Forgiveness

I’m doing this 21-day meditation challenge with Deepak Chopra online. The 21 days are all about love, loving kindness, forgiveness, self-love, etc.

Yesterday’s meditation was about forgiveness. Forgiveness is such an amazing, beautiful thing. It’s freeing, it’s light, it’s bright, and it’s love. Self-love and love for others.

But forgiving is extremely hard to do at first (after a while you get better at it). It’s putting your ego aside and being the bigger person. If there ever is such a thing as a bigger person. If you hold grudges, anger and resentment, would this ever serve you in a positive way?

How did grudges, anger and resentment ever bring you something positive? Think about it. Never. Can’t have. They’re too negative to bring anything good. So why hold on to these? They will actually poison your mental health, your physical health and your emotional health. You carry all that with you, and what could be more beautiful than to letting the poison go?

I’ve been in this situation recently. It hurt so bad and all I could think about was revenge, anger, and horrible ways to get back at the person. And I had enough up my sleeve (it actually scared me to realize what horrible thoughts I could have). I thought deeply about this. Taking revenge will probably result in the other person taken revenge on that. And then what? You’re in a vicious circle you can’t break. Until one is the bigger person. Also, holding these grudges, this anger, the other person doesn’t feel this, doesn’t know this. What good will it do? It’s only something that is in your mind. The other person is probably oblivious to your feelings and thoughts and won’t be bothered. The only one bothered is you. And let's not even speak of the tons of energy that is wasted on something so useless and harming to our health. 

So I started forgiving. Forgiving myself. Forgiving myself for the fact that I had put myself in that situation. I did nothing wrong, I just did. I followed my heart. Because you also have to remember: everything anybody ever does (to you, to themselves, to others), they only do because they were unable to act any other way in that situation. This is very, very important to remember. Take yourself for example. Think about a situation of which you later said “I could have acted differently”. But you didn’t because you act the way you act in a situation, because that’s only how you know to act, how you can act or how you chose to act. So, another human being will do the same. Now, taking that into consideration, forgiving becomes easier. I’m not saying ‘easy’, but ‘easier’. As from my previous entry you’ll remember that we’re all connected, we share one thing. Humanity. We are all humans, so everybody has the same emotions. All humans ever want is to be happy, healthy and loved.

So in my recent meditations I’ve started forgiving. And it’s amazing. Coming out of my meditation I had smile on my face. I looked at the sky and was thankful for all the Universe provides. And I was even more thankful to be able to love, instead of hate. It filled my heart with joy. I now look at this person with a fond memory and a period in my life that was life changing and I thank them for that.

Forgive. Start with yourself and widen the circle.