Before Life Begins: A Soul’s Journey Toward the Mother

They say a soul chooses its mother—not the world it will be born into. Not the wealth, the timing, or the circumstances. Just her.

This thought stayed with me, quietly at first—like a whisper I couldn't quite explain. But over time, as I walked my own unique path of motherhood and met other women on their extraordinary journeys, this whisper turned into a truth I could feel in my bones.

According to Hindu philosophy, the soul—jiva—is not just a spark of life. It’s a conscious traveler. It carries karma, memory, longing, and purpose. And before birth, it waits. Watches. Chooses.

The Garbha Upanishad describes this sacred connection beautifully. It says the soul is aware even in the womb. It prays, it contemplates, and it waits—sometimes until the mother is ready. Not just ready to give birth, but ready to bear the child’s essence for the lifetime that follows.

And sometimes, the mother isn’t quite ready. Not yet.

Maybe she’s still finding herself. Maybe her body or mind is healing. Maybe her life isn’t yet steady enough to hold another’s. And so, the soul waits—not out of frustration, but out of deep trust.

In the language of psychology, this isn't far from what Carl Jung called the “mother archetype”—a deep, universal image within all of us that represents safety, nurturance, and growth. From the very first moments, a child’s entire world is filtered through the mother. Her presence, attunement, and belief become the foundation for that child’s relationship with life itself.

And that’s what changed my understanding of what it means to be “ready.”

I once thought readiness was about having everything in place: emotional stability, physical wellness, clarity about how life should look. But motherhood showed me otherwise. It’s not about being prepared for the child—it’s about being willing to walk with the child.

Readiness is not about perfection. It’s about presence. It’s about choosing—again and again—to protect what the world may not yet understand. To hold space for what is not yet visible, not yet validated.

In my own experience, and through seeing the quiet bravery of so many mothers raising children who think, feel, or grow differently—I’ve come to believe: We are not here to adapt our children to fit a rigid world. We are here to adapt the world to be worthy of their unique light.

Some souls come not to follow paths, but to forge them. And they choose mothers not because we are flawless—but because we are willing to see them when others can’t. We’re taught to raise children who will “fit in,” “succeed,” “behave.” But what if that’s not the highest purpose?What if our deeper calling is to hold space for the child who doesn’t fit in, and love them so fully that the world begins to stretch to make room?

That is not just parenting. That is spiritual guardianship. That is soul-aligned motherhood.

And yes, it can be lonely. The world doesn’t always understand. It questions you, doubts you, tells you to adjust your child, change your approach, “fix” things. The noise can be deafening.

But listen closely.

Be ready to change the world. Be ready to hear the unheard—within your child, within yourself. And believe, even when nothing makes sense, that you got this right.

Because readiness is not about hearing approval. It’s about hearing something deeper: the quiet truth that lives beneath the noise. The soul that chose you may not have said a word—but it saw in you the strength to love differently, fiercely, unshakably.

And when the world confuses you, rejects you, or makes you question your path—remember this:

You are truly ready when you no longer need to hear the world’s voice—because you’re listening to something far more powerful: that which is still unheard, but already known, by the soul that chose you.