Clarification of Contradictions?

[TheGuardian]

Hello everybody! I have been reading up a lot about Astral Projection and Lucid Dreaming recently and one of the things that confuses me is that the many different sources I've come across say different things and I would like your opinions on the matters.

1. Clarity/Difference between Lucid Dreams.
Some sources say that AP is the same thing as lucid dreaming, others say that it is more realistic, others say that one is LDs are in the creativity of the mind while AP takes place in some spiritual dimensions. Which is it?

2. Demons/Spirits/"Negs"
I don't quite know what a 'Neg' is other than it makes me think of the word 'negative.' From my understanding, it is an astral entity that 'hitchhikes' on you as you travel between dimensions. I have also read about succubi and incubi and how they drain ones spirit.There are also some frightening reports of having your soul damaged somehow and waking up to other entities in a room. I would find that pretty creepy. Other sources say that demons/spirits are nothing but manifestations of fears and if one can overcome the fears they can defeat the demons without any harm. So... my main question is are these sorts of things dangerous?

3. "Reality" of AP/OBEs
Alright, I know that the definition of what is 'real' is very subjective and that this sort of experience can redefine one's viewpoints on the matter, but I have been coming across different accounts. Some say that while in an OBE, your astral body is in the physical world exploring it. Others say that it is in a subconscious recollection of one's surroundings. That is it is purely something the mind creates and, for example, you couldn't use the ability to see what's hidden behind a locked door that you've always wondered what's on the other side because it wouldn't be what's in the corporeal reality but actually a mental recreation of what you know. Some sources also say that AP is completely within the mind but others say there is an astral plane that exists beyond the fabrics of space/time. Also I heard some mention of a RTX (a non-physical clone of the physical reality) which is where people can OBE and see things as close to waking life as possible. Could someone help clarify these issues?

4. Astral Entities.
This is different from question two in the fact that I don't mean negative spirits but I mean interacting with souls (human or other) on the astral plane. I read that there you can somehow interact with people on the physical world while OBEing in some scale or another, such as entering their body when they are sleeping and sharing dreams/thoughts. Provided this is true, what can you do by entering their body when they are awake? Like a friend of mine lives in an alternate timezone who I'd like to somehow see with projecting, but the times I'd be asleep she would be well awake. Another thing that I've heard about is the astral plane containing gods/godesses/spirits. Personally, I believe that all religions have some element of truth to them, so all beliefs are manifested somewhere. This is my personal view of what the astral plane is... The place where all these thoughts are stored. However, as I said, that's my personal view. I am kind of hoping that this has some element of truth, as I've created my own pantheon of gods that only my best friend and I believe in. I would love to meet all of them in some form, so if somehow our ideas of their personalities manifested into the plane, it would really motivate me. I mean... what is real and what is fiction? Now... onto the next question...

5. The Plane
Some sources say that the astral plane is an incredibly spiritual realm (as mentioned above) where it has a definite layout and you can 'explore' it. Others say that it has different islands, pieces, layers, ect. I read some forum thread on here saying that fictional places do not exist on the astral plane (such as Narnia, for example) but another thread said that they would exist, but only if somebody has recently thought about it, and even there it would be unstable. This helps with my theory about this being a creation of the collective mind. I also heard something along the lines of dreams are nightly visits to the plane and the dream locales are a temporary bubble created and then destroyed afterwards. But, with other things I read, if that is the case, how come Lucid Dreams and Astral Projection are different experiences?

Ok, sorry for so many questions, but I have a creative, inquisitive mind so I want to know as much as possible about something I want to learn about. I just want to hear your opinions, but perhaps the Astral Experience is something that is different for everyone and there really is no definite answer to these questions, and the reason the sources vary is because every person has a different expectation and as such they encounter different results. Thanks in advance!

[Xanth]

Hello everybody! I have been reading up a lot about Astral Projection and Lucid Dreaming recently and one of the things that confuses me is that the many different sources I've come across say different things and I would like your opinions on the matters.

Honestly?  Just stop reading people's opinions and experience stuff.  That's the only way YOU will form YOUR OWN opinions.

Nobody can really answer those questions you posed for you.  Sure, people will try, but it will be meaningless answers for you.

[TheGuardian]

I want to know some of these things before I invest the time and effort into learning it. I can barely Lucid Dream, and that's only because it happened naturally to me. It would take a lot of devotion to get good enough at AP to actually do something worthwhile. I know that the answers vary, but could at least some of these topics be explained in further detail? Like I really don't want to get my soul destroyed by some crazy evil spirit. I was hoping this forum could help me understand my doubts/concerns as a lot of the people here have successfully had  at least one OBE/AP which is something I've been trying to do since like 2007 to no avail. True, I gave up for a while because I thought it was impossible but now that I'm an adult I'm starting to question my own beliefs. I've come to the conclusion NOTHING is impossible really if somebody puts enough effort. Some of these questions are generic to AP and not all of them I can answer for myself, unless I spend months practicing. I would hate to spend months trying to accomplish it just to find out that I can't even do anything practical with it. I don't mean to be demanding asking these questions, I was just looking for some experts to assist me with my journey.

