Birth is an extraordinary event and all parents want to support it in the best way. What happens in Damanhur when a couple is expecting a baby? Many things!
First and foremost, the future parents choose a godmother and a godfather, and all together they follow the journey for the soul that, through them, is about to arrive on this planet. Welcoming the soul in the best way means to think about what is needed so that his or her development and growth is serene and balanced. Practically, they begin to think about the “dowry” they want to offer him or her. Nooo, don’t imagine the dowry that the grandmothers prepared a century ago! It is very different, but it is just as important.
In fact, parents and godparents will often meet together during the nine months of gestation to evaluate what they would like to transmit to the baby that is coming.
As with some indigenous peoples, in Damanhur we also think of the characteristics of the newborn so that the positive aspects are reinforced and some of the less positive elements are kept in balance, as they are anyhow present in the personalities of the parents.
If, for example, one of the parents has a temperament that is impulsive or irritable, and his will is to not transmit these aspects to the newborn, the parent commits to change this characteristic during the nine months of gestation, modifying his own reactions in order not to pass them on to the child.
If, on the other hand, this parent has a strong talent for music and art, he will try to strengthen this quality so that it can be acquired by his son or daughter, exercising this talent with more awareness during the gestation period.
The attention focused during the nine months is a kind of self-education that will tend to remain even after the birth. So, through the will expressed before the birth and by being an example in everyday life after the birth, the chosen values will become solid reference points for the development of the child, and the less positive aspects will certainly become less influential.
Also, choosing where to give birth and welcome the newborn is very important for the new mother. Feeling comfortable and being surrounded by the people you love is a fundamental requirement to experience this very delicate moment in one’s life with serenity.
In Damanhur many women have chosen to have home-births, but this was not possible in all cases. Childbirth is supported by Damanhurian obstetricians who, as soon as they recognize the need for hospital care, ensure that the mother and baby to be born are safe and transported to the appropriate facilities.
Fortunately, there is no need for this in most cases, and the babies are already home right as they are born!
