Anthesterion is Dionysos' month. Many--if not all-- sacrifices and festivals feature Him in some form or another. The Erkhian calendar holds a sacrifice to Dionysos and His mother Semele on the 16th of the ancient Hellenic month. Will you join us for it today, on 11 March, at the usual 10 am EDT?


There are many versions of Dionysos' birth. In one--perhaps the most famous--Dionysos is born from Semele and Zeus, and while Semele is pregnant with Him, Hera plants seeds of doubt in her mind about the father of the child truly being Zeus. Semele asks Zeus to reveal Himself to her in His true form, and when He is left with no other option, He does so, killing her in the process. Zeus takes pity on His child, and takes Him into either His thigh or testicle, where He is eventually born from. When Dionysos grows up, He raises Semele to Olympos and grants her eternal life. He also places a wreath into the sky to honor her, the Corona Australis. The wreath would be made of myrtle leaves, for Dionysos left a gift of myrtle in the Underworld in return for His mother, and the followers of Dionysos wore crowns of myrtle.

Although the Erkhians left no explanations of the reason of their sacrifices, I am inclined to believe this sacrifice was a local sacrifice in line with the Anthesteria that took place in Athens two days earlier. Most likely, many Erkhians travelled to Athens for the Anthesteria, then back home to sacrifice to Dionysos and His mother in their own hometown as well.

If you are celebrating the Greater Dionysia with us, you could perform this sacrifice instead of the basic ritual we've provided for that day in the rituals for the Dionysia.

Will you join us and honor Dionysos and His mother in your hometown on 11 March, at 10 am EDT? You can find the ritual here and join the community here.