Me: I'd like to start writing more about memories from home, as well as my experiences with other deities/entities. I'd keep the tone mostly professional, of course, but humor isn't out of the question.
Also Me: aaaaAaaAAAAAAAAAAAA WHY IS WRITING SO DIFFICULT AAAAAAAAAAAA-
I’ve been meaning to make this post for a long time and I’m finally sitting down and doing it. I had SUCH a hard time learning how to astral travel, for a whole lot of reasons, but I finally found a book that actually helped me, and prompted me to design my own techniques for travel. The book is here, if anyone’s interested. I know that it’s not accessible for everyone, but if you get the opportunity I really recommend giving it a read through.
If anybody has questions for me about my own tips, detailed obnoxiously thoroughly under the cut, feel completely free to message me.
Reasons why people think they can’t astral travel:
These are all super valid reasons to feel like astral travel isn’t for you, but if you feel like you can try to get around them I absolutely recommend doing so. I’ve definitely struggled with a lot of these and either found ways around them or accepted that they’re not going to change.
-inability to sit still for long periods of time: to get around this, I recommend sitting in a chair that you can kick your legs in or move your arms in, like a tall bar chair (I do recommend something that has a back though!) it is totally okay to move your body while you’re in the astral, and doesn’t impact your ability to travel. It can actually help!
-inability to keep hands still for long periods of time: similarly, it’s totally alright for you to fidget with a toy while you travel. It’s a good way to quiet noisy hands and focus more on your brain for a little while. I sometimes roll a marble or a d20 around in my hand! Just make sure it’s something that won’t bump you out of the astral if you drop it or something.
-inability to clear the mind for long periods of time (or at all): this is fine! Just like in meatspace, it’s okay to have a busy mind when you’re in the astral. There are a lot of “clearing the mind” activities you can try, but if it doesn’t work, that’s not the end of the world. Most of the time when I’m astral traveling, I talk to myself in my head as though I were journaling, or even narrating, as I go. It helps me pay attention to what’s going on, and gives my internal monologue something to do rather than just talk about whatever.
-difficulty seeing: I think there are some people who can really SEE what’s going on in the astral, as clearly as if it were happening in day to day life, but i don’t think I’ve ever met one of these people. It’s way more common, in my experience, that you see things more like you’re imagining, with fuzzy, dreamlike visuals the longer you’re in the astral and the deeper into the trance state you get.
-difficulty hearing: again, it’s not necessarily so much that you’ll “hear” them as if they were speaking to you in the same room. You’re much more likely to get conceptual sentences like loud thoughts, and they may be mumbled, or have to be translated a couple times into a language you can understand.
-noisy brain: I’ll occasionally put on noise generators for when I go into the astral, to give my ears something to focus on. Putting on wind or rain generators, for example, may affect the weather in your astral plane, but this isn’t a bad thing. Worst comes to worst, it’s okay to have a song stuck in your head while you’re in the astral ;)
What to do with your body:
Sit in a comfortable position, with your back against a wall or chair. Feel free to use blankets, pillows, or whatever else to make yourself more comfortable, but try to avoid distracting textures. Try not to be too warm or too cold, and wear loose, soft clothing if you’re able.
Sit facing a cardinal direction. I always sit facing north if I can help it. This isn’t absolutely necessary, but it helps the transition from astral plane back to meatspace be less disorienting.
If you want to put on a noise generator, now is the time. Close your eyes. If you’re distracted by lights at all, like me, turn the lights in the room off and shut the blinds. Find a breathing pattern that is comfortable to you. It doesn’t matter what it is, but breathing in through the nose and out through the mouth is helpful. Some common breathing patterns are “breathe in 4, breathe out 4, breathe in 4, breathe out 4,″ “breathe in 3, hold for 3, breathe out 3, hold for 3,” “breathe in 5, hold for 3, breathe out 7, hold for 3,” etc. It doesn’t matter at all except for what’s comfortable for you and what you can fall into a pattern of, without thinking about it too much.
Meditation:
Begin by creating an energy ball. Hold your hands apart from each other as though you were gripping a ball. Channel energy out of your palms to fill the ball, let it move and change as it needs to. Without opening your eyes, take note of everything you can about the ball… size, weight, shape, color, temperature. Does it smell or taste like anything? Does it make a sound? Keep this in mind. The ball is made of your own personal energy… like an aura, kind of. Things on the Astral plane will have their own energy “signatures,” and the ability to keep track of your own will help you weed out misinformation, as well as check in with yourself if you get disoriented.
