Apparently a part of the reason why farmed bees stay in the beehives that humans build for them is because the farm hives are safer and sturdier. I don’t know how a busy Discord server’s worth of bugs that only have one brain cell each would logically conclude that the humans protect them from outside threats, illness and parasites, but if I understood right, the bees would be free to move away and build a new nest somewhere else any time they’d want, and they simply choose not to.
You know how in almost every culture, people have some concept of “if I sacrifice something that I made/grew/produced to the Gods, they will ward me and my harvest from evil”?
So, in a way, don’t the bees willingly sacrifice a part of their harvest to an entity not only far greater than them, but nearly beyond their comprehension, in exchange for protection against natural forces wildly outside of their own control?
So tell me, beekeepers, what are you to your bees, if not a mildly eldritch God?
I don’t know about other cultures, but in English folklore, when a beekeeper dies someone has to go out and tell the bees.
Imagine you’re a neolithic hunter-gatherer, just hanging out, sacrificing stuff to your god, when a new god you’ve never met before shows up and tells you that your god is dead, it’s not your fault or anything, and maybe a new god will come along to take care of you, maybe not, it’s gonna be touch and go for a while
Apparently in medieval Europe they also whispered secrets to the bees.
So imagine the mildly eldritch God you worship talks to you and tells you secrets, but these secrets make no sense to you and are incomprehensible to understand or even know they are secrets. But your God does make vibrations at you, so thats probably a good thing right??
Also occasionally the Swarm decides there is not enough room in the Hive because the eldritch god didn’t take the offering of Honey at their normal time. So enough of a Swarm builds up that the second queen is able to leave without decimating the first Swarm. They are all set to search out a new place that will likely not have your God anymore (but really that’s not too much of a struggle, they have abandoned you, that’s part of why you’ve left, even though the first Swarm still holds out hope for their return).
And then, the scouts find another Hive right next to the old Hive. Literally right next to it. So the Queen lands to inspect it and wow, it’s a good deal. The area already has enough food to support 2 Hives, so it’s a not problem to stay in the area now that they have the space, but…this wasn’t here before.
And then you see God, they’ve come to help the Swarm move to the new Hive and take the offering from the old Hive. Truly this must have been their plan all along
In English folklore, you ALSO have to invite your bees to your wedding, and decorate their hive, and leave a slice of cake for them, and also bring your new spouse by to introduce them to the hive straightaway. Imagine your eldritch god doing THAT.
Cascadian born (Snohomish), Appalachian living (NE GA), Gypsy boy (Russian Kalderash), army vet (11B/25B), libertarian-anarchist, dirt worshipping pagan.
