al-Ma'arri, Arab philosopher and poet (973–1057)
al-Ma'arri, Arab philosopher and poet (973–1057)
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1000 YEAR OLD VEGAN POEM BY ONE OF THE GREATEST CLASSICAL ARABIC POETS
Al-Ma'arri
973-1057 A.D.
VEGAN | PHILOSOPHER | POET | WRITER
Do not unjustly eat fish the water has given up,
And do not desire as food the flesh of slaughtered animals,
Or the white milk of mothers who intended its pure draught
for their young, not noble ladies.
And do not grieve the unsuspecting birds by taking eggs;
for injustice is the worst of crimes.
And spare the honey which the bees get industriously
from the flowers of fragrant plants;
For they did not store it that it might belong to others,
Nor did they gather it for bounty and gifts.
I washed my hands of all this; and wish that I
Perceived my way before my hair went gray!
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One thing that this poem gets wrong is the bees. Bee colonies go somewhere else when they don't like their current situation. The principle is true, but bees specifically let beekeepers take their honey because it benefits both parties.
Honey bees were domesticated, selectively bred like all other livestock, to be more docile and dependent. The relationship you describe was created by humans for the benefit of humans.
Wild honey bees will do the same thing, leaving a hive and the queen behind to start a new hive. Sometimes it makes sense as a survival strategy to pack up and start again elsewhere. It might be part of why honey bees were able to be domesticated, they were used to the idea of being moved and rebuilding.
The bees won't leave for someplace new unless the Queen does, which is why her wings are clipped.
They are also made docile through smoke inhalation and the beekeeper is wearing a sting-proof suit. Like humans, bees also appear to not get the health benefits from simple syrup that they do from honey.
Honey isn't beef. It isn't chicken or fish and it's certainly a lesser crime all things considered and right now probably the thing we need to spend our resources on the least fighting against, but I think definitely something that should give us pause.
If you want to protect bees or whatever just do that without taking their honey.