Madhukari is an ancient Indian tradition of collecting alms from householders by Sanyasins. Let me explain the origin of the word and why it is termed as Madhukari.
The Honeybee
What does a honeybee do? It collects honey and stores it in a Beehive.
Note that the honeybee does not extract the entire nectar from a flower. The honeybee is an intelligent specie, it knows that if today it extracts the entire nectar from a flower, tomorrow it won’t get any more. The honey bee hops from one flower to another and suck nectar and other essential ingredients. The honey bee processes these natural nectar and converts it into honey, which is then stored in the Bee hive.
The honey bee stores its food for a rainy day. Bees produce honey as food stores for the hive during long months of winter when flowers aren’t blooming and therefore little or no nectar is available to them.
What is Madhukari?
Madhukari is an Indian tradition which encourages a monk to live life like a Honey bee does.
The monk is encouraged to beg for his own food by visiting different families door to door. The monk must beg for his food and be dependent on the generosity of the householder. At the same time, the monk must not suck the entire nectar, he must not demand too much from any house. He should fulfil his need for food by taking as little alms as possible and by begging from one door to another.
This particular mode of bheeksha is called Madhukari, collecting food and only food like a bee which goes from flower to flower and putting it all together for future use. It is the duty of a householder to offer food to the needy and only after he has offered his “Madhukar”, he should feed himself and his family members. Alas, these principles have been long forgotten and people don’t respect it anymore.
What’s the Purpose behind Madhukari?
When a person enters “Parivrajaka”, the final stage of life, he is supposed to live the life of a “Madhukar”.
This is the stage when the man must free himself from all needs. He must free himself from material needs of property and money. He must free himself from emotional needs of relationships, family and belonging. He must free himself and wander about in search of eternal truth. He must fulfil his need of food by collecting it from a householder and showering him his blessings and wisdom.
Parivrajakacharya – Parivrajaka + Acharya – a wandering teacher, the ultimate journey of a man.
___________
Hippie Lou, this is very interesting. You have been practicing Madhukari not knowing that you were doing so. It came to you instinctively. Not a bumblebee but a honeybee, you are nourished by those you meet and touch with your stories... beautiful.
