Benefits of Forgiveness and How to Forgive

” To err is human, but to forgive divine!” We all have surely heard this quotation on forgiveness. But today I am not talking about forgiveness as a divinely act, I talk about it more as a self love act.

More appropriately…..

Forgive others not because they deserve forgiveness but because you deserve peace.

Mel Robbins

Forgiveness is not easy. More difficult for some than others. Depending on our nature and how deeply we got hurt. But it is the key to our happiness.

Along our life we keep on collecting tons of hurts and tons of grudges. It is more for some of us, depending on individual nature and the situations we are in.

When we are hurt either we can hold on to the hurt and keep on feeling anger and resentment over what happened or just forgive the person and the situation and move forward.

To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you.

Lewis B. Smedes

Do you Know all this hurt you carry, the baggage of past is only blocking your happiness, and perhaps also impacting your health in a drastic manner. Forgiveness is going to benefit the one who forgives much more than the one who is forgiven. Perhaps the one whom you are carrying a grudge against does not even know how you feel.

But most of the times a big block to forgiving is the feeling that forgiving would seem like we have let go of the pain that was caused to us. That we allow the other to wrong us again. But it does not necessarily have to be like that. Take it as a moving away from something that is toxic and painful. Once you Forgive you can forget a and move away even from the memories.

Holding on to past grudges leads to more stress and anxiety. It can in turn lead to health problems and also lead to stress in other relationships in your life. Holding on too much to past grudges can also lead to depression.

According to yogic philosophy all of the health issues arise from the emotional state that we are in. Being in a good emotional state protects us from a lot of unwanted health problems.

Forgiveness can make you more peaceful. It can make you a more empathetic person, because to forgive you would need to practice empathy.

Forgiveness helps you move away from the past and live life in the present more fully.

Forgiveness is not easy. And it sometimes needs to be done over and over again. When the wounds are deeper, the hurt keeps coming back. Every time one has to intentionally shift the focus to forgiveness.

Meditating and generally practicing mindfulness are very effective ways to heal oneself. When you step in the meditative state a lot of unresolved emotions settle down.

You can also try Ho’oponopono. It is an ancient Hawaiian practice for forgiveness. Ho’oponopono means to “make things right”. It consists of a mantra, a positive affirmation to change your mindset to one of forgiveness. Isn’t it all about how we perceive things?

Journaling ones feelings also is a very helpful way to let go of the pain.

Also sometimes taking appropriate counselling can help one overcome the feelings of hurt.

Whatever it takes and no matter how long it would take, do take up the journey to freedom from your own pain. Know that in forgiving you exhibit your strength. Only the strong can forgive.

“It’s one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself, to forgive. Forgive everybody.”

Maya Angelou