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Dionysus, Bakkha, and Nike
Dionysus, also known by the Roman name Bacchus, is not only a god
but an object of frenzied worship. His followers are Bacchae, mortal
women who, according to the Greek dramatist Euripides in his tragedy
The Bacchae, "run in sweet pain and lovely weariness with
ecstatic Bacchic cries in the wake of the roaring god, Dionysus."
Their male counterparts are satyrs, whose favorite sport is to chase
Bacchae through the woods. Both enjoy Bacchanalian feasts. Here,
Dionysus stands in a cart pulled by two panthers directed by Nike,
the god of victory; a dancing Bakkha leads the way.
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