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Update: It worked! I had my first lucid dream in over a year the first night I took Galantamine! I heard the loud "ringing noise" in my ear in the middle of the night, focused on it until it became jet engine loud, and then poof! I rolled out of my body and was in the dream world! I flew around with crazed excitement, shot energy blasts out of my hands like dragon ball z, and climbed up buildings. I sort of slipped back into a dream for a while on accident, and then remembered I was dreaming again. After that, the experienced ended. I'm going to take them again tonight (you're only supposed to take them 3 nights a week). Will update tomorrow if I have another LD.

Congratulations! Were you wide awake when you started hearing the "ringing noise"? If so, subsequently focusing on the sound and then "rolling out" from the waking state would constitute a full blown OBE/AP projection of consciousness from the waking state... which I prefer to differentiate from the Lucid Dream methods. Quickly devolving into and LD is common but still does not change my personal method of dichotomy for these sorts of experiences.

I do not really have a problem with using herbs or pills to nudge someone over the hump. Especially if they are suffering a really long dry spell. A year and a half?...yikes!.... If the pill works on the first try after that long I think it is pretty safe to say it was the pill or at least a placebo effect. Either way... probably worth it. As long as you get back in the groove and stop using the pills shortly thereafter, what's the harm?

I am curious to try Dreamleaf (Ingredients: 5-HTP, Mugwort, Huperzine-A, Alpha GPC, Choline Bitartrate ) but with all that going on I wonder about unknown side effects.

Spiritual growth comes to anyone, anywhere, any time that person is ready. It transcends religion.

I don't think I have ever seen Spiritual Growth *ever* just "come to anyone"... not once.... Can you give some examples to clarify this? The way you describe it almost sounds like the Bible Thumper's "saved by Grace" type thing.

I have only seen it as a result of tremendous amounts of Work on Self.

[dictionary references]

Religion is about finding truth in somebody else's belief (an impossible task, to say the least).
Spirituality is about finding truth in yourself.

I disagree. Religion and Spirituality are two different things but they are not mutually incompatible. In fact, it is very possible for them to compliment each other very nicely in a manner that produces a constantly growing and improving state of Consciousness.

As a teenager I left the religion that I was raised in and I took up an Eastern practice for several decades. Over time I began to notice something. Genuine spiritual growth was mostly unrelated to the set of beliefs associated with any given practice. I also had to admit that, rather unexpectedly, the most progress in general was to be found among those who diligently practiced the ancient Christian method as described in the medieval document, "The Cloud of Unknowing". In the modern Catholic church it is known as Centering Prayer.

Religion is the practice of worship in a community setting. Of course there is a mutually agreed upon set of beliefs... otherwise it would be ridiculous.
Spirituality is more akin to *how* a person practices.

To answer the original question of this thread; the answer is NO, religion does NOT stop the individual from growing Spiritually. On the contrary, as I observed earlier, some of the most astounding and accomplished mystics and saints throughout history were deeply religious. This fact is plainly obvious to the casual observer. If you ask me, people who say otherwise simply aren't paying attention.

Just for clarity I would like to add some dictionary  references;

Religion etymology; 1150-1200;  Middle English  religioun (< Old French  religion) < Latin  religiōn- (stem of religiō) conscientiousness, piety, equivalent to relig (āre) to tie, fasten ( re-  re- + ligāre to bind, tie; cf. ligament ) + -iōn-  -ion; cf. rely

Definitions for religion vary but here is an example;

noun 

1. a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, especially when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs.

2. a specific fundamental set of beliefs and practices generally agreed upon by a number of persons or sects:

Dictionary.com lists no fewer than twelve ! (12) separate usages for "spiritual" but here are the two I think people here are using;

adjective 

1. of, relating to, or consisting of spirit; incorporeal.

2. of or relating to the spirit or soul, as distinguished from the physical nature:
a spiritual approach to life.

I have had many vivid dreams where everything seemed so real. Some of them would leave me questioning as to what reality really is. Also, there are dreams I have reflected on, that seemed to be tests of some kind. If these tests or realities were directed towards me...Why me? And from who or what, and what purpose? My waking mind wants to rationalize everything. I'm curious as to what other fellow projectors opinions are of this topic.

"Why Me?" It depends on what your understanding of "me" is. The answers to your questions come within your grasp when you begin to get a sense of what your present incarnation is in relation to your Eternal Self. One viewpoint would be to say that the Eternal Self is the "who" that is speaking to you in dreams. [There is more nuance to it but at this level it is sufficient].

Most people who get their first exposure to some new age ideas think of their present personality as the culmination of eons of reincarnation cycles. The reality is that it is more like getting a new car. The new owner is not suddenly better... he is not suddenly a better driver.... *How* you drive is more an indicator of the level of attainment achieved over time and eternity. Lifetime to lifetime you can upgrade from a Pinto to a BMW and then back to a third hand Celica, etc. and the car itself is not a meaningful reflection of your ability/level.

These dream tests come in many forms. Some are brilliant and vivid and flow smoothly and easily which might indicate that you have chosen well at certain crossroads and have already successfully completed a lesson and passed with flying colors. Others are dark, turgid, confusing affairs that indicate the dreamer is possibly asking "Why this?..." or "why that?"... regarding certain life situations and the answer might be because you have not even gotten close to handling this type of challenge properly.

