Review: Astral Projection for Beginners by Silvia Hill

Review: Astral Projection for Beginners

by Silvia Hill

Today I'm reviewing Astral Projection for Beginners by Silvia Hill. The subtitle is The Astral Travel Guide to an Intentional Out-of-Body Experience. The copyright is 2021.

Okay, I was not prepared for this. I expected another cut-rate astral projection book with a pretty front cover, written by a clueless person (or an AI) with scant (or no) research and no personal experience. But it's actually really good! Finally, a book by someone who gets it, who is intelligent and articulate, but still relatable to the younger generation. It's not only informative and accurate, it's refreshing.

Her writing is young--like talking to a twenty something--but professional. She's a good writer; competent, organized and intelligent.

Although Silvia Hill really doesn't give many personal experiences, I can tell just by reading it that she's had a fair number of experiences. For example, she describes getting parcels of telepathy--what Robert Monroe called "rotes"--but she calls them "thought blocks." I like that; it's simple but accurate.

She's done tons more research than the average author in the genre.

Here are some interesting things to note:

Part 1 is "Astral Projection Basics."

Part 2 is "What is Astral Projection."

First, Hill claims we have three bodies: physical, astral, and causal. This is in contrast to many books, such as those from Theosophy, that claim we have 7 bodies.

When it comes to the subject of lucid dreaming, Hill explains it well:

"Lucid dreaming and astral projection are both fantastic, yet they are not the same. Lucid dreams are subjective. They are your own experiences and allow you to play with infinite scenarios. However, astral projection is objective because the planes you visit really do exist, and much like in the physical realm, they have their own limits and laws." (pg. 13)

She also suggests decent ways to test whether you're astral projecting or lucid dreaming. For example, she says:

"You cannot control other beings on the astral plane. It just doesn't work. In a lucid dream, you can get others to do your bidding..." (pg. 122)

and also:

"You can't change the environment in the astral realm. Wherever you find yourself, you can't change the setting. It is what it is. In a lucid dream, you'd be able to make night day and vice versa." (pg. 122)

Hill is also up to date with modern (2024) lingo. She talks about dreaming journaling apps for your devices, like EverNote, Penzu, and Google Keep. She talks about the show Behind Her Eyes and how it's really not possible for someone to take over your body. She uses acronyms like FOMO (Fear of Missing Out). 

Hill has a good section on breath work, explaining Holotropic breathwork, and why breathing matters in astral projection. She explains a few different breathing exercises, such as Alternate Nostril Breathing, also known as Nadi Shodhana.

Chapter 8 is Self Hypnosis.

Part 3 is "Getting In The Astral Plane"

I can't say I agreed with everything Hill said, but we do have a lot of common ground. About the only thing I disagreed with is the subject of itching. According to Hill:

"As for the itches, there's nothing to do but resist them." (pg. 88)

In my opinion, itches indicate you're not close enough to the sleep state. I've always maintained that it's best to just scratch the itch and go back to your out-of-body focus. Think of it this way: you don't have lots of itches when you're falling asleep, so you need to get into that pre-sleep groove where you won't itch.

Hill covers yoga poses for astral projection, and she even includes photos of various stretches and poses.

Chapter 11 is Focusing with Music and Mantras, and she covers the subject well. She correctly says you don't need music to astral project. But if you insist, surprisingly, she recommends Baroque music. She also talks about Hemi-Sync by The Monroe Institute. She also covers Shamanic Drumming to reach a trance state, as well as brainwave entrainment audios, binaural beats, monaural beats, Isochronic beats, and Sound and Light machines.

 As for mantras, she recommends the system taught by Samael Aun Weor, which includes:

• La Ra
• Tai Re Re Re
• Fa Ra On
• Rustic
• Sssss
  

Hill has a very good techniques section, including:

• Robert Monroe's Meditation Method (with imagined vibrations)
• Wake Back to Bed, a mainstay of Michael Raduga

Chapter 14 is Other Astral Projection Techniques, and it includes:

• Robert Bruce's Seven-Step Rope Method, and she actually explains it well. This is the best explanation of ROPE I've found outside of Robert Bruce's own words.

Hill brings a unique new astral projection technique to the table. (At least one I've never heard of). She calls it the IMP Method, where IMP stands for Impossible Motion Practice." Basically, you use your imagination to simulate movements that would be physically impossible. For example, bending your arm at the forearm instead of at the elbow. Interesting! She writes:

"Feel the chosen body part bending and moving in the most ridiculous of ways." (pg. 127)

You repeat this over and over until the sensations become real.

Other techniques in the book:

• The Free Fall Method, similar to the "Falling into a well" technique in my first book.
  
• The Yo-Yo Method, similar to the one in my first book.
• The Listening Method
• The Exhaustion Method
• The Forced Sleep Method
• The Rotation Method
• The Body Strain Method
• The Brain Strain Method
• The Running Method. What's interesting here is that she instructs you to imagine running and smacking into a wall, and separation occurs when you do. Clever!
  
• The Tunnel Method
• The Third Eye Method
• The Swimming Method
• The Eye Movement Method
• The [phantom] Wiggling Method
• The Recall Method
• The Room Method
• The Backflip Method
• The Levitation Method
• The Roll Out Method
• The Train Method
• The Hammock Method
  

Most of these techniques appear in other books, but Hill only gives credit to a few of the originators: Robert Monroe, Robert Bruce, Michael Raduga.

Another place I disagreed with her is on the subject of the vibrations. According to Hill, you can increase or decrease the vibrations "with your intention" (pg. 126). In my experience, the best way to increase the vibrations is not with your intention, but by making your mind as blank and emotionless as possible.

Chapter 16 is "Problems and Mistakes to Overcome" and like the others, it's balanced and well informed.

This is a very well-rounded astral projection book. I give this book 5 stars out of 5.

Bob Peterson
26 May 2024

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