Wandering Body of Light
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I posted this topic before but the thread seems to have disappeared.
A gay friend spontaneously developed the ability to astral travel several years ago after being diagnosed with a fatal brain tumor. He defeated the cancer and overcame all fear of death. But after various adventures on the astral he had a mishap and developed the “wandering Body of Light” syndrome. I was rereading Book 4 and came across this passage by Crowley describing my friend’s situation:
*Now, however unsuccessful your getting out the body may apparently have been, it is most necessary to use every effort to bring it properly back. Make the Body of Light coincide in space with the physical body, assume the God-Form, and vibrate the name of Harpocrates with the utmost energy; then recover unity of consciousness. If you fail to do this properly you may find yourself in serious trouble. Your Body of Light may wander away uncontrolled, and be attacked and obsessed. You will become aware of this through the occurrence of headache, bad dreams, or even more serious signs such as hysteria, fainting fits, possibly madness or paralysis. Even the worst of these attacks will probably wear off, but it may leave you permanently damaged to a greater or less extent.
A great majority of "spiritualists", "occultists", "Theosophists", are pitiable examples of repeated losses from this cause.*
hermetic.com/crowley/book-4/chap18.html
Crowley states "even the worst of these attacks will probably wear off" but its been over a year and my friend is unable to concentrate on anything, sit down or do 30 minutes of meditation or hard work. He is obsessed with the loss of someone he was in love with – the loss of which he connects to his misadventures on the astral. He claims he is possessed and feels the need for an exorcism. In the last two months he has taken to smoking and drinking heavily, nervously pacing back and forth, unable to sit down and hold a normal conversation. He has alienated all his friends by his behavior and is filled with self-reproach, self-loathing, regret. He is not suicidal but his self-destructive/uncaring attitude toward himself seems linked to the loss of the relationship he used to have. He is more or less a physical shell of his former self, waiting for the body to die.
Questions:
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Does the ToT healing group work with these kind of cases?
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Once a loss occurs, does the ToT teach practical steps to fully reintegrate the Body of Light back to the physical one?
(I know the Coffin Texts provides spells to prevent disintegration of the parts of consciousness in the Amduat but I am not aware of healing formulas or techniques, in Crowley’s writing or elsewhere, once the loss occurs. His position seems to be such casualties are inevitable to evolution)
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Even if there are no known techniques for integrating the Body of Light back to the physical one, would there be, in theory, a way of repairing the damage? For example if the wandering Body of Light occurs when consciousness travels up the inner planes and subsequently has problems reintegrating back into the physical body, is the solution to learn to travel to a plane *higher than the one *where the problem happened, then work on integrating the Body of Light *back down *into the physical body and, if yes, what type of ritual should be performed to this end? As I see it, the possibilities are either 1) invoking active Spirit with the Pentagram 2) the Middle Pillar or 3) invoking the Sun with the Hexagram.
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Based on the description of my friend provided above, can an Adept diagnose precisely the nature of the problem on an energetic level? For example my friend has repeatedly said that his “whole life is a mistake”. This suggests to me the wandering Body of Light syndrome is liable to occur through having a problem with, or taking for granted, the physical body. If so, the solution would seem to be performing techniques that aid in finding and doing one’s True Will, which leads to integration of the various parts of the self.
Thanks for feedback.
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@he atlas itch said
"1. Does the ToT healing group work with these kind of cases? "
Our healing work provides the spiritual and psychological energy for whatever is genuinely needed by the person. This could precipitate into the physical body for physical healing, or operate psychologically, or fortify a more subtle aspect for some other purpose - we don't pick. - So, yes, it could be of assistance.
"2. Once a loss occurs, does the ToT teach practical steps to fully reintegrate the Body of Light back to the physical one? "
This is complicated because it seems to be several factors combining - some directly affecting the Body of Light (or astral seepage), some psychological as an understandable reaction to the life threat and the loss.
My first impression (that's all I can get from your post) is that some sort of "first aid" is needed in the short run, and some measure of training in the longer run.
For first aid: Yes, he could ask to be on our healing list and I think that would contribute. Also, he should actively treat this physically and psychologically: Especially he should be sure he is getting sufficient sleep (!) and eating as clean a diet as possible - the priority at the moment is avoiding white sugar and white flower as much as possible, and acquiring foods that have the lowest amount of additives, hormones, etc. as he can. Additionally, he should move (for at least a month or two) toward the highest level of red meat protein - this grounds the body and helps anchor involuntary astral. (Again, the lower the hormone level in the meat source the better.)
As he gets a little stability, then he should try the simplest meditations - I don't know what variety he is doing, but I recommend sitting in a comfortable, nonstrenuous, physically balanced position and just witnessing his breath move in and out without adding mental commentary. It doesn't much matter what else happens in his head as long as his attention remains on the breath and the physical sensation of it passing in and out of his nostrils. 10-15 minutes of this twice a day would be good.
That's the short run - the first aid - and should start showing results within a month, and significant results within two months.
During this time he also should be getting some skilled counselling about his life threat and other losses. There is a fear-anchored and pain-anchored psychological state here that is feeding the problem, and he probably has to loosen its hold on him to get a permanent fix on the rest. I don't know how long this will take - there are too many factors involved.
Now for the longer run...
The primary teaching that applies here is that such psychic phenomena must only be permitted to occur under will. The most useful technique I know (once he is physically and psychologically healthy) is to anchor it to a physical gesture - this could be a particular sign or other physical movement, a mudra, a word or sentence he utters, or some combination of these (for example). The technique is to decide what your trigger elements will be and use these to "go out" - to voluntarily "journey" and return. Use one signal to start the journey, another to close it. (E.g., the Sign of the Opening of the Veil to open the psychic realms; that of the Closing of the Veil to end it and seal the door tight. Or a pattern of touch fingers in some fashion that gives a distinctive gesture to starting, another to stopping.) It's much harder to just practice the "stop" part - you probably need to do a "start and then stop" cycle - which is why this shouldn't be started until he is physically and psychologically healthy.
However, he could, in the interim, practice a simple word formula - pick a word that he says with intention to permit some "wandering" that begins, and another word (that he says with intention) to halt it. This is called "letting the dog out into the yard for a bit."
He could do this in small amounts as part of establishing control.PS - There are other, advanced techniques (in the direction you alluded to) of doing what amounts to psychic surgery. He'd need to be present in person, and there's not much use doing them until the basic physical and psychological healing is well underway (the first things I mentioned above). It also isn't necessary for most people, once they get back on track and practice basic psychic hygiene.
PPS - If further diagnosis is necessary, his horoscope would be a powerful tool - but the investigation would be an extensive and complicated one, studying the natal, the course of his disease, the critical events, and the present patterns in order to get deep enough. This detailed a study isn't warranted unless the basic recovery-then-hygiene above doesn't show the expected results.
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Thanks for the concrete info. He definitely needs to start a regular sleep pattern and the diet makes sense. Anchoring astral travel to a physical gesture is useful information.
I will forward ToT’s healing email and tell him to provide his horoscope as well.
Thanks again.