Differentiating between fellow astral travelers & dream characters?

[Sospiro]

I know dream characters are controlled by your mind and some say that in the astral realm, you meet fellow astral travelers who are entities in an of themselves. This discussion will probably just lead to differentiating between astral projection & lucid dreaming which has a lot to do with it, but I don't want it to get lost in that. Is it just intuition? I've realized that you can just "feel" these sort of things and know the difference. It isn't a tangible science, therefore we have to use our other senses to make sense of things. Would like to hear your input.

[antoinette]

I'm interested to know, how do you know wheter you yourself are having a lucid dream or travelling astrally? I mean how can you be sure? Thanks (and sorry I don't know the answer to your question, but I don't know how can I know which of the 2 the other charcters are when I am not sure what exactly am I doing myself) ps. nice abs

[Sospiro]

lol thanks for the ab comment. well, sometimes before a "lucid dream", i feel myself leave my body...and on one occassion even looked back at my body to see it exactly positioned how i left it....so i assumed i was astral projecting. Other times, everything felt very similar, except i skipped the process of leaving my body. Honestly, I don't even know myself, but i just assume that I am astral projecting when I leave my body. People have different opinions and I'm not sure what to believe, but my personal experience is the only thing i can draw my conclusions from.

[LouaiB]

We are our brains. Our brains are neurons. DC are made by firing neurons. So, I think that DCs are their own consciousness. In the end , what is consciousness? The ability to think and interpret. DC do, cuz they are neurons. Soooo... Hard to differentiate between DCs and astral projectors, if APing is even possible! This is why a lot of people believe in shared dreaming, cuz some DCs are so...conscious! Just a thought...

[Sospiro]

We are our brains. Our brains are neurons. DC are made by firing neurons. So, I think that DCs are their own consciousness. In the end , what is consciousness? The ability to think and interpret. DC do, cuz they are neurons. Soooo... Hard to differentiate between DCs and astral projectors, if APing is even possible! This is why a lot of people believe in shared dreaming, cuz some DCs are so...conscious! Just a thought... My understanding was that DC's are entities that we create in our brain, HOWEVER, astral people are separate entities that have their own separate consciousness???? -head hurts-

[LouaiB]

My understanding was that DC's are entities that we create in our brain, HOWEVER, astral people are separate entities that have their own separate consciousness???? -head hurts- Yes, but since DCs seem like they have their own consciousness (they act like their own person), then it would be hard to tell the difference

[Baron Samedi]

I know dream characters are controlled by your mind and some say that in the astral realm, you meet fellow astral travelers who are entities in an of themselves. This discussion will probably just lead to differentiating between astral projection & lucid dreaming which has a lot to do with it, but I don't want it to get lost in that. Is it just intuition? I've realized that you can just "feel" these sort of things and know the difference. It isn't a tangible science, therefore we have to use our other senses to make sense of things. Would like to hear your input. From my experience a DC/thoughtform created by your mind will disappear when you ignore it. A sentient entity will stay there because it does not require your attention to exist. I'm interested to know, how do you know wheter you yourself are having a lucid dream or travelling astrally? I mean how can you be sure? Thanks (and sorry I don't know the answer to your question, but I don't know how can I know which of the 2 the other charcters are when I am not sure what exactly am I doing myself) ps. nice abs I perceive three Planes of existence in each Universe: Physical, Astral, Dream. These can be related to the three states of water: Solid, Liquid, Gas. The Physical Plane is right here, probably. The Dream Plane is where we go when our brains are in Theta and Delta mode (REM and Deep Sleep). The Astral Plane is where we go in Alpha and Theta mode. (Meditative/REM). The Astral Plane seems to be a mix of the Dream and Physical. For example, if you feel/look like a ghost, you walk right through doors, and your hand passes through objects, and everything around you looks like the physical world, you could be in the Astral Plane. On the Dream Plane, things are more surreal possibly, than the Astral Plane.

[RavenOfShadow]

I have no reason to believe in Astral Projection, so I have always assumed that even the most complex dream characters are just showcases of the brains incredible power. The brain loves to trick us. We do an RC for weeks and it works every time, then suddenly my finger will no longer go into my palm and I am cheated out of a lucid dream. I read that light switches don't work in dreams, yet when I try the lights they work perfectly. This also applies to the thought that all DCs stop thinking when you expect them to stop thinking; there are always exceptions, especially when your brain is feeling tricky. I agree with LouaiB in the sense that I think we underestimate the power of DCs and the brain. DCs are us, and we are conscious entities, so DCs must have some form of their own consciousness, even if its a base form. Most DCs do seem to be mere cardboard cutouts of consciousness and sentience, however there are many i've encountered that were advanced enough to tricked me, move me emotionally, or inspire me. I didn't chalk this up as an astral visitor, I simply was impressed by my own brain. I consider myself a spiritual person, but I don't subscribe to the belief that shared dreams or astral realms can be reached by simple advanced dreaming techniques. Perhaps by a lifetime of devoted mediation in a temple, and possibly death, but not by lucid dreamers.

[LouaiB]

I can't agree more with what RavenofShadow said!^^

[Electrode]

I have no reason to believe in Astral Projection, so I have always assumed that even the most complex dream characters are just showcases of the brains incredible power. The brain loves to trick us. We do an RC for weeks and it works every time, then suddenly my finger will no longer go into my palm and I am cheated out of a lucid dream. I read that light switches don't work in dreams, yet when I try the lights they work perfectly. This also applies to the thought that all DCs stop thinking when you expect them to stop thinking; there are always exceptions, especially when your brain is feeling tricky. I agree with LouaiB in the sense that I think we underestimate the power of DCs and the brain. DCs are us, and we are conscious entities, so DCs must have some form of their own consciousness, even if its a base form. Most DCs do seem to be mere cardboard cutouts of consciousness and sentience, however there are many i've encountered that were advanced enough to tricked me, move me emotionally, or inspire me. I didn't chalk this up as an astral visitor, I simply was impressed by my own brain. I consider myself a spiritual person, but I don't subscribe to the belief that shared dreams or astral realms can be reached by simple advanced dreaming techniques. Perhaps by a lifetime of devoted mediation in a temple, and possibly death, but not by lucid dreamers. Pretty much this.