Cant see images anymore! Lost ability? Please give me your opinions

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ivantam92

Hi! Havent written here in ages. Hope you are all doing well!

I would like your opinion on an issue. The thing is years ago i spent a lot of time trying to AP until finaly achieving it, going through several different experiences in the way.

The thing is on that time of my life when i was in bed with my eyes closed trying to AP, the darkness before my closed eyes quickly changed, showing my at first flashes of light and such and eventually full vivid images and scenarios (all this being conscious and awake, at any time i could open my eyes and this images would dissapear and i was awake). Focusing in all these was for me a road into AP.

The thing is nowadays i can lay in bed for hours and no image appears, not even flashes of light.

Would you say i lost some kind of ability? Or that this event responds to changes in my life style? Or what would be your oppinion? I would like to resume my astral experiences and this kind of makes it way more difficult that on my first attempts.


Thanks in advance for reading my post and i´m looking forward to your views on this!


Lumaza

 Hello and Welcome back!  :-)

i would say you just need a bit of proactive "kickstarting" to get things back in gear again. Do you have a favorite hobby? What kind of sports do you like? Use a imaginary visual to get the ball rolling around. Example: I don't really care for Basketball, yet "shooting hoops" seems to be what works for me. I just visualize going through the action of tossing the ball, that's already in my hands, outwards into the darkness before my closed eyes. Almost every time I do that, a net suddenly appears. A few more minutes in and now someone is returning the ball to me. Pretty soon there are people and all kinds of things happening. If it begins to morph into something new, I go with it. I allow the scenario the freedom to go where it wishes to. All I did, was start with the simple mental motion of shooting the hoops.
Another one that works really good for me is visualizing a spinning top, like a Child's toy one. I got that idea from Leonardo Dicaprio in the movie "Inception". He utilizes a spinning toy top as his "focus target" and I found it good as well. But with me, i start with it as my target and it quickly takes on a life of it's own. The same thing occurs when I use a "dancing flame" as a focus target. When it does, I passively observe it until it stabilizes into a full-blown scenario that I can now enter into.
Be creative. Utilize a motion based target. A Yo-yo, trampoline, hot air balloon, etc. Even a simple "driving simulation" will soon take on a life of it's own. That is, if you let it!  :-)

My Doorway thread starts with these famous quotes. they are words to live by:
"Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere."
                 Albert Einstein

"Imagination is the beginning of creation. You imagine what you desire, you will what you imagine and at last you create what you will."
              George Bernard Shaw

"Everything you can imagine is real."
             Pablo Picasso

"Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things that escape those who dream only at night."
            Edgar Allan Poe
"The day science begins to study non-physical phenomena, it will make more progress in one decade than in all the previous centuries of its existence."  Nicolai Tesla

EscapeVelocity

Adding to Lumaza's good advice, I would say this:

1- I don't think you ever "lose the ability"; once learned it is a skill you carry with you. However, most successful projectors seem to find themselves challenged with finding new methods or techniques; often the method just learned can suddenly fail to produce results; so you are challenged to experiment and find another.

2- It could be a "change in lifestyle" as you say. If you are drinking excessively or doing drugs, this can certainly cause disruption and malfunction. The cleaner you can be, the better; it's just that simple.

3- Personal energy is also a possibility. A clean lifestyle automatically builds that kind of energy. Utilizing some simple energy-building techniques will only help and personally, I have had success with Robert Bruce's NEW, New Energy Way techniques. Just ten minutes of energy work, three or four nights before an attempt, either OBE or Phasing, definitely helps.

And don't forget to have a definite and expressed Intention- either to visit a person, place or thing...or to learn something or to have a specific experience.

The details to this whole process can get a bit complex at times, so there is a lot to consider.

Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.
                                                          -O. Wilde

Sammie

Thanks I'll try and use these too :) In a similar situation but had some progress recently after years of forgetting to utilize what I had

omcasey

There are a few things I have found that can help get the visuals going again.

1. Palming the eyes
2. Deep breathing
3. Shifting/adjusting your focus. Ie: look as though you are looking at something down the street, then shift to looking as though at something right in front of you.
4. Tratak, gazing practices, candle flame gazing
5. Simply asking "what am I seeing?"

Have you ever tried any of these?

What do you DO when you notice the absence of visuals?

Even seeing the black is seeing something. Start here. Once you acknowledge the black you can begin to look deeper into it.

For me, the most immediate and powerful thing to do, is know I AM seeing something as just inwardly ask......"what am I seeing?" It almost always begins to immediately come into view.

Just. fascinating.

