In the last post I discussed the application of ho'oponopono relative to using it to other people. Since liberation is largely about well, being liberated, any practice that increases your personal freedom and relationship to the universe or the god of your understanding counts, in my book, as a good idea.
So, we now look at the ho'oponopono approach of getting into a relationship with God. In this form, the technique is closer to confession. The idea is that the more open you are with Him, the better. That's why, in my opinion, so many religious adepts and spiritually realised masters write accounts that are almost sexual in recounting their experience of God. Meeting the universe is about vulnerability. Infinite vulnerability. And love. Leave us not forget love. We are left with faith, hope and love and the greatest of these is love, if you remember your Corinthians.
So, it's about taking responsibility for different aspects of your life and accepting that somehow, somewhere, you have created these situations. Whether you actually did or did not is a matter of metaphysical debate of Jedi-Sith continuum proportions, and I am currently throwing my chips on the side of "you probably did most of it, if not all of it". Nonetheless, taking responsibility for it is still a good idea from a personal empowerment viewpoint. Then, you basically sit before your God, and do the ho'oponono mantras.
"I'm sorry. Please forgive me. I love you. Thank you."
And the more open you can be the better. I personally find that I am too lazy to think about exactly what I did wrong, so I just start with the mantras. Eventually (well, actually pretty soon) things and events tend to come to mind, and I apologise for those. The lean in this particular version of this technique is in the "I'm sorry." The more willing you are to accept that your position may not have been the only right one, or even the right one, the more flexible your ego stance is, and the more can be achieved. In this open confession, you let go and let God.
Oh, and one word of warning - do not use the "please forgive me" part to do a mental ego flip. The ego is quite willing to do an insincere apology if it knows that it will be forgiven. All that is is what Paul Scheele used to call finessing. It goes through the motions to get to the desired result. Unfortunately, it does not go through the E-motions. And that is what gets it uncomfortable.
This is a very useful version for difficult issues and situations too, but I would use an adapted mantra setup:
"I'm sorry. Please forgive me. Please help me. Your Will be done. I love you. Thank you."
The confession bit (don't underestimate confession - there's a reason why most, if not all, major religions have it in one form or another) remains the same. There is a request for help, but again, the final mantra cuts at the ego bit of the equation. The ego is quite willing, again, to go through the motions if it thinks it can wheedle something out of God. What God thinks of that probably differs through the traditions, but what I can say with a lot of certainty is that the ego gets away intact if it is done in that way. It has to accept (with faith, which implies uncertainty, which is something the ego NEVER likes because it fears one or more outcomes that it views as unfavourable) that the best will happen, and it may not like the result.
Basically, in other words, use surrender. Openness. Everything that implies vulnerability and discomfort. It's not easy. But then again, who said liberation was easy? As for the last bit - saying thank you is always about gratitude and appreciation. From the heart. It's just a nice thing to say when you ask someone for a favour (even if that happens to be your Higher Self), don't you think?
There are, of course, other nuances to the ho'oponopono approach. More to come.
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