Come on man, everyone knows what forgiveness is because everyone actually wants forgiveness. It’s the decent side of you. Of course, a person can become so malignant that they no longer care if people forgive them for the horrible things they’ve done. But that’s outside the scope of self-help. Forgiveness is something we have to practice. We begin by practicing breathing exercises long enough to breathe deeply and fully at the sign of any anxiety. This is true self-mastery. Over time, with consistent practice combined with our writing, speech, actions, therapy, diet changes, and exercise, we learn how to enter a relaxed state of mind.
Remember, the anxious state of mind is so normalized for us that we can’t really see how we are behaving. The more conscious we become, the easier it is for us to understand the wonders of everything and to feel love. Some types of forgiveness will require much longer periods of time, while others can be instant. For example, let’s say I see a woman walking down the street, and I can’t stand her dress. The higher version of me wouldn’t even notice, but today, I’m a fashion critic. Maybe I’m distracted and under my own pressure and anxiety. Instead of delving deeper into this narrative, I just forgive her outfit and wish her a happy life. If this negative thought lingers, I practice forgiving her outfit until it dissipates. If it continues to stick around, I check my breathing practices to ensure I am working every day to reset my mind.
How can I expect to forgive my most difficult perpetrators if I am in an anxious state of mind? Forgiveness involves acceptance of what has happened and what has changed. It requires compassion, which is not easy to experience when we are frightened. Forgiveness also requires letting go of deeper, earlier angers and traumas. This takes time, as there are many layers to peel back.
Forgiveness without a breathing practice, to me, is a waste of time. When people say they’ve learned to forgive but don’t relax their minds in general, I don’t believe their forgiveness is long-standing. The resentments remain and will flare up if triggered. True forgiveness means we let go of our resentments and what they represent. If we can’t see what those resentments represent, we will be stuck resenting things in our present life, distracted by our ego, and unable to be centered in the universal self. The universal self, which is thinking consciousness and pure love, avoids conflict and brings peace. It is connected to the universal breath of the divine.
It takes many years to figure this out. Look for signals and signs that forgiveness is important to practice. You can say you forgive someone as a practice, but you have to ask deeper questions and write about it. What does it mean to forgive a person who has harmed you? If you don’t write and talk about it, the subject will never come up in your mind. We will be distracted by superfluous things rather than important topics. Forgiveness is crucial to the health of both the body and the mind and has everything to do with our happiness and development.
In summary, it is breath practice that will slowly help us learn how to relax. In a relaxed state of mind, we will be able to do forgiveness work. We will need very little discussion or instruction on how to let go of negative thoughts and things that affect our happiness and mood. Deep-rooted resentments are held as negative energy, affecting our physical body and perception. It is a good idea to look at your life, acknowledge your imperfections, and apologize for any harm you have caused to people, animals, or plants. Accept their forgiveness, and if they don’t forgive you, forgive them. Practice this: say it, write it, think about it, talk about it, and write a chapter on forgiveness.