The Ultimate Vampire Resource and Directory

Dionysus or Dionysos was the god of wine and inspired madness, and a major figure of Greek mythology. He represents not only the intoxicating power of wine, but also its social and beneficial influences. The geographical origins of his cult were unknown, but almost all myths depicted him as having "foreign" (i.e. non-Greek) origins.



He was also known as Bacchus and the frenzy he induces, bakcheia. He is the patron deity of agriculture and the theatre. He was also known as the Liberator (Eleutherios), freeing one from one's normal self, by madness, ecstasy, or wine. The divine mission of Dionysus was to mingle the music of the aulos and to bring an end to care and worry. Scholars have discussed Dionysus' relationship to the "cult of the souls" and his ability to preside over communication between the living and the dead.



In Greek mythology Dionysus is made to be a son of Zeus and Semele; other versions of the myth contend that he is a son of Zeus and Persephone. He is described as being womanly or "man-womanish". Dionysus had an unusual birth that evokes the difficulty in fitting him into the Olympian pantheon. His mother was Semele (daughter of Cadmus), a mortal woman, and his father Zeus, the king of the gods. Zeus's wife, Hera, a jealous and vain goddess, discovered the affair while Semele was pregnant. Appearing as an old crone, Hera befriended Semele, who confided in her that her husband was actually Zeus. Hera pretended not to believe her, and planted seeds of doubt in Semele's mind. Curious, Semele demanded of Zeus that he reveal himself in all his glory as proof of his godhood. Though Zeus begged her not to ask this, she persisted and he agreed. Mortals, however, cannot look upon a god without dying, and she perished. Zeus rescued the fetal Dionysus, however, by sewing him into his thigh.



A few months later, Dionysus was born.In another version of the same story, Dionysus was the son of Zeus and Persephone, the queen of the underworld. A jealous Hera again attempted to kill the child, this time by sending Titans to rip Dionysus to pieces after luring the baby with toys. Zeus drove the Titans away with his thunderbolts, but only after the Titans ate everything but the heart, which was saved, variously, by Athena, Rhea, or Demeter. Zeus used the heart to recreate Dionysus and implant him in the womb of Semele, hence he was again "the twice-born". Sometimes people said that he gave Semele the heart to eat to impregnate her.



The rebirth in both versions of the story is the primary reason he was worshipped in mystery religions, as his death and rebirth were events of mystical reverence. This narrative was apparently used in certain Greek and Roman mystery religions. Variants of it are found in Callimachus and Nonnus, who refer to this Dionysus under the title Zagreus, and also in several fragmentary poems attributed to Orpheus.



Childhood



The legend goes that Zeus took the infant Dionysus and gave him in charge to the rain-nymphs of Nysa, who nourished his infancy and childhood, and for their care Zeus rewarded them by placing them as the Hyades among the stars (see Hyades star cluster). Alternatively, he was raised by Maro.When Dionysus grew up he discovered the culture of the vine and the mode of extracting its precious juice; but Hera struck him with madness, and drove him forth a wanderer through various parts of the earth.



In Phrygia the goddess Cybele, better known to the Greeks as Rhea, cured him and taught him her religious rites, and he set out on a progress through Asia teaching the people the cultivation of the vine. The most famous part of his wanderings is his expedition to India, which is said to have lasted several years. Returning in triumph he undertook to introduce his worship into Greece, but was opposed by some princes who dreaded its introduction on account of the disorders and madness it brought with it.



As a young man, Dionysus was exceptionally attractive. Once, while disguised as a mortal on a ship, the sailors attempted to kidnap him for their sexual pleasures. Dionysus mercifully turned them into dolphins but saved the captain, Acoetes, who recognized the god and tried to stop his sailors.





Midas



Once, Dionysus found his old school master and foster father, Silenus, missing. The old man had been drinking, and 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). Midas recognized him, and treated him hospitably, entertaining him for ten days and nights with politeness, while Silenus entertained Midas and his friends with stories and songs. On the eleventh day he brought Silenus back to Dionysus. Dionysus offered Midas his choice of whatever reward he wanted.



