Editing Dionysus (section)

===Secondary myths===

====Midas' golden touch====
[[File:Titian Bacchus and Ariadne.jpg|thumb|left|''[[Bacchus and Ariadne]]'' by [[Titian]], at the [[National Gallery (London)|National Gallery]] in London]]
Dionysus discovered that his old school master and foster father, [[Silenus]], had gone missing. The old man 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). The king recognized him hospitably, feasting him for ten days and nights while Silenus entertained with stories and songs. On the eleventh day, Midas brought Silenus back to Dionysus. Dionysus offered the king his choice of reward.

Midas asked that whatever he might touch would turn to gold. Dionysus consented, though was sorry that he had not made a better choice. Midas rejoiced in his new power, which he hastened to put to the test. He touched and turned to gold an oak twig and a stone, but his joy vanished when he found that his bread, meat, and wine also turned to gold. Later, when his daughter embraced him, she too turned to gold.

The horrified king strove to divest the [[Midas Touch]], and he prayed to Dionysus to save him from starvation. The god consented, telling Midas to wash in the river [[Pactolus]]. As he did so, the power passed into them, and the river sands turned gold: this [[etiological myth]] explained the gold sands of the Pactolus.
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====Love affairs====
[[File:Antoine-Jean Gros - Bacchus and Ariadne.jpg|thumb|''Bacchus and Ariadne'' (1822) by [[Antoine-Jean Gros]]]]
When [[Theseus]] abandoned [[Ariadne]] sleeping on Naxos, Dionysus found and married her. They had a son named Oenopion, but she committed suicide or was killed by [[Perseus]]. In some variants, Dionysus had her crown put into the heavens as the constellation Corona; in others, he descended into [[Hades]] to restore her to the gods on Olympus. Another account claims Dionysus ordered Theseus to abandon Ariadne on the island of Naxos, for Dionysus had seen her as Theseus carried her onto the ship and had decided to marry her.{{citation needed|date=June 2022}} [[Psalacantha]], a nymph, promised to help Dionysus court Ariadne in exchange for his sexual favours; but Dionysus refused, so Psalacantha advised Ariadne against going with him. For this Dionysus turned her into the plant with the same name.<ref>[[Ptolemy Hephaestion]], ''New History'' 5, epitomized in Patriarch [[Photius I of Constantinople|Photius]]'s ''[[Bibliotheca (Photius)|Myriobiblon]]'' [https://topostext.org/work.php?work_id=237#190.35 190.35]</ref>

{{Multiple image
|total_width=300
|image1=Dioniso scopre arianna, da casa dei capitelli colorati a pompei, 9278.JPG
|image2=Affresco con l'epifania di Dioniso a Nasso, da Pompei, I 4, 5 Casa del Citarista . Napoli, Museo Archeologico Nazionale, inv. 9286.png
|footer=Dionysos surrounded by his [[thiasus]] discovers Ariadne asleep at [[Hypnos]]'s side. Frescoes in [[Pompeii]]}}

Dionysus fell in love with a nymph named [[Nicaea (mythology)|Nicaea]], in some versions by [[Eros]]' binding. Nicaea however was a sworn virgin and scorned his attempts to court her. So one day, while she was away, he replaced the water in the spring from which she used to drink with wine. Intoxicated, Nicaea passed out, and Dionysus raped her in her sleep. When she woke up and realized what had happened, she sought him out to harm him, but she never found him. She gave birth to his sons [[Telete]], [[Satyr]]us, and others. Dionysus named the ancient city of [[Nicaea]] after her.<ref>[[Nonnus]], ''[[Dionysiaca]]'' [https://archive.org/details/dionysiaca02nonnuoft/page/20/mode/2up?view=theater 16.244–280]; [[Memnon of Heraclea]], ''History of Heraclea'' book 15, as epitomized by [[Photius I of Constantinople|Photius of Constantinople]] in his ''[[Bibliotheca (Photius)|Myriobiblon]]'' [https://www.tertullian.org/fathers/photius_copyright/photius_06bibliotheca.htm 223.28]</ref>

