body parts, and being stuck in two bodies at once are
some things that may occur. Never give up under any
circumstances and do not stop separating if this
happens. Full separation will occur if you counteract
such problems with all your strength.
- Not Recognizing the Phase
Practitioners often enter the phase but then return
back to the body because they feel that what occurred
is not what they had expected. For example, when
observing images they are often pulled into the
scenery, or they are spontaneously thrown into another
world when rotating. Practitioners often think that they
have to experience the feeling of separation itself,
which is why they might return back to their bodies in
order to obtain it. The same applies to becoming
conscious while dreaming, as the practitioner is already
in the phase and it only remains to deepen and
implement his plan of action.
- Awakening to Movement (no Attempt or a Sluggish
One)
Awakening without moving is desirable, but not
mandatory. There's no sense in forgoing most
opportunities by waiting for the right awakening. You
must take advantage of every awakening that you can.
- Wasting the First Seconds
Try to develop the habit of immediately and
reflexively proceeding to the techniques upon
awakening, without losing a second. The more time
that elapses between awakening and the attempt itself,
the lower the odds of success. It's best to learn to catch
not so much the very second of awakening, but rather
the transitional moment when “surfacing” from sleep.
Separation is almost always successful during that
transitional moment.
- Selection of Same-Type Techniques
There's no point in selecting techniques for your
practice that are similar to one another or focused on
the same sensation (when using techniques from other
parts of this book).
- Use of a Single Technique