This study was intended to provide women who are supposed to experience childbirth with effective nursing care exploring the childbirth experience. The purpose of this paper is to give an answer to the question of what the childbirth experience is, and phenomenological method has been used for that purpose. 17 primiparous mothers right after delivery in one university hospital of J city were served as subjects for this research. Data were collected June to October, 1993 through in depth interview with subjects using unstructured and open questions about the childbirth experience. Van Kaam's phenomenological analysis method was used for the analysis of the data. The results of the study are summarized as follows : The contents of the experience which primiparous mothers had undergone through childbirth were pain, fear, worry, relief, lightness, thankfulness, unsatisfactory, unreality, holiness for a new life, identifying the meaning of life, becoming a mother. 1. Experience before delivery Mothers experienced pain, fear, worry, unsatisfactory, relief, and thankfulness before delivery. Subjects' descriptions about the pain appeared to be various ; unbearable pain, bearable pain, anticipated pain. And their reactions were also various ours ; some endured pain, sought alternative method i.e., surgery, didn't want to reexperience it, or accepted it as women's fate. Subjects experienced fear for anticipated pain, suffering pain, and possible delayed delivery progress and were worried about delivery progress and baby wellbeing. Also, Subjects were unsatisfied with professionals' unfaithful attitude, their spouses' absence, and the ignorance of their pain. But subjects became relieved at the accustomed surroundings, good progress of delivery, support of family, care of professionals and support of other family. And they expressed their thanks to the professionals and family members for doing their best and also to their mothers who gave birth to them. 2. Experience after delivery Subjects experienced lightness, thankfulness, unsatisfactory, worry, unreality, holiness for a new life, identifying the meaning of life, becoming a mother after delivery. Mothers experienced lightness from the fact that it is over, and freshness right after delivery. They were thankful that they delivered vaginally and had an easy delivery. Subjects who delivered female baby were unsatisfied and some were worried about rearing the baby. By confessing, "I have no specific feeling, I am very confused, It is unrealistic, I feel strange", they expressed the unrealistic aspect of childbirth experience. Subjects felt holiness for a new life for novelty and birth of life. They identified the meaning of life from the fact that they felt worthy, fulfilled their duty, had their own baby, accomplished an important affair. After they experienced what it is to be a mother, they realized with it is being a mother and had a rearing expectation for the baby. The results of the study will provide basic data for caring the childbearing women.