Dionysus-Osiris: Difference between revisions
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Osiris-Dionysus, or alternatively, Dionysus-Osiris, is a deity that arises from the syncretism of the Egyptian god [[Osiris]] and the Greek god [[Dionysus]]. As early as the 5th century BC, the two deities had been identified with each other, seen most notably in the historian [[Herodotus]]' '[[Histories]]'.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Herodotus |title=Histories |publisher=George Rawlinson Translation |pages=Book 2 |accessdate=1 June 2018}}</ref> Other syncretic GrecoEgyptian deities arose out of these conflations, such as [[Serapis]] and [[Hermanubis]]. Dionysus-Osiris was particularly popular in Ptolemaic Egypt, as the Ptolemies claimed descent from Dionysus, and as Pharoes they had claim to the lineage of Osiris.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Kampakoglou |first1=Alexandros v |title=Danaus βουγενής: Greco-Egyptian Mythology and Ptolemaic Kingship |date=2016 |publisher=Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Studies |isbn=56 |pages=119-122 |accessdate=1 June 2018}}</ref> This association was most notable during a deification ceremony where [[Mark Antony]] became Dionysus-Osiris, alongside [[Cleopatra]] as Isis-Aphrodite.<ref>{{cite web |last1=History.com Staff |title=Mark Antony |url=http://www.history.com/topics/ancient-history/mark-antony |website=History.com |publisher=A+E Networks |accessdate=1 June 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Scott |first1=Kenneth |title=Octavian's Propaganda and Antony's De Sua Ebrietate |date=1929 |publisher=Classical Philology |page=133 |pages=133-141 |edition=24 |accessdate=1 June 2018}}</ref> |
'''Osiris-Dionysus''', or alternatively, Dionysus-Osiris, is a deity that arises from the syncretism of the Egyptian god [[Osiris]] and the Greek god [[Dionysus]]. As early as the 5th century BC, the two deities had been identified with each other, seen most notably in the historian [[Herodotus]]' '[[Histories]]'.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Herodotus |title=Histories |publisher=George Rawlinson Translation |pages=Book 2 |accessdate=1 June 2018}}</ref> Other syncretic GrecoEgyptian deities arose out of these conflations, such as [[Serapis]] and [[Hermanubis]]. Dionysus-Osiris was particularly popular in Ptolemaic Egypt, as the Ptolemies claimed descent from Dionysus, and as Pharoes they had claim to the lineage of Osiris.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Kampakoglou |first1=Alexandros v |title=Danaus βουγενής: Greco-Egyptian Mythology and Ptolemaic Kingship |date=2016 |publisher=Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Studies |isbn=56 |pages=119-122 |accessdate=1 June 2018}}</ref> This association was most notable during a deification ceremony where [[Mark Antony]] became Dionysus-Osiris, alongside [[Cleopatra]] as Isis-Aphrodite.<ref>{{cite web |last1=History.com Staff |title=Mark Antony |url=http://www.history.com/topics/ancient-history/mark-antony |website=History.com |publisher=A+E Networks |accessdate=1 June 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Scott |first1=Kenneth |title=Octavian's Propaganda and Antony's De Sua Ebrietate |date=1929 |publisher=Classical Philology |page=133 |pages=133-141 |edition=24 |accessdate=1 June 2018}}</ref> |
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The term |
The term Osiris-Dionysus is used by Timothy Freke and [[Peter Gandy (author)|Peter Gandy]]<ref>see, e.g., ''[[The Jesus Mysteries]]: Was the "Original Jesus" a Pagan God?'' by [[Timothy Freke]] and [[Peter Gandy (author)|Peter Gandy]], {{ISBN|0-722-53677-1}} <!-- quote from page 4: "At the heart of the Mysteries were myths concerning a dying and resurrecting godman, who was known by many different names. In Egypt he was Osiris, in Greece Dionysus, in Asia Minor Attis, in Syria Adonis, in Italy Bacchus, in Persia Mithras. Fundamentally all these godmen are the same mythical being. As was the practice from as early as the third century BCE, in this book we will use the combined name ''Osiris-Dionysus'' to denote his universal and composite nature, and his particular names when referring to a specific Mystery tradition. --></ref> to refer to a group of [[deity|deities]] worshipped around the [[Mediterranean]] in the centuries prior to the emergence of [[Christianity]]. Freke and Gandy argue that these deities were closely related and shared many characteristics, most notably being male, partly human, [[List of virgin births|born of virgins]], [[life-death-rebirth deity|life-death-rebirth deities]] and other similar characteristics such as having twelve disciples.<ref>Freke and Gandy, ''Jesus Mysteries'', p. 5.</ref> |
