When I was pregnant and expecting my first child, it was very important to me to seek knowledge and find a 'right' way to be pregnant.
As the time for birth approached, more and more questions crept in.
What would it be like to give birth?
Who did I want to be present at the birth?
I was used to being skilled at the projects I embarked on, and I felt that this would also require my skill.
At one of the midwife's visits, I presented a lot of my doubts.
She gently stopped me, looked me in the eyes kindly and said:
‘'Sell your cleverness and buy bewilderment.'’
She told me that this particular Rumi quote had helped her when she was facing her first birth.
I felt the heartfelt welcome and in the time leading up to the birth, I carried the quote in my mind.
As labor began, it became clear to me why she had quoted Rumi for these words.
I had to give up my deeply ingrained habit of wanting to be skilled.
I was forced to let something greater enter the process, and let my unborn child and I be guided through the birth.
I had to surrender to a kind of chaotic openness, and I enjoyed the release – the total relinquishment of control.
A child was born.
A spiritual longing was nurtured.
This text was created on Kontemplation's internal writing workshop.
The participants were asked, based on the Rumicitat Sell your cleverness, buy bewilderment, to write a blog post of no more than one A4 page within 15 minutes.
is a Master of Education in Educational Psychology with a specialization in mindfulness from Aarhus University and a psychotherapist MPF from the Vedfelt Institute. She works daily as a private practicing psychotherapist and has a special interest in dream work in the therapeutic process.
Britta has been part of the Kontemplation team since 2019 and is a teacher on the Kontemplation platform. She also contributes with existential conversations, retreat conversations and therapeutic courses. You can find her guides in the practice library and read her written contributions on the blog.
She attends an annual long-term retreat and receives practical guidance from Hanneli Ågotsdatter and Peter Høeg.
