
Someone sent me an interesting email today:
I've been reading your blog peacefuldoc.com for a while now. While I enjoy your blog, I've noticed one thing - you rarely talk about your personal experiences with ho'oponopono. I was wondering, why is that? Is it because you have not experienced anything tangible?
One thing I've noticed about ho'oponopono is this: 99% of people who practice it can talk about their intangible results (peace of mind, connection with God, etc) - all things that can be obtained through simple meditation or any religion. But very few can talk of tangible results, especially repeated tangible results that make a significant impact on life... from areas such as finance, health (cure diabetes? cancer?), family, friendships, etc. This leaves me feeling very skeptical about ho'oponopono.
I was wondering, why is this?
Anyway, I am not targeting you specifically, but I feel that you are a clear/concise writer that might be willing to explain this to me.
I thought about this message, saying many "thank you's". And then I found myself laughing with it. It was kind of this person to call my writing clear and concise. But the very things s/he dismisses (the "intangible" results of peace of mind, connection with God, etc) are the results most valuable to me in my life.
Perhaps the results one gains from Ho'oponopono are the ones most needed at the time? Regardless of our personal human judgments about that, I mean.
Certainly my life shows "tangible" results: warm, new friendships; increasing interest in my private practice; more and varied types of work coming in; new inspiration about books to write and programs to create; freedom from unhealthy family patterns, etc. I am exceedingly grateful for these things.
And yet, they pale in comparison to something else that's happened within me.
Most of my life, I'd felt alone and anxious that something was dreadfully wrong with me. I feared that nothing I could do would ever be "enough" to repair this inner sense of failure. I don't know where this came from, but it permeated me although I did my best to hide it. There was a desperateness to be right and to look smart -- to be on top of everything at all times. I wanted to heal everyone, including my own family (as if that is really up to me).
Many physicians and other health practitioners carry such feelings, which both drive us into medicine and prime us for burnout once there.
Ho'oponopono has given me a step-by-step process that keeps me steady as I go through my day. It allows me freedom to find the gifts in whatever happens, rather than drop back into a dungeon of self-lacerating shame when I make mistakes. When patients describe their suffering, I can be present with them -- rather than having to "fix" or deny it. I can be with my fellow physician colleagues in this way also. Authentic presence makes healing work possible.
It also makes one's entire life much more vibrant and enjoyable. :-)
I've never suggested that one can't experience these results with "simple meditation or any religion." I'm only describing what's come about in my own life. For me, there's a marked shift in the 3-4 years that I've been practicing Ho'oponopono. For some people, this would only be an "intangible" result that's of little importance.
Yet it's made a huge difference in how my life feels from the inside out; I needed exactly this kind of healing in order to feel whole. Dr. Ihaleakala Hew Len often says that when we clean, Divinity gives us exactly what's right and perfect for us. In my personal case, this is true. This includes that peace of mind and feeling of connection with the Divine you mention too.
You, dear writer, might choose another pathway that feels better for you; it's absolutely perfect if you do. If you'd like other kinds of accounts about Ho'oponopono, Joe Vitale's book Zero Limits or his coaching programs could be helpful to you. People also share their experiences through Mabel Katz's Ho'oponopono Forum, and through the Hooponoponofriends group on Yahoogroups.com. Mabel's book, The Easiest Way, is another resource as well. Thank you for your comments, and many blessings on your way.
Peace (and wholeness) begins with me,
Pam
Pam