The ancient Greeks left us with a spectacular legacy of architectural design, art, literature, and philosophy that still influence us some 2,500 years later. But, what of their religion and gods – the Olympians? Do they have meaning today? Is it a waste of time to think about them or ponder their meaning?
The Greek gods and all gods from the ancient world, whether we recognize them or not, are all around us. These gods each represented archetypes – timeless, universal patterns of human thoughts and dreams. The Greeks in particular, through their divine world of the Olympian gods, left us with lasting impressions of their well-thought out dreams and spirituality. These same divine dreams still come to us across time and space disguised with different names and in different forms through our music, poetry, creative writing, painting, movies, comics, and photography. They come to us from the inner world of our thoughts and dreams. Archetypes don’t die, they only morph with the passing of time.
A few years ago, I was spiraling through ideas for a blog title and found myself browsing through Norse, Roman, and Greek mythology. I was drawn to descriptions of Eros, Apollo, and Dionysus. As an archetypal influence, Dionysus seemed to resonate most deeply within me and I needed to know why.
Who is Dionysus? Dionysus is most commonly known as the Greek god of wine, divine ecstasy, fertility, and patron god of Greek theater. My first cursory exploration of Dionysus revealed a theme of “wine, women, and song”. The meaning behind Dionysus is much deeper though. Dionysus is the personification of divine ecstasy and transcendent joy. He represents the irrational world of our senses as we interact in a rational world (ruled by Apollo) filled with rules and limitations. Dionysus is the god of duality, opposites, reversal, and inversion. He is the anti-structure to Apollo’s structure. Dionysus is our wild nature and inner beast that longs to be set free.
Dionysus – Origin Story
Dionysus is the son of Zeus. Zeus was the most powerful of all Greeks gods and ruled over Olympus (home of the Greek gods). Unlike other gods, Dionysus roamed the earth and mingled with his followers. Born of fire and delivered by lightning, Dionysus stood among us on earth as a god incognito disguised as a man. In his presence, people would feel possessed with supernatural powers and, in particular, women were known to enter into extreme states of joy and divine bliss in his presence.
As the story of Dionysus is told, Zeus has an affair with the mortal Semele and she becomes pregnant with Dionysus. Through an unfortunate series of events, Semele is exposed to Zeus in his true god form and is almost completely incinerated by his fiery godhead. Only her womb, covered in ivy, escapes the fiery blast. Zeus pulls Dionysus from her womb and places the baby in his thigh where he is carried to birth.
The Titans (first gods of the earth who were defeated by the Olympians) were alarmed by the birth of Dionysus and feared his potential. They captured the baby Dionysus and ripped him to pieces. A pomegranate tree (symbol of fertility) sprouted from the earth where a drop of his blood had fallen. With the help of Zeus’s mother, Rhea (Titan goddess of fertility and motherhood), Dionysus rose from the dead. In this way, Dionysus is associated with resurrection and renewal as he was born three times. He was born once from his mortal mother’s womb, again from his immortal father’s thigh, and yet again from the earth. As a sidebar, Dionysus is also associated with having a guiding light and able to guide people back from the underworld.
The young Dionysus lived his early life secluded in Mount Nysa (a mythological location beyond Greece) to prevent the Titans from finding and killing him. He was raised by loving and adoring nymphs—joyous female spirits of the forests and mountains.
Dionysus spent his childhood surrounded by these adoring women and basked in the glories of nature while learning the sensuous pleasures of Earth. Muses inspired him with their poetry and music. Satyrs (half-man and half-goat) taught him the wonders of dance and exuberant sexuality. The sileni (part-horse and part-man) spirits of the springs and rivers, taught him wisdom. In time, Rhea would initiate him into the secret mysteries of women.
Born of fire and nourished by the rains of the mountain, Dionysus shares traits with the grapevine which thrives in the sun’s heat and spring rains. He understood the power of the vine and created the art of wine making. This discovery marked his passage from childhood to young godhood. Dionysus left Mount Nysa and traveled the world spreading his art and cultivating followers. Filled with the spirit of wine, music, nature, and adoring women, the power of Dionysus was unparalleled as he spread divine ecstasy across the world.
