Mana for the Doctor's Soul

The ancient Hawaiian process of Ho'oponopono evokes all kinds of reactions -- wonderment, confusion, defiance, impatience, and peace are only a few. Having attended many training seminars, I've always appreciated the questions people ask. These are in me also. Dr. Ihaleakala Hew Len often invites questions, and yet it can feel intimidating to ask them. I myself have asked many, and I'm sure I've exceeded his exasperation limit from time to time. :-) Even after those times, he's sincerely thanked me and others. That's right. Once the answer is provided, the question-asker often says "Thank you." But then after that, Dr. Hew Len often says, "Oh no, thank YOU." Why would anyone say "thank you" for exasperating questions? Questions arise in us because we're unclear, and revealing this might feel embarrassing. Yet, they're also opportunities to clean -- in fact this is the only reason they come up. If no one in the room had th

This past weekend marked a first for me, but more importantly for Ho'oponopono. Not only was this my first time to help staff a training seminar, but it was also the first time that " Health Ho'oponopono: Basic I and Your Health " has ever been offered. Over 2 days Kikikipa Kretzer, PhD presented basic principles and processes of Self-Identity Through Ho'oponopono as developed by Kahuna Lapa'au Morrnah Simeona -- and also focused on using these processes with health concerns. Dr. Kretzer shared cleaning tools and ways of responding to health issues, when these are the opportunities that arise. Memories can manifest or express in our lives in all kinds of ways, including health conditions like hypertension, heart disease, depression, cancer, etc. Ho'oponopono sees these as opportunities to "clean" as much as any other. We had a small, intimate group of people who traveled to Colorado Springs from all over. One woman drove 18 hours straight to get

One of the most challenging things about Ho'oponopono seems to be the temptation to try to "fix" or "heal" others with it. After all, if it is such a powerful tool, why not use it? The world contains much suffering, and people want to offer relief. Message boards abound with people offering to clean "for" each other, or proposing products and processes to try. All this assumes the other person is broken, and we have the right answer. I remember Dr. Ihaleakala Hew Len speaking about this very issue at a seminar one time. Someone was describing the problems of another, and asking how to use Ho'oponopono to help this individual. Dr. Hew Len zinged right to the point. "People don't need YOU," he said. They need God. You want to get in the way of that?" Right -- as if any of our "solutions" for others could be more correct and encompassing than Divinity's. Human arrogance shows up in so many disguises, one of which ca

I've just returned from the beautiful island of Molokai and a workshop called "The Healer Within." There, Dr. Lee Lipsenthal and Nita Gage MA of Finding Balance in a Medical Life offered a small group of physicians, other health practitioners, and their significant others ways to confront and release painful memories, practice forgiveness, and become more resilient and loving people. Ho'oponopono by any other name would surely be as sweet. The locale was no accident. One of the least developed Hawaiian islands, Molokai is also known as a historical training ground for many kahunas (specialists in Hawaiian healing and other wisdom). The place felt suffused with mana : spiritual energy and power. Dr. Lipsenthal and Ms. Gage combined activities for both "logical" or left-brained, and more "intuitive" or right-brained, mind states. Can you imagine mixing powerpoint slides showing meditation's effects on the heart , for instance, with holotropic