Ho'oponopono
Encyclopedia
Hooponopono is an ancient Hawaiian practice of reconciliation and forgiveness. Similar forgiveness practices were performed on islands throughout the South Pacific
, including Samoa, Tahiti and New Zealand. Traditionally hooponopono is practiced by healing priests or kahuna
lapaau among family members of a person who is physically ill. Modern versions are performed within the family by a family elder, or by the individual alone.
In many Polynesian culture
s, it is believed that a person’s errors (called hara or hala) caused illness. Some believe error angers the Gods, others that it attracts malevolent Gods, and still others believe the guilt caused by error made one sick. “In most cases, however, specific ‘untie-error’ rites could be performed to atone for such errors and thereby diminish one’s accumulation of them.”
Among the islands of Vanuatu
in the South Pacific
, people believe that illness usually is caused by sexual misconduct or anger. “If you are angry for two or three days, sickness will come,” said one local man. The therapy that counters this sickness is confession. The patient, or a family member, may confess. If no one confesses an error, the patient may die. The Vanuatu people believe that secrecy is what gives power to the illness. When the error is confessed, it no longer has power over the person.
Like many other islanders, including Hawaiians, people of Tikopia
in the Solomon Islands
, and on Rarotonga
in the Cook Islands
, believe that the sins of the father will fall upon the children. If a child is sick, the parents are suspected of quarreling or misconduct. In addition to sickness, social disorder could cause sterility of land or other disasters. Harmony could be restored only by confession and apology.
In Pukapuka
, it was customary to hold sort of a confessional over patients to determine an appropriate course of action in order to heal them.
Similar traditions are found in Samoa
, Tahiti
, and among the Maori of New Zealand
.
.” Literally, hoo is a particle used to make an actualizing verb from the following noun, as would “to” before a noun in English. Here, it creates a verb from the noun pono
, which is defined as
Preeminent Hawaiian scholar Mary Kawena Pukui
wrote that it was a practice in Ancient Hawaii
and this is supported by oral histories from contemporary Hawaiian elders. Pukui first recorded her experiences and observations from her childhood (born 1895) in her 1958 book. Author Max Freedom Long
, who lived in Hawaii from 1917 to about 1926, documented traditional hooponopono as used by Hawaiian families in his 1936 book.
Although the word “hooponopono” was not used, early Hawaiian historians documented a belief that illness was caused by breaking kapu
, or spiritual laws, and that the illness could not be cured until the sufferer atoned for this transgression, often with the assistance of a praying priest (kahuna
pule) or healing priest (kahuna lapaau). Forgiveness was sought from the gods or from the person with whom there was a dispute.
Pukui described it as a practice of extended family members meeting to “make right” broken family relations. Some families met daily or weekly, to prevent problems from erupting. Others met when a person became ill, believing that illness was caused by the stress of anger, guilt, recriminations and lack of forgiveness. Kupuna Nana Veary wrote that when any of the children in her family fell ill, her grandmother would ask the parents, "What have you done?" They believed that healing could come only with complete forgiveness of the whole family.
Hooponopono corrects, restores and maintains good relationships among family members and with their gods or God by getting to the causes and sources of trouble. Usually the most senior member of the family conducts it. He or she gathers the family together. If the family is unable to work through a problem, they turn to a respected outsider.
The process begins with prayer. A statement of the problem is made, and the transgression discussed. Family members are expected to work problems through and cooperate, not “hold fast to the fault.” One or more periods of silence may be taken for reflection on the entanglement of emotions and injuries. Everyone’s feelings are acknowledged. Then confession, repentance and forgiveness take place. Everyone releases (kala) each other, letting go. They cut off the past (oki), and together they close the event with a ceremonial feast, called pani, which often included eating limu kala or kala seaweed, symbolic of the release.
In a form used by the family of kahuna Makaweliweli of the island of Molokai, the completion of hooponopono is represented by giving the person forgiven a lei (Hawaii)
made from the fruit of the hala tree.
“Aunty” Malia Craver, who worked with the Queen Liliuokalani Children's Centers (QLCC) for more than 30 years, taught courses in traditional hooponopono. On August 30, 2000, she spoke about it to the United Nations
.
. The hooponopono is conducted in the traditional way, without court interference, with a practitioner picked by the family from a list of court-approved providers.
