Telete

Telete
Goddess of festivity and rituals
Telete and Dionysus in a mosaic from Zeugma Mosaic Museum
Major cult centerBoeotia
AbodeEarth
SymbolsThyrsus
ParentsDionysus and Nicaea

In Greek mythology, Telete (/ˈtɛlɪt/; Ancient Greek: Τελετή means 'consecration') was the daughter of Dionysus and Nicaea, naiad daughter of the river-god Sangarius and Cybele.

Mythology[edit]

Concerning Telete's birth, it is related that Nicaea was ashamed of having been made pregnant by Dionysus, and even attempted to hang herself; nevertheless, in due time a daughter was born to her. The Horae were said to have served as midwives at Telete's birth.[1] Telete was destined by Dionysus to become a follower of himself and his son Iacchus, her half-brother.[2]

Pausanias mentions a statue of Telete in the sanctuary of the Heliconian Muses in Boeotia. Her image was next to that of Orpheus.[3]

Telete was associated with nighttime festivities and ritual dances in honor of Dionysus,[4] and has been interpreted as a goddess of initiation into the Bacchic rites.[5]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ Nonnus, Dionysiaca 16.392-400
  2. ^ Nonnus, Dionysiaca 48.884-885
  3. ^ Pausanias, Graeciae Descriptio 9.30.4
  4. ^ Nonnus, Dionysiaca 16.400-402
  5. ^ "TELETE - Greek Goddess of Initiation Rites of the Bacchic Orgies". www.theoi.com. Retrieved 2021-04-15.

References[edit]