Hi guys !

I'm a chinese theravada buddhist.

I have a question about my A&P experience,because before my A&P experience in meditation,I had the same experience by doing an out of body training many years ago(such as Monroe..... etc)

I'm curious that why an out of body training can also reach the A&P state.

In 2008 ,it was about 3 years before i became a theravada buddhist,one day  I had an A&P experience by doing an out of body training, at that time,i was lying on my bed and focusing my mind and thoughts,suddenly i found my mind arising and passing quickly,and i feel like everything(body ,mind) was strong vibrations,one more strange feeling was i found my ears heard very loud noise （loud buzz）,then i tried to move out of my body, i found i was lying on the bed , and i can't move my body,my finger like a dead man.

after this experience, i didnt know what it means.and i also didn't get any wisdom（the three characteristics）.

then in 2011 i became a theravada buddhist,and became a monk to do vippassana meditation for 1 month in 2012,after that i do mahasi meditation until now,

before i reached A&P state by vippassana meditation,I get the wisdom of the three characteristics by vippassana meditation,I very clear to see the no-self wisdom(every mind uncontrollabe，arising and passing automatically) ,then i trusted in the three characteristics first time in my life.

after the three characteristics state, i reached A&P,when i was feeling the A&P, I suddenly found i had the same experience from out of body training many years ago.

it's very strange.

so my question is:

Why out of body training, a lucid dream ,also when i wake up at midnight i can't move my body,such as these things also can get the same A&P experience of vippassana meditation?

Why after my first reach the A&P state by a out of body training , i didnt know what it means.and i also didn't get any wisdom（the three characteristics）?

Why based on A&P,the out of body meditators can make a out of body experience(i think its because our mind made an Illusion),and buddhist like us after A&P can make a nibbana experience,is nibbana also an Illusion?


Is A&P a strange and strong state of mind that can make any illusion we wish to see? or A&P is a real state can lead us to the nibbana,to the end of suffering?

i really want to be a steam-entry to end these suffering in the world,i want to see buddha's way is right,not an illusion.

In my country,i only can found 3 man(include me) on internet reached A&P state,so no one can discuss this question with me.

I'm very happy to see someone can reply me.

my English is poor,thank you！

waiting for a reply......

The A&P and out of body stuff just go together. They are in the same spectrum of mind, as it were, the same layer, the same paradigm, the same resonance. It is extremely common for people to have out of body experiences and lucid dreaming during the A&P, as well as get the A&P while trying to have out of body experiences, and it is very common for people to get interested in things like out of body experiences during the stage of the A&P, which also goes for magick, an A&P-dweller favorite.

Similarly, sleep paralysis, when you can't move your body, is very common in out of body travel experiences and territory. It is common to come back from a travel out of body (simply travel hereafter) to a frozen body, and it is common to feel "the buzz", which is a sense that the frozen body is vibrating strongly.

It is very common to be inspired to practice and get stream entry after the A&P.

All standard stuff. Enjoy it.

Thank you for reply,i accept it very much.

i'm very excited to have found this forum and found so many people who had reach high level of vippassana.

In my country,i can't find anyone to discuss with me about these high level experiences.

I have been stucked in the Dark Night for 3 years,every time i reached the Dark Night,i  fear the horrible feelings and stop training.

Now i read your book , it's very helpful for me.

If next time when i reach the Dark Night,i will try to go through that level.

I will try my best to reach the steam entry.

Thank you so much!

They say you can get out of sleep paraysis if you concentrate really hard and manage to move your toe, once you can move a toe just a tad, the rest gets free as well.  I only had sleep paralysis accompanied by fear (very common), and I found I was able to get out sleep paralysis if I was able to get myself out of being fearful, which is not super easy but doable.  I sometimes wonder if the toe moving works because intense concentration tends to push out the fear to a large extent.  Seems like it is some kind of fear trap, the more you fear the trap, the more you are in the trap.  You just have to break the cycle and shift your mood a bit to get out.  Or if you are an OBEr, you can look at it as the perfect situation to launch an OBE.  ;-P  Sleep paralysis was actually considered a good sign to many OBEers because it is associated with OBEs and it's much easier to go OOB from there.  The vibrations you discussed as was already metioned, are also super common with OBEs.  No one knows exactly why though, at least as is commonly known in the OBE community last I was there.
-Eva