Simon Buxton delves into the profound connections between humanity and the natural world, particularly through shamanic traditions and an intimate relationship with the environment. His work is informed by decades of dedicated practice and study, including a significant apprenticeship within European bee-keeping traditions. Buxton explores the mysteries of nature and spiritual pathways, seeking to illuminate the interconnectedness of all life. His writing offers readers insights into alternative ways of perceiving the world and ancient wisdom.
Spiritual seekers from many traditions have used darkness as a method for exploring hidden aspects of unconscious and super-conscious states, and for embracing the deeper recesses of the self. Heaven and Buxton show how experiencing complete darkness, even for only a period of hours, brings about a remarkable clarity and mental stillness, and thus provides a springboard for creativity, intuition, and spiritual development.
This work unveils the ancient tradition of bee shamanism, exploring its secret practices and teachings. It highlights the healing and ceremonial powers of honeybees and their hives, revealing a system of acupuncture that predates Chinese methods. The text imparts teachings from the female tradition and delves into the transformative powers of the magico-sexual elixirs produced by bees. Bee shamanism, one of the most ancient branches of shamanism, exists globally wherever honeybees are found. Its medicinal tools, including honey, pollen, propolis, and royal jelly, are widely used today, and the origins of Chinese acupuncture can be traced back to the practice of applying bee stings to the body’s meridians. In this authoritative ethnography and spiritual memoir, Simon Buxton, an elder of the Path of Pollen, reveals the richness of this tradition, including its unique ceremonies and sensory experiences, previously known only to initiates. Buxton's journey began at age nine when he was cured of encephalitis by an Austrian bee shaman, leading to his apprenticeship with an elder of the tradition. Over 13 years, he learned the practices, rituals, and tools of bee shamanism, experiencing the healing powers of honey and other bee products, as well as the magico-sexual “nectars” that promote longevity and ecstasy. This work offers a rare glimpse into the secret wisdom of this age-old tradition.