her completely responsible! Yes, it means she should be the one in charge, she must be the one in charge, in short, she is the one in charge! Failure to recognise this equates with a failure to take responsibility for the ensuing birthing experience.

   During early childhood, a child automatically knows that it is his mother who possesses and administers their greatest needs. These needs are food, consolation, relaxation, companionship, security, trust, as well as that intangible bond of mutual love. Here the mother guru sets the stage for the rest of that child's life experience involving those very same attributes. How else does a human being imbibe such knowledge if not from the introduction which his mother gives him? And what becomes of that human being if such qualities are missing or incomplete? Just ask any person who has lost their mother early in life. Many state they feel indescribably incom-plete.

Hathor - Isis - Aphrodite - Venus
Worshipped for over 2,500 years
in Egyptian and Greek cultures

  
   In adolescence, a rapidly growing child needs a clear and compassionate teacher to gain knowledge of all aspects of their emerging adulthood. A positive self image must be continually reinforced and nurtured. They need to understand what happens inside their body, not just in intellectual terms, but experientially. For girls this means fully understanding and accepting their fertility, its accompanying menstruation and their psycho-hormonal tendencies (i.e. PMS). For boys it means understanding and accepting their own testosterone-based mechanisms of arousal and release.
   Children must be allowed to be explorative of, and empowered by, their sexuality. Early on they should be taught to understand the importance of sexual health. Through openness of discussion and education in the family home they should learn the ways of love and love making. And, through all these lessons, they must learn the power that sexuality has over themselves and others. They need to experience and properly understand the passing reality of "teen love" as a preparation for a more mature love and to also accept relationship disappoint-ments. The precipitous balance between self discipline and freedom of expression must be learned so that the usual anarchic teenage tendencies do not become habitual patterns for life. If the parents have previously established an open attitude to such things and a relationship of respect and trust already exists, this frequently difficult phase of growth can be traversed without undue complications..

	~The Modern Disintegration of Ancient Tradition~

   In theory, all of the previous section sounds ideal, but for many women, such a purposeful relationship with their mother never happens. Is it just an individual occurrence, or is there in fact a general trend away from such traditions?
   Up until only a few hundred years ago, the tradition of the elders being venerated for their experience and wisdom was social law in all societies. It was this hierarchy of respect which bound communities together and it was through these customs that the spiritual knowledge was passed on down the generations. It is through this custom that humanity still holds much of the knowledge it values today. But on all continents, it is now only the indigenous cultures who maintain such traditions and even those remnant are slowly being