Ruler of the Astral Realm

Every time I have come close to projection, it feels like my astral body is being tugged by a conscious presence while experiencing sleep paralysis. Is this just an objectification of my own efforts to project, or is the astral realm ruled by some sort of elemental spirit? Maybe there really is something to western mythologies that speak of the gods of sleep, Morpheus, Hypnos and others.

[Albalida]

It could be your own desire to project coming out when your conscious determination to do so is at rest, or it could be something else trying to pull you out. It isn't necessarily a ruler of the realm, but it could be a personal guide of yours.

Ah, those guys are great: Morpheus, Phantasos, Hypnos, even Phobetor. They never return my calls, though.

[Astral Explorer]

Originally Posted by Alpha Lex

Every time I have come close to projection, it feels like my astral body is being tugged by a conscious presence while experiencing sleep paralysis. Is this just an objectification of my own efforts to project, or is the astral realm ruled by some sort of elemental spirit? Maybe there really is something to western mythologies that speak of the gods of sleep, Morpheus, Hypnos and others.

It's either a feeling you're experiencing during the projection attempt or it could be a spirit. From my experience spirits are almost always around us and they can tell the moment we are in a conscious state of thought in our subtle body. They wait for me to be in that state and pick up my astral body and carry it into specific sections of the planes. Your best bet would be to acknowledge it when it happens and try and speak with someone. If you get a response then you have your answer.

[amylou]

I used to feel this forceful pull from my crown area in sleep paralysis. When I'd get out, no one was there. It's probably your guides just trying to help you out.

Thanks for the replies. I just read in the book "Soul Travels" by Tyson that shamans of all traditions invoke totem animal spirits to carry them in the astral realm. Maybe one most related to the soul traveler stands by ready to assist when a projection is imminent.

I'm very new to all this and can't really give advice, but I can share my experiences at least.

Before I ever even knew what any of this was at all, I would experience sleep paralysis on a very regular basis. When I began to learn that sleep paralysis could be used as a sort of springboard into something more, I began feeling a tugging as well as I tried to sort of get out of my body rather than be stuck inside of it.

The "tugging" didn't lead anywhere for a while... and then slowly, I began to inch up out of myself a little bit with the "tugging," aaaaaand then I'd freak out and slam right back into myself and the experience would end, haha.

Over time, it's now become less of a tugging and more of a lifting? I now lift up out of myself and it is no longer terrifying. I also rarely experience sleep paralysis anymore.

For me, it's been a journey from learning how to stop the fear of sleep paralysis and learning to accept the experience and not panic...to learning how to allow the lift to happen rather than fight to have control over the experience (the "fighting" to control it is what gave me a tugging or fighting sensation).

[wstein]

Originally Posted by Alpha Lex

being tugged by a [] presence while experiencing sleep paralysis.

This is a normal part of sleep paralysis and has nothing to do with projection. For people who are not trying to project, these presences are often attributed to ETs.