Some native practitioners provide hooponopono to clients who otherwise might seek family counseling.
, regarded as a healing priest or kahuna
lapaau, adapted the traditional hooponopono of family mutual forgiveness to the social realities of the modern day. For this she extended it both to a general problem solving process outside the family and to a psycho-spiritual self-help rather than group process.
Simeona’s version is influenced by her Christian (Protestant and Catholic) education and her philosophical studies about India, China and Edgar Cayce
. Like Hawaiian tradition she emphasizes prayer. Unlike Hawaiian tradition, she describes problems as the effects of negative Karma
, saying that “you have to experience by yourself what you have done to others,” and you are the creator of your life circumstances. Any wrong doing is memorized within oneself and mirrored in every entity and object which was present when the cause happened. As the Law of Cause and Effect predominates in all of life and lifetimes, the purpose of her version is mainly “to release unhappy, negative experiences in past Reincarnation
s, and to resolve and remove traumas from the ‘memory banks’.” Karmic bondages hinder the evolution of mind, so that “(karmic) cleansing is a requisite for the expansion of awareness.” Using her 14-step-process would dissolve those bondages. She did not use mantra
s or conditioning exercises.
Her teachings include: there is a Divine Creator who takes care of altruistic pleas of Men; “when the phrase ‘And it is done’ is used after a prayer, it means Man’s work ends and God’s begins.” ‘Self-Identity’ signifies, e.g. during the hooponopono, that the 3 selves or aspects of consciousness are balanced and connected with the Divine Creator. Different from egoistic prayers “altruistic prayers like hooponopono, where you also pray for the release of other entities and objects, reach the Divine plane or Cosmos because of their high vibrations. From that plane the Divine energy or mana would come,” which would transform the painful part of the memory of the wrong actions in all participants to Pure Light, on whatever plane they are existing; “all are set free.” Through this transmutation in the mind the problems will lose their energy for physical effects, and healing or balancing is begun. In this sense, Simeona’s mana is not the same as the traditional Polynesian understanding of Mana
.
, “I'm sorry. Please forgive me. I love you. Thank you.” It is based on the principle of 100% responsibility, taking responsibility for everyone's actions, not only for one's own. If one would take complete responsibility for one's life, then everything one sees, hears, tastes, touches, or in any way experiences would be one's responsibility because it is in one's life. The problem would not be with our external reality, it would be with ourselves. To change our reality, we would have to change ourselves. Total Responsibility, according to Hew Len, advocates that everything exists as a projection from inside the human being. As such, it is similar to the philosophy of solipsism
, but differs in that it doesn't deny the reality of the consciousness of others. Instead it views all consciousness as part of the whole, so any error that a person clears in their own consciousness is cleared for everyone. This idea of an individual having the ability to benefit the whole indirectly can be seen in the theory of the Hundredth monkey effect.
Oceania
Oceania is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Conceptions of what constitutes Oceania range from the coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific to the entire insular region between Asia and the Americas, including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago...
, including Samoa, Tahiti and New Zealand. Traditionally hooponopono is practiced by healing priests or kahuna
Kahuna
Kahuna is a Hawaiian word, defined in the as a "Priest, sorcerer, magician, wizard, minister, expert in any profession." Forty different types of kahuna are listed in the book, Tales from the Night Rainbow...
lapaau among family members of a person who is physically ill. Modern versions are performed within the family by a family elder, or by the individual alone.
Polynesian antecedents
Polynesian culture
Polynesian culture refers to the indigenous peoples' culture of Polynesia who share common traits in language, customs and society. Chronologically, the development of Polynesian culture can be divided into four different historical eras:...
s, it is believed that a person’s errors (called hara or hala) caused illness. Some believe error angers the Gods, others that it attracts malevolent Gods, and still others believe the guilt caused by error made one sick. “In most cases, however, specific ‘untie-error’ rites could be performed to atone for such errors and thereby diminish one’s accumulation of them.”
Among the islands of Vanuatu
Vanuatu
Vanuatu , officially the Republic of Vanuatu , is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is some east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, west of Fiji, and southeast of the Solomon Islands, near New Guinea.Vanuatu was...
in the South Pacific
Oceania
Oceania is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Conceptions of what constitutes Oceania range from the coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific to the entire insular region between Asia and the Americas, including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago...
