Astral projection is now a hot topic in the media in the context of the murder of four of a family at Nanthancode. Astral projection has been the favourite for several occult practices. The association of astral projection with spiritual concepts like soul, mystical experience, etc., does not withstand the test of real science or authentic theology. The scientific equivalent of astral projection is out of body experience. Neurologists suggest that as awareness of space is dependent on the hippocampus – the region of the brain that forms part of the limbic system and is primarily associated with memory and spatial navigation, the hyperactivation of hippocampus will result in a visual hallucination in which the patient is set above his/her body. Moreover, because the structures of the limbic system are involved in memory storage and retrieval, in receiving visual input and contains neurons sensitive to the visual fields, hyper activation of this region may also induce the sensation of seeing a radiant light to generate the memories of family and beloved ones. Here the person loses the sense of self and feels that he goes out of the body. The neurobiological basis of out-of-body experiences has been demonstrated by studies done on the patients who had temporal lobe seizure and lesions.

The first scientific study of an out of body experience of a concrete case was done by Andra M. Smith and Claude Messierwere from the University of Ottawa. What the fMRI showed is that there is strong deactivation of the visual cortex resulting from the activation of the left side of several areas associated with kinesthetic imagery, that includes the mental imagery of bodily movement. This region gives us the bodily consciousness and generates the feeling that our body is in relation to the world. The researchers hold that out of body experience can be produced “by brain traumas, sensory deprivation, near-death experiences, dissociative and psychedelic drugs, dehydration, sleep, and electrical stimulation of the brain, among others. It can also be deliberately induced by some.” In the sense of the subject experiencing it, it may be said to be real; but that is no indication that one’s soul is getting out of body, as superstitiously championed by some occult groups. That is not the sort of relationship between body and soul advocated by theology too. Scientists categorically affirm that in out of body experience, there is no paranormal activity of any kind. This is only a hallucination caused by some neurological mechanism.