The Spirituality of Beekeeping

As people learn the art of beekeeping, they enter a fascinating world. “At first you just think it’s a jumble of bees,” says Laura Tyler, a beekeeper for eight years in Boulder, Colorado. “But then you discover the amazing patterns and order behind it.” For instance, worker bees dance in the hive for each other, and their elaborate patterns communicate to the other bees the location of nectar.

Also, although each bee can carry only a tiny clump of pollen, one hive can produce more than 100 pounds of honey a year. “It’s completely engrossing,” Tyler says. It can also be very spiritual. Tyler directed a short film, Sister Bee, in 2007, which follows six women beekeepers and their soulful connection to the craft. In the film, women describe the “benevolence” they feel when they open a hive and how collecting the honey is “like harvesting the sun.” Learn more about the film by visiting lauratyler.com/sister_bee.php.