Journeying vs Astral Travel vs Meditation

[The Hammer]

What is the difference between journeying/journeywork and astral travel, as opposed to say meditation?

 

[Quintessence]

The distinction I make between these two in my tradition is:

• Mediation is a practice that facilitates focused attention or non-judgmental awareness. It is a shift in one's state of consciousness more than anything else.
• Journeywork is the practice of traveling to the otherworlds to have experiences there. It is using your imagination and taking it seriously as a gateway to other dimensions of reality.

Certain types of meditation can involve journeywork and vice versa, but the one is not necessary for the other (at least in my experience).

 

[The Hammer]

The distinction I make between these two in my tradition is:

• Mediation is a practice that facilitates focused attention or non-judgmental awareness. It is a shift in one's state of consciousness more than anything else.
• Journeywork is the practice of traveling to the otherworlds to have experiences there. It is using your imagination and taking it seriously as a gateway to other dimensions of reality.

Certain types of meditation can involve journeywork and vice versa, but the one is not necessary for the other (at least in my experience).

This good information. Would you make a differentiation between journeying and astral travel?

 

[Quintessence]

This good information. Would you make a differentiation between journeying and astral travel?

I don't use the term "astral travel," I suppose because I just don't like the etymology and metaphysics implied by the term. While the term has evolved past its origins, I can't help but associate it with Western occultism, Christian mythos, and the geocentric model of the universe. It got called "astral" (aka, star) because in the geocentric model of the universe, the stars are the space between Earth and Heaven (the Christian one); astral space was understood as the space between Earth and Heaven. Doesn't really jam with my Paganism.

 

[The Hammer]

I don't use the term "astral travel," I suppose because I just don't like the etymology and metaphysics implied by the term. While the term has evolved past its origins, I can't help but associate it with Western occultism, Christian mythos, and the geocentric model of the universe. It got called "astral" (aka, star) because in the geocentric model of the universe, the stars are the space between Earth and Heaven (the Christian one); astral space was understood as the space between Earth and Heaven. Doesn't really jam with my Paganism.

I like it.

I didn't know the etymology or history of it.