Blessing Circle/ Mother Blessing overview
At the April Meet the Doula night, Brielle Epstein will be our guest speaker, enlightening us on how to have a Blessing Circle Ceremony. Which led me to thinking, what exactly is a Blessing Circle Ceremony?
Today we have baby showers for expectant, first time parents. These, although fun and cute, focus a large part on the material items new parents need when entering into babyland. What might be missing for some parents is the emotional, spiritual and visceral part of a community coming together for an expecting couple.
An old tradition in the Navajo culture is to honor the parents through a Blessingway Ceremony.
According to Navajo belief, the ceremony practice was given to the people shortly after human emergence on Earth. The name Blessingway is the easy English translation. The literal translation translates roughly into “continuing re-occurring long life in an environment of beauty and harmony.” 1.
The Navajo Blessingway is a vital part of the Navajo traditions and is not just used for a pregnant mother. The ceremony is a “central ceremony of a complex system of Navajo healing ceremonies known as sings, or chants, that are designed to restore equilibrium to the cosmos.” The healing ceremonies were supposed to promote positive blessings and ward off misfortune. It is considered, among the Navajo tribe, to be a highly sacred, private and spiritual event.
In that respect, a lot of ceremonies being held in honor of an expectant mother today are called Mother Blessings or Blessing Circles. 3. The Blessing Circles today draw their influences from the original Navajo tradition and are catered to what the mother is comfortable with and to her needs.
Check out Brielle Epstein’s description of how she conducts Blessing Circle ceremonies: http://moonstonebirth.com/blog/2011/04/06/creating-a-blessing-circle-blessingway/
Also come to the April Meet the Doula night where Brielle will be presenting on the subject.
