Overview: Meeting the Melissae is an open door to Greek mythology’s nymphs that shape-shifted into plants and trees, and the women who funded the glorious temples of Ancient Greece.

Verdict: Strictly speaking, nymph, in Greek mythology means any of a large class of inferior female divinities. Indeed, the nymphs were usually associated with fertile, growing things, such as trees, or with water. They were not immortal but were extremely long-lived and were on the whole kindly disposed toward men.

According to the Homeric Hymn to Hermes, the Thriae were three nymphs who taught the art of prophecy to Apollo. Apollo taught it to Hermes, who was the god that escorted souls to the Underworld and then escorted them back into life again. They were the original Melissae, or bee nymphs of Mount Parnassus named Melaina (“the black”), Kleodora (“Famed for her Gift”), and Daphnis (“Laurel”).

Often described as women with wings and hair that appears white because of how much pollen was covering it, they are generally considered to be the triple goddess aspect of The Pure Mother Bee, also called Potnia who was possibly the older Goddess that originally dwelled on Mount Parnassus before Zeus and his siblings came into power.

Potnia means “the mistress” and is often associated with larger Earth mother figures such as Gaia and Rhea. Many priestesses of important goddesses were called “Melissae” or just simply “bees”. The Delphic Oracle herself was often called the Delphic Bee and the complex at Delphi was said to be based on a beehive. Potnia seems to have later evolved into various aspects of Artemis, Aphrodite, Demeter and Cybele. Though Artemis, as the goddess of the wild animals, is the goddess who most usually came to be associated with bees.

The Eleusinian Mysteries were the most prestigious initiation of the ancient world. The ritual’s secrets were protected by death vows and have been speculated about for more than 4,000 years. The nine-day festival was run by a group of women called Melissae, or “bees”: married women, second only in rank to the Priestess of Athena Polias, who presided over Athens.

They amassed incredible wealth, fame, and political status. Temple accounts from the period reveal that it was the priestesses’ money that paid for Greece’s glorious architecture. Fees were earned for sacrifices and granting access to divinity. In return, the priestess made Greece a magnificent place to live.

Oracles, diviners, soul midwives and creatrixes of innumerable festivals, these women ensured that the city-state kept favor with the goddess. They achieved that by emulating the ways of the world’s most successful matriarchal community, a bee colony.

Herbal textbooks speak of a relationship between these women and the Lemon Balm herb (Melissa officinalis). Thus what you think you will expect from a book entitled Meeting the Melissae: The Ancient Greek Bee Priestesses of Demeteris actually far from the truth, as it is an all-encompassing, wholly impassioned and deliciously sculpted work of prose art that grips you from the off and never lets go.

As the Foreword by Jan Kusmirek says, This book could be said to be about the bee, a people that have been with us since the dawn of time. It is about the hive, the social structure of the society of the bee people. It slips effortlessly from the bee to the relationship bees have with humankind and the awe and respect shown to this vital insect.

So journey into the past and into the enchanting dreamscape of the hive with aromatherapist Elizabeth Ashley and you will soon discover you have deep-dived into a rather delightful odyssey; one built for anyone interested in herbal wisdom, ancient Greek history, female empowerment, and humankind’s greatest allies, the bees.

About the Author - Elizabeth Ashley has almost 30 years’ professional experience as a clinical aromatherapist, is the UK Director for the National Association of Holistic Aromatherapy and an overseas speaker for the International Federation of Aromatherapists.

As a professional speaker she has presented at trade conferences in Beijing, Utah, Budapest, and Sofia, and is a regular contributor to five professional trade journals. She lives in Shropshire, UK.

Official Book Purchase Link