By learning to raise energy and control the flow of power through the chakras, the nature of your dreams, lucid dreams and OOBE's will change. They will become vivid and unforgettable experiences. This, in a way, gives you a second life, full of rich experiences you can enjoy, learn and grow from.

Higher Levels And Their Buffer Zones
The commonly accepted names for the seven known levels of existence, from lowest to highest, are: Physical, Astral, Mental, Buddhic, Atmic, Anupadaka and Adi. These higher planes are similar in structure to the astral dimension but at a much higher level of consciousness and are completely separate from it. In between the different levels are intermediary areas or buffer zones, sometimes called lower sub planes.

A good analogy for the different dimensions and their buffer zones is the Earth's atmosphere: If the air in the Earth's atmosphere was the astral dimension, the stratosphere would be the buffer zone and the vacuum of space would be the mental dimension. You can fly in the Earth's atmosphere in a normal air plane/astral body. A very powerful jet plane is needed to take you into the stratosphere, but you need a space ship/mental body, to travel through space. This explains why a different subtle body is needed to travel into these different levels of existence.

The astral body can enter the buffer zones, or sub planes, of the dimensions above and below the astral dimension, if it contains the correct type of energy. i.e. To exist in the buffer zone between the physical/astral levels (in real time) the astral body must contain etheric energy. To exist in the buffer zone between the astral/mental levels it must contain mental energy.

Higher Level Projection
With enough control over the chakras, the energy for these higher levels can be produced. The production of one particular type of energy will raise the consciousness to that level and energise the corresponding subtle body. This is usually done by consciousness raising meditation and advanced energy work on the chakras. The consciousness can then experience that level of existence. If enough energy is available, and conditions are right, the meditator can project that particular subtle body directly into its natural dimension.

Depending on the skill and natural ability of the operator, if a higher body is energised and projected so, usually, are the lower ones. The astral body contains within it all the other subtle bodies and can, during a projection, project the mental body into the mental dimension and so on. This will sometimes give multiple sets of memories from the one projection. The general rule is, whichever subtle body contains the greatest amount of energy, will have the strongest memories. These dominant memories will be the ones retained by the physical mind upon its return to the waking state.

Projecting consciously into levels higher than the astral dimension takes a high level of skill. You need to be proficient in both consciousness raising and chakra control, but it is achievable. I have, so far, projected into the Astral, Mental, Buddhic and Atmic levels of existence. It is commonly believed that it is only possible for a human to project into the Astral, Mental and Buddhic levels and not possible to project into the higher Adi and Anupadaka.

These dimensions have been named, and are described, so someone must have been there or they would be unknown. If you realise the true nature of the mind you will understand there are no limits. It was also once said that the sound barrier would never be broken.

BTW: These dimensions don't have signposts on them saying Welcome to the Astral dimension, ta...daa! or "Mental dimension, watch your mind!". So I will describe the higher levels I have been to using these accepted names.

The Astral Dimension
This is a topsy-turvy world like Alice found in Wonderland. Everything seems objective (real) but is changeable and fluid. Anything and everything can be found there, from base, coarse levels full of sexual energy; to beautiful, serene places full of spiritual harmony. Time is distorted and extended there. An hour in the Astral can seem like only a few minutes here in the physical. Compared to the physical world it is at a much higher vibration. It's like playing a video tape at twenty times normal speed, although this is not apparent when you are there.

Moving amongst the astral dream pools is usually a hit or miss affair for most projectors. It takes a lot of experience to make planned astral journeys to specific realities.

There are an infinite number of realities, planes, realms and dream pools in this dimension. As I stated before, they naturally strata and settle into pools of related thought. During sleep, or in a lucid dream, the subconscious mind usually creates one especially for you, your own personal dream theatre. When you become aware during a dream, you take control over it. This control is taken over from the powerful subconscious mind. Without its powerful controlling influence, your personal custom created realm will change. You will begin tuning into other sympathetic parts of the astral, and the reality you are in will mix with other realities and take on different aspects.

In a conscious projection into the astral dimension, you can tune into any part of it and travel into different realities, other dream pools, or a mix of many. There are various techniques for this but they all involve some way to disorient the subconscious mind, tricking it into moving you into a different Astral reality. Some projectors look at their hands and watch them melt. Others spin around, causing left right reversals. These methods all disorient the mind and trick the subconscious into tuning into another part of the astral.

It's very difficult to describe how to move amongst the levels, you really have to learn by doing it, by trial and error. You have to learn how to use and control the subconscious mind, how to trick it for a specific result.

Virtual Reality Projection
Here is a simple, reliable method, I have developed, to create your own personal realm: Get a poster of a pleasant scene, something bright and sunny. The bigger the better, but standard poster size will do. Hang it on the wall of the room you are going to project in, or another room close by. Get a small spotlight and set it so the poster is highlighted when the main light is turned off, a normal directional bedside lamp will do. Place the light under, or above, so the light spreads out over it giving a diffused effect illuminating it, a bit like a movie screen.

Entering your custom realm: When you project, go towards the poster, keeping your mind blank. Don't think about what you are doing, just gaze at it and move towards it. As you approach it in this way, your subconscious mind will be tricked into creating an astral realm exactly like the poster. Just move up to and into the poster. It is like stepping into another world. Everything in this world will be exactly like in the poster. It will appear to be a normal three dimensional world, an exact copy, indistinguishable from reality.

To customise this world: Cut and paste small pictures of things, or people, you want to find in this world with you when you enter it. Don't just stick a whole picture on the poster. Get scissors and cut around the object, or person. Try and find pictures that are approximately the same scale as the poster. If you cut out a small picture of someone, living or dead, your subconscious will create a thought form shell of them and they will be there waiting for you. This may be an excellent way of communicating with those that have died.

Spirit Communication: (I have a theory) The subconscious creates this thought form shell of a person. This shell can be animated by the perfect, detailed memory of your subconscious. But, if there is love there, between the projector and this created person, the spirit of this, deceased person, will be drawn to this scenario and will use this opportunity to communicate with the projector, by animating the created image of their body.

with kind permission from www.spiritual.com au