Dionysos was a god associated with the pre-Hellenic Mother of the Gods. His cult, whatever its origins and exact nature, was widespread in Macedonia: there, he was not merely the Dionysos of Classical tradition, but also a Zeus-Dionysos, often attested as Zeus Hypsistos (the Highest).
Protector of children, both boys and girls, invoked as Agrios (the Savage), Epikryptos (the Very Hidden), or Pseudanor (the False Man), Dionysos oversaw the ceremonies upon reaching adolescence and the ritual disguises which accompanied them. His cult inspired a series of works of art and literature, from Euripides' "Bacchae" to the 'krater' (mixing bowl) of Derveni; in these works one can see the initiates' belief in the promise of another better world.
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