, people believe that illness usually is caused by sexual misconduct or anger. “If you are angry for two or three days, sickness will come,” said one local man. The therapy that counters this sickness is confession. The patient, or a family member, may confess. If no one confesses an error, the patient may die. The Vanuatu people believe that secrecy is what gives power to the illness. When the error is confessed, it no longer has power over the person.
Like many other islanders, including Hawaiians, people of Tikopia
Tikopia
Tikopia is a small and high island in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. Covering an area of 5 km² , the island is the remnant of an extinct volcano. Its highest point, Mt. Reani, reaches an elevation of 380 m above sea level. Lake Te Roto covers an old volcanic crater which is 80 m...
in the Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
, and on Rarotonga
Rarotonga
Rarotonga is the most populous island of the Cook Islands, with a population of 14,153 , out of the country's total population of 19,569.The Cook Islands' Parliament buildings and international airport are on Rarotonga...
in the Cook Islands
Cook Islands
The Cook Islands is a self-governing parliamentary democracy in the South Pacific Ocean in free association with New Zealand...
, believe that the sins of the father will fall upon the children. If a child is sick, the parents are suspected of quarreling or misconduct. In addition to sickness, social disorder could cause sterility of land or other disasters. Harmony could be restored only by confession and apology.
In Pukapuka
Pukapuka
Pukapuka is a coral atoll in the Cook Islands in the Pacific Ocean, with three small islets threaded on a reef that encloses a beautifully clear lagoon. It is the most remote island of the Cook Islands, situated about 1140 kilometres northwest of Rarotonga. It is a triangular atoll with three...
, it was customary to hold sort of a confessional over patients to determine an appropriate course of action in order to heal them.
Similar traditions are found in Samoa
Samoa
Samoa , officially the Independent State of Samoa, formerly known as Western Samoa is a country encompassing the western part of the Samoan Islands in the South Pacific Ocean. It became independent from New Zealand in 1962. The two main islands of Samoa are Upolu and one of the biggest islands in...
, Tahiti
Tahiti
Tahiti is the largest island in the Windward group of French Polynesia, located in the archipelago of the Society Islands in the southern Pacific Ocean. It is the economic, cultural and political centre of French Polynesia. The island was formed from volcanic activity and is high and mountainous...
, and among the Maori of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
.
Traditional practice
“Hooponopono” is defined in the Hawaiian Dictionary as “mental cleansing: family conferences in which relationships were set right through prayer, discussion, confession, repentance, and mutual restitution and forgivenessForgiveness
Forgiveness is typically defined as the process of concluding resentment, indignation or anger as a result of a perceived offense, difference or mistake, or ceasing to demand punishment or restitution. The Oxford English Dictionary defines forgiveness as 'to grant free pardon and to give up all...
.” Literally, hoo is a particle used to make an actualizing verb from the following noun, as would “to” before a noun in English. Here, it creates a verb from the noun pono
Pono
Pono is a Hawaiian word commonly rendered as "righteousness". For instance, the Hawaii state motto: Ua Mau ke Ea o ka Āina i ka Pono or "The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness"....
, which is defined as
Ponopono is defined as “to put to rights; to put in order or shape, correct, revise, adjust, amend, regulate, arrange, rectify, tidy up, make orderly or neat.”
“goodness, uprightness, morality, moral qualities, correct or proper procedure, excellence, well-being, prosperity, welfare, benefit, true condition or nature, duty; moral, fitting, proper, righteous, right, upright, just, virtuous, fair, beneficial, successful, in perfect order, accurate, correct, eased, relieved; should, ought, must, necessary.”
Preeminent Hawaiian scholar Mary Kawena Pukui
Mary Kawena Pukui
Mary Abigail Kawenaulaokalaniahiiakaikapoliopelekawahineaihonuaināleilehuaapele Wiggin Pukui , known as Kawena, was a Hawaiian scholar, dancer, composer, and educator.-Life:...
wrote that it was a practice in Ancient Hawaii
Ancient Hawaii
Ancient Hawaii refers to the period of Hawaiian human history preceding the unification of the Kingdom of Hawaii by Kamehameha the Great in 1810. After being first settled by Polynesian long-distance navigators sometime between AD 300–800, a unique culture developed. Diversified agroforestry and...
and this is supported by oral histories from contemporary Hawaiian elders. Pukui first recorded her experiences and observations from her childhood (born 1895) in her 1958 book. Author Max Freedom Long
Max Freedom Long
Max Freedom Long was an American teacher and New Thought philosopher.-Early career:Shortly after graduating from UCLA in 1917, Long moved to the island of Hawaii to teach in elementary schools. When he arrived, he claimed that some Native Hawaiians were practicing what he called magic...
