Review: Mental and Astral Projection by Robert E. Moser

Review: Mental and Astral Projection

by Robert E. (Bob) Moser

Today I'm taking a trip down memory lane and reviewing the book Mental and Astral Projection by Robert E. Moser, an oldie from 1974. It's a short book; just 55 pages.

I first read this book in August of 1980. I had only had 21 OBEs then, so I was a newbie and I was eager for more. The book didn't stand out in my mind at the time, but after just re-reading it, I'm amazed to see just how much it influenced me.

Moser starts by explaining mental projection and astral projection, and the fact that mental projection is easier than astral projection. In my opinion, the author's "mental projection" is what we now call "remote viewing."

I remember how disappointed I was with Moser's OBE technique. After spending a considerable amount of time relaxing your physical body:

"Now, if you wish to [astral] project....simply use your imagination to lift yourself free of the body....to go where you have selected....knowing, at all times....that the natural protective mechanisms of your body are working normally...." (pg. 35)

That's pretty lame. He's advocating the use of imagination to induce OBE, and granted, imagination is an important step. But the process is so much more complex than that. I got nothing out of this. By the way, the overuse and abuse of the ellipsis "...." is the author's, not mine. :)


He expands on this technique later in the book. You use your imagination to visualize a doorway with a fancy door, a keyhole, and a key. You customize the door to make it "yours". Only you possess the key, and each time you induce an OBE, you imagine unlocking the door and locking it behind you to keep any foreign entities out. You always take the key with you.

The book didn't make a lasting impression back in 1980, but I did take a few things he said to heart: First, to keep a journal of your experiences. Second, that other entities can't control your body unless you allow them access. Third, the importance of keeping a dream journal and learning dream recall:

"The importance of the effort to receive full dream recall cannot be overstressed." (pp. 43-44)

This book may have also unconsciously prompted my earliest communications with my inner voice:

"Another point I would like to stress is that it is my firm and proven belief, that the superconscious mind has the answers to the information we seek, if we but look inward. It is in me, it is in you. This is our higher self, our God-Consciousness that has all the memory of time within it. We must seek inward and communicate there for the information." (pg. 44)

It probably also fueled my distrust in spirits:

"I do NOT advocate the use of guides on the astral planes. We have no way of knowing or judging who or what may be trying to either help or harm us. On the astral, since we are faced with a different set of values and a new set of rules, we can easily be misled by some entity who is trying to use us." (pg. 47)

In fact, Moser takes this a step further. He stresses not to interact with the astral plane. He advises us to merely observe what we witness. But to quote the 1980s rock song Blinded by the Light, "But mama, that's where the fun is!"

Maybe this book was just what I needed in 1980: A healthy dose of caution, a little esotericism, a dash of distrust in spirits, a few clues about my inner voice, and a few hints on how to self-induce OBEs. There are many OBE books that are far better than this, but I don't regret having read it.

30 June 2015
Robert Peterson