We’re more likely to take our clothes off in front of a stranger than we are to let down our emotional defenses in front of someone we love.

we will probably place it lower on the scale. We tend to like those things we can control, and dislike what we can’t control or understand.

Our society emphasizes the tangible “masculine” values—aggression, power, winning, success, facts, intellectual abilities, concrete proof. The less tangible “feminine” values carry little weight. As a result many women today feel that there is no place for the Dionysian experience in their lives.

Addiction is the negative side of spiritual seeking. We are looking for an exultation of the spirit; but instead of fulfillment we get a short-lived physical thrill that can never satisfy the chronic, gnawing emptiness with which we are beset.

We often bemoan the “loss of intimacy” in our society. We are quick to take a stranger

Because you can swing from branch to branch as easily as that monkey. You can jump from tree to tree and branch to branch. You can climb as quickly as you can to the top, and scamper down again without falling. You cannot get hurt. Just enjoy yourself. Be filled with joy; there is no room for fear. You can do anything, but you must first believe th

toward a good and constructive purpose.

If you invest the gift with your love, then in giving this symbol you will have ritually expressed your love. You would be surprised at how much lighter you can feel after even such a small ceremony!

Affirm your personal responsibility for the Dionysian quality. Dionysian ecstasy is yours to channel, to humanize. Use it to produce positive, enlivening energy.