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Cheers Frank. I think I'll give this a try from tonight and follow the simple techninque that you described, maybe for 20-30 minutes before I go to sleep at night. This seems to be the best time for me as I often get odd 'hypnogogic' swirls and other effects in my field of vision when I'm droping off to sleep. As you say, I won't expect imediate results but perhaps after a couple of weeks something interesting might happen!

Regards,
Douglas

What I wonder about sometimes though is that its ok to 'place intent' to go somewhere on the astral, however, if you have never experienced the astral its hard to know where to go or what to do, do you see where I'm coming from?

I think that some beginners might get stuck with this early stage as they wouldn be very sure what they wanted to do.

Douglas

well done on hitting the 'premier' spotlight Tom!

1000 posts plus eh?

I wonder what happens when you hit a million post?

Douglas

I was always aceptical as to whether 'negative' beings/energies exist and can feed off of you, I think that the majority of 'negative beings' you encounter by obe are manifistations of personal fear and so on.
However, this doesnt mean that 'negative' beings do NOT exist. Perhaps they do. (by negative, I mean that the being in question is not very healthy for you to be around!)
I think the 'like attracts like' rule applies here in that people like Frank, Ginny and so on are unlikely to ever encounter them as they are not driven by 'negative' emotions whether people who are (cf psychic defence forum) will come across them very quickly!
For similar reasons, Frank Ginny and so on, would find the idea of astral feeders hard to accept as again this is unlikely to happen to them as such feeders would not be in the vicinity in the first place and would have nothing to latch on to...
I think that in the right circumstances this kind of thing can happen however. This does go some way to expaining ghosts and so on, and why hauntings often start with very little activity but grow in intensity as the being gains more power through feeding off the fear generated.
I can well imagine some sorry case wherby someone dies but has no knoweldge of higher astral realms and so is determined to remain attatched to the earth... perhaps by feeding of emotional energy they can generate more etheric energy to keep them grounded here... they are driven by fear themselves as they have no knoweledge of the higher realms, they think this is it.. so they will go to any lengths to stop themselves 'fading out' (although they will actually be fading 'up' but they wouldn know this and would fear it)

Of course this is all specualtion on my part, however, perhaps there is the possibility of astral feeders, and could be a problem for those who are not stable emotionaly and so on... who knows!
However, although I no longer dismiss the posibility of feeders on certain people, I still hold that the majority of scary creatures encountred during obe are fear manefestations.
But who's to say that there isnt something behind even this who eyes up your fear manefestation and thinks 'hmm... lunch!)

Douglas

I agree with the idea that we stay to learn the lessons we came here for, after that we hang around until our body packs up...
with the case of those who die suddenly (and horribly!) or die young, well, perhaps that experience itself is a lesson.
I do think there is a certain random element in the material world however, essential for its existence, so we shouldnt rule out the possibility of dying through a random event, like an accident or whatever... I know that when this happens we hope that there was a reason for it, but I think that there IS an element of random chance, essential for the dynamic nature of material life... if we die by soem random event.. well we just have to go back and try again!
I agree that some deaths (perhaps most) are decided upon however.

In any case, It is difficult for us on this level to work out what is due to the random, dynamic nature of the material world and what is pre-planned.. and it may be pointless to speculate... Its fun though!
If you were working it out on a percentage, I always considered the material world to consist of 75% pre-determined.. 25% random
that gives enough dynamic to make things interesting... I think that there has to be some random element as being able to deal with unexpected situations are valuable lessons in themselves.

Douglas

Emperor Constantine has a lot to answer for. He had a huge influence on Christianity and injected his own interpretations/ideas into church meetings and christian doctrine. Also Constantine really only adopted christianity for political support, he was still a 'pagan' in heart, he is not as 'holy' as christians make him out, in fact he was only baptised on his deathbed!
It was at one famous meeting at Nicea that a vote was taken to reject the concept of re-inacrnation, and the desician to make Jesus officially a god rather than just a prophet.

The prophet part I don't see as important as I always viewed Jesus as a man (all be it advanced on a spiritual level), I don't buy this imaculate conception stuff.. Mary and joseph were married but they never had sex.. suddenly mary is pregnant... COME ON! How anyone is meant to believe that one!
As I said earlier, the imaculate conception story was added in later and smacks of roman invention as the idea of mortals being impregnated by gods is an old classical idea, randy Apollo used to do this all the time, often priesteses of Apollo became pregnant 'imaculately'.. (yea right)

The re-incarnation aspect is VERY important however, as it alters the very fundamentals of christianity, the fact that it was rejected in the 4th century but was readily accepted before then shows us the scale of difference that must exist between early christianity and post Constantine christianity.
Then we get to Augustine, and things really get interesting.