Make sure you’re still breathing in your determined pattern, more or less.
Hold on to the ball you’ve created, letting it move and flow however is natural and comfortable. Slowly, extend your view forward, past the walls of the room you’re in, past the walls of the building, out into the world. You don’t have to know exactly what’s out there, but practice reaching your consciousness out across the street, and then a building away, and then a block away, and then a mile away… the farther you go, the fuzzier and weaker it’s likely to be. Don’t push yourself too hard! Practice in other directions too… backwards, side to side, and up and down. Don’t be afraid to use your imagination… it doesn’t make you “fake.” Astral travel, for most people, feels a LOT like imagining. When you feel like you can successfully reach your consciousness out pretty far, bring it back.
Check again that you’re breathing in your pattern.
Focus on your energy ball again. When you feel ready, imagine the ball flattening into a disk… thinning out, wider and wider as you lower it down onto the floor of the room (you don’t have to actually move your body!) and lay the circle down. Imagine it however you’d like, as long as it’s a protective ward. You can picture a ring of salt, a round glass wall, a mosquito net… whatever is easiest for you to visualize. This is a barrier, to prevent any harmful spirits from getting to you. Astral travel is, for the most part, a safe practice, but without precautions one can be hurt by things in the astral – not to mention, one can accidentally bring things back when they leave, or even leave something behind!
Note how dark it is, behind your closed eyes. That’s okay! You’re not “supposed” to see anything just yet (however, if you can, that’s not a bad thing either). This is the part that you’re actually going to use your imagination for.
Picture yourself in an enclosed space with defined exits into the world beyond it. You’re allowed to completely create this area. It’s not a part of the natural Astral plane, but a composed “spawn point” to give you a gateway. The area can be anything: An elevator, a cave, a hotel room, a grove of trees, a bus stop, a subway station, a ring of stones… as long as it’s something you can create with your mind, it’s gonna work fine. Take as long as you need to really come up with how this place looks. Practice “seeing” it (again, you are probably not going to get pictures with your eyes… it’s more like a daydream or a passing thought, at least this early) and imagine what might be there.
The things that happen here are entirely your own creation. If you try to “scan” the area, you’ll probably notice that it’s all made up of the same kind of energy that you put into your ball when you started. Because of the circle you put down, nothing that’s not your own creation can get in here unless you allow it. If you’re just starting, feel free to stop here. You can come this far, and get acquainted with the made-up area, and then leave again, as many times as you need in order to become comfortable with the idea. It’s a good exercise for visualization as well as for “stretching your astral muscles” before trying to explore the Astral plane.
Entering the Astral:
Once you’re comfortable with your “spawn point,” you can try stepping out of your imagination and onto the actual Astral plane. It’s important that you don’t try to imagine what the area outside of the one you created will look or feel like. Just let it come to you as if you were exploring a new physical place (because you sort of are!) There’s no “right way” for it to look… the Astral is a HUGE place.
Take a step outside, using the defined exit of the place you imagined (a gap in the trees, a door, the mouth of the cave, et cetera). If you imagined yourself in a subway station, bus stop, or similar, you can even catch a ride to another place! You may learn to create bus lines, for example, that you can “program” to take you to the specific places you want to go. Let information come to you at its own pace and in its own form. Start walking around, and take in the things you experience. See what you can do here!
If you didn’t “see” like a photograph in your imagined space, you probably won’t here either. It’s probably going to be easy to move around for a while, too, before you get the hang of it. It may help to picture it like a first-person video game or a virtual reality ride, as though your sensory input were on a screen in front of you that you can control the perspective and motion of.
Energy signatures:
The longer you’re in the astral, the more likely and more clearly you’re going to be able to take in sensory input, but it’s not always straightforward. In my own experience, things in the Astral are not always easy for our brains to make sense of… and our “mind’s eye” is not always perfectly accurate.
One reason to start with the energy ball is because you, like most things, have an “energy signature,” a particular type of matter or energy that you’re composed of which is individual to you. This is your Astral fingerprint, and in a place where your imagination and your sensory input are otherwise indistinguishable from each other, being familiar with that fingerprint makes it possible to know what’s “real” in the Astral, and what you’ve created.
More often than not, these energy signatures have to be processed by your brain and your experiences… to “see” (and I am still using “see” loosely here) the Astral world, you have to have recognizable shapes to work with. If you run into something with an energy you recognize as A BUILDING, you probably have an image of A BUILDING stored in your memories that you can project onto the energetic input. If you come across an energy you recognize as A PATH, your brain might substitute the pictures it already knows for DIRT ROAD, TRAIN TRACKS, HIGHWAY, or even CANAL… It’s usually based on the context and on what’s going to make you (and your brain) more comfortable in the moment.
