Dude,

As you know, I am a committed Christian.  Robert Bruce strikes me as far more hostile to Christianity than either Robert Monroe or Bruce Moen.  Despite this, I am far more impressed by the astral insights of RB than I am of Monroe's.  RB's descriptive and analytical skills are far superior, despite his occasional eccentric and annoying lapses into rituals derived from magic.  Still, RB once admitted to me that his schematization of astral structures is more informed by his metaphysical belief system and the occult writers he has read than by direct experience.  Monroe's focus system, however flawed and misleading, is at least based on his TMI technology for exploring altered states of mind.  It is a very complex issue to determine which, if either, of these two astral adepts is better informed on the actual structure of the astral territories.  So you pose a good question, which needs to be expanded to accomodate rival astral structures championed by other astral adepts like Swedenborg and other experience-based systems like Eckandar.  I will also try to engage this issue in my Heaven thread.

Don

P.S.  For what it's worth, I am also more impressed by Robert Bruce and Brian Mercer's book "Mastering Astral Projection," than I am by Monroe's much more expensive Gateway CDs.

Interesting topic, for certain. For what it's worth, many decades ago I studied many of the Indian systems such as Radasoami and Sant Mat. They claim centuries of extensive exploration of this inner geography. Just pulling from memory, here.......seems they locate the astral realm in the region our scientists call the stratosphere. Higher planes (causal, mental, etheric, etc) extend outwards from earth in concentric rings. The causal, I believe, they located in the area our scientists call the troposphere or ionosphere.

Sometimes in reading Monroe and Moen, I get the feeling they spent much time maybe reinventing the wheel. The eastern paths claim much knowlege of this out of body state. I just never had the right stuff, I guess.....meditation and such never came easy to me, so I was unable to follow up. An old book by Julian Johnson writes a lot about these planes and subplanes, in a generalized sense.

-Chuck-

  I would say that such ways of perceiving are probably true in a sense, but that its more of a mental earthly construct.   Life is not spatial as we think it, its dimensional and vibrational in nature.   Hence there isn't truly a physical Earth which has ever expanded rings or planes going outward from it...this is just the distorted, earthy reflection of what is real...that the physical Earth is the slowest vibratory level, and that there are ever faster vibratory levels connected to same.

  To a more materially focussed mind, this inner reality may be projected out or seen as ever expanding outward planes from the Earth.

  The other Planets in our Solar system, have both physical and nonphysical attributes as well.  Nonphysically, they represent the major dimensional levels that we exist and live in after we transition from the physical.   These can also be correlated with some of our Chakras, with color vibration indication, etc.    The Sun is the fastest vibratory energy level in our little system and in a sense represents the God force (it's not the totality of same, but it is a similar energy/vibration), and when we grow to that in consciousness, we can graduate and leave this little system via other greater centers like Arcturus or Polaris.  Or, we can come back to this little system and perfect ourselves fully here.    Your choice, many choose to come back, some choose to go to more expanded and fast vibrating systems.   All in all though, it's a somewhat rare individual self in a greater self, who has reached that development to begin with. 

  Those who have reached the Arcturian development just 'prior' to this life, will usually have it closest to their Rising/Ascending point or to a lesser extant closest to the Mid Heaven (particularly if there is no planet near the ASC point).   For a quick real life example, this may be the case with Bob Monroe and Bruce Moen.   

   A few, a very few have reached that development of the Galactic Core.  These become part of the Creator consciousness.

It seems to me that focus 34/35 is an area where alien beings are met, while focus 27 is an intermediary area spirits arive at and work in until they move onto higher levels where it is no longer a matter of astral bodies, but mental bodies, spirit bodies, and merging with higher self.

Could it be that one of the seven levels Robert Bruce speaks of is focus 27?

dude, i also had experiences that occured before reading Bruces work.  the details of his theories really matched my experiences.  it was instant credibility for me.

hi Dude, I guess you have these already, but I thought it might be helpful to paste them up again just for conversation:

Focus Levels:
Focus 10 -- Mind awake, body asleep

Focus 12 -- Expanded mind

Focus 15 -- No time, view past lives, future lives

Focus 21 -- The bridge to the afterlife

Focus 22 -- place where Alzheimers patients,
drug addicts, alcoholics,  this place is what I like to call the floating place. I see them eventually moving on.


Focus 23 thru 26--  Belief system territories of whole societies of like minded patterns, as well some isolated spirits sleeping in pretend death conjecture requiring assistance to awaken. similar to what was called lower astral, can include all manner of activity as experienced in real time zone, including mans cruelty to man, etc. this place could be seen as a dark reflection cast from the sunlight unto the moon which reflects the sunlight at night, like a mirror, but a different vibration, not as brightly lit as the earth. I would think on focus 27 there is much greater color and light and definition.

Focus 27 -- The Park, TMI There, Reception
Center, etc.   can be considered higher astral, higher learning is sought after and enjoyed here, no retrievals necessary as they are awake that there is no death, but they still may think healing in a hospital setting is necessary to make their transition complete.

most of my journeys are concerned with focus 15, future items, where I see future housing, future semi accidents to be aware of, and faces of those I will meet in the future is found on focus 15, which can be attained just before waking up, I have seen past life images from that level just as it has been explained, it is a place of no time.

the bridge to the afterlife will be I assume the place of consciousness Moen explains is no doubts, so I would assume it comes with development into the higher thought areas concerning service to others, thus higher thought intentions as well, or in Buddhist talk we could say the ego is no longer reactive or in charge due to having finally crossed the bridge, while still maintaining the physical structure on C1. I would assume there is much movement, color, sound, clarity, definition in crossing the bridge, but of necessity, the brain needs it's symbology to try and define, interpret where the spirit has gone and what it has done, for it is certain, there are nonphysical lifestreams and dimensions to our consciousness. these are dimensions the physical body and brain can only attempt to understand with the language it has available.

Robert Bruce I've read a little. he seems a good warrior spirit working primarily with negs and attachments, so he does good work. It's not my domain and Monroe was not the warrior type either. everyone has a different style.