Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 8, Number 5, 1 May 1991 — Ho'oponopono-- treatment of choice [ARTICLE]

Ho'oponopono-- treatment of choice

Near!y six years ago, with the help of Alu Like, ine. and its Hawai'i Island Center, the Ho'oponopono Treatment Project was instituted. It eame about when several human service agencies reported that their Hawaiian clients were not responding well to western-style psychological or psychiatric care. It was then felt that the use of ho'oponopono as a traditional family healing method could supplement or replace contemporary western treatment and was an appropriate cultural method of the Hawaiian community. Ho'oponopono, as described by Mary Kawena Pukui, is a precise-structured traditional family health therapy method in whieh discordant family problems are resolved through prayer, discussion, confession, repentance and mutual restitution, forgiveness, and release. Its overall goal is "to set or make things right," to correct, to restore, and to maintain good relationships among family members. In ancient times it also filled an important role in assuring harmonious relationships between family and the gods. Under the leadership of Everett Sonny Kinney, Hawai'i Island representative, a plan was launched to provide ho'oponopono services island-wide. Ho'oponopono centers were established in Pahoa-Puna, Na'alehu-Ka'u, Captain Cook-South Kona, Waimea-South Kohala, and Hilo. Since there were no funds to establish private offices, Kinney said, "We were pleased to use whatever space we could locate, generally in public agency offices where we were working with their referral clients and in the Alu Like, ine. Hawai'i Island Center. Sometimes our kupuna conducted ho'oponopono in the quiet part of the park or in a secluded portion of a beach. It was an exciting opportunity to practice an ancient healing ritual and to see it produce positive results," he said. A six-day retraining/affirmation program was conducted by Richard and Lynette Paglinawan, noted ho'oponopono practitioners who were trained by Mary Kawena Pukui while all worked at the Queen Lili'uokalani Children's Center. The session was in Punalu'u, Ka'u for an initial group of 21 kupuna recruited from the various island districts. All the kupuna needed to have practiced forms of ho'oponopono in their own homes or to have learned from their own parents. The purpose of the training was "to define a uniformity in practice and process after whieh the active

kupuna were recognized as professional practitioners and appointed as kupuna ho'opx>nopono consultants for the project. We then applied for and ieceived funding from the Department of Health, Mental Health Division, whieh we then used to compensate our practicing kupuna for expenses and to provide free ho'oponopono services to the Hawaiian community", Kinney stated. Today ho'oponopono is emerging as a respected treatment of ehoiee by Hawaiian individuals, families and groups seeking to maintain mutually beneficial feelings between eaeh other. "Our Hawaiian people appear to be more responsive to ho'oponopono's definitive process and one-to-one talk-story discussions," he said. The Hawai'i Island project was designed to make ho'oponopono available to any Hawaiian person or family by modifying the 'ohana or family requirement that ho'oponopono should be conducted by the elder of the particular ohana. "We began by defining the Hawaiian community an an 'ohana and then established a cadre of trained kupuna who could work with any family willing to accept an "outside" kupuna haku as the method leader," Kinney said. Some agencies whieh refer clients to ho'oponopono services include the courts (family and circuit), Child Protective Services, probation officers, Alternative to Violence, Family Services, Big Island school counselors association, the Offender/Ex-Offender Project, Public Defender's Office, Department of Human Services, University of Hawai'i, Hawai'i Community College students, and Maternity and Child Care services. Some Hawaiians eome to the centers voluntarily after learning of the service from friends who were clients, said Kinney. Under the auspices of the Alu Like Native Hawaiian Library Project, Sonny Kinney is currently presenting a ho'oponopono lecture series statewide. The long-term goal is to assist the Hawaiian community on eaeh island to establish their own ho'oponopono programs. Current ho'oponopono kupuna consultants in the project are Emma Kauhi, Simeon Enriquez, Sybil Grace, Anna Cariaga, Mona Kahele, Lanikala Brandt, Ululani Garmon, Abbie Napeahi, Eleanor Ahuna, Maile Akims^v-rand Arthur Hoke. Others who undertook the training include Abigail Kailimai, Kini Pea, Hilde Keanaaina, Ruth Moore, Manuel Veincent, and Mary Mae Unea.