For me, christianity was hijacked by the Roman state, thereafter religion and state were one as it is today really... I don't this was jesus' intention, what with churches and all that, I think he meant it much more as a personal religion/belief system.... The Romans on the other hand were used to the idea of religion and state as one, so christianity was altered to suit this need.

Douglas

You think so? I don't think that's accurate. Some people know full well that what they are doing is "wrong" and LIKE that it's "wrong." Ignorance of what? We are all very ignorant really, of many things, and I don't think this equates that we are all very evil.
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Hmmm, you have a point there, unless of course the we take it that people who commit acts 'because' they are wrong are STILL doing so due to ignorance... But maybe your right and ignorance is just one of many variables.
I like Tom's description of the budhic wheel though... that implies that ignorance feeds a cycle of hate and craving which self-perpetuates..
I think this could be true, esp when you look at real world situations today like Northern Ireland or Israel/Palestine,, just an endless cycle of hatred/fear perpetuated by ignorance

Douglas

Cheers, Tisha,
I wasnt wanting to get into the organised religion thing either, I just used that as an example...
It was more the ignorance vs knowledge thing.
This is what I would define as 'evil' as its results are not very pleasant to experience...
as far as 'pure evil goes', such as achetypl evil..
Im not really sure about that, as you say, sure you can get some pretty nasty beings out there, driven by spite... just as in the material world..
Hannibal Lector example (ok he's not real but you know what I mean!) .. I would class him as 'evil' as he wishes to do me harm for his own pleasure, so I stay away from him..
But he's not doing all these horrible things because 'he wants to be evil', he is just satisfying his own base desires and beleives there is nothing wrong with doing so, even if it involves murder and suffering, or because it involves murder and suffering..... perhaps as a form of rebellion... perhaps he sees that there are in fact no moral rules whatsoever and he can do anything.... his murders are therefor a way of expressing this fact.
What I think stems from this is ignorance.. ignorance on Hannibal's part...

Unless of course we believe the existentialist viewpoint that there are in fact no moral groundrules at all and we can in fact do what ever we want without consequence? In this case Hannibal is simply expressing himself as he sees fit, without consequence apart from societies view of him.
I dont' see how this can be possible...

Douglas

Here Frank, did you get that private message I sent you the other day?

Just wondering...

Douglas

Excellent report!

Douglas

As for whether hemi sync / bwgen can be used for only phasing or for conventional approach, I suspect that it can be used for either but there is some consensus that phasing is an evolved version of the conventional technique. Although the RTZ and astral co-exist to an extent, it seems that people who "phase" can by-pass the RTZ. I haven't yet read of any accounts where individuals use the phasing technique to go directly to RTZ.
Clandestino
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Hi Clandestino, thanks for your post... as the uni holidays have officialy begun I now have over 3 weeks of free time so I have decided to begin an 'astral campaign' and have recompiled the F27 file into an hour long mp3 file.
I just don't have the time/concentration for all this during term time so it is relagated to holiday work. This might be detrimental to progress because I'm always aware that there is pressure for success due to time constraints..

Anyway, I think your right about being able to use the presets for both obe and phasing, I've only ever projected into the RT zone.. I have spontanious projections to it during the night, usually once a week on average.. I have never done this purposefully so it would be nice to do so. I agree though that the astral proper is THE place to go and that the RT zone is quite boring once the novelty of a bodiless state wears of... (hell, we can all explore the RT zone in everyday life, why project into it?!)

I feel I may have some success with the phasing technique because every couple of weeks or so I 'wake up' while dreaming and become aware of what I call the 'cinema screen effect'. This is where you see a full, active, 'real' enviroment through some kind of astral window.. I believe this is what Monroe calls Focus 18 or 21 (cant remember!) Anyway, what your meant to do next is to move into it thereby getting you into the astral proper at Focus 23 or whatever they call it.
I have not done this though, I have been happy to just observe the screen and then the experience ends...

Back to the point though, I will listen to the f27 preset for a hour every night as I go to sleep (or rather, as my body goes to sleep .... hopefully!) and I'll let you know how I get on... I will concentrate on phasing this time round.

If anyone else has any recent succcess with these presets then please share them with the rest of us!

Regards,
Douglas

superb reading Bitsmart..
I enjoyed your post... I agree with a lot of what you say there...
time will tell I suppose..
Douglas

Adrian - you suggest playing them all in order once a day?
How long would that take... an hour or so?

I take it the preset 'the trip' plays them all....

Thanks, I'll give it a shot!

Helen - I had a very similar problem to yours for many years.... so long in fact that the constant fear was actually affecting my health!
see *my very first post* - 'obe fears affecting my health need help'

For me, the biggest help was actually finding this forum and talking to other often more experienced AP'ers and reading as much about the astral world as possible - the more you know about it the less scary it becomes
It is also re-assuring to know that no matter how scary somthing seems to you, someone else has already done it and is far ahead of you, what you are afraid of is just a breeze to them!!

