Sri Yukteswar Speaks About The
Astral World to Yogananda...
(Excert Taken From "Autobiography of a Yogi")

"There are many astral planets, teeming with astral beings," Master began.  "The in habitants use astral planes, or masses of light, to travel from one planet to another, faster than electricity and radioactive energies."

"On earth a man is equipped with his physical senses.  An astral being works with his consciousness and feelings and a body made of lifetrons (prana).  A causal-bodied being remains in the blissful realm of ideas.  My work is with those astral beings who are preparing to enter the causal world.

"The astral universe, made of various subtle vibrations of light and color, is hundreds of times larger than the material cosmos.  The entire physical creation hangs like a little solid basket under the huge luminous balloon of the astral sphere.  Just as many physical suns and moons, more beautiful than the physical ones.  The astral luminaries resemble the aurora borealis-the sunny astral auror being more dazzling than the mild-rayed moon-aurora.  The astral day and night are longer than those of earth.

"The astral world is infinitely beautiful, clean, pure, and orderly.  There are no dead planets or barren lands.  The terrestrial blemishes-weeds, bacteria, insects, snakes -- all are absent.  Unlike the variable climates and seasons of the earth, the astral planets maintain the even temperature of an eternal spring, with occasional luminous white snow and rain of many colored lights.  Astral planets about in opal lakes and bright seas of rainbow rivers.

"The ordinary astral universe-not the subtler astral heaven of Hiranyaloka-is peopled with millions of astral beings who have come, more or less recently, from the earth, and also with myraids of fairies, mermaids, fishes, animals, goblins, gnomes, demigods and spirits, all residing on different astral planets in accordance with karmic qualifications. 

Various spherical mansions or vibratory regions are provided for good and evil spirits.  Good ones can travel freely, but the evil spirits are confined to limited zones.  In the same way that human beings live on the surface of the earth, worms inside the soil, fish in the water, and birds in the air, so astral beings of different grades are assigned to suitable vibratory quarters.

"Among the fallen dark angels expelled from other worlds, friction and war take place with lifetronic bombs or mental mantric (chants or mantras).  Theses beings dwell in the gloom-drenched regions of the lower astral cosmos, working out their evil karma.

"In the cast realms above the dark astral prison, all is shining and beautiful.  The astral cosmos is more naturally attuned than the earth to the divine will and plan of perfection.  Every astral object is manifested primarily by the will of God, and partially by the will-call of astral beings.  They possess the power of modifying or enhancing the grace and form anything already created by the Lord. 

He has given His astral children the freedom and privilege of changing or improving at will the astral cosmos.  On earth a solid must transformed into liquid or other form through natural or chemical processes, but astral solids are changed into astral liquids or gases, or energy solely and instantly by the will of the inhabitants..."