Mother and Child

Mother and Child

"Despite the bitterness of every sickness,
The strife that's the gift of each living soul;
The child born of one's fair body
That is what lives in the mind."
  ____ Gormilaith, "Trum Anocht Mh'Osnadh"
    in Osborn Bergin, "Irish Bardic Poetry" (trans CM)


    The bond between mother and child, between child and mother, is regarded as a sacred one in most cultures - a bond that is upheld by most legal systems, at least while the child is young. In cultures where women are less respected than men, motherhood can be a potent tool of repression, however. Motherhood has become a sacred cow over which politicians argue and bicker, alternately nodding respectfully and pulling it off the highway as a massive obstruction. Our society is ambivalent about the rights of mothers and their children, especially as the strain on the nuclear family to earn a decent living cuts across child-rearing and child-support issues.

The child-mother bond goes through a series of different phases. After the intimate nurture of babyhood and infancy, the mother becomes the watchdog vigilante - often sharp-voiced and forthright - determined to ensure the safety and well-being of her child. After the child leaves home, the role of mother as caregiver evolves into a variety of different areas, depending on the mother's adaptability. The distance of age and maturity on both sides of the relationship can bring a mutual appreciation of great beauty. Every human being comes from a woman's body, and though mother and child may be unknown to each other after birth, nothing can rend the sacred bond that lies umbilically between them.

"Meditate about the mother-child bond in your own experience."
[From: "The Celtic Spirit" by Caitlin Matthews]