Anywhere I go, I am surrounded by some type of noise. Always. So my question is; can you experience an OBE from meditation if there is noise? I find it extremely distracting sometimes and I was wondering if anyone was able to do such.
If the mind is easily distracted, it will find something to be distracted by. If it is always noisy, you could try ear plugs. I don't like them because it build up pressure in my ear canals and this becomes a greater distraction than the original noise.
Instead of relaxing with having an OOBE as your goal, relax with no goal. You'll be surprised at what we can tune out when we change our intentions. You might just fall asleep only to wake up in some place and have no recollection of how you got there.
Yes IAB is spot on here. I use earplugs and my Mindfold mask quite a bit when I do a Phase Session.
I hate interruptions. :-(
But you will find you can use those sounds as a focus targets.
Xanth has stated here many times that he meditates on his ride to work and home while on the train.
Just learn to shut those sounds out or get yourself some cheap earplugs and a mask if needed.
I have the mask because I found that my eyes wanted to open everytime I was bordering on the the shift. The mask makes it completely dark and therefore I KNOW that any light is coming from the NPR.
It is imperative to remove any Doubts in this practice.
You can meditate on the noises - I can't remember who said this, but someone else was asking about noise & oobe, & someone said it's not the noise that's the problem, it's the thoughts about the noise. So like how you would let your mind clear in silence, you can listen to the noises around you & let your mind stop thinking about the noises, stop labelling the noises as this that or the other & be quiet inside. I've started practising this while relaxing in the bath (because the pipes in my bathroom are really noisy all the time!) though I haven't tried to oobe by meditating this way, but I think it could work?? :-D
Sudden loud noises are a big distraction. If you've no control on this then detune an FM radio or find a pink noise source and play it loud enough to drown out the other noises.
I've done this for years.