Inanna (pronounced e-na-na) was a Sumerian goddess and priestess of seven temples, queen of heaven and earth, a mother, a wife, a friend, a poet, and a healer. Inanna is also regarded as a goddess of rebirth. Her story is the oldest and first known to be recorded in writing.
The Descent of Inanna
In our advanced mentor training with Birthing From Within creator Pam England, we carefully studied the Descent of Inanna, an ancient tale recorded in cuneiform and discovered on small clay tablets in the late 1800's. The Descent of Inanna is a captivating tale of one hero's journey into the Underworld. Inanna answers the call of the Great Below and in making her descent into the Underworld she is forever transfigured and ultimately reborn. At each gate of the Underworld passageway, Inanna must let go of something dear to her that maintains her identity. After her allies nurture her, she is strong enough to make the ascent back to the world above, a different woman than before she started her hero's journey. The Descent of Inanna is a perfect parallel to the journey a pregnant woman takes as she makes her own way through answering the call to motherhood, then surrendering parts of herself along the path of labor, and finally to great transfiguration and rebirth of herself in birth and postpartum.
Strength & Surrender
We chose Inanna as a figure to represent our doula collective because she is a symbol of great strength and surrender. We hope the energy of Inanna inspires you to answer your own call to new parenthood and prepare to embark on the journey of a hero. It is in this adventure of labor, birth and postpartum that you, like Inanna in her Descent to the Underworld, will be forever transformed and reborn.