“At a deeper level, one’s biggest fear is of the light, and not of pain. Your greatest fear is ecstasy, because this ecstasy, which is the same as light, dissolves all darkness. If you are identified with the darkness, you become afraid of disappearing.”
~ Sri Prem Baba
Summary:
The Astral Diaries is a real time series brought to you by The Lucid Academy. This is a series of reflections on Agama Yoga Thailand’s first Yoga Nidra and Lucid Dreaming Workshop with Swami Vivekananda Saraswati. Produced by Agama Yoga Thailand and The Lucid Academy. I offer my daily reflections, insights and expertise.
Notes from Swami Vivekananda Saraswati
People ask, Why would I train to have out-of-body experiences, lucid dreaming and astral projections? Isn’t that the ego? Most yogis would rather elevate their consciousness. Life is short, temptation is vast, and I don’t know that I will have the time to reach those extraordinary things.
If I have paranormal powers will that give me self realization, will it make me happy? If I can impress people in a party by bending a spoon with my mind isn’t that just an inflation of my ego? There is a subconscious danger when it comes to paranormal things. You may be able to do readings, but where is the wisdom?
Where is the spiritually realized person?
Yet, astral projection has a direct spiritual impact. The astral projection is very much related to conscious, death and the dying process. When you astrally project you get phenomena which are very, very similar to what is happening when you die.
The problem with sleep, and with death is that they often happen unconsciously.
“He that dies before dying, dies no more.”
~ Zen Buddhist dictum
Death is not supposed to happen unconsciously. To be able to go in a conscious death is much easier is if you have gone consciously into your sleep many times before. To exist in your astral body, and look down and see your body in bed gives the fundamental awareness that you are not just your physical body. This is the first step of the vedantic and spiritual awareness.
To die before death means to reach astral projection, which means to go outside of your body. Your involuntary dreams are unconscious phenomenon of astral projection. You have to go out of the body consciously and deliberately. If you have done that a hundred times then, when death is coming, you are already out of the body.
Watch the rest of this mini-series here:
I enjoy flying through the air, feeling the wind flowing against my skin, swooping down to skim the surface of lakes and feeling the thrill and freedom that comes with lucid dreaming. Eight years of extensive practice and in-depth research has taken me halfway around the world. I’ve moved from cutting-edge research at UC Berkeley to remote villages in India receiving direct teachings from Yogic masters of lucid dreaming. The journey has been one of self-discovery in which lucid dreaming has played a beautiful and central role. In waking life and the dream world, I’ve found the same truth applies: love conquers all. Come learn to discover the deepest parts of your body, mind and soul through lucid dreaming by visiting Lucid Academy. You can also check out my blog at The Lucid Blog for juicy tips, techniques, and unique perspectives on the amazing world of lucid dreaming.
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- Assist Ed: Julie Garcia
- Ed: Brianna Bemel
Photo attributed to Flickr User: CaptPiper
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