In this episode I feel very connected to the story from Maha Al Musa. This episode brings cultural elements with a journey of finding feminine and connecting in full potential to the birth…
Maha beings the story with her background where she talks about her grandmother and birth houses in Arab culture. Taken from her mother at 6 months old and finding her again 33 years later in Lebanon, Maha describes the connection and similarities (such as using the same lip balm) with her mother upon reconnecting with her all this time later. Returning home Maha was pregnant 6 months after reconnecting with her mother. The circle returns. Maha believes we carry the seeds from our mothers, grandmothers and great-grandmothers. Those seeds are important in our own birth journeys. Maha finally found her strength.
Her first birth with her son Kailash and he was six weeks early. Kailash was born in a country hospital in NSW, Australia. Maha describes this as the most incredible experience in her life. After his birth Kailash was taken by helicopter to the nearest city hospital to be placed in intensive care. Maha correlates this experience to when she was taken from her mother as a baby. As you listen further you will hear a beautiful connection that Maha makes with Kailash’s birthdate and time of birth. Maha also talks about the wonderful staff that assisted her and her baby during their stay at hospital, she found compassion and skill.
Her next birth story with her son Tariq was a water birth at home with a lotus birth. At the time of Maha’s pregnancy and birthing they lived on a property surrounded by nature this helped Maha widen her scope of birth. She describes how she would regularly communicate with baby and engaged in plenty of mindfulness, meditation, dance, sound and movement. This pregnancy allowed Maha to clear much of her father issues so with that Maha named him Tariq meaning spiritual messenger in Arabic. Maha in this section talks about name meanings in middle eastern culture and the importance it brings to new life.
Maha was 46 years of age when she become pregnant with her daughter Aminah. She knew this would be the last time she would be birthing and asked to gain all the lessons she needed to learn from this experience. Maha was committed and gave this pregnancy 110%, ‘this was an incredible journey into the heart and soul.’ During this pregnancy Maha immersed her self in her work (dance of the womb) and belly dance for birth. She had a beautiful home / water birth. Maha talks about how blessed she felt to have this experience. She describes so many feelings and connection within.
Maha talks further about her teachings over the past 20 years, she stands as a sister, the way of the feminine while celebrating and bringing her middle eastern roots to her work.
The love for the ‘systemhood’ or the sisterhood’ which would you prefer?
From Maha –
“As women we are everything”
“A woman in labour does not need to be saved… she needs to be loved”
“The expert of birth is you, and, your baby as the beginning point. From there we spiral out from that place. If we need to do the research, we do it from the place of that inherent wisdom and being anchored in our emotional, physical, spiritual and energetic body. We need to connect those four bodies to find our wisdom.”
“The living book is within, with your baby, read first, get centred and then flow around her.”
“May all women feel what it is to birth as nature intended where possible, to raise the level of consciousness on the planet.”
“Birth is not choreographed, birth is a song and dance, it is ever changing, being in rhythm & being in stillness. The comfort and guidance is within you when you feel connected.”
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