Dionysos - Tumblr Posts
On wearing purple on March 17th: In Ireland, blue is the official color of St. Patrick, and when America started the St. Patrick’s parade festival tradition in the 1930s we adopted green as the color of the day — because Emerald Isle, right? But since the day has become less a nationwide...
Pentheus and Dionysos
In Greek mythology, Pentheus was a king of Thebes. He was the son of Echion. Agave, Pentheus’ mother, was the daughter of Cadmus, the founder of Thebes, and the goddess Harmonia.
Much of what is known about the character comes from the interpretation of the myth in Euripides’ tragic play, The Bacchae.
When Cadmus, the king of Thebes, renounced the throne due to his old age, his grandson Pentheus took over the duties as king. Pentheus soon banned the worship of the god Dionysos, who was the son of his aunt Semele, and did not allow the women of Thebes to join in his rites.
Dionysos’ words from Euripides, Bacchae 25 ff (trans. Buckley) (Greek tragedy C5th B.C.) :
Now Kadmos has given his honor and power to Pentheus, his daughter’s son, who fights against the gods as far as I am concerned and drives me away from sacrifices, and in his prayers makes no mention of me, for which I will show him and all the Thebans that I was born a god.
In a frenzy called upon by Dionysos, the women of Thebes (including Pentheus’ mother and aunts) rushed out to Mount Cithaeron to worship the god. Then Dionysos disguised himself as a priest of Bakkhai, and Pentheus tried to arrest him (he thought him nothing more than a follower of Dionysos), but the shackles fell off, and Dionysos escaped, only to seek out Pentheus once more. Dionysos convinced Pentheus that instead of slaughtering all the frenzied women, he should first give in to his own curiosity and spy on them (because Pentheus expected to see them engaged in sexual activities). Dionysos proceeded to dress Pentheus in women’s clothing, so the women would not notice there was a man in their midst.
When they arrived at the mountain, Pentheus hid in a tree, but it didn’t take long for Dionysos’ worshippers to become aware of him. Dionysos then told the women that the man in the tree was the one who had blasphemed the god and his sacred rituals, and that they should punish him. The women, in their Bacchic frenzy, ripped Pentheus down from the tree, and Pentheus’ mother, Agave, who was first to reach him, ripped his head off, while the others tore off his limbs.
It was after Pentheus’ horrible fate, that everyone acknowledged Dionysos as a god.
Dionysus was rarely without his thiasus in his travels. Below is a summary of those who traveled with him across the world. Family members and lovers will be discussed in other posts, so these are his followers and friends.
Hoofed Revelers
Silenus, the spirit of the wine press and dance,...
Marble relief of Dionysos accompanied by a panther
2nd Century A.D.
Photographed by Roloff Beny
The world man knows, the world in which he has settled himself so securely and smugly—that world is no more. The turbulence which accompanied the arrival of Dionysos has swept it away. Everything has been transformed. But it has not been transformed into a charming fairy story or into an ingenuous child’s paradise. The primeval world has stepped into the foreground, the depths of reality have been opened, the elemental forms of everything that is creative, everything that is destructive, have arisen, bringing with them infinite rapture and infinite terror. The innocent picture of a well-ordered routine world has been shattered by their coming, and they bring with them no illusions or fantasies, but truth.
~Walter F. Otto, “Dionysos: Myth and Cult,” 1933.
Here are Bacchus and Ariadne, Handsome, and burning for each other: Because time flees and fools, They stay together always content. These nymphs and those others Are ever full of joy. Let those who wish to be happy, be: Of tomorrow, we have no certainty.
