A deity of eastern (Thracian and Lydian-Phrygian) origin, which spread in Greece relatively late and established itself there with great difficulty. Although the name Dionysus is found on the tablets of the Cretan linear letter "B" as early as the 14th century. BC, the spread and establishment of the cult of Dionysus in Greece dates back to the 8th-7th centuries. BC. and is associated with the growth of city-states (policies) and the development of polis democracy.
During this period, the cult of Dionysus began to supplant the cults of local gods and heroes. Dionysus, as a deity of the agricultural circle, associated with the elemental forces of the earth, was constantly opposed to Apollo - as, above all, the deity of the tribal aristocracy. The folk basis of the cult of Dionysus was reflected in the myths about the illegitimate birth of the god, his struggle for the right to enter the ranks of the Olympian gods and for the widespread establishment of his cult.
Note: the authors and titles of the paintings pop up when you hover over them.
France. Visual arts of the 1st c. BC e. - 17th century F. Girardon. "Apollo and the Nymphs" (decorative group in the grotto of the park in Versailles), Marble. 1662-72.
There are myths about various ancient incarnations of Dionysus, as if preparing for his arrival. Archaic incarnations of Dionysus are known: Zagreus, son of Zeus of Crete and Persephone; Iacchus, associated with the Eleusinian mysteries; Dionysus is the son of Zeus and Demeter (Diod. III 62, 2 - 28). According to the main myth, Dionysus is the son of Zeus and the daughter of the Theban king Cadmus Semele.
At the instigation of the jealous Hera, Semele asked Zeus to appear to her in all his greatness, and he, appearing in a flash of lightning, incinerated the mortal Semele and her towers with fire. Zeus snatched out of the flame Dionysus, who was born prematurely, and sewed him into his thigh. In due time, Zeus gave birth to Dionysus, having opened the seams on his thigh (Hes. Theog. 940-942; Eur. Bacch. 1-9, 88-98, 286-297), and then gave Dionysus through Hermes to be raised by the Nisaean nymphs (Eur. Bacch. 556-569) or Semele's sister Ino (Apollod. III 4, 3).
The boy who was born three months later was the god Dionysus, who, having reached maturity, sought out his mother in the underworld, after which Semele was transferred to Olympus. The envious sisters of Semele interpreted her death as a punishment sent by Zeus for giving herself to a mortal. Subsequently, Zeus took revenge on the sisters of Semele, sending all sorts of disasters on their sons.
The name Semele is of Phrygian origin, it means "earth"; probably Semele was a Phrygian-Thracian deity of the earth. The myth about the birth of Dionysus from Zeus was supposed to ensure the introduction into the Olympic pantheon of a god who did not originally belong to it.
Dionysus found the vine and taught people how to make wine.
Hera instilled madness in him, and he, wandering through Egypt and Syria, came to Phrygia, where the goddess Cybele-Rhea healed him and introduced him to her orgiastic mysteries.
After that, Dionysus went through Thrace to India (Apollod. III 5, 1). From the eastern lands (from India or from Lydia and Phrygia) he returns to Greece, to Thebes. During the voyage from the island of Ikaria to the island of Naxos, Dionysus is kidnapped by sea robbers - the Tyrrhenians (Apollod. III 5, 3). The robbers are horrified at the sight of the amazing transformations of Dionysus. They chained Dionysus in order to sell him into slavery, but the chains themselves fell from the hands of Dionysus; braiding the mast, the sails of the ship with vines and ivy, Dionysus appeared in the form of a bear and a lion. The pirates themselves, having thrown themselves into the sea out of fear, turned into dolphins (Hymn. Nom. VII).
This myth reflected the archaic plant-zoomorphic origin of Dionysus. The vegetable past of this god is confirmed by his epithets: Evius ("ivy", "ivy"), "bunch of grapes", etc. (Eur. Bacch. 105, 534, 566, 608). The zoomorphic past of Dionysus is reflected in his werewolf and ideas about Dionysus the bull (618 920-923) and Dionysus the goat. The symbol of Dionysus as the god of the fruitful forces of the earth was the phallus.
On the island of Naxos, Dionysus met his beloved Ariadne, abandoned by Theseus, kidnapped her and married her on the island of Lemnos; from him she gave birth to Enopion, Foant, and others (Apollod. epit. I 9). Wherever Dionysus appears, he establishes his cult; everywhere on its way teaches people viticulture and winemaking. 
The procession of Dionysus, which was of an ecstatic nature, was attended by Bacchantes, satyrs, maenads or bassarids (one of the nicknames of Dionysus is Bassarei) with thyrsus (rods) entwined with ivy. Girdled with snakes, they crushed everything in their path, seized by sacred madness. 
With the cries of "Bacchus, Evoe" they praised Dionysus - Bromius ("stormy", "noisy"], they beat tympanums, reveling in the blood of torn wild animals, carving honey and milk from the ground with their thyrsus, uprooting trees and dragging crowds along with them. women and men (Eur. Bacch. 135-167, 680-770). 
Dionysus is famous as Ley ("liberator"), he frees people from worldly worries, removes the fetters of measured life from them, breaks the fetters that his enemies are trying to entangle, and crushes the walls (616-626). He sends madness on enemies and punishes them terribly; so he did with his cousin the Theban king Pentheus, who wanted to ban Bacchic rampages. Pentheus was torn to pieces by Bacchantes led by her mother Agave, who, in a state of ecstasy, mistook her son for an animal (Apollod. III 5, 2; Eur. Bacch. 1061 - 1152).
