Naming traditions: Maori

Today... More naming traditions from around the world!

Mother Earth honoring gets a whole new meaning where specific tree barks are resting place for umbilical cords.

Grounding takes root in deeper dimension where placentas are buried in tribal land, forever connecting mother and child to Divine creation.

Have you heard of a culture so deeply rooted in the Magic of the Beginnings, that feeds their people, in every moment of their lives, with Myths and Legends where humans are no different from the weather, the stars and the moon, the fish of the sea, the birds of the forest, and the forests themselves?

A culture where the word for family. "whānau", is the same as for giving birth?

Maori people, from New Zeland, have amazing traditions and myths around conception, pregnancy and birth. Oh it's just so inspiring!

It is so important for this culture that the word "hapū", for example, means both clan and pregnant! Every element of this Sacred path is honored and given deep meaning. 

Did you know one of the rituals for a desired pregnancy is for the woman to stand over the "whenua" (this is the word for both placenta and land!) of a new-born child? 

After birth, babies are blessed with water in a meaningful ceremony, and given names based on these, full of Magic, Polynesian myths and rituals. 

These legends speak of Māori's ideas about the creation of the universe and the origins of gods and of people, and it is all so connected, all so... Whole, that they practice "Whāngai", a child adoption tradition where children are raised by close relatives... It is believed this emphasises a child’s connection to whānau (family) and iwi, the collective from whom their identity comes.

Wow! 

What about you? How do other culture's practices inspire your family traditions? 

With Love, 

#sacredbeginnings

#namingtraditions

#sacredlivingmovement

#sacredtribe