In time, Dionysus would marry and have many children. His wife was the beautiful and mortal Princess Ariadne. The crown given to her by Dionysus was placed in the heavens where we can still see it today. We recognize it as the Corona Borealis.
Appearance
Dionysus appears in many forms. He is sometimes shown as a beautiful man usually naked or barely clothed. Other representations show him as a mature, bearded man, in a robe. He is typically wreathed in ivy and holding a cup of wine. He also appears in the full animal forms of a lion, panther, bull, or goat or exhibiting partial bestial traits (e.g., horns).
Future Exploration
I mentioned earlier that there is much more to Dionysus than wine, women, and song. Here are a few of the Dionysian themes I plan to explore in the future: The mask of Dionysus, phallus worship, and divine ecstasy as well as themes of arrival, liberation, mysticism, opposites and inversion.
If you have made it this far, thank you. While the details of our lives and personal journeys are different, we share common dreams and fears with one another and all of humanity for that matter. I hope that through my ongoing exploration of Dionysus (as archetypal energy), you will uncover a few ideas, make breakthroughs in thoughts that seem to puzzle you at times, or acquire new awareness that you can apply to your life journey.
In the meantime, have a glass of wine and enjoy an erotic story or two from my home page at The Dionysian Experience where cultivating the flowing of juices is always an aspiration. ~ Michael
Oh Michael, how I love reading your blog. It was interesting, but I admit, I had a hard time concentrating on the words with the pictures you posted.
Wow, I’m really flattered by your comment on the blog! ☺️ I really appreciate your enjoyment of the artwork too…it was a big part (time commitment) of this one. I hope to offer some even more distracting versions in the follow-on posts.😉Hope your year is off to a great start!
😘
I am suddenly hungry for grapes… 😏 I never knew all this, Michael, thank you for the education. I think you’re right that these many gods are archetypes and represent our many facets as human beings. I adore the horns. And actually the gloves are hot too. That would be a delightful Halloween costume. Or just, you know, an anytime costume… 😈
I might need some help squeezing some grapes… Perhaps it is the vine but these grapes are quite robust and very juicy…🍇💦 Aurora, you do seem to enjoy these horns and this would be a fun outfit. I think the texture of the gloves could offer some sensory variety to woman that is blindfolded. I wonder of those horns connect with your inner beast and desire to be wild and one with nature as well. I like them too🔥 😈
I’m good with my hands..I’m sure I could help. 😉 They do connect with my inner beast but also my inner submissive who wants to be innocently bathing in a stream when a big horned demigod happens by…oh, my, whatever would I do with him…? 😛
Oh heavens!!! I just laughed so hard…people looked at me to see what was going on. Okay, calming down from that outburst, now my slacks are bursting at the seams…this is a hot little scenario! The gorgeous but oh so innocent Aurora bathing nude in the stream on a warm summer’s day with butterflies swirl around you. You feel one with nature until nature commands your submission. Timidly but with great conviction you answer the call of the wild and take your position.
I may try to create a digital art scene of that… Your comment was electric. Can you tell? 😛🔥
LOL! That makes me laugh that people looked at you for cracking up. 😀 Ooh, yes! Exactly like that. I wonder what that horned man would do to me… Please make an art scene of it! Pretty please?
Who am I to deny a woman’s request? I will!😃I may need to draft up my 3D version of you first and let you take a look. Once you are satisfied, I will…I mean the horned man will have his way with you…I mean the bathing beauty…😈
Oh really!? Yay!! I’m excited! I could send you a photo, for modeling purposes… 😛
Ummmm…I think that would be a GREAT idea! A nude photo or two would be divine…ahem, for modeling purposes of course.☺️😘
Your mind jumps to nude, you naughty thing. 😉
Very interesting!! I too have an interest in the Greek Gods. I think the Greek God that calls to me the most are Hera and Aphrodite. I believe I have a combination in both.
However, In Egyptian mythology im closer to Bastet; Goddess of Protection.
Although Hathor comes to mind too..
What’s really interesting is my real name is from a the name of a Queen long long ago.
Your drive towards Aphrodite is evident from your blog and I can see hints of your protective nature. Named from an ancient Queen? You mean Vegas isn’t your real name?😉😘 I like that you have explored mythology. It is a fascinating area of study if we can translate the meaning of myths into our day-to-day lives.