, who lived in Hawaii from 1917 to about 1926, documented traditional hooponopono as used by Hawaiian families in his 1936 book.
Although the word “hooponopono” was not used, early Hawaiian historians documented a belief that illness was caused by breaking kapu
Kapu
Kapu refers to the ancient Hawaiian code of conduct of laws and regulations. The kapu system was universal in lifestyle, gender roles, politics, religion, etc. An offense that was kapu was often a corporal offense, but also often denoted a threat to spiritual power, or theft of mana. Kapus were...
, or spiritual laws, and that the illness could not be cured until the sufferer atoned for this transgression, often with the assistance of a praying priest (kahuna
Kahuna
Kahuna is a Hawaiian word, defined in the as a "Priest, sorcerer, magician, wizard, minister, expert in any profession." Forty different types of kahuna are listed in the book, Tales from the Night Rainbow...
pule) or healing priest (kahuna lapaau). Forgiveness was sought from the gods or from the person with whom there was a dispute.
Pukui described it as a practice of extended family members meeting to “make right” broken family relations. Some families met daily or weekly, to prevent problems from erupting. Others met when a person became ill, believing that illness was caused by the stress of anger, guilt, recriminations and lack of forgiveness. Kupuna Nana Veary wrote that when any of the children in her family fell ill, her grandmother would ask the parents, "What have you done?" They believed that healing could come only with complete forgiveness of the whole family.
Hooponopono corrects, restores and maintains good relationships among family members and with their gods or God by getting to the causes and sources of trouble. Usually the most senior member of the family conducts it. He or she gathers the family together. If the family is unable to work through a problem, they turn to a respected outsider.
The process begins with prayer. A statement of the problem is made, and the transgression discussed. Family members are expected to work problems through and cooperate, not “hold fast to the fault.” One or more periods of silence may be taken for reflection on the entanglement of emotions and injuries. Everyone’s feelings are acknowledged. Then confession, repentance and forgiveness take place. Everyone releases (kala) each other, letting go. They cut off the past (oki), and together they close the event with a ceremonial feast, called pani, which often included eating limu kala or kala seaweed, symbolic of the release.
In a form used by the family of kahuna Makaweliweli of the island of Molokai, the completion of hooponopono is represented by giving the person forgiven a lei (Hawaii)
Lei (Hawaii)
Lei is a Hawaiian word for a garland or wreath. More loosely defined, a lei is any series of objects strung together with the intent to be worn. The most popular concept of a lei in Hawaiian culture is a wreath of flowers draped around the neck presented upon arriving or leaving as a symbol of...
made from the fruit of the hala tree.
“Aunty” Malia Craver, who worked with the Queen Liliuokalani Children's Centers (QLCC) for more than 30 years, taught courses in traditional hooponopono. On August 30, 2000, she spoke about it to the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
.
Traditional applications
In the late 20th century, courts in Hawaii began to order juvenile and adult offenders to work with an elder who would conduct hooponopono for their families, as a form of alternative dispute resolutionAlternative dispute resolution
Alternative Dispute Resolution includes dispute resolution processes and techniques that act as a means for disagreeing parties to come to an agreement short of litigation. ADR basically is an alternative to a formal court hearing or litigation...
. The hooponopono is conducted in the traditional way, without court interference, with a practitioner picked by the family from a list of court-approved providers.
Some native practitioners provide hooponopono to clients who otherwise might seek family counseling.
Freedom from Karma
In 1976 Morrnah SimeonaMorrnah Simeona
Morrnah Nalamaku Simeona was recognized as a kahuna lapaau in Hawaii and taught her updated version of hooponopono throughout the United States, Asia and Europe.-Kahuna lapaau:...
, regarded as a healing priest or kahuna
Kahuna
Kahuna is a Hawaiian word, defined in the as a "Priest, sorcerer, magician, wizard, minister, expert in any profession." Forty different types of kahuna are listed in the book, Tales from the Night Rainbow...
lapaau, adapted the traditional hooponopono of family mutual forgiveness to the social realities of the modern day. For this she extended it both to a general problem solving process outside the family and to a psycho-spiritual self-help rather than group process.
