Aphrodite (World Book «AF roh DY tee») (Αφροδίτη, "risen from sea-foam") is the Greek goddess of love and beauty. Aphrodite - Worship. The epithet Aphrodite Acidalia was occasionally added to her name, after the spring she used to bathe in, located in Boeotia (Virgil I, 720). She was also called Kypris or Cytherea after her alleged birth-places in Cyprus and Cythera, respectively. The island of Cythera was a center of her cult. She was associated with Hesp ...

Including:

• Aphrodite - Worship
• Aphrodite - Birth
• Aphrodite - Adulthood
• Aphrodite - Marriage with Hephaestus
• Aphrodite - Aphrodite and Psyche
• Aphrodite - Adonis
• Aphrodite - The Judgement of Paris
• Aphrodite - Pygmalion and Galatea
• Aphrodite - Other Stories
• Aphrodite - Aphrodite in Neopaganism
• Aphrodite - Consorts and children
• Aphrodite - Other names

Read more here: » Aphrodite: Encyclopedia - Aphrodite

Dionysus or Dionysos (Ancient Greek: Διώνυσος or Διόνυσος; also known as Bacchus in both Greek and Roman mythology and associated with the Italic Liber), the Thracian god of wine, represents not only the intoxicating power of wine, but also its social and beneficent influences. He is viewed as the promoter of civilization, a lawgiver, and lover of peace — as well as the patron deity of both agriculture and the theater. Greeks borrowed Dionysus' figure and within the Olympian tradition he i ...

Including:

• Dionysus - Worship
• Dionysus - Bacchanalia
• Dionysus - Appellations
• Dionysus - Birth
• Dionysus - Childhood
• Dionysus - Midas
• Dionysus - Other stories
• Dionysus - Consorts/Children
• Dionysus - Parallels with Christianity
• Dionysus - Modern interpretations
• Dionysus - Dionysus in Neopaganism
• Dionysus - names with the origin Dionysus
• Dionysus - Bibliography

Read more here: » Dionysus: Encyclopedia - Dionysus

In Greek mythology, Clio (Greek: Κλειώ) or Kleio is the muse of heroic poetry and history. Like all the muses, she is a daughter of Zeus and Mnemosyne. She had one son, Hyacinth, with the King of Macedonia, Pierus. Some sources say she was also the mother of Hymenaios. She is often represented with a parchment scroll or a set of tablets. She is also known as the Proclaimer. The name is from the root κλέω/κλ ...

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Dionysus is a god of mystery religious rites, such as those practiced in honor of Demeter and Persephone at Eleusis near Athens. In the Thracian mysteries, he wears the "bassaris" or fox-skin, symbolizing new life. His own rites the Dionysian Mysteries were the most secretive of all (See also Maenads) Many scholars believe that Dionysus is a syncretism of a local Greek nature deity and a more powerful god from ...

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Dionysus, Dionysus - Worship, Dionysus - Bacchanalia, Dionysus - Appellations, Dionysus - Birth, Dionysus - Childhood, Dionysus - Midas, Dionysus - Other stories, Dionysus - Consorts/Children, Dionysus - Parallels with Christianity, Dionysus - Modern interpretations, Dionysus - Dionysus in Neopaganism, Dionysus - names with the origin Dionysus, Dionysus - Bibliography

Read more here: » Dionysus: Encyclopedia II - Dionysus - Worship

Aphrodite, in many of the myths involving her, is characterized as vain, ill-tempered and easily offended. Though she is one of the few gods of the Greek Pantheon to be actually married, she is frequently unfaithful to her husband. Hephaestus, of course, is one of the most even-tempered of the Hellenic deities; Aphrodite seems to prefer Ares, the volatile god of war. In Homer's Iliad she surges into battle to save her son, but abandons him (in fact, drops him as she flies through the air) when she herself is hurt (Ares does much the same thi ...