On Lycurgus, the son of the king of the edons, who opposed the cult of Dionysus, God sent madness, and then Lycurgus was torn to pieces by his own horses (Apollod. III 5, 1)
Dionysus entered the number of 12 Olympian gods late. In Delphi, he began to be revered along with Apollo. On Parnassus every two years, orgies were held in honor of Dionysus, in which fiads - Bacchantes from Attica participated (Paus. X 4, 3). In Athens, solemn processions were held in honor of Dionysus and played out sacred marriage god with the wife of the archon basileus (Aristot. Rep. Athen. III 3). 
From the religious rituals dedicated to Dionysus (Greek tragodia lit. "song of the goat" or "song of the goats", that is, goat-footed satyrs - companions of Dionysus), an ancient Greek tragedy arose. In Attica, the Great, or City Dionysia, were dedicated to Dionysus, which included solemn processions in honor of the god, competitions of tragic and comic poets, as well as choirs performing dithyrambs (held in March - April); Leney, which included the performance of new comedies (in January - February); Small, or Rural, Dionisia, which preserved the remnants of agrarian magic (in December - January), when dramas already played in the city were repeated. 
In Hellenistic times, the cult of Dionysus merges with the cult of the Phrygian god Sabazius (Sabazius became the constant nickname of Dionysus). In Rome, Dionysus was revered under the name of Bacchus (hence Bacchantes, Bacchanalia) or Bacchus. Identified with Osiris, Serapis, Mitra, Adonis, Amon, Liber. 
Maenads (M a i n a d e z, "crazy"), Bacchantes, Bassarids · companions of Dionysus. Following Dionysus in fiasas (crowds), maenads, adorned with vine leaves and ivy, crush everything in their path with thyrsae, also entwined with ivy. Half-naked, in the skins of sika deer, with matted hair, often girded with strangled snakes, they in insane delight appeal to Dionysus Bromius ("Noisy") or to Dionysus Ivy, exclaiming "Bacchus, Evoe." 
They tear wild animals to pieces in the forests and mountains and drink their blood, as if joining the torn deity. Maenads beat milk and honey out of rocks and earth with thirsas, human sacrifices are not uncommon. They drag women along with them, introducing them to the service of Dionysus. 
The source of myths about maenads is the tragedy of Euripides "Bacchae", but already in Homer Andromache, who learned about the death of Hector, is called "a maenad with a strongly beating heart" (Homer "Iliad", XXII 460 next).
Bacchanalia - this is how the Romans called orgic and mystical festivities in honor of the god Bacchus (Dionysus), which came from the East and spread first through southern Italy and Etruria, and by the 2nd century. BC e. all over Italy and in Rome. 
The bacchanalia was held in secret, attended only by women who gathered in the grove of Similia near the Aventine Hill on March 16th and 17th. Later, men began to come to the ceremony, and celebrations began to be held five times a month. 
The notoriety of these festivities, which planned many different crimes and political conspiracies, which was partly promoted by the Senate - the so-called Senatus consultum de Bacchanalibus (an inscription on a bronze tablet found in Calabria in 1640) - contributed to the prohibition of Bacchanalia throughout Italy , except for certain special cases, which had to be approved directly by the Senate. 
Despite the severe punishment imposed on violators of this ordinance, Bacchanalia was not eradicated, at least in southern Italy, for a very long time. Besides Dionysus, Bacchus is equated with Liber (as well as Liber Pater). Liber ("free") was the god of fertility, wine and growth, he was married to Liber. The holiday in his honor was called Liberalia, it was celebrated on March 17, but according to some myths, the holiday was also celebrated on March 5. 
These festivities were combined with a wild, frenzied revelry of the lowest animal passions and were often accompanied by violence and murder. In 186 the senate took the most severe measures against them (the Senatusconsultum de Bacchanalibus has come down to us on a bronze plaque now kept in Vienna). The consuls made searches throughout Italy, which resulted in many executions, exiles and imprisonments (Livy, 29, 8-18). However, it was not possible to completely eradicate these immoral mysteries, and their name remained for a long time to designate noisy drinking parties, and in this sense it is also used in Russia. 
There are many sources of information, including: http://www.greekroman.ru, http://mythology.sgu.ru, http://myfhology.narod.ru, http://ru.wikipedia.org
The ancient Greeks worshiped many gods, their religion as a reflection of character: sensual, unbridled, like nature itself with its elements. Dionysus is one of the favorite gods of the Hellenes, direct evidence that pleasure in their lives occupied an exceptional and paramount place.
Who is Dionysus?
Dionysus, the god of winemaking, burst into the measured life of the Greeks with his characteristic fun, fury and madness. The junior Olympian is of Thracian origin. Also known by other names:
- Bacchus;
- Bacchus;
- Elder Dionysus;
- Zagreus;
- Liber;
- Dithyramb;
- Orthos;
- Chorey.
Dionysus had the following functions and powers:
- was responsible for the revival of vegetation in the spring;
- patronized farmers;
- taught people the craft of growing grapes and winemaking;
- sent madness on those who did not want to join him;
- is considered the "father" of the theatrical genre of tragedy.
The parents of the god of wine and the vine are Zeus and Semele. The myth of the birth of Dionysus is shrouded in passions. The jealous wife of the Thunderer Hera, having learned that Semele was pregnant, disguised herself as her nurse, persuaded Zeus to beg him to appear in a divine guise. Semele, when meeting with the god, asked if he was ready to fulfill one of her desires, and he swore to fulfill her every whim. Upon hearing the request, Zeus tore out the still unripe fetus from the womb of his beloved and sewed it up in his thigh, and when the time came, Zeus gave birth to a son, Dionysus.
The cult of Dionysus in ancient Greece was called the Dionysius. The grape harvest festivals were called small Dionysias, accompanied by vivid performances with dressing up, singing, drinking wine. The main Dionysias were held in March - in honor of the reborn god. The early versions of the bacchanal festivities were held under the cover of darkness and consisted of wild dances of maenads in a trance state, ritual copulations. The Death of Dionysus, the god in the form of a bull, was played out, and the sacrificial animal was torn to pieces, and warm meat was eaten.
