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( Rome , Italy )]] Dionysus or '''Dionysos''' (, a Law giver, and lover of Peace — as well as the patron deity of Agriculture and the Theatre . He was also known as the Liberator ('' Eleutherios ''), freeing one from one's normal self, by madness, ecstasy, or wine.Sutton, p.2, mentions Dionysus as The Liberator in relation to the City Dionysia festivals. The divine mission of Dionysus was to mingle the music of the flute and to bring an end to care and worry.Fox, p.221, "The divine mission of Dionysus was to mingle the music of the flute and to bring surcease to care"; Fox then cites Euripides as a direct source for this statement. Euripedes, ''Bacchae'', Choral II, lines 379-381: " Holiness, queen of the gods, Holiness, who bear your golden wings along the earth, do you hear these words from Pentheus? Do you hear his unholy [375 insolence against Bromius, the child of Semele, the first deity of the gods at the banquets where guests wear beautiful garlands? He holds this office, to join in dances, [380] to laugh with the flute, and to bring an end to cares, whenever the delight of the grape comes at the feasts of the gods, and in ivy-bearing banquets [385] the goblet sheds sleep over men." [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Eur.+Ba.+370] There is also an aspect of Dionysus on his relationship to the "cult of the souls", and the scholar Xavier Riu writes that Dionysus presided over communication between the living and the dead.Riu, Xavier, ''Dionysism and Comedy'', Chapter 4, Happiness and the Dead, p.105, "Dionysus presides over communications with the Dead". In Greek mythology Dionysus is made to be the son of Zeus and Semele ; other versions of the story contend that he is the son of Zeus and Persephone . He is described as being womanly or "man-womanish".1 The name ''Dionysos'' is of uncertain significance; its ''-nysos'' element may well be non-Greek in origin, but its ''dio-'' element has been associated since antiquity with Zeus ( Genitive ''Dios''). Nysa , for Greek writers, is either the nymph who nursed him, or the mountain where he was attended by several nymphs (the Nysiads ), who fed him and made him immortal as directed by Hermes. Or both.Fox, p.217, "The word Dionysos is divisible into two parts, the first originally Διος (cf. '''Ζευς'''), while the second is of an unknown signification, although perhaps connected with the name of the Mount Nysa which figures in the story of Lykourgos ... when Dionysos had been reborn from the thigh of Zeus, Hermes entrusted him to the nymphs of Mount Nysa, who fed him on the food of the gods, and made him immortal". The retinue of Dionysus was called the Thiasus and comprised chiefly Maenads . WORSHIP The above contradictions suggest to some that we are dealing not with the historical memory of a cult that is foreign, but with a god in whom foreignness is inherent. And indeed, Dionysus's name is found on Kerenyi 1976. traces him to Minoan Crete , where his Minoan name is unknown but his characteristic presence is recognizable. Clearly, Dionysus had been with the Greeks and their predecessors a long time, and yet always retained the feel of something alien. The Bull , the Serpent , the Ivy and Wine are the signs of the characteristic Dionysian atmosphere, infused with the unquenchable life of the god. Their numinous presence signifies that the god is near. (Kerenyi 1976). Dionysus is strongly associated with the Satyr s, Centaur s and Sileni . He is often shown riding a Leopard , wearing a leopard skin, or in a chariot drawn by Panthers and has been called the god of Cats and savagery. He may be recognized by the Thyrsus he carries. Besides the grapevine and its wild barren alter-ego, the toxic ivy plant, both sacred to him, the fig was also his. The pinecone that tipped his thyrsus linked him to Cybele , and the pomegranate linked him to Demeter. The Dionysia and Lenaia festivals in Athens were dedicated to Dionysus. Initiates worshipped him in the Dionysian Mysteries , which were comparable to and linked with the Orphic Mysteries , and may have influenced Gnosticism and early Christianity (see "possessed by the saint"), as well as the preliminary animal sacrifice and distribution of meat to the village population, are at their origin not the