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The Third Step to Astral Projection: Exit Techniques · Astral Gateway

• 0:15
  Hi, welcome back to the Astro Gateway Podcast.
• 0:19
  I'm Nurith Weiss Devicione. In the previous episode, we
• 0:22
  talked about the second step of Astro projection, creating
• 0:26
  focus. Before that, we looked at
• 0:29
  relaxation and how allowing the body to settle while keeping the
• 0:33
  mind gently aware creates the right conditions for the
• 0:37
  experience to unfold. If you've been practicing those
• 0:41
  two steps together, you might have started noticing something
• 0:44
  interesting. Maybe your body begins to feel
• 0:48
  distant or heavy. Maybe your breathing changes and
• 0:53
  seems to take over by itself. Or maybe you simply find
• 0:58
  yourself in a very quiet state where you're deeply relaxed, but
• 1:02
  you're still aware of what's happening.
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  That's exactly where today's episodes begin.
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  Because after relaxation and after creating focus comes the
• 1:13
  next part of the process. Know when it's time to leave the
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  body. This is the point where many
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  people either become excited and pull themselves out of the
• 1:24
  experience, or they assume something unusual is happening
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  and stop the process before it has a chance to develop.
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  The truth is that what's happening is usually very
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  natural. Your body is moving towards
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  sleep. Your awareness is staying
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  present, and because you're remaining conscious through the
• 1:45
  process that normally happens unconsciously every night, you
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  begin noticing things that most people simply sleep through.
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  That's why this stage can feel unfamiliar at first, not because
• 1:58
  something strange is happening, but because you're awake to it.
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  One of the most common experiences people talk about at
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  this stage is vibrations. Now, not everyone will
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  experience them, and they don't always feel the same, but
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  they're common enough that it's worth understanding what they
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  are and how to work with them instead of reacting to them.
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  And that's what I'd like to spend some time talking about
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  today. Because once you understand the
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  stage, everything starts making a lot more sense.
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  OK, so let's talk about the vibrations themselves.
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  People describe them in all sorts of way.
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  Some people feel a gentle humming moving through the body.
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  Others describe it as buzzing, almost like standing near a
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  powerful electrical current. Some feel waves moving through
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  their feet toward the head, or from the head down through the
• 2:55
  rest of the body. For some people, it's very
• 2:59
  subtle. For others, it's incredibly
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  strong. You might even hear sounds.
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  A loud buzzing, a ringing, a rushing noise.
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  Some people hear what sounds like static.
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  Others hear voices or snippets of conversations that seem
• 3:17
  completely random. If you've ever experienced
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  anything like that before, it could be surprising, but these
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  kinds of sensations have been reported by people for a very
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  long time, and they're a very natural part of the transition
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  for many people. The important thing to remember
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  is that not everyone experiences vibrations.
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  Sometimes the transition is so gentle that you simply find
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  yourself outside your body without noticing much
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  beforehand, and sometimes it's somewhere in between.
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  So don't use vibrations as a test to decide whether you're
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  making progress. There's simply one possible sign
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  that your body is deeply relaxed while your awareness remains
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  present. The other thing I'd like to
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  mention is that the vibrations themselves are not the goal.
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  Sometimes people become so focused on trying to make them
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  stronger that they forget what they're actually trying to do.
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  The vibrations are not the experience, they're simply part
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  of the process. For many people, it's a little
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  like sitting on a runway waiting for a plane to take off.
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  You don't bore the plane just to stay on the runway.
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  Eventually you want the journey to begin.
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  The same applies here. If vibrations come, notice them,
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  allow them, stay with them, but don't become attached to them.
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  Now, the biggest thing that interrupts this stage is usually
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  your own reaction. The first time it happens, it's
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  very common to think this is it, and the moment that excitement
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  comes in, everything stops. The heart rate changes, your
• 5:00
  attention jumps back into the physical body and you're fully
• 5:03
  awake again. The opposite can happen too.
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  Sometimes people feel the vibrations beginning and think
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  something is wrong. The sensations feel unfamiliar
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  and fear naturally comes up again.
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  The body wakes up completely and the experience ends.
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  So what's the answer, really? It's much simpler than people
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  think. Just let it happen.
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  You don't have to make the vibration stronger.
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  You don't have to analyze them. You don't have to wonder whether
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  they're real enough. You simply stay present.
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  Let them move through you without trying to control them.
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  Almost like listening to rain outside your window.
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  You're aware of it, but you're not doing anything with it.
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  The more relaxed you are, the more naturally the process
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  continues, and something interesting happens over time.
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  The first few times, the vibrations might feel intense,
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  maybe even overwhelming. But after you've experienced
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  them enough, they start feeling familiar.
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  You recognize them. You know where they're leading.
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  Instead of wondering what's happening, you simply settle
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  into them. For many people, including
• 6:19
  myself, that strange stage eventually becomes deeply
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  peaceful, sometimes even blissful.
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  After you've gone through it a few times, it all starts to feel
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  familiar. And then instead of thinking
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  what's happening, you think, OK, here we go.
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  And you stay relaxed, stay aware, and let the experience
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  continue on its own. So when do you actually use an
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  exit technique? This is probably one of the
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  questions I get asked the most. People often ask when should I
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  try to roll out? Or when should I imagine
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  floating? Or should I wait for vibrations
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  first? The truth is, there isn't one
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  exact moment that's the same for everybody.
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  Over time, you start to recognize it it It's almost like
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  your awareness reaches a tipping point.
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  Your body feels very distant. Your mind is clear.
