Did you know that we have ‘sacred friends’ that help us learn important lessons in life? But before I explain, let me tell you the backstory.
Currently, I am enrolled in a Forgiveness Coaching program. We learn to coach people through forgiveness in their lives to move forward into their true selves.
Through my work in the program, I’ve learned that true forgiveness often applies to forgiving ourselves rather than forgiving another person. Applying this principle when working with people, I find this to be true.
So, when the subject of forgiveness came up in a different group discussion, I took a keen interest.
One gal in the group finally realized that she was no longer upset by her friend’s words and subsequent actions. But she realized she needed to forgive herself for not stepping into the situation to curb the ensuing damage.
During this discussion, I was introduced to ‘sacred friends.’
Someone shared the story of the meaning of ‘sacred friends’ as coined by the Dalai Lama. I looked up the definition behind ‘sacred friends,’ and this is
what I found on Claire Lautier’s website:
The term ‘sacred friend‘ was coined by His Holiness the Dalai Lama to describe those people or situations in life that are hardest to love and hardest to forgive. … A sacred friend can be another person. But it can also be a situation, or a condition.
On the website, Success, Mary Morrissey explained this concept further when she asked the Dalai Lama how he could forgive and hold no resentment toward the Chinese for what they did. Here is his answer:
Everyone has friends; we all have friends. Friends easy love, easy forgive. But we have our sacred friends. Sacred friends very, very difficult. Chinese government, my sacred friend. Not Chinese people, Chinese government. Chinese people don’t do this; this is Chinese government that does this. The Chinese government is my sacred friend because without the Chinese government doing what they’ve done, I would never have had to evolve my heart to be bigger than the pain they bring.”
In other words, instead of looking at the people and situations that caused him harm and pain, he revered them as his ‘sacred friends’ to help him evolve into who he is.
What an excellent way to deal with the supposed enemies in our lives: Our Sacred Friends!