The City Dionysia (known also as the Greater Dionysia) was one of two ancient annual Athenian festivals grouped together as The Dionysia, dedicated to Lord Dionysus. The City Dionysia was held during the 10th to 17th of Elaphebolion (which roughly coincides to late March to early April) for around 8 days. The festival celebrates and honors the origin of Dionysos Eleuthereus' (which meant "The Liberator") arrival to Athens and is heavily known and famed for the theatrical competitions of Greek tragedies.
HISTORY
Two main events were pillars to the City Dionysia, which usually split the festival days in half. These were the procession and dramatic competitions.
During the first day of City Dionysia, a grand procession (known as pompe) was held entering the city and marching to the Theatre of Dionysus in which phalloi were carried atop of poles alongside a wooden statue of Dionysos Eleuthereus. Other important offerings were also carried during this procession like baskets, long-loaf bread, jars of water, goatskin bags of wine, and many more offerings. These were later followed a day after by dithyrambic competitions. Music and poetry was also played out in the following days by flute players or celebrity poets. To end the first half, bulls were sacrificed and a feast was held. A second procession then occurred (known as the komos).
In the second half of the City Dionysia, theatre and plays were held, Selected playwrights would announce the titles of their plays, days ahead, and present a tetralogy of three Greek tragedies followed by a satyr play (much more lighthearted) to end the competition on a good note. These plays were performed live in front of an audience who judged them, five days of the festival were set aside just for this. Though less important in the City Dionysia compared to the Lenaia, comedic competitions were also held. On the last day of the festival, the winners were announced and the prize of a goat was given.
ORIGINS 🍆
According to myth, the festival was established after the bordering town of Eleutherae brought a cult statue of Dionysus to Athens. Athenians initially rejected this and so as punishment, a plague was brought about by Dionysus affecting male Athenians and their genitalia. A cure was found with the acceptance of the cult of Dionysus. As payment, Athenians must offer due honors to the god and hold a procession carrying a phallus in recognition of their failings.
RITUAL ACTS
• Take a walk at a local park or botanical garden (you can pretend like it's a procession!)
• Wine-drinking or drinking of any kind of fruity beverage
• Pouring libations for Lord Dionysus (wine, honeyed water, fruity beverages)
• Creating phallic symbols (by modeling clay, drawing, paper mache, or simply doodling)
• Mixing sweet wine (3 parts water to 2 parts wine)
• Watch a musical
• Read Greek tragedies or watch adaptations of Greek tragedies (here is a link to My Library with Greek tragedies and an adaptation of The Bacchae)
• Compare translations of Greek tragedies (Carson, Arrowsmith, or Wilson for e.g.)
• Write a play, a greek tragedy, or a dithyramb yourself
• Play the flute or any musical instrument
• Offer long-loafs, wine, and baskets
• Recite the Orphic or Homeric Hymns dedicated to Dionysus
(Orphic Hymns: #30, #45, #50)
(Homeric Hymns: #1, #7, #26)
Thank you again and have a Merry City Dionysia! Euoi! 🍆
About your ritual host: I'm Daphne. I'm a detransitioned queer woman in her 30s who uses she/her pronouns. I'm a cultural anthropologist - interested in the ethnography of mysticism! - and (mostly) classical archaeologist who is also an eclectic polytheist, primarily focused on the Hellenic pantheon. I have devoted myself heart and soul to Dionysos since January 2025 and will be dedicating my life to Dionysos-Zagreus in February 2027. At the moment, this is my only blog!
About the ritual: My ritual is not attested to in antiquity nor is it strictly Hellenic polytheist, though I have taken care to incorporate elements of traditional Anthesteria celebrations
I will be celebrating Mar 1-3. I constructed my ritual around the ways I celebrate or spend time with my own loved ones on their birthdays and the anniversaries of their deaths! Much of my ritual is private. In service to my beloved Lord of Souls, I invite ANYONE who has lost someone to participate regardless of religion
On your behalf, I will:
Offer wine and prayers to Dionysos
Offer wine to your deceased loved ones (water to any deceased pets)
Offer (Greek!) coffee and a home-cooked breakfast to your loved ones, including treats for any pets
Read your intentions or messages before burning them in offering
Offer fruit and prayers to Hermes
This is a 3 day ritual!
I am honouring many of my own loved ones during my ritual: my mom and dad; three aunts; my brother; my friend; and two uncles
Completely free!!! I will provide food and supplies myself, but you're welcome to tip me for my service :3
Please fill out this form to participate!
I don't check Tumblr often, but please send any questions in an ask or message! My form will remain open until February 22, 2026
for some time on tt people have been saying that masturbation/sex as an offering to ancient greek deities is miasma, but some people on tmblr have been listing masturbation as an offering to gods like dyonisus and aphrodite. could you please share your opinion on this question, and if not too much to ask, recources to learn?
thank you!
Hi! Thanks so much for asking this question. Note for viewers: This post contents mature topics, so please do not read if you are a minor or otherwise may be triggered by related topics. Thank you!
