Demeter and the Bees – Journey to Eleusis

It’s probably going to be pretty quiet around here for the next month. Every weekend between now and Easter I will be traveling the long journey from northern Vancouver Island to Seattle and back in preparation for the 30th Annual Spring Mysteries Festival.

The Journey to Eleusis is definitely taking its toll. That’s only to be expected, though. Even back in ancient Greece, individuals would have to save up for many months, or more likely many years to attend the Mysteries once in their lifetime. How blessed am I that this is my 10th journey?

I’ve given up some commitments along the way – two of my monthly coffee meetings have fallen by the wayside, and my work towards my Bachelor of Wiccan Ministry is currently on hold. Those are small sacrifices for the honor of serving the Great Mother.

I’ve been asking Her lately how I can best serve Her, beyond learning my lines and making my own offerings to Her. The two messages I keep receiving are:

  1. Save the beesDemeter is more than Persephone’s mom. (There’s an upcoming post on Panegyria about this.)
  2. SAVE THE BEES!

Why are bees so important to Demeter?

As the Goddess of the Grain, the Goddess of the Harvest and the Goddess of Abundance, bees are vital to Her domain. Bees help to pollinate the plants and crops. Without the bees, there would be no harvest.

Priestesses of Demeter were called Melissai, or bees. Interestingly, the standards for beekeeping (at least in the UK) are called the Demeter Standards.

There’s a whole article that you can read about Demeter’s connection to bees in ancient times.

Bayer and other large companies are producing pesticides that are endangering the health of bee populations. There are tons of options out there for you to support the bees. Here are a few:

Please save the bees. The Earth needs them. WE need them.

Blessings,

Mary

2 thoughts on “Demeter and the Bees – Journey to Eleusis”

  1. I love this! You (and Demeter) make an excellent point. Too often we focus on Demeter as Persephone’s mother and that becomes the totality of her identity. Thank you both for the reminder.

    And yes, save the bees! Together we can protect them and our precious planet. For us, for our world, for Demeter.

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