“Forgiveness … does not mean condoning or endorsing anything that was done that caused harm to you. Forgiving also does not necessarily involve trying to reconcile or resume any kind of meaningful social connection with the person who wronged you. Rather, forgiveness involves imagining the perspective of the harm-doer and actively letting go of the painful association between them and yourself. Forgiveness means embracing your feelings of hurt with self-nurturing and compassion, so that you can recover from the painful experience in a more lasting and purpose-inspired way.
“The good news about forgiveness is that the structures and pathways in the brain that it exercises have other advantages to mental well-being. If we’re holding a grudge or just passively waiting for hurt to subside rather than practicing forgiveness, the strength-building processes that come with forgiveness do not happen.”
Please click here to read the full article https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_forgiveness_changes_you_and_your_brain
A spiritual take on forgiveness in a blessing from Pierre’s book, 365 Blessings to Heal Myself and the World
Forgiveness is first and foremost a gift we make to ourselves: that of walking in the glorious freedom of having so totally forgiven ourselves we cannot feel the slightest resentment towards anyone else. Try it, friend, and you will see if you don’t start dancing for joy! For the reference to the Prodigal (son or daughter), see the Gospel of Luke, chapter 15.
I bless myself in my ability to see myself as divine Love sees me: totally innocent and free of the deadweight of any resentment.
I bless myself in my ability to totally and completely forgive myself – and hence all others – for any mistake, weakness, lack of caring or compassion, indifference or whatever I ever committed or manifested, knowing I was then at my highest level of consciousness – and hence that this is true of all my fellow humans, dictators and so-called human “monsters” included.
May I learn to forgive life for any injustice I feel I suffered, knowing that to really make such a judgment I would have to be able to grasp the meaning of every step I took since time immemorial (and maybe before) until I reached the Kingdom – and its place or role in my destiny. And who could ever claim such understanding?
May I learn to forgive anyone for any harm done to me, while also knowing that the harsh and cruel net of my resentment imprisons me still more than my neighbor, just as the gentle, caring mantle of forgiveness enfolds me as surely as it tenderly upholds all others.
And may we all bask in the deep understanding that divine Love never sees any of its creatures except as totally innocent because the Prodigal Son or Daughter who leave home only do so in their own dream of separation from their Source, just as the returning Prodigals who put on the robe of innocence and the ring of oneness recover the true state they never lost in their Father/Mother’s eyes.
May I understand that when I forgive, or request forgiveness, I not only free myself but help free all others in the world struggling to forgive and will also elevate world consciousness
https://pierrepradervand.com/365-blessings-to-heal-myself-and-the-world/
