I first heard the term Melissae or Bee Priestess during a feminine business course. Our instructor told the class about this shamanic lineage of Bee Priestess from Ancient Greece and Egypt who amassed significant fame, wealth, and political power.
In ancient Greek, the word Melissa (or Melissae, plural) means Honeybee or Bee-nymph — a nature spirit that nurtures, protects, and resonates with the essence of Honeybees.
I remember having an inexplicable, full-body, visceral reaction to the word "Melissae" and the story of the bee priestesses. It felt like my body was remembering something ancient within me that I had forgotten and was now surfacing and crashing over me in waves of remembering.
I learned that Bee Priestesses were women who kept favour with the Goddess on behalf of their communities as oracles, shamans, mystics, and healers. They achieved substantial political status by emulating and working with the animal kingdom's most successful matriarchal community — the bee colony.
A few weeks later, I was sitting in a past life regression with Certified Hypnotherapist Lauren Best (check her out here; highly recommend!) and I was exploring a parallel life where I was a water priestess. I was standing in a lake performing a ritual and singing the siren's song to entice women from neighbouring villages to join our priestess circle.
Then, seemingly out of nowhere, a swarm of bees appeared and began mimicking my song's vibration and spreading it across the land. Finally, I was shown that only the pure of heart could find our dwelling, which happened to be built on top of a massive beehive.
In Greek mythology, bees were regarded as messengers of the gods, delivering messages and healing powers to humankind. Since my hypnotherapy session, I have begun working with the bees again on a spiritual level.
I am especially fascinated by how they work together, care for one another, and work in harmony with each other and nature to create something so beautiful and nurturing.
I believe the Divine Bee Goddess is returning to reawaken her Bee Priestesses to create a new hive of enlightenment. One that helps us to unite as a collective for a greater purpose, healing our wounds of separation and progressing humanity's evolution.
