This is honestly one of our most requested posts right now. We’ve got numerous anons in our inbox asking us “what is astral travel, how do you do it, and how is it different than astral projection?”
So first off I’m going to address what the astral is so we’re all on the same page. The astral is, in essence, a variety of different realms/dimensions/spaces that can be accessed and is populated by astral beings. Spirits often live here, various deities and entities, and even human souls who simply exist there or are dead or will exist in the future. (Time is weird in the astral.) It’s basically an Otherworld or perhaps the Otherworld often described in myths and legends. It’s not always safe. Just like you shouldn’t trust every single human you meet here on earth, you shouldn’t trust every single spirit you meet in the astral.
So now on to different ways to access the astral, primarily astral projection and astral travel.
Astral Projection
Personally, I find astral projection a lot harder. It’s essentially a form of self-hypnosis. A quick google search/preliminary research will most likely tell you that astral travel and astral projection are the same thing.
Astral travel and astral projection are not the same thing.
Astral projection typically involves a very deep meditative state. It’s pretty much synonymous with inducing an out of body experience (OBE). Your mind is on the edge of sleep and has to stay there in order to induce the right state for astral projection.
Personally, I find this dangerous. First of all, exploring the astral is not safe. Take a guide with you or make sure that your body/self is personally protected. (Sprinkle some black salt on your forehead, carry a protective charm, make a spell jar that will protect you during astral travel, etc. Doesn’t have to be fancy, just keep yourself protected!) There are potential dangers to astral travel and astral projection.
The biggest concern I have with astral projection is that it can often induce sleep paralysis and other hallucinations that are not necessarily related to the astral realms. People who have experienced sleep paralysis may see shadow people at the edge of their bed, demons attacking them in their sleep, etc. Your body is asleep but your mind is awake. Brains are weird. It can also induce a state of panic because hey, your body isn’t moving but your mind is very awake, sounds like the perfect time to panic and make you believe that you’re being possessed by demons. Which, if you’re already scared of demons or negative/evil entities, your mind will be more likely to create those and some very real spirits like to feed off your fears.
So now that I’ve probably scared most of you out of astral projection, let me talk about the ways that astral projection can be a good and useful way to access the astral.
It’s easy to believe that what you’re experiencing is real. With astral projection, your soul is literally separated from your body, and things are a lot more vivid. When successfully and safely practicing astral projection, there’s a lot less room for doubt over what you’ve experienced because typically it is incredibly sensory. Humans have a tendency to believe what they can see/feel/touch/smell/hear.
It’s also easier to be aware of what you’re doing in the astral. You’re experiencing a very vivid trip to the astral, so it’s easier to know and control what you do. Messages are likely to get through easier. It’s very similar to lucid dreaming in that you’re aware of what’s happening so you can respond appropriately. That’s not to say that you can’t be aware of things during astral travel, it’s just a bit easier with projection.
Unfortunately, it can be very difficult for some to astral project for a variety of reasons. Personally, I have a very difficult time doing astral projection. Your energy might be blocked or your soul may just really wanna stay inside your body. Realizing you have a hard time doing astral projection can be really discouraging if you believe that it’s the only way to get into the astral.
So if you’re discouraged because astral projection seems really hard and unattainable and kinda scary and now you’ll never be able to do the spirit work that you want to, don’t worry. I’m about to talk about astral travel.
Astral Travel
Just like astral projection, there are dangers to astral travel. I don’t want to make this post seem like it’s perfectly safe and harmless to astral travel without concern for your safety. Don’t be afraid, but don’t be stupid.
Have you ever done a guided meditation or visualized what you want? Congrats, you can astral travel! It’s almost difficult for me to describe how you astral travel simply because it’s almost second nature to me now. Unless there’s something blocking or hurting me, I can pretty much access my astral space or explore at any time of the day. (Lol I’ve astral traveled at work before. I don’t recommend that, as astral travel can and does require some concentration.)
When you’re new to astral travel, it might be helpful for you to get into a meditative state. Not a hypnotic state, just a nice and relaxed meditative state. Now visualize somewhere that you like. The ocean, the mountains, a nice field, a city you enjoy. Or, if you have a hard time getting there, picture a door. What does that door look like? Tell the door you want to go to your astral space. Now open that door.
Ward your astral space. Your own personal astral space can be modified and changed within reason. But the big difference between imagination and astral travel is that not everything will respond exactly the way you think or want it to. Your space will grow and change without your attention/care. You can even just practice astral travel by taking care of your astral space.
Do you want to leave your astral space? Get your astral protections ready (please for the love of all that is good in this world WARD YOUR ASTRAL SPACE) and visualize that door again. What does it look like? Does it look different? How do you feel about that? What is your gut telling you about the door and where it leads? Listen to your gut. Ask the door to take you to your astral guide. That’s one way that you can find someone to help you explore the astral safely.
I must put the caveat that not everyone will see things in high definition. In fact, it will mostly be in your mind’s eye, not your physical eyes. That’s part of what tripped me up when I first began exploring the astral. I was expecting to see things with my physical eyes but was ignoring my mind’s eye where things were happening. It is very similar to your imagination and personally, I believe that successful astral travel needs some creativity and imagination. So don’t worry if your astral travel mostly looks like a dark space with a vague feeling of what things are and where they are. Pay attention to other things. What do you hear? What do you sense? What do you just sort of know? What do you smell? What do you taste? Don’t worry if visualization is hard for you. It’s still possible to astral travel. A lot of times it’s very easy to overcomplicate it
So there you have it folks! Astral projection vs astral travel! I hope this helps some of you!
~Mod Petra
Huh. I have been shooting for projection. Imma try just travelling, cause I know for damn sure I can do that.
Church of the Morningstar 