Ho'oponopono – Do it for the Kids!

Okay, I’ll admit it. I chose that headline for the catchy parent/humor value, but this post does include discussion of Ho’oponopono and children – I promise!

In November 2006 I put together a post about Ho’oponopono after listening to a very informative conference call with Dr. Joe Vitale. I have just listened to a second call, this time with Mabel Katz, 10-year Ho’oponopono veteran who is the author the book ‘The Easiest Way: Solve Your Problems and Take the Road to Love, Happiness, Wealth and the Life of your Dreams‘, which is based on the Ho’oponopono principles and how to apply them to your life.

I was impressed not just with the amount of knowledge that Mabel Katz has about Ho’oponopono, but more importantly, with her understanding of how to incorporate it into your life in order to achieve success. Briefly, here are some of the highlights from the call that I felt were worth sharing.

There are 4 general phrases that most people are familiar with when it comes to using Ho’oponopono, and in no particular order they are: “I Love You”, I’m Sorry”, Please Forgive Me”, and Thank You”. How and when to use those phrases was one of the first questions that was answered on the call.

The answer was that in order to get the benefit of using these phrases in order to do what is called “cleaning,” you should focus on what feels right for you, not what someone else says that you should do. Understanding why you use the phrases is far more important than exactly how you use them.

The purpose behind using these phrases to “clean” is nothing more mysterious than what Law of Attraction proponents would call the “art of allowing”. In laymen’s terms, it means to recognize something that you do not wish to have in your existence, give yourself permission to see it and form an opinion about it, make an intention about what you want to happen, and then just let it go.

Many people have also called this process “Letting go and letting God,” which is the same concept.

When using the Ho’oponopono phrases, you should focus on releasing your negative thoughts and emotions, rather than getting hung up on the process itself. You must truly give yourself permission to not just let go of your negative feelings, but to let go of your attachment to a resolution as well!

For instance, if you are fighting with your children (See? Ho’oponopono for the kids!), then you must allow yourself to recognize the contrast of that conflict as being a part of you, not a part of them. You cannot be a quality parent to your child if you don’t recognize your own inner struggles first. One you have done so, then you can truly “let go” of your desire for conflicts to be resolved.

Now, make no mistake. Letting go does not mean that you do not want something, but rather that you are giving yourself permission to be happy even if it doesn’t happen.

As the old saying goes, what we resists, persists. If you are attached to being a great parent and raising your children to be model members of society, then you will be clinging to the fear that you might not succeed. Then, being the Master Manifester that you are, you will allow that lack of success to come into your life.

We sabotage our success by even having expectations! Whenever we “hope” that some solution will present itself, by hoping, we have unconsciously given ourselves permission to believe it is possible that the solution will not manifest.

Always remember that your primary job in life is to simply be happy.

You cannot be happy if you need someone to do something, or if you need some circumstance to manifest before you can experience happiness. You can only truly be happy when you are able to say “Yes, I want this to happen, but I will still be happy even if it doesn’t”.

Not very many people truly and 100% honestly have the ability to do that, which is why so many people meet with only limited success when trying to use tools such as Ho’oponopono or the Law of Attraction.

Yes, you can have desires. However, if you want to call upon the power of what or who you personally consider to be all powerful, you have to be willing to let go of your attachment to whether or not you actually get what you want.

Yes, it is difficult to not care whenever your rent is late, you don’t have the money to get your car fixed, or if you are concerned about the health of a loved one.

However, if your true desire is to resolve those situations, then you must recognize that healing or fixing negative circumstances is really all about healing or fixing you. From your point of view, you are the center of the universe. You always have been and you always will be!

If you want to incorporate the 4 key phrases into your use of Ho’oponopono, here is an outline that you can follow whenever you come upon a negative set of circumstances:

“I Love You” – Recognize the fact that it truly is all about you, and that you are so very worthy of as much self-love as you can muster!

“I’m Sorry” – You are apologizing to yourself because, as the conscious creator of your life, if you become aware of negativity, you are the one who created it. This apology is not about blame, however, but rather about recognizing the contrast that you have allowed into your existence.

“Please Forgive Me” – Again, you are forgiving yourself, not the people or circumstances who have brought this negativity into your life. You are both the people and the circumstances. It’s all you.

“Thank You” – Simple gratitude. You are thanking yourself not only for bringing the contrast into your life to begin with, but for now allowing yourself the opportunity to “clean” that negativity away, effectively erasing it from your very existence.

So, does all of this sound wishy-washy, completed unfounded in any scientific proof, and generally unbelievable?

Well, then, it won’t work for you! Consider concepts such as Ho’oponopono, the Law of Attraction, and even religious beliefs as being the same thing as strong political views, or even parenting styles.

If you don’t believe in a certain way of life, then trying to force yourself to live that lifestyle will never work. It’s simply not who you are.

However, if you do believe in concepts such as these, or if you are willing to open yourself up to the fact that there are concepts or belief systems that have not yet been a part your experience, then Ho’oponopono is definitely worth you taking the time to learn more about.

Here are links to resources where you can get more information:

My previous post on Ho’oponopono

Mabel Katz’ book, ‘The Easiest Way‘

Dr. Joe Vitale’s book, ‘Zero Limits‘

Audio Recordings of the Beyond Manifestation weekend