AVE BACCHUS

DIONYSUS is a divinity that reigns over All ecstasy, whether caused by enthusiastic ritual, sex, the consumption of psychedelic ( not promoting this) and Alcohol or music and dance..It is interesting that the Greeks sometimes referred to mushrooms as broma theon " the food of the gods".

Also in ancient and Classical Greek thought, mushrooms were considered to be the offspring of Zeus"Thunderbolts". They were sometimes referred to as keraunia lithos or thunderstones- a theogenic Natural history witch links folk beliefs in the nascence of mushrooms from lightning or thunder (Zeus) to the death of Iason.

OUR SATYRINE BROTHER

OVERHEARD ON FACEBOOK

"In 1968 I was 12 and got three swats for tardies from the assistant principal at junior high. When it was over he sort of laughed and told me I'd taken it "pretty good." I said to him that it hurt a lot more when my dad used the belt. Did anybody else ever make any comments like this after getting paddled? ( The junior high paddle stung like hell. It was some kind of hardwood and had a nickel sized hole drilled through the end."

EDITORIAL

As Silenos to Dionysos, Bes to the new godling Antinous. Bes is a giant to me!

10th August is Saint Bessus Day. This Christian saint is probably the Egyptian God Bes in disguise. Bessus protects soldiers against the dangers of battle, but is also invoked for fertility matters and one of his symbols is an ostrich feather. All of these features are attributes of the God Bes and his feminine counterpart, Beset, goddess of magic. Bes is associated with Antinous because a shrine to Bes was located on the shore of the Nile where Antinous died and where Hadrian founded the city of Antinoopolis. Subsequently, Bes intrigued Hadrian. Bes is depicted as a bearded dwarf wearing a crown of feathers, he is often naked, but sometimes wears a Roman soldier's tunic. Bes is a fun god. He is fiercely protective and a ferocious fighter, but also watches over the home and childbirth, and is a protector of children ... possibly a forerunner of Saint Nicholas and Santa Claus! Bes is one of the few Egyptian Gods who was always depicted full face and not in profile. He is the special patron of entertainers and loves music, dancing and making jokes as well as the pleasures of sex. His feminine aspect, Beset, is often depicted on hippo tooth magic wands.

SUNDAY SPANKO