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==Ancient syncretism== |
==Ancient syncretism== |
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Revision as of 02:08, 1 June 2018
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (May 2012) |
Osiris-Dionysus, or alternatively, Dionysus-Osiris, is a deity that arises from the syncretism of the Egyptian god Osiris and the Greek god Dionysus. As early as the 5th century BC, the two deities had been identified with each other, seen most notably in the historian Herodotus' 'Histories'.[1] Other syncretic GrecoEgyptian deities arose out of these conflations, such as Serapis and Hermanubis. Dionysus-Osiris was particularly popular in Ptolemaic Egypt, as the Ptolemies claimed descent from Dionysus, and as Pharoes they had claim to the lineage of Osiris.[2] This association was most notable during a deification ceremony where Mark Antony became Dionysus-Osiris, alongside Cleopatra as Isis-Aphrodite.[3][4]
The term Osiris-Dionysus is used by Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy[5] to refer to a group of deities worshipped around the Mediterranean in the centuries prior to the emergence of Christianity. Freke and Gandy argue that these deities were closely related and shared many characteristics, most notably being male, partly human, born of virgins, life-death-rebirth deities and other similar characteristics such as having twelve disciples.[6]
Ancient syncretism
The Egyptian god Osiris and the Greek god Dionysus had been equated as long ago as the 5th century BC by the historian Herodotus (see interpretatio graeca). By Late Antiquity, some Gnostic and Neoplatonist thinkers had expanded this syncretic equation to include Aion, Adonis, Attis, Mithras and other gods of the mystery religions. The composite term Osiris-Dionysus is found around the start of the first century BC, for example in Aegyptiaca (Template:Lang-el) by Hecateus of Abdera, and in works by Leon of Pella.[citation needed]
Modern era
In the 19th century, the idea of a pan-Mediterranean cult of the dying-and-rising demigod was used by Alexander Hislop in his anti-Roman Catholic treatise The Two Babylons. Hislop argued that Roman Catholicism was based not upon Biblical Christianity, but upon pagan cults of the divine mother goddess and her suffering son (e.g. Cybele and Attis, etc.).
Later authors, such as Peter Gandy and Timothy Freke, have expanded this line of reasoning to encompass not merely Roman Catholicism, but Christianity more generally. Their book, The Jesus Mysteries, contends that Jesus was not an historical figure, but rather a mythic product of the same pan-Mediterranean mythic complex that also yielded Osiris, Dionysus and other similar figures.
See also
References
- ^ Herodotus. Histories. George Rawlinson Translation. pp. Book 2.
{{cite book}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help) - ^ Kampakoglou, Alexandros v (2016). Danaus βουγενής: Greco-Egyptian Mythology and Ptolemaic Kingship. Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Studies. pp. 119–122. ISBN 56.
{{cite book}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); Check|isbn=value: length (help) - ^ History.com Staff. "Mark Antony". History.com. A+E Networks. Retrieved 1 June 2018.
- ^ Scott, Kenneth (1929). Octavian's Propaganda and Antony's De Sua Ebrietate (24 ed.). Classical Philology. p. 133.
{{cite book}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); More than one of|pages=and|page=specified (help) - ^ see, e.g., The Jesus Mysteries: Was the "Original Jesus" a Pagan God? by Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy, ISBN 0-722-53677-1
- ^ Freke and Gandy, Jesus Mysteries, p. 5.