Out of the temporary subtle bodies that we have recently been given for our current incarnation, the astral body is perhaps the the one which has caused the most controversy current incarnation, the astral body. It is a body that has to have our daily care in addition to attention, as it is forever changing and unfortunately for most people, not for the far better.

It is the body where we will spend a big part of our post- mortem life, yet not many everyone is particularly interested in looking after it properly, mainly because they are not aware its presence but also because they don't know how interpret this signs that this wonderful body gives us on a daily basis.

Astral body is the seat of our emotional life and desire impulses, and for this motive is also called "emotional body". We have developed this specific body during our evolution in the animal kingdom, as part of the evolutionary goal individuals animal brothers is to be able to strive towards individualization from their Group Soul, through the awareness with their individual needs and inner thoughts.

In humans, where this individualization has already been achieved and is prominently noticeable, the evolutionary goal would be to refine these primal wants and impulses to unselfishness as well as ultimately to nonexistence. This takes several lifetimes of spiritual work upon the Path of Initiation to achieve, but we only need to find out a few key points to be able to perfect our astral body and make a huge difference to the quality of our lives. In truth, the astral plane since it is now (which can be where the astral body operates) is man's own creation.

As Alice Bailey wrote in her book "Esoteric Healing ": The astral plane doesn't have a factual existence, but is an illusory creation from the human family. From now on, however (through the defeat of the forces of evil and the disastrous setback suffered with the Black Lodge), the astral plane will slowly turn into a dying creation, and in the final period of human history (in the seventh root-race), it will become non-existent".
This is good information, for we can mould and shape our astral body in any way we decide to; the bad news is actually that the complete disappearance of this plane is quite a distance off.

So what is it that is stopping us from moving forward in our Evolution as Beings of Light and what can most of us do to refine the astral body?
Wouldn't it be a whole lot better to spend time directly in this mental body upon death and interact with Causal Plane entities instead of slowly shedding our astral counterpart on the illusion and coarseness that we have accumulated during our earthly lives?

There are a few things to keep in mind that will greatly speed up our evolution and make this transition process so less difficult.

The quality and intensity of our emotions colour the nature of our astral body and determine its rate of vibration. Most people in reality, by letting their emotions run riot into their lives, do great damage towards the astral body they've already been given upon delivery, and since it is the vehicle that they can find themselves in after physical death, they will end up inhabiting a weak and crippled Astral Body. Consequently, their transition from the Astral to the Causal Plane will be long and also toilsome.

This matter is more serious than most people imagine. Emotions of a low vibratory rate like anger, envy, fear, guilt and greed for instance, coarsen our astral body towards extent that, if we do not struggle to overcome these tendencies even though in incarnation, we will end up inhabiting the best regions of the astral plane because we will not be able to sustain the particular high vibratory rates of light of the Higher Astral, or otherwise called "The Summerland". (for more info on the astral body see The Master Plan by MB Cooke)

The emotional body of all people is usually inside dire need of therapeutic, whether we are prepared to admit it or definitely not. There are certain afflictions that are directly connected with the imbalance in the Astral Body and that are provided to us as daily ticklers or signs that our Astral Body is weak and that it more care and awareness from us.

These common complaints are kinds of indigestion, nervousness, liver and stomach claims, frequent nightmares (which tell us quite a lot about the lower areas of the astral plane that any of us visit during our sleep and thus about the vibratory charge and attractor fields individuals own astral vehicle). In short, anything related to the particular solar plexus chakra, the chakra of feelings, as it is the of connection of the emotional body to the physical and it serves to be a transmitter of its systems. The healing path to the Astral Body is through the 3rd chakra (the Solar Plexus), and an emphasis needs to be placed in governing and also healing this chakra through our lives.

The other main factor that plays a role in the deterioration of the astral body whilst in incarnation could be the barbaric practice of the consumption of dead flesh. This was thoroughly explained by Hilarion through Maurice B. Cooke (Threshold: a letter for Michelle, Hilarion, M.B.Cooke):

"The body of the actual slaughtered animal is fraught with a large number of fear and desperation, which results in the particular contamination of its astral opposite number, both of the animal and of the person who ingests its flesh. After years of ingesting this astral poison, the astral body with the person starts to decline, due to the toxins ingested from the intake of astral corpses. Soon the physical body will start to
mirror its astral vehicle plus the person becomes unwell, as the astral infirmities are filtered as a result of the physical.

This causes death at a youthful age than was foreseen for the soul. The rampant rise involving colon cancer is directly proportional to the fouling of the intestinal tract by eating decayed weed; the stomach, as said earlier, being the first portal for the Astral Body. If man is exactly what he eats, then eating death as meat brings death themselves closer.

The Karma that is actually generated from slaughtering and inflicting pain upon the helpless Animal Kingdom (which was entrusted to care to further it's evolution through love) can also be considerable and must not be disregarded. The day that animals will no longer find a grave in a very human stomach will be a day of great enlightenment as well as evolution for mankind".

The consumption of liquor and nicotine is also detrimental for the sake of the astral body. As Theosophical literature states, if a man was much smoker, at death he will see himself literally paralysed as a result of toxic accumulation of this nicotine in his astral body and it will take some time before they can move his astral braches.

Needless to say, the dangers derived from the ingestion of alcohol happen to be amply enumerated by Annie Besant in her pamphlet "The Influence of Alcohol".

Hilarion has added that this substance has the capacity to lodge its toxins inside the etheric and astral figures, causing them to turn out to be frayed and weakened in recent times. The over indulgence involving alcohol causes a tear at the back of the Anja or finally eye chakra, which can induce the inhabitants in the lower astral planes to prey upon the force centers of the one who has thus abused this substance.

The astral body nonetheless, has great regenerative powers so long as it is not constantly weakened through the ingestion of astral poison caused by the consumption of fear generated by the dog before it is slain, or by the poisons of nicotine and alcohol consumption. If the person abstains from the ingestion of these substances for any period of nine weeks, Hilarion says that the astral body can restore itself to a new near perfect state. These changes gradually will filter because of the physical and come to be manifest and visible with our third dimensional degree.

One can clearly identify that the degree of health in our astral (and ultimately physical) is given by the standard of our thoughts and emotions and in what we ingest. Just by paying attention to the caliber of our life we could experience a great improvement next.