Bestselling author Dr & Master Zhi Gang Sha has released his new book Greatest Forgiveness: Bring Joy and Peace to Your Life with the Power of Unconditional Forgiveness. We recently sat down with him to learn more about how his new book can help readers find happiness through forgiveness.
These days a lot of young people are looking for ways to get and keep their lives on track. What do you hope they will specifically take away from reading your book?
I hope that young people will take away that they can do some simple things to take control over their lives and their emotions. These are difficult times, and young people need support and techniques to face ongoing challenges. Developing a forgiveness practice can help them transformmany problems and gives them a tool to stay positive and grounded. When faced with problems, instead of giving into feelings of hurt, revenge, guilt, or shame, which cause more pain, they can practice forgiveness. This is true for everyone, and how and why it works is described in my book.
In your book, you talk about how forgiveness is an ongoing process. Can you tell our readers how that works and how it will transform their lives?
Forgiveness is not a one-time event. It is a process and a way of being. In the words of Martin Luther King, Jr. “Forgiveness is not an occasional act. It is a permanent attitude.”
Making some time every day, even ten minutes, to do a forgiveness practice, creates a positive habit that guides people in the right direction. Sometimes people have been hurt very badly and find it very difficult to forgive, or have done something to hurt others and feel too guilty or ashamed to ask for forgiveness. Regular forgiveness practice can, over time, transform negative information held in your soul, mind, heart, and body to positive information. A lack of forgiveness can cause anxiety and depression, lower immunity, stress, and much more. By learning to forgive and developing a forgiving way of being, people can become happier, healthier, and more resilient and open their hearts to more compassion, love, and joy.
Love and relationship issues are something that people often struggle with. How can a forgiveness practice help people lessen or remove these issues from their day to day lives?
As human beings, we have all kinds of relationships: family, workplace, friends, partners, and more. Arguments and conflicts often occur in relationships. Practicing greatest forgiveness, unconditional forgiveness, can make a big difference in relationships. Instead of holding on to anger and hurt that only brings more pain, true forgiveness fosters compassion and deeper communication that can heal relationships and strengthen love. In Greatest Forgiveness, I teach how to do a special practice based on ancient wisdom that specifically supports the healing of relationships.
When did you first realize just how powerful forgiveness actually is?
Unconditional forgiveness is spiritual wisdom shared by many belief systems. I have long known the relationship between the mistakes we have made and the challenges in our lives, and have taught forgiveness practice as a way to transform life blockages for many years. Even so, I have realized more and more over time that it is our true nature and that forgiveness is essential to happiness and flourishing in every aspect of life.
If people could do just one thing every day to achievethe benefits of forgiveness, what would you suggest and why?
I would say to try to practice instant or in-the-moment forgiveness and see how it feels. As soon as you feel angry, annoyed, or hurt by someone or something, pause and do a brief forgiveness practice. Or if you have said or done something that has hurt someone, apologize and ask for forgiveness as soon as you realize your mistake. This canimmediately interrupt the flow of negative messages between you and create a shift to a calmer, more positive state of mind for both of you. If you do this regularly, it will become a habit that will help you to achieve greater inner peace and joy.
You can buy his book here- https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CSYLT9N/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_t1_QDeADbVXCEGBP
