An ancient Hawaiian practice called Hoʻoponopono contains four beautiful phrases to help us let go of resentment, forgive, and allow love to govern our hearts. PopTika/Shutterstock
“Forgiveness is a gift you give to yourself, to be at peace, to be happy and to be able to sleep at night. You don’t forgive because you are weak but because you are strong enough to realize that only by giving up on resentment will you be happy.”~ Luminita D. Saviuc
The Power of Forgiveness
I know forgiveness can seem to many of us like an impossible, scary thing to do and I know that a lot of times we look for reasons not to forgive, but I want you to know that forgiveness is not so much about them as it is about you. Your own self, your inner peace, health, happiness, and wellbeing. Forgiveness is a gift you give to yourself first and foremost and then to others.
“To let go of resentments is to free yourself from the prison of your attachments – to any past pains and hurts and realize that forgiveness was always the key to your freedom.” ~ Luminita D. Saviuc
I want you to be free of pain and I want you to discover the incredible sense of freedom and inner peace that comes your way the moment you let go of any resentment and you give forgiveness a chance, and I trust that what I’m going to share with you today will help you do just that.
Resentment is a poison that can do a lot of damage to those clinging on to it. But forgiveness can undo the damage.
This is a very powerful and simple ancient Hawaiian practice, called Hoʻoponopono, that contains four beautiful phrases that are meant to help us let go of resentment, forgive, and allow love to govern our hearts.
With eyes closed, imagine the person you want to forgive/ be forgiven by sitting in front of you, and repeat the three magical words to them:
I am sorry.
“It takes a strong person to say sorry, and an ever stronger person to forgive.” ~Unknown
If you feel a lot of anger and resentment towards this person or you believe they might feel towards you, it will feel fake at first but as you go on with practice, things will change and you will let go of the resistance little by little.
2. Please Forgive Me
Nothing good has ever come from holding on to resentment, so why not let go of it and allow inner peace and love to govern your heart?
Whether this person hurts you or you hurt him/her, it doesn’t really matter. All that matters is for you to ask and allow the forgiving process to take place by saying:
At first, you might not understand why do you need to say thank you to somebody who treated you unkindly/ you treated unkindly, and of course, the resistance will be there, but as you will go deeper and deeper into the practice, things will change and it will all make sense to you.
“I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.” ~G.K. Chesterton
4. I Love You
You will feel a lot more resistance when you get to this part and like I said it earlier, it will feel very fake at first but as you go deeper into the practice, you will find yourself feeling a lot more relaxed and at peace.
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” ~Martin Luther King, Jr.
I am in love with this practice because it has helped me let go of resentment and forgive not only those many people who treated me unkindly for one reason or another over the years but also myself, keeping me sane in a sometimes crazy world.
Luminita Saviuc is an author, spiritual teacher and the founder of PurposeFairy.com. Read Luminita’s most viral post turned into book : 15 Things You Should Give Up to Be Happy: An Inspiring Guide to Discovering Effortless Joy.
