Differences between astral projection and dreaming?

Before I ask my question id just like to point out that ive had lucid dreams all my life and have had the odd OBE within the last 12-14 months now and my lucid dreams seem to be getting more vivid than ever before. When ive had my OBE's they always involve coming out from a dream and i'll find myself paralized or semi paralized in bed with a warm tingling sensation running through different parts of my body (usually down my arms and hands and in my chest). This then leads me to a feeling of seperation which involves sitting up and gaining astral sight and then if im lucky I snap out and find myself floating about in my bedroom. From here ive iether wondered about my bedroom and house or floated through my window or walls and been outside on my street.

Now for the question......

How can I tell the difference between a lucid dream and being in the astral? im finding this hard to get across but basically its like this... my lucid dreams lately are becoming extremely vivid and so vivid that when im becoming lucid im actually saying to myself things like 'I cant believe this is a dream everything is so real' ive had 2 lucid dreams this week and in both ive been gobsmacked with how real everything is such as being stood on a hill looking miles into the distance at buildings so fully detailed and trees and parks etc... also, all the little details on my hands and in one of them I grabbed a bunch of long grass and looked really close and the touch, the wind gently blowing on it and the colour is identical to what it looks like in the physical. How do I know if im in a dream or possibly in the astral but just not being aware of the seperation?? also in one of these I was walking whilst fully lucid and remember the feeling of being on an elastic band so straight away thought of the silver cord and looked around me and over my shoulders but couldnt see anything.

Im fully aware that colours and everything selse seems much more vivid in the astral but theres always that question when ive woken up from this wondering where I just was... if anywhere? or is it simply a case of my lucid dreams becoming much more vivid and thats all?

Hopefully you'll understand all this, im not usualy good with my words

Here are some helpful quotes that should answer your question:

Dream Yoga Course Introduction


"True illuminates have no dreams. Dreams are for those who are asleep. True illuminates live in the higher worlds, out of the physical body, in a state of intensified wakefulness without ever dreaming." - Samael Aun Weor, Mental Representations

More:

Dreams and Visions


"Gnostic students must learn to differentiate between dreams and visions. To dream is one thing and to have visions is another.

A truly "awakened" Gnostic cannot dream. Only those who have the Consciousness asleep live dreaming."

It is taught that we need to create the Solar Astral Body(through Alchemy) and Awaken here and now(by facing reality and not dreaming) in order to positively penetrate the Astral Plane.

"When someone accepts that he is asleep, it is a clear sign that he is already beginning to awaken." - Samael Aun Weor


It is very difficult to stay awake from moment to moment, but it is indispensable.

When we learn to live awakened from moment to moment, we then stop dreaming here and outside of the physical body.

It is necessary to know that when people fall asleep, they come out of their physical bodies, but they carry along their dreams, they live in the Internal Worlds dreaming and when they return to the physical body, they continue with their dreams, they continue dreaming.

When one learns how to live awake from moment to moment, one then stops dreaming here and in the internal worlds.

It is necessary to know that the ego (the “I”) enveloped in its Lunar Bodies, leaves the physical body when the body falls asleep. Unfortunately, the ego lives asleep in the internal worlds.

Besides the ego, that which is called Essence, Soul, Fraction of a Soul, Buddhata, consciousness, exists within the lunar bodies. It is that consciousness that we must awaken here and now.

Here in this world we have the consciousness; we must awaken it here if we truly want to stop dreaming and live consciously in the superior worlds.

The person with an awakened consciousness lives, works, acts consciously in the superior worlds while his body rests in his bed.

The cognizant person does not have troubles related with Astral projections; the trouble of learning how to project oneself in the Astral Plane at will is only a problem for those who are asleep.

The awakened person does not even concern himself with learning how to project himself in the Astral Plane; he lives consciously in the superior worlds while his physical body sleeps in bed.

The awakened person no longer dreams; while the body rests, he lives in the same regions where people usually wander about dreaming, however, the awakened person does it with his consciousness awakened.

The awakened person is in contact with the White Lodge; he visits the Temples of the Great Universal White Fraternity, and has interviews with his Guru-Deva while his body sleeps.

Inner Self-remembering from moment to moment develops the Spatial Sense and then, we can even see the dreams of people who walk the streets.

Spatial Sense includes sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch, etc., in itself. Spatial Sense is the functionalism of the awakened consciousness.

The chakras (of which occultist literature speak of) are to Spatial Sense, as the flame of a match is to the Sun.

If Inner Self-remembering from moment to moment is fundamental to awaken consciousness, learning to use attention is no less fundamental.

Gnostic students must learn to divide attention into three parts: Subject, Object and Location.


Subject: To not fall into the forgetting of oneself before any representation.

Object: To observe everything, every representation, every fact, every event, no Matter how insignificant the latter may seem, in detail, without forgetting oneself.

Location: The rigorous observation of the place where we may be; ask ourselves, “What place is this? Why am I here?”

See this thread as well:

www.belowtopsecret.com...





Regards












[edit on 22-8-2006 by Tamahu]

Some interesting quotes there Tamahu thanks

Im really not sure where to take my lucid dreams now. Where as before I became lucid and was all excited and started flying for a while then woke up.. now I seem to be doing lots of observing and keep on asking people who ive never seen before in my life, who they are and what there purpose is. When I do this they always look confused and sometimes anoyed. It does make me wonder whether these people are simply created by my mind or if they truly are people living on the astral plane and there probably just as confused as I am.