Sometimes this leads to interesting encounters. When I went into the Astral for the first time, for instance, I ran into a flock of birds which pretty instantly registered as birds. However, as I’d been playing a lot of Pokemon GO earlier that day, the first birds my brain could pull up a picture of were pidgeys. On realizing this, I assured myself that these were likely not actual pidgeys, reassessed the energetic signature, and found that what I was actually looking at was something closer to a sparrow.
There’s a guy I run into sometimes on my trips who I honest-to-any-god cannot tell whether he’s a grown man or a cricket. All I know is we often see each other across the cab of the train that I take, and that he’s a generally friendly person/bug.
My fiance, once upon an astral excursion, ran into a lovely animal which appeared to be a combination of a squirrel monkey and a bird of paradise. We’ve theorized that, whatever the creature actually is or looks like, it was probably a small and tropical tree-faring animal which gave of “vibes” (or an energy signature) of being exotic, elegant, and theatrically showy.
Some things you can try:
There are a lot of things you can do in the astral… some are harder than others, but anything’s possible with enough effort and practice.
-Find a mirror. Your astral form might be different from your form on earth. If you can find a flat source of water, a sheet of glass or metal, or anything else reflective (you might even be able to find an actual mirror), take a minute to check yourself out!
-Find a guide. Sometimes there are guides, like spirits, animals, or other people, who might be around that would be willing to lead you somewhere, or at least pass off some directions. If you’re not sure where to look, try shouting!!! Be wary of the people you meet, but remember that people there are a lot like people here. And remember to say thank you! If you start following the first animal you see, though, be careful. Not all animals are Animal Guides… sometimes, they’re just animals. (I’ve followed a random goat for like a mile and a half before realizing he was just a goat.)
-Practice your superpowers. Try doing more visible, harry-potter-style witchcraft! It’s easier to visualize the results of your magic if all of your sensory input is visualization! Try moving things with your mind, controlling the elements, manifesting objects… See what’s possible and what isn’t!
-Get around. There are a lot of ways to travel in the Astral. Once you’ve created a mental map, which takes time and exploration, there are quick ways to get around like teleportation, flying, hitchhiking, and public transit. See what you like best, and where each one can take you.
-Build a house. Many people will suggest creating a “home base” in the Astral where you can rest, have guests, contemplate, or just be alone. There are plenty of guides for this, using different names and techniques. This house, unlike your created entryway, really does exist in the astral, but is similarly entirely your creation. You can put up wards there, too, in order to keep unwanted entities from entering without your consent.
-Make friends. There are lots of spirits, people, animals, and other sorts of beings in the astral, and some of them might even be personable! Be careful, of course, but it’s absolutely okay to reach out and try to befriend somebody. There are politics in the Astral plane like anywhere else, and there are parties, churches, and community gardens too! See where you can meet folks, participate in discourse, and learn more about the things around you.
Leaving the Astral:
When you leave the Astral plane, while it is (usually) easier than entering, be sure to try to go slowly and gently, rather than all at once. You may get jolted out, either from something that happens in the Astral or something that happens on your own physical realm, and that’s okay. It happens all the time. It’s just not the most pleasant way to do it, usually! The best thing to do is usually to sit somewhere safe and comfortable in the astral (your home, if you’ve made one, is a very good bet, but you can also create another imaginary space or go back to the one you made before) and “meditate” again. Pay attention to your breathing, close your eyes, and picture “projecting” back into your physical form. It should be a much easier return trip, but take it slow.
If you are disoriented, dizzy, nauseous, or sore upon returning, that’s okay! In my experience, that’s actually pretty normal. I wouldn’t recommend falling asleep immediately after returning; instead, journal everything important that happened that you can remember (astral experiences, like dreams, can sometimes fade quickly from one’s memory) and make yourself a cup of tea. Drink some water. Do whatever self care needs to be done.
If you’re a beginner, you’re going to get better with time. Astral travel is different for everybody! Feel free to discuss your experiences with friends and fellow witches, but remember that you’re probably not going to have the exact same experiences and you don’t need to worry about the validity or quality of either.