This helped me a lot, so when I started getting the vibrations AP stuff I was able to think, 'hell, people like Frank, Jeff Mash etc dont have a problem with this, why should I?'

I was then able (after years of fear) to get over it and I'm now getting on quite well thank you, with a good few APs under my belt!

So, try not to worry and just remember that its not actually quite the 'great unknown' that you thought.... the fear is unwarrented!

Regards,
Douglas

Hi Spike,
I also use all 78 cards
The minor arcana are essential... the way I read them is that the major arcana reflect the character and mental state of the querent while the minor arcana reflect new/current  ideas and directions in the person's life.
So without them your not getting a full picture

Douglas

You know it's kind of funny. Sometimes I feel like I'm losing my grip with reality believing in all this projection stuff, but after reading some of the things written on the forum (anything pretaining to the goverment and/or aliens) I feel very grounded.
Nate
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I used to think that when I first got into projection stuff but now my perspective is exactly the opposite.

I am very busy in the middle  of a degree course at the moment and dont really have time to devote to the Astral world and all that goes with it.
But this forum is essential for me as it keeps me 'awake' with regards to all things astral. So reather than worrying about losing my grip on reality (materialist perspective) a Im now very concious not to loss my grip on the astral (non materialist perspective)
Ive I didnt keep coming to the forum, then I'm sure my grip on it would fail as I become completely absorbed with everyday 'reality' uni life etc.

What I have found is that the material world is SO seductive that you can lose yourself in it completly and loss interest in the spiritual- that is the case with the majority of the poplation of course - I think its important to remember this as even being on this forum is evidence that we have begun to see beyond the material.
Of course I'm not advocating going and living in a cave for the rest of my life.. I like material pleasures as well, I am talking about getting a sense of balance between the two.... In the material world that can be difficult as it is so seductive that you could easily lose any interest in the spiritual if you get to sucked in..

Anyway, before everyone falls asleep, (sorry!) I take the opposite view form that of 'worying about losing touch with reality' and instead I worry about 'losing touch with the astal'.

Regards,
Douglas

PS apologies to the prophesy fans here, i realise that my earlier jibe (while not intended to be a serious dig) was a bit over the top and I withdraw it!!!

Concerning tarot reading styles:

How many people here use only upright card readings as opposed to using reversed ones as well?

I would suggest for new users to tarot to just use upright readings as the 78 cards do tend to cover all potential situations quite well.

Once you have become adept at this though, you may want to introduce upside-down card readings as well to give even more scope, 156 in total.

The only problem is the system that you use for reading reversed cards.

some people take the meaning as being the opposite of the upright readings, so for example, while 'ace of cups' may mean a new beginning in love or emotional matters, a reversed one would mean no new beginings at this time.

however, the problem with reading reversed cards like this is that it can lead to an overly negative reading, however some people do prefer this method, Sylvia Abraham for example.

Others take a reversed card to mean the same thing as an upright one but to a lessor extent.

Others like Arthur Waite's key to the tarot, attributes completely separate meanings to reversed cards, in order to provide more scope.

I suppose its just a case of whatever you think works for you.

Crowley suggested a method that doesnt use reversed cards at all but uses a 'justification' system so that adjacent cards can alte rthe meaning of the one next to it.

Saying all this, I know a few very experienced tarot readers who do not use reversed cards at all and others who do.
I generally do not use reversed cards at present as I have not decided on an interpretation sytem for them as yet, hense the reason for my post!

Regards,
Douglas

erm... yes.... what a wonderful rendition Peacefulwarrior.... I almost wants me to become a christian (not!)

do all christians have to word things in such a long winded convoluted way?
Nothing personal peacefulwarrior.. its just that your religious post there had all the halmarks of bore-inducing christian speal about it!

I fell asleap after the first line!


Douglas

well, the tarot can predict the future in a certain sense, in that the tarot (like any oracle) is a tool for accesing the unconcious. your unconcious intuition is smarter than you and has insight into past and present but has insight into developing situations..
all future events stem from present circumstances right?
your intuition/unconcious mind has a better handle on this than you do..so of course the future is not carved in stone, but at least you can use an oracle to help you see the way things are *likely* to shape up depending on the current situation.. armed with this, you can then take steps to avoid potential problems or at least prepare for them.

I agree though that the tarot is at its most useful in helping to illuminate the present.

Douglas

Personally, I think that the concept of worshiping higher being is wrong.

You should love and respct them, but this is quite different from the mainstream religious idea of bowing and scraping before them for forgiveness.

