The Strength of a Group Practice

At the end of every Dreams and Out-of-Body Experiences course, students from all over the world join together for a special group astral exercise. A new goal is chosen each round, with the hope of investigating and inspiring, achieving new experiences, and putting in a practical effort.

The destination this time is personal for each individual; it is not among the stars, nor a location on the globe. Our goal is to explore one’s own Heart Temple.

Let us apply what we have learned during the course round and experience the motivation of a group effort. When we practice as a group, wherever we are in the world, there is a tangible strength. This can inspire and bolster our effort individually; and, we in turn contribute to this strength.

What lies within your heart?

Join others around the world as we each explore the hidden mysteries and spiritual significance held with our own heart, by visualizing the heart as a temple. Our goal is to travel into the Heart Temple and learn about the heart’s significance as a spiritual place.

The physical heart is our body’s source of life, sending blood to be rejuvenated with oxygen, and pumping that blood throughout our body. Our heartbeat is a rhythm that accompanies our lives. In cultures around the world, the heart is regarded as the seat of the soul. We often associate the heart with love and other emotions. In ancient Egyptian texts, we find images of the heart, symbolizing the soul, being weighed against a feather, symbolizing truth, to determine a person’s afterlife.

Rather than intellectualize the concept of the heart, we can practically approach it through meditation and astral practices. In this way, we can uncover and understand universal qualities of our heart and soul and gain insights that cannot be put into words. In the astral, we can ask to learn more about the heart as a spiritual place.

In the heart region of our body is one of many energy centers, or chakras. When we activate the chakra of the heart we also activate the corresponding spiritual faculty of intuition. As we learned in the course, intuition is important for instant understanding of symbols or dream images, for example. We can tap into our heart chakra and invigorate our intuition by pronouncing the mantra “0”, as described in the practice section of this handout.

Aside from mantras, we can connect with our intuition and other spiritual qualities of the heart through meditative heart concentration practices. In the course, we learned to concentrate and visualize the heart as both a sit-down practice and an astral practice. Perhaps you have already gained some insight into your heart from these practices thus far. This week, our goal is to explore the heart more in depth, both during the day and at night.

To explore the Heart Temple, we will practice a variation of heart concentration, by visualizing the heart as a spiritual place. Focus on your heart area, and imagine it as a spiritual temple. This can be a place you have seen, or one you create for yourself. As you approach the temple, continue to visualize and begin to explore the temple with your five senses. It can be helpful to first look at and visualize images of a temple, or objects one might find in a temple, such as a statue, painting, a chalice, candles, etc.

Preparing for Success

Schedule of Practices during the Week

This schedule of exercises can be a framework for you to build your astral success and gain personal experience journeying into your Heart Temple. The effort you put forth during the day can translate to your success at night; the following practices can be a foundation on which to build your nightly astral practice.

• Awareness – Anchor yourself in the present moment throughout the day, whether by concentrating during simple tasks, or trying to be present from moment to moment. The more clear and aware we are during the day, the more we experience the astral plane in a clear state.

• Reality Checks – Aim to test reality 40 to 50 times during the day. Sincerely question where you are - imagine the world of possibility that can unfold if you really are asleep!
  As a slight variation, you can try to count each time you test reality. If you can’t remember what number you’re on… maybe you’re dreaming!

• Concentration on the Heart Beat or Visualization of the Heart – Practice either of these variations of concentrating on the heart by focusing on the heart beat, and visualizing the physical heart.

• The Mantra “O” – The vowel “O” corresponds with the heart chakra. This energy center is tied to the faculty of intuition. Vocalize the Mantra “O” for at least 10 minutes a day. Sit or lie in a comfortable position, and relax your body. Inhale through your nose, and pronounce the vowel “Oooooooo…” as you exhale. Gently inhale, and pronounce the vowel again. If you like, you can gradual become quieter, until you pronounce the manta internally.
  As a nice combination, try practicing the “O” mantra before a heart concentration practice, and feel your heart beat awaken!



• Visualization of Temple Images – For 10 or more minutes a day, look at inspiring images of temples, their exterior, interior, and/or objects that may be in a temple. Study a picture, and visualize it with your mind’s eye. After an initial visualization, you can imaginatively explore the images, in preparation for the evening astral practice.

• Concentration on the Heart as a Temple – Build upon your practices of visualizing spiritual images, and use this imaginative visualization as a captivating and concentrative astral projection practice. Strive to imagine a temple with all of your senses – how does the air feel on your skin, or your feet on the floor? What do you smell – incense, flowers, fresh air, cold stone? What sounds do you hear? Do your footsteps echo, is there faint music, are there birds chirping? Vividly create a scene for yourself, and let your intuition guide you.

• Nightly Astral Practices – Each night of the week, practice a variation of Concentration on the Heart astral exercise with the goal of learning more about your heart, especially by projecting into your Heart Temple. You may choose between the various heart exercises (Temple, Beats, Physical Heart, Forest, etc).

• Start Your Day with a Practice (Optional) – To set a focused and uplifting tone on your day, you could start the day with a practice. You can try any of the above practices in the morning. For example, vocalize the “O” mantra in the morning before starting your tasks for the day. Then, focus on the tasks ahead of you with concentration and awareness. Remember, even a short practice can refuel you!

• View the video for inspiration:

Journey into the Heart Temple

Saturday All-Night Group Practice - October 18th, 2008

• By 9:30 pm – Ensure that your bedroom is a peaceful place for the practice. Put away any clothes or items out of place to tidy the room. You can establish a spiritual atmosphere by lighting some incense, using essential oils, or perhaps listening to peaceful and inspiring music.

  Begin your practice at 10:00 pm:

• 10:00 pm – Visualization of your Heart as a Temple

• 12:00 am – Concentration on the Heart Beats

• 2:00 am – Mantra for Astral Projection of your choice: Egypto, La Ra S, Fa Ra On, etc.

• 4:00 am – Visualization of your Heart as a Temple

• In the morning – Lie still when you first wake up, and try to remember your last dream image. Stay still as you recall what transpired in the night.
  Internally pronounce the mantra “Raom Gaom” to help remember more. When you’re ready, gently rise from your bed and write down your dreams in your dream journal.

If you would like to share your success, experiences, or thoughts about how the week or the All-Night Group Practice went, we would love to hear about it on the course forums on Gnosticweb or at your local Gnostic Center!

Remember, we’re all striving for these astral goals together; no matter where you are in the world you are contributing to and receiving aid from the group strength.

We hope you are inspired by what you discover within your heart!

All the best on your inner journey,
The Gnosticweb Team