HO’OPONOPONO- Hawaiian prayer of compassion:

Although Ho’Oponopono has a long history, the current day western version is very simple:

I’M SORRY
PLEASE FORGIVE ME
THANK YOU
I LOVE YOU

Although it might appear as if we are apologizing for something we have done wrong when we say “I am sorry, Please forgive me…,” these 4 phrases have much broader meaning than that.

Whenever someone is expressing pain or suffering through some behavior that is distressing to us, there is a place within each of us that is recognizing that same place within ourselves.

Keeping in mind that all people are only doing the best they can with whatever resources they have available in any given moment, these 4 phrases of Ho’Oponopono help us move into forgiveness for someone else and also for ourselves- for both their role and ours in the situation.

Beyond just speaking these phrases as an apology to another person for a specific incident in a specific moment, the prayer is speaking to anyone and for anytime we, too, might have been the cause of (or the recipient of) something similar. And even beyond stating these phrases for all those in our present lives, we are intending that this also speaks to our past lives and to anyone currently living on the planet who might be experiencing something similar. In essence, we are sending out these beautiful phrases of compassion and forgiveness to all those beings anywhere and at anytime, (including our own lineage going all the way back in time) who may have felt something similar to what you are dealing with, and also sending them to all those who may have been the cause of similar suffering in others.

It is such a lovely vision; that when we say these 4 simple phrases, that our seeming ‘suffering’ can now be the catalyst for such widespread healing. After using Ho’Oponopono for a while you might notice that you are shifting into gratitude for the situation and person who stimulated this wave of love and compassion within you that has now spread throughout time and space. What a gift conflict and confusion can be if we remember to use this ‘prayer of compassion’, as Ho’Oponopono has been called.

SOME USES:

When you find yourself in a conflict with another, feeling frustrated and not sure the energy can shift.

When you notice some judgment or upset within you in relation to someone.

When you are judging yourself for having done or said something that might have hurt or upset someone. Ho’Oponopono is a form of empathy involving self forgiveness.

When you are driving behind someone who is going more slowly than you are enjoying and you notice your frustration level rising to the point of tailgating and maybe even honking your horn or speaking expletives quite loudly. Ho’Oponopono is effective as soon as you notice how upset you are, and is just as valuable even after you pass them.

You might be quite stunned at how quickly you move into taking a deep breath and realizing how much you enjoy taking responsibility for your own upset and clearing the negative energy you were sending to this “innocent’ person, perhaps even having some compassion for how hard it might have been on that person last week who was tailgating you when you refused to speed up or pull over for them.

To clean up judging energy you might be sending out. If you notice your self internally judging a stranger who just passed by on the street or if you spoke gossip about someone.

When family members or friends are upset about something; whether because of your own actions or if their upset may have nothing at all to do with you. Use the phrases internally whenever anyone appears stuck in some kind of suffering or painful thinking.

Works just as effectively on past issues and even with those who are no longer a part of our lives as it does on current situations!!

HOW TO USE:

Repeat the phrases internally (silently) while holding the situation or person in mind. Repeat with as much feeling as possible, chanting them silently, over and over again. If you do not believe the words, that’s ok; just pretend you do and say them anyway.

‘Act as if’ the words are true and you might be surprised at the outcome. The internal repetition of the phrases continues until there is a felt shift in you.

I’M SORRY

PLEASE FORGIVE ME

THANK YOU

I LOVE YOU

On the surface, it seems as if we are making amends for whomever or whatever situation may have created this behavior and reaction within someone else or within ourselves. I see Ho’Oponopono as a huge container of love and compassion. On a larger scale, I do have some complicity in what is going on in any given situation, if I can remember any time, any where in my life when I might have caused anyone to feel something remotely similar. I use all situations that cause me to feel upset for as an opportunity to do some healing and forgiveness work.

A Personal Miracle

I have repeated these phrases time and again and am awed at the results that happen between me and another without my having to do anything or say anything. I remember the first time I tried Ho’Oponopono out of desperation with a housemate was very angry with me for quite some time about something that I could not understand. For many weeks, I had been experiencing these angry moods of hers. Following her getting upset there would be a number of days of unresolved tension between us that ended with her talking to me again without any communication about the original incident or her upset. (At that time, I was not comfortable with attempting to have a conversation about her upset for fear of stimulating any more anger from her). I had learned about Ho’Oponopono but had never tried using it. This particular day, my housemate’s anger was palpable and I only imagined I had 2 choices. I could either avoid her at all costs, (which felt horrible because we lived in the same house and shared a bathroom and kitchen), or I could repeat Ho’Oponopono whenever I saw her or thought about her. I chose to practice forgiveness rather than avoidance and resentment. We were both working at home all day and our paths crossed numerous times, triggering tension and distress within me each time.

I was literally compelled to chant the 4 phrases almost all day long for my emotional sanity. She knew I liked to have quiet when I was cooking in the kitchen and it seemed as if she purposely chose to talk loudly on her cell phone in the kitchen that day just to annoy me. I chanted Ho’Oponopono non-stop while I was cooking. At least it gave me something to focus on rather than sending angry thoughts in her direction!!! After many hours of external separation and awkward silence between us, when our paths crossed, she spontaneously apologized for her behavior and the harsh words she had spoken and asked for a hug. She actually explained what was going on with her and that her anger had nothing to do with me and how sorry she was!! This was totally new behavior for her and completely took me by surprise. At that moment, it dawned on me that this shift in her behavior occurred because of Ho’Oponopono.

That was the first time since we had been living together that I had not been holding any upset towards her to fuel the fire between us. When one of us changes the way we have been playing in the past, the whole dance between us can change. We think it about someone else changing when it has nothing to do with them. When we change our thinking and our attitude, all kinds of miracles are possible. And this was just the beginning of the many miracles that I have witnessed by saying these 4 phrases.

A PRAYER (this was passed on to me by someone and I do not know who the original author might be)

Divine Creator, Father, Mother, God as one: If I, my family, relatives and ancestors have offended you, your family, relatives and ancestors in thoughts, words, deeds and actions from the beginning of our creation to the present, we ask your forgiveness. Let this cleanse, purify, release, cut all the negative memories, blocks, energies and vibrations and transmute these unwanted energies to pure light. And it is done.