19990309 OOBEs
This session was held on March 9, 1999.
Michael: We are here. Hello to you U-24-T.
U-24-T: Hi Michael. Ott wanted to first get a reading on my casting.
Michael:
It is correct that you are 4th Cast, 4th Cadence of your Artisans within your Entity. One moment...
You may continue, though Otterly suggests sharing the Priest's Casting as well, which is First Cast of the Fourth Cadence in her Entity.
U-24-T: Every question for this session will be on Out of Body Experiences (OOBE) except for one. Here is hte question not dealing with OOBEs to start. How many lifetimes has my fragment spent with Nicki in this cycle and for all cycles together?
Michael:
The totals for the previous Cycles will take a moment but in this cycle you have shared approximately 87 lifetimes, depending on the parallels. You originally "met" this fragment (which is merely a statement of convenience since this, indeed, is not the "same fragment" as it would be understood) in your own 3rd Cycle; this was her 2nd. You have shared 4 Cycles since, not including this Cycle.
Since these lifetimes and methods of counting lives are, in some of those cycles, quite different, we will only be able to share in a way that simply makes sense to you as U-24-T. This would mean you have spent, including these lives within this Cycle, approximately 87 + 11 + 214 + 717 +267: these numbers reflect as accurately as we can gauge each Cycle, progressively backward through the shared Cycles. Do you understand?
U-24-T:
Not completely... The questions in my mind would be much better held to a future session so we could continue to the topic of OOBEs.
Facilitating communication by building a basisof common understanding is good work. In this respect is there any conscious experience in my lifetime that you would classify as being out-of-body (OOB). If so, can you point to one of these experiences in particular?
Michael:
We have seen your experiences bordering on OOBE, but not in our techncial definition of it. We have seen your experiences that might be registered more accurately, by our own definitions, as Lucid Astral Projections. In this case, you have had several. As we have mentioned in our sharing with your group: it is simply rare.
Continue.
U-24-T: The majority of my current knowledge about OOBEs has come from reading. Putting this knowledge into perspective will help me. How would you classify the majority written about OOBEs by people such as Robert Monroe, Dr. Waldo Vieira, Robert Bruce, etc.? Are they indeed OOBEs?
Michael: Much of what has been written is in the same vein as your own experiences. This is where confusion comes in. When an "authority" has deemed a certain experience with a certain term, and another individual resonates with the experience, it only stands to reason that these terms then become shared. We are in no way disputing the fragments in question and their work, we merely state as to what we would consider their experiences classified. And in these cases, they span mostly within the LUCID ASTRAL PROJECTION levels. That is not to say that these fragments have not had OOBEs, in fact two of these fragments have had a few, which added considerably to their own meshing of ideas without the differentiation. Do you understand?
U-24-T: Essentially you're saying part of the process of understanding OOBEs is in the differentiation from Lucid Astral Projection. This work is still in progress by all of humanity?
Michael:
That would be a rather accurate statement, yes. And to be specific, we are speaking of the differentiation of LUCID levels of ASTRAL or OOBE. There are also non-lucid levels of both.
Continue.
U-24-T: You have mentioned that the Etheric body is the vehicle through which OOBEs occur. How is this possible? Does the Etheric body separate from the physical or is it a "copy" of the Ehteric body used as a focus for consciousness during the OOBE?
Michael:
The Etheric is a template for the biological vehicle as well as the consciousness sustaining the Personality. Personality can fragment in many different ways, with or without the body. What occurs is not a "separation," but rather, an EXTENSION of the Etheric. This is where the idea of the "cord" comes from. It is also the basis of the myths of the "breaking of the cord" equaling death. This stems from the inherent knowledge in the fact that this very same template is used to sustain the body. Recognition of this while out of the body can be frightening, even if the reasons are unconscious or misunderstood.
We realize that many Astral Projections are also linked to this "cord" image, but this is a different energy altogether.
Continue.
U-24-T: "Vibrations" are often reported prior to an OOBE. What are these vibrations and how do they facilitate OOBEs if at all? How do these vibrations differ from waking vibrations and Lucid Astral Projection vibrations?
