Facts About Astral Plane:
The Astral Plane is a mysterious and enigmatic plane that exists in a parallel dimension. Accessible only to powerful mystics and telepaths, the Astral Plane has always eluded the fans. What is the Astral Plane? Why has a plane of existence that has been used so extensively as a plot element is still so secretive? The Astral Plane holds many secrets. These secrets are dark and very interesting. It is time we learn about them all. The Astral plane is mysterious no longer.
1. It is made up of pure life force
The Astral Plane has the distinction of being the only dimension in existence that is made up of energy, not matter. The Astral Plane is filled with Ecto-Plasm. Ectoplasm is the plasma type liquid that constitutes all the things souls are made up off. In fact, even the Astral Plane is made up of pure Ecto-Plasm. We still have no idea how the Astral Plane and the Souls are connected. With creepy headless beasts to rusty knights carrying bolt action rifles, the Astral Plane has managed to show us a range of entities that one should never go to if alone.
2. The Heart-Shaped Herb allows anyone to access it
There is but one drug that allows someone to visit the Astral Plane. To have that, you need to go to Wakanda, which is the only supply of the heart-shaped herb, the superhuman drug that gives Black Panther unimaginable physical attributes. Using the Herb, the user could get high enough to enter the Astral Plane – you heard that right.
There is actually a drug that could get any person who ingests it to get into the Astral Plane. For T’Challa, the heart-shaped drug took him to meet his ancestors. For someone else, the experience might be different entirely.
3. It is the Prison of the Shadow King
The Shadow King used to be a powerful telepath who lost his physical form a long while ago and is now trapped within the Astral Plane as a pure being of psychic energy. He is also one of the toughest villains the X-Men have ever fought The Shadow King possesses enormous powers of telepathy and empathy and can possess any person he wishes to for doing his bidding. The Shadow King is a diabolical force that is never up to any good, always hatching schemes to take down the X-Men and plunge the world into an era of chaos and tyranny.
4. Mutant X
Mutant X is also known as Proteus. His actual name is Kevin MacTaggert, son of long-time X-Men ally and scientist Moira MacTaggert. Mutant X is made up of pure psionic energy and needs to be fed energy constantly for him to survive otherwise he will die. Not long after he escaped his mother’s prison, Proteus started feeding off of the mental auras of his unsuspecting victims. Mutant X tried to merge the Astral Plane and use his ability to reshape the Astral Plane to try and rule the whole universe. Obviously the Avengers managed to push his neck with the X-Men delivering the final death blow. Mutant X died a slow and painful death in pain, agony, and toil.
5. The Mummudrai
The Shi’ar Empire is the one that came up with the idea of turning the Mummudrai into weapons of mass destruction. The Mummudrai are born and brought up in the Astral Plane itself. It is said that each person has his or her own Mummudrai in the Astral Plane. The first instance of a Mummudrai coming to the real world was Cassandra Nova, the Mummudrai twin of Charles Xavier that tried to kill him and replace him as the leader of the X-Men. Mummudrais cannot die. They can only pass out or breathe their last physically, after which their soul is kept safeguarded back in the Astral Plane. The Mummudrai is so powerful that even the mighty Shi’ar-empire tried to use them as weapons of great destruction.
6. Time works differently there
If you are truly proficient in using the Astral Plane to your advantage you would know what we are talking about. Time is an element that could lose all meaning within the Astral Plane. When a person meditates or uses magic to enter the Astral Plane, he or she could use his/her mental prowess to slow down the flow of time within the Astral Plane. It is a trick we first learn in Doctor Strange when he used his astral form to read and study books in a matter of days, something that took even the greatest of all monks in Kamar-Taj years to master. The Astral Plane’s ability to enhance mental capacity is something we should be scared of.
7. It is actually an alternate dimension
The Astral Plane is ten times bigger than the actual universe. It is home to a lot of spaces and continuums that have been used by superheroes in the past to cage dangerous criminals. The Astral Plane could be a very tricky ride for people who are still learning how to travel through it. If there is even one wrong step, the person could become victim to one of the many terrifying predators that lurk the corners of the Astral Plane.
8. The Nightmare Dimension is right next to it
The Astral Plane is strategically placed right in the middle of the pathway between the real world and the dream dimension. Part of the Dream Dimension is the Nightmare Dimension, ruled by none other than Nightmare, Doctor Strange’s arch-nemeses. The Nightmare Dimension can lure travellers through the Astral Plane and keep them locked forever. Adept users try to avoid getting even near to the Nightmare Dimension in fear of Nightmare.
9. Its relation to the Power Cosmic
The Power Cosmic is literally the power of the universe. After the Big Bang created the stars and the planets, a lot of the primordial energy was left behind, just up for grabs. The first of the sentient species of the universe managed to find a way to tap into this energy and became wielders of the Power Cosmic. The Power Cosmic can be transferred from one individual to another.
The Silver Surfer is a prime example of it. And here’s the thing about Power cosmic – it shares a lot of similarities with the Astral Plane. People who can manipulate the Power Cosmic can alter reality, possess other beings and become one with their own soul. The manipulators of the Astral Plane also have similar powers. The theory is that both the powers are somehow connected.
10. The Soul Stone Connection
The Soul Stone is itself home to a universe of its own – the Soul World is an entire Pocket Universe existing within the Infinity Stone. But little do fans know that the Soul Stone and the Astral Plane share a huge connection. The Astral Plane is the pathway to conjure spirits of the dead. The comics have already shown that telepaths could do it and so could magicians.
The Soul Stone’s Soul World has the ability to keep the souls of the deceased within it. The theory is that the Soul World possesses an ability to overlap with some of the aspects with the Astral Plane. That is how the deceased spirits could be found both through the Astral Plane and within the Soul World.
The first part of Avengers: Endgame, titled Avengers: Infinity War, was released on the 27th of April, 2018. The official film synopsis for the movie reads:
Iron Man, Thor, the Hulk and the rest of the Avengers unite to battle their most powerful enemy yet — the evil Thanos. On a mission to collect all six Infinity Stones, Thanos plans to use the artifacts to inflict his twisted will on reality. The fate of the planet and existence itself has never been more uncertain as everything the Avengers have fought for has led up to this moment.
The last Avengers movie to be released was Avengers: Endgame, released on the 26th of April, 2019. The official film synopsis of the movie has been released and it states:
“After the devastating events of Avengers: Infinity War, the universe is in ruins due to the efforts of the Mad Titan, Thanos. With the help of remaining allies, the Avengers must assemble once more in order to undo Thanos’ actions and restore order to the universe once and for all, no matter what consequences may be in store.”
