The Feminine Principle

As we generally fear our fathers and love our mothers, the concept of a mother-Goddess appeals more to our heart than that of a father-God. Women are trained to be lovingly supportive, of listening to a child struggling to say his first word. Patience is a culturally celebrated feminine virtue. “As patient as the earth” is the phrase used for a good mother. Empathy becomes easier in such a relationship, protected by the possibility of a lifetime bond. Traditionally women are comfortable with the care of the old and the infirm. They are patient with lack of competence. Today this is changing where women have to operate in the workplace where the rules are different. Unconditional acceptance is ordained in a verse which says, “whether he is hard hearted as a stone or a useless as a leaf of grass, he is to be loved and supported as a husband, within the circle of a lifetime relationship like marriage”. Many men question the need for empathy in a bottom line-oriented workplace. Toughness is respected and empathy is considered a sign of weakness.