Michael:
We would say that these are all the same fields of energy being felt, in that they are simply the refocusing of the consciousness to different levels of reality. This perceived "vibration" precedes the OOBE, in most cases, when consciously aware. We have explained to you before, but will share again, that this "vibration" is happening at all times whether consciously realized or not, and the refocusing of the consciousness simply tunes into this "vibrating" or fluctuating level of existence. As far as how the "vibrations" may facilitate OOBEs, they are not a facilitator but rather a byproduct of the focus.
Continue.
U-24-T: Often catalepsy is reported prior to an OOBE. How does catalepsy facilitate OOBEs? What is the underlying process when using catalepsy as an OOBE launching pad?
[Note from Archivist: this "catalepsy" is more commonly referred to as "sleep paralysis."]
Michael:
This state is not as common before an OOBE as it is after. Again, these are "sign posts" so to speak that many have decided to use as a reference for certain states of experience, but are not facilitators; again, this is a byproduct. What is occuring in these instances is the same state that occurs even if only dreaming; which is that the motor controls of the body are "disabled" to allow the body freedom from the thought patterns that would normally create movement. The difference is that a fragment is then conscious when this catalepsy occurs. Though it is experienced before projection, either Astrally or OOB, in some cases, it is not a "launch," just an awareness of certain conditions that are natural to the event.
Continue.
U-24-T: Achieving separation and maintaining separation while near the physical body is often reported to be difficult in OOBEs. What is the underlying cause of this?
Michael:
The whole concept of "separating" is one of the primary angles of perception that is limiting. Though we, ourselves, consider and call this state "out of body," we are merely referring to the focus of consciousness, not the separation of soul from body, as many assume. In the same way you can focus and be conscious of your left hand, instead of your right, or how one emotion can be felt and then another... this is more similar to OOBE than anything involving separation.
The image of a cursor on a screen of light, not unlike your own computer, is another accurate analogy to what is occurring in OOBEs. You are simply moving consciousness WITHIN the same context, to other portions of its field. Remote Viewing is another example and is the next most popular version of OOBE other than the NDE.
Continue.
U-24-T:
Yes. I am starting to realize the shift in paradigms here.
I understand this concept of shifting conscious focus... So... All my questions beforehand did not include this paradigm. Please interpret them from this false understanding. There is the hypothesis that the degree of externalization directly affects the clarity of the OOBE perceived by consciousness. Is there indeed such a correlation and in what manner?
Michael:
We do not wish to convey that your perceptions were false, they are yours, that is all, or they are perceptions assimilated from sources that were trusted, and rightly so. It is an evolving and difficult terrain of human understanding. It is a step. Only recently have you all agreed the Earth was round.
Addressing your question: Please define "degree of externalization"...
U-24-T:
Agreed.
From the perspective of separation one can be either full in or full out of the body. From the other perspective of conscious focus it would be consciousness' ability to fully perceive the experience with all senses. Shall I expound more?
Michael. No. We understand you are asking if the EXTERNALIZAITION of focus of consciousness is directly proportional to the experience of OOBE. Is this correct?
U-24-T: Yes...
Michael. In that case, yes.
U-24-T: But Essence is not necessarily just focused on a single body at any moment. This is a perspective held by Personality.
Michael:
Yes, a defining ingredient for an OOBE is that Personality is involved, not just the Essence perspective, since the Essence is not limited in any way already.
Continue.
U-24-T: Okay... This is good work and raising many more questions that are different than I originally had.
Michael: This is a matter of your gathering information from sources new to you, and more intimate. Your original questions are based on, as you said, paradigms not fully elaborated upon.
U-24-T:
Yes.
Why does sleeping 4-6 hours, staying awake for 1/2 to 1 hour before going back to sleep, facilitate OOBEs?
Michael:
Though we have never said this, there is some truth involved. This is due to most individual dream or REM patterns. In blocks of approximately 4 hours, individuals will complete a dream cycle. By this we are referring to the body's assimilation of the day, and what we shared with you as the Symbolic Level, or the Instinctive Level. Regardless of where the consicousness "ends up" during a night's or day's rest, the body will still do this assimilation. If it is interrupted or incomplete, or if a "new" cycle has begun and is disrupted, anxiety, fatigue and stress result in the body. This theory you have expressed would support the acknowledgement of that completion of assimilation for the "body's sake," allowing consciousness to move on to other territories of dreaming.