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Aphrodite, Aphrodite - Worship, Aphrodite - Birth, Aphrodite - Adulthood, Aphrodite - Marriage with Hephaestus, Aphrodite - Aphrodite and Psyche, Aphrodite - Adonis, Aphrodite - The Judgement of Paris, Aphrodite - Pygmalion and Galatea, Aphrodite - Other Stories, Aphrodite - Aphrodite in Neopaganism, Aphrodite - Consorts and children, Aphrodite - Other names

Read more here: » Aphrodite: Encyclopedia II - Aphrodite - Adulthood

It is possible that Dionysian mythology would later find its way into Christianity. There are many parallels between Dionysus and Jesus; both were said to have been born from a mortal woman but fathered by a god, to have returned from the dead, and to have transformed water into wine. The modern scholar Barry Powell also argues that Christian notions of eating and drinking "the flesh" and "blood" of Jesus was influenced by the cult of Dionysus. Certainly the Dionysus myth contains a great deal of cannibalism, in its links to Ino (however, on ...

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Dionysus, Dionysus - Worship, Dionysus - Bacchanalia, Dionysus - Appellations, Dionysus - Birth, Dionysus - Childhood, Dionysus - Midas, Dionysus - Other stories, Dionysus - Consorts/Children, Dionysus - Parallels with Christianity, Dionysus - Modern interpretations, Dionysus - Dionysus in Neopaganism, Dionysus - names with the origin Dionysus, Dionysus - Bibliography

Read more here: » Dionysus: Encyclopedia II - Dionysus - Parallels with Christianity

Dionysus had an unusual birth that evokes the difficulty in fitting him into the Olympian pantheon. His mother was Semele (daughter of Cadmus), a mortal woman, and his father Zeus, the king of the gods. Zeus's wife, Hera, a jealous and vain goddess, discovered the affair while Semele was pregnant. Appearing as an old crone(in other stories a nurse), Hera befriended Semele, who confided in her that her husband was actually Zeus. Hera pretended not to believe her, and planted seeds of doubt in Semele's mind. Curious, Semele demanded of Zeus th ...

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Dionysus, Dionysus - Worship, Dionysus - Bacchanalia, Dionysus - Appellations, Dionysus - Birth, Dionysus - Childhood, Dionysus - Midas, Dionysus - Other stories, Dionysus - Consorts/Children, Dionysus - Parallels with Christianity, Dionysus - Modern interpretations, Dionysus - Dionysus in Neopaganism, Dionysus - names with the origin Dionysus, Dionysus - Bibliography

Read more here: » Dionysus: Encyclopedia II - Dionysus - Birth

"Foam-arisen" Aphrodite was born of the sea foam near Paphos, Cyprus after Cronus cut off Uranus' genitals and the elder god's blood and semen dropped on the sea, where they began to foam. Aphrodite was born fully grown out of the foam. Thus Aphrodite is of an older generation than Zeus. Iliad (Book V) expresses another version of her origin, by which she was considered a daughter of Dione, who was the original oracular goddess ("Dione" being simply "the goddess," etymologically an equivalent of "Diana") at Dodona. In Homer, Aphrodite ...

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Aphrodite, Aphrodite - Worship, Aphrodite - Birth, Aphrodite - Adulthood, Aphrodite - Marriage with Hephaestus, Aphrodite - Aphrodite and Psyche, Aphrodite - Adonis, Aphrodite - The Judgement of Paris, Aphrodite - Pygmalion and Galatea, Aphrodite - Other Stories, Aphrodite - Aphrodite in Neopaganism, Aphrodite - Consorts and children, Aphrodite - Other names

Read more here: » Aphrodite: Encyclopedia II - Aphrodite - Birth

Modern Neopagans view Dionysus in different lights, depending largely on the individual sects and the other gods worshipped by a sect. Dionysus is often seen as the god of Earthly Delights and is thought to play a role in euphoria. In the United States, some Hellenistic Neopagan sects forbid the worship of Dionysus, because Dionysus worship is associated with hedonism. Sects which worship Hera and Themis in particular may forbid Dionysus worship. However, there are sects that make Dionysus a central figure of their faith ...