In [[Nonnus]]'s ''[[Dionysiaca]]'', Eros made Dionysus fall in love with [[Aura (mythology)|Aura]], a virgin companion of [[Artemis]], as part of a ploy to punish Aura for having insulted Artemis. Dionysus used the same trick as with Nicaea to get her fall asleep, tied her up, and then raped her. Aura tried to kill herself, with little success. When she gave birth to twin sons by Dionysus, [[Iacchus]] and another boy, she ate one twin before drowning herself in the [[Sakarya River|Sangarius]] river.<ref>[[Nonnus]], ''[[Dionysiaca]]'' [https://archive.org/stream/dionysiaca03nonnuoft#page/459/mode/2up 48.470–634 (III pp. 458]–[https://archive.org/stream/dionysiaca03nonnuoft#page/491/mode/2up 48.928–936 (III pp. 490, 491)].</ref>

Also in the ''Dionysiaca'', Nonnus relates how Dionysus fell in love with a handsome satyr named [[Ampelos]], who was killed by Selene due to him challenging her. On his death, Dionysus changed him into the first grapevine.<ref>[[Nonnus]], ''[[Dionysiaca]]'' 11. 185 ff (trans. Rouse) (Greek epic C5th A.D.):

"[Ampelos the love of Dionysos rode upon the back of a wild bull:] He shouted boldly to the fullfaced Moon (Mene)—'Give me best, Selene, horned driver of cattle! Now I am both—I have horns and I ride a bull!'

So he called out boasting to the round Moon. Selene looked with a jealous eye through the air, to see how Ampleos rode on the murderous marauding bull. She sent him a cattlechasing gadfly; and the bull, pricked continually all over by the sharp sting, galloped away like a horse through pathless tracts. [It threw the boy and gorged him to death.]"</ref>

====Other myths====
[[File:MET DP123380.jpg|thumb|Terracotta head, 4–5th century, [[Gandhara]] (modern Pakistan)]]Another account about Dionysus's parentage indicates that he is the son of Zeus and Gê (Gaia), also named ''Themelê'' (foundation), corrupted into ''Semele''.<ref>Humphreys, S. C. ''The Strangeness of Gods: Historical perspectives on the interpretation of Athenian religion''. Oxford University Press. 2004. pp. 264–265. {{ISBN|978-0199269235}}</ref><ref>Beecroft, Alexander J. "Nine Fragments in Search of an Author: Poetic Lines Attributed to Terpander." ''The Classical Journal'' 103, no. 3 (2008): 225–41. http://www.jstor.org/stable/30037959.</ref>

When [[Hephaestus]] bound [[Hera]] to a magical chair, Dionysus got him drunk and brought him back to Olympus after he passed out.{{citation needed|date=June 2022}}

During the [[Gigantomachy]], Dionysus killed the giant [[Eurytus]] with his [[thyrsus]].

A third descent by Dionysus to Hades is invented by [[Aristophanes]] in his comedy ''[[The Frogs]]''. Dionysus, as patron of the Athenian dramatic festival, the ''Dionysia'', wants to bring back to life one of the great tragedians. After a [[poetry slam]], [[Aeschylus]] is chosen in preference to [[Euripides]].

Callirrhoe was a [[Calydon]]ian woman who scorned [[Coresus]], a priest of Dionysus, who threatened to afflict all the women of Calydon with insanity (see [[Maenad]]). The priest was ordered to sacrifice Callirhoe but he killed himself instead. Callirhoe threw herself into a well which was later named after her.{{citation needed|date=June 2022}}

Dionysus also sent a fox that was fated never to be caught in Thebes. [[Creon (king of Thebes)|Creon]], king of Thebes, sent [[Amphitryon]] to catch and kill the fox. [[Amphitryon]] obtained from [[Cephalus]] the dog that his wife [[Procris]] had received from [[Minos]], which was fated to catch whatever it pursued.{{citation needed|date=June 2022}}

Hyginus relates that Dionysus once gave human speech to a donkey. The donkey then proceeded to challenge Priapus in a contest about which between them had the better penis; the donkey lost. Priapus killed the donkey, but Dionysus placed him among the stars, above the [[Cancer (constellation)|Crab]].<ref>[[Gaius Julius Hyginus|Hyginus]], ''Astronomica'' [https://topostext.org/work/207#2.23.3 2.23.3]</ref><ref>{{cite book | page = [https://books.google.com/books?id=YKOODwAAQBAJ&pg=PA203 203] | title = Studies in Hellenistic Judaism | first1 = Louis H. | last1 = Feldman | date = 1996 | publisher = Brill | isbn = 90-04-10418-6}}</ref>