Attribute of Dionysus
In ancient works of art, Dionysus was depicted as a young beardless youth with feminine features. The most important attribute of the god is the staff of Dionysus or thyrsus made of fennel stalk crowned with a pine cone - a phallic symbol of the creative principle. Other attributes and symbols of Bacchus:
- Vine. Entwined around a wand - a sign of fertility and the craft of winemaking;
- Ivy - according to beliefs against severe intoxication.
- The cup - drinking it, the soul forgot about its divine origin, and in order to be cured it was necessary to drink another - the cup of the mind, then the memory of divinity and the desire to return to heaven return.
The companions of Dionysus are no less symbolic:
- Melpomene is the muse of tragedy;
- Maenads - faithful followers or priestesses of the cult of Dionysus;
- panther, tiger and lynx - animals of the cat family denote his ascent and triumph and remind that the cult came from the East;
- the bull is a symbol of fertility and agriculture. Dionysus was often depicted as a bull.
Dionysus - mythology
The Greeks revered nature in all its manifestations. Fertility is an important part of the life of rural residents. A rich harvest is always a good sign that the gods are supportive and complacent. The Greek god Dionysus in myths appears cheerful, but at the same time wayward and sending curses and death to those who do not recognize him. The myths about Bacchus are filled with a variety of feelings: joy, sadness, anger and madness.
Dionysus and Apollo
The conflict between Apollo and Dionysus is interpreted by different philosophers and historians in their own way. Apollo - radiant and golden-haired god sunlight patronized the arts, morality and religion. Encouraged people to observe the measure in everything. And the Greeks, before the advent of the cult of Dionysus, tried to follow the laws. But Dionysus “burst” into the souls and illuminated everything unsightly, those bottomless abysses that are in every person and measured Hellenes began to indulge in revelry, drunkenness and orgies, honoring the great Bacchus.
Two opposing forces "light" Apollonistic and "dark" Dionysian came together in a duel. Reason collided with feelings, as historians describe the struggle between two cults. Light, measure, cheerfulness and science against the cult of the earth, which contains the darkness of mysteries with the immeasurable use of wine, sacrifices, frantic dances and orgies. But just as there is no light without darkness, something new and unusual was born in this conflict - a new genre of art appeared - Greek tragedies about the temptations and the abyss of the human soul.
Dionysus and Persephone
Dionysus, the god of Ancient Greece, and Persephone, the goddess of fertility, the wife of Hades, and with him the ruler of the underworld in ancient Greek mythology, are interconnected in several legends:
- One of the myths about the birth of Dionysus mentions Persephone as the mother of his mother. Zeus was inflamed with passion for his own daughter, turning into a snake, enters into a relationship with her, from which Dionysus is born. In another version, Dionysus descends into the underworld and gives a myrtle tree to Persephone so that she would let his mother Semele go. Dionysus gives his mother the new name of Tion and ascends with her to heaven.
- Persephone was walking along the meadow of the island of Perg in Sicily and was abducted by Hades (Hades), in some sources by Zagreus (one of the names of Dionysus) to the kingdom of the dead. The inconsolable mother of Demeter searched for a young daughter all over the world for a long time, the earth became barren and gray. Finally finding out where her daughter was, Demeter demanded that she be returned. Hades released his wife, but before that he gave her to eat seven pomegranate seeds that arose from the blood of Dionysus. Nothing can be eaten in the realm of the dead, but Persephone, overjoyed that she had to return, ate the grains. From now on, he spends spring, summer and autumn upstairs, and the winter months in the underworld.
Dionysus and Aphrodite
The myth of Dionysus and the goddess of beauty Aphrodite is famous for the fact that from their fleeting connection an ugly child was born. The son of Dionysus and Aphrodite was unusual and so ugly that the beautiful goddess refused the baby. The huge phallus of Priapus was constantly in a state of erection. Growing up, Priapus tried to seduce his father Dionysus. In ancient Greece, the son of the god of winemaking and Aphrodite was revered in some provinces as the god of fertility.
Dionysus and Ariadne
The wife and companion of Dionysus, Ariadne, was first abandoned by her beloved Theseus on about. Naxos. Ariadne wept for a long time, then fell asleep. All this time, Dionysus, who arrived on the island, watched her. Eros fired his arrow of love and Ariadne's heart was inflamed with new love. During the mystical marriage, Ariadne's head was crowned with a crown given to her by Aphrodite herself and the mountains of the island. At the end of the ceremony, Dionysus raised a crown to heaven in the form of a constellation. Zeus, as a gift to his son, endowed Ariadne with immortality, which elevated her to the rank of goddesses.
Dionysus and Artemis
In another myth about the love of Dionysus and Ariadne, the god Dionysus asks Artemis, the eternally young and chaste goddess of hunting, to kill Ariadne, who he liked, because she married Theseus in a sacred grove, only in this way Ariadne could become his wife, through the initiation of death. Artemis shoots an arrow at Ariadne, who then resurrects and becomes the wife of Dionysus, the god of fun and fertility.
Cult of Dionysus and Christianity
With the penetration of Christianity into Greece, the cult of Dionysus did not become obsolete for a long time, the people continued to revere the festivities dedicated to God, and the Greek church was forced to fight with its own methods, Saint George came to replace Dionysus. The old sanctuaries dedicated to Bacchus were destroyed, and Christian churches were built in their place. But even now, during the grape harvest, in the holidays you can see the praise of Bacchus.
