The experimental induction of out-of-body experiences
Henrik H. Ehrsson · 2007 · Science, 317(5841), 1048
Summary
Experimental illusion in which participants experienced self-location outside the physical body through manipulated visual perspective and multisensory body stimulation.
Why it matters here
Shows that OBE-like self-location can be induced through multisensory perception, weakening literal body-leaving interpretations while supporting the reality of the experience.
Linked claims
An interpretive overlay on OBE, positing literal travel through 'astral' space. No controlled evidence beyond the OBE phenomenon itself.
OBEs are reliably triggered by temporo-parietal junction stimulation and certain drug states; veridical perception is rare and contested. 'Astral projection' is the same phenomenon read maximally — as literal travel through an astral plane — with no independent evidence beyond the OBE itself.
Related evidence hubs
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