The Astral Plane (APL)

Nonfiction literary compositions

Moderator: The Madame X

The Astral Plane (APL)

Postby Syngin » Thu May 25, 2006 12:15 am

The Astral Plane (APL) is a coterminous reality that has, arguably, existed and permeated the area that our current universe was to occupy prior to the beginning of this universe. This isn't an argument for or against creationism. Nor does the pre-existence of the APL validate or invalidate current theological or scientific views. The APL is an energetic crossroads into different realms of reality, yet it is not a higher dimension. A higher dimension is a mathematic abstraction that attempts to define freedom of movement that transcends the three-dimensional, Cartesian X, Y, Z axes of this dimension. Higher dimensions do not exist in the same coterminous manner as the APL. You still move within the three-dimensional axes (even in instantaneous travel) while within the APL.

The APL is the primary venue and magical tool of the art of Wizardry and as such the wizard becomes particularly attuned to localized astral events. Furthermore, a wizard can draw power/energy from the Astral depending on the need or situation. The advantage of the APL as a magical tool is the simple fact that the Astral is evenly distributed throughout the cosmos; there are no voids or hot spots. The Astral is readily available without having to resort to Herculean efforts of will. The art of Wizardry is a reflection of the very nature of the APL, that nature being very close to neutral. That unique nature manifests itself in that power drawn from the Astral is singular in its malleability. The skill of the magician and fundamental laws of nature are the only theoretical limits imposed upon what the power of the APL can be put to.

The ready availability of the APL stems from the fact that it co-exists with the material universe on two basic levels: The Low Astral (commonly referred to as the Ethereal) and the High Astral (commonly referred to as the Astral). Before confusion sets in understand that the terms and labels commonly associated with the APL, or any other plane of existence, tend to be arbitrary. Furthermore, those same labels are influenced by Eastern philosophies (Hinduism primarily), by the Hebrew Kabala or both; thus, further muddying the waters of comprehension for the Western mind. For clarity's sake, the Low Astral is one step outside of your body. You are still in this universe when you are in the Low Astral. The Low Astral is
where you can book a world (or universe) tour without having to pack, worry about customs agents or being concerned about getting Montezuma's Revenge. The Low Astral is also, obviously, conducive to clairvoyance and clairaudience. The High Astral is the fluidic realm that is a neutral zone of sorts that allows for a number of startling effects. Within the High Astral the wizard can impress his or her own vision of reality upon portions of the APL; thus, enabling many possible probabilities
to manifest themselves. Also, the wizard can scry or seek out "ultimate answers" from within the High Astral via communication with various Astral Entities.

The High Astral is the departure point for the various and sundry realities that coexist (either serially or in parallel) with this universe. The APL, both high and low, plays host to various entities. And these entities are quite abundant. It isn't like Manhattan at lunch hour, but the APL is certainly not desolate. Most of the encounters consist of non-human entities. The dearth of human travelers can be attributed to the fact that most humans are only passing through the APL on their way to the Dream Lands, so to speak, or are possibly on their way to the Realm of Souls beyond the veil of death. There are, in fact, very few persistent, human astral travelers. Many of the entities could be manifestations of human thought patterns or even daydreams. But there are just as many which possess a unique sentience and intelligence. The non-human entities tend to appear as whatever they see fit. I deduce this from the simple fact that there are very few common "species" that inhabit the astral. I refer to these 20 or so unique species as 'wanderers'. I have yet to determine their purpose for they are neither helpful nor harmful and all attempts at communication have ended in cordial ambivalence on the part of the wanderers. Those sentient entities I encounter on the APL without virtue of having evoked them have proven to be neither angelic nor diabolic. They are reasonable creatures that tend to respond favorably to polite conversation. When I do evoke an entity from within the High
Astral, the entity tends to manifest itself as kind of portal through which I may pass into that particular entities' "realm". On rare occasions the entity will manifest itself directly into the High Astral. This occurs, generally, when I have conversed with the entity on numerous occasions over an extended period of time. It is through the sentient entities
that I am able to discover occult information. Of course not all of it is true or makes sense. It is up to the individual magician to separate the proverbial wheat from chaff.

The persistent wizard will find the Astral Plane a source of endless discovery and wonderment. And to that end I hope that I have made a facet of the artof Wizardry more plain to those who follow different paths. Or even better, helpedan aspirant understand more fully the possibilities that lay before you.


Syngin©2002
I Tego Arcana Dei
Syngin
User avatar
Syngin
 
Posts: 422
Joined: Mon Mar 06, 2006 12:51 am
Location: California

Return to Articles (for the Outer Circle)

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 9 guests

cron