2. Mythological Greek God

3. Dionysus is the son of the god Zeus and mortal Semele. Hera tricked Semele into having Zeus reveal himself to her, in doing so Semele died from the overpowering glory of Zeus. Immediately after Semele’s death, Zeus took the unborn child and sewed him up into his thigh, from where he’d be birthed. When Dionysus was born, Hera made another attempt on his life. She arranged for the Titans to kill him and they did so by ripping him apart. Rhea, mother of Zeus, put him back together and returned life to him. To protect him from anymore harm, Zeus had him turned over to be raised by the mountain nymphs.

4. Dionysus was the Greek god of: the grape harvest winemaking wine fertility ecstasy He was often described as being youthful and womanly, and he is depicted wearing robes of animal fur and a fennel staff with a pinecone tip that he carried with him.

5. After his childhood, Dionysus spent much of his life wandering the world, introducing the other civilizations to his cult. He was accompanied by his followers the maenads and satyrs, who would dance and play music around Dionysus. In one story, Dionysus found his old school master, Silenus, missing. He discovered him under the care of a man by the name of Midas who had found Silenus drunkenly wandering about. Dionysus offered to him the choice to have any reward of his desire, which Midas gratefully accepted, asking that whatever he touched be turned to gold. Midas soon despised the gift he once coveted. He could not eat, drink, nor touch any of his loved ones for it would all change to gold. Midas prayed to Dionysus, begging for freedom of the curse.

6. In his travels Dionysus came across the abandoned Cretan princess, Ariadne, on the shores of Naxos. He rescued her and they married and had many children. Two of the more well known in Greek mythology were his sons Oenopion and Staphylus. Oenopian was a great king in Assyria. Staphylus fought with Dionysus against Poseidon.

7. He was the son of Zeus and Semele. He was birthed from Zeus’s thigh. Hera tried to have him killed, multiple times. God of: grape harvest, wine, winemaking, fertility, and ecstasy He carried a fennel staff with a pinecone tip and wore animal furs. He wandered the world, encouraging his cult. He was married to Cretan Princess Ariadne.

8. Creatures of Greek Mythology

9. The Centaur is a creature that is part man and part horse. It has the head, torso, and arms of a man and is join at the waist to the withers of a horse. One story suggests the centaurs were born of Ixion, king of Lapiths, and Nephele, a cloud nymph. Another says they came from Centaurus when he mated with the Magnesian mares. They are most well known of Centauromachy, which was their war with the Lapiths They had attempted to carry of Hippodamia, as well as all other Lapith women, on the day she was to marry Pirithous, son of Ixion. They were said to be un-tame savages because of this war.

10. Chiron was the most positive of centaurs. He was very wise and tame and the gods taught him to heal. He also became a tutor to the demigods, such as Hercules, as well as other great heroes of the time. Chiron was immortal, but he gave up the immortality when he was accidently wounded by a poison arrow so he would not live a life of suffering. In memory of him, Zeus depicted him as saggitaurus.