Tsangyang Gyatso the sixth Dalai Lama. He composed poems and
lyrics, still popular today, in which he refers to himself as The Turquoise
Bee. Tsangyang Gyatso enjoyed a colorful life and loved writing poems and
songs. His chief legacy is his poems, which are considered to be among the
loveliest in Tibetan literature. Many are about love, longing and heartbreak.
Some are erotic and some reveal his feelings about his position and his life.
One of his more famous lyrics perhaps predicted his reincarnation:
“White crane!
Lend me your wings
I will not fly far
From Lithang, I shall return”
The poem that resonates most deeply with me is one in which
it is speculated he refers to himself as a Turquoise Bee
"Spring flowers fade in the fall;
It is not for the turquoise bees to mourn.
I and my sweetheart are fated to part;
The 6th Dalai Lama had no qualms writing about
his love of women. He is the only Dalai Lama who never took his monastic vows
but kept the temporal prerogatives of the Dalai Lama. He led a playboy
lifestyle, wore layman clothing and enjoyed women, song and drink. Surely he
was referring to a female love in the poem. For me the poem captures the
feeling of parting with the bees in the fall, knowing we are fated to part but
without sadness, holding on to the hope that we will reunite in the spring. The
poem goes on:
"Frost gathers on the glistering flowers
And then the cold north wind blows.
The frost and the wind must have come
To drive the bees away from the flowers”
The image of the Turquoise Bee captivated me immediately and
became the name of our little apiary. There isn’t any coincidence that in the
scriptures and practices of all world religions bees and honey are symbolic.
For Christians the references are found in both the New and
Old Testament. In Matthew 3:4 we read about John the Baptist living a long time
in the wilderness on a diet of honey and locusts. In the Book of Exodus we read
about the description of the Promised Land as flowing with milk and honey.
The Talmud has numerous references to honey and in Jewish
tradition honey is a symbol for the New Year, Rosh Hashanah. During their
celebratory feast Jews will dip apples into honey to bring a sweet year.
In Islam the Qu’ran is full of references to the honeybee
and honey with significant recommendation to use honey for its healing
properties. I only learned this recently from a family I was caring for in the
hospital. When they learned I was a beekeeper they shared numerous reference
about the bee and honey from the their holy book, the Qu’ran. In return I gave
them a little jar of my honey and you would have thought I had moved the earth.
I was overwhelmed by their gratitude.
Buddhists also have a feast, Madhu Pumima, a day
commemorating Buddha’s making peace among his disciples by retreating into the
wilderness. While there, a monkey and an elephant fed him, the elephant
bringing fruit and the monkey-bringing honeycomb. The money was so excited when
the Buddha accepted his gift that he began leaping from tree to tree and fell
to his death. However, he was immediately reborn as a result of his generosity.
This important feast is celebrated on the first day of the full moon in the
month of Bhadro, which falls in August and September, by bringing honey to
Monks. It is interesting that this coincides with the annual honey harvest!
While I am not a Buddhist I am deeply connected to our Tibetan American
community and deliver honey to our local Tibetan Monks for this feast day. In
return the Monks bless the honey and the blessing extends to the bees, the
hives and any product from the hive. This year I am working on having these
Monks come to the Flight of The Turquoise Bee Apiary to conduct a Puja, a
ritual offering/blessing. I would love the Monks to ask for healthy bees and
access to healthy nectar, pollen water. I would also a blessing for Paula and
I, for our safety and that any obstacles between the bees and us be removed.
Most importantly we will ask for a pardon from the bee, forgiveness if you may,
in the fall when we rob them of their honey.
I am a lucky beekeeper to be surrounded by a community of
Christians, Jews, Buddhists and Muslims with whom I can share my annual crop
for such important feasts and celebrations. I take great joy in sharing the
honey with all my friends for such important religious purposes, celebrations
and health. Finally in his infinate wisdom the Sixth Dalai Lama writes:
"In the short walk of this life
We have had our share of joy.
Let us hope to meet again
In the youth of our next life."
