Astral abilities, in the general sense of psychic abilities, involve things like understanding other people's thoughts, being able to see inside their bodies to a certain extent, contacting other people's guardian spirits or higher selves to receive messages within a limited range, or entering other people's bodies to investigate their internal state within a limited range. In this case, there is a boundary between oneself and others, and one has to extend or project their aura to explore others. As a psychic vision or hearing ability, it is also limited to the astral realm (or what is sometimes called prana or ether).

On the other hand, some spiritual traditions or schools of thought describe these abilities as manifestations of the Purusha or Atman. At that stage, there is no longer a boundary between oneself and others; it is a state of oneness, and one can understand the state of the other person. The state of oneness, where self and other are identical, is fundamental, and from that, one can perceive the consciousness and state of others.

Normally, when people talk about psychic abilities, they are referring to the astral realm. However, especially in spiritual circles, these kinds of astral abilities seem to be highly valued.

On the other hand, many schools of thought in India, such as yoga, consider psychic abilities to be "unimportant." This is partly a reaction to the fact that in the past, many people in India spent their entire lives developing relatively minor abilities, and prominent gurus half a century ago argued that "abilities are not important."

On the other hand, some people in Japan have also made similar claims, inheriting this trend. However, I think the situation is different in Japan compared to India. Blindly accepting what the gurus in India said and considering "psychic abilities are not important" may lead to missing something important.

In reality, psychic abilities are like eyes, ears, or hands. Just as the physical body has eyes, ears, and hands, the astral body also has something similar. Therefore, there is no need to deny it. However, the trend of denying these abilities emerged about half a century ago in India as an antithesis to the tendency of past practitioners who placed too much emphasis on them.

In addition to these astral abilities, the great gurus of the past in India possessed even greater abilities. These abilities are based on the power of Purusha and are connected to oneness. Astral abilities are relatively tied to physical things and can only affect or perceive things within a limited range of time and space. However, when one becomes Purusha or Atman, one transcends time and space, becoming more free.

In that sense, it can be said that astral abilities are not that important. However, there is no need to deliberately deny what exists in one's own astral body.