Recently someone asked me if I could only pick one, lucid dreaming or astral projection, which would I choose?
It got me thinking about the defining aspects of each ability and which I would rather have.
First, I have to espouse once again that lucid dreaming and astral projection are two entirely different things. People who tell you that when you have a lucid dream it means you’re astral projecting, or people who tell you that you astral project every night without realizing it, are incorrect.
Lucid dreaming simply means you are aware that you are having a dream while you are in the dream.
A lucid dream is a mental construct inside your own mind. The characters you meet inside your lucid dream are under your control; they are not conscious beings (with few exceptions).
Astral projecting is leaving your body while you are awake and conscious.
You are not inside a construct. Rather, your consciousness is on another plane, and any other beings you encounter are also conscious beings and you cannot control them.
The similarity between the two is really only that you are highly conscious and aware during both, but you are in a totally different place with each of them.
Inside a lucid dream you are a god.
You can snap your fingers and bend the dream content to your will. This means that if you want to pretend you are a super hero you can absolutely have that experience. Just snap your fingers or use your will and you’re shooting lasers from your eyeballs in no time.
With lucid dreaming, if you want to experience sexual activity you can conjure anyone you’d like and do whatever you’d like with them. I use my lucid dreams to take part in Supernatural episodes with Sam and Dean Winchester.
With lucid dreaming, if you want to spend the day on a beach sipping a drink and listening to the waves, you can.
The sky is the limit with lucid dreaming. Anything you can conjure in your mind, you can experience in your dream.
With astral projection, however, you cannot just snap your fingers and change the scene to your liking.
You would have to move your astral body to a new location, for example by flying there or teleporting there.
With astral projection, if you come across a low vibration entity who wants to attack you, you can’t just snap your fingers and make it go away. You have to fight it, evade it, or go back to your body.
But one of the big benefits of astral projection is that you can speak to your deceased relatives and they are really there. You can time travel. You can visit other planes of existence, and even make it to other planets and explore them, and you are really there.
To explore the possibilities of astral projection, read my article “Astral Projection 101“.
I spent quite a bit of time engaging in both activities when I was in my late teens and early 20’s. I was astral projecting 3-4 times per week, but I was also having lucid dreams whenever I programmed something I wanted to experience.
As time went by, I didn’t astral project as often, because I wanted my nights to be fun and peaceful, and astral projection means you always need to be on guard for attacks.
Now that I’m in my 50’s, I would say that I get a lot more joy and pleasure from lucid dreaming than I do from astral projection, but I wouldn’t trade those early years for anything. The time I spent exploring the astral realms was dear to me, and taught me a lot about the universe, different beings, and different planes.
I encourage you all to explore both if you are interested. They both have their benefits, and they both have their challenges.
**Read Erin’s book, The Astral Projection Guidebook, if you are interested in learning how to astral travel.**
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