Ovid, Metamorphosis (VIII, lines 160-182)
The youth of Bacchus, detail (1884) by William-Adolphe Bouguereau
Dionysus/ Zagreus
Id like to think the two gods are kinda one in the same like a fusion. Two minds, one body
Saving for future reference
Dionysian Stuff
Hello! I thought i'd share some dionysian shit for you guys (all based off of my personal experiences with him, worship and relations with deities can vary between practices/practitioner) - Dionysus/Bacchus • God of Wine, Madness, Theatre, Religious Ecstasy, Festivity, Passion - Stuff I Associate him with • Mental Health • Self confidence • LGBT (he helped me come out to my parents/helped me realize I was agender) • That feeling when someone mentions a special interest of yours - Symbolism • Thyrsus, Grape vine, Ivy, Masks (the comedy and tragedy ones specifically), Pine cones/Pine trees • Serpents, Leopards, Panthers (Wild cats in general he seems to take a liking to, likes Leopards specifically tho) _ Colour Symbolism • Red, Purple, Dark red (like wine red, burgundy ig?), Gold - Personality (? this is just how he's communicated with me) • He's really big on confidence and gets kinda pissed at you when you talk bad about yourself • Really chaotic, kinda impulsive. (communicated that I was bored, he communicated back to go swimming in the lake by my neighbourhood) • Flirtatious but in a casual way? Like he'll compliment you and be generally 'flirty' ish but if you're uncomfy he stops • He loves talking about Ariadne (simp much?) like he loves her sm and its really cute. sometimes it ends up with him getting pissed about how Theseus left her and how she didn't deserve that tho. _ Offerings that he's liked • Poetry/Writing things for him • Wine (he's asked for it but since I'm a minor and cant get any I just give him some grape juice/sparkling ciders and that shit) • Fruit (especially the ones that are commonly made into wine) • Honey • Theatre stuff (He's liked it when I leave playbills from any shows I go to see on his altar) • I made him a playlist (since music is a big part of how my brain works) and he really liked that, so music stuff • Pine cones or pine needles (I live in a place where hurricanes and storms knock the pine branches off the trees so I give him a lot of those) • Stuff related to Ariadne (mazes, thread(maybe not red thread, he doesn't like Theseus very much)) _ Tarot that shows up a lot when I do readings for him • Temperance • Three of cups • Nine of pentacles Hope you liked reading my lil Dionysian post. If you have any experiences that you'd like to add, or questions you have, please send an ask, or ask/add in the replies! I'd really like to hear about your experiences with him, and I'm happy to answer anything.
Thank you for the help!
Hello, friend! I'm really new to the world of witchcraft and deity stuff, but my research has led me to believe that Dionysus has reached out to me. For example, I've been craving grapes like never before. Two of my kintypes are animals that are associated with him, soon after I decided to look into witchcraft, my partner found a random cluster of wild grapes next to our house. Songs associated with him fill me with an overwhelming positive feeling. This, among other things, has led me to believe that he is reaching out to me. I guess my question is, how does one know if Dionysus is really reaching out? I'm hesitant to reach out, but I don't want to ignore him if he is. That just seems rude. I just want to know for sure.
Sorry, I know I'm rambling, hope you're doing well!
Hi! that actually sounds a lot like how he reached out to me. I'd suggest some kind of pendulum work, meditate on it, tarot maybe? some kind of divination to make sure. a lot of witchcraft is intuition based, so if you have a strong feeling then it's likely he is! Best of luck friend!
Saving for future reference!
Dionysian Stuff
Hello! I thought i'd share some dionysian shit for you guys (all based off of my personal experiences with him, worship and relations with deities can vary between practices/practitioner) - Dionysus/Bacchus • God of Wine, Madness, Theatre, Religious Ecstasy, Festivity, Passion - Stuff I Associate him with • Mental Health • Self confidence • LGBT (he helped me come out to my parents/helped me realize I was agender) • That feeling when someone mentions a special interest of yours - Symbolism • Thyrsus, Grape vine, Ivy, Masks (the comedy and tragedy ones specifically), Pine cones/Pine trees • Serpents, Leopards, Panthers (Wild cats in general he seems to take a liking to, likes Leopards specifically tho) _ Colour Symbolism • Red, Purple, Dark red (like wine red, burgundy ig?), Gold - Personality (? this is just how he's communicated with me) • He's really big on confidence and gets kinda pissed at you when you talk bad about yourself • Really chaotic, kinda impulsive. (communicated that I was bored, he communicated back to go swimming in the lake by my neighbourhood) • Flirtatious but in a casual way? Like he'll compliment you and be generally 'flirty' ish but if you're uncomfy he stops • He loves talking about Ariadne (simp much?) like he loves her sm and its really cute. sometimes it ends up with him getting pissed about how Theseus left her and how she didn't deserve that tho. _ Offerings that he's liked • Poetry/Writing things for him • Wine (he's asked for it but since I'm a minor and cant get any I just give him some grape juice/sparkling ciders and that shit) • Fruit (especially the ones that are commonly made into wine) • Honey • Theatre stuff (He's liked it when I leave playbills from any shows I go to see on his altar) • I made him a playlist (since music is a big part of how my brain works) and he really liked that, so music stuff • Pine cones or pine needles (I live in a place where hurricanes and storms knock the pine branches off the trees so I give him a lot of those) • Stuff related to Ariadne (mazes, thread(maybe not red thread, he doesn't like Theseus very much)) _ Tarot that shows up a lot when I do readings for him • Temperance • Three of cups • Nine of pentacles Hope you liked reading my lil Dionysian post. If you have any experiences that you'd like to add, or questions you have, please send an ask, or ask/add in the replies! I'd really like to hear about your experiences with him, and I'm happy to answer anything.
