THE LOST DIVINITY IN MOTHERHOOD

These random streams of fractal thoughts are written down as a journal for reflection and learning in my experiential Unlearning and Relearning Journey. Then, if it provided any value to my readers or subscribers along the way, so be it! Please remember these are not Truths, and these newsletters are not opinions of an expert. These are just thoughts of a Know Nothing CISO who is unlearning and relearning.

Happy Motherhood Day to all Past, Present, and Future mothers of the world, not just human mothers, but all non-human mothers too.

Let me explain why I chose the Heart Tug Image by Hein Koh.

The human heart was not designed to beat outside the human body, and yet, each child represented just that — a parent's heart bared, beating forever outside its chest. ―Debra Ginsberg.

We humans have invented a few words for which there is no exact definition. These words have to be experienced subjectively in the first person. A subjective experience refers to the emotional and cognitive impact of a living individual's experience. Consciousness, Conscience, Awareness, Divinity, and Motherhood are a few words.

I did not come from my mother; I came through her. Life as we know it on this planet comes through this mysterious and magical process called Motherhood (Motherhood exists beyond humans)

Motherhood is not restricted to humans; it cognitively impacts animal behavior like that of rats.

But this is my humble attempt to give a glimpse of the concept or idea of divinity in motherhood through the life and words of a few eloquent mothers. When science replaces God, I want to cling to this idea of motherhood.

The holiday was first started in?1907 by Anna Jarvis to honor mothers, the day's event was at a Methodist church in West Virginia, where white carnations were reportedly distributed to those in attendance. President Woodrow Wilson in 1914 declared the second Sunday of May a national holiday.?

Jarvis fiercely advocated for a day dedicated to mothers and then?famously regretted?how commercialized it became. In the years since, the holiday has become even more commercialized, with consumers spending?a record $33.5 billion.

The reason why I am celebrating this day as Motherhood Day!

Quote article in Atlantic Magazine.

Her labor begins, and she leans back on her bottom, pulling the first baby out of her body with her own hands and teeth. Within five minutes, another newborn arrives. Soon, her babies are squirming around her, squealing and desperate to suckle.

Although the mother rat has never given birth before this, she is now responsible for a dozen lives—so she hits the ground running, instinct as her compass, biology as her map. She has already stockpiled the materials for a warm nest. She uses what she can find. Strands of hair, dried grass, twigs, paper towels, furniture foam.

Her brain is closer to a human mother's brain than that of a mouse or a dog. It has the same neurochemicals as a human's. Her cortex is more like a person's than it is different. She has a hippocampus, an amygdala, and the structure of her brain cells also resembles human cells, with their neurons and glia. During pregnancy, her neurological circuitry already started reprogramming itself. As a new mother, she will choose her babies over cocaine (even if she enjoyed cocaine before becoming pregnant). She is bolder than before. She will hunt during the day now, even though it is more dangerous—because her babies need her at night.

Prior to becoming a mother, she might have chased a cricket for food, "hither and thither, a haphazard pattern," attracting predators, according to one study. Even after catching the cricket, it might have clumsily slipped from her grasp. But as a lactating mom, her method is "more direct and lethal." She captures the cricket in 70 seconds—four times faster than non-mom rats—and does not let it go. She does not have time to waste. Her brain's motor and sensory systems have sharpened.

Even as her offspring grow and learn to fend for themselves, the neurological changes of Motherhood persist. She will experience less memory decline in old age and have quicker navigation skills than non-mothers, outsmarting them in mazes. She is more efficient, making fewer errors. She finds new and unusual ways to get tasks done—problem-solving approaches she had not considered before giving birth.

Divinity of Motherhood

In many cultures and religions, since we cannot see or touch God, they equated mothers very close to God and Divinity.

"As I think of all my mother has done to raise me in righteousness, I realize that this is a heritage that mothers pass on. Surely, fathers have an important role, but I looked to my mother and her divine and sacred nature. I am saddened by the world today that views Motherhood as a burden, which teaches young women to 'live their own lives,' to 'be more than a mother.' How can a woman be more or greater than a mother? Where would we be without good and loving mothers to guide us? I think about mothers and the important part they have in teaching their children the ways of the Lord. The strength of the next generation depends on the strength of the one before." —Michael S. Parker in The Divinity of Motherhood.