[LightBeam]

I am sorry for the sarcasm, but you can't hide in your physical body from "evil spirits" forever. Some day you won't be able to return to it and then what? I have at least two one's per week and have been having then for the past 10 years. My only encounter with something negative was during my 15th perhaps, when I recognized my own fear manifested. I stood up to it, faced it and cast it away. Since then I have only had one's from which I learned priceless knowledge and spiritual wisdom. Isn't that good enough reason for you to invest some time and learn?
I haven't met an evil spirit yet, and as I am sure that there maybe some with negative intentions, just like people are. They may carry temporary their negative human characteristics after they pass, but what makes you think that they possess any more strength than you, me or anyone else? The spirit can never be destroys, not it can be dragged into some dark place against its will by another entity. The worst thing that could happen is to experience some negative events because your fears will allow it to happen. And remember; love and positive thinking overrides anything that it is constructed of the opposite in the lower realms. Most likely all these mixed energies reside in a lower frequency layers, just like ours, because the spirits have designed them to serve as a learning school where they can experience and understand love and what we perceive to be the opposite, which we call it evil. But at the end the so called evil is just a tool for learning. I say take challenges if you wish and test your bravery. 

[Astralzombie]

I understand your concerns and I will do my best to answer them but Xanth made an excellent point that you need to understand. I'm not very articulate and I will probably confuse you even more but even if I was, there's no way to really understand this until you experience for yourself.

Quit worrying about this being a waste of your time first of all. Just give a go every night before you go to sleep. If you fall asleep, no harm, no foul. What's probably gonna happen though, is your gonna have a lucid dream and then project when you least expect it.

Everything I say is only my opinion though it is 100% fact to me. You should not believe anything I say to be true, just keep an open mind.

1. Dreams, Lucid Dreams, Astral Projection, and  OOBE are the same experiences with varying degrees of awareness. They are all different states of consciousness that we experience in a Non Physical Reality (NPR). Some people get offended when we call Astral Projection and Dreams the same because they believe that it cheapens the beauty of AP. That's because they cheapen the beauty of a dream if you ask me. I don't usually use AP and prefer OOBE personally because AP has a lot of dogma and religious undertones. None of the old world knowledge is necessary to have profound and meaningful NPR experiences. Hence I like to use NPR instead of astral or astral planes. If you decide that you want to have an OOBE and dedicate the time to it, you will find that there is a difference between all the different dream terms, that being your awareness and it makes all the difference. So don't worry about it being a waste of time.

2. Ironically, I was a true believer in all the demon stuff until I started having OOBE. I was told by my Catholic Priest that an OOBE would be the place that I would for sure meet one. Well, he had no idea what he was talking about. He was only regurgitating the same old crap that he was told with no real knowledge. In my "lower" dreams, yeah, they were a problem. I would manifest them out of my own fear. But once I got the hang of maintaining my awareness and control, they were no where to be found. I do believe that others who want to hang on to their belief of demons, still see them when they have all their awareness but this is a choice because they choose to believe they are real. There are other reasons why I no longer believe in them but I will address that in your question about entities.

3. I do not believe that we go anywhere during an OOBE. I can't explain this in a sufficient way but I will try. Physicality, time, and space are all illusions. Have you heard the concept about time that says everything that has happened, is happening, and will happen is all going on at once? There is only the present and the same is true for space. During an OOBE, you can travel from the ends of this universe to the ends of another in a single thought, faster than light even. This would only be possible if there was nowhere to go. If that sounds confusing, I'm sorry. It confuses me and that's the best I can do since it's the best that I can currently understand myself.

4. There are objective entities that exist and you can meet them. They exist whether or not you believe in them. Some are mean and bitter but they're not "evil". They can scare the crap out of you if choose to believe in "evil". But I find that they are tend to not mess with those who see them for what they are. With that said, many of the entities that you see will be your own thought forms. Even though you have your full awareness, you can still manifest them unknowingly. Sometimes I think that we don't have a choice because there are many lessons to be learned and just like this physical reality, you can't always expect people to be bothered with your concerns and needs. They play a vital role in our learning. And don't worry, if you put enough belief in your gods, they will be there. Just understand that you are really their god. These entities will tell you all about good and evil too.

5. As of now, I put no belief in there being different realms and such but that's not a bad way to make sense of things when you try to explain this to some one with no experience. Here's what I think about that. If your a chump and you like to goof around, don't expect to go to some peaceful and tranquil place where everyone is existing in harmony. But your not exactly the devil in the flesh so you will be compatible to "go" some place fun. There you will be with like minded entities. It's not "heaven" but it's certainly not "hell". As you grow and mature, you will become compatible with "higher realms". You can still experience a "hell" even if your good, that just takes intent. But a total jerk can intend to go to a better place all he wants but until he learns to chill, he's stuck.

These are just my beliefs based on my experiences. I will change them if my experiences start to reflect something different.

Good luck with your explorations.

[Lionheart]

 Read and understand these words for they will be the only thing you really need to know right now.

CHANGE YOUR MINDSET, CHANGES YOUR REALITY! 

[roman67]

There is a minor difference in lucid dreaming and astral projection. In both cases, you are aware. In lucid dreaming, you can control your dream by some techniques and in astral projection, you are aware and can fully control what one does.

[TheGuardian]

Thanks guys I understand it better now.