The
god of
wine and
gaiety, and the son of
Zeus and
Semele, a daughter of
King Kadmos of
Thebes His birth
was frowned upon by
Hera, who was angry at the rival to her husband's affections, disguised herself and proceeded to
Thebes, where she met and falsely befriended Semele, encouraging her to ask that Zeus should appear before her (Semele) in
all his great majesty as
god of thunder. Zeus had no choice but to agree to her
request, as he had sworn 'by the black waters of the
Styx' (one of the most solemn oaths man or god could
swear) to grant her wish, before hearing what it was. He appeared as a display of
thunder and
lightning to Semele, a display which killed
her.
As she died, Semele gave birth to Dionysos, who of course died. Zeus restored him to life, and fearing his wife's
reprisals, charged
Hermes to convey the child to
Nysa, where Silenos and the nymphs brought up the infant. Dionysos'
formative years were spent in innocence in the company of the
nymphs,
satyrs,
sileni,
herdsmen and
vine-tenders of Nysa.
When he attained manhood he set out on a journey through all lands, even into the remotest parts of
India, instructing the
people how to tend the vine, and other arts of peace, teaching them also the value of just and honourable dealings. Dionysos
was praised everywhere as the greatest
benefactor of mankind, but for all this if he met stubborn resistance from someone
who refused to listen to his teachings, he always punished them severely. A case in point is
Lykurgos, whom the wine god
caused to become insane, so that he felled his son, mistaking him for a vine plant. The enormity of this deed caused Lykurgos to kill himself.
There was also
Pentheus, king of
Thebes, whom Dionysos caused to be torn to pieces by his own mother and her following of women, for daring to look on at their
orgiastic rites.
As a god of the
spring rites, of the flowering plants and fruitful
vines, Dionysos was said to be in terrible pain during
winter, when most living things sicken and die or hibernate, and in this way he was similar to
Demeter, who sorrowed in winter for her lost daughter,
Persephone.
Dionysos was also revered as the
god of the
theatre, and all the
performing arts. His
sigils were the
vine,
ivy,
pomegranate, and his
sacrifices were of
goats and
pigs.