Dionysus Dionysus , Bacchus or Bacchus (Dionysus, Bacchus, Διόνυσος, Βάκχος). God of wine and winemaking, son of Zeus and Semele, daughter of Cadmus. Shortly before his birth, jealous Hera advised Semele to beg Zeus to come to her in all his greatness; Zeus really appeared to her with lightning and thunder, but she, like a mere mortal, could not bear his contemplation and died, prematurely giving birth to a baby. Zeus sewed the child into his thigh, where he carried it to its due date. Accompanied by a crowd of his servants, maenads and bacchantes, as well as sileni and satyrs with rods (Firsi) entwined with grapes, Dionysus went through Hellas, Syria and Asia to India itself and returned to Europe through Thrace. On his way, he everywhere taught people winemaking and the first rudiments of civilization. Ariadne, abandoned by Theseus on the island of Naxos, was considered the wife of Dionysus. The cult of Dionysus, which at first had a cheerful character, gradually became more and more intemperate and turned into violent orgies, or bacchanalia. Hence the name of Dionysus - Bacchus, i.e. noisy. A special role in these festivities was played by the priestesses of Dionysus - frenzied women known as maenads, bacchantes, etc. Grapes, ivy, panther, lynx, tiger, donkey, dolphin and goat were dedicated to Dionysus. The Greek Dionysus corresponded to the Roman god Bacchus. (Source: "A Brief Dictionary of Mythology and Antiquities." M. Korsh. St. Petersburg, edition of A. S. Suvorin, 1894.)
(Διόνυσος), Bacchus, Bacchus, in Greek mythology, the god of the fruitful forces of the earth, vegetation, viticulture, winemaking. A deity of eastern (Thracian and Lydian-Phrygian) origin, which spread in Greece relatively late and established itself there with great difficulty. Although the name D. is found on the tablets of the Cretan linear letter "B" as early as the 14th century. BC e., the spread and establishment of the cult of D. in Greece dates back to the 8th-7th centuries. BC e. and is associated with the growth of city-states (policies) and the development of polis democracy. During this period, the cult of D. began to supplant the cults of local gods and heroes. D. as a deity of the agricultural circle, associated with the elemental forces of the earth, was constantly opposed Apollo - as, above all, the deity of the tribal aristocracy. The folk basis of the cult of D. was reflected in the myths about the illegitimate birth of a god, his struggle for the right to enter the number of Olympic gods and for the widespread establishment of his cult. Many monuments of ancient art have been preserved that embodied the image of D. and the plots of myths about him (D.'s love for Ariadne, etc.) in plastic (statues and reliefs) and vase paintings. Widespread were (especially in vase painting) scenes of the procession of D. and his companions, bacchanalia; these stories are reflected in the reliefs of sarcophagi. D. was depicted among the Olympians (reliefs of the eastern frieze of the Parthenon) and in scenes of gigantomachia, as well as sailing on the sea (kylik Exekia “D. in the boat”, etc.) and fighting with the Tyrrhenians (relief of the monument to Lysicrates in Athens, c. 335 BC . e.). In medieval book illustrations, D. was usually depicted as the personification of autumn - the time of harvest (sometimes only October). In the Renaissance, the theme of D. in art is associated with the affirmation of the joy of being; have become widespread since the 15th century. scenes of bacchanalia (the beginning of their depiction was laid by A. Mantegna; A. Dürer, A. Altdorfer, H. Baldung Green, Titian, Giulio Romano, Pietro da Cortona, Annibale Carracci, P. P. Rubens, J. Jordans, N . Poussin). The same symbolism is permeated with the plots "Bacchus, Venus and Ceres" and "Bacchus and Ceres" (see article Demeter), especially popular in Baroque painting. In the 15-18 centuries. scenes depicting the meeting of D. and Ariadne, their wedding and triumphal procession were popular in painting. Among the works of plastic arts are the reliefs “Bacchus turns the Tyrrhenians into dolphins” by A. Filarete (on the bronze doors of St. place among other ancient characters in the baroque garden sculpture. The most significant works of 18 - early. 19th century - statues of "Bacchus" by J. G. Dannecker and B. Thor-Waldsen. Among the musical works of the 19-20 centuries. on the plots of the myth: A. S. Dargomyzhsky's opera-ballet "The Triumph of Bacchus", C. Debussy's divertissement "The Triumph of Bacchus" and his own opera "D.", J. Massenet's opera "Bacchus", etc.
There are myths about various ancient incarnations of D., as if preparing for his arrival. Archaic incarnations of D. are known: Zagreus son of Zeus of Crete and Persephone; Iacchus, associated with the Eleusinian mysteries; D. is the son of Zeus and Demeter (Diod. Ill 62, 2-28). According to the main myth, D. is the son of Zeus and the daughter of the Theban king Cadmus Semele. At the instigation of the jealous Hera, Semele asked Zeus to appear to her in all his greatness, and he, appearing in a flash of lightning, incinerated the mortal Semele and her towers with fire. Zeus snatched out of the flame D., who was born prematurely, and sewed him into his thigh. In due time, Zeus gave birth to D., dissolving the seams on the thigh (Hes. Theog. 940-942; Eur. Bacch. 1-9, 88-98, 286-297), and then gave D. through Hermes to be raised by the Nisean nymphs ( Eur. Bacch. 556-559) or Semele's sister Ino (Apollod. III 4, 3). D. found a vine. Hera instilled madness in him, and he, wandering through Egypt and Syria, came to Phrygia, where the goddess Cybele - Rhea healed him and introduced him to her orgiastic mysteries. After that, D. went through Thrace to India (Apollod. III 5, 1). From the eastern lands (from India or from Lydia and Phrygia) he returns to Greece, to Thebes. During the voyage from the island of Ikaria to the island of Naxos, D. is kidnapped by Tyrrhenian sea robbers (Apollod. III 5, 3). The robbers are horrified at the sight of the amazing transformations of D. They chained D. in chains to sell into slavery, but the shackles themselves fell from D.'s hands; braiding the mast and sails of the ship with vines and ivy, D. appeared in the form of a bear and a lion. The pirates themselves, throwing themselves into the sea out of fear, turned into dolphins (Hymn. Hom. VII). This myth reflected the archaic plant-zoomorphic origin of D. The plant past of this god is confirmed by his epithets: Evius (“ivy”, “ivy”), “bunch of grapes”, etc. (Eur. Bacch. 105, 534, 566, 608). D.'s zoomorphic past is reflected in his werewolves and ideas about D. the bull (618, 920-923) and D. the goat. The symbol of D. as the god of the fruitful forces of the earth was the phallus.