______________________


Here is a video I did awhile back on stimulating visuals ( in the event it may help ):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLuJrUkXrpk&t=102s

Casey

PerspectiveShift

This has actually happened to me as well.

I used to meditate everyday sometimes twice a day and it got to a point were after a couple minutes of meditation the colours would come and would start coming on pretty intensely. I think consistency in meditation may help for my case. I have fallen off the consistency train though as I'm going through a big life transition at the moment. I think that may be a factor as well. Sometimes changes in life, eating habits, lifestyle, stress level, can alter things a bit.

I used to get flashes as well like a strobe light flashing in front of my eyes in the darkness. I think these events might be some type of energy opening up or something. So it may or may not be related to having astral events. Some ppl I've read believe that the flashes are your third eye awakening which will help in psy experiences, but I just look at it as a possibility with an open mind and just experiment with it.

Mind you, I still had 2 lucid experiences though even without being able to see these colourful patterns and the flashing stopping. One of them I found myself in a weird hypnogogic state of mind imagining I was trying to do a handstand but kept falling forward or backward trying to get that balance. Every time I tried it, the experience would get a bit more detailed so I kept trying with slight curiosity until I was lucidly in a scenario. It was super cool because I've read about it on here so many times before and that was the first time it actually happened. Really interesting!!
Be the change you want to see in the world.

justin35ll

This thread, and all of the responses have been super helpful. I have to assume that the imagery you and lumaza describe are more of a solid, and "real" image that's displayed behind your closed eyes, as opposed to the grainy, and not so solid images of the imagination.

I've always been curious about what the difference is between the clarity of those images and why we can't always imagine in 3d or color. My imagination's imagery is quite clear, but it is not "real" in the sense that it is steady and solid on its own (where I become the observer of it, or like it is separate from my effort of maintaining the imagination). But I understand the difference because it is obvious when that shift occurs, usually before going OOB.

I think it is a matter of focus and intention, and that sometimes we need to kickstart that process as lumaza said. I also think that as we age, if we are not continually practicing, it's very easy to become overly dominant by our intellect, or the analyzing and judging mind. We experience the hardships and challenges of life that can make it harder to focus our attention or to "let go" of our materialistic issues and worries. Because ultimately, what we're doing is letting all of that go, and getting lost in our imagination until we become fully immersed in it.

Lumaza

Quote from: justin35ll on January 17, 2022, 14:28:06
This thread, and all of the responses have been super helpful. I have to assume that the imagery you and lumaza describe are more of a solid, and "real" image that's displayed behind your closed eyes, as opposed to the grainy, and not so solid images of the imagination.
I think this is where people get caught up. Those "grainy, not so solid images" will get more vivid, when you allow them to. How do you do that? You learn to passively observe them and allow your curiosity to take you deeper into them.

QuoteI've always been curious about what the difference is between the clarity of those images and why we can't always imagine in 3d or color. My imagination's imagery is quite clear, but it is not "real" in the sense that it is steady and solid on its own (where I become the observer of it, or like it is separate from my effort of maintaining the imagination). But I understand the difference because it is obvious when that shift occurs, usually before going OOB.
In my Doorway thread I use things like color, geometric shapes and yes, even doorways because they are things that we encounter in our waking lives everywhere. Everywhere you turn there is color (unless you are color blind or blind period), there are various items of all basic geometric shapes and every Door leads to a new scene on the other side of it. I used all of these so I could "trick" the mind into creating "mental associations" based on them. Do this simple exercise. Close your eyes and just be aware of the darkness there. Now I want you to cycle your thoughts through the colors red, blue, green and purple. Those 4 should do for now. All I want you to do is think of the words. Don't attempt to visualize anything. Watch what happens now. Did the letters all of a sudden accompany the thought? Did a mental associative image appear? If it did, just observe it. Allow it the freedom to consume your focus. Do you see what I mean now?

QuoteI think it is a matter of focus and intention, and that sometimes we need to kickstart that process as lumaza said. I also think that as we age, if we are not continually practicing, it's very easy to become overly dominant by our intellect, or the analyzing and judging mind. We experience the hardships and challenges of life that can make it harder to focus our attention or to "let go" of our materialistic issues and worries. Because ultimately, what we're doing is letting all of that go, and getting lost in our imagination until we become fully immersed in it.
All of that is true. "Letting go" is much easier to say then do. It is "us"/we that get in the way. But that's because all our lives we have been programmed that this physical reality is all there is. Life does that to you. You can experience both and you do in your Dreams. Yet most people aren't even the slightest bit aware of those either.
"The day science begins to study non-physical phenomena, it will make more progress in one decade than in all the previous centuries of its existence."  Nicolai Tesla

Lumaza

 Here is a great portion of a great post by a former member here that helped many people named Frank Kepple. There is a Sticky here on this Forum that has all of the posts that Frank made. This one though, explains how a simple visualization soon leads to so much more.