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Dionysus, Dionysus - Worship, Dionysus - Bacchanalia, Dionysus - Appellations, Dionysus - Birth, Dionysus - Childhood, Dionysus - Midas, Dionysus - Other stories, Dionysus - Consorts/Children, Dionysus - Parallels with Christianity, Dionysus - Modern interpretations, Dionysus - Dionysus in Neopaganism, Dionysus - names with the origin Dionysus, Dionysus - Bibliography

Read more here: » Dionysus: Encyclopedia II - Dionysus - Dionysus in Neopaganism

The legend goes that Zeus took the infant Dionysus and gave him in charge to the rain-nymphs of Nysa, who nourished his infancy and childhood, and for their care Zeus rewarded them by placing them as the Hyades among the stars (see Hyades star cluster). Alternatively, he was raised by Maro. When Dionysus grew up he discovered the culture of the vine and the mode of extracting its precious juice; but Hera struck him with madness, and drove him forth a wanderer through various parts of the earth. In Phrygia the goddess Cybele, better kn ...

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Dionysus, Dionysus - Worship, Dionysus - Bacchanalia, Dionysus - Appellations, Dionysus - Birth, Dionysus - Childhood, Dionysus - Midas, Dionysus - Other stories, Dionysus - Consorts/Children, Dionysus - Parallels with Christianity, Dionysus - Modern interpretations, Dionysus - Dionysus in Neopaganism, Dionysus - names with the origin Dionysus, Dionysus - Bibliography

Read more here: » Dionysus: Encyclopedia II - Dionysus - Childhood

Dionysus had an unusual birth that evokes the difficulty in fitting him into the Olympian pantheon. His mother was Semele (daughter of Cadmus), a mortal woman, and his father Zeus, the king of the gods. Zeus's wife, Hera, a jealous and vain goddess, discovered the affair while Semele was pregnant. Appearing as an old crone, Hera befriended Semele, who confided in her that her husband was actually Zeus. Hera pretended not to believe her, and planted seeds of doubt in Semele's mind. Curious, Semele demanded of Zeus that he reveal himself in al ...

See also:

Dionysus, Dionysus - Worship, Dionysus - Bacchanalia, Dionysus - Appellations, Dionysus - Birth, Dionysus - Childhood, Dionysus - Midas, Dionysus - Other stories, Dionysus - Consorts/Children, Dionysus - Parallels with Christianity, Dionysus - Modern interpretations, Dionysus - Dionysus in Neopaganism, Dionysus - names with the origin Dionysus, Dionysus - Bibliography

Read more here: » Dionysus: Encyclopedia II - Dionysus - Birth

Once, Dionysus found his old school master and foster father, Silenus, missing. The old man had been drinking, and had wandered away drunk, and was found by some peasants, who carried him to their king, Midas (alternatively, he passed out in Midas' rose garden). Midas recognized him, and treated him hospitably, entertaining him for ten days and nights with politeness, while Silenus entertained Midas and his friends with stories and songs. On the eleventh day he brought Silenus back to Dionysus. Dionysus offered Midas his choice of whatever r ...

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Dionysus, Dionysus - Worship, Dionysus - Bacchanalia, Dionysus - Appellations, Dionysus - Birth, Dionysus - Childhood, Dionysus - Midas, Dionysus - Other stories, Dionysus - Consorts/Children, Dionysus - Parallels with Christianity, Dionysus - Modern interpretations, Dionysus - Dionysus in Neopaganism, Dionysus - names with the origin Dionysus, Dionysus - Bibliography

Read more here: » Dionysus: Encyclopedia II - Dionysus - Midas

When Hephaestus bound Hera to a magical chair, Dionysus got him drunk and brought him back to Olympus after he had passed out. For this act, he was made one of the twelve Olympians. Acis, a Sicilian youth, was sometimes said to be Bacchus' son. A satyr named Ampelos was a good friend of Bacchus. Callirhoe was a Calydonian woman who scorned a priest of Dionysus who threatened to inflict all the women of Calydon with insanity (see Maenad). The priest was ordered to sacrifice Callirhoe but he killed himself instead. Callirhoe thre ...