Let me ask you this... have you ever heard of cases where people have encountered higher beings such as spirit guides, angels etc and these beings asked to be worshiped? no, all they ask fo is love and respect, which is qute right... they do not want to be grovelled to.

This is one of the things we have learned from all the exploration of the astral world.... that we are responsible for our own destinies... higher beings are there to guide us and love us but its down to us.

I would hope that we are now beginning to move away from the concept of standardised, state religion and moving onto the path of individual spiritual development which its all about...
Douglas

An interesting read,
As most who have read my posts on 'prophecy and Divination' will know, I'm not much for these kind of things... we had so many on the run up to year 2000 which came to nothing.

I don't really buy into all these sudden 'transformation prophecies'
I think that humanity will rise to higher levels but that this process will be a slooooooow process that may take thousands or even millions of years (if we survive until then of course)
I dont really buy all these stories about cosmic rays transforming humanity on certain dates and so on.
I think this is just wishful thinking.
A slow steady progression over a very long period is far more likely if a little less exciting..... so I don't blame those who would wish for somthing a little more radical. However, I just don't think the world works like that,, Sorry!!!

Regards,
Douglas

Hi,
I use tarot a lot as it is an excellent oracle and helps me identify many problem areas of my life that I perhaps wouldnt have realised were there.
For those that say they dont use it because they dont want to know the future.....
The tarot doesnt really work like that.. it doesnt say 'you will die in 6 months' etc

The tarot is an oracle... that is, it gives you insights into your present situation and areas where you should focus attention.. it also gives you insights into *developing* situations ... the future if you like.
However, this allows you to tackle problems before or as they arise... very useful... regular use of the tarot is also very good for developing the intuition.

Ignore those who say it is evil etc... I had this from a few people... this is mainly due to christian propaganda which is more ingrained than you may realise.... the same type of propaganda that equates 'occultism' with 'satanism' even although they completely separate - a true occultist doesnt even believe in satan!

About doing readings for yourself. Well, as I said, I would recomend this for developing intuition and for listening to advice/guidance from your unconcious which is what the tarot is all about.
It IS possible to read objectively but it takes more effort, which is a good thing!
If you don't use them yourself as a meditative tool, then you are not really getting the full benefit from them IMO

BTW what decks do you use?
I think a big problem is that there are so many people bringing out decks today who don't have a clue about achetypal sybols etc.
I would recomend Crowley's Thoth Tarot (although some people complain that its a bit too archetypal!)
or the good old Rider-Waite
both these decks were designed by people who understood unconcious archetypal symbols which are essential in order for you to get anything out of them.. when you see some of the decks on the market today... The Vampire tarot for example... Come on!
Arthur waite and Aleister Crowely spent years studying archetypes and subconcious symbology... i would trust them to bring out a good deck but most of the newer ones I would generally bypass!

Regards,
Douglas

An interesting read,
As most who have read my posts on 'prophecy and Divination' will know, I'm not much for these kind of things... we had so many on the run up to year 2000 which came to nothing.

I don't really buy into all these sudden 'transformation prophecies'
I think that humanity will rise to higher levels but that this process will be a slooooooow process that may take thousands or even millions of years (if we survive until then of course)
I dont really buy all these stories about cosmic rays transforming humanity on certain dates and so on.
I think this is just wishful thinking.
A slow steady progression over a very long period is far more likely if a little less exciting..... so I don't blame those who would wish for somthing a little more radical. However, I just don't think the world works like that,, Sorry!!!

Regards,
Douglas

An interesting read,
As most who have read my posts on 'prophecy and Divination' will know, I'm not much for these kind of things... we had so many on the run up to year 2000 which came to nothing.

I don't really buy into all these sudden 'transformation prophecies'
I think that humanity will rise to higher levels but that this process will be a slooooooow process that may take thousands or even millions of years (if we survive until then of course)
I dont really buy all these stories about cosmic rays transforming humanity on certain dates and so on.
I think this is just wishful thinking.
A slow steady progression over a very long period is far more likely if a little less exciting..... so I don't blame those who would wish for somthing a little more radical. However, I just don't think the world works like that,, Sorry!!!

Regards,
Douglas

An interesting read,
As most who have read my posts on 'prophecy and Divination' will know, I'm not much for these kind of things... we had so many on the run up to year 2000 which came to nothing.

I don't really buy into all these sudden 'transformation prophecies'
I think that humanity will rise to higher levels but that this process will be a slooooooow process that may take thousands or even millions of years (if we survive until then of course)
I dont really buy all these stories about cosmic rays transforming humanity on certain dates and so on.
I think this is just wishful thinking.
A slow steady progression over a very long period is far more likely if a little less exciting..... so I don't blame those who would wish for somthing a little more radical. However, I just don't think the world works like that,, Sorry!!!

Regards,
Douglas