Lol nope! My real name is exotic and rare. Like me 😉
I wonder what elements we could collide together using our God/Goddess like qualities 🤔😘😘
You are a rare and exotic woman and any collision of our aspirational archetypes would certainly be nothing short of divine bliss🌌🔥😘 Btw, thanks so much for your visits and “likes” on my other posts. It has me turned on knowing you were reading those stories and thinking about what you might be thinking or doing…. ☺️😘 Hope you enjoyed some wine on the journey🍇💦
Ahh yes, I read your blog in its entirety and completely forgot you get notifications of my creeping. 🙈 there were many sensual thoughts..putting my place in the place of the woman was one of them 😉😘
I prefer wine when I have someone to share it with. I currently have an uncorked bottle of champagne in my fridge…stop by sometime 😉😉😘
Sexy Vegas, you aren’t a creeper, lol!😄I only noticed your visit because you clicked the “like” button which I appreciate 😘It makes me hot looking back on those stories and imagining you in them too🔥 When I’m in Vegas, I’ll bring a new bottle so we can pop the cork and let the juices flow… 💦😘
Beautifully written n extremely educational. I feel like I brew up with Dionysus now that I’ve read about him. Thank you. Please continue I await with bated breath for more about him.
Your connection to Dionysus isn’t surprising. I mention his association with inversion and contrast…the tension between edges. The contrast in your blog name “Naughty Angel” is an example of your thoughts aspiring towards a Dionysian theme. 😈😇 Thanks so much for giving it a read.😘
This is one of my favorite Greek heroes and gods. I’ve been attracted to fauns and satyrs as well. Informative learned read. Completely enjoyed it.
Thank you Kris, so glad you enjoyed it☺️Mythology is such an interesting subject and it is always fun to find kindred spirits. Btw, I’ve often checked for your blog but when clicking on your gravatar from messages, it says you don’t have a site. If you do blog, I would love to follow you and engage on your writing. If not, no worries…I just didn’t want you to think I wasn’t returning the positive energy you leave on my posts.😘
I know some of Greek history being a Latina but I don’t know a lot about it. I Enjoy learning new things so I found this post very interesting, Being a Alpha Female I found this intriguing why? I am not sure but, the thought of such a man being that way is fascinating.
Now on to bigger grapes, lol those pictures show just how much of a Leo you truly are my goodness, hahaahaa
Sexy Morgan, thanks for giving this one a read. I can see how you might be drawn to Dionysian energy. He symbolizes divine ecstasy, wild abandonment, and the unleashing of our inner beasts which includes our sexuality. 🔥😈 So happy you likes the images…my grapes are robust and quite juicy when properly tended to 😉🍇💦
Intriguing this was, and those pictures, by the way I a, sure those grapes are robust and juicy worth a bite or a taste
MmmmHmmm, the thought of you taking such robust grapes into your lips…savoring the texture and considering the juices bursting to escape has me feeling very heated, sexy Morgan. It is you that are truly mouth watering and delicious🔥😘
Hi, sexy it is still me ,Morgan this blog is my permanent one, the other one was temporary until I got this one fixed the way I wanted it to be. and now I all my erotic pieces are on this blog on the other one somehow they were all lost. I love wordpress but sometimes it is a pain in my ass.
Sexy girl, you are hard to keep up with!😃Glad you have things all organized worked out to your liking. 😘
But also being a ISFJ personality my introverted side didn’t want to express emotion through anymore at least for a while. Thanks for giving me your email. Next time you post something I will send you a email. Me being me it might be a little naughty lol depends on your next post.
Sexy Morgan, you don’t need to wait until a post to send me your deliciously erotic thoughts…you know I love them🔥🔥😘
Yes Sir I will send you my erotic thoughts through email. My thoughts are very sensual and luscious. You and your post enhance the luscious moist thoughts in me. Like being spanked by a certain part of professor cuckold. And I don’t mean your hands.