Midas asked that whatever he might touch should be changed into 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. Overjoyed, as soon as he got home, he ordered the servants to set a feast on the table. Then he found that his bread, meat, daughter and wine turned to gold.



Upset, Midas strove to divest himself of his power (the Midas Touch); he hated the gift he had coveted. He prayed to Dionysus, begging to be delivered from starvation. Dionysus heard and consented; he told Midas to wash in the river Pactolus. He did so, and when he touched the waters the power passed into them, and the river sands changed into gold. (Note: this explained why the sands of the river Pactolus were rich in gold)



Other stories



When Hephaestus bound Hera to a magical chair, Dionysus got him drunk and brought him back to Olympus after he had passed out. For this act, he was made one of the twelve Olympians.Acis, a Sicilian youth, was sometimes said to be Bacchus' son.



A satyr named Ampelos was a good friend of Bacchus.Callirhoe was a Calydonian woman who scorned a priest of Dionysus who threatened to inflict all the women of Calydon with insanity. The priest was ordered to sacrifice Callirhoe but he killed himself instead. Callirhoe threw herself into a well which was later named after her.



As Dionysus was almost certainly a late addition to the pantheon of Greek mythology, there was some hostility to his worship. Homer mentions him only briefly and with much hostility. Euripides also wrote a tale concerning the destructive nature of Dionysus in his play entitled The Bacchae. Since Euripides wrote this play while in the court of King Archelaus of Macedon, some scholars believe that the cult of Dionysus was malicious in Macedon but benign in Athens. In the play, Dionysus returns to his birthplace, Thebes, ruled by his cousin, Pentheus.



Pentheus was angry at the women of Thebes, including his mother, Agave, for denying his divinity and worshipping Dionysus against his will. The worshippers of Dionysus were known as blood-thirsty, wild women called Maenads. The women tore Pentheus to shreds after he was lured to the woods by Dionysus. His body was mutilated by Agave.



When King Lycurgus of Thrace heard that Dionysus was in his kingdom, he imprisoned all the followers of Dionysus, the Maenads. Dionysus fled, taking refuge with Thetis. Dionysus then sent a drought and the people revolted. Dionysus made King Lycurgus insane, and he sliced his own son into pieces with an axe, thinking he was a patch of ivy, a plant holy to Dionysus.



An oracle then claimed that the land would stay dry and barren as long as Lycurgus was alive, so his people had him drawn and quartered. With Lycurgus dead, Dionysus lifted the curse.



Influence on Christianity



It is possible that Dionysian mythology would later find its way into Christianity. There are many parallels between the legends of Dionysus and Jesus; both were said to have been born from a mortal woman but fathered by a god, to have returned from the dead, and to have transformed water into wine. The modern scholar Barry Powell also argues that Christian notions of eating and drinking the flesh and blood of Jesus in order for individual followers to feel Jesus within them was influenced by the cult of Dionysus.



Certainly the Dionysus myth contains a great deal of cannibalism, in its links to Ino. Dionysus was also distinct among Greek gods, as a deity commonly felt within individual followers. In a less benign example of influence on Christianity, Dionysus' followers, as well as another god, Pan, are said to have had the most influence on the modern view of Satan as animal-like and horned. It is also possible these similarities between Christianity and Dionysiac religion are all only representations of the same common religious archetypes.



Furthermore, it is worth noting that the story of Jesus turning water into wine is only found in the Gospel of John, which differs on many points from the other Synoptic Gospels. That very passage, it has been suggested, was incorporated into the Gospel from an earlier source focusing on Jesus' miracles.



Dionysus in Neopaganism



Modern Neopagans view Dionysus in different lights, depending largely on the individual sects and the other gods worshipped by a sect. Dionysus is often seen as the god of Earthly Delights and is thought to play a role in euphoria. In the United States, some Hellenistic Neopagan sects forbid the worship of Dionysus, because Dionysus worship is associated with hedonism.