Motherhood is near to Divinity. It is the highest, holiest service to be assumed by mankind. —Howard W. Hunte

Matru Devo Bhava - Pitru Devo Bhava |

Acharya Devo Bhava - Atithi Devo Bhava ||

The Ancient Indian Upanishads command. Mother, father, Acharya (teacher), and stranger (or guest) should be served and honored as Gods.

The Yaksha asked Yudhishthira What is weightier than the earth itself? Yudhishthira answered: Motherhood is weightier than the earth

Is Modern Science Killing Divinity?

Since the advent of modern science, the evolution of the universe and Darwin's evolutionary biology, when seen through the lens of Physics, Chemistry, and Biology, have made the birth of a child and mother a mere biological process and outcome.

I will be OK if modern science disproves the existence of God. But by losing God, will we also lose another keyword that represents the idea of God. Divinity. I am worried about the day when we redefine Mother as a Role, Soccer Mom, Tiger Mom, Stay-at-Home Mom, and Mother's Day becomes just a day to buy Mother gifts and lunch or dinner.

Just like there is no real definition for Divinity, I have come to realize there is no definition of Motherhood. I feel sad about losing the Divinity of Motherhood. (there will be no definition of Motherhood in the future, even with Artificial General Intelligence and Artificial Super Intelligence)

I personally will never experience true Motherhood; I don't regret it because I do experience fatherhood and brotherhood, which I will acknowledge is far inferior to Motherhood.

Here are some perspectives on Motherhood for this day. I hope that these quotes will help you realize that Motherhood is a first-person experience and very subjective.

A small glimpse into the Divinity of Motherhood.

Burnt toast is actually fairly symbolic of Motherhood. If you are the one who burned the toast, you scrape if off and eat it yourself. If they burned it, you eat it because the burned it specially for you. —Emily Watts

Motherhood. It's exhausting, inspiring, soul-sucking and purpose-giving. It makes you question everything while also feeling like you know it all. - Amy Joyce

My daughter was born almost three months early. Time she should have spent curled up, protected, inside, was spent outside, in an incubator. She came home, grew and thrived, and became a cuddler. Sometimes she smashes herself against me; other times she extends a hand or foot for a light connection. I don't want her to remember fights over shoes, or empty threats I made in frustration, or the disappointments of being young. I want her to remember the feeling of pressing her back against my chest, or climbing into my lap, and, for a little bit, being totally protected. - Terri Rupar

She is a mother. She is vulnerable (just hurt her child, and you'll see) and she is strong (just hurt her child, and you'll see). She has been elevated (she is Mom) and she has been demeaned (she is just a mom). She is full (loving a child so completely will do that to you) and she is empty (loving a child so completely will do that to you). Who says she can't have it all? She has everything. - Sharon Holbrook

Life before my son was kinetic. I was a doer, rushing from one event to the next. Nights are different now. After daycare pick-up, time slows as we meander home. "Blue car," I say, pointing, and he puts his index finger in the air. "Yellow daffodil," I tell him as we pass a manicured garden. "Babababa," he replies, pulling off his sock. Later, I sit on the floor of the living room watching him cruise on the furniture while hugging his stuffed donkey. If you asked me what I did each night, my old self might reply, "Nothing much," but now it feels like everything. Stephanie Merry

Motherhood is the ache I feel in my chest when my son can't see the flock of birds that just flew overhead. It is the vintage Valentine in April that his brother, who is not blind, and who can walk and talk, brings home to me from his trip to Hawaii. It is slipping out of my younger son's hospital bed, careful not to wake him, and returning home to be with his brother, who tells me about the girl he likes. It is the certainty with which I love them both. - Molly Coffin

I didn't find out the sex. It was an insignificant fact that didn't define a new human. I wanted to learn all about my child only after they were born.Today, my child–whom I would refer to as my son–went to school wearing a dress. I may have knit this child together, woven them through with parts of myself. But this person wasn't born completely formed, like I once thought. I may still sew them up from time to time, but they've taken over the shaping. There's still so much to discover.- Olivia Hinebaugh

Motherhood is like that one dream you had when you were 16, where you have this big test at school in history. You study for weeks about the American Revolution, but when you get to your chair you find out that the test was actually in math. So now you're stuck trying to figure out the square root of an elephant multiplied by the weight of a neutron star and it isn't until after the test is over that you find out the answer was Purple. - Malinda Ruzicka Carlson.

