Excerpts from Mother Rising by Yana Cortlund, Barb Lucke and Donna Miller Watelet, courtesy of BlessingWayBook.com
From Chapter 1: Creating New Traditions…
The blessingway rituals presented within Mother Rising draw upon the rich traditions of many cultures, having been crafted from the mixed heritage and life experiences of many women. Though initially inspired by the earth-based ways of the Native American culture, these rituals are not intended to represent, nor be executed as, reenactments of a sacred Native American Blessingway ceremony. The word “blessingway” is used conceptually, with due honor and respect, to describe a non-Native ceremony that celebrates a woman’s passage into motherhood.
The blessingway rituals presented within Mother Rising draw upon the rich traditions of many cultures, having been crafted from the mixed heritage and life experiences of many women. Though initially inspired by the earth-based ways of the Native American culture, these rituals are not intended to represent, nor be executed as, reenactments of a sacred Native American Blessingway ceremony. The word “blessingway” is used conceptually, with due honor and respect, to describe a non-Native ceremony that celebrates a woman’s passage into motherhood.
When we create blessingways for each other, we women reach outside of ourselves and weave a web of community: a living breathing web of women who are blessing, teaching, and supporting one another-and as a result, we help to give birth to each other’s children.
As women. we receive a great deal by coming together in this way. We can raise energy and strength, or provide comfort and support. We can help one another let go of the past, live fully in the present, and embrace the mystery of the future. We learn to honor each other as well as ourselves, and we tap into the vibrant energy of the collective feminine spirit. By connecting on this level, we gain the power to deepen our friendships, build our communities, feed our spirits, and perhaps even to revitalize our culture.
From Chapter 2: Planning a Blessingway…
Our modern lives move quickly. For many of us, every twenty-four hours is filled and even overflowing. It doesn’t seem to matter whether we are single and without kids, or the mother of seven children. So when we are presented with the idea of planning a blessingway, it’s understandable that our first thought may be: “Where will I find the time?” If we stay wrapped up in thinking we have too little time, we are bound to feel powerless and even taken for granted amidst our rush to “get it all done.”
Our modern lives move quickly. For many of us, every twenty-four hours is filled and even overflowing. It doesn’t seem to matter whether we are single and without kids, or the mother of seven children. So when we are presented with the idea of planning a blessingway, it’s understandable that our first thought may be: “Where will I find the time?” If we stay wrapped up in thinking we have too little time, we are bound to feel powerless and even taken for granted amidst our rush to “get it all done.”
As women, we are inherently both power-filled and power-full. Each one of us knows on some level that we do have awesome strength at our core. We feel it when we work long hours, then evening comes, and we work some more. We feel it when crisis hits and our family needs us. We feel it when we create something beautiful or bring happiness through our work. When we claim this power and acknowledge the value of what we have to give, we find we can make more power-full choices about how we spend our time.
A blessingway ritual does take time, energy, and effort to create-but it is worth every moment, thought, and drop of perspiration that is put into it. It is a universal principle that when we give, we also receive, and the value of what we stand to receive by coming together and creating this sacred event is beyond measure. When we choose to invest our time in this way, we are choosing to invest in ourselves.
From Chapter 3: Designing Your Ritual
If creating a blessingway ritual seems at all daunting to you right now, we empower you to explore this idea in any way that feels right. A blessingway doesn’t need to be an overwhelming, overcomplicated undertaking. If in doubt, try planning a ritual that is very simple, rather than abandoning the entire concept.
Perhaps you’re thinking all this stuff is too hippy-dippy or touchy-feely for you. Well then, stay in your comfort zone and don’t design a “way out there” event. There are so many ways to put a blessingway together that no matter how you end up doing it, it will be an amazing experience.
The Five Stages of a Ritual
Soon you will learn all you need to know about the five stages of a ritual (discussed in chapters 4 through 8). It’s important to familiarize yourself with this information before you start designing your blessingway, but before you get into all the details, take a look at the following overview of what actually happens during each stage:
STAGE 1: Beginning
We create a ritual space that looks and feels special. Guests need to become centered and ready to participate in a sacred ceremony. We form a circle to create a container of support for the mother-to-be. When we call in the presence of the Divine, we’re asking for all the help we can get.
STAGE 2: Shifting
We state the blessingway’s purpose so we all know what we’re doing and why we’re doing it, and while we’re at it, we share our intention with the powers that be. Introducing ourselves helps us connect with one another. We help the mother-to-be let go of any negative beliefs or fears she may be carrying so that she can embrace all the blessings, prayers, and honor we wish to bestow upon her.
STAGE 3: Focusing
We honor, pamper, and adorn the mother-to-be to fill her with positive and empowering energies. We tell her stories to encourage her, offer blessings to support her, and give her gifts that will help guide her on her journey.
STAGE 4: Completing
Having invested so much time and energy in preparing the mother-to-be, we ensure that the divine forces have, in fact, heard our requests for her safe passage. We raise energy to affirm and charge the work we’ve done and to send our good intentions out into the world. We weave a web to maintain our connection with one another beyond the day of the ritual. When our work is done, we thank and release the divine powers we’ve invited to join us and open our circle so we may move on to the final stage of our ritual.
STAGE 5: Feasting
We end our ritual by sharing food together in celebration. We eat together to ground our energy, help us shift from sacred space back to social space, and bring the work of the ritual into our everyday lives.
Find out more at BlessingWayBook.com
