Science Has Questions That May Never Be Answered And Religion Has Answers That Must Never Be Questioned.
The esoteric opinions on Astral Planes lies in the grey area between science and religion. There have been numerous citings about this interesting region in various religions through out the history. On the other hand there is no scientific evidence that astral projection as an objective phenomenon exists.
However, if closely exmained quite a few great personalities who were actually not religious tend to exhbit the visions of the astral world.
For instance,
'Our Entire biological system, the brains and the earth itself work on the same frequencies.'
'If you want to find the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency and vibration' - Nikola Tesla
Here is my attempt on understanding this interesting region.
The system as in universe as a whole, with its sub-systems there exist perfectly definite planes, each with its own matter of different degrees of density, and that some of these planes can be visited and observed by persons who have qualified themselves for the work, exactly as a foreign country might be visited and observed. The qualified for this discussion would be the enlgihtened or the one who is totally aware. A mind free from all the condemnation.
The names usually given to these 7 planes, taking them in order of materiality, rising from the denser to the finer, are the physical, the astral, and the others (to keep it simple and you away from the terms which wont be a part of this discussion). The matter of each of these planes differs from that of the one below it in the same way as, though to a much greater degree than, vapour differs from solid matter; in fact, the states of matter which we call solid, liquid, and gaseous are merely the three lowest subdivisions of the matter belonging to this one physical plane.
The astral plane has seven subdivisions, each of which has its corresponding degree of materiality and its corresponding condition of matter. Now numbering these from the highest and least material downwards, we find that they naturally fall into three classes, divisions 1, 2 and 3 forming one such class, and 4, 5 and 6 another, while the seventh and lowest of all stands alone. The difference between the matter of one of these classes and the next would be commensurable with that between a solid and a liquid, while the difference between the matter of the subdivisions of a class would rather resemble that between two kinds of solid, such as, say, steel and sand.
staY with me
Life on the sixth division is simply our ordinary life on this earth, minus the physical body and its necessities; while as it ascends through the fifth and fourth divisions it becomes less and less material, and is more and more withdrawn from our lower world and its interests.
Bodhidharma (approx 5th/6th century CE) was a legendary Buddhist monk well known in both Chinese and Japanese buddhist lore. Some of his mythic feats including meditating in a cave, facing a wall for nine years. This led me to believe the possibilities of living on the 6th plane.
The scenery of these lower divisions, then, is that of the earth as we know it: but it is also very much more; for when looked at from this different standpoint, with the assistance of the astral senses, even purely physical objects present a very different appearance. As has already been mentioned, they are seen by one whose eyes are fully opened, not as usual from one point of view, but from all sides at once—an idea in itself sufficiently confusing; and when we add to this that every particle in the interior of a solid body is as fully and clearly visible as those on the outside, it will be comprehended that under such conditions even the most familiar objects may at first be totally unrecognizable.
Looked at on the astral plane, for example, the sides of a glass cube would all appear equal, as they really are, while on the physical plane we see the further side in perspective—that is, it appears smaller than the nearer side, which is, of course, a mere illusion.
Yet a moment's consideration will show that such vision approximates much more closely to true perception than physical sight.
Below is an attempt to visualize astral sight.
The vision not to be considered only as a visual experience but as a conscious. A consciousness which is enabled to look at a problem and arriving at the solution that very instant. In this the process of thinking is absent. Thinking which is based on conditioning, thinking based on condemnation.
To reach such a state the physical body has to go through tremendous amount of strain.
Bodhidharma is also responsible for creating Chinese martial arts. Having arrived at the Shaolin Temple, he was disturbed by the monks poor physical fitness which were preventing them from meditating for long periods. He taught them a system of exercises to strengthen their body which eventually evolved into Shaolin kung-fu.
Such is the experience which J Krishnamurti had during his time in Ojai, California in early 1922 had where he would study and meditate. Below are the citing from LUTYENS, MARY. Krishnamurti, The Years of Awakening.
"It is not easy for modern readers to comprehend the transformation that occuered at Ojai. Like the bewildered Nitya (JK's brother), we who are not able to come to these events through our own experience might maturely try to convey them using traditional vocabulary drawn from Yoga or Buddhism. The 'process' as Nitya called it, occuered in phases spread over many months during 1922 and 1923, What seemed to be a physically painful ordeal was punctuated by visions of great beauty and moments of transparent clarity.
Krishnamurti began meditation steadily and easily. Then a pain developed along the nape of his neck, and over the next few weeks it grew more intense and shifted to different parts of his body. Mainly it was concentrated along the spine, behind the eyes and at the crown of this head.
Nitya watched his brother shudder, writhe in agony and often faint. He heard him in several voices."
Might be Scary although that is not the motive and any attempt to comprehend the visions to the physical plain would still leave us unconscious until we experience their existence.
Even though we do not have any scientific evidence supporting this one thing we know for sure is this is an absolute reality. Not from a metaphysical standpoint but the word in its plain.
Understanding of the brain and its functionality is still not fully mastered as of yet which would be the key to the astral world. The recent success in Direct Brain-to-Brain Communication in Humans with BCI brain-computer interfaces could be the path way.
References:
http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0105225
LUTYENS, MARY. Krishnamurti, The Years of Awakening.
Commentaries on Living, Second Series. 1958 Krishnamurti Foundation America
The Masters and the Path, Leadbeater C W
