How to Practice Hooponopono

in Four Simple Steps

Have you heard of the Hawaiian therapist who cured an entire ward of criminally insane
patients, without ever meeting any of them or spending a moment in the same room? Its
not a joke. The therapist was Dr. Ihaleakala Hew Len. He reviewed each of the patients
files, and then he healed them by healing himself. The amazing results seem like a miracle,
but then miracles do happen when you use Hooponopono, or Dr. Lens updated version
called Self I-Dentity Through Hooponopono (SITH). I had the pleasure of attending one of
his lectures a few years ago and started practicing Hooponopono immediately. The results
are often astounding. Do you need a miracle?
What you might wish to understand is how this can possibly work. How can you heal
yourself and have it heal others? How can you even heal yourself?
Why would it affect anything out there? The secret is there is no such thing as out there
everything happens to you in your mind. Everything you see, everything you hear, every
person you meet, you experience in your mind. You only think its out there and you think
that absolves you of responsibility. In fact its quite the opposite: you are responsible for
everything you think, and everything that comes to your attention. If you watch the news,
everything you hear on the news is your responsibility. That sounds harsh, but it means
that you are also able to clear it, clean it, and through forgiveness change it.
There are four simple steps to this method, and the order is not that important.
Repentance, Forgiveness, Gratitude and Love are the only forces at work but these
forces have amazing power.
The best part of the updated version of Hooponopono is you can do it yourself, you dont
need anyone else to be there, you dont need anyone to hear you. You can say the words
in your head. The power is in the feeling and in the willingness of the Universe to forgive
and love.
Step 1: Repentance IM SORRY
As I mention above, you are responsible for everything in your mind, even if it seems to be
out there. Once you realize that, its very natural to feel sorry. I know I sure do. If I hear of
a tornado, I am so full of remorse that something in my consciousness has created that
idea. Im so very sorry that someone I know has a broken bone that I realize I have caused.
This realization can be painful, and you will likely resist accepting responsibility for the out
there kind of problems until you start to practice this method on your more obvious in
here problems and see results.
So choose something that you already know youve caused for yourself? Over-weight?
Addicted to nicotine, alcohol or some other substance? Do you have anger issues? Health
problems? Start there and say youre sorry. Thats the whole step: IM SORRY. Although I
think it is more powerful if you say it more clearly: I realize that I am responsible for the
(issue) in my life and I feel terrible remorse that something in my consciousness has
caused this.
Step 2: Ask Forgiveness PLEASE FORGIVE ME
Dont worry about who youre asking. Just ask! PLEASE FORGIVE ME. Say it over and
over. Mean it. Remember your remorse from step 1 as you ask to be forgiven.
Step 3: Gratitude THANK YOU
Say THANK YOU again it doesnt really matter who or what youre thanking. Thank your
body for all it does for you. Thank yourself for being the best you can be. Thank God.
Thank the Universe. Thank whatever it was that just forgave you. Just keep saying THANK
YOU.
Step 4: Love I LOVE YOU
This can also be step 1. Say I LOVE YOU. Say it to your body, say it to God. Say I LOVE
YOU to the air you breathe, to the house that shelters you. Say I LOVE YOU to your
challenges. Say it over and over. Mean it. Feel it. There is nothing as powerful as Love.
Thats it. The whole practice in a nutshell. Simple and amazingly effective.
http://www.laughteryogaamerica.com/4fun/grow/practice-hooponopono-simple-steps-
1183.php
What the Heck is
Ho'oponopono?
Ho'oponopono is an ancient Hawaiian practice for healing. Ho'oponopono means to make
(hoo) right (pono) right (pono) to correct relationship problems. In the past a kahuna or
doctor would be called into a family context to uncover problems, practice forgiveness
and release each other from recriminations, grudges and guilt. Hawaiian doctors knew that
conflicts and grudges eventually cause disease. Ho'oponopono has been updated and
used for many different kinds of healing practices as you will discover if you research the
word. I will be introducing you to the most prevalent use of Ho'oponopono for relationship
forgiveness.
You'll use Ho'oponopono to deal with negative feelings when someone has upset you or
hurt you. Ho'oponopono can be used for any kind of forgiveness, but I am recommending
it now for the smaller every-day types of forgiveness to help keep relationships from
dissolving into anger and bitterness. Major problems such as crime and abuse will
usually require sustained effort in addition to Ho'oponopono. I have two articles about
forgiveness on this website in the Reading Room so I wont repeat all that content here. I'll
differentiate Ho'oponopono from the longer forgiveness process later in this article.

Who are you addressing in Ho'oponopono? Obviously, first you are addressing yourself.
Many people also feel they are addressing the Divine as a part of this experience. You will
likely also include the other person in the relationship during this meditation process.
You're saying that you are sorry/regret that problem and are seeking
forgiveness/cleansing from the past so that you can live more happily in the present.

Ho'oponopono consists of four phrases: "I am sorry. Please forgive me. I love you. Thank
you." Why would you start out "I am sorry; Please forgive me" when you need to forgive
someone else for a transgression against you? Ho'oponopono teachers call this practice
"cleaning," you clean yourself of your own negative feelings to erase from your memory or
consciousness whatever negativity is not working for you. You are expressing the fact
that you no longer wish to suffer from a current or past problem. In this kind of situation it
is normal to want the other person to change. A normal response, yes, but impossible!
The only person you can change is yourself. Furthermore, in a two-person situation you
will have played some role in the relationship problem even if it's just a victim. You will be
using Ho'oponopono to obtain forgiveness for yourself: forgiveness for whatever is within
you that helped to create the problem.

The next two phrases are "Thank you. I love you." The "you" could be yourself, the other
person and/or the Divine. Conjuring up gratitude and love will help you anchor into a
heart-based response. The mind by itself is never able to solve negativity and distress,
whereas the heart is the repository of positive emotions. Feelings of self acceptance and
self love are increased during this process. Ho'oponopono is also a mindfulness
technique helping you to live in the present, not in the distressing past.
http://www.bettyphillipspsychology.com/id169.html