After returning the SONY camcorder that was used for the first four video posts, I finally received Canon’s ZR850 MiniDV Camcorder last week and couldn’t wait to give it a try. For another hundred bucks, it has everything SONY had plus a remote control, a slightly bigger viewfinder, bigger zoom capabilities and other features.
But when I first started playing around with it, I was a bit disappointed. At first it seemed that the quality wasn’t as good but then I had been testing it on those days when the sun wasn’t out in full force. Most digital camcorders have a reputation for not performing very well indoors but I was told this one did – at least in comparison to SONY’s. I almost returned it in haste but decided at the last minute to give it a shot. What you’re about to see in a few moments is what I was able to do with it.
Have you ever heard of Ho’oponopono? It’s an ancient spiritual teaching that was brought to light by Dr. Ihaleakala Hew Len from Hawaii (and others) to help us heal parts of our inner selves that create negative outer experiences.
According to ancient Hawaiians, errors of our ways arise from thoughts that are tainted by painful memories of the past but we are not always aware of them because they are often deeply embedded within our subconcious. This spiritual philosophy teaches us to let God handle what we can’t do for ourselves, which would be wiping the slate clean and allowing for divinely inspired thoughts to come through and take immediate action on.
I heard of this teaching about a year ago but over the last few weeks, I had been running across Ho’oponopono from various articles on other blogs, emails and random Google searches. It finally dawned on me that the universe was trying to bring this to my awareness for another look.
After researching the subject, I decided to try it for myself. A few days later, I realized I had an opportunity to make a video post with the new camcorder and share with you my thoughts on Ho’oponopono. If you are an email or RSS subscriber, you are invited to click on the title of this article so that you can be transported to the Adversity University blog for the 5 minute subtitled video:
In short, here’s the mantra (or prayer, as I’d like to call it) along with the meaning of each phrase:
- “I’m sorry” – for whatever is going on inside me causing memories to replay
- “Forgive me” – for whatever is inside me that is causing negative outer circumstances to occur (i.e. financial hardships, negative people, illness, etc.)
- “Thank you” – trusting that God, your higher power or the universe will clear away old memories, allowing for inspired thoughts to come through for you to take action on
- “I love you” – unlocks the healing to take place from within
As I promised, here are a couple of useful links to learn more about this ancient spiritual philosophy:
It’s too early to tell whether it’s working for me but I do want to share something that happened almost immediately after I began reciting the mantra. First, I experienced a sense of lightness – a peaceful feeling, if you will. Then the following day, I received an email from a potential client who had seen my demo speaking tape at my speaking website (you can see the demo tape by going to the “Hire Stephen” tab above).
The man wanted to know, “Was a DVD copy available to show my steering committee while they decide on a keynote speaker for our conference in 2009?”
A coincidence? Would he have asked me for this anyway? Who knows? It’s hard to say but I couldn’t dismiss the timing of this man’s inquiry. It made me wonder if my work with this spiritual philosophy unlocked hidden memories that were wiped away by divinity (defined as whatever you like it to mean whether it’d be God, the universe or higher power). Still too early to tell but I’d think it had something to do with it.
What about you? What do you think of this spiritual teaching? Does it resonate with you or does it sound like something far off? Your thoughts and comments are always welcome!
Until next time, enjoy the beginning of your week. We have the final part of my interview with Karen Putz coming up on Wednesday plus updates in connection with my win in the BeTheNextBestsellingAuthor video contest!
Stay tuned……
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Welcome! You've arrived to a newly renamed blog (formerly called Adversity University) specializing in personal development for spiritual beings having a human experience. To see a speaking demo tape and other information, please click 
5:07 am on March 24th, 2008 1
Stephen, I’m so glad to hear it’s working for you! I agree with you that the man contacting you isn’t a coincidence – the same kind of thing happens to me whenever I immerse myself in Ho’oponopono! It really does seem to dissolve blockages and great things just happen spontaneously! Even better is that awesome sense of peace and lightness you described, it’s wonderful! I’ll be eager to hear how it changes things for you in the future, be sure to keep us updated!
Wendy
Wendy’s last blog post..More Ho?oponopono resources
6:45 am on March 24th, 2008 2
Wendy:
At this point, I am still experimenting with it and want to delve into this a bit more but because I was so fascinated with it, I wanted to share this philosophy with my readers.
Thanks for your input – I’ll definitely keep everyone posted on this experiment.
8:33 am on March 24th, 2008 3
Stephen,
Wow, you did a really great job of explaining the whole thing, and peaking interest so that other people will want to learn more.
It really is a powerful process, and I am glad that my post about how it all works has helped you or any of your readers to understand and embrace the incredible Ho’oponopono principles!
