I recall being in a room with people. I could hear what someone was saying to me. I could see him. I could even see others who were around in the room. A strange thing that I noticed was that I could not hear the sound of a clock ticking nearby. Whenever I noticed this I immediately heard it.
I have also had experiences in which I have not heard the sound of the refrigerator in the kitchen, or that I have not seen an object that was just to the left in front of my eyes. Whenever I think of these things, however, my attention shifts, so that I then see or hear them.
While sitting and chanting a mantra in the past I have noticed that at points I have stopped saying it and that I am thinking about something else.
While doing astral projection techniques many people notice that they loose consciousness at a point and fall asleep unaware. Or, they might notice that at points they stop doing the method--their attention shifts to random thoughts.
The problem with all of these shifts or losses of attention is a sub-conscious anomaly. The anomaly creates thoughts and pulls one's attention away from an activity or short-circuits (blacks out) one's consciousness. It is also responsible for the hypnogogic imagery which occurs in the process of sleep, and it is responsible for the dreams which follow into the astral plane.
One key to discovering the anomaly behind dreams, daydreams, random thoughts, and hypnogogic hallucinations is conscious retention through sleep (simply falling asleep without loosing consciousness). This is also a key to discovering that we leave the body and enter the astral plane each night upon sleep.
Another key that will in the discovery of the anomaly help is noticing whenever attention has been lost to things. For example, not hearing something, not seeing something, etc..
QuoteThe problem with all of these shifts or losses of attention is a sub-conscious anomaly.
While I do agree its a problem, I'm not sure I would use the word anomaly to describe it. To me, an anomaly is something this is outside the norm or not to be expected. Whereas the loss of consciousness you just described is actually the norm for 99% of the population. But being the norm doesn't mean it is the ideal state by any stretch of the imagination.
QuoteOne key to discovering the anomaly behind dreams, daydreams, random thoughts, and hypnogogic hallucinations is conscious retention through sleep (simply falling asleep without loosing consciousness). This is also a key to discovering that we leave the body and enter the astral plane each night upon sleep.
I do agree that remaining concsious all of the time will definately verify AP and OBE experiences. But I don't think that remaining conscious will eliminate hypnogagic images, dreams or other experiences generated by the sub-conscious mind. It is possible for one to be fully conscious and still see hypnogagic images or be immersed in a dream. The difference is that one is able to fully experience the image for what it is. One can observe as a bystander and not get caught up in the feelings and thoughts that swirl around chaotically within the sub-conscious.
Ideally, I think the two need to work together. Typically one is dominant/active and the other submissive/inactive. I think the sub-conscious retains important information, but it tends to get distored by other information within itself. In other words its a storage place for many memories, feelings, etc. But it is not the ideal tool with which to 'view' these things. Memories and feelings get mixed up with various experiences and everthing gets twisted. The conscious mind, however, can actively 'select' which memories/experiences to review. It can do this wthin a 'bubble' so to speak. In other words it can enter an image fully aware that it is an image and not allow feelings to get involved and take over, which is what happens when the sub-conscious mind is driving.
Of course, with that said, what I just described is extremely difficult to achieve. Its literally a life style that one must adapt 100% of the time or it will not work. You must strive to be fully conscious at all times. The buddhists have a saying "when you drink tea, drink tea." The yogi's say "be here now."
In other words don't drink tea while thinking of the dishes you need to do afterwards, the project that just fell on your desk, the test you just failed, or whatever else is flying through your thoughts. Simply be aware of where you are and what you are doing and enjoy/experience it for what it is. Anytime the mind wanders (which it will repeatedly), just bring it back when you realize what's happened. The process is deceptively simple but devilishly difficult.
I've noticed that it gets easier the more you practice this and that your awareness during AP increases significantly, as does the length of the experiences. However, its SOOOO easy to start skipping and letting thoughts wonder again and then you end up diving back to where you were before.... :roll:
Has this been your experience as well?
QuoteIn other words don't drink tea while thinking of the dishes you need to do afterward, the project that just fell on your desk, the test you just failed, or whatever else is flying through your thoughts. Simply be aware of where you are and what you are doing and enjoy/experience it for what it is. Anytime the mind wanders (which it will repeatedly), just bring it back when you realize what's happened. The process is deceptively simple but devilishly difficult.
Mindfulness like this is a good thing to practice. I wish I did it more. Another effect of doing this is that I usually enjoy what I'm doing a lot more when my attention is fully focused on it.
It's a powerful thing to be able to focus your attention.
By anomaly I actually mean an entity (an embodiment); there is physically something that is causing the imagery.
I have practiced being more aware and being in the present moment. This is limited because the case with most people is that the embodiment of the subconscious has actually grown stronger in the current era.
Visualization is possible. It is a faculty of the mind. With visualization we can mentally 'see' an image. This method can also be used for traveling to places in the astral.
The anomaly (the unknown subconscious embodiment) can be witnessed through conscious sleep. Then we can feel it within our interior. In the astral we can feel that an actual parasite is manifesting within the body. By doing the meditation one might also become more conscious of the anomaly manifesting within the body in waking experiences. The meditation should also help to temporarily reduce and/or temporarily get rid of hypnogogic hallucinations. To get to the root of things we have to actually see the entity (the cause of the idle nature of one's consciousness, or the foundation upon which we sleep).
The method I mentioned is not for getting rid of the anomaly, but it is for discovering it. The anomaly is also responsible for the inability to remember past lives and the inability to remember dreams that occur at night (astral experiences). Also, it is responsible for the resistance that one experiences when trying to become more aware.
True though; I've applied awareness, but it has limitations. The limitations are due to the magnitude in size of the subconscious embodiment, the limitations of the physical body, and that the anomaly resides in the astral plane. I have managed to be 100% conscious at times, without the anomaly within my astral and physical bodies. This feeling is like being in the causal plane.
Anyone who wishes to discover whether what I'm saying is true or not can try the method, which is called Serene Meditation. It takes days and hours each day, but it's worth the discovery.
Also, some modern esoteric schools and foundations teach the existence of the anomaly and practical methods to discover it.
I'm not trying to get in the way of anyone trying to heighten their awareness, because that method is very useful. Like you say, Novice, it gets easier with practice. It can require a lot though.
What I've posted is just a method of discovery. For the time being it only has one result (seeing what embodies the subconscious). The manifestation of the subconscious can be discovered through awareness; that requires a lot of time and effort; and on the flip side it won't be possible to see the actual embodiment (only to feel the results of it's manifestation in the body).
Serene meditation is just a method for people to actually witness the subconscious; that way if they apply awareness to become more conscious of its bodily manifestation they will know that it is real.