We can celebrate Mother’s Day in many forms. You can be a mom to your children, whether they are 
biological or non-biological. You can be a mom to animals, or nurture those through your profession. There are many ways to unleash your inner “mother goddess.” In most descriptions of a mother goddess, there is connection to the Earth as a personification of nature. Many American Indian tribes have a special reverence for nature as Mother Earth. In these stories, there is a mutual respect between humans and their interaction with trees, plants, animals and natural forces, such as wind and rain. The Buddhist female Bodhisattva, Kwan Yin (also known as Quan Shi Yin or Kuan Yin), embodies traits of compassion, purity and fertility. She is known as the omnipresent Divine Mother, looking in all directions at once with her hundred eyes.
In Chinese medicine, there are five elements, with earth being central. The other elements surrounding earth are water, fire, metal and wood. As in the Native American philosophy, Chinese culture also teaches respect for nature and interaction with it. Earth is seen as the grounding element for all other elements. Through time, mothers are seen as the grounding force in keeping families together.
Our inner mother goddess can bring out our awareness and need to help others. As women, we often help others to a fault. It can become a habit that we allocate little time for ourselves. We can be a great nurturer, but also need boundaries to nurture our inner souls. For those of you that don’t know where to start to connect to your inner mother, volunteering for a charity or organization is a great way to start.
When you are giving your time to help someone else, life takes on a whole new meaning. You will feel an inner happiness to give, rather than to receive. Is this not one of the aspects of love? For those of you that tend to overextend yourself with nurturing, may I suggest giving yourself permission to pamper yourself? Taking a walk on the beach or in the woods is a great way to rejuvenate. I recently spent a spa day with girlfriends at a wonderful spa/bath house in New Jersey. We all need time to refresh and renew our inner goddess.
Source: Sharon McDermott, MS, LAc, owner of Healthy Healing. For more information, call 516-410-4297.
