Seduction by Zeus and birth of Dionysus

In one version of the myth, Semele was a priestess of Zeus, and on one occasion was observed by

Zeus as she slaughtered a bull at his altar and afterwards swam in the river Asopus to cleanse herself

of the blood. Flying over the scene in the guise of an eagle, Zeus fell in love with Semele and

repeatedly visited her secretly.

Zeus' wife, Hera, a goddess jealous of usurpers, discovered his affair with Semele when she later

became pregnant. Appearing as an old crone, Hera befriended Semele, who confided in her that her

lover was actually Zeus. Hera pretended not to believe her, and planted seeds of doubt in Semele's

mind. Curious, Semele asked Zeus to grant her a boon. Zeus, eager to please his beloved, promised

on the River Styx to grant her anything she wanted. She then demanded that Zeus reveal himself in

all his glory as proof of his divinity. Though Zeus begged her not to ask this, she persisted and he was forced by his oath to comply. Zeus tried to spare her by showing her the smallest of his bolts and the sparsest thunderstorm clouds he could find. Mortals, however, cannot look upon the gods without incinerating, and she perished, consumed in lightning-ignited flame.

Zeus rescued the fetal Dionysus, however, by sewing him into his thigh (whence the epithet

Eiraphiotes, "insewn", of the Homeric Hymn). A few months later, Dionysus was born. This

leads to his being called "the twice-born".

When he grew up, Dionysus rescued his mother from Hades, and she became a goddess on

Mount Olympus, with the new name Thyone, presiding over the frenzy inspired by her son

Dionysus.

Reference website:

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