For me, Motherhood is learning about the strengths I didn't know I had and dealing with the fears I didn't know existed. Halle Berry.

"Motherhood is about raising and celebrating the child you have, not the child you thought you would have." —Joan Ryan, "The Water Giver: The Story of a Mother, a Son, and Their Second Chance"

Motherhood is a choice you make everyday, to put someone else's happiness and well-being ahead of your own, to teach the hard lessons, to do the right thing even when you're not sure what the right thing is ... and to forgive yourself, over and over again, for doing everything wrong." —Donna Ball, At Home On Ladybug Farm

Once you sign on to be a mother, that's the only shift they offer." - Jodi Picoult, "My Sister's Keeper"

Sometimes the strength of Motherhood is greater than natural laws." -Barbara Kingsolver,?"Homeland and Other Stories"

The natural state of Motherhood is unselfishness. — Jessica Lange

Motherhood was the great equalizer for me; I started to identify with everybody. -Annie Lennox

I am a mother and mothers don't have the luxury of falling apart in front of their children, even when they are afraid, even when their children are adults. —Kristin Hannah, "The Nightingale"

Motherhood is the biggest gamble in the world. It is the glorious life force. It's huge and scary — it's an act of infinite optimism.?—Gilda Radner

Motherhood is hard enough without judgement from others who don't know the whole story. —Sarah Addison Allen, "First Frost"

You don't take a class; you're thrown into Motherhood and learn from experience.?—Jennie Finch

Motherhood is tough. If you just want a wonderful little creature to love, you can get a puppy. -Barbara Walters

Motherhood is a Sisyphean task. You finish sewing one seam shut, and another rips open. I have come to believe that this life I'm wearing will never really fit. —Jodi Picoult

Let's Celebrate Motherhood

Reading the above, you get the idea that there is no single definition of Motherhood today, and every single past, present, and future mother will have a definition of their own. Even if we humans lose the idea of Divinity to science, let's not lose the special nature of Motherhood. It would be a shame if rats and other cognitively lower animals appreciate Motherhood and we creatures of "superior intelligence" lose it. Let's celebrate Motherhood through all the mothers we know and don't know.

Disclaimer: Opinions expressed in this article are solely my own and do not express the views or opinions of my employer, or my wife or mother.

References

https://www.today.com/parents/moms/motherhood-quotes-rcna79058#

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/style/wp/2019/05/09/feature/the-protector-the-multitasker-the-holder-of-rocks-10-moms-define-motherhood/

https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2017/09/how-motherhood-affects-creativity/539418/

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/mothers-day-traditions-differ-across-world-see-how-other-families-celebrate/

PS: There is a wonderful article in The Paris Review on "Why All the Books About Motherhood?"

https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2018/07/17/why-all-the-books-about-motherhood/

The new books on Motherhood are a countercanon. They read against the literary canon with its lack of interest in the interior lives of mothers, against the shelves of "this is how you do it" books, and against the creeping hegemony of social-media motherhood. As the Internet rewires our thinking, and therefore our writing, toward the epigrammatic and fragmentary, we're also reasserting that we live in messy, organic, imperfect bodies. And in a wider political context where it often feels as if the old white men who run the country have taken aim at mothers, our greatest hope for retaking and maintaining control of those bodies is moving the conversation around?Motherhood from a niche concern to the serious, pressing, and universal subject that it is.

PS: This 2024 World Press photo of the year also saddens me because it defines motherhood through loss. This photo reinforces my belief that you don't have to be a biological mother to experience motherhood.