First and foremost, it's important to acknowledge that masturbation and sex can be very spiritual and religious practices, but are usually advanced because of how intimate it can be / how vulnerable you are during those times. They can be incredibly powerful workings, but it's important to keep yourself safe. Because of this, please be mindful who you are inviting to witness, and please be wary moving forward with the rest of the information I've written out below.
Now, there's two aspects to this that I see: devoting the act with a boundary of disconnection, and devoting the act with the intent of working with the deity at the time of it.
Disconnection
In terms of disconnection, some people will devote these sexual acts to their deities as a way to embody the deity's domains or values (instead of actually making it an offering or gift). Though like I said this is an advanced practice, this is one of the safer ways to do it. When you give it as an offering, you are often giving the deepest parts of yourself, extreme amounts of your energy, and / or intimate pieces of who you are deep down (physically, psychologically, spiritually, etc) to another individual - giving them power over you, among other things. This is not only ill-advised, but most deities in my experience and to my knowledge do not want this. Not only does it leave you vulnerable to both the deity and other spirits with usually not very clear boundaries, but times of sex and masturbation are incredibly sacred. Exposing yourself in this way is risky, and in my teachings, almost any being who would watch this without consent means you harm. It is a teaching of respect, mutuality, and honor to not catch a deity off-guard with this kind of work and for them to not watch. Additionally, it's easy to accidentally cause bindings in this way, which is another reason why it is dangerous and an advanced working.
Keep in mind - this does NOT mean that being promiscuous or exposing yourself is dirty or spiritually wrong in any way. It means to do it safely, just as you would any other practice or intimate moment in your life. Slut-shaming is not okay and I do not believe that sex is something that has to be reserved for specific people or times, or that it can't be casual or healthy in any way. In fact, I believe that sex magick is incredibly beneficial, just a responsibility to oneself and others to use it appropriately. And, if it wasn't previously implied, please make sure you are receiving the deity's consent for things like this - consent matters, whether it's a spirit or a mortal.
Sex / Masturbation as a Working
Now, some people don't give these things as offerings, but still invite the deity into their space at the time as a form of working (whether it be asking their help for a spell, or making a deal / trade with the deity).
There is something I want to make clear, it is known in my teachings and other traditions - a deity will almost never ask something incredibly personal or intimate from you as an offering or deal / working. Whether it's your childhood stuffed animal, your grandmother's pearls, or even sex, this is not something most deities would ever request from you - instead, deities typically like things like poetry, candles, wine, etc depending on the god. The main reasons are because 1) they may not be into you like that, they may not want to see their practitioner in that way, and 2) it is an easy way to put you on the platter at a spirit restaurant. It's an easy way to establish a deep spirit attachment (in some practices, this is known as a possession, please note it's not the same as it's described in movies and you can learn more about it in this post). That is why the idea of godspousals in new ageist communites can be super dangerous for beginners (learn more in this post), it's an easy way to get an attachment even if the deity you're working with is not a trickster.
With all of that noted and out of the way, I'd like to focus on the spell / sex magick aspect of this kind of working. Deities work with Energy Forces - for example, Aphrodite works with Love / Passion, and can help with that energy as well as her own in general when it comes to various workings. I believe it's safest to lean on and ask the consent of the Energy Force because then you're getting help directly from the source, but if you want to lean on a deity, learn from the deity themselves. Of course, do your research, talk to other practitioners, do your own due diligence in general, but this kind of working should be collaborative. Talk with your deity, listen to their guidance and advice, respect their boundaries, and understand that this is a learning journey and spiritual / religious for you.
Whether you just want the energy boost or you want the deity there, there needs to be clear boundaries and limitations established alongside thorough protections to ensure those boundaries are respected by all beings, your deity or an onlooker. Examples can be:
Asking for the energetic support / influence before entering the room where you'll engage in this activity (that way you have the energy, but the deity does not need to be present or aware of your planned activity's specifics)
Collecting your own sexual energy into a spell or working (please make sure you do this SAFELY as it is easy to bind yourself), and asking the deity for help before and / or after the act of sex (such as using the energy to charge a glamour spell, and then lighting a prayer candle asking the deity to encourage attraction of kind mortals to you + thanking the deity after) (again, this is super advanced so not as simple as it sounds, but you can check out my table of contents for information on love spells)
Asking the deity to analyze your sexual patterns without bias / fetishization in order to learn where you need to improve (usually this is meant for people with health conditions that impact sex / masturbation, or people with sexual / intimacy trauma of some form)
There are other things you can do as well, but usually its along the lines of the deity either being there to protect you or benefit your health, or not being there whatsoever
There are less extreme versions of sex magick and energy work that some deities help with often, such as using feminine reproductive body parts in influential dances, among many practices. If you don't want to offer sex or masturbation, these are safer alternatives too, though I would still consider most of them advanced (or at least intermediate in nature) - again, this is because of the level of knowledge / experience required and, most importantly, the safety aspects.
