In the United States, there’s a standard procedure that occurs when babies are born: After the child arrives, it’s followed by it’s placenta, attached by an umbilical cord. Someone snips the cord, and the child is placed in its mother’s arms. However, in Maori culture, there is an ancient cultural practice called “whenua,” which leaves the umbilical cord and placenta attached to the baby for a time, before returning it to the earth. Emma, a new mother from Brisbane, shared this tradition on social media, and she did so by uploading a striking photo of her own child before the placenta and umbilical cord were removed. See more of her story, and this incredible image, below.