Have fun with it!!
Aaron – Today is that Day’s last blog post..Prelaunch of Personal Development for Stupid People
8:47 am on March 24th, 2008 4
Aaron:
Hey, thanks – your post on this subject was very helpful and I hope my readers will take a moment to look at it.
By the way, since you wrote about it, why don’t you come back here and tell us what experiences you’ve had, if any, with the application of this spiritual teaching?
I’d, for one, be VERY INTERESTED in what it’s done for you. Please feel free to start a discussion over here about your personal experiences. I’m sure others would love to know how it worked for you – that’s assuming, of course, you’re a regular user.
10:02 am on March 24th, 2008 5
A wonderful message which I am already trying.
Thank you, Stephen.
The video looks a little out of focus. Perhaps you can fool around with that. The books are more in focus than you. But, you will figure it out.
All in all, this was your best video. Your voice was very clear.
(Talking like an old TV person here!)
Also, just a suggestion. When we did a shoot where we did not have professional lighting, we used spots from Home Depot. Worked fine. They have to be shielded so there is no glare but it is a cheap way to do it when there is no natural light.
You are everyone’s hero!
10:26 am on March 24th, 2008 6
Stephen, I agree with Corinne- the video is a bit blurred. Love the message and I want to explore this when I have time to focus on it. Had to hurry through since I was supposed to be out the door this morning!
10:55 am on March 24th, 2008 7
Corinne:
Thanks a lot for the tips about lighting from Home Depot. What kind of lights did you get? I’ll definitely give it a shot.
I appreciate the complements about my voice. I did feel very strong in this video. My voice felt good and I’m grateful for that.
I agree with you that the video was a little blurry. I’m still trying to figure that one out. It’s not very user friendly – I mean, it’s “okay” but it seems that the SONY camcorder was much clearer and it was half the cost! But then it didn’t come with a remote control, which I like using.
I have another 20 days to play with this and see what happens. I’ll see if I can figure out the focus thing – it’s supposed to have “auto-focus” or something but I’m not seeing it. I think it also has something to do with the frames per second while recording – SONY seemed to pack more frames per second compared to Canon, which could account for the blurriness. Not sure.
Speaking of your experience with Ho’oponopono, have you had any experiences you’d like to share with us? I’d be very curious to know.
Speaking of heroes, you’re the second or third or maybe fourth person to say I’m a hero this week. Why? Of course, I’m grateful for the lovely compliment but a hero? For what? For saving someone from a collapsing building (which never happened) or for going to Iraq to fight on the front lines (which also never happened)? I would say that people who risk their lives in those situations would be heroes.
But then again, it’s all a matter of perception, isn’t it? Okay, I get it. It’s your perception that I’m a hero. Okay, I accept it! After all, who am I do deny you the pleasure of percieving me in that light? I’m a spiritual being having a human experience who happens to be a hero in the eyes of Corinne Edwards. There, how’s that?
11:41 am on March 24th, 2008 8
Dear Stephen
I really enjoyed your Ho’oponopono post and video!
I wish you all the best of luck with your own Ho’oponopono journey.
Regards,
Saul Maraney
Johannesburg, South Africa
“The updated Ho’oponopono, a process of repentance, forgiveness and transmutations, is a petition to Love to void and replace toxic energies with its self. Love accomplishes this by flowing through the mind, beginning with the spiritual mind, the super conscious. It then continues its flow through the intellectual mind, the conscious mind, freeing it of thinking energies. Finally it moves into the emotional mind, the subconscious, voiding thoughts of toxic emotions and filling them with itself”
- Dr Ihaleakela Hew Len – Zero Limits
11:42 am on March 24th, 2008 9
Stephen, you’re so humble. Maybe that’s why you’re our hero.
Very interesting….. Never heard of this philosophy. I don’t know about all of it, but a lot of it makes a lot of sense. I am a big teacher that yes, we do have a lot of stuff/junk buried in our subconscious minds and that IS why we do/act the way we do. I love how this philosophy teaches you to take responsibility for your thoughts and actions. Unless we do that we will always have that junk buried in our subconscious and acting ways we don’t want to act. We have to do something to bring it to consciousness and get rid of it and reprogram our minds for good.
I can see how this is a really good prayer to pray to God. After all, He knows ALL things (even more than we know about ourselves) and can help us see and get rid of all the junk in our lives. It’s a matter of turning to Him for help.
Jennifer’s last blog post..Steps to Happiness – Part 2
11:55 am on March 24th, 2008 10
Jennifer:
Yes, you absolutely nailed it on the nose when you said “after all God knows all things even more than we know about ourselves.” He most definitely can help us clear the clutter away but we have to be willing to let Him in to do it for us. God won’t interfere unless we ask. And this teaching is a way to do it.
