The Myth Of Dionysus – God Of Wine And Joy

The myth of Dionysus – also known as Bacchus in Roman mythology – tells the story of a vital and cheerful demigod who was always available for a party. He was considered the god of wine and joy, fertility and also the inspirer of ritual ecstasy.

There are two basic versions of the origin of this myth. The first version of the myth of Dionysus says that he was the son of Zeus, god of gods, and Persephone, queen of the underworld.

Hera, the jealous wife of Zeus, decided to kill this child. To implement this plan, she called on the titans, who lured the boy to her with toys. Dionysus followed the titans and they killed him. Then they tore it into seven pieces, boiled it, and ate it.

Thereupon Zeus, who loved his son very much, took revenge by destroying the titans with a lightning bolt. Then he discovered that they had not yet eaten Dionyso’s heart and used it to bring him back to life.

Legend has it that from the ashes of the Titans, humanity was born. Because the Titans ate Dionysus , all humans unite the pleasure-seeking nature of Dionysus and the aggression of the Titans.

The second version of the myth of Dionysus is probably the best known. It starts with a beautiful princess named Semele.

Zeus fell in love with her at first sight and assumed a human form to visit her. He soon won her heart and seduced her. When she got pregnant, Zeus decided to tell her who he really was.

In this version of the myth of Dionysus, too, Hera’s jealousy plays an important role. When she found out about her husband’s infidelity, she decided to transform herself into a human being and introduced herself to Semele as a wet nurse.

She got Semele to tell her who the boy’s real father was. Hera then told Semele that Zeus might not be who he said he was. In this way, she made sure that doubts and concerns poured into Semele’s mind.

This is how Hera made sure that Semele asked Zeus to reveal himself to her as a god and not as a mortal. Since the god of Olympus had promised to grant her every wish, of course he could not refuse it.

Hence he turned into lightning and thunder. However, the princess was struck by lightning and died because mortals could not survive after seeing the powers of a god. But Zeus was able to save his son Dionysus, who was in the belly of the pregnant Semele, and sewed him into his thigh.

The myth of Dionysus tells that Zeus gave his son into the care of Ino, the sister of the dead princess, and her husband. However, Hera was still jealous and so she did everything in her power to drive the adoptive parents insane. Zeus then decided to turn Dionysus into a little goat and handed him over to Hermes, who placed him in the care of the nymphs who raised him.

Dionysus was raised by the nymphs and Silenus. Silenus was often drunk, but he had the gift of prophecy. Dionysus grew up alongside Silenus, the nymphs, satyrs and maenads.

He was a handsome, cheerful and dynamic young man. It was Dionysus who discovered the cultivation of wine and the fermentation of grapes to make wine. He later traveled extensively to teach the secrets of the art of wine.

Dionysus experienced great adventures on his travels. The best known happened while he was on the coast: pirates kidnapped him because they thought he was a prince and wanted to demand a ransom for him. However, even in their wildest dreams, they could not have imagined what would happen to them.

When the pirates tried to tie Dionysus, not a single knot was in their rope. The god turned into a lion and mimicked the sound of many flutes, which drove the kidnappers crazy. In their panic they threw themselves into the sea and Dionysus turned them into dolphins. According to this legend, dolphins are actually repentant pirates. That is also the reason why they come to the aid of castaways.

His wish to visit Olympus was granted to him. Before he set out to meet the other gods again, however, he descended into the underworld and got his mother Semele, who then became a constellation. Dionysus is associated with parties, fun, ecstasy, theater and amusement.