The Greeks knew that the more rational we usually are, the more important it is—at points—to fling ourselves around to the wild rhythms of pipes and drums. At the festivals of Dionysus, held in Athens in March every year, even the most venerable and dignified members of the community would join in with unrestrained dancing that, irrigated by

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In The Birth of Tragedy, Nietzsche also described a rival cult – defeated, suppressed, and all but forgotten – that had worshipped the God Dionysius. The followers of this cult embraced music, dance, and sexuality. Whereas the Apollonians valued thinking and reasoning, the Dionysians celebrated the realms of feeling and the senses. Nietzsche... See more