The entire purpose is to get Consciousness from point A to point B and dreams are an excellent feedback loop to inform the dreamer when he is straying from the optimum trajectory.

Dreams can become much more as new levels are mastered. But this is getting ahead of the game for most.

I was recently discussing projection of Consciousness with a friend who I know to be a good soul and I consider to be "above average". I mentioned that in order to even begin to make a serious effort in the realm of Consciousness Projection the aspirant would need to have developed the ability to recall at least one dream per night. He shot back, "Well then... that would eliminate over 90% of the world". I think that is about right.

Most people aren't even trying.

I was just wondering because throughout history it's created so much unneeded war

Actually, most of the religion based war was started by one religion. It started in the Arabian desert and spilled out in a sweeping, continuous LAND GRAB. Just because the first victims of the slaughter were Jews and Christians does not make it a Jewish or Christian War. The Crusades were a simple act of self defense in response to the invasion of Spain and France, Sicily and Italy, Greece and Macedonia, Eastern Europe ... etc. etc. etc.

World War I was a political war started by an assassination. WWII was a political war started by very non religious types. The mass murder in the Soviet Union was perpetrated by an atheist named Stalin. The mass murder in Asia was started by an Atheist named Mao. The mass murder in Cambodia was started by an Atheist named Pol Pot. Mass murder in Africa is generally Tribal in nature (Tutsi vs Hutu, Zulu vs everyone else). On and on and on... most murder and mayhem throughout history was political land grab type action -- Genghis Khan, The Roman Empire, Alexander the Great... all little or NOTHING TO DO WITH RELIGION.

The modern brainwashing of society by Atheist Liars on this topic has been frighteningly effective.

Christianity in particular has been one of the most effective systems of producing Spiritual Giants & Mystics of astounding stature and achievement. Start with Jesus, then St.Francis, Aquinas, St. Catherine, Therese, Hildegard von Bingen, Padre Pio... this is just a tiny list that could go on for many pages.

Why do people so readily and willfully ignore the obvious?

Has this happened to anybody else?

When I was a kid we played with the Ouija board a lot and none of us ever had any of the problems that so many warn about.
It was just a fun game to us.

We lived good, decent lives. We were generally nice to each other. We said our prayers every night and went to church every Sunday. We could have been communing with our Guardian Angel for all we knew.

I suspect that people who play the game and subsequently get some negative response are involved in something else that set up the conditions for that outcome.

I really wonder who the most content people are. Those who spend their lives seeking and searching for enlightenment. Those who immerse themselves in the physical. Or those who divide their time between the two.

I think a lot of it is coded into the individual DNA. Some people are naturally content and satisfied while others in very similar or even nearly identical circumstances are restless and driven. Some Seekers are more content than others. Some totally materialistic types are more content than other materialists.

A lot of people, most in fact, operate primarily out of FEAR and are seeking nothing other than to get by on the minimum of effort.

The number of people who are genuinely "searching for enlightenment" are actually very few... maybe as few as one in a million. Almost no one is following a Path of Lifetime Effort toward greater Awareness or improved Consciousness/Enlightenment. As Ashleigh Brilliant said, "I am giving up my search for enlightenment and now I am just going to settle for a nice fantasy". The belief that astral projection leads to or even constitutes any sort of enlightenment is one such fantasy.

At least some meaningful dreams have not yet left me. But not every night.

IMHO, "meaningful dreams" are as welcome and satisfying as a full conscious OBE. As long as I am remembering at least one dream per night I am not too worried about the situation. Sleep deprivation is a problem for most of us in this modern age. I have a fairly reliable method for projection but it requires that I am getting plenty of sleep time. Getting plenty of sleep often takes a back seat to daily physical activities and responsibilities. For me, several nights in a row with at least 9 hours of sleep is needed. Otherwise, the projection sequence simply carries me quickly into a deep sleep.

I also notice that my OBEs start to fizzle out rapidly when I am successfully projecting several days in a row and even just a weekly basis. At one point I adjusted my intent and focus over to Lucid Dreaming because my OBEs were becoming so mundane and uneventful. Getting out into the RTZ is pretty straightforward but getting into the true 'astral' realm and higher requires that I practice my Spiritual Exercises diligently every day and all day... and this can be a pretty tall order.

sometimes i could get to astral from a dream. But now nothing is working, I lie down to do astral, and when I wake up I have completely forgotten when I fell asleep. I really have no idea what's wrong but if anyone could help me I would be really grateful!

What you have described is a solid indication that you will be able to AP on at least a semi-regular basis in the future if you make a good effort.
You have not said how old you are and I have found that different methods work better at different stages in life.
The standard recommendations here are pretty good -- keep a dream journal, meditate, etc.

"Dry spells" are very common and normal. Balance in all things is a good goal, in general. Stay relaxed and focused and work to enhance general "awareness" every day.

I have seen people who say they used to be able to project OBE almost every day for five years and then suddenly they go a couple years and no OBE at all.

??

It is all about "Consciousness" and a daily effort on "awareness" has gotten me through the dry spells over the course of many years.