I’m so glad you liked this post – let us know if you decide to take it up and practice it yourself. And if you get any results, it’d be cool to know more about your experiences!
Thanks for clarifying what Corinne said about me being her hero. Wow, I get it now — it’s because I’m humble. Well, what a cool compliment coming from you Jennifer!
You guys who are part of my community really rock, you know that? You’re the stars – not me.
In fact, I have a great idea brewing in my mind thanks to a fabulous book that I’ll be writing about. It will turn all of you into STARS at Adversity University. Wink, wink.
11:59 am on March 24th, 2008 11
Saul:
What a nice surprise to hear from you but then again, I guess I’m not because I linked back to your site about this spiritual philosophy.
It’s nice to hear from you – I found your webpage about what Ho’oponopono does for you. In fact, I’d like to invite you to come back here and leave another comment, giving us an example or two of how it helped you in your life. That would be really cool.
Since I’m so new to this, all I had to share was the example I mentioned in the post above. What about you? Can you tell us how it’s benefited you? (Please no self-serving links in the comment – just tell us in your own words what happened, if anything).
12:00 pm on March 24th, 2008 12
Karen:
We’ll talk more about this philosophy when I come out to Chicago for the SOBCon08 conference in a month. It’s a pretty neat philosophy and may be the answer to the missing pieces of “The Secret.”
Thanks for verifying what I thought to be a problem with the video being blurry. I’ll see what I can do to fix it – otherwise, I’ll take it back and get something else.
2:26 pm on March 24th, 2008 13
Stephen,
Thank you for your post & video.
I’ve begun applying these teachings immediately in my life…and am both excited and calm (can I be both?) about my future.
Thank you for all that you do.
Best,
Chris
7:47 pm on March 24th, 2008 14
Stephen,
When I first discovered Ho’oponopono, I had a lot of potential negativity in my life. I call it “potential negativity” because I used the 4 power phrases every time I felt like something was going to send out vibrations that I didn’t want the universe to have.
The phrases have really helped to redirect me whenever I was on the verge of falling prey to self-limiting beliefs, and in so doing, have also helped me to have the confidence to move forward with both personal and business situations in a manner that was not only more beneficial to me, but a lot less stressful as well.
Considering that it takes less than a minute to say all 4 phrases – even when saying them with feeling – it is more than time well spent!
8:32 pm on March 24th, 2008 15
Hi Stephen -
You are our hero because nothing daunts you. Just shut up and accept our admiration. You don’t have to do anything. It is ours not yours.
The lighting from Home Depost were black clip on spots like you would use in a basement if you were looking for a leak or in your garage. Simple stuff. They were a litle glarey so we put very dangerous scarfs and stuff over them. But we watched for fire outbreaks very carefully.
9:14 pm on March 24th, 2008 16
Corinne:
Okay, okay. I accept it!
Thanks for the tips on what to get from Home Depot. I’ll be looking for that the next time I go there. Appreciate the tip.
See you soon in Chicago!
9:18 pm on March 24th, 2008 17
Aaron:
Your input was fabulous! Thanks for sharing your experiences with it. So basically, you use it as a reminder anytime you’re encountering potentially negative thoughts or circumstances. Very interesting.
I will make a note of that for myself. I taped those four phrases on my bedroom door where I can see it everyday so not a day goes by that I am not reminded of it.
9:22 pm on March 24th, 2008 18
Chris:
And thank you for being an integral part of the Adversity University community!
Yes, you can most definitely be both calm and excited at the same time. Why not?
Let us know what happens to you personally as a result of applying this principal in your life – it’d be interesting to hear about your experience.
12:51 pm on March 27th, 2008 19
Ok Stephen, you got me! You left the comment on my blog about this technique, and then you did a whole post about it, so now I’ve been playing with this concept for about 3 days. What I find it that I’m often taken away in the “I’m Sorry phase.” There is so much to be sorry for in the world. When we each take personal responsibility for the evils and the wrongdoings in the world, it can be daunting. yet I get this is an important piece for my own development into my next step. so I’ve been staying with the feeling of “I’m Sorry” long enough to ask forgiveness before I move on to the next steps. I’m finding that I’m asking forgiveness about things I’d thought were long healed in my personal life, as well as Darfur, Iraq, Slaughter of Dophins and more. I’m allowing whatever to come up come up in the moment. I’m doing this about 5 times per day right now, and I’m interested to see if I move through this phase, or if I’ll continue to plead forgiveness for all the wrongdoings.
