38 of 45 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
typical tyson, May 2, 2007
This review is from: Soul Flight: Astral Projection and the Magical Universe (Paperback)
As with others of the author's books, this one is peppered with historical persons and accounts all put under the one-eyed esoteric microscope of the author reinterpreting the experiences of these people and basically applying his understanding of what happened to them as if it is better than their own. As with others of the author's books this one spends time wandering down Golden Dawn lane and especially up Crowley alley. As with others of the author's books this one also makes sweeping statements about the `reality' of certain occult matters. In this volume the writer attacks what he, with his typically reductionist voice, terms the `theosophic' view of astral projection and tells the reader that it is `completely wrong'. Telling the reader that, in other words, there is no `real' astral `travel'. This author has a habit of presenting his personal findings as if they were watershed improvements upon the methods and understandings of the great esoteric explorers of the past, perhaps to place himself within their company. By and large he dismisses the authentic out-of-body experiences, and understandings of those experiences, of countless humans over many centuries as quite simply, mistaken. According to the author, it's ALL in the mind. And then he proceeds to attack previous understandings as being too materialistic whilst contrarily making the conservative error of thinking of the material world as something fundamentally outside of the mind and therefore a place that the `mind' (which to the author is indistinguishable from the soul) cannot visit apart from the body. Then at the same time he states that the mind creates all reality. Confused? From a Gnostic point of view the mind creates nothing - it is seen as neither a maker nor a creator, it remains an interpreter, a translator, a messenger (or an ignorer), between the perceived levels of being. It is not soul and it is not spirit, it is between the two.
His narrative voice, as in his other works, is usually belittling towards and dismissive of women, no matter how renowned, Blavatsky included, which adds to the ponderousness of the text. His argument for there being `no travel in astral travel' is that experiments on remote viewing and out of body, whilst yielding results of accuracy that rise above chance, don't reach one hundred percent accuracy. Well, take five people, show them a physical event and get each of them to tell you what happened, likelihood is that they will have five at least slightly differing reports. The fact that the majority of reported ghost sightings are of people who are still living, in no small way supports the OUT of body astral projection understanding. On the whole, from this reader's point of view, this is a book on pathworking and, like his other books, has useful if not original or innovative ritual and meditative tools to improve one's efforts. Apart from this one comes away with the impression that the author has possibly spent years trying to have a genuine OUT of body experience and has perhaps failed. The long and the short of it is that if you have a genuine out of body experience you KNOW it is NOT all in the mind. If you are interested in out-of-body astral travel as opposed to magically supported pathworking and inner level exploration IN body, then this reader would recommend 'Leaving the Body' by a genuine researcher, the late D. Scott Rogo, and the works of William Buhlman, especially Secrets of the Soul.
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17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best Llewellyn's book about Astral Projection, March 9, 2007
This review is from: Soul Flight: Astral Projection and the Magical Universe (Paperback)
Here is the contents of the book :
Introduction : The Astral World
Part One : History
Chapter One : Shamanic Soul Flight
Chapter Two : Witches' Flying Ointment
Chapter Three : The Land of Fairy
Chapter Four : Religious Bilocation
Chapter Five : Spiritualism
Chapter Six : Theosophy
Chapter Seven : Golden Dawn
Chapter Eight : Remote Viewing and the CIA
Chapter Nine : UFO Abduction
Part Two : Practice
Chapter Ten : Uses of Ritual
Chapter Eleven : Astral Doorways
Chapter Twelve : The Tarot
Chapter Thirteen : Pathworking
Chapter Fourteen : Runes
Chapter Fifteen : Training for Soul Flight
Chapter Sixteen : Astral Guides
Chapter Seventeen : Etiquette in the Astral World
Chapter Eighteen : Astral Self-Defence
Conclusion
Bibliography
Index
The astral body is not separate physical envelope for the consciousness, but is a part of the mind, and it never leaves the mind. The astral world is not a place in space; rather, it is a dimension of the mind that resembles very closely the dream state. I agree with this statement.
He also sure that ancient ritual techniques is necessary to help you astral projection safely on all level.
Using this book, you can skip part one, and start practice with part two. I found that this book can help you to acieve astral projection. Many methods here... maybe one of them works for you. Ritual, crystal gazing, a lunar accumulator, mirror portals, tarot trump as doorays, tarot trumps as astral keys, rising on the planes, golden dawn pathworking, using a rune key, diet, mantra, symbol visualization, guides.....
Buy this book, you will not regret it. For complementary about to handle problem when astral projection, read William Buhlman's "Adventures Beyond the Body". For dictionary ? Waldo Vieira's "Projectiology". For understanding astral and dream world ? All non fiction books by Robert Moss.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great book with different techniques, January 9, 2008
This review is from: Soul Flight: Astral Projection and the Magical Universe (Paperback)
This book is different than all the other books I've read on astral travel. Donald takes a different approach to how we can think about and obtain OBEs, and gives some fascinating and excellent history on how and why OBEs were used throughout history.
I particularly like his shamanic approach to achieving an OBE, and his focus on the importance of ritual. Ritual is something I've struggled with, but in reading this book I can understand the importance, and his methods are simple instead of extravagant.
This is a very well written, entertaining, and educational book that I believe will help many obtain OBE's. I think I've succeeded in a possible OBE through the Shamanic path, and have no doubt that Donald's methods are helping me in my journeys.
Dana
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