Many of us have varied views when it comes to forgiveness. Some people exclaim that it is not possible to forgive someone who’s been so torturous and cruel to them. I can understand this view as I have often felt that same way many times in my life, however as I have learnt through my life experiences, forgiveness is not about letting someone ‘off the hook’ so to speak but it can be viewed as an invaluable opportunity to heal.
When we hold onto the pain and discomfort caused by another, it can eat away at us on many levels; physically, mentally and spiritually. Of course, it’s important to allow yourself to feel the emotions of betrayal, hurt, resentment, disgust and anger as we are living through a human experience and all emotions serve a purpose. Let’s get real here; being happy and joyous every second of every hour of every day is neither attainable or sustainable.
Grief and loss is a universal and extremely personal experience. Getting to a state of forgiveness, acceptance and release is no mean feat but it can be achieved!
Perhaps you think revenge is the best solution? I wouldn’t recommend it. It may seem like the best way to deal with the hurt you’ve endured, but in the long run it will erode your soul and clock up more karmic debt.
When people hurt us, we can choose to see these experiences as an opportunity to grow and elevate on a spiritual level.
Let me clear that you are by no means condoning the other person’s behaviour, you are simply taking the lesson from the experience and releasing the person from your life so you can begin a new chapter.
How do you forgive? It is entirely up to you. You don’t have to see the person and say it to their face. You can just repeat the words I forgive you over and over again until you feel a significant shift in your heart space.
Remember that forgiveness is something you do for yourself NOT the other person. Be kind and gentle with yourself during the process and seek out support if you need to.