Dionysian Stuff
Hello! I thought i'd share some dionysian shit for you guys (all based off of my personal experiences with him, worship and relations with deities can vary between practices/practitioner) - Dionysus/Bacchus • God of Wine, Madness, Theatre, Religious Ecstasy, Festivity, Passion - Stuff I Associate him with • Mental Health • Self confidence • LGBT (he helped me come out to my parents/helped me realize I was agender) • That feeling when someone mentions a special interest of yours - Symbolism • Thyrsus, Grape vine, Ivy, Masks (the comedy and tragedy ones specifically), Pine cones/Pine trees • Serpents, Leopards, Panthers (Wild cats in general he seems to take a liking to, likes Leopards specifically tho) _ Colour Symbolism • Red, Purple, Dark red (like wine red, burgundy ig?), Gold - Personality (? this is just how he's communicated with me) • He's really big on confidence and gets kinda pissed at you when you talk bad about yourself • Really chaotic, kinda impulsive. (communicated that I was bored, he communicated back to go swimming in the lake by my neighbourhood) • Flirtatious but in a casual way? Like he'll compliment you and be generally 'flirty' ish but if you're uncomfy he stops • He loves talking about Ariadne (simp much?) like he loves her sm and its really cute. sometimes it ends up with him getting pissed about how Theseus left her and how she didn't deserve that tho. _ Offerings that he's liked • Poetry/Writing things for him • Wine (he's asked for it but since I'm a minor and cant get any I just give him some grape juice/sparkling ciders and that shit) • Fruit (especially the ones that are commonly made into wine) • Honey • Theatre stuff (He's liked it when I leave playbills from any shows I go to see on his altar) • I made him a playlist (since music is a big part of how my brain works) and he really liked that, so music stuff • Pine cones or pine needles (I live in a place where hurricanes and storms knock the pine branches off the trees so I give him a lot of those) • Stuff related to Ariadne (mazes, thread(maybe not red thread, he doesn't like Theseus very much)) _ Tarot that shows up a lot when I do readings for him • Temperance • Three of cups • Nine of pentacles Hope you liked reading my lil Dionysian post. If you have any experiences that you'd like to add, or questions you have, please send an ask, or ask/add in the replies! I'd really like to hear about your experiences with him, and I'm happy to answer anything.
Hello, friend! I'm really new to the world of witchcraft and deity stuff, but my research has led me to believe that Dionysus has reached out to me. For example, I've been craving grapes like never before. Two of my kintypes are animals that are associated with him, soon after I decided to look into witchcraft, my partner found a random cluster of wild grapes next to our house. Songs associated with him fill me with an overwhelming positive feeling. This, among other things, has led me to believe that he is reaching out to me. I guess my question is, how does one know if Dionysus is really reaching out? I'm hesitant to reach out, but I don't want to ignore him if he is. That just seems rude. I just want to know for sure.
Sorry, I know I'm rambling, hope you're doing well!
Hi! that actually sounds a lot like how he reached out to me. I'd suggest some kind of pendulum work, meditate on it, tarot maybe? some kind of divination to make sure. a lot of witchcraft is intuition based, so if you have a strong feeling then it's likely he is! Best of luck friend!
This is hands down one of my favourite pieces of art ever. I just love it and everything that it represents so fucking much.