The Myth Of Dionysus, The God Of Wine And Pleasure

The myth of Dionysus – also known as Bacchus in Roman mythology – tells of a vital, joyful demigod who was always ready to party. He was considered the god of wine and pleasure and fertility, and also the inspirer of ritual ecstasy.

There are two basic versions of the origin of this myth. The first version of Dionysus’ origin is that he is the child of Zeus, the god of the gods, and Persephone (Kore), the queen of the underworld.

Hera, Zeus’ jealous wife, aimed to kill the child. To achieve this, she called on the Titans, who lured the boy towards him with toys. He followed and the Titans killed him, cut him to pieces, cooked him and swallowed him.

Zeus, who loved this son with all his might, took revenge and struck the titans with lightning. He saw that Dionysus’ heart had not been eaten, so he used it to revive him.

Legend has it that from the ashes of the Titans, humanity was born. Because the Titans had eaten him, all humans now have in them both Dionysus ‘lust-seeking nature and the Titans’ aggression.

Other versions of the myth of Dionysus

The second version of the myth of Dionysus, and perhaps the most popular, begins with a beautiful princess named Semele.

Zeus fell in love with her at first sight and took a human form to visit her. He soon conquered her heart and seduced her. She became pregnant, which is why Zeus decided to admit who he really was.

Also in this version, Hera’s jealousy shows itself. When she found out about her husband’s infidelity, she also decided to take human form and introduced herself to Semele as a nurse.

She tricked Semele into confessing to who the real father of the boy was. Hera then suggested that perhaps Zeus was not who he claimed to be, and planted doubt and concern in Semele.

To be sure, Semele asked Zeus to present himself to her as a god instead of a mortal. The god of Olympos had promised her that he would always do what she asked him to do, so he could not deny her.

Thus he turned into lightning and thunder. Unfortunately, the princess turned to ashes and died since mortals can not survive witnessing a god’s powers. Dionysus, who was in her womb at that time, was saved when Zeus sewed him into his bone.

The Myth of Dionysus: A Happy God

The myth of Dionysus tells us that Zeus left the care of his son to Ino, who was the sister of the dead princess, and to her husband. However, Hera, who was still jealous, did everything she could to drive her adoptive parents crazy. Consequently, Zeus decided to turn Dionysus into a little goat and gave him to Hermes, who gave him to the nymphs who would raise him.

The Nymphs and Silenus, a kind old man who was often drunk, but who had the gift of prophecy, raised Dionysus. Next to Silenus, the nymphs, satirists and maenades, Dionysus became a man.

Dionysus was a beautiful, happy and dynamic young man. He was the one who discovered the cultivation of vines and the fermentation of grapes to make wine. Later he traveled far and taught the secrets of the art of wine.

During his travels, Dionysus had great experiences. The most famous happened when he was on the coast: Pirates kidnapped him and thought he was a prince and wanted to ask for ransom. They could not have imagined what would happen to them.

Dionysus and the cult of fun

When the pirates tried to bind Dionysus, one of their ropes would not stay tied. The god then turned into a lion and imitated the sound of many whistles, which drove his prisoners mad. In a panic, they threw themselves into the sea and Dionysus later turned them into dolphins. According to this legend, these animals are repentant pirates, and that is why they help survivors of shipwreck.

Dionysus married Ariadna when he felt sorry for her after she was abandoned by a minotaur on an island. Later, when he finished his job teaching men how to make wine, he asked to go to Mount Olympus. Dionysus appears in an infinite number of stories and was a valued god among the Greeks.

His desire to visit Mount Olympus was granted, but before leaving to reunite with the other gods, Dionysus descended into the underworld to retrieve his mother, Semele, who then became a constellation. Dionysus is associated with parties, fun, states of ecstasy, theater and pleasure.