It could be said that we had a pretty legendary month that pulled us into deep introspection and transmutations of mind. The bees have been a source of serious contemplation, being confronted with the Superreality standing out from commonplace relativity.
There is something quite absolute in the species of the Bee spirit.
As Rudolf Steiner puts it,
𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒆 𝒐𝒏𝒍𝒚 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅, 𝒂𝒔 𝒊𝒕 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆, 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒆-𝒉𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒖𝒃𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆. 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒆 𝒉𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒎𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆. 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒊𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒅𝒖𝒂𝒍 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒔 𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒇𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝒘𝒂𝒚𝒔, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒖𝒔 𝒅𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒐𝒑 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒆 𝒉𝒊𝒗𝒆. 𝑶𝒏𝒆 𝒐𝒏𝒍𝒚 𝒃𝒆𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒔 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒆 𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒂𝒏 𝒂𝒕𝒎𝒐𝒔𝒑𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒆𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒅 𝒃𝒚 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆.
𝑶𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒒𝒖𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝒆𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒇𝒂𝒗𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒃𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒂𝒄𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕, 𝒊𝒏 𝒊𝒕𝒔 𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒏, 𝒊𝒕 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒅𝒔 𝒖𝒑𝒐𝒏 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒄𝒉 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒍𝒔𝒐 𝒘𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒅 𝒃𝒚 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆. 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒔 𝒔𝒖𝒄𝒌 𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒇𝒐𝒐𝒅 — 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒄𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒏 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒉𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒚 — 𝒆𝒙𝒄𝒍𝒖𝒔𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒊𝒏 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆; 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒃𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝒔𝒐 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒂𝒌, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆-𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒍𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒉𝒊𝒗𝒆.
The first phenomena that manifested itself was that we saw a queen cell being built right in front of the window from where we daily peak. We were surprised about how quick they seemed to have resorted to a new Hive-Mother and we were held in full suspense for a couple of weeks as we had no idea what happened to the Queen that had arrived with them.
We ended up finding an exiled Virgin Mother and on more about that I prepared a separate post, as I am still trying to get the new Queen on camera!
It has been practically impossible to capture the cell on camera as it is constantly covered by nursing bees round the clock
𝔅𝔢𝔢 𝔰𝔱𝔦𝔫𝔤𝔰 ℑ𝔫𝔦𝔱𝔦𝔞𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫
Bee venom therapy is not an unknown term anymore and without needing much persuasion, my heart always recognized the potency in poison from a young age and @ravenking13 's background in shamanism confirmed that on many occasions, alongside a multitude of scientific records of the benefits of certain types of dosed poison.
Rudolf Steiner's series of lectures about Bees enlightens much about the Bee family in a very broad and sensitive manner, so I recommend everyone to read or have a listen.
In shamanism and Alchemy, working with the spirit and body of a certain kingdom involves a conscious sense of communion with it across all levels and realms. First and foremost opening oneself up to the presence and teachings of a particular plant, animal, mineral or metal begets a complete surrender to how what where needs to be done for healing or insight.
In that light, we both have a tendency to engage with beings from these kingdoms by meeting them in their essence through a real raw encounter, inviting them to help us overgo our limitations and our attachments, by incorporating their elements in scent, medicinal tinctures and spagyrics, medicinal food, smoking and smudging, energetic field setting and exploring always new ways of weaving those kingdoms back into our lives.
Sometimes it's a call to go speak to the sacred mushrooms through food, other times it's adding herbs of the Gods, like tagetes lucida and native american cytisus to a smoking blend.
Sometimes it's experimenting with royal python urates as a 'musky' component, and other times it is bee stings.
We even use the molts of both our scaly companions to protect our hives, at least energetically and symbolically.
Thus, on the arrival day of the first colony, there were a few dying bees transported out of the hive during their first housecleaning upon moving in. Since bees inevitably die from a ripped abdomen upon stinging a mammal, it felt less "morally challenging" to use the sting of those that were already living their last hours. So we both stung ourselves as an initiation on that day and a couple of days whenever we found a dying bee.
Not sure yet if there's a difference of effect or affect whether it's a fit healthy bee stinging or one that is already on her way back to the Creator. Time might tell I suppose.
It was funny to notice, as that initiation sting was my first bee-sting since I can remember, how there was a slight feeling of high or grace coming from the dopamine rush a few minutes after the sting. Also quite fascinating to observe the stinger pumping in the venom out of the gland that has ripped off with it during at least 15 minutes. The first sting was on my inner wrist and it was a familiar similarity with some acupuncture I had gotten on that spot a few years back. The swell and itching for the days after, not so!
𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝝹𝖎𝖓𝖌𝖉𝖔𝖒 𝖔𝖋 𝕲𝖔𝖉 𝖎𝖘 𝖇𝖊𝖊 𝖘𝖙𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝐲𝖔𝖚
The first time sting was followed by a special moment in which I experienced a very profound encounter with Lady Death herself.
I was observing the entrance watching the buzzing golden beings take off and land in streams and noticed one bee on the front end of the wall walking around a bit differently than usual, and seemingly not being able to fly. Nothing looked wrong, but it just behaved as if it was malfunctioning.
After following its moves for a couple of minutes, I figured it was preparing itself to die. That's where I decided to let her sting me. @ravenking13 gently handled her to bless me with her last strike. Just after the bee stung me I kept it in the palm of my hand, consciously concentrating my light and love on the place she was resting and thanking its service to the colony, to Gaia, to God, to us by her medicine while witnessing the presence of that little furry being whose celestial bell had ringed for her completion.