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Dionysus, Dionysus - Worship, Dionysus - Bacchanalia, Dionysus - Appellations, Dionysus - Birth, Dionysus - Childhood, Dionysus - Midas, Dionysus - Other stories, Dionysus - Consorts/Children, Dionysus - Parallels with Christianity, Dionysus - Modern interpretations, Dionysus - Dionysus in Neopaganism, Dionysus - names with the origin Dionysus, Dionysus - Bibliography

Read more here: » Dionysus: Encyclopedia II - Dionysus - Other stories

In his book The Birth of Tragedy, the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche contrasted Dionysus with the god Apollo as a symbol of the basic, unrestrained life force versus the world of reason, form and beauty represented by the latter. In contrast, the Russian poet and philosopher Vyacheslav Ivanov elaborated the theory of Dionysianism, which traces the roots of literary art in general and the art of tragedy in particular to ancient Dionysian mysteries. His views were expressed in the treatises The Hellenic Religion of the Suffering God (1904), ...

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Dionysus, Dionysus - Worship, Dionysus - Bacchanalia, Dionysus - Appellations, Dionysus - Birth, Dionysus - Childhood, Dionysus - Midas, Dionysus - Other stories, Dionysus - Consorts/Children, Dionysus - Parallels with Christianity, Dionysus - Modern interpretations, Dionysus - Dionysus in Neopaganism, Dionysus - names with the origin Dionysus, Dionysus - Bibliography

Read more here: » Dionysus: Encyclopedia II - Dionysus - Modern interpretations

It is possible that Dionysian mythology would later find its way into Christianity. There are many parallels between the legends of Dionysus and Jesus; both were said to have been born from a mortal woman but fathered by a god, to have returned from the dead, and to have transformed water into wine. The modern scholar Barry Powell also argues that Christian notions of eating and drinking the flesh and blood of Jesus in order for individual followers to feel Jesus within them was influenced by the cult of Dionysus. Certainly the Dionysus myth ...

See also:

Dionysus, Dionysus - Worship, Dionysus - Bacchanalia, Dionysus - Appellations, Dionysus - Birth, Dionysus - Childhood, Dionysus - Midas, Dionysus - Other stories, Dionysus - Consorts/Children, Dionysus - Parallels with Christianity, Dionysus - Modern interpretations, Dionysus - Dionysus in Neopaganism, Dionysus - names with the origin Dionysus, Dionysus - Bibliography

Read more here: » Dionysus: Encyclopedia II - Dionysus - Parallels with Christianity

The epithet Aphrodite Acidalia was occasionally added to her name, after the spring she used to bathe in, located in Boeotia (Virgil I, 720). She was also called Kypris or Cytherea after her alleged birth-places in Cyprus and Cythera, respectively. The island of Cythera was a center of her cult. She was associated with Hesperia and frequently accompanied by the Oreads, nymphs of the mountains. Aphrodite had a festival of her own, the Aphrodisiac, which was celebrated all over Greece but particularly in Athens and Corinth. In Corinth, intercourse with her priestesses was consider ...

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Aphrodite, Aphrodite - Worship, Aphrodite - Birth, Aphrodite - Adulthood, Aphrodite - Marriage with Hephaestus, Aphrodite - Aphrodite and Psyche, Aphrodite - Adonis, Aphrodite - The Judgement of Paris, Aphrodite - Pygmalion and Galatea, Aphrodite - Other Stories, Aphrodite - Aphrodite in Neopaganism, Aphrodite - Consorts and children, Aphrodite - Other names

Read more here: » Aphrodite: Encyclopedia II - Aphrodite - Worship