Whew, I almost dropped my laptop reading this!🔥 Actually, it may have been my hard cock that knocked it off my lap🍆🔥 Mmmm, yes it is feeling very strong right now…perfect for spanking your sexy bottom 🍆💥 Damn, visual of you in this position is such a turn on! 😘
Mmm,the thought of me bent over just for you Sir Michael. Being a good submissive girl surrendering to you being spanked by your hardness. Wet and wanting your full length deep inside. Is making me……I will finish that thought in another email to you.
Being a good submissive girl…spanked…craving the full length deep inside. Damn Morgan, you sure know how to make a man weak in the knees!🍆💞🔥
You know I am a very passionate woman with a erotic mind. And i enjoy being submissive the pleasure is sexy and a intriguing. Allowing a man to touch and feel all over me. Lusting inside and satisfying the urge of sexual desire. Breast in his hands pelvises kiss. His sweet cream flowing inside me from his excitement. That makes for one hell of a sexy time. But, then after letting him rest for a moment. I will cage his sexy manhood and tie his hands. Sit on his lap and my hands on breast hips grinding on him pleasuring myself while on him. I don’t mind being submissive but I am alpha female and I like to be in control too. So I will tame his with every lick on his skin kiss on his body. Uncage him sucking exhaling him deep into my mouth. My soft lips inhaling him and drinking him into orgasm. Then ride him squeezing him in farther into me. I will email you later today when I get the time to finish this.
Have a good day sexy
MmmmMmmm, I LOVE the way you write…so sensual and steamy with an enjoyment of mind play too🔥💖 You are a special woman and certainly know to light my erotic fire🔥😘
I write the same way I enjoy a sexual experience. It’s not just the body but the mind as well. You have satify every sense and the body. I love to make sex feel as sensual and erotic as I believe should be. And when I write it shows the way I would enjoy a man’s body by pleasing. I love to pleasure and please it stimulates me. Sex is about pleasure pleasing every part of a body and mind. It should feel so good that you don’t want to it to end. So satisfyingly that your mouth waters when you imagine it. So sexy it makes you moist and or hard when you close your eyes and touch your own skin recalling ever move that was made in those sensual moments. Every sexual experience should be one remembered by the mind and body even written erotica.
Happy Day Michael ❤ Kiss
Your kiss made it a very happy day☺️😘
Dionysus is a great topic to explore ,if you haven’t already i recommend reading Nietzsche, my favorite quote/topic by him was dionysus against the crucified .i look. forward to reading more of your exploration of this topic ☺
Thanks so much for the comment BG. I’ve been browsing the Nietzsche’s Birth of Tragedy and more of his writing on Dionysus. Nietzsche wasn’t always his biggest fan (especially in his later writings) as I’m sure you know. His contrast of Apollo and Dionysus in art is fascinating too. It should be fun journey. 🙂 Hope you have a great weekend!
no worries and yes but i’m looking forward to your writings .i hope i have a great weekend as well and wish the same for you ☺
Michael, I love the lines you draw between the Gods and your life. The renderings are equally fantastic and I, too, would love to make some wine 🙂
I’m investigating my connection to The Goddess Kali for an upcoming post. I’ll need to see who her Greek parallel is. So once again you have lovely timing with your post! Thank you for sharing your journey is such an erotic and mouth watering way. Guess I should have followed my instincts and purchased some wine before snowpocalypse started :/ (I’m not taking the kids to the store w me now to buy wine, ha!)
Hope you’re somewhere that’s cozy and warm 🙂
Thank you Kali…I mean Tiffany☺️I thought this one might be right up your alley as our lines of exploration seem to cross quite often. The snowpocalypse…lol! Yes, your neck of the woods does seem to be getting hammered pretty hard. I am warm and cozy here, tending to my vine and nurturing the grapes. 🍇😈 Hope you get through the weather okay and have sometime to play in the snow and reconnect with nature💖
Love the Kali reference! 😉 and yes, I love the introspective posts, well and the erotic ones, too!
Sadly, even 2 inches of snow shuts this place down so being hammered with 8″ or more and we’re weak (haha). Glad it happened over the weekend.