On the island of Naxos, D. met his beloved Ariadne abandoned by Theseus, kidnapped her and married her on the island of Lemnos; from him she gave birth to Enopion, Foant, and others (Apollod. epit. I 9). Wherever D. appears, he establishes his cult; everywhere on his way he teaches people viticulture and winemaking. The procession of D., which was of an ecstatic nature, was attended by Bacchantes, satyrs, maenads or bassarids (one of D.'s nicknames is Bassari) with thyrsus (rods) entwined with ivy. Girded with snakes, they crushed everything in their path, seized by sacred madness. With cries of "Bacchus, Evoe" they praised D.-Bromius ("stormy", "noisy"), beat tympanums, reveling in the blood of torn wild animals, carving honey and milk from the ground with their thyrsae, uprooting trees and dragging crowds of women and men (Eur. Bacch. 135-167, 680-770). D. is famous as Liei (“liberator”), he frees people from worldly worries, removes the fetters of a measured life from them, breaks the shackles with which his enemies are trying to entangle, and crushes the walls (616-626). He sends madness on enemies and punishes them terribly; so he did with his cousin the Theban king Pentheus, who wanted to ban Bacchic rampages. Pentheus was torn to pieces by Bacchantes led by his mother agaves, who, in a state of ecstasy, mistook her son for an animal (Apollod. III 5, 2; Eur. Bacch. 1061-1152). On Lycurgus, the son of the king of the Edons, who opposed the cult of D., God sent madness, and then Lycurgus was torn to pieces by his own horses (Apollod. III 5, 1).
D. entered the number of 12 Olympic gods late. In Delphi, he began to be revered along with Apollo. On Parnassus every two years, orgies were held in honor of D., in which fiads - Bacchantes from Attica participated (Paus. X 4, 3). In Athens, solemn processions were held in honor of D. and the sacred marriage of the god with the wife of the archon basileus was played out (Aristot. Rep. Athen. III 3). Ancient Greek tragedy arose from religious rituals dedicated to D. (Greek tragodia, lit. “song of a goat” or “song of goats,” that is, goat-footed satyrs who were D.’s companions). In Attica, the Great, or City, Dionysius were dedicated to Dionisia, which included solemn processions in honor of the god, competitions of tragic and comic poets, as well as choirs that performed dithyrambs (held in March - April); Leney, which included the performance of new comedies (in January - February); Small, or Rural, Dionisia, which preserved the remnants of agrarian magic (in December - January), when dramas already played in the city were repeated.
In Hellenistic times, the cult of D. merges with the cult of the Phrygian god Sabaziya(Sabaziy became D.'s permanent nickname). In Rome, D. was revered under the name of Bacchus (hence the Bacchantes, Bacchanalia) or Bacchus. Identified with Osiris, Serapis, Mithra, Adonis, Amon, Liber.
Lit.: Losev A.F., Ancient mythology in its historical development, M., 1957, p. 142-82; Nietzsche F., The Birth of Tragedy from the Spirit of Music, Poln. coll. soch., v. 1, [M.], 1912; Otto W.P., Dionysos. Mythos und Kultus, 2 Aufl.. Fr./M.. 1939; Junger F.G., Griechische Götter. Apollon, Pan, Dionysos. Fr./M., 1943; Meautis G., Dionysos ou Ie pouvoir de fascination, in his book: Mythes inconnus de la Grèce antique. P., , p.33-63; Jeanmaire N., Dionysos. Histoire du culte de Bacchus, P., 1951.
A. F. Losev.
(Source: "Myths of the peoples of the world".)
Dionysus(Bacchus, Bacchus) - the god of viticulture and winemaking, the son of Zeus and Hera (according to other sources, Zeus and the Theban princess and goddess Semele, according to other sources, Zeus and Persephone). In honor of Dionysus, festivities were celebrated - Dionysia and Bacchanalia.
// Adolf-William BUGREAU: Childhood of Bacchus // Nicolas POUSSIN: Midas and Bacchus // Franz von STUCK: Boy Bacchus riding a panther // TITIAN: Bacchus and Ariadne // Apollo Nikolaevich MAIKOV: Bacchus // Konstantinos CAVAFIS: Retinue of Dionysus / / Dmitry OLERON: Heraion. Hermes and Bacchus Praxiteles. Bacchus // A.S. PUSHKIN: The Triumph of Bacchus // N.A. Kuhn: DIONYSUS // N.A. Kun: THE BIRTH AND EDUCATION OF DIONYSUS // N.А. Kuhn: DIONYSUS AND HIS REPRESENTATION // N.А. Kuhn: LYCURGUS // N.A. Kun: DAUGHTERS OF MINIA // N.A. Kuhn: THE TYRRHENIAN SEA RABBERS // N.A. Kun: ICARIUS // N.A. Kuhn: MIDAS
(Source: "Myths of Ancient Greece. Dictionary Reference." EdwART, 2009.)
