The Hoponopono (also known by the writing Ho’oponopono ) is a philosophy of conflict resolution and spiritual healing based on forgiveness, reconciliation and love.

Hoponopono (Ho’oponopono): to forgive oneself

Its origins date back to the first inhabitants of the Polynesian island of Hawaii, who used to practice healing rituals based on Hoponopono philosophy. In the 20th century, Nalamaku Simeona adapted the ancient teachings and techniques to modern times and popularized what we understand as Hoponopono today.

Although in the old versions of this healing art the figure of the healer was instructed by priests, in the current version the action falls on the very individual who wishes to be healed, so we can understand this spiritual art as a method of self-help.

Polynesian beliefs

In the popular cultures of the Polynesian islands, it was believed that the mistakes that people made were the cause of the diseases, since they enervated the spirits of the gods. Moved by this dogma, they thought that in order to purify the errors the individual should confess . If they did not agree to confess, the person could get sick and die. Keeping the mistake secret is what encouraged the illness to continue developing.

In the paradigm of psychoanalysis, we could translate the Polynesian beliefs by the concept of repression . Since the consciousness of these negative elements for health is not available, the tensions that they provoke remain anchored in the psyche, and later they become somatized. By confessing the error, the harmful effect on the person is annulled, neutralized.

Ancient practice of Hoponopono

“Ho’oponopono” means, in Hawaiian, something like mental hygiene : family gatherings where relationships are channelled and balanced through words, discussion, confession, compensation, repentance, sincere understanding of others, forgiveness and, ultimately, love.

While the particle “ho’o” is a prefix that turns a noun into a verb, the noun “pono” can be defined as “goodness, morality, correction, virtue, just, ethical…”

Thus, “ponopono” means ” , correct, reorder…”.

One of the most prominent researchers on Hawaiian tradition, Mary Pukui , described the first steps of the Hoponopono in Polynesian culture as “a family tradition in which family members would meet with other distant members of the same family and reconnect with each other’s entrenched problems, and achieve forgiveness and understanding of each other”.

The Hoponopono was conceived as a spiritual method to restore bad interpersonal relationships that led to pathologies and diseases of the individual, and therefore of the group. It was able to get to the root of problems, and it was believed that this also improved individual and family relationships with the gods, who provided certain essential elements for spiritual peace.

Hoponopono today

Of course, the concept of Hoponopono is not due to experimental psychology and the psychological intervention practices that contain it are not supported by science. Despite this, it has been used in various contexts over the last few decades.

Traditional application with offenders

During the second half of the nineteenth century, a prison program was implemented in Hawaii in which offenders were required to work with an elderly man who led Hoponopono meetings with their families as an alternative method of purging inter and intra-personal conflicts.

Karma Catharsis

In the 1970s, the traditional Hoponopono was adapted to the needs of industrial society. The philosophy of forgiveness and conflict resolution was extended to social issues, and it also acquired, on the other hand, a psycho-spiritual character of purification of the emotional ballast of each individual.

This adaptation put a lot of emphasis on the effects of negative karma. Being aware and experiencing for oneself the pain you have caused others is one of its foundations. The Hoponopono philosophy has elements of solipsism, going so far as to state that “everyone is a creator of his own life and circumstances. Every immoral action leaves a trace in one’s own psyche and is reflected in every object or living being that witnessed that moment”.

The cleansing or purification of karma becomes an indispensable requirement for the expansion of consciousness .

Hoponopono: no limits

The 21st century versions of Hoponopono emphasize the importance of reaching “the state of zero, where there are no limits or boundaries, no memory, and no identity. To reach such a state, called “Self-I-Dentity”, one must repeat the following mantra repeatedly:

Please forgive me. I’m so sorry. I love you.

The philosophy behind the Hoponopono of our day advocates taking full responsibility for our actions and those of others . Conflicts, then, arise from within oneself and never by the force of an external reality. If we want to change our personal reality, we must change ourselves. Although this postulate resembles solipsism, the truth is that Hoponopono does not deny the reality of other people’s consciousness.

Instead, Hoponopono conceives the computation of the consciousnesses that inhabit the world as intertwined pieces . If one cleans his own conscience of the mistakes made, he will be cleaning the conscience of everyone. Without a doubt, this is a philosophy that can help us to understand ourselves better and to be more connected to the people around us.

Introductory book

Do you dare to try this philosophy? I invite you to get the book of the Dr. Mª Carmen Martínez entering this link.

Bibliographic references:

  • Pukui, Mary Kawena and Elbert, Samuel H., University of Hawaii (1986) ISBN 978-0-8248-0703-0
  • Simeona, Morrnah, Self-Identity through HoÊ»oponopono , Basic 1, Pacifica Seminars (1990)