this state right now.  It's frustrating to say the least.

Keep up the log.  You will find that so many of us relate to all the various stages you are experimenting with.

Have you read 'Frank's Post' which Xanth compiled and which is available from his website? I find this good reading before sleep as it keeps me motivated.  His posts, like yours, are a log of his experimentations and discoveries and they are loaded with nuggets of insight.

Thanks Szaxx - I will try the 'little less sleep' bit.  I do know that it is useless to even attempt an OB unless I am somewhat tired... so have stopped doing OBE practice before sleep (and just meditate) and I wait to apply all this effort until 4 or 5 am.  This latest success however came very quickly.  I listened to the theta music for about 20 minutes and likely it was because I was still tired it happened shortly after the music ended.  So, I think I'm on to a new way to speed things up, but haven't had the chance to try it again yet.  Spending 2 hours never grantees I will get to a theta state anyway, especially if I'm focused on the body, AND not controlling the thoughts.  It really does only happen when I approach that near sleep state.  

The excitement issue is separate I think from any issue of pessimism, which I agree will hamper things.  However, as Frank makes clear you do need to become emotionally neutral, and I have already realized this on my own since I have had the excitement short circuit my successes many times.  Every time I get a bit more calm and just observe then the experience gets longer and more successful.  I have recently read in the 'Franks Posts' (in the early years as I'm only 1/4 way through) spent 2 - 2 1/2 hours at it.  For me though this hasn't been working well anyway.  It seems my body has caught on to my tricking it, and thus has upped the testing (itching, sweats, urge to roll over) in order to make sure.  It's the body's protective mechanism that kicks in, right?

Lionheart - Thanks for sharing your experiences.  I may have used the wrong word when I said pulling, because I don't feel anything pulling on me... (although this would be cool).  For me the sensation I am feeling is within, at the the solar chakra.  It's like a drawing tightness that I get there when I get into a deep state or return from an OBE. I have a friend who says she exits from this sensation, but I haven't found the way to do that yet.

When I exit from my feet it's just a gentle floating out.  I haven't had sleep paralysis for years, or should I say I don't wake to experience it since I've read that sleep paralysis happens EVERY time we go to sleep.  It purpose is to keep the body safe from sleep walking, etc.   I used to get sleep paralysis all the time, but that was when I was in my 20's and 30's.  The tunnel thing though is very much the norm for me, but like you I never seem to get to the end.  However, I feel I am making progress so next I have to get to viewing at least the other side.  The 'toilet paper' roll experience would be just fine as a start (LOL).  I take each new experience as having gained a bit  more astral body maturity which includes developing the sensing tools necessary for that body to function on the 'astral proper' (vision, navigation, interpretation, etc.)

Cheers.

I've been doing minor APs for a while and although most are fairly non-lucid I have accomplished some RTZ (real time zone) projections (mostly after reading and practicing some of the Buhlman techniques).  I have also had a few spontaneous projections where I was able to experience what clear lucidity is like.  My focus for a good while now has been to learn phasing (although I have just recently learned that 'phasing' is what it is called) since it's not the RTZ I'm trying to explore.  Instead I desire to get to the 'astral proper' as Frank would call it.  

I can get to the 'body asleep/mind awake' stage and have floated out by doing this.  My process is still arduous however.... as I have to lay still for something like 2 hours to trick my body into thinking I'm asleep (the Robert Peterson method), and then attempt to get past the itching, sweating, urge to roll over bit - as my body seems determined to make sure I am asleep before it proceeds or allows the consciousness to shift to the dream zone/astral.  It normally wins and I give up.  I have however floated out through my feet on several occasions by doing this technique but so far have not arrived anywhere on the other side.  When I do this I floated out on my back and then begin to go through what seems like a tunnel.  The cool thing has been that when I get past the foot of the bed, by body rotates so that I'm traveling head first... but I am not directing this and this turn surprised me the first time it happened.  I can feel the movement, the wind in my hair and the speed which is exciting, but up until last night my excitement would end the process. I'm not sure where I am off to (although I expect the body is releasing me to dream zone... or so it thinks), and I hesitate to direct it since I'm pretty sure, at this point, I will end up back in my body even sooner.

This morning around 5 am I woke up and knowing my mind was already too active to get into a meditation or OBE practice I decided to listen to ocean waves embedded with a theta binary beat frequency.  This got me to a theta state quite easily for a change which only happens when I'm tired enough.  I experienced a light and soft buzzing which persisted even after the audio had ended.  (I don't experience the vibrational state, or at least not anything obvious beyond a soft buzzing.)  I'm psyched that I have finally mastered the excitement (thanks to the 'Franks Posts' which makes the need to do this quite clear) as I was able to stay calm and emotionally neutral.  This morning I also nixed any head chatter while the experience was happening and thus I floated on route to somewhere for quite a while.  When the 1st experience ended I was able to get back to the same tunnel 2 more times and in a very lucid OB state.

I was less theta after the 3rd tunnel trip, but felt I should still be able to project to the RTZ because I had such a strong pulling sensation on my solar plexus area.  I have experienced this pulling many times, but have never been able to use it to get out.  Does anyone else experience this?  

Anyway, after a long frustrating dry spell I was happy to gain what feels like a smidgen of progress.  

Ha!  I just came to the forum today to post my experience last night....and came across yours right away.  Last night must have been a good AP night.... or should I say this morning.  I will post my under a separate title. 

Congrats - feels good to finally understand what all the talk is about doesn't it?

[Unanswered Question]

I read the Unanswered Question (along with Otherwhere, and Multidimensional Human). 