DIONYSUSin Greek mythology, Zeus and Femela, the god of the fruitful forces of the earth, vegetation, viticulture and winemaking.
(Source: Dictionary of Spirits and Gods of Norse, Egyptian, Greek, Irish, Japanese, Maya and Aztec Mythologies.)
See what "Dionysus" is in other dictionaries:
- (other Greek Διόνυσος) ... Wikipedia
- (Bacchus) Greek deity, the embodiment of life force. The oldest forms of the cult of D. were preserved in Thrace, where they had an “orgiastic” character: the cult participants, dressed in animal skins, in mass zeal, brought themselves to frenzy (ecstasy) ... Literary Encyclopedia
And husband. Borrowed Father: Dionisovich, Dionisovna; unfold Dionisych. Origin: (In ancient mythology: Dionysus god vitality nature, the god of wine.) Name day: (see Denis) Dictionary of personal names. Dionysus See Denis... Dictionary of personal names
- (Greek Dionisos). The Greek name for the god Bacchus or Bacchus. Dictionary of foreign words included in the Russian language. Chudinov A.N., 1910. DIONYSUS in the ancient. the Greeks the same as Bacchus, another name for the god of wine and fun; the Romans Bacchus. The complete dictionary... ... Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language
What do you know about alcohol and its gods? People have been making alcoholic beverages since the Neolithic: 8,000 years ago people were making barley beer, and they were drinking grape wine 7,000 years ago. What gods of alcohol and drunkenness existed in history?
At the end of last year, archaeologists discovered artifacts in central Mexico that testify to the existence among the Acolua Indians, related to the Aztecs, of the cult of the god of drunkenness Ometochtli. In connection with this remarkable discovery, we decided to talk about the most interesting deities, in our opinion, who were responsible for the preparation of alcoholic beverages and intoxication among other peoples.
It is worth noting that people have been preparing alcoholic beverages since the Neolithic times. The oldest vessels with traces of grape wine were found on the territory of modern Iran, their age is approximately 7000 years. The oldest winery with a grape press, fermentation vats and wine vessels was found in Armenia and dates back to around 4100 BC. The history of brewing begins even earlier, as early as 8000 years ago people were making barley beer. The oldest image of a man drinking beer was found on a Sumerian clay tablet, which is about 6,000 years old.
Mesopotamia
Beer in Mesopotamia was one of the staples of the diet. The expression "bread and beer" was a metaphor for the expression "food and drink". Beer was used not only as a drink, but also in medicine and cosmetology. It served as a substitute for money: beer was paid for work and used as a ransom for the bride. The price and strength of beer were established by law in the laws of Hammurabi. Its popularity was partly due to the fact that it was easier to grow the grains from which beer was made in a hot and arid climate than grapes, and therefore beer was cheaper.
Beer is often mentioned in myths. For example, in the Epic of Gilgamesh, the wild man Enkidu, who lived in the steppe, turns into a civilized man after eating bread and drinking beer. In the myth about the lord of the Universe and the god of wisdom Enki and the goddess of heaven and love Innana, the patroness of the city of Uruk, the goddess, having drunken Enki with beer, asks him for a hundred "divine laws" and passes them on to people.
The Sumerian goddess of beer and brewing was Ninkasi. Little is known about her, and reliable images of this goddess have not been preserved. Therefore, researchers can only speculate that the popularity and importance of beer led to the popularity of the goddess associated with it. Interestingly, most of the Sumerian gods of crafts were male, while the goddess of beer was female. Scientists attribute this to the fact that in ancient times women were home brewers. Beer brewing became mainstream and became an industry only in the Babylonian period, at which time brewing became the prerogative of men.
A poem has been preserved, "Hymn to Ninkasi" - actually a recipe for making beer written down in poetic form. The clay tablet on which it is written dates back to 1800 BC, that is, the "Hymn" itself, apparently, is even more ancient.
Ancient Egypt
IN ancient egypt beer was known as early as 5,000 years ago and was the most popular alcoholic drink among both ordinary people and the nobility. Along with bread and onions, it was part of the daily diet of the Egyptians.
According to one of the ancient Egyptian legends, beer was discovered by the supreme sun god Ra, who first created people and then taught them how to make beer. Moreover, according to one of the myths, beer saved humanity from death.
The supreme god of the sun Ra, the progenitor of the gods and the creator of people, reigned over the world for a very long time and grew old. People learned about his weakness and decided to revolt against God and seize power. Then Ra called to himself his daughter, the goddess Hathor, and ordered her to punish the recalcitrant. Hathor cast a spell and turned into a ferocious lioness. She left the palace and ran into the desert to look for people. Finding the rebels, the goddess attacked them and began to kill one by one, drink their blood and scatter pieces of meat across the desert. After some time, the sun god decided that people had been punished enough and tried to stop his daughter. But the lioness goddess replied that she would not stop until she had destroyed all people and drunk their blood. Then Ra extinguished the sun's rays and night fell on the earth. God ordered the servants to grind barley and brew beer from it (it turned out 7000 vessels) and sent messengers to the island of Elephantine for the red mineral didi (probably meant granite). The supreme god ordered the miller to grind the red mineral into powder and add it to beer. The result was a drink that looked very much like blood. The servants of Ra went to the desert, where the goddess Hathor killed people, and poured beer on the ground. In the morning, the lioness goddess woke up, saw a puddle of “blood” around and was very happy. She liked the red beer and drank it until she was so drunk that she could no longer distinguish between people. Then the sun god approached his daughter and said: “Go in peace, my beloved daughter. From now on, the people of Egypt will bring you vessels of beer every year on the day of Hathor. And may you be called "Mistress of drunkenness."
