Bees and the Ancient Mysteries

Another remarkable short book from the Steiner tradition with a pertinent foreword observing how we have industrialised the bee along with everything else so that 'we leave the bees to the beekeeping industry, to beekeepers, pollination contractors, honey market forces etc at their peril, indeed our peril…. The bees' condition mirrors humanity's state of divorce from the wellsprings of its existence.' Only last week, a major report was publicised in the Guardian showing a 40% decline in most insect populations, very largely due to industrial agriculture. We can also learn a lot from bees about working together and it is amazing to learn that there are 20,000 species. The bee gives an image of metamorphosis in space and time, illustrated in the second chapter on the origin of the honeybee in relation to the fig tree by way of symbiotic location. There is also some fascinating material about the temple of Artemis at Ephesus, where the priestesses were known as Melissas (honeybees) and the priests as Essenes meaning in this context bee-kings. The deep symbolism is one of selflessness through a transformation of feeling and will into service. We would do well to re-establish contact with the group-soul of the bee for their future as well as ours.