We are all flawed. We make mistakes. The important is our realization of that mistake. To realize that we were wrong and accepting it and asking for forgiveness is such a big step. It shows how a person has changed. It will lead you towards the path of righteousness. Know the importance of forgiveness and learn how to let go.
Forgiveness is a great virtue. We have always known that. We learned that in our childhood. Our parents and teachers told us about it when we were fighting with our friends and cousins over toys and seats. But as we grew up, we realized it was not as easy as it was in childhood.
Maybe because we were much more complex in our adulthood, we don’t have the childlike innocence now. Practicing forgiveness is not easy. It takes a lot of courage to forgive someone who has wronged you. But if the person is sincere in their apology, forgiveness should be considered. Forgiveness will help us get rid of feelings like anger and resentment. It will help us solve misunderstandings that might have been created. We can salvage a loving relationship.
Forgiveness does not necessarily mean that you support the wrongs. It does not mean you approve of the wrong. It is letting go of negative towards that person, but in a condition that the person apologizes in a sincere manner. Forgiveness contributes to our own personal growth. If we hold the anger and resentment, sometimes it affects us more than the person who has wronged us.
It's like gratitude affirmations; we encourage ourselves and add to our growth by letting go of our negative emotions towards ourselves. While in forgiveness we do the same thing with the difference of letting go of negative emotions towards someone else.
Forgiveness has many other benefits. It frees us from the shackles of the past. By holding the grudge we relive the pain again and again. By forgiving, we develop a healthy relationship. We can live in the present without any hurtful feelings. Sometimes maybe the resentment doesn’t fully go.
Maybe it can never fully go. But with time, it heals with its own pace and way. We live without anger. We have always learned negative things about revenge because it is negative and bad. In the whole process of revenge, we lose ourselves. All kinds of evil feelings develop within ourselves.
We can’t really dig troubles for a persona and not get into some ourselves. It brings us down. Forgiveness on the other hand works wonders on your health. If you are holding resentment towards someone, you are constantly in the shackles of someone else. But letting go of the anger and hatred, you can truly be free.
It seems like you don’t care. You can live with it. But with someone close, it eats you from inside. Maybe you won't talk, but just forgiving is a step. Not everyone can try to take that step that is why we need to try, to be able to take the high road.
Importance of Forgiveness: Letting go of Anger and Resentment
Photo by: Gabriel Benois
Forgiveness will release and eliminate the toxic feelings within ourselves. We get upset when we are hurt by our loved ones. We feel betrayed. All the love and hope between the person and us seems to be gone. But this is anger and sadness. We can’t really stop loving someone. What happens is we lose respect and adoration which builds love.
But sometimes, the anger becomes toxic. That moment it starts affecting the other parts of one’s life. You start lashing out at other people, at work – people who are not the cause of your hurt and anger. It takes a toll on your mental and physical health. If you are holding a grudge, you are constantly angry – that means you are thinking about that person.
You are giving control of your life to that person. You are giving control over your feelings and thoughts. But as soon as you forgive, you are in control. It’s not like you are not hurt any less. It just means you are not giving up on the negative feeling towards it. Just shift your focus on things and people who matter. It is the best option rather than thinking about the person who has hurt constantly.
Importance of Forgiveness: A Fresh Perspective
Photo by: Darius Bashar
We have been caught up over a cycle of always getting back at someone. This is not wrong. We shouldn’t let people get away when they are hurt. But in that cycle, sometimes we get back at wringing people because we have formed the habit. We overreact with other people over pretty small issues.
We get angry and even when we don’t realize it; we may have been the person who has hurt someone. This is why we need to cultivate habits of letting go and forgiveness. We should keep our calm. Practicing forgiveness gives us a perspective in life. That it is so much bigger than just getting on some feuds.
Our life shouldn’t just become a life of petty fights and holding a grudge. We are here for a bigger purpose. Amidst all the anger and hatred, we lose our perspective and goals. We are just cruising through life.
Just remember, forgiveness doesn’t mean it is okay for people to hurt you, it’s a way through which you are helping yourselves by putting all the focus on you. That being said, never let people get away by hurting you. Just ask yourself, is this reaction necessary?
Importance of Forgiveness: Being Compassionate
Photo by: Dane Wetton
When we are hurt by someone close, we are blocked. We don’t know what to feel. There is no other way or view to look at rather than the fact that your most close one has betrayed you. You refuse to see any other point of view. But we should consider the latter’s point of view.
The feeling of betrayal is cruel. We get blinded by so many other emotions and we do things we never think we would. That exacerbates the matter more easily. Our relationship with our loved ones drifts away. But if we just take a moment to think about the latte’s problem maybe we could salvage a relationship.
If we think about forgiveness and take a step and then maybe we would know what might be their reason. If we don’t do that and decide to just stay angry, then we just add more to our troubles. Forgiveness makes us compassionate towards other people.
While we talked about all the benefits of forgiveness, we never talked about how we can forgive. Or even start thinking about it. We have compiled some steps for you to assess.
- You can start by thinking from other people’s perspectives. You should try to think why someone did the way they did. Maybe they had a reason. If we think in that way, maybe we can let go of the anger and resentment and develop the compassion to forgive. It doesn’t have to be in a go. We can do all these steps by step. Giving us the time to heal.
- Ask yourself why the person behaved the way they did? Put yourself in their shoes to get a clear idea. Then think would you have behaved the way if you were in that situation? This makes the process so much easier. When we think through someone else’s eyes, a lot of things that we thought were wrong make sense. Then we understand their perspective more easily.
- If you have been forgiven in your life, think about that. Even if it's in your childhood by your parents after you broke a plate or a centerpiece. Think about that moment – how you felt. At that moment, the feeling of happiness that you felt. A burden that life of you. Just imagine being able to do that for someone else.
Forgiveness is a process. It has its own steps and we all learn it at our pace. We have to always remember that no one in life is perfect. We make mistakes. What makes us learn about the mistake is a chance to repent. That comes from forgiveness. If we are always angry towards each other, not speaking and holding a grudge, we can’t truly forgive.
In every religion, forgiveness is mentioned. That is because for centuries, this practice has made us stronger. The greatest of people whose stories we have heard were all forgiving. This is a deed we need to learn for ourselves. If you are having trouble forgiving or just not being able to let, you can redirect yourself to something else.
Bottom Line
Trying new hobbies is a great way to soothe your mind. You can focus on things that make you happy. And then, with a fresh perspective, you can rethink the whole incident. Maybe then, you can learn to forgive. Even if you think about forgiving – that's a lot. We are going to end this article with one statement – always remember that forgiveness is a virtue that only takes us forward in our life.