Dionysus, the god of wine, theatre, and ecstasy in ancient Greek religion, has been compared to many other deities, both by his classical worshippers and later scholars. These deities include figures outside of ancient Greek religion, such as Jesus, Osiris, Shiva, and Tammuz, as well as figures inside of ancient Greek religion, such as Hades.Heraclitus, encountering the festival of the Phallophoria, in which phalli were paraded about, remarked in a surviving fragment: "If they did not order the procession in honor of the god and address the phallus song to him, this would be the most shameless behavior. But Hades is the same as Dionysos, for whom they rave and act like bacchantes", Kerényi 1976, pp. 239–240.
Within the Greek Pantheon
Adonis In Plutarch's symposiacs, it is stated that there are those who believe Adonis to be the same as Dionysus, however, Plutarch acknowledges that there are others who hold them to be lovers.
Outside of the Greek Pantheon
Abrahamic
Jesus Christ
Comparisons have been made between Jesus Christ and Dionysus since ancient times. Justin the Martyr, in his First Apology, notes the parallels between the cult of Dionysus and the cult of Christ, through their use of wine, donkeys, death, and resurrection.
Egyptian
Osiris
In his Histories, Herodotus says that many believe that Osiris is the Egyptian form of Dionysus.
References