Christian rites they are constructed as by the villagers who perform them, but the rites of Dionysus. The Anastenaria: The Ancient Ecstatic Fire-Walking Ritual of Greece Bacchanalia '' by Caravaggio ]] Main article: Bacchanalia Introduced into Rome (c. 200 BC ) from the Greek culture of lower Italy or by way of Greek-influenced Etruria , the bacchanalia were held in secret and attended by women only, on three days in the year in the grove of Simila near the Aventine Hill , on March 16 and 17 . Subsequently, admission to the rites were extended to men and celebrations took place five times a month. The notoriety of these festivals, where many kinds of crimes and political conspiracies were supposed to be planned, led in 186 BC to a decree of the Senate — the so-called ''Senatus consultum de Bacchanalibus'', inscribed on a bronze tablet discovered in Calabria ( 1640 ), now at Vienna — by which the Bacchanalia were prohibited throughout all Italy except in certain special cases which must be approved specifically by the Senate. In spite of the severe punishment inflicted on those found in violation of this decree, the Bacchanalia were not stamped out, at any rate in the south of Italy, for a very long time. (See: Further Reading below for an ancient description of the banned Bacchanalia) Dionysus is equated with both Bacchus and Liber (also Liber Pater ). Liber ("the free one") was a god of fertility and growth, married to Libera . His festival was the Liberalia , celebrated on March 17 , but in some myths the festival was also held on March 5 . Appellations Dionysus sometimes has the epithet Bromios, meaning "the thunderer" or "he of the loud shout". Another epithet is '''Dendrites'''; as '''Dionysus Dendrites''' ("he of the trees"), he is a powerful fertility god. '''Evius''' is another of his epithets, used prominently in '') absorbs the role of Sabazios , a Phrygia n deity, whose name means "shatterer" and to whom shattered pottery was sacrificed (probably to prevent other pottery from being broken during firing). In the Roman Pantheon , Sabazius became an alternate name for Bacchus. , Qingdao city, Shandong province, China.]] MYTHOLOGY Birth Dionysus had an unusual birth that evokes the difficulty in fitting him into the Olympian pantheon. His mother was Semele (daughter of Cadmus ), a mortal woman, and his father Zeus, the king of the gods. Zeus's wife, Hera , a jealous and vain goddess, discovered the affair while Semele was pregnant. Appearing as an old Crone (in other stories a nurse), Hera befriended Semele, who confided in her that her husband was actually Zeus. Hera pretended not to believe her, and planted seeds of doubt in Semele's mind. Curious, Semele demanded of Zeus that he reveal himself in all his glory as proof of his godhood. Though Zeus begged her not to ask this, she persisted and he agreed. Mortals, however, cannot look upon a god without dying. He came to her wreathed in bolts of lightning and she perished in the ensuing blaze. Zeus rescued the fetal Dionysus, however, by sewing him into his thigh (referred as his testicles). A few months later, Dionysus was born. In this version, Dionysus is borne by two mothers (Semele and Zeus) before his birth, hence the epithet ''dimetor'' (two mothers) associated with "twice-born". In another version of the same story, Dionysus was the son of Zeus and Persephone , the queen of the underworld. A jealous Hera again attempted to kill the child, this time by sending Titans to rip Dionysus to pieces after luring the baby with toys. Zeus drove the Titans away with his thunderbolts, but only after the Titans ate everything but the heart, which was saved, variously, by Athena , Rhea , or Demeter . Zeus used the heart to recreate him in the womb of Semele, hence he was again "the twice-born". Sometimes people said that he gave Semele the heart to eat to impregnate her. The rebirth in both versions of the story is the primary reason he was worshipped in mystery religions, as his death and rebirth were events of mystical reverence. This narrative was apparently used in certain Greek and Roman Mystery Religion s. Variants of it are found in Callimachus and Nonnus , who refer to this Dionysus under the title Zagreus , and also in several fragmentary poems attributed to Orpheus . Early life The legend goes that Zeus gave the infant Dionysus into the charge of Hermes. One version of the story is that Hermes took the boy King Athamas and his wife Ino, Dionysus' aunt. Hermes bade the couple raise the boy as a girl, to hide him from Hera's wrath.Apollodorus, The Library, with an English Translation by Sir James George Frazer, F.B.A., F.R.S. in 2 Volumes. