Was that an out-of-body trip?
QUESTION: Masters, every now and then I get what seems to be an out-of-body (OBE) experience. When it happens, I can direct myself to roll out of the bed and find myself floating. Most of the time the surroundings are dark. Sometimes when I am able to “see” the surroundings, I seem to be in my living room. It is very dark, like at night. But when I wake up in a short while I find that it’s already afternoon or late morning. Was I in physical time-space during my short journeys or in a dreamscape generated by my mind? ~Y.W., Singapore
ANSWER: There are a number of things happening here. You have had out-of-body travels, but you are only remembering part of the experience because most of them are starting during a dream cycle. What you remember seems to be a short journey, yet the passage of time has been sufficient to enter the late morning or early afternoon.
The darkness is an indication of the fact that these travels are beginning during the nighttime hours. When an OBE begins within sleep, it is more difficult to direct yourself because your unconscious is in control at that time. To experience control over these trips, you need to begin within a meditation, just as you awaken or just as you start to fall asleep.
As to physical time/space, your body always remained in the time/space in which it began. The consciousness which allowed you to see other locations was partially within the physical, permitting your ability to see physical things, but not always in the same time in which you began the journey. This was the reason you became consciously aware again so far in the future.
Part of the time you were just experiencing dreams generated by your imagination, past experiences, and remembrance of things in which you always wished to be involved. The human mind carries on tasks from the day which can incorporate items you have read, programs or movies you have seen, or incidents in which you have taken part.
If you wish to experience OBEs, start with a quiet entry where you ease your awareness out of the constraints of your body into the space above. From there, allow your intention to direct your viewing to an area for observation. Don’t force the process or try to push the speed with which you separate from the physical. Not everyone can project themselves out of their body. But, practice does make perfect.