Continue.
U-24-T: Can one shift their focus into the astral from an OOBE? In other words is one in an OOBE strictly limited to realms of physical experience?
Michael:
The Physical Plane context is a defining factor. There is no need for an Etheric vehicle for the Astral.
Continue.
U-24-T: What are other factors that facilitate OOBEs, which have not been openly discussed and hypothesized by today's OOBE practitioners?
Michael:
The theories behind Remote Viewing are the most useful in terms of facilitation that you have available today. If you seek to consciously create "doorways" from the body while conscious, the first steps would be in creating this experience while physically awake. By this we mean practicing projection of consciouness to certain locale, or practicing experiencing a complete moment. The latter example would be something like being in any situation actually and then EXPANDING outward "into" your surroundings. This has been your most effective tool to date, U-24-T, that has enabled you to experience even your Lucid Astral Projections, we might add. As you learn to expand into your surroundings, it is not necessary to try to "figure out" what a planet or animal or piece of furniture might "feel"; this loses the effect. What facilitates this exercise is in the sensation of just BEING; not just a PART of the environment, but BEING it. This is the combination of "first steps" we feel facilitates OOBEs. We will organize this into something more useful for you as we progress through the exchanges. You will see this as the online chats evolve.
Continue.
U-24-T: Is this "being" started by using the imagination or by just trying to completely open up to what is there?
Michael: Imagination is the highest vibration or conscious level of connection to the Universe each individual sentient has. It is through this highly misunderstood tool that one can facilitate this state of BEING. Does this answer your question?
U-24-T: Yes... So this is very similar to my experience while walking outside today? Interesting...
Michael: We do not have access to that information yet. Each experience is "personally" stored internally within the Instinctive Center for review. Upon review and assimilation, you may then feed this to your Entitiy's bank of shared experiences. Until that time, it would depend on what was available in terms of your psychic link to Otterly. We will share more on this at a later time.
Continue.
U-24-T: You mentioned that Peresonality and Essence are synchronized together during the OOBE. Could you please give further details on this information?
Michael:
When the consciousness is focused "outside" the body, it means nothing to you as Personality; this type of focus occurs all the time. When the consciousness is focused "outside" the body while Personality is intact, it gives the experience "meaning" to the body and life.
The reason for Essence's participation in this is simply that Essence is the only one, so to speak, who can effectively sustain the Etheric while extending it from the physical body reference. It is the vitality behind the template with which the Personality is using for exploration.
So, to go through the combinations: consciousness without the Etheric is a constant in many ways; the Etheric without consciousness is what might be termed a ghost; and Essence without the Etheric or Personality would simply be in a natural state of perception, as it always has this capability. We shared the above as a way for you to understand why the specific ingredients we offered are indeed what would be a technical OOBE. Any other combination or lack thereof changes what it is. The sustaining of the Etheric Body while in OOBE could be likened to an experience of deep-sea, or scuba, diving. Another factor, we might add, that has contributed to your own history of understanding.
Continue.
U-24-T: Essentially my desire to explore OOBEs is part of the work I am doing in an effort to eliminate the apparent gap between personality and essence. Is this a correct statement?
Michael: Yes, we have already said this is part of your True Study. The awareness of the inherent fusion of Essence and Personality for OOBEs will also parallel your growing understanding of shared reality and the Body/Personality/Essence connection. By exploring the territory of OOBEs you are by default grasping larger perspectives about people and their connections to each other, as well as connections within themselves. It is simply that this route of exploration for your Task is "more fun and creative" for the Artisan.
Continue.
U-24-T:
Yes...
What are the other ways to reduce this perceived gap of Perception?
Michael:
That is your Task, and we are not prone to interfering with our students' discoveries. This will be a question you will answer through your own explorations and one we cannot answer for you in these terms.
And with that, we feel a good point to discontinue would be now.
U-24-T: Yes... It rings true from the essence to me.
Michael: Your enthusiam and commitment to the tasks and study at hand are Good Work. We wish to clarify that we do not imply this as a compliment, as we are incapable of differentiating any more on those levels, at least in any meaningful way, but our statement is said as a reference for what is in compliance with your own "plans." You are on the path you sought.
U-24-T: Thanks Michael. Much work still to be done. Thank you again.