<p>According to DN 2, <a href="http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/dn/dn.02.0.than.html" rel="nofollow">the Samaññaphala Sutta</a>, it seems that OOBEs are possible:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>"With his mind thus concentrated, purified, and bright, unblemished, free from defects, pliant, malleable, steady, and attained to imperturbability, he directs and inclines it to creating a mind-made body. From this body he creates another body, endowed with form, made of the mind, complete in all its parts, not inferior in its faculties. Just as if a man were to draw a reed from its sheath. The thought would occur to him: 'This is the sheath, this is the reed. The sheath is one thing, the reed another, but the reed has been drawn out from the sheath.' Or as if a man were to draw a sword from its scabbard. The thought would occur to him: 'This is the sword, this is the scabbard. The sword is one thing, the scabbard another, but the sword has been drawn out from the scabbard.' Or as if a man were to pull a snake out from its slough. The thought would occur to him: 'This is the snake, this is the slough. The snake is one thing, the slough another, but the snake has been pulled out from the slough.' In the same way — with his mind thus concentrated, purified, and bright, unblemished, free from defects, pliant, malleable, steady, and attained to imperturbability, the monk directs and inclines it to creating a mind-made body. From this body he creates another body, endowed with form, made of the mind, complete in all its parts, not inferior in its faculties.This, too, great king, is a fruit of the contemplative life, visible here and now, more excellent than the previous ones and more sublime.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>In the <a href="http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/dn/dn.09.0.than.html" rel="nofollow">Translator's Introduction to the Potthapada Sutta</a>, Thanissaro Bhikku identifies the mind-made body as the astral body:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>The mind-made acquisition can result from an experience of the mind-made body — the "astral body" — that constitutes one of the powers that can be developed through concentration practice.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>The mind-made body is a body that is made out of, composed of mind. Seems you can probably OOB with it.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-04-24T20:15:22.273Z
2015-04-26T13:58:18.687Z
2015-04-26T13:58:18.687Z
Adamokkha
<p>Does there exists records of the Buddha talking about something that could be interpreted as an "out of body" experience?</p>

<p>Wikipedia defines this as,</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>An out-of-body experience (OBE or sometimes OOBE) is an experience
  that typically involves a sensation of floating outside one's body
  and, in some cases, perceiving one's physical body from a place
  outside one's body.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>A related, but different, question: <a href="https://buddhism.stackexchange.com/questions/3853/buddhist-view-on-out-of-body-experience-obe">Buddhist view on out of body experience (OBE)</a></p>

<the-buddha>
Did the Buddha talk about "out of body" experiences?
# Did the Buddha talk about "out of body" experiences?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2015-04-23)

Does there exists records of the Buddha talking about something that could be interpreted as an "out of body" experience?

Wikipedia defines this as,

> An out-of-body experience (OBE or sometimes OOBE) is an experience
> that typically involves a sensation of floating outside one's body
> and, in some cases, perceiving one's physical body from a place
> outside one's body.

A related, but different, question: [Buddhist view on out of body experience (OBE)](https://buddhism.stackexchange.com/questions/3853/buddhist-view-on-out-of-body-experience-obe)

**Tags:** the-buddha


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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2015-04-24. Score: 3 | Accepted answer

According to DN 2, [the Samaññaphala Sutta](http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/dn/dn.02.0.than.html), it seems that OOBEs are possible:

> "With his mind thus concentrated, purified, and bright, unblemished, free from defects, pliant, malleable, steady, and attained to imperturbability, he directs and inclines it to creating a mind-made body. From this body he creates another body, endowed with form, made of the mind, complete in all its parts, not inferior in its faculties. Just as if a man were to draw a reed from its sheath. The thought would occur to him: 'This is the sheath, this is the reed. The sheath is one thing, the reed another, but the reed has been drawn out from the sheath.' Or as if a man were to draw a sword from its scabbard. The thought would occur to him: 'This is the sword, this is the scabbard. The sword is one thing, the scabbard another, but the sword has been drawn out from the scabbard.' Or as if a man were to pull a snake out from its slough. The thought would occur to him: 'This is the snake, this is the slough. The snake is one thing, the slough another, but the snake has been pulled out from the slough.' In the same way — with his mind thus concentrated, purified, and bright, unblemished, free from defects, pliant, malleable, steady, and attained to imperturbability, the monk directs and inclines it to creating a mind-made body. From this body he creates another body, endowed with form, made of the mind, complete in all its parts, not inferior in its faculties.This, too, great king, is a fruit of the contemplative life, visible here and now, more excellent than the previous ones and more sublime.

In the [Translator's Introduction to the Potthapada Sutta](http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/dn/dn.09.0.than.html), Thanissaro Bhikku identifies the mind-made body as the astral body:

> The mind-made acquisition can result from an experience of the mind-made body — the "astral body" — that constitutes one of the powers that can be developed through concentration practice.

The mind-made body is a body that is made out of, composed of mind. Seems you can probably OOB with it.


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