Can you see why I absolutely love @crystalballroom_sta Plus it literally is 5 minutes from my house! Vendor Team: @crystalballroom_sta @goddessweddingceremonies @canonusa @profoto @makeupbyfiorella @hairbyamandabrown @coastalcreationsvideo @djborna @chocolattes47 #divinememories #divinemoments #crystalballroomsaintaugustine #staugustineweddingphotographer #staugustinewedding (at Crystal Ballroom Saint Augustine) https://www.instagram.com/p/CZMaNtJuY-Z/?utm_medium=tumblr
It was such an honor to photograph @djjeffbell wedding at the amazing venue @brickandbeamjax Vendor team: @canonusa @profoto @djjeffbell @brickandbeamjax #jeffbell #jeffbellexperience #divinememories #divinemoments #jacksonvilleweddings #downtownjacksonville #jacksonvilleweddingphotographer #downtownjacksonvillewedding (at Brick and Beam) https://www.instagram.com/p/CZHQVzYu3Bn/?utm_medium=tumblr
@phillip_4_florida and @stacemynace had such a perfect night under the stars! 🌌🌟 Thank you @davidgpietrasiuk for allowing my team and I photograph your daughters wedding. It was an incredible night! Vendors: @canonusa @profoto @ourppa @clubcontinentalop @alleycakes @parkersevents @picture_time_photo_booths @adampressleyfilms @djdavidtron #jacksonvilleweddingphotographer #jacksonvillephotographer #divinemoments #divinememories #divinestudios #starphotography #weddingastrophotography (at The Club Continental) https://www.instagram.com/p/CXlTGrVuob_/?utm_medium=tumblr
I think this was my first time ever that the wind was so strong I didn’t need an assistant to “fluff” the dress. @canonusa @ourppa @profoto @azaleanamanor @coastalcoordinating #jacksonvilleweddings #jacksonvilleweddingphotographer #divinemoments #divinememories #divinestudios #bride2021 (at Azaleana Manor) https://www.instagram.com/p/CXgRDfzOMPN/?utm_medium=tumblr
Yep, I'm still doing these. Just a heads up, this one's a little more serious in nature, but the overall tone of these files will shift from entry to entry.
Athena almost succeeded at erasing a major part of history.
It's already difficult enough finding reliable sources surrounding Metis, as well her role (and the roles of others) in the Titanomachy, but that information was almost lost forever due to the efforts of my (half) sister.
To Athena, Metis represented the darkest aspects of Zeus's reign, as well as an overwhelming destiny nobody asked for. When she discovered that I existed, and that she was the second child of Metis destined to overthrow Zeus, she immediately went to work.
Written records were destroyed, artwork annihilated, and temples dedicated to Metis were either changed to the liking of other deities, or ransacked and left to rot.
I was preoccupied with watching over my realm, but when I received the news, I was shocked. My mother had told me about Athena, but I never got the chance to really bond with her. When I raced to Olympos to find Athena, I wasn't exactly looking to make friends during my time there.
Although Athena and I are on better terms now, there's some things that we aren't ready to discuss yet. Speaking of her, it's been almost two months since we last communicated. She told me she had important work to do, but I have no clue what that's supposed to mean.
Metis created me to look after the followers of the Pre-Olympian Hellenic Pantheon, using only simple and mundane ingredients. Salt water, quartz-filled sands, the voice of a breeze, some fish scales, and a few other things. However, the fast-moving coastal sand picked up a sharp rock that managed to scratch her hand, causing a single drop of ichor to become part of the mix. A few days later, I formed.
To put if frankly, I wasn't exactly the most ordinary sight. The first thing you'd notice was the light blue skin, with turquoise scales that became increasingly more evident the farther they were from the head and torso.
Second, the robe. White and plain, nothing worth mentioning, other than it existed.
Third would be the facial details. A short and curl-filled "bob" with a color I can only describe as "close to platinum blonde, but not quite". White dots on the cheeks reminiscent of human freckles. A singular, large eye, a opalescent sapphire-blue. The gentle smile, hiding an array of sharp teeth that put a piranha to shame.
It's not that I didn't try to help the humans on Earth. Believe me, I tried my hardest, but it wasn't meant to be. They were either ran away in fear, or they grabbed the nearest pitchforks and charged. For a while, a cult of self proclaimed "monster hunters" chased me across the Mediterranean. Barely a fledgling goddess, I didn't have much to defend myself with.
Once Metis found out, she was like "Hey, quit chasing this child around or else" and the cult left. After that incident, she decided to fly me over to Mesokosm out of fear for my own safety. She visited once every so often, mostly in dreams, but I rarely came to Earth.
