Ho’oponopono And Theseus’s Ship

The homily of Theseus’s ship is similar to the old saying that the axe has had a new haft, and a new handle, yet it’s still the original axe. The difference is that Theseus’s ship is a little more complex because it’s made of more components, and these wear out at different rates.

There was a need to replace the sails. It was necessary to replace the ropes. Even the nails holding the planks in place had to be replaced. It was discovered that not a single piece of the ship was made from the original material when it returned. Are you able to consider that ship the real Ship of Theseus?

On the other hand, could this ship be MORE the ship of Theseus as its repairs were evidence of all the heavy seas and adventures it had survived?

Many Japanese people claim it to be so. Their discipline ‘Kintsugi’ shows every repair as it is infilled with gold-powder (or gold leaf). The idea is that items such as ceramic pots ‘should’ clearly show their history. Other countries in the East have similar practices.

The seventeenth century philosopher Thomas Hobbes asked, if all the old parts of Theseus’s ship had been stored in the hold and then unloaded on the quay after the ship had docked, could these be called the original ship?

Quite clearly, the ship that is an idea, isn’t the physical ship itself. Yet it’s the idea which gave rise to the ship’s early design, its repairs, and its essential identity.

This is important when coming to think about ho’oponopono. The truth is that no cell in your body can exist beyond seven years.

Seven years ago, you were a completely different physical entity.

In this sense, Theseus’s ship and you share a lot in common because although every physical component which makes you up gets replaced, you continue to live from the same identity.

This identity (or idea) is stored and modified in your subconscious mind. This idea warehoused as karmic data. Like Theseus’s ship, your body reflects your personal history. If you were a miserable person, then you most likely have a miserable face and a (somewhat) burdened posture. Jolly characters (on the other hand) bear laughter-lines on their faces and tend to walk with a bounce to their stride.

Ho’oponopono is all about deleting the Karmic-Data which makes up your personal history and identity. The aim is to get back to a state of Zero from which the data stored within your subconscious gets replaced by the Creative White Light of Divinity.

This will give you a far more fluid nature. It’s not that you’re unable to anticipate challenges, rather it’s that you won’t allow yourself to be attached to any one outcome to resolve them. Indeed, a solution may arise spontaneously that you had not considered.

Dr. Ihaleakala Hew Len recommended saying the ho’oponopono prayer (sometimes referred to as the mantra) four times before believing any course of action to be Inspired by Divinity. It’s good advice because acting from memory can only make you more ridged, whereas Inspiration from Divinity will make you more flexible and fluid, lighter, happier, and in the flow.