Sects which worship Hera and Themis in particular may forbid Dionysus worship. However, there are sects that make Dionysus a central figure of their faiths. Many sects may include both the worship of Themis and Dionysus, holding that moderation is key to virtue and that earthly delights are virtuous when maintaining responsibility and moderation. Depending on individual sects, and the other gods within the sect, worship of Dionysus can take many forms.



Sects that include worship of Themis and Hera for instance may allow the drinking of wine and various festivities, but actively discourage "decadence" and promiscuity.Those sects who worship Dionysus exclusively, or in more common cases Dionysus and Aphrodite, are sometimes known to conduct orgiastic rituals and use numerous intoxicants in attempts to reach earthly gratification and euphoria (Such sects are often considered cults even by Neopagan standards).



Most sects agree that it is unwise to trade future well being for a moment's pleasure. However, some followers of Dionysus believe that they are inspired to relish in earthly delights, ignoring any consequences.



References:



Powell, Barry B. Classical Myth



From the following links:

http://www.crystalinks.com/bacchus.html

Bacchus, or Dionysus in Greek, was the god of wine and of mystic ecstasy.

The cult of Bacchus was a mystery cult, and many elements were disclosed only to initiates, so little is known about the exact content of the cult and the rituals, but they appear to have been very complex. The rituals and celebrations are known under the name Bacchanalia.

The cult originated in Asia Minor, from where it spread through Thrace, Greece and Magna Graecia in S. Italy, where it was widespread. It soon enjoyed high popularity among the Romans, until a point where more conservative parts of the Roman elite saw it as a problem.

The Roman senate banned the cult in 186 BCE and many sanctuaries were destroyed, but the senate was unable to suppress the cult completely. It continued and is testified in art until the 2nd and 3rd centuries CE.

The wall paintings in the Villa of Mysteries in Pompeii probably depicts an initiation ritual into the cult of Bacchus. Images of the cult seem to have been common in wall paintings, in mosaics and on sarcophagi.

From the following link:
http://sights.seindal.dk/sight/1105_Bacchus.html

Vampire Glyphs

by Sean D. Francis



In 1908, a team of Italian archeologists uncovered a relic in the Minoan palace of Phaistos in Crete. This relic was a disc inscribed in an unknown language using stamps, signifying an example of movable type being used around 1600 b.c.e. This relic is referred to as the Phaistos Disc. A similar object was uncovered five years later in an excavation around the city currently called Ismir in Turkey.

Archeologists were excited about the second find, but soon became disheartened as the symbols were not the same. While the Phaistos Disc remains a mystery and possibly a historical anomaly, the second Disc, commonly referred to as the Belzeit Tablet, has been partially decoded in the late 20th century. What it has revealed is both startling and exciting.



For lack of a poetic description, the Belzeit Tablet was created by a unique Mystery Cult operating in the shadow of the ancient Greek city-states with clear connection to Egypt and the Hebrew tribes on the other side of the Mediterranean Sea. This cult practiced a ritualistic worship of beings best described as vampires.







Whether these vampiric beings truely existed or were simply a variant on the Bacchus rites that were performed is still left for debate among the scholars. On the disc, there were over eighteen glyphs represented, but only six have been fully translated and understood. Presented, for the first time on the internet, are the six glyphs and their interpreted meanings.



Balance



With balance comes harmony. Keeping things in balance is difficult. For the vampire, there are more personal issues that need to be kept in balance: predator-prey, passion-reason, lust-restraint, and violence-peace. Each needs to be exercised equally or harmony is lost. All of one thing, no matter how well intentioned or how well presented, will throw the balance off, disrupting the harmony, and destroying order.

Beast



Instinct plays a vital role. When a vampire looks at another she can see the raw primal force that lurks. Every calm is followed by a storm. The longer the calm the more violent the storm. Vampire respect the beast, as it is the instinct that drives passion and curiousity. the beast pushes boundaries, tests limits, and throws all caution to the wind. The beast is neither stupid nor intelligent. The beast is pure instinct.