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1921. Includes Frazer's notes. ISBN 0674991354, ISBN 0674991362 Another version is that Dionysus was taken to the rain- Nymph s of Nysa , who nourished his infancy and childhood, and for their care Zeus rewarded them by placing them as the Hyades among the stars (see Hyades Star Cluster ). Other versions have Zeus giving him to Rhea, or to Persephone to raise in the Underworld, away from Hera. Alternatively, he was raised by Maro . When Dionysus grew up he discovered the culture of the vine and the mode of extracting its precious juice; but Hera struck him with madness, and drove him forth a wanderer through various parts of the earth. In Phrygia the goddess Cybele , better known to the Greeks as Rhea , cured him and taught him her religious rites, and he set out on a progress through Asia teaching the people the cultivation of the vine. The most famous part of his wanderings is his expedition to India , which is said to have lasted several years. Returning in triumph he undertook to introduce his worship into Greece , but was opposed by some princes who dreaded its introduction on account of the disorders and madness it brought with it. (See King Pentheus or Lycurgus .) As a young man, Dionysus was exceptionally attractive. Once, while disguised as a mortal sitting beside the seashore, a few sailors spotted him, believing he was a prince. They attempted to kidnap him and sail him far away to sell for ransom or into slavery. They tried to bind him with ropes, but no type of rope could hold him. Dionysus turned into a fierce lion and unleashed a bear onboard, killing those he came into contact with. Those who jumped off the ship were mercifully turned into dolphins. The only survivor was the helmsman, Acoetes , who recognized the god and tried to stop his sailors from the start. In a similar story, Dionysus desired to sail from Icaria to Naxos . He then hired a Tyrrhenian pirate ship. But when the god was on board, they sailed not to Naxos but to Asia, intending to sell him as a slave. So Dionysus turned the mast and oars into snakes, and filled the vessel with ivy and the sound of flutes so that the sailors went mad, and leaping into the sea, were turned into dolphins. Others say that Dionysus came on board after these sailors, having leapt ashore, captured him, stripped him of his possessions, and tied him with ropes they had almost succeeded. Other stories When Hephaestus bound Hera to a magical chair, Dionysus got him drunk and brought him back to Olympus after he passed out. For this act, he was made one of the twelve Olympians. Pentheus Euripides wrote a tale concerning the destructive nature of Dionysus in his play entitled '' The Bacchae ''. Since Euripides wrote this play while in the court of King Archelaus of Macedon , some scholars believe that the cult of Dionysus was malicious in Macedon but benign in Athens . In the play, Dionysus returns to his birthplace, Thebes , ruled by his cousin, Pentheus . He wanted to exact revenge on the women of Thebes, his aunts Agave , Ino and Autonoe and his cousin Pentheus, for not believing his mother Semele when she said she had been impregnated by Zeus, and for denying that Dionysus was a god and therefore not worshipping him. The female worshippers of Dionysus were known as Maenads , who often experienced divine ecstasy. Pentheus was slowly driven mad by the compelling Dionysus, and lured to the woods of Mount Cithaeron to see the Maenads. When the women spied Pentheus, they tore him to pieces like they did earlier in the play to a herd of cattle. Brutally, his head was torn off by his mother Agave as he begged for his life. '' by Titian ]] Lycurgus When King Lycurgus of Thrace heard that Dionysus was in his kingdom, he imprisoned all the followers of Dionysus, the Maenads . Dionysus fled, taking refuge with Thetis . Dionysus then sent a drought and the people revolted. Dionysus made King Lycurgus insane, and he sliced his own son into