He then gave Dionysus to his messenger Hermes, who took the baby to Semele’s sister Ino and her husband Athamantas. Zeus managed to prevent the death of the unborn child by sewing it into his own leg. Unfortunately, light and fire enveloped the beautiful Semele and burned her body to death. Zeus acted thus since he had taken a sacred oath to make Semele’s every wish come true.
She, then, demanded from Zeus to prove that he was indeed a god.
Due to her jealousy, Hera planted seeds of doubt in Semele’s mind. Dionysus was the son of Zeus and Semele, the daughter of Cadmus, the first king of Thebes.