"The visuals you imagine at first are used mainly as a gateway to Focus 10. At which point the natural Phasing process is kick-started. Here you switch from perceiving visuals generated as part of an imaginary rundown, to perceiving visuals which begin being played to you as part of the Phasing process.

The visuals tend to have a kind of thread which you simply follow. As such they do have the effect of being a kind of gateway to further focus levels. But the key difference is the visuals are actually being played to you, as opposed to you generating them.

I've mentioned before about how followers of the Moen-school Focussed Attention methods are taught to make contact with former loved-ones who are resident in an area they call the Afterlife. They do this by first imagining talking to them about some topic they would normally have done, and in a similar situation to which they would have been while Physical.

Next they are taught to be on the lookout for anything that comes about that is not on their imaginary script. If they perceive something to that effect, they follow along the thread of it and see where it leads.

The visual rundown example I gave in the monster thread follows along similar lines. Where you first choose some kind of metaphysical imagery to suit your tastes. Not something too simple else your mental focus will dissipate and you'll lose all realisation of Self as your body goes to sleep. But not something so complex and detailed you begin to engage in an act of creative visualisation. Which tends to prevent the body from falling asleep.

Doing this you start to get instances where suddenly you think, hang on a minute, I never imagined that! Which tends to have the unfortunate effect of zapping you out of it, at first.


That post came from this thread that Frank had aided in:
http://www.astralpulse.com/forums/welcome_to_astral_consciousness/focusing_inward_and_visualizing-t4192.0.html
"The day science begins to study non-physical phenomena, it will make more progress in one decade than in all the previous centuries of its existence."  Nicolai Tesla

Nameless

Perhaps the idea is to work on something other than visuals for a while. Feeling, knowing, smelling, hearing...
Remember, You came here to this physical earth to experience it in its physical form. NPR will always be there.

Sammie

Upon Lumaza's answer. I recently(within 1 year) before going to sleep just imagined a nice guide. Guiding me through a simple room having an imaginal conversation. At some point the imagination took life of its own and the very handsome guide in a white costume. Showed me a painting on a wall. Suddenly I entered that painting. I was now in front of a cabin. A woman speaking with a british accent came out. Saying "Oh my god Magda, its you". I am no magda in this life, but I can't help thinkin I somehow probably met someone from another experience. The interaction was as natural as real life and I was simply observing. She really seemed to have known me as Magda sometime; somehow. I was surprised and confused after the event. I didn't intend to experience something like a real person having a seemingly real converasation with me. There was no effort made
But it would truly be sad If I once was this "Magda" and didn't know it now

Lumaza

Quote from: Sammie on January 21, 2022, 13:55:45
Showed me a painting on a wall. Suddenly I entered that painting.
Those always lead to awesome, fantastical adventures and experiences. I have written a few posts here on the Pulse, in the past, based on entering a wall paintings. I am pretty sure that was when I was using my former name on the Astral Pulse, that being "Lionheart". I remember one of them led to a kind of 3D Animated/Technicolor, kind of Cartoon world. It was surreal!  8-)

Thanks for sharing!  :-)
"The day science begins to study non-physical phenomena, it will make more progress in one decade than in all the previous centuries of its existence."  Nicolai Tesla

Sammie

Oh thanks for sharing! I might look up those experiences of yours

What!? You're Lionheart :O I thought you were just a newer member who were suddenly developing spiritually very fast over the years. Considering all your interesting posts etc :)

Kodemaster

I find pain can severely interfere with my ability to astral project and OBE.
JenX
Choose empathy. It costs nothing.
Curious about #Welsh? https://www.youtube.com/@JenXOfficialEDM Learn with us!

Lumaza

Quote from: Kodemaster on November 10, 2022, 22:37:44
I find pain can severely interfere with my ability to astral project and OBE.
Many times, I use my Phase soak sessions to escape the pain. I learned years ago how to completely release my focus on my physical body. Robert Bruce's NEW was a great help with that. It taught me how to pin-point my focus away from my area of pain and to hold it there. Nowadays, when I feel discomfort and pain, I focus on my big toe and begin cycling my focus up and down the toes until the pain is nonexistent.
"The day science begins to study non-physical phenomena, it will make more progress in one decade than in all the previous centuries of its existence."  Nicolai Tesla