| |
|
|
The worship of Dionysus had very ancient roots in Greece. However, during the Archaic period it was introduced into daily life and in art with representations in vase painting and with the compositions initially of the first dithyrambs and later of dramas. Of course, this was the result of the transformation of the old aristocratic Dionysian worship into a popular religion, on the initiative of the tyrants. Groups of raving women, the Maenads or Thyiads, participated in specific festivals, as in Agrionia and in Lenaia. However, besides the official Dionysian festivals private Dionysian mysteries also existed. |  |
These mysteries that took place during the night allowed the attendance of both men and women. However, the individual initiation of each participant was a condition. A picture of the cave appeared as a symbol of Dionysian mystery, of the unspoken secret. In addition, in contrast to the Eleusinian mysteries and those of the Great Gods in Samothrace, the Bacchic ones did not have a permanent sanctuary, or a hierarchical priesthood, or hieratic families. They were based on local traditions of orgies, that is festivals of raving attendants of the god, which were organized and conducted by wandering priests, the so-called "bakchoi" or "mystai". The older record of such priests is owed to Heraclitus, and we also know that during the Classical period foreigners could also be initiated in this groups.
The complete abandonment to madness or ecstasy (mania) was the turning point of initiation. For the participants the earth was transformed into paradise from which sprang milk and honey. However, at the same time a horrendous savageness was developed, usually expressed by hunting and dismemberment of animals, which ended in the consumption of raw meat. The madness or ecstasy (mania) of the Dionysian mysteries formed the counterbalancing centre in the orthological perception of the world. In it elements of early traditional initiation of adolescents survived, the union with the divine through enthusiasm was practiced and it provided hope for "another world" and "another life". |
|
| |
|
Note: Click on picture for short description. | |