What happens during an out-of-body experience?

Osho, you have said that if a seeker undertakes the experiment with intense resolve—“I want to die, I want to return to my center”—then within a few days his life-energy (prana) begins to contract inward, and the seeker may first, from within, and later from without, see his own body lying there as if dead; then his fear of death is erased forever. So the question is: in such a state, is any special preparation or precaution necessary to be able to return safely to the body again? Or does the return happen all by itself? Please shed light on this.

Human life, in many senses, is the life of the mind. What we take to be a physical event is, in its depths, a mental event as well. Whatever appears upon the body has its birth in the mind. If we understand a couple of points in this regard, then the question that has been asked will be easier to understand. Until about fifty years ago all illnesses were thought to be physical. In these past fifty years, as our understanding of disease has grown, the proportion considered purely physical has gone down and the mental proportion has gone up. Today even the most diehard materialist is ready to accept that more than fifty percent of illnesses are mental. And even those that are physical are influenced more than half by the mind. The mind is the fulcrum of our personality. From there we live, from there we fall ill,…

Osho, you have said before that if a seeker in his experiment should make an intense resolve that he would like to die, that he would like to return to his own center, in a few days his life energy will begin to contract from within and the seeker will be able to see his body as dead -- first from within, and then from without. Consequently, his fear of death will disappear forever. So the question is: in this condition, does one need to make any special preparation or take any extra precaution so that the subtle body may return safely to the physical body? Or, does the return of the subtle bo

You will find that with this resolve, sitting in the car even for half an hour did not prove to be worthless. You will come out with the feeling that you have gained something, that you are richer than you were a half hour ago. So the question is not where you experiment, or what means are used for that purpose. I just gave you an example. The point is, you may follow any experiment that will help you strengthen your will-power. It would be good if you carried on with the small ones. If a man is asked to go in meditation for forty minutes by simply closing his eyes, he can't do it; he opens his eyes frequently and looks around. Now this man is without a will, he is not centered. There are great advantages in closing the eyes, it causes no harm. But this man can't…

Osho, is there something like a subtle body within the body, or not?

There is only one way: while you are alive, the body and the body’s consciousness can separate. At the time of death it happens anyway. But then we have no means left to know it. The only means we have is that, while living, a person can experience being outside the body. This experience often happens accidentally—and to many people. It is a fairly common experience; it is not very unusual. Many people have it happen accidentally—during some grave illness, sometimes when a severe injury occurs...

Question: BELOVED OSHO, NOT INFREQUENTLY, WHEN I BEGIN TO WAKE IN THE MORINIG, I HAVE SUCH A STRONG SENSE OF HOW ARBITRARY IT IS THAT I AM BACK IN MY PARTICULAR FORM. I RECOGNIZE THE PERSON I SLIP BACK INTO: I KNOW HER MANNERISMS, HER LIKES AND DISLIKES. AND IT SEEMS NO ONE ELSE IS AVAILABLE TO BE IN HER BODY -- THEY ARE BUSY LOOKING AFTER THEIR OWN -- SO I SLIP IN, AND START THE DAY. APPARENTLY THE AUSTRALIAN ABORIGINES BELIEVES THAT WHEN ONE SLEEPS, ONE LEAVES THE BODY; DREAMS ARE IN FACT, ACCORDING TO THEM, THE ADVENTURES OF THEIR BODYLESS BEING. I WISH I COULD MAINTAIN THIS SENSE OF DISTANCE ALL THE TIME. IT SEEMS CURIOUS THAT IT HAPPENS EITHER THROUGH ABSOLUTE ALERTNESS -- WITNESSING -- OR AFTER COMING OUT OF DEEP UNCONSCIOUSNESS.

[A sannyasin says he is out of contact with himself; that whatever he does he is continually hearing words of reinforcement in his head. Osho checks his energy.] Good! No need to be worried or afraid. It is just that for the first time you are having some out-of-the-body experiences, you are moving out of your body. It is a good experience but very frightening. One feels disconnected because we are so much identified with the body and when you are hovering beyond the body you naturally feel disconnected. The body feels so alien and foreign, as if it is somebody else's body, as if you are carrying somebody else's body. It is scary but it is beautiful. It is one of the very valuable experiences on the way. Allow it, don't be worried. Hover around the body, remain disconnected.