Enjoy your vine 🙂
That was quite the arctic blast! Damn, the thought of you being hammered by 8″ over the weekend has my thoughts running wild and my body feeling anything but cold! 🔥😘
Oh, glad that the heat wave is moving through now! And wish I had those comments to keep me warm when it was 18 deg =)
I may have enjoyed driving on the ice and slush, though. It was almost like wheelin’ (sometimes more fun…)
To be honest, I have read very little about the Greek Gods which is why I loved reading this and I am looking forward to more of the posts related to this. I like how you connect to these Gods, you do have that alpha aura Michael and I love that about you
Thank you, Sexy Samantha. There is a lot of naughtiness to come against the backdrop of Dionysus in 2017…I hope it doesn’t disappoint. You certainly never do🔥😘
You are welcome Sir Michael and I can’t wait to read all about Dionysus and you never disappoint either. If anything, I am always looking forward to your posts.
How did I miss this?
I know I’m behind on my reading but all week I’ve been wondering when you were going to post. I’m going to have to sign up to get email alerts or something.
So, Dionysus, I’ll admit to my fair share of fantasy around this particular Greek God. History and mythology have fascinated me from a young age. I watched the video again and while I find Dionysus striking, it’s Apollo I can’t get enough of. I’m vibrantly curious about your take on him. Of course it could just be that sumptuous swath of iridescent green and violet and what it doesn’t cover. It’s something….I can’t quite put my finger on. Excited for you to explain it to me. 😉
Haha, so glad you wandered over to take a look😘 I think the holidays put a lot of us behind. You mentioned Apollo when I posted the video as I recall. Actually, I do have an Apollo vs. Dionysus post that I’m working on that teases out some of the influence and differences and even complimentary influences of these two archetypes. Maybe I should have draped Dionysus in flowing cloth with his “vine” partially exposed.☺️🔥 I hope one day you will be able to put more than a finger on your curiosity… 😘
I hope I’ll need the utility of more than a finger when the time comes. You’ve got me all excited over your new post and now I’ve got to put all that curiosity back in the box till you post again! Sigh. Time to revisit some of my favorites.
Haha, it wasn’t the most erotic post but hopefully I’ll have something with a little more edge for you to enjoy soon☺️
Michael, this is a terrific post, wonderful information about Dionysus and your artwork is fantastic. I’m looking forward to reading more, following the direction you will be heading with your future post, as you further explore Dionysus as an archetype. Wishing you a great week. ~ Mia 💜
Thanks so much, Mia 😊I was using some new technology on these images and I think it gave it a more real-life look. Just not sure if that is necessarily a better approach. Anyway, glad you liked the Dionysus exploration. I think it will be a fun series to dabble with this year. Hope you’re having a great week 😘
You’re welcome Michael. I thought the images were looking pretty lifelike, I’m impressed. I agree, it will be an interesting theme to explore during the year. Hope you’re having a great week too. ❤
What a wonderful post, Michael! Dionysus is a friend of mine 🙂 These Greek and ancient archetypes have been calling me to explore them further, I look forward to reading more of what you discover.
So nice to find a kindred spirit here in the WordPress forest. I suspect there are many friends of Dionysus among us. Most just aren’t aware of it, yet. Future post on this should have a bit more erotic edge. 😈🔥
Wonderful!! Thank you for sharing Michael 😊
Thank you for giving it a read and appreciate the comment. Hope you’re having a great weekend😊
Wow! I’m having an ecstasy right now..
I totally missed this! So interesting. I love the idea of him wandering among his subjects. The pull of Apollo’s reason against Dionysus’ love and pleasure…. I’d like a little of one with a lot of the other! Seriously beautiful artwork, too, Michael. Peel me a grape? 👄
So glad you went back and found this one😊 Love the call out too…the tension between Apollo and Dionysus that so many of us feel. Some struggle with it and others love both edges. Like you, I live in a world or reason and soooo crave the Dionysian pull🔥😈 Glad you like the artwork…I keep playing with it and trying to improve. These were a lot of fun☺️ I’d love for you to have a grape. The vine is strong…perhaps you could reach over and handle a grape or two of your choosing… 🍆🍇 Careful though, they are juicy 💦☺️
Mm, love it. I can just imagine the juice dripping down my chin. 😛🔥
Whew…now I am going to be HARD all day with a heavy noticeable wet spot in my slacks!🍆🔥 I better go with navy blue slacks today because anything lighter simply won’t conceal my…ahem, “situation”.☺️😘
Great post, I could do with a man like Dionysus xx
Thank you, I suspect we could all use a little Dionysian energy flowing through us…😈😇
I don’t know why never realized Dionysus was a demigod? Guess I was sleeping in class!? (That, or daydreaming!)
