Etheric Body Projections
The etheric body (see Chapter 6) is an exact double of the physical body. This body houses the raw material from which the physical body is composed. The ancients referred to this matter as "First Matter" or "Hyle." The term ectoplasm has been used currently to describe this substance.

When we observe physical insults to our body during a psychic attack, it is the projection of the etheric body that produces these cuts, bruises, and other markings. Again, most of these attacks occur during the dream state.

Astral Body Encounters
One explanation for this physical evidence of a psychic attack is an altercation on the astral plane. Any type of out -of-body experience results in our soul being sent to the astral plane. All dreams are out - of - body experiences. The astral plane is the home of ghosts or poltergeists. Reports of near - death experiences also describe this dimension.

If your astral body meets with some trauma while traveling in the astral plane, the results may appear on your physical body. We might safely compare this mechanism to that which produces the stigmata(power 2) of saints and other people. Any attack or trauma to the astral body will create a disturbance to the etheric body, and this may result in a marking on the physical body.

Ectoplasm Attackers
This next type of psychic attack resembles a thought-form, with one exception. Once this often gray and colorless materialized ectoplasm is created from the thoughts of an individual, it takes on a life of its own. Unless reinforced, the ectoplasm attracker will weaken and disappear.

Ectoplasm is the substance so often described as streaming out from mediums during their trance channeling. The French researcher Dr. Charles Richet named it. This substance was analysed by Baron A. von Schrenck Notzing, who reported it was a colorless, ordorless, slightly alkaline fluid, with traces of flesh, sputum, and mucous membrane.

While the thought-form responds only to the directions of the perpetrator of a psychic attack, an ectoplasm agent creates and executes its own game plan. This latter manifestation may be created by anyone at any time with the proper concentration of attention. highly charged negative emotions, such as hatred, anger, and jealously, have been reported responsible for the unleashing of this form of psychic attack.

An ectoplasm attacker, once created, will respond to the thoughts of its creator, but only for a short time. Then it will go off and use the dream state to do its damage. Eventually this negative force will weaken and be removed from the universe, unless specific black magic techniques are evoked to preserve it.

Occultists refer to the creation of such entities for positive use as the right-hand path. Using this technique for evil purposes would be an example of the left-hand path.