Hello and welcome to your forgiveness meditation.
My name is Ellie Bosmorova and I'll be guiding your practice today.
This is a very powerful meditation technique,
So I encourage you to be in a space where you won't be disturbed and where you're able to express any emotions that may arise.
Go ahead now and get in a comfortable position for your practice,
Either sitting down or lying down.
And when you're there,
Just take three deep breaths to ground into the body,
Breathing through your nose and out through the mouth,
Maybe even releasing a sigh,
With each breath creating a safe space for yourself to become still,
To find peace,
To heal and to grow.
Continuing to breathe in a natural inhale and exhale pattern.
Begin to notice what it's like to be here today,
The temperature of the room you're in,
Any sounds from around you or outside,
Any sensations in the body.
When you're ready,
Bring the focus to your heart,
To your heart center,
Just focusing in on a place in your chest where your heart beats or where you can visualize your heart chakra glowing and emanating,
Healing light.
We're going to do a very special practice now.
It is called Ho'oponopono,
And it originates from the Hoonah tribe in Hawaii.
This is an ancient forgiveness practice,
And this forgiveness will allow you to move forward in your life,
To step into more of the things you desire,
To let go of any negativity holding you back.
This forgiveness practice is to free yourself,
So if you're ready can you take another deep breath,
Trusting that you are in the right place at the right time.
Now I want you to imagine a time in your life when someone did something you have not yet forgiven.
I would recommend a small moment in time,
But one that still bothers you.
It could be an interaction with a good friend,
Family member,
Partner,
Maybe even just someone at the grocery store.
Something that brings an emotional charge that you can feel.
Now in this practice you're going to repeat after me silently.
You may have some emotional responses come up.
There may be things you don't yet understand about the practice,
Which I will explain later,
But I encourage you if you feel willing to just follow along and see what happens.
So bringing to mind that first stressful incident now,
Can you imagine that person who was involved,
A person who you haven't quite yet forgiven,
Imagining them standing in front of you.
And now picture yourself saying to them,
I'm sorry,
Please forgive me,
Thank you,
I love you,
I'm sorry,
Please forgive me,
Thank you,
I love you.
Notice what has come up for you.
Sometimes when we say I'm sorry and please forgive me,
It can feel difficult because the other person had a part to play.
These words of apology are in part actually an apology to ourselves for having held on to something that hurts us,
Not the other person.
Any resentment,
Any anger,
Any lack of forgiveness we hold in the body is harmful to us.
Allow this person gently to fade away.
Allow yourself now to think of another time,
Another stressful incident.
It could be with a complete stranger driving on the street,
It could be with a colleague or someone extremely close to you.
Let your intuition guide you to the instance that is ready for healing.
As you bring that event,
That person to mind,
Can you let yourself just for a few seconds really feel the hurt,
Really feel the feelings that you felt in that moment,
Honoring what is arising and then bringing that person to mind in your mind's eye in front of you,
Can you say to them,
I'm sorry,
Please forgive me,
Thank you,
I love you,
I'm sorry,
Please forgive me,
Thank you,
I love you.
If at any time anything feels too intense,
Can you just reconnect with your heart center,
Breathing into that space and when you're ready let go of the second image,
Allow it to fade away,
Having been transmuted and transformed.
And now we'll do one final,
Only this one will be even more special.
I want you to think of a time when you did something or didn't do something that you have not yet forgiven yourself for,
That you still regret or judge yourself for,
Believe you should have known better,
It can be big or so small.
When you carry this lack of forgiveness in yourself,
You might notice how often you find yourself in situations where you feel that anger and regret toward others and yourself.
In this process we're getting freer,
You may even notice that you experience some of these emotions less often.
So now bringing to mind that time when you did or didn't do something that you still haven't forgiven yourself for,
Bringing into this an energy of openness and curiosity as much as you can,
This might feel challenging and that's okay.
Can you bring yourself in your mind's eye forward?
Maybe it's a younger you,
Maybe it's you from earlier today,
And can you say to yourself,
I'm sorry,
Please forgive me,
Thank you,
I love you,
I'm sorry,
Please forgive me,
Thank you,
I love you,
And just notice how you feel if the picture in your mind has changed and allow these changes to integrate now.
Maybe you put a hand over your heart or just send loving energy to these three old instances where you hadn't forgiven and now something has changed and you might even feel that now.
When you're ready just take three deep breaths,
Bringing yourself back into the room you're in and be extra gentle with yourself after this practice.
Get some water,
Take it as easy as you can,
And again I'm Ellie Bosmarova,
So glad to be practicing with you and I can't wait to meditate with you again soon.
