Out of Body Experiences

An out-of-body experience (OOBE or OBE) is defined as an event in which the experiencer (1) seems to perceive some portion of some environment which could not possibly be perceived from where his physical body is known to be at the time; and (2) knows at the time that he is not dreaming or fantasizing. The experiencer seems to possess his normal consciousness at the time, and even though he may reason that this cannot be happening, he will feel all his normal critical faculties to be present, and so knows he is not dreaming. Further, he will not decide after awakening that this was a dream. How then do we understand this strange phenomenon?

OOBEs are a universal human experience, not in the sense that they happen to large numbers of people, but in that they have happened all through recorded history, and there are marked similarities in the experience among people who are otherwise extremely different in terms of cultural background. The OOBE is generally a once-in-a-lifetime experience, seemingly experienced by “accident.” Illnesses sometimes bring it about, especially illnesses which are almost fatal. Great emotional stress sometimes brings it about. In many cases, it simply happens during sleep without our having any idea of what might have caused it. In very rare instances it seems to have been brought on by a deliberate attempt.

The experience of an OOBE is usually one of the most profound experiences of a person’s life, and radically alters his beliefs. This is usually expressed as, “I no longer believe in survival of death or an immortal soul, I know that I will survive death.” The person feels that he has directly experienced being alive and conscious without his physical body, and therefore knows that he possesses some kind of soul that will survive bodily death. This does not logically follow, for even if the OOBE is more than just an interesting dream or hallucination, it was still occurring while the physical body was alive and functioning and therefore may depend on the physical body. This argument, however, makes no impression on those who have actually had an OOBE.

The OOBE is generally extremely joyful to those who have it. Approximately 90 and 95 percent of the people who have this experience are very glad it occurred and find it joyful, while 5 percent are very frightened by it, for the only way they can interpret it, while it is happening, is that they are dying. Later reactions of the person as he attempts to interpret his OOBE can be rather negative, however.

In some instances of OOBEs the description of what was happening at a distant place is correct and more accurate than we would expect by coincidence. Not the majority, by any means, but some. To explain these we must postulate either that the “hallucinatory” experience of the OOBE was combined with the operation of ESP, or that in some sense the person really was “there.” The OOBE then becomes very real indeed.

(Excerpts from the Introduction by Charles Tart to Journeys Out of the Body by Robert A. Monroe: Doubleday, 1971. Copyright © 1971, 1977 by Robert A. Monroe.)

While all three of Robert Monroe’s books are based on his out-of-body experiences, the Institute’s programs are designed to explore profound states of expanded awareness, which includes the out-of-body state. The main premise of the Institute is that “you are more than your physical body,” and as Monroe would frequently state, “The only way for you to truly know is to find out for yourself through direct experience.”

Additionally, the programs allow participants to know and better understand their total selves. Although some have experienced the out-of-body state, we ask that participants let go of the expectation of the OBE. As participants explore their true nature, that which is more than the physical body, they come to understand that the out-of-body state is only a part of the larger experience of consciousness.

When Monroe’s first book, Journeys out of the Body was published in 1971, very little had been written about the OBE state. His courage to publicly recount his experiences helped countless individuals to not only understand this state of being, but inspired an entire field dedicated to the study and comprehension of extraordinary states of consciousness. Listed below are some of the people and organizations devoted to this endeavor:

(The Monroe Institute does not endorse or agree with everything presented on these sites.)

The Out of Body Research Foundation (OBERF), founded by Jeffrey Long, M.D. and Jody A. Long, J.D., focuses on learning about consciousness when it separates from the body, provides support for those who are interested in sharing, and scientifically researches the phenomena so that it can be freely accepted in the world today. They have created a page on their website that helps to differentiate between out-of-body, near-death and lucid dreaming experiences which they term Spiritual Spectrum Experiences.

Explorations in Consciousness is a privately owned website aimed at facilitating the exploration of consciousness, and the realization of its full potential, through out of body experiences, lucid dreams and other altered states of consciousness. It is dedicated to the community of inquisitive explorers looking for information and interaction with others to enhance their own experience in an atmosphere free from any one specific doctrine or value based philosophy.

William Buhlman, author of Adventures Beyond the Body and The Secret of the Soul, is conducting the world's largest survey on the out-of-body experience, and the over 16,000 responses have yielded amazing conclusions.

Dr. Raymond A. Moody is the leading authority on the “near-death experience”—a phrase he coined in the late seventies. Dr. Moody's research into the phenomenon of near-death experience had its start in the 1960's. He is the best-selling author of eleven books on the subject of NDEs, and continues to capture enormous public interest and generate controversy with his ground-breaking work on the near-death experience and what happens when we die.

The International Association for Near-Death Studies (IANDS) is the first organization in the world devoted exclusively to the study of near-death experiences (NDEs) and near-death-like experiences. Founded in 1978, it has become the pmier NDE resource for research, education and support.

Afterlife Knowledge is a website and resource center dedicated to what author, lecturer and engineer Bruce Moen has found and shares in the hope that it will reduce fear and uncertainty about death and help you to increase your understanding of the afterlife. He has written five books about the afterlife titled Voyages into the Unknown, Voyage Beyond Doubt, Voyages into the Afterlife: Charting Unknown Territory, Voyage to Curiosity’s Father and Afterlife Knowledge Guidebook.

The Lucidity Institute, Inc. was founded in 1987 by lucid dreaming researcher Dr. Stephen LaBerge to support research on lucid dreams and to help people learn to use such dreams to enhance their lives. Lucid dreaming means dreaming while knowing that one is dreaming and allows people to consciously guide the direction of their dreams. Dr. LaBerge and Lynne Levitan have written a paper titled OTHER WORLDS: OUT-OF-BODY EXPERIENCES AND LUCID DREAMS.