The cult of the goddess Hathor existed in Egypt for a very long time. In ancient beliefs, Hathor was the goddess of the sky and was depicted as the Heavenly Cow, who gave birth to the Sun and all other gods. After the rise of the cult of Ra towards the end of the Old Kingdom, she began to be considered his daughter and the Eye of Ra, who by force subjugated the enemies of the god, and became identified with all the lioness goddesses acting as the Eye. Even later, Hathor becomes the deity of love, fun and music. It is known that during the New Kingdom in Egypt, drinking festivals were held dedicated to Hathor and associated with the myth of the death of people.
Ancient Greece
Viticulture began to spread in Greece as early as the Neolithic period and became widespread at the beginning of the Bronze Age. The Cretans traded with Egypt and adopted Egyptian winemaking techniques. According to some reports, the festival of wine was held in Greece as early as the Mycenaean era, and at that time there was already a cult of the god of the vine, winemaking and fertility Dionysus. It is not known for certain where the cult of Dionysus appeared, according to one version he came from Asia Minor, according to another - from Thrace (a region in the Balkans).
The father of Dionysus was Zeus, the head of the Olympian gods, the mother, according to different versions, was either one of the goddesses or a mortal woman. Zeus was a loving character and had many illegitimate children. Therefore, the wife of Zeus, the goddess Hera, hated Dionysus and persuaded the Titans to kill him, but the gods resurrected the baby. So Dionysus became "twice-born". Then Zeus gave his son to be raised by the nymphs who lived on the mythological Mount Nisa. It was here that Dionysus invented wine.
What area was identified with Mount Nisa is unknown, the ancient authors placed it in different places - in Ethiopia, Libya, Egypt, Anatolia (the territory of modern Turkey) or Arabia. Hera did not leave the attention of the already matured Dionysus: she instilled madness in him. In this state, the god set off to travel the world, accompanied by a crowd of satyrs and maenads, armed with swords, snakes and thyrses (pine branches entwined with ivy with a cone on top). First, Dionysus went to Egypt, and then to the east, to India. Through Phrygia (the territory of modern Turkey), he returned from India to Europe and began to establish his cult in the states of Greece. Not all locals greeted Dionysus with enthusiasm and recognized his divine origin, but God did not stand on ceremony with anyone and either killed the recalcitrant or sent madness on them.
Returning from India, the god of winemaking established his cult in the states of Greece and on the islands of the Aegean Sea. After the Greeks recognized the divine status of Dionysus, he ascended to heaven to take his place next to Zeus as one of the 12 great gods.
In honor of the god of winemaking, festivities and mysteries were held in different parts of Greece. During the festivities, solemn processions, competitions of tragic and comic poets and choirs performing dithyrambs were arranged. From the religious rites dedicated to Dionysus, ancient Greek comedy and tragedy grew (it is interesting that tragodia is translated from Greek as “the song of the goats”, that is, the choir of goat-footed satyrs who accompanied Dionysus). Only initiates could participate in the Dionysian mysteries. The purpose of the mysteries was for a short time to be freed from social restrictions and prohibitions and to release the “animal essence” of man. Participants gathered in secluded places, forests or mountains, with the help of alcohol and ritual dances entered a trance state and in this state they danced, participated in orgies and even committed ritual killings of animals. In the end, people reached a state in which they identified themselves with God and believed that they had acquired divine power. Later, in ancient rome The Dionysian mysteries began to be called Bacchanalia.
Researchers believe that in some areas of Greece, the death and resurrection of Dionysus symbolized the annual natural cycle. Scholars also believe that Dionysus was the "twin" of the more ancient Phrygian god Sabazius, originally the god of beer. It is possible that spruce beer flavored with ivy and sweetened with honey was originally used as an intoxicating drink instead of wine. Hera's hatred for Dionysus and the hostility of the inhabitants of the countries through which the god of winemaking passed symbolize the rejection of wine as a ritual drink and dissatisfaction with the unbridled behavior of the maenads. But at the end of the 7th - beginning of the 6th centuries BC, the rulers of Corinth, Sicyon and Athens recognized the cult of Dionysus and established official festivities in his honor. After that, the god of winemaking was adopted into the Olympic pantheon.
Scandinavia
The main alcoholic drinks among the Scandinavians were beer and mead, a drink made from fermented honey and water, sometimes with the addition of fruits, spices and hops. Just like beer and wine, honey is very ancient drink. Vessels with traces of a fermented mixture of honey, fruits and rice have been found in northern China and date back to 7000-6500 BC. In Europe, honey appeared later, 3800 - 2800 years ago. Therefore, mythological characters, following people, brew and drink these alcoholic beverages. For example, the sea giant Aegir from Scandinavian mythology arranged feasts for the gods in his palace at the bottom of the sea. He and his daughters brewed ale for the feast in a cauldron a mile in diameter.
The Scandinavian epic tells about the "honey of poetry", which was kept by the god of poets Braga. After drinking one sip of this drink, a person acquires poetic abilities.
One day, the Scandinavian gods, the Ases, quarreled with other gods, the Vanirs. After some time, they reconciled, and at the conclusion of peace, both the Ases and the Vanirs spat into the bowl and made the dwarf Kvasir out of their common saliva. The dwarf was very wise, there was no question he could not answer. He traveled the world and taught people wisdom. Once Kvasir went to visit two dwarfs who killed him, and the blood was poured into vessels and mixed with honey. It turned out a drink, after drinking which, anyone became either a poet or a scientist. After some ups and downs, the honey of poetry was taken over by the giant Suttung. The supreme god of the Scandinavians Odin found out about the wonderful drink and decided to take possession of it. With the help of his younger brother Suttunga, he made his way into the cave where the honey was kept, seduced the giant's daughter, who was guarding the vessels with the drink, and kidnapped him. Turning into an eagle, Odin flew to Asgard, the abode of the aesir gods, and Suttung, who discovered the loss of honey, went in pursuit. Odin flew to Asgard before Suttung caught up with him and spat out the honey into the vessel, but as the giant was already overtaking him, Odin released some of the honey through anus. This honey can be taken by anyone and it is called the "rhymer's share". The real honey, collected in a vessel, Odin gave to his son, the god of poets.