Blood



Blood represents two important things to the vampire. It represents their existence. It is their source of strength and power. But it also represents their greatest weakness. The lust for blood has clouded the judgment of many. Are vampire powerful because of their reliance on blood, or are they powerful because of the control they have over their addiction. No matter which, the addiction is a downward spiral that inevitably ends in personal destruction for the weak.

City



Cities represent the development of civilization and the inevitable collapse of civilization. Vampire have witnessed this cycle over and over. When a vampire sees something being built, she can remember what used to be at that location before and knows that eventually the current structure will collapse over time, or be demolished. No empire lasts forever.

Reaper



Harvest is a time of death and a time of cleansing. The concept of death to the immortal loses meaning over time. It becomes less a time to fear but a time to be cleansed. A vampire knows that once a generation she needs to cleanse herself and begin anew in order to perpetrate her unnatural existence among mortals. Ending are beginnings.

Sun



Contrary to popular belief, vampires do not curse the Sun any more than a man who cannot swim curses the ocean. The Sun to the vampire represents the inevitable. There are many things once cannot have any control over, even if one is immortal. The Sun represents all that cannot be controlled. It is a fact that must be endured and worked around.



From the following link:

http://www.stygianlabyrinth.net/ariadne/misc/misc_glyphs.htm

History

The disc of Phaistos is the most important example of hieroglyphic inscription from Crete and was discovered in 1903 in a small room near the depositories of the "archive chamber", in the north - east apartments of the palace, together with a Linear A tablet and pottery dated to the beginning of the Neo-palatial period (1700- 1600 B.C.).

The exact location of Phaistos was first determined in the middle of the 19th century by the British admiral Spratt, while the archaeological investigation of the palace started in 1884 by the Italians F. Halbherr and A. Taramelli.

After the declaration of the independent Cretan State in 1898, excavations were carried out by F. Halbherr and L. Pernier in 1900-1904 and later, in 1950-1971, by Doro Levi, under the auspices of the Italian Archaeological School at Athens.





The Phaistos Disk, today on display at the Iraklion Archaeological Museum,
was discovered in Crete in 1908.


Although many inscriptions were found by the archaeologists, they are all in Linear A code which is still undecipherd, and all we know about the site, even its name are based to the ancient writers and findings from Knossos.

According to mythology, Phaistos was the seat of king Radamanthis, brother of king Minos. It was also the city that gave birth to the great wise man and soothsayer Epimenidis, one of the seven wise men of the ancient world.
Excavations by archaeologists have unearthed ruins of the Neolithic times (3.000 B.C.).
During the Minoan times, Phaistos was a very important city-state. Its dominion, at its peak, stretched from Lithinon to Psychion and included the Paximadia islands. The city participated to the Trojan war and later became one of the most important cities-states of the Dorian period.
Phaistos continued to flourish during Archaic, Classical and Hellenistic times. It was destroyed by the Gortynians during the 3rd century B.C. In spite of that, Phaistos continued to exist during the Roman period.
Phaistos had two ports, Matala and Kommos.

Since 1900, continuous archaeological excavations from the Italian Archaeological School, have brought to light the magnificent Minoan palace of Phaistos with its great royal courts, the great staircases, the theatre, the storerooms and the famous disk of Phaistos.
The first palace was built at 2.000 B.C. This palace was destroyed at 1.700 B.C. by an earthquake. It was built again, more luxurious and magnificent and it was destroyed again, probably by another earthquake, at 1.400 B.C.
The location of the palace was carefully chosen, so as not only to absolutely control the valley of Messara, but to also offer a panoramic view of the surrounding area with the scattered villages, just like today, at the foot of the mountains Psiloritis and Asterousia.
The palace dominated and controlled the Messara valley and it was the center of the city. It was the administrational and economical center of the area.
Goods not only for consumption but mainly for trade were kept in its huge storerooms. The palace was surrounded by luxurious mansions and crowded urban communities. Along with the surrounding settlements covered an area of 18.000 sq. meters.
A paved road leads to the ruins of the Royal Minoan villa of Agia Triada, 3 km west of Phaistos.