Sexualization of Deities
Unfortunately, there's been a huge uptick in sexualizing deities because they are "higher than us" and "divine." Whether it be the concept that "gods don't have sexual urges, that's only something that weighs men down" or "the gods are nude and have sex freely because they're not limited by human constructs of modesty," there's extremes on either end that are disrespectful to the gods.
Something important that most people forget is that the deities are autonomous individuals. Whether they like sex or not, that's not really any of your business unless you've established some sort of relationship with them regarding that topic, and it's really weird to make assumptions about that when it comes to anybody, deity or not. It is not our place to determine things like that for a deity / spirit or mortal alike. Even deities of things like sex and masturbation still deserve the basic decency of being asked consent and their customs / wishes being respects. Some deities like sex, some don't. Some like it a lot, some just want to keep that private with their beloveds. Some are similar to the tales of sex or abstinence in their lore / mythology, others the stories don't reflect as accurately. Some deities might even have trauma with this sort of thing, such as Dionysus.
If you are keeping yourself safe, genuinely inquiring respectfully with the deity and respecting their yes or no, then it's not my place to say anything is wrong or should be prohibited. However, if at any point it is being done disrespectfully or by assuming what the deity might like or want without you actually talking to them, then it is non-consensual and I hope you either do better and / or your deity blacklists you. It truly is that serious in my eyes. I appreciate you especially, Anon, for asking this kind of thing, because it's important to gain outside perspectives and learn about things like consent.
Additional Points
Not gonna lie, writing this post took a bit of energy out of me. As a Priestess of Love (energy force), I take this very seriously and I wanted to add as much information as I could manage with as much clarity as possible. I wanted to expand and add even more, but I'm too sick to do that at this time (for context, I am chronically ill). At any rate, I hope this smaller list of things to consider as final notes is helpful:
RESEARCH! Learning how to conduct proper research is really important. A lot of people on TikTok do not know how to do proper research, even if they preach it. There's a lot that goes into efficient research - scholarly works, speaking with the community, personal experiences, etc - so please make sure you're doing more than just scrolling social media or reading blog-posts (even mine). This is a guide to basic research that might help you on that endeavor.
Look into sacred rituals and cults! Once advanced enough, there are ways to work with a deity - whether it be godspouse or something else - that are much more serious. Sometimes they're closed and require initiation, sometimes it requires meeting people of the community and sharing your honest spiritual intentions and motivations, sometimes it's spells you come across freely. When it is sexual in nature, there is history and there are traditions / customs that haven't been entirely erased that you may find!
Color magick! Something you can look into is color associations. Pink is best for love, red is usually for more serious sexual workings, white is for innocence / purity / sacrifice, black is for protection, etc! These associations can change depending on culture, person, etc, but those are some general things to look into as recognized by various spirits.
... I'm gonna be honest, I just ran out of steam lol. I'll link some other posts for you to check out if it interests you! But first, I want to leave you with some final conclusions:
Do not offer your very being and energy to another spirit willy-nilly
Respect the thoughts of your deity about this subject
Make sure you have thorough protections up
Thank you so much for asking, Anon!
Please do send a follow-up ask with any other questions or concerns! Like I mentioned, I ran out of steam while making this, so I just hope it's as articulate and informational as I intended. Thank you!! <3
Resources are as follows (please note that deity work falls under spirit work):
MUNDANE - Conducting Proper Research (Basic)
MUNDANE - CULTS: A Few Signs
MUNDANE - Mola the Fucktress
SPIRIT WORK - My Thoughts on "The Influences of Christianity" Reddit Post
SPIRIT WORK - Do & Don't: A Mini Guide to Respecting Spirits (Various)
SPIRIT WORK - "The Gods Aren't Mad At You"
SPIRIT WORK - The DANGERS of Godspousals
SPIRIT WORK - What ACTUALLY is a "possession?"
SPIRIT WORK - Harmful Spirits in Hellenism
SPIRIT WORK - TRICKSTERS (A Brief Intro for Beginners)
SPIRIT WORK / MISC - Ways to Work With the Greek Gods That You Don't Often Realize
SPIRIT WORK / MISC - Picturing Spirits
SPIRIT WORK / PROTECTION - A BRIEF GUIDE TO VETTING: Who am I talking to?
PROTECTION - Hellenist Protections | combatting new ageist forced conformity and misinformation
PROTECTION - Protection Tips for Beginners
PROTECTION - Protection Tips for Beginners
PROTECTION - Low-Cost Protections
PROTECTION - PROTECTION PRACTICES for beginners!
PROTECTION - A Witch / Practitioner's Reminder to Love the Colour Black
PROTECTION - LOCKING YOUR MIRROR (A Very Brief Guide)
PROTECTIONS / MISC - The Sacred Home
LOVE SPELLS - Love Spells: Manipulation + Free Will?
LOVE SPELLS - How to Tell If My Love Spell Is Working?
LOVE SPELLS - Some Important Info About Casting Love Spells
MISC - Xenia in Modern Religious (and Spiritual) Practice: An Introduction for Beginners
MISC - Spell Jars: DON'T CLOSE THE LIDS! (Including PART TWO)