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  Sometimes the vibrations are there, sometimes they are not
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  there, but there's a feeling that something has shifted.
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  That's usually when it's time to begin.
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  And here's something I think is really important.
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  And exit technique isn't about forcing yourself out of the
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  body. You're not trying to pull
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  yourself out with effort. You're simply given your
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  awareness, a direction to move in.
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  That's all. Think of it like imagining
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  yourself walking. If I asked you right now to
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  imagine taking a few steps through your living room, you
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  could probably do it instantly. You're not moving your physical
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  legs, you're imagining movement. And that's exactly what we're
• 8:02
  doing here. The only difference is that your
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  body is now deeply relaxed, and your awareness is much closer to
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  that threshold between waking and sleep.
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  So the imagine movement can begin to feel incredibly real,
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  and sometimes so real that it no longer feels imagined at all.
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  That's when the experience starts unfolding.
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  There are quite a few exit techniques, but they're all
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  built around the same idea. They simply give awareness
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  somewhere to go. One of the most well known is
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  the rolling technique. You imagine slowly rolling out
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  of bed. Not physically of course, just
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  mentally. Don't think about your muscles,
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  don't wonder if you're actually moving, simply imagine yourself
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  rolling onto the floor beside your bed.
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  At first it might feel like nothing is happening.
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  Then suddenly the movement starts to take on life on its
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  own. Another technique is sitting up.
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  Again, you're not using your physical body, you simply
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  imagine yourself sitting up naturally.
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  Some people find this easier because it's such a familiar
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  movement. You don't need to see yourself
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  doing it, just feel yourself sitting up.
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  Sometimes that's enough for the separation to happen almost
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  effortlessly. Another method is floating.
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  Imagine yourself becoming lighter and lighter, as though
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  gravity is slowly losing its grip.
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  You might imagine floating toward the ceiling or gently
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  lifting upward, almost like a balloon.
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  Don't force the sensation, just stay with the feeling of
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  becoming lighter. Sometimes you'll notice that the
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  floating begins on its own. You may even feel yourself
• 10:00
  gently swaying or drifting. If that happens, simply go with
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  it. Another popular technique is the
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  rope technique. Imagine there's a rope hanging
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  above you. Without moving your physical
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  arms, imagine reaching up and climbing it.
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  Feel each hand moving. Feel yourself pulling upward.
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  The movement itself becomes the focus.
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  Sometimes, after only a few imagined pools, you'll notice
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  that your awareness feels like it's rising independently of
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  your physical body. Some people imagine walking
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  through a doorway. Others imagine moving through a
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  window or simply drifting forward into the room.
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  The exact image doesn't matter very much.
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  What matters is that it feels natural to you.
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  Remember what we talked about in the previous episode?
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  Different people connect with different kinds of imagination.
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  Some people are naturally visual, some connect more with
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  movement, some hardly visualize anything at all, but can
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  strongly feel imagined motion. There's no single right way.
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  Use whatever feels the most natural for your own mind.
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  And here's something else I've learnt over the years.
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  Sometimes you don't even need an exit technique.
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  Sometimes, once you're deeply relaxed and your awareness is
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  steady, separation simply happens.
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  You suddenly realize you're floating, or standing beside
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  your bed, or walking through your house.
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  It can happen so naturally that afterwards you wonder exactly
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  when it started. That's completely normal to the
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  techniques aren't creating the experience, they're simply
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  helping awareness make the final transition.
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  So don't become attached to one particular technique.
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  If rolling doesn't feel natural, try floating.
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  If floating doesn't work for you, maybe sitting up does.
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  Just experiment. Stay curious.
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  Over time, you'll discover which approach your mind responds to
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  most easily, and once you find one that clicks, you'll probably
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  find yourself returning to it again and again.
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  So let's just bring everything together.
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  The process really isn't as complicated as it sometimes
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  seems. First, you relax the body, then
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  you give the mind something simple to focus on.
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  As you stay with that focus, the body continues drifting towards
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  sleep while your awareness stays present.
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  At some point, you may begin to notice that something is
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  changing. Maybe it's vibrations, maybe
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  it's a feeling of floating, maybe your body suddenly feels
• 13:01
  incredibly distant. Whatever it is, you don't have
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  to chase it. Just stay with it.
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  And when the moment feels right, simply allow your awareness to
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  move through one of the exit techniques we talked about
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  today. Some nights it will happen, some
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  nights it won't. And that's perfectly fine.
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  Every time you practice, you're becoming more familiar with the
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  process. You're learning how your own
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  mind works. You're learning what helps you
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  relax, what helps you stay aware, and what helps you make
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  that final transition. That familiarity is one of the
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  biggest teachers you can have. Now, before we finish, I just
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  want to thank you for joining me over these last few episodes.
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  We've now covered the three foundations of astral
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  projection, relaxation, creating focus, and the transition into
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  separation using exit techniques.
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  Everything else builds from here.
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  In the next episode, I'd like to answer some of the questions
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  that come up most often. Things like sleep paralysis,
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  fear, what to do if nothing seems to happen, and some of the
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  experiences you might have along the way.
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  So if you've been wondering about any of those things, we'll
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  explore them together next time. And if you'd like to continue
• 14:19
  learning and connect with others exploring these experiences, I'd
• 14:23
  love for you to join the Astral Gateway community on Facebook.
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  You'll also find some useful links in the episode description
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  if you'd like to explore these techniques in more depth.
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  Thank you so much for listening. Until next time, stay present,
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  stay curious, and keep exploring.
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  Take care.