I may have mentioned once or twice how much I adore and respect the Hellenic organization Labrys. The Labrys Religious Community aims to preserve, promote and practice the Hellenic polytheistic religious tradition through public rituals, lectures, publications, theatrical and musical events, and other forms of action. Their vision is to restore the Hellenic religious tradition and by extension the Hellenic Kosmotheasis and lifestyle to its rightful place, as a respected, acknowledged and fully functional spiritual path.

They have a large variety of rituals and festivals documented, including their 2014 Phallephoria in Athens. The phallephoria was a procession undertaken usually as part of the Dionysia. It was a celebration of freedom, solidarity, and rebellion and was one of the only public assembly's that everyone could attend--women, children, slaves and métoikos included. Men carried huge phalloi through the streets and into the theater and directed ridicule and abuse at the honorands. As with many Dionysian rituals, the phallephoria showed two sides of the theater world: the tragedies that depicted the disasters that befell the heroes of ancient Hellas, and the comedies where these heroes were ridiculed.

According to tradition, the City Dionysia was established after Eleutherae, a town on the border between Attica and Boeotia, had chosen to become part of Attica. The Eleuthereans brought a statue of Dionysos to Athens, which was initially rejected by the Athenians. Dionysus then punished the Athenians with a plague affecting the male genitalia, which was cured when the Athenians accepted the cult of Dionysus. This was recalled each year by a procession of citizens carrying phalloi, and the practice has now been brought back to life.

So, what is better than one video of Dionysian rites? That's right, a video of five of their Dionysia festival celebrations combined. You're welcome!