Bee lore

We recently caught a swarm of bees in our hive (did you know it costs around £300 to buy a swam?!) which got me looking into bee lore, a subject that did not disappoint…

The Garden of Eden

In Welsh legend, bees originated in paradise, in the Garden of Eden. They were white back then, untouched by sin, before Eve (the twat!) messed it up for everyone. After Eve cocks up with her evil thirst for knowledge causing the FALL OF MAN, the bees lose their pure white colouring and turn brown (and in some later retellings black and yellow).

AI interpretation of what a bee might have looked like in the Garden of Eden

The Bees are very sad about this and are very keen to make it up to God. To this day they do all they can to serve the big guy in the sky by making wax for altar candles, producing honey as divine nourishment and humming songs of praise. One of their favs is Psalm 100 which they like to rock out at midnight on Christmas eve. If you listen to a bee closely at this time you will most likely hear them humming “Make a joyful noise for the Lord!”.

Because of their religious leanings it is highly advised to never blaspheme in front of a bee, don’t even swear in front of them, they can’t stand it! If you do, be prepared for an unmerciful sting. 

Judgemental bees

I do love bees, but they are a bit judgy and self righteous. I think they’ve let their nickname "little winged servants of God”, go to their heads.

Bees have taken it upon themselves to be the Guardians of Moral Order. Now, we know that they don’t like swearing and blasphemeing, but what other moral codes do the bees live by?

• They hate arguing - Discord in a household can cause bees to get very upset and abandon their hive. 

• They do not like unchastiy - They can actually sense it, and will sting you if you are guilty! They even know if a woman’s is a virgin, and a woman can prove whether she is “untainted” if she can walk unharmed through a swarm (I am unclear on their views about tainted men).|

• They are nosey - they need to know everything! There is a tradition of "telling the bees" which involves informing them of significant family events, e.g. births, marriages or deaths. Neglecting to do this can bring great misfortune, and the bees might leave or die.

The bee friend, a painting by Hans Thoma (1839–1924)

What does it mean if a bee visits you?

A bee entering your home is a sign of good luck, or an impending visitor, or perhaps both! However, it is crucial to let the bee leave on its own accord to preserve the good fortune.

If it lands on your hand it signifies incoming wealth, and if it rests on your head then this predicted greatness in your future.

If a bee has entered your home and is circling a sleeping child, in Wales this foretells that the child will have a joyful life.

But it’s not always good news…. If bees nest under your roof, it means the daughters in your family won’t marry. Or perhaps that is good news.

And in Suffolk, if a swarm appears in your garden and you don’t claim it, then it foretells a death within the year, so if this happens you better claim it quick! The traditional way to claim the swarm is to swiftly cover it with a handkerchief. If you manage to do this, in Sussex and Cornwall, they say it will bring good fortune, which I think we can all agree is much better than death. 

Considering bee-keeping? Here are some important things to note.

Purchasing bees is unlucky unless you pay for them with gold. It is much better to receive bees as a gift, as part of an exchange or to catch them. So when we saw that it was nearly £300 to buy a swam, we decided to catch them instead. There was the financial benefit but also the benefit of not being riddled with bad luck from the cash purchase. 

I live on a community smallholding and our resident bee expert, Steph, managed to catch a swarm in just 3 days!

They are technically Steph’s bee’s now, but she does now need to find a man to own the bees with because, according to a superstition in Northumberland, joint ownership of bees by a man and a woman from different households is very important to bring good fortune to the hive.

And as we all know, a hive that fails to produce honey could well mean war on the horizon, so best to do everything we can to bring good fortune to the bees.

Bees in mythology 

In Greek mythoogy, Aristaeus is a lesser known god associated with certain aspects of agriculture, including beekeeping, olive growing, cheese-making and herding. He’s the one to worship if you are a bee-keeper! There is a good story about how he lost his bees being a naughty boy and he had to go through a right ordeal to restore them. You can read that story here.

To summarise… Bees are religious busybodies, they can detect how pure you are (or aren’t!), don’t swear in front of them, if one is flying around your kid whilst they sleep then thats one lucky kid! If a swarm comes into your garden, quickly throw a handkerchief over it, if you’ve caught a swam then make sure you find someone of the opposite sex to own it with (they can’t be from your household), never buy a swarm (unless using gold), if you are a bee keeper then worship Aristaeus, and if your hive suddenly stops producing honey - prepare for war!

Who knew there were so many rules? Are there any superstitions or interesting parts of folklore about bees I’ve missed?! Let me know below!