As I mentioned earlier, the layer closest to the mortal realm is called the Penumbra. And for travelers who either project themselves astrally or step sideways into their Vidare Astral, that Penumbra looks and feels like a glittering, ultra-clear reflection of the mortal world. Symbolic elements of the landscape become quite – often blatantly – obvious. A public school, for example, might look and feel rather industrial: square, blunt, maybe with cattle pens, assembly lines, or even a giant meat grinder straight out of Pink Floyd’s The Wall. Even at this Penumbra level, the

idea of things dominates the surroundings. By entering the Astral Penumbra, we’re walking into the literal landscape of the mind.

Here’s an important reminder: the High, Middle, and Low Penumbrae are all the same place. The differences between them don’t reflect the Penumbra itself – they reflect the travelers who go there.

Once you move beyond the Penumbra, though, that’s an entirely different matter…