Simeona’s version is influenced by her Christian (Protestant and Catholic) education and her philosophical studies about India, China and Edgar Cayce
Edgar Cayce
Edgar Cayce was an American psychic who allegedly had the ability to give answers to questions on subjects such as healing or Atlantis while in a hypnotic trance...
. Like Hawaiian tradition she emphasizes prayer. Unlike Hawaiian tradition, she describes problems as the effects of negative Karma
Karma
Karma in Indian religions is the concept of "action" or "deed", understood as that which causes the entire cycle of cause and effect originating in ancient India and treated in Hindu, Jain, Buddhist and Sikh philosophies....
, saying that “you have to experience by yourself what you have done to others,” and you are the creator of your life circumstances. Any wrong doing is memorized within oneself and mirrored in every entity and object which was present when the cause happened. As the Law of Cause and Effect predominates in all of life and lifetimes, the purpose of her version is mainly “to release unhappy, negative experiences in past Reincarnation
Reincarnation
Reincarnation best describes the concept where the soul or spirit, after the death of the body, is believed to return to live in a new human body, or, in some traditions, either as a human being, animal or plant...
s, and to resolve and remove traumas from the ‘memory banks’.” Karmic bondages hinder the evolution of mind, so that “(karmic) cleansing is a requisite for the expansion of awareness.” Using her 14-step-process would dissolve those bondages. She did not use mantra
Mantra
A mantra is a sound, syllable, word, or group of words that is considered capable of "creating transformation"...
s or conditioning exercises.
Her teachings include: there is a Divine Creator who takes care of altruistic pleas of Men; “when the phrase ‘And it is done’ is used after a prayer, it means Man’s work ends and God’s begins.” ‘Self-Identity’ signifies, e.g. during the hooponopono, that the 3 selves or aspects of consciousness are balanced and connected with the Divine Creator. Different from egoistic prayers “altruistic prayers like hooponopono, where you also pray for the release of other entities and objects, reach the Divine plane or Cosmos because of their high vibrations. From that plane the Divine energy or mana would come,” which would transform the painful part of the memory of the wrong actions in all participants to Pure Light, on whatever plane they are existing; “all are set free.” Through this transmutation in the mind the problems will lose their energy for physical effects, and healing or balancing is begun. In this sense, Simeona’s mana is not the same as the traditional Polynesian understanding of Mana
Mana
Mana is an indigenous Pacific islander concept of an impersonal force or quality that resides in people, animals, and inanimate objects. The word is a cognate in many Oceanic languages, including Melanesian, Polynesian, and Micronesian....
.
Creating state of Zero
After Simeona's passing in 1992, her former student and administrator Ihalekala Hew Len, co-authored a book with Joe Vitale called Zero Limits referring to Simeona's hooponopono teachings. Len makes no claim to be a kahuna. In contrast to Simeona's teachings, the book says that the main objective of hooponopono is getting to “the state of Zero, where we would have zero limits. No memories. No identity.” To reach this state, called 'Self-I-Dentity', one has to repeat constantly the mantraMantra
A mantra is a sound, syllable, word, or group of words that is considered capable of "creating transformation"...
, “I'm sorry. Please forgive me. I love you. Thank you.” It is based on the principle of 100% responsibility, taking responsibility for everyone's actions, not only for one's own. If one would take complete responsibility for one's life, then everything one sees, hears, tastes, touches, or in any way experiences would be one's responsibility because it is in one's life. The problem would not be with our external reality, it would be with ourselves. To change our reality, we would have to change ourselves. Total Responsibility, according to Hew Len, advocates that everything exists as a projection from inside the human being. As such, it is similar to the philosophy of solipsism
Solipsism
Solipsism is the philosophical idea that only one's own mind is sure to exist. The term comes from Latin solus and ipse . Solipsism as an epistemological position holds that knowledge of anything outside one's own mind is unsure. The external world and other minds cannot be known, and might not...
, but differs in that it doesn't deny the reality of the consciousness of others. Instead it views all consciousness as part of the whole, so any error that a person clears in their own consciousness is cleared for everyone. This idea of an individual having the ability to benefit the whole indirectly can be seen in the theory of the Hundredth monkey effect.