Looking at her, it was unsettling to see her moving relentlessly with her arms & legs, and grooming herself non stop. I felt how some part in me wanted it to end quick as it was agonizing to watch her for so long.
It was strange for me as I have noticed throughout my life how I am very uncomfortable in the presence of someone suffering an agonizing pain. I somehow often distanced myself as much as I could from that. And there this little being that just moved in but somehow did not make it and now was on her way to..
𝙂𝙤𝙙! I realized at that moment how we made Death something so separating, so dooming, so abandoning, yet in it's ultimate essence, it is the gate that leads us back to our common Creator!
Seeing that and internalizing that was a powerful moment of pure Love. Extending the palm that holds a being of light, a fractal of Source and being with it in that moment where one existence is over and another one opens slowly its shiny doors. On the other side, the hand of God embracing the return of its creation to the divine flamboyant eternal presence.
It was a contemplation penetrated with the one Love that encompasses all, inspiring me to view death in all its forms in that light, a setting free, a recalibration to the holy center, a magnetic pull back to the Source of All, the Eye that perceives infinitely.
𝔏𝔦𝔳𝔢 𝔅𝔢𝔢 𝔬𝔯 𝔇𝔦𝔢 ℌ𝔞𝔯𝔡
We recently also got surprise stung the last time we opened the hive to feed them.
I admit on the subtle plane I was not fully present and communicating, more like 'yup lets do it' and our energy may have been too inconsiderate or negligent.
Later when we talked, we recognized that we both had noticed how they were crawling up as soon as we took the roof off, yet had brushed it off and went on with the 'task'.
Then the buzzing was different, I can't describe but it just sounded more concerned, and they subtly seemed to fly more erratically than the last times.
Suddenly, I felt a fluff landing on the left of my chin and a voice said in my head "Oh-ow". I looked up to @ravenking13 with a slight uncertainty in my voice
Beware, I have one that doesn't move.
As soon as he asked if I was stung I could feel the hair-thin, yet sharp dart slowly poking into my skin.
D'ass chill, d'ass chill,
luxembourgish short for all is well
I kept repeating out calmly to stay present and not give in to panic mode. We sort of laughed throughout that, and a moment later I heard Amore jolt
Ah yeah I got one on my forehead. Aaand my eye!
By the grace of God, it was right under and I could quickly help him get the dart out, but we knew now definitely we had to hurry.
It's quite unnerving to be followed by ANY being, so being followed by the bees made it very tempting to just give in to panic mode and ward them off or run away, but thank Goodness we could somehow walk in circles and finish putting the feeding box and roof back and let them be.
In the video below, you'll see the exact same routine of how we proceeded to feed them up until that day, besides the fact that on this footage everything went amazingly well and the bees did not seem bothered at all from our visit.
You'll see that there is a box that we filled up with the Tea and gets inserted parallel to the combs. However, recently we stumbled upon another type of feeding system that is much more efficient and also 100% safe for the bees not to drown, plus does not require us to open up the top of their nest so we keep them undisturbed. Thus we switched the hives to that new system, so this is the last video with that file-kind system.
Bees are extremely sensitive and reactive to hormones. It may be very possible that my destabilized reaction to the landing caused a hormone release that the bee felt endangered by. It's weird because usually I would not mind, I had them landing on me several times even while we opened the hive and always thought 'Oh Hello there' and did not think about a sting.
What dawned on me later is also that every single time we interacted with the bees I told them silently that I am open to be stung if they felt I need it.
This time however, the thought to that intention did not cross me.
What we also noticed was that it was the first time we had shoes on. Myself standing next to the hive when we just opened it remembered clearly how ungrounded I felt standing on the stones that time.
We won't know for sure why they responded that way, it may be none of those reasons and just a random response. But that's hard to believe, when you slowly see the implications of interacting with sentient beings and forces more clearly and closely.
Another factor is that a healthy feral colony would have reacted exactly in that way (so they say), so from that angle it shows they are strong to defend themselves and protect their home. Especially that they had the new Mother already, it may have blowed a new stream of consciousness into the community.
It made me contemplate about all the various defense mechanisms we all have learnt to develop as a response to the states of fear and survival that we perpetuate on this plane. Even myself, it was quite surprising to realize how it gives you a sort of PTSD, at least from your body who just can't help but react from that memory. It reminded me of all the times we got stung by someone we dared to love, and how it made us swell with self-doubts and also an itchy memory that so often can't seem to get out of the way of a blank new chance at such an encounter.
If we can help each other, all living beings on this planet, overcome our survival states of perception and enable each other to uncover the treasury chamber that is inside of our respective codes, I believe we could fulfill our respective soul exploration paths, expanding our consciousness and that of this planet.
Thank you very much for reading me, I hope you had a pleasant reading cruise alongside the journey of the first month of this Beehive called the Temple of the Sun.
If you are curious to know more, here are some other posts about our Bees.
۞ Bees & Mushrooms - Preparing to test out Mushroom-Extract Bee Feed for Upcoming Hives. ۞
, by @ravenking13
۞ Preparing a Bee Temple ۞
, by me
۞ Lessons from a Living Heart - Feeding Bees with Video. ۞
, by @ravenking13
۞ Diary of a 𝕭𝖊𝖊 ꕷ𝖆𝖓𝖈𝖙𝖚𝖆𝖗𝐲 Set Up ۞
, by me
May you divinely know when to sting with Love,
Kali