Happy Mother’s Day! We are celebrating Mother’s Day in the United States but it is the perfect day to recognize the nourishment and support that your mother has provided no matter where you live.
Though ancient Greeks and Romans celebrated their “mother goddesses” with festivals and parties, and European Catholics celebrated “Mothering Sunday,” a specific Sunday during Lent dedicated to “mother churches,” the American version of Mother’s Day originated in the 1900s as the brainchild of Anna Jarvis. Anna created Mother’s Day in tribute to her deceased mother and as a way to praise the act of motherhood in general.
Historically, the feminine form, or “Triple Goddess,” is based on ancient goddess triads and the three forms (aspects) a woman takes throughout her life. No matter which transition she is experiencing, maiden, mother, or crown, it’s a nice time to bring awareness to the nurturing energy in your life.
The mother archetype in mythology is the archetypal mother who is often linked to the idea of the Great Mother. This includes Great Mother deities such as Gaia, Isis, and Mother Earth, saints, great leaders, and of course, the Virgin Mary. In this archetype, the mother nurtures not just the child, but also all of creation or certain elements of nature. This kind of care is always given to a female deity. In many polytheistic religions, the mother forms a triumvirate along with the maiden and the crown archetypes as the three stages of womanhood.
Originally, Mother’s Day was an intimate celebration between a family with no gifts or monetary focus. Individuals simply visited their mothers or church in honor of all that moms do. After Mother’s Day was added to the official holiday calendar at Anna’s insistence, Mother’s Day gradually picked up the traditions of gifting and celebration we observe today.
There’s actually an area of the feng shui Bagua map that’s related to the mother, the furthest left-hand side of any space. This area is related to relationships, partnerships, the mother, marriage, the color pink, the number two, square and flat shapes, and the element of yin earth.
Here are six, the number of mother, wonderful ways to send loving energy and to honor your mother or a mother that you know:
- Light a candle: Honor a mother who is living or who has passed by lighting a candle on their behalf.
- Give roses: The mother of all flowers, the rose is the flower of love, thanks to the goddess Aphrodite. The color pink represents compassion, nurturing, and love and is the perfect color to represent the love you have for your mother.
- Simple ritual: Bring love and honor to yourself as a mother, or give thanks to mother earth by planting a plant or flowers.
- Essential oils: Pay homage to your mother through the power of scent. Below is a list of oils that may be appropriate:
- Jasmine: Associated throughout history with the compassionate Goddess of the Moon, Jasmine, grown along the Nile in ancient Egypt, is represented by Isis, the Egyptian Mother Goddess who held the secrets of fertility, magic, and healing. It is a bold, sweet scent.
- Patchouli: A sweet earthy scent, patchouli is intense and spicy. It’s a grounding harmonizing fragrance.
- Rose: Rose oil has amazing powers of love, trust, and self-acceptance. Roses are representative of faith, hope, and love and have the qualities to restore the very center of one’s being. A gentle tonic of the heart, the compassion of the rose is seen through its ability to heal emotional wounds. When loss, rejection, or sorrow has injured our capacity for nurturing and self-love, Rose oil brings a sweet and gentle comfort, binding the “heartstrings” from the heart to the mind. Rose oil calms and supports the heart and helps to nourish the soul
- Rose Quartz crystals: Rose Quartz represents love, beauty, peacefulness, forgiveness, loving, self-love, and emotional balance. It works with the heart chakra, and is a soft, gentle, soothing stone that warms the heart center; it stimulates love and tender appreciation of all things.
- Plant-based meal: Honoring not only your mother but also mother earth, prepare a plant-based meal and enjoy it outside.
The goddess is the goodness in all women. And so I am wishing all of you mothers, stepmothers, or anyone fulfilling this special role a Happy Mothers’ Day!
Have any Feng Shui questions? Feel free to contact me at michelle@michellecromer.com and sign up for your Power Color or visit me on Facebook at Michelle Cromer Creating a Meaningful Life.