Great piece! Very insightful and informative.
Thanks for checking this out…glad you liked it☺️ Hopefully the daydreams were erotic diversions rather than the teacher boring you to sleep, ha! He walked among us. I suspect his archetype still walks in many of our dreams…certainly in mine 🙇🏻🌌 .
Ha! No, I was a late bloomer… I spent my school days daydreaming about how many points I’d score at that nights game, not boys! :p
And I like to think, he possibly still walks among us…
Agreed 😊 I would ask what you daydream about now, but I believe you share that with us in your writing. Hope you have a great weekend☺️
What I share in writing, only equals to about 2% of my mind. 😉
I’d scare the universe into PTSD if I put it all out there. lol
Happy weekend!
Where do I start? Remember when we first interacted? You treated me with a brief explanation of Dionysus and I told you I was Mediterranean? Lol, yes I just summarised the crap out of that, but anyway…😂
I just wanted to share with you the tiny sparks of connection between us that keep popping and crackling like wild, wanton nymphs teasing us until we both try to catch them, they vanish and we end up grasping each other instead…
So… I’m Greek Cypriot and u adore Greek mythology, I always have. I have certain beliefs about the interconnectivity and synchronicity of mythologies across cultures thousands of miles apart.
That you represent yourself as a Greek god… does something to me…you know Cyprus is where Aphrodite was born…perhaps I do have the touch of the goddess in me…you certainly bring her out…
Anyway…
I’ve had an image of you and I burning in my mind for days now… it’s so real and I was planning to tell you about it…soon in a more intimate place. And I still will. But…can you believe that , unknowingly it involves me igniting your taste buds with pomegranate seeds.. before…other events transpire…
Mmm…are your taste buds tingling? Your warmth rising? Yes to both of those questions from me..
Licking your lips
Maria
Well I am in bed this weekend with terrible muscle spasms in my neck., so I thought I would stop blogs today and catch up on some reading, this post of yours really caught my attention, I never knew a lot about Greek mythology but the little I had heard of was interesting to me.
It is amazing how we as people can look back on history or other people and find someone or something that we can relate to or find something or something that understanding us or expresses a certain part of us.
Very nice post Michael it was a great read for tonight.
I like the thought of you being in bed and settling in to read one of my stories…imagining what you might be wearing or not ☺️🔥Then, I realize you have muscle spasms. Awww, I think you might need a soothing massage…and that thought puts me back in the mood 😄🔥So glad you enjoyed this post…Dionysus is a favorite subject of mine in recent years and I look forward to exploring more of the psychology behind this archetypal force in future posts. I so agree with your thoughts and how fascinating it is to be able to look back…way back in history and find things that still resonate today. Hope you are feeling better Cinnamon Girl 😘
I feel a little better
Had gone to physical therapy turns out that is what I needed most. It helped a lot with my and back.
And Michael you naughty man you I won’t say what I wear in bed but I will say I am heat intolerant so a blanket is all I sleep in, under 😄😊 and I blush as I say that. I hope you have a good rest of the week
Oh goodness, as I begin my day I am feeling awakened in more ways than one by the visual of you sleeping in your “heat intolerant” state. If you were close, you would be feeling a lot of heat emanating from me right now ☺️🔥
[…] Dionysus: An Introduction […]
As always, Michael, beautiful artwork and words. I love swimming on the experiences your blog posts gives me. ♡♡♡♡♡
Thank you for this sweet comment. 💫 It is a special gift to have you share how my art and writing touch you…I hope those feelings stay with you for a while 💖
Sculptured, Adonises are now gym and cross fit, set as deliverers to the malevolent personalities! Phones are their tech support network, but for some of us we can manifest, create and muse for the world involuntarily! Everything shared through our communities, many figure heads have held the mantle, strongmen and sculpted figures focussed on carrying and managing their world as one! When both sides are dark we walk the world strong as one and carry our angels!😉✨