Scandinavian myths for centuries existed only in oral tradition and were written down already in the Middle Ages, almost all of them in the 13th century. Therefore, it is very difficult for modern researchers to draw conclusions about the origin and change of myths over time. The main sources for the study of Scandinavian mythology are the prose "Younger Edda", written by the Icelander Snorri Sturluson, and a collection of poems about gods and heroes, called "Elder Edda". The myth of the "honey of poetry" is recorded in the "Younger Edda".
Snorri Sturluson mentions in the book not only the god Braga, but also ascribes a number of verses to the skald of Braga to Bogdasson the Old, real person, which is considered the first skald whose name has been preserved in history. And although in the book it's two different person, there is a version that Bragi-skald served as a prototype for Bragi-god. The researchers had discussions on this topic, but did not come to a consensus, and today the question remains open.
The "Younger Edda" tells about King Odin, he came from the Land of the Turks and was a descendant of the Trojan king Priam. Modern researchers believe that this version has a rational grain. According to the trifunctional theory, Odin embodied one of the three key social functions in the Indo-European pantheon, cult. The symbols of the other two - military and economic - were the gods Thor and Vana (Freyr and Njord).
Central America
In conclusion, I would like to tell you more about the Aztec gods of drunkenness, one of which, Ometochtli, was mentioned at the beginning of the article. In Aztec mythology, there was a whole group of gods of fertility, drunkenness and debauchery, who were called Senzon Totchtin, "400 rabbits." 400 meant an indefinitely large number, and the rabbit was associated with drunkenness, perhaps because each subsequent jump of this animal is unpredictable.
The 400 Rabbits were originally rural gods who guarded crops and food supplies, and the names of some of these gods came from the name of the area where they were worshipped. So, Tepoztecatl was the god of Tepoztlan, and Yautecatl was the god from the city of Yautepec. These rural gods became the gods of drunkenness, so to speak, in their free time “from the main work”, during the periods of festivities dedicated to the harvest.
According to Bernardino de Sahagún, a Spanish monk and major explorer of pre-Columbian Mexico, there were as many rabbit gods as there were types of intoxication and their effects. Drunken aggression, lies, drunken jokes and even murder had their own drunken patron god, and Ometochtli (“two rabbits”) was the main one in this company. All "400 rabbits" were the children of the god Patekatl and the goddess Mayahuel. Patecatl is the god of fertility and medicine, who discovered the peyote cactus containing hallucinogenic alkaloids and taught people how to cook pulque, a mash made from agave. Mayahuel is the goddess of the agave and the intoxicating drink octli made from it. She was depicted as a woman with 400 breasts, from which agave juice constantly flowed and with which she fed her children-gods.
Dionysus (Διώνυσος) - God of wine and fun, son of Zeus.
In Greek mythology, Dionysus was born from his father's thigh, his mother Semele was the daughter of the king of Thebes, Cadmus. Dionysus is the funniest of the gods, he visited many countries and cities to teach people how to cultivate the vine and make wine from the fruits. And, of course, as the god of joy and fun, he did not travel alone. He was always accompanied by a noisy crowd of maenads, satyrs, centaurs and sileni.
The fine wine that Dionysus treated to cheered up people, they forgot hardships, a smile appeared on their faces. Where Dionysus appeared with his retinue, a feast began to the cheerful sounds of musical instruments, accompanied by dances and cheerful songs.
Birth of Dionysus or "twice-born"
Having learned about the new love affair of Zeus, Hera thought about it and decided that only by cunning could she return her husband, Semele was very beautiful and young. Blinded by jealousy and wanting revenge, Hera decided to assume the guise of old woman, the nurse of Semele, to be closer to her husband's pregnant mistress and enter into her confidence.
Hera made Semele doubt that it was Zeus who was spending the night with her and advised him to show all his robes of the Thunder God. The main god of Olympus had no choice but to dispel doubts and appear before the girl with all the attributes - thunder, lightning. But the palace of Cadmus immediately caught fire from lightning, Semele died in the fire, having had time to be born.
The baby was so small that Zeus had to wear it himself. With the help of Hermes, they sew the boy into his thigh. Three months later, Dionysus is safely born a second time, from his father's thigh.
When Hera found out about the existence of the child, her anger shifted to the newborn. The father had to give the baby to be raised by Semele's sister and her husband. To hide the baby from the eyes of the jealous woman, they dressed him in the clothes of a girl, and even his father turns him into a kid (that's why Dionysus is often depicted with horns). But Hera overtook the baby here too, instilling madness in Semele's sister and husband. Then the baby was sent to the nymphs, to Mount Nisa, to the ends of the earth, where Dionysus grew up. Soon he married the daughter of the Cretan king, Ariadne (the one who helped Theseus out of the labyrinth).
Dionysus is considered the patron of wanderers, male power, plants, theater.
Attributes of Dionysus: thyrsus, vine, cup, ivy, mask, bull, snake, dolphin.
Dionysus - patron of the theater
Jolly Dionysius was loved by the ancient Greeks, his cult spread throughout Hellas. In autumn and spring, large official festivities are established throughout the Greek world, in the depths of which the main form of Greek art, the theater, is born. Greek poems take the form of theatrical plays that are played in places dedicated to Dionysus. They talk about the life and exploits of the god Dionysus and about other heroes accompanying the god. At the same time, people change clothes, put on masks and drink wine. The festivities were called - Great Dionysia.