Decipherment



Both surfaces of this clay disc are covered with hieroglyphs arranged in a spiral zone, impressed on the clay when it was damp. The signs make up groups divided from each other by vertical lines, and each of these groups should represent a word.



Forty five different types of signs have been distinguished, of which a few can be identified with the hieroglyphs in use in the Proto- palatial period.

Some hieroglyphic sequences recur like refrains, suggesting a religious hymn, and Pernier regards the content of the text as ritual. Others have suggested that the text is a list of soldiers, and lately Davis has interpreted it as a document in the Hittic language in which a king discusses the erection of the Palace of Phaistos.




In a century which has seen the cracking of Linear B, Ugaritic, and other orthographic systems, the Phaistos Disk has eluded decipherment. The disk is thought to date from around 1700 BC. It is a roundish disk of clay, with symbols stamped into it. The text consists of 61 words, 16 of which are accompanied by a mysterious "slash" mark.

There are 45 different symbols occurring 241 times. The symbols portray recognizable objects like human figures and body parts, animals, weapons, and plants. Since the text of the disk is so short, decipherment by the statistical cryptographic techniques employed by Michael Ventris in cracking Linear B are impossible.

Late last year, however, Dr. Keith A.J. Massey and his twin brother Rev. Kevin Massey-Gillespie discovered the secret they believe provides the key to cracking the Phaistos Disk.

Another ancient writing system provides the key to reading the Phaistos Disk.
At Byblos in modern day Lebanon, an advanced culture flourished for centuries. There are many signs of contact between Ancient Crete and Byblos, including signs of orthographic borrowing as pointed out by Victor Kenna in "The Stamp Seal, Byblos 6593" Kadmos 9 (1970) pp 93-96.
Further, examples of the yet undeciphered Linear A script have recently been found in Turkey, providing evidence of orthographic relationships between Crete and Asia Minor.
The Proto-Byblic script was used in the early part of the 2nd millenium BC, a time contemporary with the supposed date of the Phaistos Disk. The underlying language of the Proto-Byblic script was Semitic. It is a linear script which displays many identifiable objects, like weapons, human figures, and body parts. The Proto-Byblic script, catalogued by Maurice Dunand in the 1940's bears striking resemblance to the symbols of the Phaistos Disk. The similarity of one Proto-Byblic character to a Phaistos symbol was noted by Dunand in his book Byblia Grammata, Beyrouth, 1945 on p 90, "Il est presque identique a celui du disque de Phaestos qu-Evans avait identifie avec une colombe." [ It is almost identical to something from the disk of Phaistos which (Sir Arthur) Evans has identified with a dove.] Dunand did not pursue his observation of the similarities, yet it is this Proto-Byblic script which is demonstrated by the Massey twins as being a closely related orthographic system to the Phaistos Disk. Eduard Dhorme, one of the decipherers of Hittite, published the first consonantal values for the Proto-Byblic script in SYRIA XXV 1946 in an article, "Dechiffrement des Inscriptions Pseudo-Hieroglyphicques de Byblos." A comparison of these values with the symbols of the Phaistos Disk yielded consonantal assignments for a surprising amount of the writing on the disk.
It should be noted here that all previous attempts to decipher the Phaistos Disk have been subjective attempts, assigning phonetic values to the characters with no true objective criteria. This is therefore the first effort at cracking the disk by OBJECTIVE determinations. When these consonantal values are examined, elements of an Hellenic language emerge in the text of the disk. Scholars had never known what the significence of a mysterious "slash" on 16 of the words of the Phaistos Disk. We observed, based on our values, that each of these 16 words are numerals counting commodities on the disk, similar to the majority of Linear B texts.

