Explore a gentle practice for releasing resentment and finding freedom through forgiveness.

How To Do This Practice:

1. Prepare Your Space and Body: Find a quiet, safe place to sit and take slow, grounding breaths. Notice any tension in your body and gently release it with each exhale.
2. Identify Who You’re Ready to Forgive: Bring to mind two or three people who have hurt you, and start with the one whose actions feel least painful. Reflect on how this hurt still affects your emotions and body.
3. Acknowledge the Hurt: Recognize what happened and how it impacted your life, trust, or well-being. Allow yourself to feel the pain without judgment.
4. Seek to Understand (Without Excusing): Consider what struggles or past hurts might have influenced the other person’s behavior. This step is about seeing their humanity, not condoning their actions.
5. Make the Choice to Forgive: When you feel ready, make an inner decision to release resentment and let go of the burden it carries. Offer kindness, respect, or simply your intention to move forward.
6. Reflect and Offer Yourself Compassion: Notice any small sense of softening or relief, and honor where you are in the process. End by thanking yourself for taking a step toward healing.

Scroll down for a transcription of this episode.

Today’s Happiness Break Guide:

DACHER KELTNER is the host of The Science of Happiness podcast and is a co-instructor of the Greater Good Science Center’s popular online course of the same name. He’s also a professor of psychology at the University of California, Berkeley.

Related Happiness Break episodes:

A Science-Backed Path to Self-Forgiveness: https://tinyurl.com/yh2a5urt

A Note to Self on Forgiveness: https://tinyurl.com/y53tkn87

Make Uncertainty Part of the Process: https://tinyurl.com/234u5ds7

Related Science of Happiness episodes:

Nine Steps to Forgiveness: https://tinyurl.com/vb7kk5ky

The Science of Letting Go: https://tinyurl.com/566t8udf

The Contagious Power of Compassion: https://tinyurl.com/3x7w2s5s

This episode was supported by a generous grant from the Templeton World Charity Foundation as part of a Greater Good Science Center project on "Putting the Science of Forgiveness into Practice."

We’d love to hear about your experience with this practice! Share your thoughts at happinesspod@berkeley.edu or use the hashtag #happinesspod.

Find us on Apple Podcasts: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aap

Help us share Happiness Break! Leave a 5-star review and share this link: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aap

Transcription: https://tinyurl.com/trnz9x8n

Discover how forgiveness reshapes the brain, eases the body, and helps us move forward with greater compassion and freedom.

Summary: Forgiveness isn’t about forgetting or excusing—it’s about releasing the grip of resentment so we can make room for peace. Research shows it also engages empathy, strengthens emotional regulation, and helps us reconnect with what truly matters. In this episode of The Science of Happiness, we look at how forgiveness transforms not just relationships, but our overall well-being.

How To Do This Practice:

1. Acknowledge the hurt: Be honest about what happened and how it affected you—avoiding or denying the pain can keep it alive.
2. Empathize with the other person: Try to see their humanity and what might have led them to act as they did, without excusing the harm.
3. Choose to forgive: Decide, for your own peace, to let go of resentment and stop letting the past control your emotions.
4. Offer forgiveness as a gift: Imagine extending understanding or compassion toward the person, even if they never apologize.
5. Commit to your choice: Write it down, share it, or reflect on it as a reminder of your intention when old feelings resurface.
6. Practice holding on to peace: When reminders or emotions arise, return to calm, compassion, or gratitude—strengthening forgiveness over time.

Scroll down for a transcription of this episode.

Today’s Guests:

DR. EVERETT WORTHINGTON is one of the world's leading experts on forgiveness.

Learn more about Dr. Everett Worthington here: https://www.evworthington-forgiveness.com/

DR. EMILIANA SIMON-THOMAS is a neuroscientist and Director of Science at UC Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center.

Learn more about Emiliana R. Simon-Thomas here: https://tinyurl.com/2z7mhjbm

Related The Science of Happiness episodes:

The Contagious Power of Compassion: https://tinyurl.com/3x7w2s5s

Nine Steps to Forgiveness: https://tinyurl.com/vb7kk5ky

Why Compassion Requires Vulnerability: https://tinyurl.com/yxw4uhpf

Related Happiness Breaks:

A Science-Backed Path to Self-Forgiveness: https://tinyurl.com/yh2a5urt

Make Uncertainty Part of the Process: https://tinyurl.com/234u5ds7

A Note to Self on Forgiveness: https://tinyurl.com/y53tkn87

This episode was supported by a generous grant from the Templeton World Charity Foundation as part of a Greater Good Science Center project on "Putting the Science of Forgiveness into Practice."

Tell us about your experience with this practice. Email us at happinesspod@berkeley.edu or follow on Instagram @HappinessPod.

Help us share The Science of Happiness! Leave us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts and share this link with someone who might like the show: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aap

Transcription: https://tinyurl.com/566t8udf

We explore Día de los Muertos as a ritual that nurtures community, imbues loss with meaning, and helps us process grief while also connecting through shared joy.

Summary: We investigate how Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, rituals strengthen family ties and cultural identity, and learn about its evolution from a 3,000 year old practice to a global celebration. We look at key elements like the ofrenda and explore how commercialization—like Mattel’s Day of the Dead Barbie—raises questions about balancing tradition with modern influences.

This episode is made possible through the generous support of the John Templeton Foundation.

How To Do This Practice:

1. Set an intention: Begin by reflecting on who or what you want to honor, focusing on connection and gratitude rather than loss. Let this intention guide the energy of your ritual.
2. Create a space of offering: Choose a spot in your home and make it a place of remembrance. Gather meaningful items like photos, flowers, candles, or anything that holds personal or ancestral significance.
3. Invite the elements: Bring in water, fire, wind, and earth in simple ways—perhaps a candle, a glass of water, a plant, or a piece of fabric that moves gently in the air—to represent balance and harmony.
4. Add a personal touch: Offer something that carries memory, like a favorite food, scent, or song of someone you love. These gestures transform remembrance into a living connection.
5. Gather in community: Invite others to join you in building the altar or sharing stories and food. Coming together in this way turns memory into collective celebration and strengthens belonging.
6. Reflect and release: When the ritual feels complete, take a few quiet moments to notice what you feel. Offer gratitude for the connections that remain and carry their presence forward into daily life.

Scroll down for a transcription of this episode.

Today’s Guests:

MICHELLE TELLÉZ is an Associate Professor in Mexican-American studies at Arizona State University.
Learn more about Michelle: https://tinyurl.com/2ph3can7

MATHEW SANDOVAL, a.ka. "Dr. Muerte," is an artist and Associate Professor at Arizona State University. He is a leading expert on Día de los Muertos.
Learn more about Mathew: mathewsandoval.com

Related The Science of Happiness episodes:

The Healing Effects of Experiencing Wildlife: https://tinyurl.com/bde5av4z

Who’s Always There For You: https://tinyurl.com/yt3ejj6w

How Thinking About Your Ancestors Can Help You Thrive: https://tinyurl.com/4u6vzs2w

Related Happiness Breaks:

A Meditation on Love and Interconnectedness: https://tinyurl.com/ye6baxv3

A Meditation to Connect With Your Roots: https://tinyurl.com/ycy9xazc

Tell us about your experience with this practice. Email us at happinesspod@berkeley.edu or follow on Instagram @HappinessPod.

Help us share The Science of Happiness! Leave us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts and share this link with someone who might like the show: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aap

Transcription: https://tinyurl.com/jerruy47