Introduction

by Brian Mercer

It can be easy when going about mundane, everyday tasks—working, eating lunch, driving to the store—to be lulled into thinking that the world we can see and touch is the only thing there is. On this planet of exponentially evolving science and technology, the notion of having a soul, of life after death, seems almost anachronistic. Healthy skepticism is a good thing; essential. Yet occasionally something very personal happens to make us question. Is there more to my existence than I can readily observe? What happens to people when their bodies are used up? Is there a greater purpose for my being here?

We can have complete faith in our belief system, whether that is science or atheism or some form of religion or spirituality, yet in the end they are only beliefs. What do we really know?· In the absence of the known, we are left with its poor cousins, assumption and conjecture. We can say what we don’t know, perhaps, but for want of tangible answers we are only left to ponder.

Even when we read about competent, respected people having out-of-body or near-death experiences, it can still seem a little implausible. If we accept these accounts, in the final analysis, it is still just a belief. With something like this, you can’t really know until you’ve experienced it yourself, and that’s what this book is all about.

This is the moment to lay beliefs aside and to do, to find out for yourself who you truly are and what this reality is all about. Not just reading about it, not just hearing people talk about it, but knowing it and doing it. The survival of the soul: Are we more than these fragile, fleshy shells?

The exercises and techniques in this book work. I’ve always been interested in astral travel and since high school have tried dozens of methods for fueling an out-of-body experience. At first I experimented with hypnosis recordings, but received little more than pleasant relaxation sessions for my efforts. A powerful dream one summer in college led me to explore lucid dream induced OBEs, but I was discouraged by this method’s hit-and-miss results and how often dream elements imposed themselves on the experience. Since then I have explored dozens of books and recordings promising an out-of-body experience, yet I’d only advanced a few steps toward a true understanding of larger realities.

After all this, I achieved noticeable results the first time I tried the techniques in Robert Bruce’s book about out-of-body experiences, Astral Dynamics, from which this program germinated. The aspect I loved most about the program was that, from the beginning, I received daily validation that there is something to astral travel. I learned very quickly that one does not need to have a full-blown out-of-body experience to develop a profound understanding that we are spiritual beings inhabiting physical bodies.

When I finished Astral Dynamics I immediately organized a comprehensive, progressive program that I could more easily learn and implement. I emailed what I’d done to Robert Bruce and, with suggestions from him and his friends, I created an electronic version of the program, an amalgamation of a day planner, journal and Astral Dynamics reference manual. Robert posted the program on his web site, which allowed me to receive even more feedback. Before long, Robert and I recognized that a guidebook was evolving, something that might help many other people experience the out-of-body state. This book is the result.

Mastering Astral Projection is the book I wish I had had when my interest in out-of-body exploration started all those years ago. The amazing journey that awaits you is something you must experience to understand. I promise, if you follow the blueprint laid out in these pages, you will know a great deal more about yourself than when you started. But like any great journey, it all begins with that first step.ess. The basic trance state occurs when your physical body goes to sleep while your mind remains awake and lucid. There are varying degrees of sleep, with corresponding levels of trance. Deep physical relaxation and the ability to hold your mind awake and clear are prerequisites for entering trance states.

Energy Body Loosening: There are ways to stimulate your energy body that prepare it for projection. Energy body loosening is one of the final steps in preparation for employing OBE exit techniques.

By the end of the first six weeks of this program you will be reasonably comfortable with these fundamental skills. Along the way you will no doubt come to understand a great deal more about your nature as a spirit inhabiting a physical body. Do not think of Part 1 as being just a set of tasks required for having an OBE. Learning these core skills is a journey in itself that opens doors to just about everything metaphysical and spiritual.