Hello George,

You asked,
When we visit our loved ones in the spirit world, while asleep, would it be true to say we visit in spirit?

Yes, but "spirit" really doesn't mean what most people think it means. The physical realm is the world of separation: time, space, death, intolerance, conflict, hatred, and so on. But the separation is all an illusion created by our minds. When we shut down the physical realm by calming our minds and going inward, the separations disappear and we know the underlying spiritual realm that was always there, but we couldn’t see it because of the glare of the physical realm.

And so, when we have dreams in which we sense, see, hear, speak with, or embrace out loved ones who are in spirit, without bodies, we’re simply closing out the physical realm so the greater reality where we and they have always been together can come through to our awareness. There is no astral travel because there is no space. We do have the sense of space or moving in astral travel, but that’s only because we’re still tied to the physical realm. At times, that dissolves and we simply think of a person or place and we’re with it, because it was always one with us and not separated. If something involves travel or time, then it’s from the physical realm.

You asked,
Is it possible to visit a loved one in the spirit world without them knowing it?

No. The reason is that the afterlife is a world of mind. Everything associated with it is what we know to be true about mind. Those on the next plane of life say they communicate telepathically, meaning by thought, although they are perfectly able to speak as we do on the Earth plane if they wish to do so. In séances, they explain that they know the questions sitters are about to ask before they ask them because they’re in our thoughts before the sitters say them.

And so, our loved ones are aware of us in mind as well as being with us when they come to the physical plane, although we can sense them only weakly, unless we're "sensitive," meaning we have medium abilities. They know we’re with them because our minds are linked when we have dreams of them. We couldn’t sneak up on them. In fact, when they come to special occasions or medium sessions, they do so because we’re thinking of them before the event. They also receive our love and thoughts when we send them to them.

Love and peace, Craig