Many of us have heard the Greek and Roman myths of Zeus, Hera, Hercules, and Perseus. However, one of the lesser-known but more powerful gods is Dionysus, god of wine, grapes, and partying.
Dionysus had… a complicated childhood. His mother was Semele, a mortal woman, but his father was Zeus, king of the gods and already married to Hera. You can imagine how that went with Hera when she found out. Hera tricked Semele into making Zeus reveal his godly form, that would kill mortals by the sheer sight of it. Semele was burned to death, but her son Dionysus, who had not been born yet, was rescued and quickly put into Zeus’s thigh.
When Dionysus was born, he was hid by Zeus in order for Hera to not kill him. The satyr Silenus raised him with his fellows and Dionysus grew up to be their leader. Once, though, when the godling was wandering, pirates kidnapped him and tried to sell him as a slave. In return, he turned them into dolphins and they all jumped into the sea. Their ship turned into a bunch of grapes as well. That’s why dolphins have an uncanny ability to talk amongst themselves and understand humans.
After that weird scenario, Dionysus stayed in the city of Thebes, where he was regarded as a celebrity. And as all celebrities do, he had LOTS of girl fans, who were so crazy about him that they were grouped together and called the Maenads, the raving ones. However, Pentheus, the king and cousin of Dionysus imprisoned him, angry that he took away all of the king’s fame and that he turned all the women mad. However, Dionysus’s chains fell off and he just walked out of his jail cell. Then, Pentheus spied on the parties that Dionysus held and was seen by the god himself, who cast an enchantment that made it look like Pentheus was a mountain lion trying to kill everyone. The Maenads rushed in for the kill, and Pentheus’s own mother Agave tore him to shreds.
After that incredibly gruesome story, Dionysus tries to conquer the land of the Amazons (Scythians) and turned them into grapes, whereas Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons, prayed to Artemis, who ordered her half-brother to leave. Frustrated, Dionysus marched with his huge army all the way to India, where the Indians under Deriades (possibly a Greek form of Dravida) overwhelm him and nearly defeat him. In the end, though, Dionysus prevails and Modaeus (possibly a Mede) is appointed governor of India.
Well, that’s the story of the absolutely great and brutal Dionysus! Pay your respects, because you don’t want to get turned into grapes, dolphins, or panthers.
Anay Ganesh 