Forgiveness

Imagine vividly a situation where you have acted badly, one about which you feel guilty, and about which you wince even to think of it.

Then, as you breathe in, accept total responsibility for your actions in that particular situation, without in any way trying to justify your behavior. Acknowledge exactly what you have done wrong, and wholeheartedly ask for forgiveness. Now, as you breathe out, send out reconciliation, forgiveness, healing, and understanding.

So you breathe in blame, and breathe out the undoing of harm; you breathe in responsibility, breathe out healing, forgiveness, and reconciliation.

This exercise is particularly powerful and may give you the courage to go to see the person whom you have wronged, and the strength and willingness to talk to him or her directly and actually ask for forgiveness from the depths of your heart.  -Rigpa

The Practice of Forgiveness

Forgiveness is not weak. We have all hurt and been hurt and we all seem to hang on to it as much as we can!  What we hang on to becomes 'pain'.  Hard feelings that consume our energy and long for revenge.  But forgiveness is really for our own sake, for our personal health and well-being.  It is a way to let go of the pain we carry.  Jack Kornfield tells the story of two former prisoners of war who meet after many years.  When the first one asks, "Have you forgiven your captors yet?"  the second man answer's, "No, never."  "Well, then," the first man replies,  "they still have your in prison."

Often in the process of forgiveness we go through stages of grief, anger, rage, sorrow, confusion and hurt.  Forgiveness is a letting go of that hurt.  Kornfield recommends practicing five minutes of forgiveness for yourself and others, twice a day for six months.  "Practicing with small misdeeds, such as my uncaring treatment of a friend, over and over,  I Inwardly asked for forgiveness and vowed to act in more caring ways. " (Kornfield, 2008).

Life is much too short to carry anger and hate.  Try forgiveness instead.   TJS

Forgiveness

Imagine vividly a situation where you have acted badly, one about which you feel guilty, and about which you wince even to think of it.

Then, as you breathe in, accept total responsibility for your actions in that particular situation, without in any way trying to justify your behavior. Acknowledge exactly what you have done wrong, and wholeheartedly ask for forgiveness. Now, as you breathe out, send out reconciliation, forgiveness, healing, and understanding.

So you breathe in blame, and breathe out the undoing of harm; you breathe in responsibility, breathe out healing, forgiveness, and reconciliation.

This exercise is particularly powerful and may give you the courage to go to see the person whom you have wronged, and the strength and willingness to talk to him or her directly and actually ask for forgiveness from the depths of your heart.
-----Rigpa Quote of the Day