What was Greek God, Dionysus's Weakness?

Answer 1

Interesting question--what was Dionysus' weakness. He was in many ways the most emotionally complicated of the gods, having had a really rough start in life. HIs mother was killed before he was born, and Zeus saved the unborn infant's life by sewing him up in his own thigh to protect him. That's why the name DIONYSUS means "TWICE-BORN". He had to spend a large part of his boyhood and youth hiding in various disguises because the goddess Hera wanted to kill him. At one point, Hera recognized him and afflicted Dionysus with madness (insanity).

Madness (emotional instability) is his one great weakness, I believe, and this madness showed up in many ways. He had an enormous temper toward those who refused to honor him as a god, and he could make some of those people insane.

Dionysus and his forest companion, Silenus, together learned how to make wine, and Dionysus taught people to make wine everywhere he went--from Greece to India and back. With much wine-drinking comes a confused mental state--drunkeness. Dionysus came to be associated with any kind of mind-altering thing, including the ecstacy that great music, great poetry, can induce, as well as the reveries of dance. Basically, today, we would say that Dionysus would be associated with many altered or transported states of mind.

Just as wine (alcohol) can make some people feel happy or sad or angry or wanting to fight, so, too, could Dionysus. He was dangerous to his enemies, generous and loving toward those who were his friends. Just as wine can make people lose control of their emotions, so could Dionysus. He was terryifying at times, yet loving and gentle at other times.

If you take all these qualities of his emotional life in to consideration, you will see that mental instability (madness, insanity--whatever you want to call it) was his major weakness. He represents the best and the worst in nature.

In the Roman world, Dionysus became associated with Bacchus. Bacchus was a god of revelry and fun, as well as the god of wine. Bacchus kept most of the same qualities associated with Dionysus. But Bacchus and Dionysus really were not the same god.

Just a side note: Olympias, the mother of Alexander the Great, was a great devotee of Dionysus, as were many women, because of the cults that built up around him. Women would go off into the forests for their secret Dionysian rituals, and men were forbidden to see them or to participate in them. The penalty for doing so would have been the severest. What we do know about these rituals is that wine was drunk, flesh of an animal was eaten, hypnotic chanting and dancing took place--and the women went into an ecstatic frenzy--another form of the out-of-body experience associated with Dionysus.

I hope this is the answer you are looking for.

Answer 2

Dionysus Weaknesses

Answer 3

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What was Greek God, Dionysus's Weakness?

Answer 4

Can't tell you about Oedipus, but the whole killing of his father and marrying his mother wasn't cool. Dionysus was a drunk. An awesome, party-throwing, gorgeous drunk, but nonetheless. He was indulgent (weakness) but also charming (strength). Zeus was proud and possessive, and he also had a ridiculous amount of extra-marital affairs because he was childish and wanted everything his way. He played favourites and power-games with the mortals and also with the gods, but at the same time he saved the world by killing his cruel father and liberating his siblings and mother. Persephone seems to have been greedy and didn't consider the possible consequences of eating the pomegranate. However, she was very young and valued her mother greatly, becoming distraught when Hades kidnapped her. Good luck!

Answer 5

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dionysus
I am only answering because I saw an answer about the meaning of this God's name (most probably wrong).

Answer 6

Not doing her own homework. Come back in a week and I'll answer :)

Blessings,
Zimmi

Answer 7

I don't know if he ever had any, aside from drinking WAAY! too much wine.

Answer 8

because every one is dumb and here not giving an answere i will have to...he had to spend most of his boyhood hidding in disguises because hera ( the godess ) wanted o kill him. that is only one of them but there are many other.

Answer 9

reality televison was his weakness