The Wandering of Dionysus
| When Dionysus reached manhood he discovered the culture of the vine and the mode of extracting its precious juice, thus became the god of wine. He was constantly accompanied by a group of nymphs and women called the Maenads who were female worshippers of him and were usually portrayed as crowned with vine leaves, clothed in fawn skins and carrying a thyrsus . The mysteries of Dionysus inspired the women to ecstatic frenzy: they drank wine; sang and danced wildly; indulged in violence, sex, mutilation and self-intoxication. And they were known as wild, insane women who could not be reasoned with. The leopard was Dionysus's sacred animal, and was always at his side. But the malicious Hera struck Dionysus mad and drove him wandering through various parts of the earth. Dionysus then wandered around the world in mortal form: he was one of the few gods that actually enjoyed the company of mortals. He was dressed lavishly, usually in thick purple robes, and was often mistaken for some sort of royalty. On one occasion when he was mistaken for a wealthy man, he was kidnapped by a group of pirates. They had thought that he was a prince, and that the king would pay a large ransom for his safe return. Another version says that Dionysus was exceptionally attractive and some sailors attempted to kidnap him for their sexual pleasure while he was on board a ship. Dionysus didn't resist capture, and he told the pirates repeatedly that he was a god, but they only laughed at him. The pirates tried to tie him up, but the ropes refused to hold. Any place a rope touched him it just fell apart. After some time the helmsman, or the captain, realized that only a god could be capable of this. He called out that the crew should free Dionysus and begged for his forgiveness. But when the crew raised the sail and caught the wind, the ship did not move. Looking around they saw the ship quickly becoming overgrown with vines that held it fast. Dionysus then changed himself into a lion or a leopard and began to chase the crewmen. To escape they leapt overboard, but as they did so, they were changed to dolphins. Only for the helmsman or the captain did Dionysus have mercy. |
|
As Dionysus passed through Thrace, he was insulted by King Lycurgus who imprisoned all the followers of Dionysus, the Maenads . Dionysus fled, taking refuge with Thetis , goddess of the sea. Dionysus then sent a drought to Thrace and the people revolted. Dionysus made King Lycurgus insane, and he sliced his own son into pieces with an axe, thinking he was a patch of ivy , a plant holy to Dionysus. An oracle then claimed that the land would stay dry and barren as long as Lycurgus was alive, so his people had him drawn and quartered. With Lycurgus dead, Dionysus lifted the curse. Dionysus then pressed on to his birthplace, Thebes, ruled by his cousin Pentheus. However, Pentheus did not know of Dionysus. Dionysus came with his Maenads. Pentheus ordered his guards to imprison them all. Some versions say that Pentheus was angry because women of Thebes, including his own mother Agave, had all rejected his authority and worshipped Dionysus. Even after Teiresias had warned him that Dionysus was a god, Pentheus just wouldn't believe and insulted Dionysus instead. He asked the guards to bind and imprison Dionysus. The guards soon found that ropes fell apart, latches fell open, and they could not even imprison Dionysus's followers. They took Dionysus to Pentheus. Dionysus tried to explain in detail his worship but Pentheus refused to listen. Instead he drove Dionysus's followers up into the hills where many of the local women including Pentheus's mother and sister had joined them. Then Dionysus appeared to his followers in his most terrible aspect and drove them mad. To them Pentheus appeared to be a mountain lion. In a rage they attacked him. His mother Agave ripped his head off, while the others tore him to pieces . So, as the god of wine, Dionysus, on the one hand, brought joy and divine ecstasy, and on the other, was brutal, unthinking and outrageous, thus reflecting both sides of wine's nature. Dionysus was also one of the very few that were able to bring a dead person out of the Underworld . Even though he had never seen his mother Semele, he was concerned for her. Eventually he journeyed into the Underworld to bring her back to Mount Olympus by bribing Persephone with myrtle. During his wandering on the island of Naxos, Dionysus rescued Ariadne, who had helped the hero Theseus to find his way out of the labyrinth after killing the Minotaur but was abandoned by him. He married her and sent her the wreath that she wore in the heavens, where it became the constellation Corona.
|