pieces with an axe, thinking he was a patch of Ivy , a plant holy to Dionysus. An Oracle then claimed that the land would stay dry and barren as long as Lycurgus was alive, so his people had him Drawn And Quartered . With Lycurgus dead, Dionysus lifted the curse. Prosymnus A better-known story is that of his descent to Hades to rescue his mother Semele. He made the descent from a reputedly bottomless pool on the coast of the Argolid near the prehistoric site of Lerna . He was guided by Prosymnus or Polymnus, who requested, as his reward, to be Dionysus' Lover . Prosymnus died before Dionysus could honor his pledge, so in order to satisfy the shade of his Erastes the god fashioned a phallus from an olive branch and sat on it at Prosymnus' tomb.Clement of Alexandria, ''Protreptikos,'' II-30 3-5 This tradition was widely known but treated as a secret not to be divulged to those not privy to the god's mysteries. It was the source of the custom of parading wooden phalloi at the god's festivities. Whitney Davis, "Wax Tokens of Libido: William Hamilton, Richard Payne Knight, and the Phalli of Isernia," in Roberta Panzanelli, ed., ''Waxing Bodies: Wax Images in the History of Art'' (Los Angeles: Getty Research Institute, forthcoming)This story is told in full only in Christian sources (whose aim was to discredit pagan mythology). It appears to have served as an explanation of the secret objects that were revealed in the Dionysian Mysteries . Hyginus , ''Astronomy'' 2.5; Arnobius , ''Against the Gentiles'' 5.28 Ampelos Another Pederastic myth of the god involves his Eromenos , Ampelos , a beautiful Satyr youth whom he loved dearly. According to Nonnus , Ampelos was killed by the river Pactolus , riding a bull maddened by Ate 's gadfly, as foreseen by his lover. The fates granted Ampelos a second life as a vine, from which Dionysus squeezed the first wine. Nonnus , ''Dionysiaca'' (X.175-430; XI; XII.1-117); . Secondary myths A third descent by Dionysus to Hades is invented by Aristophanes in his comedy '' The Frogs ''. Dionysus, as patron of the Athenian dramatic festival, the ''Dionysia'', wants to bring back to life one of the great tragedians. After a competition Aeschylus is chosen in preference to Euripides . When Theseus abandoned Ariadne sleeping on Naxos, Dionysus found and married her. She bore him a son named Oenopion, but he committed suicide or was killed by Perseus . In some variants, he had her crown put into the heavens as the constellation Corona; in others, he descended into Hades to restore her to the gods on Olympus. Callirhoe was a Calydon ian woman who scorned a priest of Dionysus who threatened to inflict all the women of Calydon with insanity (see Maenad ). The priest was ordered to sacrifice Callirhoe but he killed himself instead. Callirhoe threw herself into a well which was later named after her. Acis , a Sicilian youth, was sometimes said to be Bacchus' son. Consorts/Children # Aphrodite ## Charites ### Aglaea ### Euphrosyne ### Thalia ## Hymenaios ## Priapus # Ariadne ## Oenopion # Nyx ## Phthonus # Unknown mother ## Acis # Althaea ## Deianeira IN ART Classical Naturally, the god appeared on many ). E. Kessler has theorized that a mosaic appearing on the triclinium floor of the House of Aion in Nea Paphpos, Cyprus details a monotheistic worship of Dionysus.Kessler, E., ''Dionysian Monotheism in Nea Paphos, Cyprus,'' ( Abstract ) In the mosaic, other gods appear but may only be lesser representations of the centrally-imposed Dionysus. Post-classical PARALLELS WITH CHRISTIANITY , in the Museo Palazzo Massimo Alle Terme in Rome, Italy]] It is possible that Dionysian mythology would later find its way into Christianity. There are many parallels between Dionysus and . Furthermore, it is worth noting that the story of Jesus turning water into wine is only found in the Gospel Of John , which differs on many points from the other Synoptic Gospels . That very passage, it has been suggested, was incorporated into the Gospel from an earlier source focusing on Jesus' miracles.''The HarperCollins Study Bible.'' New Revised Standard Version. With the Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Books. London, UK: HarperCollins Publishers, Inc., 1993. MODERN VIEWS Museum]]
NAMES WITH THE ORIGIN DIONYSUS
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