Just noticing the process, not judging it at this time.
Michelle Vandepas’s last blog post..By: Stephen Hopson
4:48 pm on March 27th, 2008 20
[...] changed somehow after watching one of Stephens latest video post about Ho’oponopono, which made me (re-)discover this fascinating concept (I don’t know how to pronounce it [...]
8:16 am on March 29th, 2008 21
Michelle:
You left a very powerful comment here. It made me realize the true value of the “I’m sorry” phrase. We are saying we’re sorry for everything that’s happening out there, EVERYTHING, because we are 100 percent responsible for it.
It’s not the kind of “sorry” that is demeaning or belittling ourselves. Not at all. We are simply recognizing outer events that have been caused by whatever is going on inside us.
And then we ask for forgiveness because often times we have NO idea what’s buried inside our subconcious to manifest those things. We are acknowledging that while we caused those events, we are asking to be forgiven to make way for clearance in our minds, which comes next “Thank you.”
Nice comment – you added a lot of value to this discussion. I appreciate it.
11:08 am on March 29th, 2008 22
Stephen, UPDATE:
This prayer is becoming part of my subconscious. Last night I didn’t sleep well, but I woke several times reciting “I’m sorry”, and then a few hours later I woke up with “please forgive me” and so on.
I’m not looking for instant results – although I thrilled you are getting them (relay call from New Zealand etc), but I am expecting a deep healing within myself and my family that only comes through Grace.
I haven’t noticed anything miraculous……yet I hope I’m conscious enough to notice every small miracle in life every day. Perhaps this prayer will help me be in gratitude for what I have already.
Michelle Vandepas’s last blog post..Adam Kayce Lives His Life’s Purpose
9:36 pm on March 29th, 2008 23
Stephen – thank you for such a timely post as it reminded me of this same ‘mantra’ or technique I came across early in February through a site called Cyres Cafe with a video post called 15-minute miracle featuring Dr. Joe Vitale of “The Secret”. Dr. Vitale talks about how he heard of Dr Ihaleakela Hew Len (I believe is his name) and how he used this technique in a mentally disturbed psycho hospital. When I listened to that video it couldn’t have come at a better time and through this very same practice I felt a shift but I had forgotten about it until now when I read your post.
Your video was great and you get better and better each time I see you. I was just captured with the message you were expressing I didn’t notice any technical subtleties that were off.
I liked how you said, “I love you” at the end. I felt it as you put it out to the world. Also, congratulations on your video contest win. So happy for your success.
Thank you!
Blessings,
Thank you for this post and for the reminder:
I’m sorry.
Please forgive me.
Thank you
I love you.
Pat R’s last blog post..Haven’t You Ever Wondered….WHY?
6:25 am on March 30th, 2008 24
Pat:
Doing video posts has been an amazing journey for me. Not only do I feel closer to the community but I also feel stronger with each new video post I do. More comfortable, if you will.
I’m glad this post reminded you to go back and peruse this spiritual philosophy. Let me know if you experience any shifts or miracles as a result of practicing this teaching.
12:56 pm on July 5th, 2009 25
Stephen, thanks for sharing this information. I will check out all of the sources that you supplied. Hope you are having a great time getting ready for college. I admire you so much for tackling life head on the way that you do. You deserve all of the good that Life brings you.
3:09 pm on July 29th, 2009 26
@ Patricia – Spiritual Journey Of A Lightworker:
Thanks Patricia – it’s almost time for me to head to Iowa for good. In fact, I begin the drive on Saturday, August 1. School starts on the 13th. Hard to believe the summer flew by so fast. Too fast! LOL But I’m looking forward to the new journey and the things I will be experiencing.
4:08 pm on October 29th, 2009 27
I’ve been using Ho’oponopono for about 9 months and have experienced huge changes in my life and the way I deal with adversity.
I attended a workshop with Dr Len about 5 months ago and was able to extend the way I use Ho’oponopono into every area of my life.
Thr community in which I live has also embraced the process and we use it as a group for particular people or issues that are of concern eg illness of a friend or an issue around the envirionment or concerns re a family member.
Dr Len encouraged peopel who attended the seminar to use it whether they believed it or not. We all need to “clean” he said, then life will become easy and flow.
This has certainly been the case for me.
I have manifested huge changes, clearing debt, healing family relationships, leting go of an abusive partner, a three month working holiday in the UK and Europe, where I am currently and making my work situation less stressful and easier.
It is a deceptively simple process but powerful and life changing.
Use it. It costs nothing and will change the world we live in, and transform our lives.
Connie
4:10 pm on October 29th, 2009 28
ps
Apologies for the typos!!!