Books





Glyphbreaker
by Steven Roger Fischer
Editorial Review - New Scientist, Paul Bahn
The most impressive aspect of Glyphbreaker is not so much that this remarkable man has cracked two entirely different scripts, a feat unique in the history of epigraphy, but rather that he has done so despite tremendous privations in his life.... Regardless of the eventual validity of Fischer's solutions--and certainly to a nonlinguist who does not know a grapheme from a glyph, his method, as painstakingly explained here, appears logical, objective and impeccable--one cannot but admire the selfless and single-minded dedication with which he has pursued his goal.

Book Description
When he successfully deciphered the Rongorongo script of Easter Islandthe mysterious system of glyphs in which the island's original inhabitants had recorded their ritual chants and ceremoniesSteven Roger Fischer gained a unique place in the pantheon of glyphbreakers. He is the only person who has ever deciphered not one but two ancient scripts. Both of these scripts yield clues of great historical importance. Fischer's previous decipherment, of a Cretan artifact called the Phaistos Disk, provided the key to the ancient Minoan language and showed it to be closely related to Mycenaean Greek. Contrary to prevailing archaeological opinion, the Minoans were Greeks, and Crete's Phaistos Disk now comprises Europe's oldest documented literature. Fischer's decipherment of Rongorongo showed that it was not merely a mnemonic device for recalling memorized texts, but was physically read and was the vehicle for creative composition. Rongorongo is thus the only known indigen! ous script in Oceania before the twentieth century.

Filled with accounts of the remarkable journeys and cultures he encountered, Glyphbreaker is the exciting story of these two decipherments, by the man who now must rank as the greatest glyphbreaker of all time.

Ingram
Written by the greatest decipherer that ever lived, Steven Roger Fischer--the only person to ever decipher two ancient scripts--"Glyphbreaker" is the remarkable story of his two decipherments, . the Rongorongo script of Easter Island and the Phaistos Disk, and their historical significance. Filled with accounts of the remarkable journeys and cultures he encountered, the book is fascinating reading for anyone interested in the subject. 15 illus., 5 in color Pub: 8/97.

About the Author
Steven Roger Fischer is Director of the Institute of Polynesian Languages and Literatures, Auckland, New Zealand. He is the first person ever who deciphered two wholly different historical scripts. Glyphbreaker is his eighth book.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Decipherment of Linear B
by John Chadwick
Fascinating details of the religious and economic history of an ancient pre-Hellenic civilization are revealed in this celebrated account of the decipherment of Linear B from Mycenaean Greek in the 1950s.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Bronze Age Computer Disc
by Alan Butler
The book shows how the mysterious symbols of the Phaistos Disc, found in Crete at the beginning of the 20th century, can be used to demonstrate a fantastic system of measuring time, space and distance, that existed as early as 3,500 BC in the Far West of Europe. This book is an easy to follow read, beautifully crafted, and with parenthesis to sift out the mathematics for people who are willing to take the author's word. The Bronze Age Computer Disc ends with a promise of many more revelations to come.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Atlantis MESSAGES by Jean Louis Pagé
Hard cover bilingual book (french/english)
with 272 pages all in colour and 640 images.

This bilingual archaeological book is intended for everyone. Beautifully pictured and detailed, it reveals the fascinating story of the discovery of the localization of“Atlantis.” It is the first scientific deciphering of the pictogram writing of Atlantis.

Fruit of twenty years of research, the author guides us back to the source of our heritage clustered in the human flight of the imagination. He leads us on the road to find Atlantis lost 12 000 years ago.

Discover how the deciphering of the Phaistos, Aztec and Maya disks and Egyptian frescos reveal important messages from our past. These archaeological enigmas that have been gazing at us for thousands of years, represent a precious legacy from the greatest civilizations of distant Antiquity. By meeting and joining they reveal the exact geographical location of Atlantis and the origins of the human race.

“Atlantis' Messages de l’Atlantide” is the fulfilment of a 5 000 year old prophecy. It is the work and devotion of a lifelong project that brings the past and the future to the present.

From the following link:

http://www.world-mysteries.com/sar_9.htm