Dionysus-God of Wine

 

DIONYSUS, in Greek mythology, god of wine and vegetation, who showed mortals
how to cultivate grapevines and make wine. He was good and gentle to those who 
honored him, but he brought madness and destruction upon those who spurned him
or the orgiastic rituals of his cult. According to tradition, Dionysus died each 
winter and was reborn in the spring. To his followers, this cyclical revival, 
accompanied by the seasonal renewal of the fruits of the earth, embodied the 
promise of the resurrection of the dead.

The yearly rites in honor of the resurrection of Dionysus gradually evolved into 
the structured form of the Greek drama, and important festivals were held in 
honor of the god, during which great dramatic competitions were conducted. The 
most important festival, the Greater Dionysia, was held in Athens for five days 
each spring. It was for this celebration that the Greek dramatists Aeschylus, 
Sophocles, and Euripides wrote their great tragedies. After the 5th century BC, 
Dionysus was known to the Greeks as Bacchus.