Special Song

"At the beginning of life, the disguise is quite transparent to the conscious mother who recognizes the deep spiritual connection that unites her baby's soul with her own. Her most important role from the moment of conception is to nurture her child so he can rediscover his essential spiritual nature.

In some traditions, this connection is believed to the precede conception.

In certain African tribes, people believe that the spiritual birth of a child begins when his potential mother first imagines him. She goes to a silent place and listens for the baby's special song. When she hears it, she returns to her home and teaches it to her mate. While making love, they chant the song as an invitation for this soul to enter their lives. Once pregnant, she regularly sings the song to her unborn baby and teaches in to the midwives in preparation for her birth. They sing the song while the woman is in labor and as the baby is born into the world. The child learns the theme song, which supports him through all the stages of his life. He uses his song to celebrate his moments of glory and comfort him in times of loss."

Alhumdulillah, Allah has blessed me with the opportunity to witness birth time and time again. Deepak Chopra talks about birthing traditions from around the world. This chapter (Creating a Baby) in particular caught my attention for a number of different reasons. All women labor differently but a common theme I have noticed is a birthing noise. Some women grunt while others are completely silent. There is a point in labor that tends to become very rhythmic for the woman. This is when she depends on her "special song". For Muslim women this generally is a specific verse or dua. The woman may repeat the same verse or dua for her entire labor. 

I encourage the birthing woman to tap into her inner voice and find this song. It can be extremely soothing, distracting and calming. It helps Mom concentrate and go with her contractions instead of fighting them. The rhythms begin to feel like waves from the ocean and Mom can focus on tranquil visual imagery. 


I often think back to my own birthing experience. It was a combination of making dua for myself, reciting and a rhythmic dua which became my special song. The words would just slip off my tongue uncontrollably and I softly sang thru birth. Even now is true that my child is instantly comforted by his "special song". It is as if he knows, that I too instantly feel comfort and he can hear it in my voice. 


What was my special song? Abu Huraira reported that the Prophet, peace be upon him, said, "There are two phrases that are light on the tongue but heavy on the scale of rewards and are dear  to Allah the Gracious one. These are Subhanallahi wabihamdihi (All glory is to Allah and all praise be to him) and Subhanallah Al azeem (Glorified is Allah, the Great).

Do you have a "special song", verse or dua that you used during pregnancy or birth that still comforts your little ones today? 


Disclaimer-  I am not advocating using the "special song" for conception purposes, what you do on your own time is your choice! This post was to focus on the use of "special song" during pregnancy, birth and the postpartum period specifically.