After I gave birth my husband rushed to cover my head with a cloth; I was gifted a little bag of different spices from India, to add to my water, to my food, to my bath.
After I gave birth my mother in law asked me everyday "are you getting daily body oil massages?". I wasn't, and she was concerned: "how are you going to recover?!"
After I gave birth... I was surprised, puzzled, confused, and a little bit giggly, I confess, with all of this "special treatment"! Why and what was the meaning of all this?
I got curious, I started to investigate: Postpartum traditions from non-western cultures.
I say non-western cause I am from Europe and to questions like "what special practices do you follow in your country after birth?" I had to answer... "None". And that just didn't sound right...
The time after birth revealed itself to be the most delicate, vulnerable, raw, fascinating, emotional, happiest, overwhelming, exhausting, scary, loving, chaotic, empowering, confusing, passionate... Adventurous, creative... time of my life!
I will not say I am still recovering from it cause I am still LIVING it, since my son was born and I was re-born, more than two years a go.
So many different traditions around the world that honor this moment but most focus on two things:
Warmth
and Rest.
We can read about it from Red Tent's ancient practices, Ayurvedic science or Chinese Medicine principles; from African tribes practices to Native American traditions, Latin America and islands... All traditional cultures give so much to new mothers and their babies.
I simply love this honoring of the postpartum time .
The idea is to create an environment like the one in the WOMB, for mother and baby. Seclusion with rest and warmth. Keeping mother and baby safe and away from the world's noises and disturbances. Sounds good to me!
Rest.
This is considered vital in most cultures, to protect the delicate nervous systems of mother and baby:
In Japan, a new mother is in bed for 30 days;
Thailand rest and confinement up to 40 days after birth;
Haitian Culture: first three days;
Chinese Culture has an expression that literally means “doing the month”;
In Indonesian and Malaysian Cultures women do not cook or clean for the first 40 days;
Korean Culture: rest even up to 100 days;
Indian culture: 40 days;
Latin America respects "la cuarentena", 40 days of REST. Like in North Africa and the Middle East.
Malasian mothers wrap their tummy tightly with a cloth called bengkung wrap.
For the Maasai, in Africa, long seclusion for mother and child.
For some Indian tribes like the Shoshone, the new mother lives alone with her baby for the first month (to deepen the bond between the two).
Warmth.
Losing blood is considered a "cold" state for most traditional cultures of Asia, Latin America and Africa and several practices are created to help bring warmth to postpartum time.
In Southeast Asia there is a practice of "mother-warming" done by burning wood (collected by the father-to-be during pregnancy) near the place the new mother rests.
In Haitian Culture women take hot baths, drink warm teas and keep their head covered. Like in India where they also get daily body massages with warming oils and use heating spices in their food.
In China, Korea and Thailand new mothers avoid eating cold or raw food, lay by a fire, take hot baths, drink hot drinks; no washing the hair is advised, and no showers.
For the Maasai, after the seclusion time for mother and child a ceremony takes place two male sheep are chosen and only women eat them as a sign of respect for the pain woman feel during childbirth.
Another Shoshone tradition advises new parents to refrain from eating red meat for several weeks after the birth of the baby...
Latina moms are not advised to take heavy or spicy foods, but Indian women are given specific spices to "keep the body warm".
For the same reason no cold water, turnips, or bamboo shoots for East Asian moms.
And there is so much MAGIC in these #sacredrituals , honoring not only your physical body, but your spirit, nourishing your soul.
After I gave birth I got a little charm to keep next to the baby at all times, and a coin to offer to the Gods at the nearest temple...
In Indonesia and Malaysia it is believed mother and child are susceptible to evil spirits.
The Maasai ceremony after seclusion period is also a way to thank Engai (God) for being able to bear children.
In some cultures the new mom's feet can't touch the ground. And in India, in North Africa and the Middle East, applying henna to the mother's skin, specially the feet, is part of the postpartum care, keeping away the evil eye, it is believed, helping her feeling beautiful again and keeping her from getting up in her feet to do any of the household activities. Henna takes time to be applied, several hours to dry, and several days spent away from water.
What a beautiful way to see the passing of the time, and the recovery of your body through the healing designs being created, drying, fading away... In Nepal henna is also used, together with dark kohl (a traditional black makeup made of antimony) and swak, (a traditional dark lip stain made of walnut root), decorating the women as beautiful as a bride at her postpartum time (this is actually used as early as when they go into labour, cause this is considered the beginning of this Sacred period in their lives), and protecting her from malicious spirits.
In North African traditions mothers of twins are considered holy and their hands are kissed for blessings.
In Marroco the women will be protected from evil with henna, incense and amulets. In Andjra, the child is also hennaed on the
head, neck, navel, feet and fingernails, for protection.
So... How was YOUR postpartum experience? Where you given time to REST? Did you feel WARM?
What #postpartumTraditions did you follow, what #sacredrituals ?
This text was first written by #ommmmmmamma
for #sacredbeginnings / #theGratefulGoddess
#ommmmmmammaDoulaSeries