In this book Kurt Leland explores the afterlife,  crossreferencing three main ancient works- the Egyptian Book of the Dead, the Tibetan Book of the Dead, the works of Emanuel Swedenborg, the christian mystic, and comparing them to modern NDE reports and puts them in the framework of his own experiences and system.
I consider it to be a scholarly work, in that he does what others haven't, and is to compare the buddhist and egyptian works, and if you have ever read any work on the Egyptian book of the Dead you know how obscure and frankly, subjective it is.  He gives the excellent historical account about how the (Egyptian) 'books' came to be one book today and how they were translated and interpreted.
He also takes his experiences and describes them in  terms of the works discussed, which I found fascinating.  Many other people who read the books preferred the parts where he goes into his personal experiences, which of course are always fascinating, but my favorite parts were the descriptions of the ancient works, and how he reconciles all of them from the point of view of a projector.
I give it two thumbs up, it's (so far) my favorite of Kurt's books.

To add - it seems to me that Leland's mission and contract here in this lifetime is to help map the inner planes, and also to dig out of the woodwork some of the material on this that has been lost, fallen to disuse, or poorly understood. Thus he devotes a great deal of time rooting out and republishing the theosophy writings of earlier writings.   

Actually all of Kurt's books except Multidimensional Human are out of print.  He does realize that getting the earlier ones issued in eBook is a good idea, but so far he hasn't gotten to it.  I 'believe' he is working on another book, but have no idea when it will come out.

I think I have read MH three times now.  There are lots of theosophy links from his website as well.  Plus there are logs of some of his travels on his site. www.kurtleland.com

Multidimensional Human is available from Amazon. I was able to get a copy of Unanswered Question but have not put the bucks out for a second hand copy of "Otherwhere".  I'm hoping it will come out in eBook someday. 

Otherwhere is more or less his early astral travels, and Unanswered Question, written later, is his journeys to the after-death zone. 

Update - I found another post on Kurt here: http://www.astralpulse.com/forums/welcome_to_book_reviews/kurt_leland_books_amp_astral_projection_log-t33199.0.html

soarin12: - Hey - great to find another who has appreciated MH and Otherwhere.  I am in the process of reading the pdf "Frank's Posts" and am really enjoying it.  Much of it reminds me of Lelands travels, ie the discovery/labeling of various zones, meeting 'scamps', etc. Of course they each have their own labels for things, but I can see the similarities and I'm only on page 45.  His posts end up being a good summary of so much I have read elsewhere, but he is in fact in the process of discovering it for himself first hand.  

BluefirePhoenix - Thanks of the added info.  I am prepared to read ALL of the 'Frank's Posts' pdf (which is over 1000 pages) so I trust I will eventually get a good understanding of the phasing and scrying.  I will look for that post on obstacles though because I'm seemingly coming up against a few.  LOL.   I have learned sooo much so far from 'Frank's Posts' and am putting into practice (or intend to) what I am reading.  It's great stuff, and so very practical.  I'm kind of a left brainer too... so his sense of reasoning things out really appeals to me.

AND I am originally from Nova Scotia.... well.. let me re-phrase that.  Once from NS always from NS - so it's really where I call home.   I was married to a Caper once (from Sydney Mines).  Where are you?

Can someone tell me how to 'reply' here.  I see 'Quote', but no reply button.  It it meant that we should use the quote button instead.  It's the only way I was able to respond here .....I just deleted the quoted part.

I have made a post or two and have also been pouring over all the info here, but I thought I should add a brief intro.  I have already begun the phasing practice and feel this is a technique that could very well get me past my long dry spell of late as far as OBEs are concerned.  I've had some etheric and astral body experiences but arrived here looking for potential support, techniques, and to read about other people's experiences.  I wish I'd found this forum sooner.  

I have read many of the OBE books includin Buhlman's three books and Ziewe, but when I got to Multidimensional Human by Kurt Leland that became my favorite and I have since then covered a lot of ground regarding theosophy including Annie Besant, Seth, Leadbeater and others, which gives one good backgrounding on the sequential growth we go through, and how to approaching out of body travel as a spiritual practice.  

What I like about Multidimensional Human is Kurt's explaination of the planes, the need to develop/strengthen the various bodies (astral, mental, causal, etc) in order to visit and navigate those planes, and also the development of the tools for interacting there and/or bringing back the experience by translating it in a way the waking mind can understand.  I'm always surprised that more people haven't read it.  Kurt's experiences with guides etc on the higher planes falls very much in line with Frank's.  You can read many of his adventures on his website.

Kurt really emphases dream analysis as a means of  receiving messages from your soul's perspective, and I have subsequently gotten into this in a big way.

After reading his 'Crash Course on Dream Analysis' (the best I have ever come across - and I was a psychology major) I have really worked on learning my metaphoric dream language which helps one to translate dream experiences/messages and to get an idea of progress.  For those who are dismissing much of their dream content I highly recommend this quick read.....http://www.kurtleland.com/dream-interpretation/crash-course.  

Bashar has an excellent short talk on this as well regarding how the dream happens all at once (outside of time), that we must then extract it into a sequence, and figure out the meaning of the metaphors we have applied in order to bring it in.  Bashar is channelled by Darryl Anka -  http://youtu.be/6T5ZLdD7Pkw

Looking forward to sharing and participating here.

Every time in in SP I either start "suffocating" or i just fall asleep.

The etheric and astral bodies do not breath, so it may be that you are in fact moving out/ separating into an etheric state and are still trying to breath from that body.  Perhaps not as it may in deed be related to your phenomena of SP, but I have read about and experienced this.  In one of my brief successes at consciously leaving my body (ie projecting out and not doing so say through a dream state) I found I was struggling to breath.  I immediately thought my real body was needing air so quickly return to bring it out of sleep.  What I needed to do was to relax into the astral body itself and not think of it as having physical needs.  The feeling of not being able to breath while out of body is apparently quite common.