Chapter XIX: Dionysus

Dionysus was the son of Zeus and of Semele, and Hera hated him as she had hated his mother, and would have killed him if she could; so as soon as he was born, Zeus commanded Hermes to take him away secretly to a king called Athamas, that Hera might not know where he was. Athamas promised to take care of him, and the queen, whose name was Ino, told everyone that he was her own child, and brought him up with her two little boys. But Hera found out where the little Dionysus was, and she was so angry with King Athamas for having consented to hide him from her, that she punished him by making him quite mad. She falsified his sight so that everything seemed to him quite different from what it really was, and one day when he was coming home from hunting and saw Ino sitting on the grass in front of the house with her two little boys by her side, he thought she was a doe with two little fawns, and he took an arrow and shot one of the children right through the heart, so that he was killed instantly. Ino saw that her husband was mad, and she immediately snatched up the other child and fled away with it, but Athamas pursued her with another arrow on his bow-string till they came to the {64} sea, and then, as Ino could flee no farther, she rushed into the sea with her little boy, and they were both drowned. They were scarcely dead when Athamas regained his right senses and knew what he had done, and he was so grieved and shocked that he left his country altogether, and wandered for a long time in strange lands, till at last he settled down again, as you will hear in another story.[1]

Meanwhile Hera was looking everywhere for the little Dionysus, but she could not find him, for she did not know that a young heifer who was grazing in front of the house was the form into which Zeus had changed the child to hide him from her. In the night Hermes came and took the heifer up into his arms, and it became a child again. Then he took the boy a long, long journey, almost to the end of the world, till at last he reached a lonely region where seven nymphs lived by a beautiful river far from the dwellings of men, and he gave him into the charge of the nymphs, who promised to bring him up and take great care of him. Hera was seated on Mount Olympus, the throne of the gods, and she cast her eyes all round the world to see what had become of Dionysus, but as she expected to find him again in the charge of some king, she did not think of looking for him in the country of the nymphs.

When Dionysus grew up to be a young man, he was very beautiful, and Zeus loved him so much that he gifted him with the might of a god. Immediately his face gained a new expression, and his eyes glowed with a fire that is never seen in the eyes of men. {65} Dionysus thought he would like to give proof of his new power by bestowing some precious gift upon men, and he resolved that he would create out of water and sunshine a sweet drink that should give them courage and cheerfulness, and that a beautiful plant should be the means of producing this drink. So he created the Vine with its purple grapes, in which, ever since that time, the sun has every year brewed the drink bestowed upon men by the god Dionysus.

Dionysus did not wish to live in concealment any longer, for Hera had no power to injure him now that he had become a god, and he desired to be known and honoured like the other gods. He determined therefore to travel through the whole world, and Zeus gave him a train of men and women to follow and serve him who were called Bacchantes, or followers of Bacchus, which is another name for Dionysus. He set out on his pleasure-journey, driving in a golden chariot drawn by two tame spotted panthers which he guided with a golden rein, and round him danced the Bacchantes, holding in their hands wands twined round with ivy, and with ivy wreaths on their heads. Cups of the most delicious wine were passed from mouth to mouth, and the whole air was filled with the sounds of singing and flute-playing. There was an old man named Silenus, who had formerly lived with the nymphs, and had been accustomed to play with Dionysus when he was a child, and dance him on his knees. He now joined in the procession, and he was so fond of the wine that he was always intoxicated. His body became bloated with drinking so much wine, so that he could not walk steadily, but was obliged to ride on an ass, and {66} often in his drunken condition, he sate facing the wrong way and holding the tail of the ass in his hands as a bridle.

Wherever Dionysus went he caused the vine to grow, and he was good to those who honoured him, but he punished all who disobeyed him. One day, while he was on his journey through the world, he halted at mid-day in a cool wood near the sea, and when the Bacchantes had given the thirsty panthers some sweet wine to drink, the whole train of followers lay down under the trees and went to sleep. Dionysus, however, was filled with a desire to visit the island of Naxos, which he loved above all other lands, and he went down to the shore where there was just then a ship sailing by, and asked the ship-men if they would carry him to Naxos; and they said 'Yes,' and sailed up to the land and took him in. They did not know who he was, but supposed him to be a mortal youth, and seeing that he was so beautiful, they made up their minds to sell him for a slave, for they were not good men, but thieves. Dionysus lay down in the ship and went to sleep. When he awoke, they had already sailed past the island, so he begged them to turn back and set him on shore at Naxos, but they laughed and told him they were going to sell him for a slave. Dionysus had only wanted to make trial of them, and now the ship suddenly stood still, and though they tried with all their might to row on farther, it was as immovable as if it had been fastened to the bottom of the sea with a hundred chains. And vines and ivy-bushes sprang up and covered the sides of the ship with green foliage, and a spray of ivy twined itself round the mast {67} right up to the top, so that the ship looked like a beautiful garden in the middle of the sea. But the sight of it gave no pleasure to the ship-men; their flesh began to creep, and they were seized with an irresistible desire to jump into the sea. And as they jumped they were changed into dolphins, and for the rest of their lives they swam about in the sea, thieving fishes as they had been thieving men. Then Dionysus clapped his hands, and the panther-drawn chariot came over the sea to him followed by the Bacchantes, the sea making a pathway for them so that they scarcely wetted their feet. Dionysus got into his chariot and guided it to Naxos, and the Bacchantes followed it, skipping along on the crests of the waves.

After Dionysus had travelled over the whole world, it was fitting that he should take up his abode on Mount Olympus with the other gods, and Hera did not make any difficulty about it. But before he did so, he brought his mother Semele from out of the Lower World, and Zeus made her immortal, so that she also had a place among the gods, and Hera no longer bore her any ill-will.

[1] See page 150.

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