Ho’oponopono - 7 Powerful Steps to Embrace Forgiveness

During my practice for so many years, there has been a lot of talk about forgiving oneself and others. I knew there would be many articles and forums discussing the importance of forgiveness.

However, today I will share some personal experiences and how I have started to practice the art of forgiveness. A few years back, for me, forgiveness meant feeling sorry and saying sorry.

Since I experienced enlightenment and identified my spiritual aspect, I started healing. I realized forgiveness is not about feeling sorry and saying it.

Sometimes emotions give rise to negative energies/limiting beliefs within us, and then that energy becomes a source of fear or hatred.

Be wary of these two keywords/emotions, fear and hatred.

The moment we encounter an unexpected person or situation, it gives rise to some expectations. When these expectations are not fulfilled, we feel discontent, anger, or sadness, and these feelings give rise to fear or hatred.

Usually, we as humans never realize that everything in us and around us is energy, vibrations, and sounds. Have you ever wondered why, when a particular person comes and even if you are sad or dull, you feel happy, excited, comfortable, and forget about being sad? The presence of that particular person makes you feel good and happy, right? And this could happen with someone you do not feel connected at all and cannot bear their presence.

The reason why this happens is that we all possess certain kinds of energies, positive or negative. The more positive energy someone has, the more chances are they connect easily with other people and always win their hearts with their way of talking and interacting and with their presence.

It happens the same with a person holding negative energies, and nobody wants to interact much or even meet that person, so they earn the tag of unlikeable sometimes.

We all possess and emit or pass on energies to each other. That is why when a positive person enters transmits happy vibrations. It creates a positive aura around that person and us, and it changes everything to positive, and vice versa in the case of the negative.

So, now you all must be waiting for the next step, how to overcome all this, right?

We will certainly discuss this now. We live in a society where we have friends, family, relatives, colleagues, etc., with whom we might share a good connection, but we have to maintain certain relationships and live with that.

First, I recommend focusing on love and loving energy around you and others. Love need not restrict to a boyfriend, husband, or wife. It is a universal feeling and energy that every relationship possesses, despite its nature and existence.

We must learn to love ourselves first and then others. What we see is sometimes our projection; what we think or communicate in the form of energies manifests in forms, karmas, situations, people, and relationships, among other things.

There are some techniques we can utilize to deal with negative emotions. Every lightworker has their own experiences and findings, and they recommend the best things for you. The one I would personally prefer is Ho’oponopono. There are different ways in which lightworkers can practice it. However, the easiest one I came across and tried on myself is the one I am sharing.

You might be struggling while trying to pronounce its name. Let me make it simple (Ho-o-pono-pono). It is a Hawaiian practice of reconciliation and forgiveness. It is passed on from generation to generation, from one continent to another, and from several lightworkers.

What I have discovered is to be more comfortable and happier with the way I practice it. You do not need to be a lightworker to practice this, but yes, it would be good if you start taking out some time daily for yourself and do some pranayama, meditate a little, and then step into this.

There are many ways to do pranayama also or work with your breath. It is not rocket science like we all think. I do it during my meditations, and it is easy. The more you incorporate it into your life, the more you will start feeling content and at peace with yourself and others.

Time does not matter. If you do not get time in the morning, practice this before sleeping, but start at least after an hour after meals.

Prerequisites

Before starting this process, make sure you decide upon three prominent names of people with whom you want to practice this forgiveness and loving healing process. The first would be the closest person to your family. The second will be your closest friend, and the third will be the person with whom you are having a challenging relationship, time, or issues. 

It can be your boss, a colleague, an old friend, a husband, or an enemy, troubling you emotionally, mentally, situational, or in any other manner.

Most of us breathe incorrectly, so let us first learn breathing techniques that help us:

1. Sit straight on a chair or lie comfortably in a place where you will not be disturbed. You can play soft meditation music in the background to help you relax and feel positive. You can also light your favorite oil in the diffuser or use camphor.
2. Before starting, close your eyes, pray to God to shine his holy light upon your house, your family, and you, and encase you all in his bubble of bright white light (you can mentally visualize it). Pray to him to cleanse the surroundings, create a shield around you and the place you are meditating, and protect you from any negative energies (these can distract you during your meditation, so it is vital to set your intention for protection).
3. Then, concentrate on your breathing. You have to breathe from your abdomen. Like when you fill the air in a balloon, in the same way, inhale from the nose, fill your belly with air, then hold your breath for 3-5 seconds and exhale it from your mouth. 
4. Repeat this at least thrice. It will help you relax, and you will be able to get rid of all those pesky thoughts in your mind and heart. It will also help you get centered. Your breathing must be deep and comfortable. Feel that peace and stillness from within during this process.
5. After this, with that background music already playing, you can connect with yourself. Let go of complaints and negative thoughts, and feel the divine peace.
6. Once you are ready, start visualizing that you are standing in front of a full-size mirror and see your reflection in that mirror (Inspired by the Mirror Work by Louise Hay). [I have read this book by Louise, and it is indeed helpful]
7. Now tell yourself the following and keep visualizing yourself in the mirror. Say the following loving comments mentally to yourself in the mirror: 

• Hello, I want to tell you that I love you. I love you sincerely. If there is anything I have done to harm you in any way, knowingly or unknowingly, then I apologize. I am now walking on a new path filled with love and light. May we walk this path with more love, light, and unity.

• Say bye-bye to yourself with a loving emotion and a smile.

• When you feel ready, invite that most connected or loved and closest family member and visualize them in that mirror. 

• Now say mentally to the person whom you have visualized: 

• Hello, I want to tell you that I love you. I love you sincerely. If there is anything I have done to harm you in any way, knowingly or unknowingly, then I apologize. I am now walking on a new path filled with love and light.

• I am now ready to forgive you for anything you have done to me, knowingly or unknowingly, that has harmed me in any way. May we continue walking our paths together with love and unity, and may we stay happy in our lives.

• When you feel ready, invite your most connected, loved, and closest friend and visualize them in that mirror.

• Now say mentally to the person whom you have visualized:

• Hello, I want to tell you that I love you. I love you sincerely. If there is anything I have done to harm you in any way, knowingly or unknowingly, then I apologize. I am now walking on a new path filled with love and light.

•  I am now ready to forgive you for anything you have done to me, knowingly or unknowingly, that has harmed me in any way. May we continue walking our paths together with love and unity, and may we stay happy in our lives.

• When you feel ready, invite that person with whom you have challenging feelings, a situation, or who is your enemy, and visualize them in that mirror. 

• Now say mentally to the person whom you have visualized: 

• Hello, I want to tell you that I love you. I love you sincerely. If there is anything I have done to harm you in any way, knowingly or unknowingly, then I apologize. I am now walking on a new path filled with love and light.

•  I am now ready to forgive you for anything you have done to me, knowingly or unknowingly, that has harmed me in any way. May we continue walking our paths together with love and unity, and may we stay happy in our lives.

Now be in that state and notice how you feel: loved, sad, frustrated, relaxed, etc. Allow yourself to be in that state for a few minutes, feel free from those hard feelings and burdens, and gently return to your physical being. Come back gently, lovingly, and happily in the state of consciousness. When you are ready, slowly open your eyes.

Enjoy the new realization and feelings of joy and happiness, relaxation, freedom from all those heavy emotions, and love within.

Note: Saying I love you to the visualized people is a way of sending and receiving loving energy between you and them to make peace with them. Regular practice will show you such unexpected results from the other side, and you will notice a positive change in yourself and will love doing it for your lifetime.

Love, light, peace, and divine angel blessings to you all!