Lifecycles

Life in the Womb | Reading

Based on the Zohar

A fanciful account, based on the Zohar, a mystical text, describing a baby's life in the womb, during which time, a candle burns over the baby's head enabling her to see from one end of the universe to the other and the angels teach her all of Torah.

Blessing for a Mother-to-Be | Complete Ceremony

By Rabbi Shohama Wiener

A prayer to be said by a group of friends or family for a woman close to giving birth using the symbolic red thread from Rachel's Tomb. A Ceremony for a Baby Shower.

Celebrating Pregnancy | Ritual Component

By Michelle Klein

Describes the customs of Sephardic Jews who celebrated a woman's first pregnancy by cutting the swaddling clothes at a festive gathering of women

M'ugelet | Complete Ceremony

By Rabbi Jane Litman

It is customary for pregnant women and women seeking to become pregnant to offer prayers to Rachel, Judaism's mater dolorosa. Specifically, women visit Rachel's tomb in Bethlehem, wrap a red cord around the tomb, then cut it into smaller pieces which they tie around their own wrists. This ritual for a pregnant woman is based on this custom.

A Prayer to be Said upon Entering the Ninth Month of Pregnancy | Prayer

By Dr. Giuseppe Coen, translated by Rabbi Nina Beth Cardin

From an Italian collection of 18th century prayers for married women written by Dr. Giuseppe Coen and presented to his bride as a wedding gift.

Simchat Yoledet | Complete Ceremony

By Naomi Bromberg Bar-Yam

A ritual to be performed in a women's group focusing on the new mother

Temenos | Poem

By Tikva Frymer-Kensky, z"l

A poem that likens the womb's circles to other circles within Judaism

Blessingway Ceremony | Complete Ceremony

By Andrea Mass

A ceremony for a woman about to give birth, based on the Navajo custom of the blessingway