Can't sleep? Try Ho'oponopono
I couldn't get to sleep.
I had had a couple of glasses of wine with a good friend that was in town, and as it usually does these days, the alcohol raised my heart rate, my body temperature uncomfortably, and then an over-active mind decides to join the party. A great recipe for not being able to sleep. My mind raced; from things I needed to do, to words already said, to (argh!) Donald Trump.
After a couple of hours of tossing and turning, over-thinking and frustration, the practice of Ho’oponopono popped into my head. Something that had been mentioned to me a couple of years ago but I had shrugged it off as being a bit corny and not given it much more thought.
Ho’oponopono is an ancient Hawaiian practice for healing. Translated it means to make (ho’o) right (pono), right (pono). You repeat the following words, aloud or in your head:
I’m sorry
Please forgive me
Thank you
I love you
Just say the words over and over like a mantra. Feel the meaning of the words (forgiveness, gratitude, love). That’s it. So simple.
It’s traditionally used to heal relationships and seek forgiveness of others and yourself. In the past a kahuna (priest/doctor/expert) would be called into a family situation to help uncover problems, practice forgiveness and release people from conflict, grudges and guilt. Hawaiian doctors knew that holding negative emotions from conflicts and grudges eventually cause disease in the body.
Practicing Ho’oponopono helps bring you to the present, releasing your mind from distressing about the past or over-thinking the future. It connects your mind with your heart centre. While practicing Ho'oponopono you can have in mind someone you have a troublesome relationship with or simply use it as a calming practice for yourself; allowing self acceptance and forgiveness for a situation you caused, or in stressful moments like performance anxiety at work or, in the middle of the night when you can't sleep (we can be pretty hard on ourselves in those wee hours). It works for me.
Beautifully simple, and effective.
These ancient practices for living a healthy, harmonious life are remerging again, and I think we need them now more than ever.